[IsraelTimes] Sources in the Strip confirm troops fully pull out of key buffer zone, though military does not immediately comment
Israeli forces withdrew from the entire Netzarim Corridor in the central Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip overnight Saturday-Sunday, in accordance with the ceasefire-hostage deal with the Hamas ..the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood,... terror organization, sources in the enclave confirmed.
After the forces pulled out of the axis, which bisects the Strip south of Gaza City, Paleostinians were seen returning to the areas that had been controlled by the Israel Defense Forces since the early days of the ground invasion of the enclave.
The IDF did not immediately comment on the withdrawal.
According to the outline of the agreement, on day 21 of the ceasefire, Israel was required to withdraw from the entire corridor and only maintain a presence in a buffer zone of up to around one kilometer along Gaza’s border with Israel.
Israeli forces are still deployed to the Philadelphi Corridor, the Egypt-Gaza border area. Under the deal, on day 50 of the ceasefire, Israel will need to complete its withdrawal from Philadelphi.
An official from Gaza’s Hamas-run interior ministry told AFP that "Israeli forces have dismantled their positions and military posts and completely withdrawn their tanks from the Netzarim Corridor on Salah a-Din Road, allowing vehicles to pass freely in both directions."
An AFP journalist at the scene reported there were no Israeli troops present on the entire corridor.
Asked about Sunday’s withdrawal, an Israeli security official who requested anonymity told AFP: "We are preparing to implement the ceasefire agreement according to the guidelines of the political echelon."
AFP journalists reported cars, buses, pickup trucks and even donkey carts were seen traveling on Salah a-Din road from both the north and south.
Israeli forces withdrew from their positions in the western portion of the Netzarim Corridor nearly two weeks ago, as Israel allowed displaced Gazooks to return to the Strip’s north on foot via the coastal road and by vehicles on the Salah a-Din road; however, movement from north to south was restricted.
With Sunday’s withdrawal, those in the north can now also cross the corridor heading south by vehicle.
When the western Netzarim corridor was first reopened to foot and car traffic in January, the UN’s humanitarian body OCHA said that over 370,000 displaced Paleostinians returned to northern Gaza in the first two days after the IDF’s withdrawal.
The war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas led thousands of Death Eaters in an invasion of southern Israel in which 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were massacred. Terrorists also kidnapped 251 people of all ages as hostages to Gaza.
Israel responded with a military campaign to destroy Hamas and rescue the hostages. The fighting was more intense in northern Gaza than anywhere else in the enclave and civilians there were repeatedly ordered to evacuate combat areas by leaving for the south, where the IDF set up a humanitarian zone.
At the start of Israel’s ground offensive against Hamas in late October 2023, the Netzarim Corridor was just tracks left by IDF vehicles, but over the following months, the military established a four-mile road running east-west along the corridor, as part of efforts to block Paleostinians seeking to return to northern Gaza after fleeing south.
The road along the corridor was eventually paved and the surrounding area turned into a buffer zone to secure the thoroughfare from Hamas attacks.
As time went on, the IDF expanded the buffer zone, from just a few dozen meters on each side of the road to encompassing around 47 square kilometers (18 square miles) of land, or around 13 percent of the Strip’s total territory.
Hundreds of buildings were destroyed in the process, wiping out Paleostinian villages in the area. The IDF has argued that it was necessary to demolish the buildings to adequately secure the corridor, as Hamas was using the structures to launch attacks on troops.
In the buffer zone, the IDF established more than a dozen small military outposts and at least four forward operating bases, building infrastructure such as water lines and internet towers. Still, IDF officials insisted that all the infrastructure in the corridor was temporary and could be removed at short notice.
In accordance with the ceasefire agreement, the IDF was to withdraw from all its positions in the corridor, allowing free movement of Paleostinians to northern Gaza — one of Hamas’s key demands during hostage deal negotiations.
[IsraelTimes] PA health ministry identifies the two women as Rahaf al-Ashqar, 21, and Sundus Shalabi, 23, who was 8 months pregnant; IDF expands offensive into Nur Shams camp near Tulkarem
The Paleostinian Authority health ministry reported on Sunday that two Paleostinian women, one of them pregnant, were shot and killed by Israeli gunfire in the Nur Shams refugee camp near Tulkarem, amid an expansion of the IDF’s ongoing counter-terrorism offensive in the northern West Bank.
The IDF Military Police has launched an investigation into the incident, it said, in response to a query later Sunday.
PA health officials identified the two women as Rahaf al-Ashqar, 21, and Sundus Shalabi, 23.
The PA health ministry said Shalabi was eight months pregnant, and added that her husband, Yazan Abu Shola, was severely injured in the incident.
"Medical teams were unable to save the baby’s life due to the [IDF] preventing the transfer of the injured to the hospital," the PA health ministry said in a statement.
She was dead when she arrived at a local hospital, the ministry said.
The incident took place around dawn, Murad Alyan, a Nur Shams resident told AFP.
"The two were trying to leave the camp before the occupation forces advanced into it. They were shot while they were inside their car, and the wife and her baby were martyred, while the husband was injured," Alyan said.
The IDF announced earlier on Sunday that it had expanded its ongoing West Bank offensive, with troops beginning to operate in the Nur Shams camp overnight.
So far, troops have shot several terror operatives and detained wanted Paleostinians in the area, the military said.
The IDF launched a major offensive, dubbed Operation Iron Wall, in the West Bank on January 21 aimed at rooting out Paleostinian terror groups from the Jenin area, which has long been a hotbed of terrorism.
The IDF has acknowledged mistakenly killing several civilians during the operation, including a toddler.
Since October 7, 2023, troops have arrested some 6,000 wanted Paleostinians across the West Bank, including more than 2,350 affiliated with Hamas ..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",... According to the Paleostinian Authority health ministry, more than 900 West Bank Paleostinians have been killed in that time. The IDF says the vast majority of them were button men killed in exchanges of fire, rioters who clashed with troops or hard boyz carrying out attacks.
During the same period, 48 people, including Israeli security personnel, have been killed in terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank. Another eight members of the security forces were killed in festivities with terror operatives in the West Bank.
[IsraelTimes] Research by Yale professor says newspaper minimizes Palestinian violence following Hamas attack on Israel, leaving readers with ‘distorted’ view of the conflict
If I recall correctly, the New York Times received something like $50 million from USAID alone since 2021. Is there a connection?
New York Times
...which still proudly claims Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize... coverage of the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... war downplayed Israeli losses incurred after the October 7, 2023, Hamas ..always the voice of sweet reason... invasion of Israel and minimized the role of Paleostinian violence in perpetuating the conflict, according to a Yale professor’s analysis.
Edieal Pinker, a professor and deputy dean at the Yale School of Management, analyzed 1,561 New York Times articles about the war published between October 7, 2023, and June 7, 2024, for the study released last month.
The coverage fit into a "specific narrative," the study said. That narrative said that Hamas carried out a "brutal assault" on Israelis, mostly civilians, but that after that attack, Israel was the "sole aggressor" and bore few costs from the war, aside from declining international support.
The coverage following the Hamas attack instead focused on Paleostinian suffering, portraying Paleostinians as "passive victims whose suffering grows daily." There was extensive coverage of Israeli violence, but less mention of Israeli hostages, Hamas casualties, Paleostinian violence, Israeli casualties after the Hamas attack and Israeli suffering that was not directly tied to October 7.
"Little mention is made of Israeli casualties post-October 7 or of Paleostinian acts of violence post-October 7, even as Israel and Hamas were locked in intensive combat over the eight months of the study period," the study said.
The study was published last month in SSRN, a platform for working research papers that have not yet been peer-reviewed. The study was not sponsored by Yale. Pinker has a background in data analysis and has previously studied demographics in US Jewish communities.
The New York Times is regularly criticized by both Israel’s supporters, and its detractors, for its coverage of the conflict, including before the start of the latest war.
[IsraelTimes] Defense Minister Israel Katz warns: ‘Anyone who enters the buffer zone puts their life at risk’; separately, Gazan woman reportedly killed east of Khan Younis
IDF troops opened fire on a group of dozens of Paleostinians who approached the border in the northern Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip, near the community of Nahal Oz, on Sunday as Israel warned there would be zero tolerance for Paleostinians approaching troops who pulled back to a buffer zone along the frontier.
The suspects reached just a few hundred meters from troops, who were stationed in the buffer zone. The IDF said the forces moved forward with military vehicles and fired warning shots.
As a result, several of the suspects were hit, and the group withdrew, the military said.
Mahmud Bassal, front man for Gaza’s Hamas ..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",... -run civil defense agency, said there were "three deaders and several injured as a result of Israeli occupation forces opening fire on civilians in the eastern areas of Gaza City."
He urged residents to avoid the eastern areas and Israeli military positions, emphasizing the importance of following official directives.
Defense Minister Israel Katz, responding to the incident, said there would be zero tolerance for Gazooks approaching the border with Israel.
"Israel’s defense policy with Gaza is clear: Anyone who enters the buffer zone puts their life at risk," Katz said in a statement.
"There will be zero tolerance for anyone who poses a threat to IDF troops or the [border] fence and communities. We will not return to the reality of October 7," he added.
Speaking later at the start of a cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would rebuff any advance on the security perimeter granted Israel in Gaza under the terms of the ceasefire there.
"My directive tonight: Nobody approaches the perimeter, nobody infiltrates the perimeter," he said, hours after returning from Washington. "That’s part of the agreement and we will enforce it — enforce it forcefully. We expect Hamas to stand by all its commitments, and this is one of them."
The IDF has warned Paleostinians against approaching the Israeli border and a buffer zone inside Gaza where troops are deployed.
In a separate incident on Sunday, a Paleostinian woman was reportedly killed east of the Khan Younis suburb of al-Qarara in southern Gaza.
Meanwhile,
...back at the dirigible, the pilot and the copilot had both hit the silk.
Jack! Cynthia exclaimed. Do you know how to drive one of these things?
Jack wiped some of the blood from his knuckles.
No, he said. Do you?... the Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... i "Al Araby al Jadeed" newspaper also reported on Sunday that a high-level Israeli military delegation had traveled to Cairo on Friday to discuss security arrangements along the Israel-Egypt border.
The events on Sunday came after Israeli forces withdrew from the entire Netzarim Corridor in the central Gaza Strip overnight Saturday-Sunday, in accordance with the recent ceasefire-hostage deal with the Hamas terror group.
According to the outline of the agreement, on day 21 of the ceasefire, Israel was required to withdraw from the entire corridor and only maintain a presence in a buffer zone of up to around one kilometer along Gaza’s border with Israel.
Israeli forces are still deployed to the Philadelphi Corridor in the Egypt-Gaza border area. Under the deal, on day 50 of the ceasefire, Israel will need to complete its withdrawal from Philadelphi.
[IsraelTimes] Military says tunnel in Beqaa Valley had been struck in the past, latest attack was to prevent its restoration; other facilities belonging to Lebanese terror group targeted
Israeli fighter jets carried out several Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s in Leb ...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade.... on Sunday evening, including against a tunnel between Lebanon and Syria used by the Hezbollah terror group to smuggle arms, the Israel Defense Forces said.
The IDF said the tunnel, in the Beqaa Valley, had also been struck in the past. "The IDF is determined to prevent restoration and use of this tunnel," it said in a statement.
The Beqaa Valley area, a Hezbollah stronghold, is north of the Litani River, beyond which the Iran-backed group is required to withdraw under the ceasefire agreement reached in November 2024 after more than a year of hostilities, including two months of all-out war.
Additionally, the military said Sunday the Israeli Air Force targeted several Hezbollah sites in other areas of Lebanon, which included weapons and rocket launchers that "posed an immediate threat" to Israel.
According to the IDF, the targeted sites were "a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon."
Lebanese media reported a series of strikes in the Nabatieh area, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the border with Israel, and in the Baalbek area in the Beqaa Valley, nearly 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Israel.
The strikes came a day after the IAF struck what the IDF said were Hezbollah operatives at a weapons manufacturing site in eastern Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley on Saturday. Lebanon’s state news agency reported six dead and two maimed in that strike.
#2
Presumably, Israel is watching the hard rock mining companies that are doing all this tunneling. Drill, blast, load, haul, dump, shotcrete, ventilation, power… it’s not concealable.
[IsraelTimes] US president says emaciated captives freed on Saturday ‘look like they’ve aged 25 years’ and ‘have been treated brutally,’ adding: ‘I don’t know how much longer we can take that’
US President Donald Trump ...Oh, noze! Not him!... said Sunday that the three Israeli hostages who were released by Hamas ..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,... a day earlier looking gaunt and frail resembled Jews under Nazi Germany, warning that "at some point, we’re gonna lose our patience."
Eli Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami "looked like Holocaust survivors," Trump told news hounds aboard Air Force One on his way to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl. "They were in horrible condition, they were emaciated... and I don’t know how much longer we can take that."
He went on to say the trio "look like they haven’t had a meal in a month," and that they are "people that were healthy people a reasonably short number of years ago, and you look at them today, they look like they’ve aged 25 years, they literally look like the old pictures of Holocaust survivors, the same thing. No reason for that."
Trump noted that according to the current ceasefire and hostage deal, captives are supposed to "keep drippling in," but added: "They are in really bad shape, they have been treated brutally, horribly. Even the ones that came out earlier, they were in a little bit better shape, but mentally they were treated so badly. Who could take that?
"You know, at some point, we’re gonna lose our patience."
The comments came amid fresh uncertainty over whether the ceasefire deal will be seen through until all remaining 76 hostages are freed, and days after the US president called for the removal of Paleostinians from the enclave and for the US to take control of it.
Trump also told news hounds he remained committed to having the US buy and take ownership of Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... after Paleostinians leave or are removed from the enclave, a surprise announcement he made February 4 during Netanyahu’s recent visit to Washington. He said other countries may take part in rebuilding sections of Gaza.
"As far as us rebuilding it, we may give it to other states in the Middle East to build sections of it, other people may do it, through our auspices. But we’re committed to owning it, taking it, and making sure that Hamas doesn’t move back."
More about America taking over Gaza can be read here.
In a heart-wrenching television interview on Sunday, Idit Ohel, the mother of hostage Alon Ohel, pleaded desperately for his release “tomorrow,” saying she had just been told that he is being held starving in chains in a Hamas tunnel and has multiple untreated injuries.
She urged the whole nation, and the entire world, to insist upon and enable his release and to come out and demonstrate on Monday as he marks his 24th birthday, his second in Hamas captivity.
Idit Ohel told Channel 12 that released hostages Eli Sharabi and Or Levy were held with her son for the duration of their captivity. Their return from Gaza on Saturday was the first time that Ohel’s family received confirmation that he is still alive since he was abducted 492 days ago from the Nova music festival.
“He has shrapnel in his eye, he has shrapnel in his shoulder, he has shrapnel in his arm. Alon was bound in chains, this entire time, and he had almost no food — at most one pita a day, over a very, very, very long time, more than a year,” an anguished Idit Ohel told Channel 12.
“And not just him — everyone who was with him: Or Levy and Eli Sharabi,” she said, naming two hostages who were released on Saturday, visibly emaciated.
She said that “everything you can see that Eli and Or went through, Alon is now experiencing.” She also said that, according to what she’s heard, her son has not received treatment for his injuries, and can only see shadows out of his wounded eye.
Hamas terrorists abducted Ohel — a then-22-year-old pianist with plans to study jazz in Tel Aviv — alongside Or Levy and Eliya Cohen, whom Hamas is still holding captive in Gaza. Also abducted from the same bomb shelter was Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was murdered in Hamas captivity in August 2024.
Bound, gagged and starved: released hostages report severe mistreatment by captors. Or Levy, Ohad Ben Ami, Eli Sharabi returned emaciated, were reportedly hung by their feet and burned; still in Gaza, Eliya Cohen and Alon Ohel said untreated for Oct. 7 wounds.
[Townhall] Steve Soboroff, Los Angeles' "Recovery Chief," agreed to work without pay after Special Envoy Ric Grenell, Trump’s White House representative in California, exposed his $500,000 salary. The revelation sparked public outrage, prompting Soboroff to forgo his compensation in a bid to quell the backlash. The controversy comes as Soboroff oversees the city's recovery efforts, with many questioning the large salary in light of residents' ongoing challenges.
Facing criticism over his hefty $500,000 salary for just 90 days of work—money he would have earned from the misfortune of L.A. residents—Soboroff has backed down and agreed to work for free. Democrat L.A. Mayor Karen Bass confirmed he would receive no compensation, which would have been funded entirely by charitable organizations.
“Steve is always there for LA. I spoke to him today and asked him to modify his agreement and work for free. He said yes. We agree that we don’t need anything distracting from the recovery work we’re doing,” Bass said in a statement.
Soboroff, appointed last month as Bass's wildfire recovery czar, was brought in to boost Bass’s political career after her initial response to the emergency drew nationwide criticism. Although the mayor’s office declined to disclose which organizations would fund Soboroff’s salary, critics found it “infuriating” that Bass had even considered that option.
L.A. City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez deemed it "obscene" that philanthropic organizations would allocate $750,000 for only two individuals—$500,000 for Soboroff and $250,000 for real estate executive Randy Johnson, who will oversee rebuilding efforts under Soboroff's leadership.
#1
I find it obscene that a city with the enormous budget the size of Los Angeles would think they had to go OUTSIDE of their existing staff to respond to a tragedy (that they created).
Its just grift, grift, and more grift for these grifters. And they have zero awareness or concern with what the rest of us have to say about it, because California is lost--both by indoctrination, and by the corruption of the voting system.
#6
Karen Bass needs a recovery chief because she is incompetent. But I'd be willing to bet that Soboroff is crooked enough to grift a hefty sum out of this deal even without the salary. I'd be willing to bet that Los Angeles in general and Pacific Palisades in particular will never fully recover...not as long as Bass is the mayor.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/10/2025 12:34
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[FoxBusiness] A federal appellate court vacated a rule last week that advocates argue would have made the car-buying process more transparent and saved consumers billions.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the Combating Auto Retail Scams Trade Regulation – or CARS – rule before it could go into effect, arguing that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) failed to follow its own internal process.
The rule was aimed at fighting two common types of illegal tactics consumers face when buying a car, such as bait-and-switch tactics and hidden junk fees. But it also included provisions specifically protecting military members and their families from deceptive dealers falsely claiming military affiliation, along with addressing other issues unique to service members.
That all sounds very noble, and if a Trump administration initiative, probably is.
The FTC estimated in a report that the rule would save consumers more than $3.4 billion and cut down on the time it takes to buy a car by 72 million hours each year.
Saving lots of time and money? That’s like adding fireworks and dancing girls to the thing!
Critics such as the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) – an American trade organization representing nearly 16,500 franchised dealers, and the Texas Automobile Dealers Association (TADA) – said the FTC's research was "rushed" and "poorly researched."
They would say that if it’s a Trump administration initiative…
A slew of changes would have taken effect if the rule had been implemented, including requiring car dealers to disclose the price of the car along with all mandatory fees up front every time they advertise the vehicle, according to Erin Witte, director of Consumer Protection for the Consumer Federation of America.
The FTC, which was granted authority to regulate unfair or deceptive practices by motor vehicle dealers under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010,
…when Barack Obama was president, so you know it wasn’t a good idea…
"discovered that throughout the process of buying a car, it is frequently riddled with deception and unfair practices" said Witte.
The price consumers see is "almost never" the price that they pay at the end of the day, said Witte, adding that it's "remarkably common" for a dealership to tell consumers that they can't tell them a price over the phone, and they should come in person to discuss what kind of deal they can offer.
Witte said it's done intentionally to squeeze more out of consumers and that the tactics also rip customers away from "honest car dealers."
"Not every car dealer wants to gouge people," she said. "There are lots of car dealers that want to honestly advertise the price of their car, but they lose out if someone's advertising the same car for a cheaper price. But they can track someone on their lot for four hours and then jack up the price because they're there."
New Jersey car dealership owner Tom Maoli told FOX Business that he was an advocate for the CARS rule because it would have increased consumer confidence in buying cars from franchise car dealerships. Historically, they have "bad view of how they are treated at car dealerships across the country," said Maoli, whose company Celebrity Motor Car Company runs six dealerships.
Conversely, NADA and TADA argued that the new rule would have "added massive amounts of time, complexity, paperwork and cost to the car-buying and car-shopping experience for virtually every customer." The industry groups also said it "would have been a nightmare for consumers and dealers alike."
NADA said consumers would have spent an additional 60 to 80 minutes at the dealership for every transaction, and would have been subject to having to complete at least five new, untested forms during both the shopping and the purchasing process. This "would have driven up costs for vehicle purchases and, beyond that, would have cost consumers $1.3 billion a year collectively in lost time," the trade group said in a statement to FOX Business.
Hmmm…
The court didn’t take sides for or against the rule. Instead, it ruled that the FTC skipped an important part of the notice-and-comment process called the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM). In this initial step, the agency formally requests public input on a proposed regulation. It argued the FTC should have stated that it was considering issuing a rule about car dealers and these practices and left a discussion open for public feedback.
Instead, the FTC started at the second phase, called Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), where they outline their plan to change a rule and then open it up for public comment before finalizing it.
Witte argued that the FTC should have been allowed to skip this step since it was given the authority to fast track rulemaking for motor vehicle dealers.
"It also is frankly ridiculous to think that the FTC didn't do their homework on this to understand the impact of the rule," Witte said. "This was a decade in the making.
Oh. Not a Trump thing, but an Obama one. And they took shortcuts? Toss it out and start over, if starting over is actually the right thing to do.
The FTC relied on many, many enforcement actions, conversations with car dealers, with NADA, with consumer advocates and with actual consumers. They paid attention to what people were actually telling them about their experiences."
The FTC has to start this process over again if it wants to finalize the rule. It remains to be seen if that will occur, Witte said.
#1
The only car vendor I would recommend is Carmax.
Last one I bought, paid precisely the advertised price. Got 4% finacing, too (it's been 6 years).
Posted by: ed in texas ||
02/10/2025 15:50
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#2
Bought my 2021 F-150 (Drink Up!) Pandemic Lariat 4x4 with 40% down (not cheap) and my old 2004 as Trade-In. You'd think that would be a half-hour/hour experience. I walked out twice to get my concessions. F'kn why do I need to talk to the Manager? Do you want to sell it or not?
Ridiculous business practices
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/10/2025 16:07
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[Variety via MSN] Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson and Bill O'Reilly are going home - sort of.
Fox Corp., the backer of Fox News Channel, where all three of the aforementioned hosts led shows, is acquiring Red Seat Ventures, a digital media company that helps create content for a bevy of news personalities who have gone independent.
The move appears to be aimed at bolstering Tubi, Fox's free, ad-supported streaming outlet. Red Seat Ventures will operate as a standalone unit of Tubi Medi Group, and Paul Cheesbrough, CEO of that operation, was named Red Seat Ventures' chairman. Founding partners Chris Balfe and Kevin Balfe will continue to lead the business.
"From the beginning, Red Seat Ventures has had the opportunity to work with some of the most influential creators in the world to grow their new media businesses and develop their personal brands," said Chris Balfe, in a statement. "In aligning with Fox, we will be able to build upon that investment and expand the services we provide to our creators, while continuing to maintain the independence and integrity of their brands, which is truly the best case scenario."
Balfe worked for years with another Fox News exile, Glenn Beck, helping him with his production company, Mercury Radio Arts, as well as his media outlet, TheBlaze. In recent years, Red Seat Ventures has struck up alliances with Eric Bolling, Nancy Grace, Dr. Phil, Dana Loesch and Chris Hansen.
More to come....
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/10/2025
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#1
You just thought you got away.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
02/10/2025 15:40
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[JustTheNews] With a pin stuck in the tariff war phase of the negotiation, the question now shifts to follow-through by the Mexican government.
The promise by Sheinbaum was enough for a Trump-directed 30-day pause. However, its implementation will determine the success of such measures by Mexico.
The Mexican tariff standoff is enjoying a reprieve after the nation’s President announced that a deal was made to pause the tariffs for 30 days.
The White House announced the previous Saturday that tariffs would be go into effect for both Mexico and Canada at a rate of 25% as well as a 10% tariff on Chinese imports.
The issues cited by the Trump administration reflect his campaign’s emphasis on the fentanyl crisis, illegal immigration, and drug trafficking.
On the “X” social media platform Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum said, "We had a good conversation with President Trump with great respect for our relationship and sovereignty” and committed to deploying 10,000 Mexican troops to Mexico’s northern border adjoining the United States.
A further concern is whether Mexico’s earnest efforts to keep up their end of the bargain could be corrupted by cartel-loyal troops.
Democrat governors of border states are ‘non-existent,’ says Border Patrol Council VP, hopes Mexican troops will provide reliefDemocrat governors of border states are ‘non-existent,’ says Border Patrol Council VP, hopes Mexican troops will provide relief
According to National Border Patrol Council Vice President Art Del Cueto, not all Mexican troops may be committed to protecting the border, rather, serving as security for Mexican cartels. Del Cueto told the “Furthermore with Amanda Head” podcast on Monday: “my worry is, what are they going to do while they're out here? Because for the longest time, sometimes we've seen the Mexican military, and I hate to say it this way, or people that are dressed like the Mexican military, you get these copycats that actually start protecting the drug loads coming through to the southern border. So we want to make sure that we know it is actually them and it's not some of these copycats that are getting involved.”
This assertion was reinforced by Real America’s Voice National Correspondent and host of “Law and Border” TV show Ben Bergquam. Reacting specifically to the notion that Mexican military acts on behalf of the cartel, Bergquam said, “you have enough of the guys on the take, yeah, that you know you've strategically placed them in the right places…you’ve got the official guys doing it for you.”
Almost immediately upon taking office, President Trump and border czar Tom Homan began the deportation process starting with a “worst first” method. The focus has been on deporting illegal aliens who have committed crimes subsequent to the crime of crossing the border and in most cases, violent crimes like assault, rape, and murder.
The “worst first” policy has not been without opposition. California Attorney General Rob Bonta told ABC News, "there will be pain and harm inflicted by him. It is not all avoidable, but to get to our immigrant communities in ways that are in violation of the law, they're going to have to go through me, and we will stop them in courts using our legal tools given to us."
However, on Wednesday during a press briefing from the White House, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that less than 6% of those detained by ice were falsely detained. Of over 8000 arrested, 461 have been released from custody due to various reasons. This, after she also reported on “X” on January 23, 2025 that “the trump administration arrested 538 illegal immigrant criminals, including a suspected terrorist, four members of the trending Aragua gang, and several illegals convicted of sex crimes against minors.”
Furthermore, a future concern is that these criminal aliens might reappear on U.S. soil. Speaking on the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show Tuesday night, Congressman Tim Burchett said, “what worries me about some of those dirt bags that we deport is somehow they might by hook or crook, might get back in the country. If they mess with a child or a lady or anybody in a in a physical manner…again, kids might be watching…I think we ought to send them home in a box.”
In many high-profile stories like the NYC subway burning suspect, they were deported and then re-entered the country, in some instances multiple times.
[BBC] Four men have pleaded guilty to having 2.2 tonnes of cocaine for supply on board a Panamanian cargo ship in September 2023. "It's for Personal Use, man!"
A multi-agency operation off the Irish coast resulted in the largest such seizure in the history of the state.
The four were due to go on trial having earlier this week failed in a bid to have the charges against them dismissed.
The four men - Ukrainians Mykhailo Gavryk, 32, and Vitaliy Vlasoi, 32; Iranian Soheil Jelveh, 51, and Dutch national 49-year-old Cumali Ozgen - appeared before the Special Criminal Court in Dublin on Thursday, where they were each arraigned on one of three charges against them.
Eight men in total are facing a number of charges in relation to the drugs seizure.
The 2.25 tonnes of cocaine that was seized from the MV Matthew, a Panamanian-registered bulk carrier, has an estimated value of more than €157 million.
The ship was boarded in a dramatic operation by the Army Rangers, a specialist wing of the Irish Defence Forces, in September 2023, after the ship failed to stop following warning shots.
The men had applied to the non-jury Special Criminal Court on January 13 to have the charges against them dismissed.
On Thursday, Sean Guerin SC, for the State, said the four guilty pleas were acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions on a full-facts basis.
Ms Justice Melanie Greally remanded the four defendants in custody until 24 February, when their cases are listed for mention with a view to fixing a sentence date for next term.
Two other defendants Iranian Saeid Hassani, 39, and Filipino Harold Estoesta, 31, will stand trial on Monday before the Special Criminal Court arising from the seizure of the cocaine.
The two men were remanded in custody until then.
A seventh man, Ukrainian national Vitaliy Lapa, 62, with an address at Rudenka, Repina Str in Berdyansk, was previously arraigned on one of the two charges against him.
Mr Lapa pleaded guilty that on dates between 21 and 25 September 2023, he attempted to possess cocaine for the purpose of selling or otherwise supplying to another.
Mr Lapa was also facing a charge that between 15 July and 23 September 2023, both dates inclusive, within the state, with knowledge of the existence of a criminal organisation, that he participated in, or contributed to, activity intending to, or being reckless as to whether such participation or contribution could facilitate the commission of a serious offence by that criminal organisation or any of its members.
Mr Lapa was the only one of the accused men who did not make an application under the Criminal Procedure Act to have his case dismissed.
UK national Jamie Harbron, 31, has also pleaded guilty to an offence arising from the seizure.
He will appear before the court later this year for a sentencing hearing.
Mr Harbron, of South Avenue in Billingham, pleaded guilty that on a date between 21 and 25 September 2023, both dates inclusive, he attempted to have cocaine in his possession for the purpose of sale or supply, an offence under the Misuse of Drugs Act.
[BBC] Two men in their 40s have appeared in court after the seizure of almost 200kg of drugs in counties Laois and Dublin.
During searches in Mountmellick in County Laois on Tuesday, gardaí (Irish police) seized about 182kg of cocaine and 4kg of cannabis herb.
In a follow-up search in west Dublin, a further 17kg of cocaine was found as well as €25,000 (£20,700) in cash. Eight vehicles and drug paraphernalia were also seized.
Gardaí said the value of the drugs was more than €14m (£11.6m).
Both men who appeared in court on Thursday were remanded in custody.
A third man arrested over the drugs find was released without charge, the Garda (police said).
[Breitbart] Fine, then you own/maintain it
The Foreign Ministry of Egypt announced on Sunday it would convene an emergency meeting of the Arab League on February 27 in light of President Donald Trump’s repeated assertions the United States would take over and rehabilitate the Gaza Strip.
Trump has told reporters on multiple occasions in the past month that he does not believe that Palestinian civilians should be forced to live in Gaza in its current state. Gaza has been controlled by the jihadist terror organization Hamas since 2007 and has been in a formal state of war with Israel since October 8, 2023 – the day after Hamas terrorists killed, abducted, tortured, and raped hundreds of civilians in an invasion of Israel. To neutralize Hamas’s ability to repeat its gruesome terrorism, Israeli armed forces have targeted and dismantled much of Hamas’s terrorist infrastructure in Gaza, often hidden in schools, hospitals, and other civilian areas.
In late January, Trump described Gaza as a “literally a demolition site” and expressed home that some neighboring Arab states would take it over from Hamas and help “clean out that whole thing.”
Last week, Trump told reporters that America would “take over the Gaza Strip” and “do a job with it” in the absence of any interest from Egypt, Jordan, or other neighboring Muslim countries to help its inhabitants.
“We’ll love it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous bombs and other weapons on the site,” he claimed, “and get rid of the destroyed buildings [and] create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing.”
Trump also suggested the new Gaza would be an “international” vacation destination.
Egypt, which shares a border with Gaza, has been especially reluctant to take in any Palestinian refugees throughout the war, claiming that allowing civilians to escape the destitute and war-torn area was akin to ethnic cleansing. Cairo reportedly explained in its announcement of the emergency Arab League meeting that the intent of the event would be to essentially prevent America from taking on a dominant role in rebuilding Gaza.
The National, a paper of record in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), reported citing anonymous sources that the Arab League would use the meeting “to produce a unified Arab stances against Mr. Trump’s proposals, with the hope of dissuading the US president.”
It is unclear which neighboring countries would participate in the summit, though most are expected to attend. Of note is a report from the regional newspaper Al Araby Al Jadeed indicating that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the head of the jihadist terror organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), is expected to attend.
Preceding the announcement of the meeting, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry revealed in a public statement that Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had spent much of Saturday on the phone with other Arab diplomats discussing the Muslim world’s rejection of Trump’s plan. The Foreign Ministry listed Abdelatty’s contacts as including his counterparts in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, and Sudan. Bahrain, as the current Arab chair, is likely to be a prominent attendee at the emergency meeting.
Egypt, the Foreign Ministry statement on Saturday reiterated, “rejects any measures aimed at displacing the Palestinian people from their land or encouraging their relocation to other countries outside the Palestinian territories.”
“This stance stems from the belief that such notions and ideas represent a blatant violation of international law, an infringement on Palestinian rights,” it continued, “and a threat to security and stability in the region, thereby undermining the chances for peace and coexistence among its peoples.”
Notably, the Foreign Ministry said Abdelatty’s conversations including talks on how Egypt could help with “early recovery projects, debris removal, and reconstruction” – the tasks that Trump listed as essential to making Gaza once again inhabitable.
In another sign that Egypt may be considering taking on some responsibilities in rebuilding Gaza, Saudi news outlet Al-Hadath reported on Sunday that Egyptian officials contacted Washington to inform it that it is working on “a vision of its own for rebuilding Gaza without displacing the Palestinians,” Israel’s i24 News reported. The Saudi report did not specify any provisions within that alleged vision.
Abdelatty departed for Washington on Sunday.
“The visit takes place in the framework of bolstering bilateral relations and the strategic partnership binding Egypt and the United States and to consult on regional developments,” the Egyptian government said of the top diplomat’s visit before he left.
Egyptian strongman leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi himself is expected to travel to the White House himself sometime before the end of February, according to various reports, but neither government has confirmed such a visit at press time.
If Egypt proposes taking on a prominent role in rebuilding Gaza, it may be what Trump’s remarks initially intended to inspire. During a visit to the Dominican Republic last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that Trump was frustrated with the lack of initiative by regional actors, prompting his plan to “take over” Gaza.
“That place right now,” Rubio said of Gaza, “is not habitable, not just because of destruction due to the conflict and the fact that the Hamas cowards hide underground, but also because there are unexploded munitions; there are all kinds of weapons, including Hamas weapons, in the location.”
“I think President Trump has offered to go in and be a part of that solution, and if some other country is willing to step forward and do it themselves, then that would be great,” he explained. “But no one seems to be rushing forward to do that, and that has to happen. That’s the reality.”
“There are a lot of countries in the world that like to express concern about Gaza and about the Palestinian people but very few were willing in the past to do anything concrete about it,” he concluded, “And so I think President Trump is trying to stir that and hopefully get a reaction from some countries who do have both the economic and technological capacity to contribute to a post-conflict region.”
[Breitbart] Border Patrol agents in Michigan arrested a “leader of hitmen with the Gulf Cartel” during an immigration enforcement action last week.
Detroit Sector Chief Patrol Agent John Morris posted a report on X revealing the arrest of Melquiades Salgado-Garza. Morris described the illegal alien as a leader of hitmen for the Gulf Cartel.
The chief reported that Salgado’s criminal history included charges for burglary, forgery, and immigration violations.
Over the weekend, Chief Morris reported that agents assigned to the Sault Ste. Marie Station apprehended a suspected member of the violent Tren de Aragua Venezuelan prison gang.
Border Patrol agents had been searching for the suspected gang member and found him during a traffic stop. Officials did not release the alleged TdA gang member’s name but said they arrested him as he attempted to retrieve a previously seized vehicle.
Agents from the Marysville Station arrested another illegal alien from Mexico. The Mexican national has been arrested ten times since 1999 for illegal entry into the United States.
Morris said they were processing the Mexican national for removal.
Removal operations across the country are having an impact on border crossings. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks reported a 91 percent decrease in migrant apprehensions at the border compared to the same week last year.
“By stopping the flow at the border, we also streamline the removal of illegal entrants already in the country, reinforcing the integrity of our immigration system,” Banks stated.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Attorney General Pam Bondi promised that her office will 'come after' whomever leaked a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) memo that revealed the location of the next major raids.
The leaker, who has not yet been revealed, made it known that agents are poised to carry out a 'large scale' action in Los Angeles before the end of this month.
Bondi, speaking from outside Super Bowl 59 at the New Orleans Superdome, made it clear that the attorney general's office will not tolerate this.
'If anyone leaks anything, people don't understand that jeopardizes the lives of our great men and women in law enforcement, and if you leaked it, we will find out who you are and we will come after you.
She added that the leakers will not get in the way of what Bondi describes as 'our mission' to carry out Donald Trump's mass deportation program.
'It's not going to stop the president's mission to make America safe again. If you don't follow the law, you will be prosecuted by the Department of Justice.'
Trump has ordered large-scale immigration operations across the country since he took office on January 20, but the incoming action will be the first to hit LA.
A federal law enforcement source said agents from the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration's Los Angeles field offices are being called in to assist.
'They needed more bodies,' the official, who spoke anonymously for fear of retaliation, told the LA Times.
The official added that the timeframe for the raids could change due to the 'chaotic' approach the new Trump administration has shown during its first few weeks.
They also anticipated pushback from some of the agencies involved in the Democrat-led city, which could also slow the plans.
'Just because certain information is being given doesn't mean it's the administration's plan, because they know some agents are going to be resistant,' the official said.
A former official also confirmed the same news about incoming ICE 'raids' to the LA Times.
[FoxNews] The California agency has had to shift probation officers to its juvenile halls amid a staff shortage
The department charged with supervising the thousands of people on probation in Los Angeles County is asking for local authorities to take over duties from its officers, citing a "significant void" in supervising high-risk probationers amid staffing shortages.
A mutual aid request sent by Probation Chief Guillermo Viera Rosa in December to the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES) asks for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and local police agencies to conduct compliance checks on probationers over a one-year period.
The request came after Rosa reassigned field officers to the county juvenile halls to cover for staffing shortages there.
"This reallocation has created a void in the supervision of probationers, which presents a risk to public safety," Rosa wrote in the memo. "Probation is requesting mutual aid support from state, county, and city law enforcement agencies to conduct compliance checks on probationers and ensure the safety of communities."
"This crisis has created an unsafe environment for juveniles, probation staff, educators, medical personnel, and community organizations, increasing the risk to public safety," he added. "To address this, the Chief Probation Officer has redirected all field probation officers to juvenile institutions to ensure adequate staffing. However, this move creates a significant void in the supervision of high-risk probationers, including those convicted of sexual assault, domestic violence, gang-related crimes, and other offenses."
An OES spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the state's role is to facilitate conversations between local entities for the Probation Department to get the assistance it needs, unless it specially asks for state-supported mutual assistance.
"The state has no authority to approve mutual aid in a situation such as this," Amy Palmer, an OES spokesperson, said of Rosa's request.
The probation chief requested 150 peace officers to provide supervision for adult and juvenile probationers for a one-year period, according to a fact sheet provided to Fox News Digital. Under the terms of the proposal, the Probation Department would provide an "armed liaison from Special Enforcement Operations" to assist with the compliance checks "through routine or targeted contacts."
Probation officers would be responsible for collecting and sharing data and police officers would be responsible for performing checks and making arrests in their cities. As an incentive, the department will reimburse participating police agencies the equivalent of two work hours for each completed compliance check, as well as the time it took to complete the check.
[MAIL] The Department of Government Efficiency's 'nerd squadron' is being led by a 'heartless' CEO known for his ruthless approach to layoffs, according to bombshell allegations.
Tom Krause has been installed as the Treasury Department's fiscal assistant secretary, replacing a longtime career civil servant.
The Silicon Valley executive is an ally of Elon Musk and has been tasked with managing the nation's payment system.
He will be working closely with the six baby-faced men handpicked by Musk to help trim the fat on public spending.
His first days have already been marred by controversy and a lawsuit over claims he was given inappropriate access to the payment system and tried to, 'unlawfully freeze payment instructions given by Congress'.
Krause is a shrewd businessman who is CEO of Cloud Software Group, a holding company following the merger between software firms Citrix and TIBCO.
Krause was brought in as CEO for Citrix in 2022 where he established his formidable reputation as a hatchet man, laying off thousands of employees to haul the company out of its $15 billion of debt, Prospect reports.
#3
How about a remote AI driven auditing system that encompasses all Federal agencies. Link it to a ship's horn that sounds when established parameters are violated.
[Huffpoo] "After all the hard work that you’ve done over your career, to allow it to be destroyed on your watch would not be a legacy I would want," warned William Webster.
WASHINGTON — In an unusually direct appeal, William Webster, a Republican and former director of both the CIA and the FBI, this week sent a scathing letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), urging him to remember his decades-long legacy of strengthening the FBI and to stop Kash Patel from being confirmed as the agency’s chief.
"As a fellow "Republican" Republican, I urge you to consider the risks to national security, the integrity of the Bureau, and the safety of the American people before allowing this nomination to proceed unchecked," Webster said Tuesday to Grassley, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over Patel’s nomination.
#4
"As a fellow Republican, I urge you to consider the risks to national security, the integrity of the Bureau, and the safety of the American people before and allowing this nomination to proceed unchecked,"
[NYP] A major solar power plant project that was granted over a billion dollars in federal loans is on the road to closure, with energy experts blasting the project as a "boondoggle" that harmed the environment.
In 2011, the US Department of Energy (DOE) under former President Barack Obama issued $1.6 billion in loan guarantees to finance the Ivanpah Solar Power Facility, a green energy project that consists of three solar concentrating thermal power plants in California.
The facility was touted by then-Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz as an "example of how America is becoming a world leader in solar energy."
But after 10 years, the federally funded plant is now on track to close.
"Ivanpah is yet another failed green energy boondoggle, much like Solyndra," Jason Isaac, CEO of the American Energy Institute, an American energy advocacy group, told Fox News Digital in a statement. "Despite receiving $1.6 billion in federal loan guarantees, it never lived up to its promises, producing less electricity than expected while still relying on natural gas to stay operational."
"Now, with its power contracts canceled, Ivanpah stands as a testament to the waste and inefficiency of government-subsidized energy schemes," Isaac said.
#1
"Despite receiving $1.6 billion in federal loan guarantees, it never lived up to its promises, producing less electricity than expected while still relying on natural gas to stay operational."
[AT] Over the past two weeks Elon Musk and his cadre of young computer geniuses have cracked the code. Like Toto pulling the curtain on the Wizard of Oz, they’ve pulled back the cover on government secrecy. They've shown how oceans of tax revenue have flowed through Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), charitable-sounding foundations, the UN, and others to fund terrorists, disrupters like BLM, and reporters to promote Democrats and censor the opposition, most often to enrich Democrat politicians and their friends, families, and allies. The news you thought was news wasn’t independently and honestly generated. The charities you thought were genuine, weren’t. It’s one big gaslighting grift and you paid for it.
Some examples:
...It’s not just waste on idiotic projects. Most of these disbursements are funneled through and into the pockets of NGOs located in the Washington D.C. area run by friends and family of Democrat politicians who get the lion’s share of the money.
...Naturally, the recipients and beneficiaries of this pork are fighting tooth and nail to stop the audits, doubtless by groups and lawyers that themselves are recipients. Just yesterday Letitia James persuaded a judge in New York to temporarily enjoin the audit of the Treasury Department.
Posted by: Grom the Affective ||
02/10/2025
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#2
There may have been some trendy sounding causes involved, but this has mostly been about stealing public funds and putting it in their own pockets.
Lamposts. Nooses.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
02/10/2025 8:34
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[Independent] What a difference four years can make.
Polls are showing Donald Trump’s early moves in office are yielding the highest approval ratings of either of his terms in the White House, a stark change from when he left office in early 2021 with the lowest support in his presidential career.
Overall, 53 percent of respondents approved of the job Trump was doing, according to a CBS News / YouGov poll conducted in early February.
#7
I'll give him two thumbs up for cleaning out the rat's nest that is our gov't. We knew the bastids were pi**ing away boatloads of USD. Now we have clear evidence and proof.
[Breitbart] The crowd at Super Bowl 59 went wild as Caesars Superdome cameras focused on Donald Trump during the national anthem.
As singer Jon Batiste warbled the national anthem ahead of the game in New Orleans, the cameras toured the stadium, observing the coaches and players as they swayed to the song. But when the cameras focused on Donald Trump, who stood giving a proud salute, and his daughter Ivanka, the crowd broke out in loud cheers.
#1
Unfortunately it was such a tragic implosion of our beloved Chiefs that I've had to put the whole thing behind that dark door in the basement of my mind.
#3
Didn't watch the SB game... and haven't watched any NFL game in many years.
Because, ever since the "Take a Knee" by Black Athlete Multimillionaires. Then add to it the special singing of the single colored race based National Anthem, it's no longer a unifying national game.
It has become just another Liberal Race Based Social Political event in too many ways.
#5
NN2N1, Trump's campaign and appearances like this one show he and his team are taking back popular culture. His presence was particularly important after the ISIS attack in New Orleans a month+ ago.
Meanwhile, while Trump did the media / popular culture thing Vance was representing the US at a high stakes international meeting about AI and regulations.
Once NFL decides to be the Nation Football League again, and focused on the sport and not on politics and social issues.
Sure I will consider giving it yet another chance.
BTW: On my word to GOD, and I am only guessing based on comment #2? The Philly Eagles won??
A performer in Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show was detained on the field and could face charges after unfurling a combination Sudanese-Palestinian flag with "Sudan" and "Gaza" written on it.
The NFL confirmed the person was part of the 400-member field cast. The New Orleans Police Department said in a statement that "law enforcement is working to determine applicable charges in this incident."
The performer stood on a car used as a prop for Lamar's performance and held up the flag.
"The individual hid the item on his person and unveiled it late in the show," the NFL said. "No one involved with the production was aware of the individual's intent."
Roc Nation, the entertainment company that produced Sunday night's show, said the act "was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal."
The show continued without interruption, and it did not seem the person was shown on the broadcast of Lamar's performance.
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/10/2025 9:27
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#9
unfurling a combination Sudanese-Palestinian flag with "Sudan" and "Gaza" written on it
Dude, just tattoo a big "L" for Loser on your forehead. Those are not winning teams.
Super Bowl Halftime Performer Detained After Unfurling Sudanese-Palestinian Flag: ‘The individual will (be) banned for life from all NFL stadiums and events,' NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said in an emailed statement. The entertainment company, which produced the show, said that the act 'was neither planned nor part of the production and was never in any rehearsal'
#14
The halftime performer who unfurled a Sudanese-Palestinian flag was detained and yet these protesters get away with waving their foreign flag. I guess the venue and the number of people doing it makes a difference in whether or not the perpetrators will be detained.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/10/2025 13:15
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#15
I'm with NN2N1 about the NFL's virtue signalling. It's a big turn off for me. I can never forget that it all started with George Floyd the fentanyl junkie dying from an overdose and the white cop being blamed for it. The implication always seems to be that I'm a racist and a hater. I'm not and I resent the implication. I might be willing to start watching again if they would get rid of those stupid little slogans in the end zones and on the backs of the players' helmets. Just play football and keep the virtue signalling off the field.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/10/2025 13:32
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#16
Yeah, this is a problem too. Black, white, red, brown, yellow, green or purple...one nation, one anthem, one flag. Please.
#19
How were the commercials this year? Usually I watch those while Mr. Wife watches the game, but I was so tired after the local Blues festival the night before that I skipped it.
They went into the 1st quarter looking at a historic win, and into the 4th quarter looking at a historic loss. It was over half into the 2nd quarter.
Not sure what the Eagles D was doing, with the camera zoomed in on the pocket and announcers not talking strategy, but they gave Mahomes an early case of Kermit Foot and it was 3 and outs, missed marks, multiple sacks and picks. Chiefs D did as fine as they could until they got tired and injured, with the Eagles having a 2:1 possession time advantage. Chiefs got a couple late TDs or else you'd see the blowout in the score.
But, of the 3 Stools of Super Bowl - game, show, and commercials, the game was the best aspect.
As someone who was a die hard KC fan entering into the Herm Edwards scour, and grew up watching Barry Sanders, was pulling a bit for Detroit to taste the fruits of successful building. At the risk of losing my Kansas Card by not paying attention anymore, was a passive observer, Philly had the habit of making good teams look bad.
Did anyone see the meme about 'the illusion of choice' where a person has to choose the turnstyle of either KC winning or PHL winning, but the routes go into the same chamber of 'Philly Burns'?
[MAIL] A Vatican official has slammed Donald Trump for 'breaking commitments' with his cuts to USAID and and warned people are being 'terrorized' amid his crackdown on migrants.
Pope Francis' adviser on migration and development Cardinal Michael Czerny has urged the president to remember his Christian values.
'A crackdown is a terrible way to administer affairs and much less to administer justice,' said Czerny, whose own family immigrated to Canada from the Czech Republic as refugees after World War II.
'And so I'm very sorry that many people are being hurt and indeed terrorized by the measures.
'All we can hope for is that the people, God's people and the people of goodwill, will help and protect those vulnerable people who are suddenly made much more vulnerable.'
How much is the Catholic church losing due to the stop of USAID and other Uncle Sugar paymasters?
Czerny heads the church's Caritas Internationalis charity and development which is among the organizations affected by Trump's decision to axe foreign aid spending.
#3
Layoffs have already begun as CRS has been forced to begin shutting down programs funded by USAID, which supplies about half of the Catholic organization's $1.5 billion budget, said CRS president and CEO Sean Callahan in a staffwide email sent Feb. 3.
#8
Part of the problem is that people are trying to scare everybody: "ICE is going to deport anyone with a Hispanic surname", "ICE is going to go into schools and carry out kids", "Kids are going to go home from school and find their parents gone", etc.
At this point, most of those arrested and deported are those who have committed other crimes - rape, robbery, murder.
#9
I like LOVE comment #6. That would be a hilarious solution.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
02/10/2025 11:41
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#10
I am confused. How is an organization completely funded by taxpayers and run under the conditions of government agencies, a Non Governmental Organization?
Posted by: Regular joe ||
02/10/2025 14:28
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#11
#10 "War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength," - 1984
[LI] One of the best aspects of President Donald Trump is how much he embraces his America First policy, especially when it comes to spending taxpayer dollars.
Over my many years at Legal Insurrection, I have reported on the United Nations climate conferences that were filled with eco-activists, climate cultists, and globalist glitterati. While entertaining, it was hard to stomach how much our country was spending supporting pseudoscience and socialist agendas cloaked in environmentalism.
Well, those days are done and Trump has now clawed back our $4 billion from the grasping bureaucrats at the climate nations...much to the chagrin of the USAID-funded Politico.
[Washington Examiner] An immigrant group behind a major lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship receives millions of dollars in government funding annually, a Washington Examiner analysis of public records has found.
CASA, an organization that helps migrants find work regardless of their legal status, filed the lawsuit alongside the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project and five pregnant noncitizens in January, arguing that Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship is unconstitutional. The pro-immigration group received roughly $5 million in government grants and $7 million in government contracts between July 2022 and June 2023, according to its most recent tax disclosures.
Tax filings from prior years show that CASA has long relied on millions of dollars in government funding to keep its programs running. In a review of federal spending records, the Washington Examiner identified grants from the Departments of Education, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Justice, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security funding a variety of programs offered by CASA.
#4
My working theory is that the loudness of the screeching is proportional to the total amount received.
As a corollary, the more obscure the organization, the larger percentage of their budget is fed grants.
[RedState] Attorney General Pam Bondi has created a special federal task force to investigate the involvement of US persons and organizations in the October 7, 2023, massacre of 1,200 people, including 47 Americans, in Israel. In one of her first acts as Attorney General, Bondi established "Task Force 10-7" for the purposes of:
Pursuing criminal charges, including capital crimes where applicable, against the perpetrators of the October 7 attack;
Providing services to the victims of the October 7 attack and coordinating as appropriate with others to facilitate the return of hostages;
Seeking the arrest and extradition of Hamas leadership charged in the complaint docketed as United States v. Haniyeh, No. 24 Mag. 438 (S.D.N.Y.);
Investigating and prosecuting acts of terrorism, antisemitic civil rights violations, and other federal crimes committed by Hamas supporters in the United States, including on college campuses;
…that’s a big one — thousands will pay now for previous pleasures rioting, vandalizing, and assaulting and battering Jews as well as those who resisted the totalitarian “protesters”..
Investigating and prosecuting those responsible for funding Hamas; and
USAID and the State Department — your turn for attention!
Supporting efforts by the Israeli government, Department of Defense, and Department of Treasury to pursue non-criminal responses to the October 7 attack and other terrorist activities by Hamas.
There is no doubt that some of the perpetrators of October 7 used the out-of-control southern border to enter the United States. There is also no doubt that there was some degree of coordination between the organizers of pro-terrorist "river to the sea," tablecloth-wearing protests, and Hamas leaders in Gaza or Qatar. This task force will also enforce Trump's Executive Order on Combating Anti-Semitism.
The reference to United States vs. Haniyeh is something of a puzzler. The U.S. indicted Ismail Haniyeh, the now-deceased chairman of Hamas’s Politburo and the equally putrescent head of Hamas's Political Bureau, Yahya Sinwar, not long after the attack. The fact that supervisors and agents working on this case were trawled up in the same purge that engulfed January 6 goons leads me to believe that the FBI deliberately refused to investigate Hamas.
#2
Judging just from what has been seen on College campuses. This should be interesting for the Students, the left leaning Fascist/National Socialist leaning Facility and the do nothing Permissive Admin.
[ZERO] Elon Musk has called for the impeachment of an Obama-appointed judge who barred DOGE and the Treasury Secretary from accessing payment systems at the US Treasury.
On Friday night, Democrats went 'judge shopping' to ask that Musk's team be stopped from accessing Treasury systems, knowing that instead of receiving a judge by random selection, the only available judge would be Paul Engelmayer - who held an ex-parte hearing without DOJ lawyers. Engelmayer did not cite any case law or precedent for his ruling, which many have criticized for vast overreach.
The order prohibits special government employees, along with those from outside the Treasury department, and the Treasury secretary himself, from accessing the systems.
On Saturday, Musk posted to X: "A corrupt judge protecting corruption," adding "He needs to be impeached NOW."
#4
Given the highly inappropriate/illegal/unconstitutional nature of this decision, it can only be seen as a stop-gap measure to allow Swampy a few days to hide/destroy certain incriminating evidence.
That's what the piece about destroying all copies DOGE has made of the data is all about. Don't want any discrepancies to point the finger.
#9
This seems pretty hinky, especially the ex-parte part.
Q: Is the judge doing this to protect *his* rice bowl or is he doing it on behalf of "friends"?
#14
Our Constitution is filled with checks and balances for the Executive and Legislative branches, but not so much for the Judiciary. I think that's a mistake. We need something besides "good order" or "good behavior" as a check on judicial overreach or blatant defiance of law, or of creating law out of whatever the judge decides a law should say. I think more stringent rules for the judiciary would solve a lot of today's problems.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/10/2025 17:33
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#15
RE #14. Just takes courage. The House and Senate allowed to interpret the Constitution, especially what constitutes "good behavior"; the other branches cannot do anything about it (president cannot pardon the impeached, and no judicial review).
[NEWARAB] Sudan ...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans... 's military said on Saturday that it had regained control of nearly all of Khartoum North, as it intensified its offensive aimed at reclaiming full control of the capital from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The army, at war with the RSF since April 2023, has in recent weeks won back large swathes of the capital and its surrounding areas from the paramilitaries.
On Saturday, the military said it had recaptured Kafouri, a key district in Khartoum North, after pushing the paramilitaries to the outskirts of the city also known as Bahri.
The district, one of greater Khartoum's wealthiest, had been a key base for the paramilitary group, housing properties linked to senior RSF leaders, including Abdel Rahim Daglo, the brother and deputy of RSF commander Mohammed Hamdan Daglo.
In a statement, military front man Nabil Abdullah said army forces and their allies on Friday pushed out "remnants of the Daglo terrorist militias," from Kafouri and other areas 15 kilometres to the east in Sharq El Nil.
On Thursday, a military source told AFP the army was advancing towards the centre of Khartoum, while eyewitnesses reported festivities there and explosions in the south of the capital.
The developments mark one of the army's most significant advances since the war broke out between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former ally Daglo's RSF, which quickly seized much of Khartoum and other strategic areas.
Fears of reprisals
However,
women are made to be loved, not understood... as fighting rages on in the capital, Amnesty International raised concerns Friday over potential reprisals in areas recently recaptured by the army.
The rights group cited reports of the circulation of lists targeting activists, human rights ...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty... defenders, medical and humanitarian workers, accused of being "partners of the RSF".
In South Belt, a neighbourhood in Khartoum, the RSF on Saturday detained two members of a local volunteering rescue group at gunpoint from Bashair Hospital - the last partially functioning facility in the area, the group said in a statement.
On Thursday, the RSF had also reportedly detained the manager of Bashair Hospital as well as the head of a soup kitchen and a volunteer, according to local rescuers.
Last week, the UN human rights office documented at least 18 civilian deaths in Bahri since the army began its advance there in late January.
Following the army's takeover of al-Jazira state capital Wad Madani last month, mass executions against civilians were reported.
Human rights groups have accused the army and allied militias of extrajudicial killings, kidnappings, and physical and psychological torture, particularly targeting communities suspected of RSF ties.
Though the RSF has become notorious for alleged ethnic-based violence - leading the United States last month to accuse it of genocide - reports have also emerged of civilians being targeted on the basis of ethnicity in army-controlled areas.
Air strikes in Darfur
Elsewhere, the military has intensified its operations against paramilitaries in the vast western region of Darfur.
In the RSF-controlled Central Darfur state capital Zalingei, a military air strike on a residential neighbourhood killed three siblings and injured three other family members, according to a local group representing displaced people and refugees in the region.
The city has been a stronghold for rebels and gangs other than the RSF, serving as a base for launching attacks against the state.
The Darfur General Coordination of Camps for the Displaced and Refugees, a local civil society group, said on Saturday that the army air strike also destroyed homes in the area.
Further south, in the RSF-held South Darfur state capital Nyala, military air strikes killed 57 people within two days last week, according to medical sources at a hospital.
While the RSF holds sway over much of Darfur, the army has consolidated its grip on the country's north and east as well as parts of the centre.
The conflict has devastated the country, displacing more than 12 million and plunging Sudan into the "biggest humanitarian crisis ever recorded" according to the International Rescue Committee.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/10/2025
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Worth noting, korrespondent.net has compiled its Invasion of Ukraine series into separate months, beginning May 9th, 2023. Linked in the title.
[Korrespondent] 20:36 Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said that the Ukrainian Defense Forces are launching a revolutionary project called "Drone Line," which should radically strengthen the brigades and scale up the experience of effectively destroying the enemy. The head of the department reported this on Sunday, February 9.
18:34 The German Defense Ministry is investigating possible espionage after six sightings of unknown drones were recorded over the Schwesing air base near Gusum in January. Ukrainian troops are training on Patriot systems at the base, Welt reports.
17.49 The intensity of attacks by the Russian army on the Zaporizhzhya Front has decreased, the occupiers are acting in small groups, not having sufficient forces for a long offensive. This was reported by the head of the communications department of the 118th separate mechanized brigade, Senior Lieutenant Dmitry Pelikh on air at Suspilne.
16:59 As of April 2022, the area of mine-contaminated territories was about 174 thousand square kilometers. This was reported by First Deputy Minister of Defense Lieutenant General Ivan Gavrilyuk.
The Ministry of Defense noted that thanks to the joint work of mine action operators and demining units, this figure was reduced to 139 thousand square kilometers, and the work continues.
16.33 During the week from February 3 to February 9, the air defense shot down more than 546 enemy air attack vehicles. This was reported by the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Sunday, February 9.
12.41 In Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk region, two men aged 41 and 39 were injured as a result of an attack by a Russian attack drone. This was reported by the head of the Dnipropetrovsk OVA, Serhiy Lysak. According to him, one of the victims received a mine-explosive injury and a shrapnel wound to the face. He is being treated on an outpatient basis. The other was hospitalized.
11:18 Fighters of the RUBpAK Phoenix unit of the Revenge brigade of the State Border Service of Ukraine destroyed two tanks and five more enemy armored vehicles in the Kramatorsk direction using drones. The video was released by the State Border Service
10.53 Over the past 24 hours, 133 combat clashes between units of the Defense Forces and Russian invaders have been recorded at the front; in the Pokrovsk direction, Ukrainian troops have repelled 54 enemy assaults. This was reported by the General Staff. Over the past 24 hours, aviation, missile forces, and artillery of the Defense Forces have hit six areas of concentration of personnel and equipment, three artillery weapons, and two radar stations of the Russian invaders.
10:16 Kyiv region was attacked by Russian drones on the night of February 9, the alarm lasted for more than 11 hours, there are enemy targets shot down. This was reported by the Kyiv OVA. In the Obukhovsky district, debris from a shot down target fell on the territory of a multi-story building construction. The facade of an unfinished residential building was damaged.
In other places in the region, debris from shot down targets fell on open areas.
9:50 On the night of February 9, the Defense Forces shot down 70 Russian drones, and another 74 drones were lost. This was reported by the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. As a result of the Russian attack, the Kyiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr and Volyn regions suffered.
8.52 Russian troops attacked Nikopol region in Dnipropetrovsk region with artillery on the night of February 9. Private houses and a gas pipeline were damaged. This was reported by the head of Dnipropetrovsk OVA Serhiy Lysak.
7.45 Over the past 24 hours, the Defense Forces have destroyed 1,460 occupiers. The total combat losses of the Russian Federation from 24.02.22 to 09.02.25 amounted to approximately 849,320 people. This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
7.23 Last night, 35 drones attacked 7 regions of the Russian Federation and occupied Crimea. This was announced by the Russian Defense Ministry. Restrictions on the arrival and departure of civilian aircraft were introduced at three Russian airports due to threats of attacks by attack drones.
03.10 Ukrainian defenders from the 3rd separate assault battalion destroyed a column of Russian tanks and infantry fighting vehicles that tried to break through the Ukrainian Armed Forces defense in the Kharkiv region. During the combat clash, 10 units of Russian armored vehicles were destroyed, 10 occupiers were eliminated, and 30 more were wounded.
00.48 Ukrainian laser weapon Trezub successfully passes tests and can burn through metal and shoot down aircraft. Soon the military will be able to shoot down Russian "shaheeds", said the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces Vadim Sukharevsky.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Korrespondent] In the Pokrovsky direction, our soldiers eliminated 114 and wounded 97 Russians; destroyed one armored personnel carrier, seven cars, five motorcycles, four UAVs, and also significantly damaged a tank and two guns of the invaders.
The defense forces are directing their efforts to disrupt the Russian invaders' plans for their arrival and to exhaust their combat potential. Since the beginning of the day, 92 combat clashes have occurred. This was noted in the General Staff's report on Sunday, February 9.
The enemy launched two missile and 58 air strikes, used two missiles and dropped 86 KABs, carried out 1,086 kamikaze drone strikes and 4,429 shelling attacks on our troop positions.
In the Kharkov direction, our soldiers repelled three enemy attacks in the areas of Volchansk and Figolovka. The aggressor launched air strikes on the settlements of Nesterno and Slatino.
The enemy made seven attacks on our fortifications in the Kupyansk direction, near Boguslavka, Stepnaya Novosyolka, Golubovka, Novaya Kruglyakovka, Petropavlovka and Zagryzovoye. Our defenders successfully repelled six attacks, another combat clash continues.
In the Liman direction, Russian troops attacked the positions of Ukrainian defenders ten times a day in the areas of the settlements of Zeleny Gai, Novosergeevka, Yampolevka, Kolodtsy, Kopanki and Novolyubovka.
In the Kramatorsk direction, two enemy attacks continue near Chasovy Yar.
In the Toretsk direction, the occupiers today stormed the positions of our defenders 12 times in the areas of the settlements of Toretsk, Krymskoye and Shcherbinovka. Two combat clashes near Toretsk are still ongoing.
In the Pokrovsk direction, the enemy carried out 31 assaults on our defenders' positions during the day. The greatest activity of the Russian occupiers remains in the areas of the settlements of Zelenoe Pole, Vodyanoye Vtoroye, Elizavetovka, Luch, Peschanoye, Udachnoye, Novoaleksandrovka, Andreyevka and Dachnoye. Two combat clashes are still ongoing. The enemy carried out airstrikes on the settlements of Zverevo, Pokrovsk, Filial and Grodovka.
According to preliminary estimates, today our soldiers eliminated 114 and wounded 97 occupiers in this direction; destroyed one armored personnel carrier, seven cars, five motorcycles, four UAVs, and also significantly damaged a tank and two guns of the invaders.
In the Novopavlovsk direction, the enemy tried in vain to break through eight times near the settlement of Konstantinopol. The settlements of Razliv, Odradnoe, Novosyolka and Storozhevoe received air strikes; in total, the enemy attracted four guided bombs and 24 unguided missiles.
The enemy did not conduct offensive operations in the Seversky, Gulyai-Polye, Pridneprovsky and Orekhov directions. At the same time, it carried out air strikes with 43 guided bombs and 10 unguided missiles on the areas of the settlements of Gulyai-Polye, Krasnoye, Novopol, Pyatikhatki, Kamenskoye, Lukyanovskoye, Stepnogorsk and Pridneprovsky.
In the Kursk direction, Ukrainian defenders repelled 17 attacks by the invaders, one combat clash is ongoing. In addition, the enemy carried out 23 airstrikes, using 37 KAB, carried out 394 artillery shellings, including eight from a multiple launch rocket system.
While in other areas there have been no significant changes in the situation.
The General Staff noted the soldiers of the 65th separate mechanized brigade and the 79th border detachment, who steadily held back the invasion of a superior enemy.
Recall that DeepState reported new advances by the occupiers . Russian troops had successes near Zaporozhye, Zelenovka and Andreyevka.
As reported, the Defense Forces destroyed 1,460 occupiers over the past 24 hours. The total combat losses of the Russian Federation from 24.02.22 to 09.02.25 amounted to approximately 849,320 people.
[FoxNews] President Donald Trump said he has directed the Secret Service to give him "every bit of information" known about his two attempted assassins last summer during the presidential campaign, according to a report.
"I want to find out about the two assassins," the president told the New York Post Friday. "Why did the one guy have six cellphones, and why did the other guy have [foreign] apps?"
Trump told the Post the Secret Service had been holding back information because of President Biden.
"I’m entitled to know. And they held it back long enough," he added. "No more excuses."
Trump was shot in the ear July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania, while speaking at an outdoor campaign rally by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was killed by the Secret Service after shooting at Trump, killing a rally attendee and injuring two others.
Two months later, Ryan Routh, 59, allegedly waited for over 12 hours in brush with a rifle on the perimeter of the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach as Trump was golfing Sept. 15.
A Secret Service agent saw Routh allegedly pointing a rifle through a fence and fired at him. Routh fled and was arrested that day.
He has pleaded not guilty to several counts, including attempted assassination of a presidential candidate and assault on a federal officer, and remains in federal custody. His trial is scheduled for Sept. 8, 2025.
Six cellphones were reportedly found in Routh’s car after his arrest.
Crooks had encrypted messaging accounts on multiple platforms based in Belgium, New Zealand and Germany, according to Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., who was appointed to a congressional task force investigating the assassination attempt.
The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
[FoxNews] The Secret Service special agent in charge (SAIC) of the Pittsburgh field office was not informed of credible threats to former President Trump ahead of his July 13 outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and detailed in handwritten notes that they didn't learn about the threats until after the assassination attempt when they saw it on television.
In a preliminary report on the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump released on Wednesday by the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, top senators listed several key failures of the Secret Service.
"Why am I hearing that there were threats to the site on TV," the SAIC of the Pittsburgh office wrote in a handwritten note after the attempt.
"How can the SAIC of our [field office] not know about any threats and why did they feel that only one part of [Special Operations Divisions] was sufficient to cover it instead of the entire package," the note continued.
According to the report, Secret Service counter snipers had been approved and sent to the Butler event due to "credible intelligence" of a threat. However, many of the Secret Service personnel interviewed by the committee, which they said included the intelligence advance agent and the SAIC of the field office, said they were not made aware of the threat.
In fact, "only two of the [Secret Service] personnel the Committee has interviewed were made aware that there was a credible threat related to former President Trump prior to July 13," the report reads. Only one of those personnel members was then made privy to the underlying classified information about the threat.
Per the committee, the lead advance agent was informed by the second supervisor of Trump's detail that "credible intel" was the reason for the addition of counter snipers to the event's security. The SAIC said the information was not relayed to them, despite the advance agent asking the second supervisor to call the SAIC about the "credible intel."
Even after learning of the counter sniper assignment and "credible intel," the lead advance agent ultimately wrote in a preliminary survey document that "[a]t this time, no adverse intelligence has been developed concerning this visit. Any adverse intelligence that may arise will be passed on to all working supervisors."
#1
"Why am I hearing that there were threats to the site on TV," the SAIC of the Pittsburgh office wrote in a handwritten note after the attempt.
"How can the SAIC of our [field office] not know about any threats and why did they feel that only one part of [Special Operations Divisions] was sufficient to cover it instead of the entire package," the note continued.
#2
Why stop with the SS?
What about several other Federal, State and Local agencies that should have spotted issues.
Besides. How much is left to turn over?
The Guy was seen climbing and on roof for a good 10+ mins and people were screaming about it to police.
Police were on the scene about 5+ mins later after the shooter was 1st spotted, and long BEFORE the 1st shot was fired towards Trump.
The Biden Fed's claim no communications with local & state police about the person on the roof?
We have been given various stories of how Local police engaged him, and had to back off.
The Biden Federal counter-snipers FAILED to spot a figure on the roof within +/- 200 yards. Or they WAITED until shots were fired before acting?
We had High School 16 y/o teenager pics within hours. But then media avoided showing the shooters, current 20+ y/o Long Hair young adult pictures for many days?
The shooter's Social Media / Email and etc were scrubbed unusually quick, even for FB and etc.
Then we learn of a large sum of $$$$$, said to be in foreign banks accounts, which quickly became hush-hush.
The whole area was shutdown, not just the crime scene, as the Biden Fed's washed the roof down of any DNA traces. Then they burned the body, before the investigation was completed?
Hell, the whole process reeks of a pre-planned Patsy planted assassin.
Linked article is available only through a VPN
hEngMilRu] The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation.
In Kharkov direction, units of the Sever Group of Forces inflicted fire damage on formations of one special operations brigade, one territorial defence brigade, and one national guard brigade close to Sinelnikovo, Malye Prokhody, and Zhovtnyovoye (Kharkov region).
The AFU losses were up to 30 troops, two field artillery guns, and one motor vehicle.
The Zapad Group of Forces' units improved the tactical situation and delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of three mechanised brigades, one tank brigade, one jaeger brigade, one air assault brigade, one mountain assault brigade, one airmobile brigade, one assault brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and two territorial defence brigades close to Novoyegorovka (Lugansk People's Republic), Zeleny Gai, Lozovaya, Boguslavka, Novoplatonovka, Petropavlovka (Kharkov region), Yampol, Serebryanka, and Zvanovka (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses were up to 205 troops, one tank, one infantry fighting vehicle, six armoured fighting vehicles, including two U.S.-made M-113 armoured personnel carriers, two Dutch-made YPR-765 armoured personnel carriers, six field artillery guns, including three NATO-made ones, and six motor vehicles. Three ammunition depots and three Kvertus and Nota electronic warfare stations were eliminated.
As a result of decisive offensive actions, the Yug Group of Forces' units liberated Orekhovo-Vasilevka (Donetsk People's Republic).
Russian troops delivered strikes at formations of three mechanised brigades of the AFU near Seversk, Zaliznyanskoye, Minkovka, Chasov Yar, and Predtechino (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses were up to 180 troops, one motor vehicle, and two field artillery guns. One ammunition depot was destroyed.
The Tsentr Group of Forces' units continued advancing into the depths of enemy defences, inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of eight mechanised brigades, one motorised rifle brigade, three jaeger brigades of the AFU, two National Guard brigades, one assault regiment, and one territorial defence brigade near Muravka, Dimitrov, Krasnoarmeysk, Kotlino, Druzhba, Panteleymonovka, Yasenovoye, Uspenovka, Petrovka, Grodovka, Peschanoye and Udachnoye (Donetsk People's Republic).
The AFU losses were up to 580 troops, four armoured fighting vehicles, including U.S.-made M-113 and M-1117 armoured personnel carriers, three field artillery guns, and seven motor vehicles.
The Vostok Group of Forces' units improved the situation along the front line. Russian troops inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of three mechanised brigades, one tank brigade of the AFU, and three territorial defence brigades close to Novosyolka, Burlatskoye, Novopol, Novoocheretovatoye (Donetsk People's Republic), and Gulyaipole (Zaporozhye region).
The AFU losses were more than 140 troops, one tank, one armoured fighting vehicle, five motor vehicles, and three field artillery guns, including one German-made 155mm Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery system.
Units of the Dnepr Group of Forces delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of three mechanised brigades, one infantry brigade, two coastal defence brigades of the AFU, and two territorial defence brigades near Novoandreyevka, Malye Shcherbaki, Kamenskoye, Stepnogorsk (Zaporozhye region), Berislav, and Otradokamenka (Kherson region).
The AFU losses were up to 65 troops, one infantry fighting vehicle, and seven motor vehicles. Two ammunition depots and three electronic warfare stations were hit.
Operational-Tactical Aviation, attack unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces engaged an oil and gas facility which provided support for the operation of the Ukrainian military industry, the infrastructure of military airfields as well as clusters of enemy manpower and hardware in 147 areas.
Air defence facilities shot down one U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS projectile and 90 fixed-wing drones.
In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, 653 aircraft, 283 helicopters, 42,800 unmanned aerial vehicles, 592 anti-aircraft missile systems, 21,268 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,514 MLRS combat vehicles, 21,463 field artillery guns and mortars, and 31,420 units of support military vehicles have been neutralised.
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the operation to neutralise AFU formations on the territory of Kursk region.
During offensive actions, units of the Sever Group of Forces engaged formations of one tank brigade, one heavy mechanised brigade, four mechanised brigades, two air assault brigades, one infantry brigade, and three territorial defence brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Bogdanovka, Gogolevka, Goncharovka, Zaoleshenka, Ivashkovsky, Kolmakov, Pervy Knyazhy, Vtoroy Knyazhy, Lebedevka, Martynovka, Mirny, Nikolsky, Rubanshchina, Sverdlikovo, Sudzha, and Yuzhny. In addition, three enemy counter-attacks were repelled.
Operational-Tactical and Army aviation, and artillery inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the enemy near Viktorovka, Guyevo, Zamostye, Kasachya Loknya, Pervy Knyazhy, Kositsa, Kruglenkoye, Kurilovka, Loknya, Malaya Loknya, Makhnovka, Melovoy, Oleshnya, Rubanshchina, Cherkasskoye Porechnoye as well as Basovka, Belovody, Veselovka, Zhuravka, Mirlogi, Pisarevka, Yunakovka, and Yablonovka in Sumy region.
Over the course of the day, the AFU losses were more than 320 troops, five tanks, five infantry fighting vehicles, including one U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, three armoured personnel carriers, 16 armoured fighting vehicles, 26 motor vehicles, four artillery guns, two mortars, one Israeli-made RADA radar as well as one UAV command post and two ammunition depots.
Since the beginning of hostilities in Kursk direction, the AFU losses amounted to more than 58,870 troops, 355 tanks, 259 infantry fighting vehicles, 204 armoured personnel carriers, 1,826 armoured fighting vehicles, 1,890 motor vehicles, 422 artillery guns, 48 MLRS launchers, including 13 of HIMARS and six of MLRS made by the USA, 18 anti-aircraft missile launchers, eight transport-loading vehicles, 106 EW stations, 15 counter-battery warfare radars, six air defence radars, 38 units of engineering and other materiel, including 18 counterobstacle vehicles, one UR-77 mine clearing vehicle, one bridge launcher as well as nine armoured recovery vehicles, and one command post vehicle.
The operation to neutralise the AFU units is in progress.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[NewsFront] 19:20 Armed Forces of Ukraine inflicted strike on Belgorod region. No casualties.
In the village of Terebreno in the Krasnoyarsk region, a drone attacked a private house - the roof was pierced and windows were knocked out.
In the village of Konovalovo, Volokonovsky District, as a result of an explosive device being dropped from a drone, the glazing of two residential buildings was damaged. Two cars were also damaged by shrapnel on the territory of the property.
In the village of Murom, Shebekinsky District, an FPV drone struck an agricultural enterprise, damaging the wall and entrance to the administrative building.
18:35 Russian Ministry of Defense:
Drone operators of the "North" military group destroyed several unmanned aerial vehicles of the Baba Yaga type belonging to the Ukrainian Armed Forces militants in the Khar'kov region.
17:35 In the Pokrovsk-Mirnograd direction, Ukrainian formations continue to attack Russian positions on the eastern outskirts of Kotlino, –MAP.
The presence of Ukrainian Armed Forces units in the industrial zone of Peschanoye also remains: according to available data, the enemy garrison is currently cut off from reinforcements and trapped in the ruins of a local mine.
16:35 FPV drone crews of the West group of forces destroyed an infantry fighting vehicle of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Khar'kov region, –video.
15:40 Special Forces "Anvar" destroyed howitzer that supported enemy attacks on the Kursk region
Russian special forces are actively destroying the military equipment of the occupiers in the Sumy region, on the approaches to Kursk, preventing the enemy from advancing on Russian soil.
15:10 Footage of FSB combat units at work in Dzerzhinsk, –video.
Combat units of the Russian Federal Security Service for the Donetsk People's Republic are destroying enemy positions of UAV crews from which fire was adjusted on civilians.
14:10 Rubicon drone operators continue to destroy armored vehicles of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk direction, –video.
11:00 Destroyed and abandoned armored vehicles of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, shot down by FPV drone crews of the Rubicon Center while repelling an attack on February 6 in the Kursk direction, –video.
10:05 Around 7:00 air defense forces destroyed Ukrainian UAV over the territory of the Leningrad region
During the night, 35 drones were intercepted and destroyed:
18 UAVs over the Kursk region,
four over the Oryol region and Krasnodar region,
three over the Voronezh and Rostov regions,
one over the Bryansk and Tula regions and Crimea.
9:55 The explosion of the Ukrainian 203mm 2S7 "Pion" in the Kursk border region, –video.
During a reconnaissance flight, the FPV operator of the Sever air defense system discovered a 203mm 2S7 Pion self-propelled artillery unit of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
9:05 The Russian army is expanding its bridgehead on the right bank of the Zherebets River, beginning the assault on Kolodezi and Yampolovka, –MAP.
In the Liman direction, Russian troops continue to actively expand their bridgehead on the right bank of the Zherebets River in the area of ??the settlement of Terny, having advanced in the eastern part of the settlement and in the western part of the Laptev ravine in an area up to 2.8 km wide and up to 1.5 km deep.
The fighting continues in the direction of Yampolovka; the first Russian motorized rifle units have already begun to fly into the northern outskirts.
Our forces are also attacking west and southwest of Ivanovka – on the approaches to the settlement of Kolodezi.
8:10 Kursk region. Viktorovka and Malaya Loknya. Fighting.
Russian naval infantry and airborne forces units knock out the enemy from the villages of Viktorovka and Malaya Loknya using FPV drones and attack drones.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Kirill Velesov
[REGNUM] The press service of Roskachestvo reported that the country plans to approve and introduce a state standard for shawarma. “The approval of the GOST for shawarma is tentatively planned for the end of the fourth quarter of 2025,” the department clarified.
The discussion of the first edition of the standard has already taken place. Roskachestvo notes that its development is being carried out in accordance with the deadlines set in the national standardization program.
However, shawarma lovers should not be afraid of the monotony of fast food in all tents: the department does not plan to standardize the product, but only to reduce health risks.
“ Their content will relate more to production conditions, storage and sales temperatures, food safety systems, rather than establishing a specific recipe or ingredient list for a specific dish,” Maxim Protasov, head of Roskachestvo, explained earlier the meaning of introducing standards.
Reports of planned standards for street fast food appeared last year. As Roskachestvo reported, this is due to the general sanitary and epidemiological situation in the catering industry and the risk of mass poisoning of consumers. After all, the product beloved by many is considered a product of increased epidemiological risk.
According to experts, it will not be so easy to take control of shawarma. Chairman of the Russian Union of Consumers Petr Shelishch previously stated that the requirements for its ingredients and manufacturing processes will not have any practical significance.
"The GOST is voluntary, not mandatory," he reminded. "That is, producers will be able to ignore it." In addition, according to Shelishch, shawarma consumers will be guided not by the introduced standard, but by their own taste preferences.
For now, as Protasov reported at the end of December last year, the department plans to conduct repeated studies of the product. “This category must be kept under control in any case,” he noted. And Roskachestvo has every reason to make such a decision.
Indeed, for a long time shawarma has served not only as a convenient snack, but also as an inexhaustible source of jokes – admittedly, not the kindest ones. Street food has always been closely associated with black humor about the possible upset stomach after eating it.
"I never buy shawarma at kiosks, I make it at home, it turns out just like the real thing, I even got poisoned three times," says one of the jokes. However, judging by the news, the topic of shawarma safety is in fact not a joke, because doctors and law enforcement officers regularly encounter mass poisonings from such fast food.
Recently, 73 people, including 25 children, suffered from a poor-quality product in Perm Krai, 66 shawarma lovers were hospitalized. Earlier, at least 17 people in the capital were infected with salmonella - all of them had previously visited a shawarma outlet.
Sometimes, eating this dish can even lead to death. Although this is rare, such cases have occurred in recent years at least in Lgov and St. Petersburg.
Scientists confirm the health risks of street food. Last year, during a study of shawarma sold in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Roskachestvo discovered deadly bacteria, and 27 out of 29 samples taken showed violations of sanitary and epidemiological standards for microbiology.
In particular, E. coli, "responsible" for food poisoning, was found in products of 15 brands. As infectious disease specialist Anastasia Novikova explained at the time, its presence indicates poor sanitary conditions in production, faecal contamination, or violations of transportation and storage conditions.
So the news about the proposed GOST for shawarma is not so surprising and sounds quite relevant. As well as the words of Roskachestvo that participants in the public catering industry, retail and professional experts in the field of food safety are highly interested in developing a standard for this food.
Indeed, in the vast expanses of Russia today, it is not uncommon to come across “classic” shawarma stalls with unsanitary conditions, dubious-looking foreign workers, and a product whose consequences of consumption are comparable to a lottery.
Their work continues to be a source of urban legends about the origins of meat and a provider of work for doctors. However, overall, since its appearance in the country in the 90s, shawarma has undergone many changes and has become very diverse.
If the usual shawarma includes lavash, chicken, cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage and sauce, now it is easy to find dishes with duck, turkey or seafood - for example, grilled mackerel or crab. You can even find "Arabian shawarma with pork": although the composition is quite familiar, what a name!
There are also sweets with banana and chocolate, vegetarian products with falafel and even mint shawarma on sale. Moreover, today there is no need to even go outside and stand at a stall - people increasingly order food through numerous delivery services.
As analysts reported, on average, a regular shawarma, which is often bought by students, taxi drivers, couriers and office clerks, cost 226 rubles per serving last year. But you will have to pay more for exotic gastronomic pleasures - for example, shawarma with shrimp will cost almost twice as much. However, this is not a record: in the capital's restaurants they offered "golden" shawarma - the usual dish is wrapped in edible gold and sold for almost 2,000 rubles.
Those who don't like such creative and expensive experiments of chefs, and the idea of going to a regular place seems risky, can always make shawarma at home themselves. Fortunately, there are a lot of recipes for the product loved by many on the Internet, from the classic composition to bizarre ideas with national variations - as they say, for every taste and budget.
[American Liberty News] The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was heralded as a safeguard for consumers in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, a benevolent overseer ensuring that the excesses of Wall Street would no longer harm ordinary Americans. However, reality has diverged sharply from this narrative. Beneath its noble rhetoric, the CFPB has functioned less as a neutral regulator and more as a financial engine for progressive causes, deploying its vast resources to sustain activist organizations that operate in lockstep with Democratic electoral goals. If Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) audit uncovers what many have long suspected, the CFPB’s credibility as a consumer watchdog will be irreparably damaged, and its dissolution will become an inevitability.
From the outset, the CFPB was structured to evade traditional checks and balances. Russell Vought’s appointment as interim Director of CFPB, signals a shift toward increased scrutiny and much needed reform. Unlike most federal agencies, it is funded not through congressional appropriations but directly through the Federal Reserve, a mechanism explicitly designed to insulate it from accountability. The Supreme Court has already intervened once to curb its power, ruling in Seila Law LLC v. CFPB (2020) that the bureau’s single-director structure was unconstitutional. Yet, even after this decision, the CFPB remains a bureaucratic juggernaut with immense regulatory power and little oversight. Its financial autonomy has allowed it to operate without meaningful constraints, creating a perfect environment for ideological mission creep.
This mission creep is most evident in the CFPB’s promotion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives—both hallmarks of progressive orthodoxy. Rather than focusing solely on preventing fraud or predatory lending, the CFPB has expanded its scope to enforce ideological compliance among financial institutions. Banks and lenders now face heightened scrutiny not merely for their treatment of consumers but for their adherence to progressive social policies. The bureau has threatened enforcement actions against institutions that fail to meet its evolving DEI expectations, effectively coercing them into funding left-wing initiatives under the guise of fair lending practices. This regulatory leverage allows the CFPB to exert influence over private financial decisions in ways that have little to do with consumer protection and everything to do with advancing a broader political agenda.
Watch as a pro-Palestine protester attempts to disrupt the Super Bowl Halftime Show at the stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. As Kendrick Lamar performs, the protester… pic.twitter.com/1laJiweRUV
Ms Webb is an investigative journalist who has reported in depth on the Jeffrey Epstein case. She writes regularly for Unlimitedhangout.com and other publications.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] One of the largest coronal holes on the Sun is turning towards the Earth, which could lead to a powerful magnetic storm on February 10. This was reported by the solar astronomy laboratory of the Space Research Institute and the Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IKI and ISTP RAS).
“The speed of plasma in the vicinity of our planet may increase to 600-700 km/s, compared to the current 350-400 km/s,” says a publication on the laboratory’s website.
According to scientists, the Earth will be under the influence of a coronary hole for the entire next week. However, they noted that a magnetic storm may not begin.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on February 6, the solar astronomy laboratory of the IKI and ISFZ RAS reported a powerful flare on the Sun. The center of the flare was in the area of maximum influence on the Earth, which makes the probability of these processes influencing the planet high.
On January 23, astronomers captured a video of a black jet streaming from the surface of the Sun. This rare phenomenon is caused by the large mass of neutral hydrogen gas. It almost completely absorbs short-wavelength radiation falling on it from behind, making it appear black.
Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin:
[ColonelCassad] I read the book by war correspondent Yuri Kotenok "Survivor".
I met the author back in 2014, when we crossed paths on matters related to Donbass. Despite the difference in views, we agreed on many things related to Donbass.
Kotenok worked during the years of the Chechen wars in the Caucasus, since 2014 he has been actively involved in the war in Ukraine, regularly visiting Donbass, where he collected a large collection of interviews with commanders and fighters of the Donbass people's militia, Russian volunteers and ordinary residents of the republics. Now this is already a unique archival material about the bygone era of the creation of independent DPR and LPR, the timelessness of the Minsk agreements and the war that "kind of didn't exist", but it went on without stopping until the very beginning of the SVO.
Of what I read, due to my professional deformation, the chapters about Donbass in 2014-2015 seemed the most interesting to me, although there were also chapters about Chechnya and Nagorno-Karabakh (where Yuri received severe injuries in Shusha during a Bayraktar strike on a local church - that's actually why the book is called "Survivor", Yuri was incredibly lucky there).
Of course, this is not a specialized monograph, but first of all memories and observations about those conflicts in which the author personally participated and which he followed, so this is first of all a subjective view of the events under consideration, be it the Caucasian wars, the war in Syria or the war in Ukraine before 2022 and after.
The time of scientific monographs on Donbass and the SVO will come, but the recollections of the participants of the events and the collected evidence are gradually forming a group of sources that present different points of view on how the People's Republics were created, why they turned out exactly like that and how they survived after the Minsk agreements, which could not and could not lead to peace, but only prepared a new hot phase of the war (which was later confirmed by Merkel and Hollande). What I always liked about Yuri is his consistent criticism of the First and Second Minsk, including at a time when it was unfashionable to criticize it in the mainstream. Until the time when Putin himself did not admit the fallacy of the Minsk agreements and the fact that "Russia was deceived again" (let's not deceive ourselves anymore!)
But what is most important is that despite all the obvious problems caused by the incompleteness of the Russian Spring in Donbass, the republics, with Russia's support, were able to survive and eventually return to Russia, although their path was many times more difficult and bloody than ours in Sevastopol and Crimea, where, against the backdrop of Donbass, everything was much easier and simpler for us. And that is why it is important to remember those people in Donbass, where he made the survival of the DPR and LPR possible, created new states from scratch and helped them follow the difficult path to becoming part of Russia. That is why in such books I am always interested in reading about the people who took part in this.
The same applies to the chapters devoted to the Caucasus, where the author's personal view of the wars in Chechnya and Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) is presented. Well, and the Syrian war, of course, although after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad, that Syria is more of historical interest, since the former state was completely demolished.
Overall, the book turned out to be quite interesting, although subjective. It contains interesting stories of individual people + an overview of military conflicts of the last quarter of the century, with which the author was personally connected. Plus many interesting photographs from his personal archive.
P.S. I have just started reading Trushkov's book "Stalin as a Theorist". Quite an interesting view of Stalin as an intellectual theorist of Marxism and communism by today's standards.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 was registered by seismologists off the coast of the Cayman Islands. This was reported on February 8 by the US Geological Survey ( USGS ).
The tremors were recorded at 23:23 UTC (02:23 Moscow time on February 9). The epicenter was located 210 km southwest of the capital of the Cayman Islands, Georgetown, where more than 29,000 people live. The earthquake's epicenter was located at a depth of 10 km.
According to the NOAA Tsunami Warning Center, a tsunami warning has been issued for the islands of the archipelago. There have been no reports of casualties or damage.
Earlier, Regnum News Agency reported that the resort city of Izmir in Turkey is in the risk zone for a strong earthquake, which could be even stronger than the earthquake in Istanbul predicted by seismologists. According to calculations by the Istanbul mayor's office, in the event of an earthquake of magnitude 7.5, at least 90 thousand buildings in the city will collapse, and about 4.5 million residents could be left homeless.
On January 19, two earthquakes and six weak aftershocks were recorded on the southern coast of Crimea in the Yalta region. The first tremor occurred at 04:59 Moscow time, its magnitude was 2.8, followed by six aftershocks. Another weak tremor with a magnitude of 2.0 occurred at 12:09 Moscow time. As seismologists noted, this is normal seismicity, which is activated from time to time in various areas of Crimea.
[Jpost] Last year, security officials warned Trump that Tehran had access to surface-to-air missiles, and they were worried Iran would try to crash his private jet.
US authorities were more concerned about an Iran attack on President Donald Trump’s life than what was publicly disclosed, Axios reported, citing an excerpt from the book Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump's Return to Power by Alex Isenstadt on Sunday.
According to Isenstadt, during Trump’s presidential campaign in 2024, officials warned the current president that Tehran had placed operatives in the US with access to surface-to-air missiles, and they were worried Iran would try to crash his private plane.
Isenstadt continued, stating that these concerns over Iran intensified following the second assassination attempt on Trump’s life after multiple shots were fired near his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September.
Trump’s security team grew increasingly worried about his safety, leading them to use a decoy plane to reach an event with current Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Isenstadt mentioned that this plane swap plan was kept under wraps so that most of the staff wouldn’t be aware until after take-off.
"The boss ain't riding with us today," White House Chief of Staff Chris LaCivita told the group, according to Isenstadt. "We had to put him into another plane. This is nothing but a sort of test for how things may happen in the future."
Additionally, Isenstadt wrote in Axios that Trump’s campaign had to face multiple other threats, including a tip that someone might try to shoot up his vehicle after a Long Island rally in September.
Furthermore, during Trump’s visit to Pennsylvania the next week, his security detail shot down a drone that was seen following his car.
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Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] February is preparing a surprise for Muscovites and will “work” with snowfalls and frosts for the entire season. This was reported on February 9 by Evgeny Tishkovets, a specialist at the Phobos weather center.
He noted that in the final ten days of February, Balkan cyclones will become more active in the southwest of Russia, which will also "hook" the Moscow region. Over the last ten days of winter, 100% of the ten-day precipitation norm is expected - about 9-13 mm.
"Thus, preliminarily, in the capital of our Motherland by Defender of the Fatherland Day there will be a more or less distinct, although relatively modest for the end of the season, snow cover of up to 5-10 cm. So by the final weekend of the calendar winter there is a chance to resume the ski season," Tishkovets wrote on the Telegram channel.
He added that the temperature will drop and return to its normal climatic course, at night it will be -9…-14 °C, in the middle of the day -3…-8 °C.
"With such a lead time of the forecast, there is a possibility that the Balkan's route will pass a little further north, that is, closer to the capital, which means that winter will deliver more snowy "surprises" to Muscovites as a farewell. February has not yet said its last word and will "work off" the entire disastrous season with snowfalls and frosts," the forecaster concluded.
As reported by Regnum News Agency, on February 3, the scientific director of the Russian Hydrometeorological Center, Roman Vilfand, stated that 2025 could be among the top three warmest years on the planet.
On February 2, he reported that the Earth is experiencing the natural phenomenon of La Niña, which is associated with a decrease in water temperature in the equatorial part of the Pacific Ocean. When it is activated, heat is intensively transferred from the atmosphere to the ocean.
[Regnum] Light snow may fall in Moscow next week. This was reported on February 9 by leading specialist of the Phobos weather center Evgeny Tishkovets.
According to weather forecasters, there will be no blizzards or snowdrifts in the Russian capital in the coming days.
“The only thing is that on the eve of February 13, a cold front may bring some short-term charges of snow, but it will be one to three centimeters,” RIA Novosti quoted the meteorologist as saying.
According to him, snowfalls and frosts will still come to Moscow in February, but closer to the end of the month.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, 2025 may be one of the three warmest years on the planet. This assumption was made by the scientific director of the Hydrometeorological Center of Russia Roman Vilfand.
In early February, he reported that the Earth is experiencing the natural phenomenon of La Niña, which is associated with a decrease in water temperature in the equatorial part of the Pacific Ocean. When it is activated, heat is intensively transferred from the atmosphere to the ocean.
The weather on almost the entire planet is affected by La Niña. Its activity will continue until about March, after which La Niña will begin to move into a neutral phase.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] The exhumation of the victims of the Volyn massacre will begin in the spring of 2025. This was announced on February 9 by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Poland Vasyl Bodnar.
According to him, the events will begin in the village of Puzhniki in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.
"Work is currently underway to identify all other locations where Polish victims could be exhumed, both on Polish territory and within Ukraine," NV radio quoted him as saying.
The diplomat added that the Ukrainian side is partially participating in the financing of work on its territory.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on September 26 last year, the Polish Foreign Ministry accused the Kiev regime of delaying the search and exhumation of the remains of Poles killed during the Volyn massacre, carried out by the UPA (an organization whose activities are banned in the Russian Federation).
On January 10, he reported that Ukraine had issued the first permits for the exhumation of the remains of the victims of the Volyn massacre. The Polish prime minister stressed that he was eagerly awaiting further decisions.
[10News] He had a name. Sgt. Jacob Durham
SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Marine officials at Camp Pendleton today identified Sgt. Jacob M. Durham as a U.S. Marine involved in a fatal aircraft incident on Feb. 6, in the Philippine Province of Maguindanao del Sur.
Sgt. Durham, a California native, joined the Marine Corps in 2021. He trained as an Electronic Intelligence/Electromagnetic Warfare Analyst with the 1st Radio Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group. He was recently promoted to his current rank on Feb. 1.
Camp Pendleton said Sgt. Durham received multiple awards and decorations for his accomplishments. This includes the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, a Meritorious Mast and Naval Aircrew Insignia.
"We mourn the loss of , who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country," 1st Radio Battalion Commanding Officer Lt. Col. Mabel B. Annunziata said. "Sgt. Durham embodied the highest traditions of the Marine Corps—exemplifying composure, intelligence, and selfless leadership. He was deeply respected and loved by his fellow Marines. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, and his fellow Marines during this profoundly difficult time."
Authorities say Sgt. Durham was participating in a routine surveillance mission in support of U.S.-Philippine security cooperation activities. The aircraft used is intended to provide intelligence information, surveillance intel and reconnaissance support for Phillippine allies.
The cause of the incident is currently under investigation.
The Trump administration has canceled $4 billion in U.S. contribution to the UN’s Green Climate Fund (GCF) which gives taxpayer dollars to foreign nations to help them address “a rapidly changing world.”
Musk called for the closure of Radio Liberty and Voice of America Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] American entrepreneur, head of the US Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE) Elon Musk called for the closure of Radio Liberty (a media outlet recognized as a foreign agent in the Russian Federation) and Voice of America (a media outlet recognized as a foreign agent in the Russian Federation).
The businessman commented on the statement by US Director of National Intelligence Rick Grenell that these media platforms present information in a biased manner and are a relic of the past.
"Shut them down. Europe is free now (except for the stifling bureaucracy). No one listens to them anymore," Musk wrote on social media X.
According to the head of DOGE, these resources are staffed by crazy radical leftists who talk to each other. At the same time, $1 billion is spent on them at the expense of American taxpayers.
As reported by IA Regnum, Musk had previously joked about the assertion of "independence" of media outlets that received funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The businessman said that he laughed out loud when he read it.
On February 8, Musk reported that the US Treasury Department pays $100 billion to unknown individuals every year. However, the department does not provide information by which they can be identified. The head of DOGE called this madness. According to the businessman, 50% of these funds are unconditional fraud.
The former national COVID czar once made the outrageous claim that "attacks on me, quite frankly, are attacks on science."
Mind you, that was before he acknowledged that the infamous six-foot social distancing rule was essentially made up, and came amid countless flip-flops on masking policies.
As it turns out, our federal government nevertheless decided to massage that enormous ego in perpetuity, specifically by setting aside funds to build Fauci his own exhibit at the National Institutes of Health Museum.
According to the Department of Government Efficiency, Uncle Sam had allocated a whopping $168,000 for that project.
But DOGE announced on Friday that the contract for the exhibit has been canceled.
That came as the Department of Health and Human Services "canceled 62 contract worth $182 million" in a mere 48 hours.
Posted by: Skidmark ||
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#3
The U.S. has committed the most money to the global fund, which helps over 100 countries grapple with a changing world.
Right. I'm sure it helps a select few in those countries. But I don't believe it has anything at all to do with climate change...any more than Solyndra did.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/10/2025 12:40
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[NEWARAB] More than 100 people have died from poisoning by bootleg alcohol in the Ottoman Turkish cities of Ankara and Istanbul, NTV reported on Friday, after authorities warned about rising sales of illicit booze being passed off as big name brands.
In Istanbul, 70 people died from the poisoning since 14 January, NTV said, without citing its source. Another 33 have died in the capital Ankara since the start of the year, NTV said, citing Ankara governor Vasip Sahin.
The office of Istanbul's governor could not immediately be reached for comment.
Another 230 people in the two cities have been hospitalised, the broadcaster said. Of those in hospitals, 40 were in a critical condition, NTV said.
The price of alcoholic beverages has rocketed in recent years due to heavy taxes imposed by President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important... 's Islamist-rooted ruling AK Party. Alcoholic drinks makers have also faced an increasingly onerous tax burden and other restrictions.
The high costs have pushed some consumers and shops, restaurants, and bars to rely on bootleg alcohol and homemade drinks, leading to rising poisoning in recent years.
The government again hiked taxes on alcohol and tobacco products for 2025 on 3 January.
Last month, the Istanbul governor's office said it had taken steps to combat bootleg sales and distribution, including mandatory cameras at shops selling alcohol, suspending or revoking sale licences, and carrying out regular inspections.
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[NEWARAB] The United States has suspended the transfer of $400 million designated for humanitarian and food aid in the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Strip, according to a senior U.S. official who spoke exclusively to our Arabic edition al-Araby al-Jadeed on condition of anonymity.
The aid was scheduled to be sent Monday through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). However,
a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all... the shutdown the agency's accounts and the blocking of agency employees from accessing their accounts worldwide led to the suspension of the transfer.
According to a memo reviewed by al-Araby al-Jadeed, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration... approved the continuation of certain foreign development aid on January 29, following a swift review. However,
a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all... the decision did not explicitly state that the aid was designated for Gaza. Instead, it specified that the funds were intended for "life-saving humanitarian assistance, including access to essential medicines, medical services, food, shelter, and livelihood support, as well as reasonable administrative costs and supplies." The source clarified that the exemption signed by the Secretary of State was specifically intended to facilitate the delivery of food and medical aid to both Gaza and Darfur.
The approval was issued on January 29, and USAID employees immediately began processing the transfer of funds to Gaza I bet they did....
The money was set to be sent on Monday, February 3, following the completion of necessary approvals and administrative procedures. However,
a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all... the closure of USAID employees' email accounts by the Department of Government Efficiency halted the transfer, preventing funds from reaching medical institutions and humanitarian organizations responsible for providing food and medicine to Gaza's residents.
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#2
For 3 generations "international community" was providing for "Palestinians" so they don't have to worry about making a living and could concentrate on fighting the Jews.
#4
If they want food aid, they should work on growing more food. If they want humanitarian aid, they should work on being actual humans instead of shit throwing rage monkeys.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] President Donald Trump left it to Elon Musk to fight online battles over the DOGE's moves to slash payrolls government agencies, going for an extended round of golf while the fate of agencies and their data lies with the courts.
And even amid Musk's shrouded efforts to gain access to trillions worth of government payment information or even deploy A.I. to ferret out government waste, a new plan emerged to make life uncomfortable or simply inconvenient for federal workers being told to report to the office full time.
The idea is to make DC's government office buildings – many of which date to the postwar boom and 1960s – a lousy place to punch the clock, one official said.
No name or identifying information — he could be anybody, she could be nobody.
It's the inverse of the tech-boom trend of stocking offices with foosball and free soda to get employees to love putting in extra hours.
'We’ve heard from them that they want to make the buildings so crappy that people will leave,' a senior official at the General Services Administration, known as the government's landlord, told the Washington Post.
Ah. The Washington Post claims the unnamed but authoritative unknown — prove that this time your source is real, guys, and actually knows whereof he speaks. You know, instead of just making stuff up out of spite.
'I think that’s the larger goal here, which is bring everybody back, the buildings are going to suck, their commutes are going to suck.' "Critics say™..."
The D.C. region was already ranked to have some of the worst traffic in the country.
It's problems have been exacerbated by regional squabbling, a lack of dedicated funding for the Metro, and a drop in ridership during the pandemic, local leaders say.
Traffic wasn't something Trump had to worry about at the start of his weekend out of Washington.
The president spent about four hours on his Trump International Golf Course Saturday, as temperatures hit 79 degrees around his home at Mar-a-Lago.
He was whisked by protesters in the presidential limo back to Mar-a-Lago, as he prepares to head to the Super Bowl on Sunday.
The potential office scheme came on a day when Musk's lightning-speed efforts to take on the bureaucracy hit hazards.
A federal judge put a stop to Elon Musk’s access to Treasury Department payment records. That prompted the Department of Governmental Efficiency chief to strike back against New York AG Letitia James, a Donald Trump nemesis.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer was just the latest instance of a court slowing down Musk’s lightning efforts to strip away swaths of the bureaucracy. Trump says Musk is working at his direction, and on Friday night inside his Florida club called Musk's team 'super geniuses.'
Judge Engelmayer said he agreed with the state AGs who said there was a risk to Americans' sensitive data.
He blocked any political employees or so-called Special Government employees – a group that includes Musk – from accessing the data.
It came hours after another federal judge in Washington issued a temporary stop to efforts to put send home thousands of USAID workers amid a plan to strip down the federal agency to a skeleton crew of just a few hundred. But yet another judge lifted an order blocking Musk's group access to Labor Department data.
It is James who oversaw the prosecution of Trump in a civil case that led to a $450 million fraud judgement against him. A new Justice Department task force on 'weaponization' is now probing her effort and looking for any federal participation.
James and a group of state attorneys general sued to block Musk's group from gaining access to the Treasury information.
'This unelected group led by the world's richest man is not authorized to have this information,' said James, who said the DOGE team 'accessed the personal private information of tens of millions of Americans' and were trying 'to illegally block payments that millions of Americans rely on.'
'She just wants the fraud & waste to continue,' Musk hit back.
'This administration has one chance for major reform that may never come again. It’s now or never,' Musk wrote in yet another post.
He also posted on how the Treasury codes government payments, saying it was 'insane and must be addressed immediately.'
#9
As a native Washingtonian, I grew up in Wheaton and Silver Springs in the 50s-early 60s. August was always the worst, when family cars didn't have A/C, and weekends at Ocean City or Rehoboth were a Godsend. I brought my California native wife back to DC in the middle of July (her first visit) and her reaction the first morning was "Holy Crap, we are never living here"!
#10
Actually, as we have seen for years with Walter Reed Hospital, only the intent that the building be habitable is necessary — they can fail safety inspections for a decade or several before it becomes a real problem…
The odds are good this will turn out be be Sudden Jihad Syndrome…
A man has been arrested after multiple people were stabbed in the Irish capital of Dublin on Sunday.
According to a report from the Irish Times, at least three people were hospitalised after a man went on a stabbing spree at around 3 pm local time in the Stoneybatter area
….Dublin’s hipster neighbourhood, one of the coolest in the world…
of central Dublin on Sunday.
The paper reported that one of the victims was said to have been stabbed in their own doorway after returning home. It is currently believed that the three hospitalised victims are not in life-threatening conditions.
Ireland’s Gardaí police reportedly apprehend a male suspect on the nearby Manor Place road shortly after the attack.
The Irish Times said that police sources indicated that there is currently no indication of terrorism. However, the suspect’s identity and background have yet to be revealed. According to the paper, the suspect covered his face during the arrest.
A local female resident told the broadsheet: "I saw a lot of Garda cars arrive really fast. They all jumped out at exactly the same time. I saw a guy running and they dived on him outside a house.
"He just screamed and screamed and screamed ’leave me alone.’ He was terrified, like someone who wasn’t expecting that to happen. And then it all stopped."
The leader of the leftist Sinn Féin party and Central Dublin parliamentarian Mary Lou McDonald commented: "Terrible news from Stoneybatter this afternoon. My thoughts are with those injured and their families. The community is in a state of shock.
"The Gardaí and emergency services are to be commended for their response."
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/10/2025
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#4
Summarizing two articles from the Irish Mirror (link for one, because Rantburg doesn’t allow me more):
The unnamed miscreant is Brazilian man in his 20s, not an asylum seeker, who has been in Ireland for some years. He became homeless several month ago, so dressed in black, grabbed a box cutter, and went down the street looking for people to kill.
The gardai apparently do not have him in their files for anything important, and they still believe terrorism is not a motive, nor sudden radicalization.
One of the victims was released from the hospital, and the others are not in serious danger.
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.
..the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood,...
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
..always the voice of sweet reason...
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
[MAIL] A Vatican official has slammed Donald Trump for 'breaking commitments' with his cuts to USAID and and warned people are being 'terrorized' amid his crackdown on migrants.
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
"Why am I hearing that there were threats to the site on TV," the SAIC of the Pittsburgh office wrote in a handwritten note after the attempt.
[10News] 
...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration...
