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The John Fetterman Situation Just Got Much Weirder
Link: https://thinkcivics.com/the-john-fetterman-situation-just-got-much-weirder/
The situation surrounding John Fetterman continues to get much weirder. | The Pennsylvania senator is still residing at Walter Reed hospital after checking himself in for “severe” depression some weeks prior. That followed another recent hospital stint for light-headedness. Fetterman has suffered from a multitude of health issues since he suffered a massive stroke in mid-2022. Despite a “recovery” from the stroke that is clearly going in the wrong direction, talk of Fetterman resigning has been dismissed as ableism. His staff has also tried to keep up appearances, making it seem as if he’s still working while being confined at Walter Reed. It’s safe to say if Fetterman were a Republican, the calls from the press to leave office would be overwhelming. After all, we are talking about the same news outlets that wanted Donald Trump to be forcibly removed because he walked slowly down a ramp. Fetterman is a Democrat, though, so the wagons are being circled in the oddest ways possible.
How the WHO was captured
Link: https://unherd.com/2023/03/how-the-who-was-captured/
Thomas Fazi | Private capital wields far too much influence | [...] However, from the Eighties onwards, things started to change. Until then, the organisation had relied on the contributions of its member states for its regular budget. In 1982, however, the World Health Assembly, the WHO’s decision-making body, voted to freeze its budget — under pressure from the Reagan administration, which saw the WHO as a socialist-leaning, unaccountable organisation working against American interests. This was followed by the 1985 decision by the United States to withhold its contribution, in part as a protest against its “Essential Drug Program”, which encouraged developing countries to develop their own capacities to produce essential medicines, rather than rely on Western drug companies — small wonder leading US-based pharmaceutical companies were averse. As a result, the organisation was forced to rely increasingly on extrabudgetary funds provided by “stakeholders”: not only governments and bilateral and multilateral agencies (such as the World Bank), but private and corporate donors as well, including pharmaceutical giants such as GlaxoSmithKline and Novartis. Over the years, among the private extrabudgetary donors, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation rose above the rest: by the 2010s, it had become the WHO’s second-largest donor, accounting for around 10% of all funds. Since voluntary contributions are earmarked, the donors largely get to call the shots on the use of the funds they contribute.
Obama-Era Pentagon Chief Who Helped Destroy Libya Wants Fighter Jets for Ukraine
Once touted as one of the most prosperous and developed countries in Africa, Libya was turned into a failed state divided into warring factions after a seven-month NATO bombing campaign in 2011. The intervention began after Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi proposed introducing a gold-backed regional currency to replace the dollar and the CFA franc. 💬 “The most important thing in the coming months is that Ukraine can maintain its momentum to force the Russians out of the Donbass,” the former official said. “I would encourage them to try to retake Crimea as well. I think that’s only way to bring [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to the negotiating table,” Leon Panetta [said]. [He] served as head of Obama’s Pentagon between 2011 and 2013, and as head of the CIA between 2009 and 2011, stressed that time was not on the West’s side in Ukraine, with a long, drawn out conflict of attrition threatening to “undermine the policy of the United States and its allies.” Ukraine, he said, “has to show that is winning, and it has to do so soon.”
Russian Military Deploys Kinzhals in Massive Strikes in Ukraine in Retaliation to Bryansk Terror
Two civilians were killed and a ten-year-old boy injured last week after a group of saboteurs penetrated the Russian-Ukrainian border in Russia's Bryansk region and opened fire on civilian vehicles and infrastructure. NATO-provided weapons were found at the crime scenes. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the incident a "terrorist attack." | Russia carried out massed missile strike on targets inside Ukraine in retaliation to last week's terrorism in Bryansk region, the Russian Ministry of Defense has announced. 💬 "In response to the terrorism organized by the Kiev regime on March 2 in Bryansk region, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation delivered a massive retaliatory strike. High-precision long-range air, sea and land-based precision weapons, including the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system, hit key elements of Ukraine's military infrastructure, enterprises of the military-industrial complex, as well as energy facilities providing them with power," MoD spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a briefing Thursday. All of the designated targets were hit, the officer said, with the strikes said to have destroyed sites hosting Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, knocked out railway infrastructure involved in the transfer of foreign weapons, and disabled facilities involved in the production of ammunition and the repair of military equipment.
Moscow condemns ‘Nazi celebration’ at White House
Link: https://www.rt.com/russia/572668-nazi-celebration-white-house/
The US has bestowed a prestigious award on a female member of Ukraine’s nationalist Azov battalion | The White House’s decision to bestow the International Women of Courage Award on a member of an infamous Ukrainian nationalist battalion is “disgraceful,” Moscow’s ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, said on Thursday. He claimed that the move was further proof that Washington is ready to support Nazis in the fight against Russia. Speaking to reporters, Antonov was asked to comment on the award received at the White House by Yulia Paevskaya, who goes by the nickname ‘Taira’. The ambassador said Moscow had noted the honoring of a member of the Azov battalion, a Ukrainian unit closely associated with neo-Nazi ideology, on International Women’s Day.
Georgian Government Warns of Imminent Color Revolution to Pull Country into Ukraine War
TBILISI, Georgia. March 6th, 2023. The opposition Russo-phobic party leader in the Black Sea country of Georgia, Levan Khabeishvili, called for “revolutionary changes” three times in a recent speech, before calling for the people to be “mobilized to fight… otherwise we will become a province of Russia”. | The backdrop to the speech has been demonstrations by several large youth groups, NGOs, and political parties in opposition to the strangest of political trigger words one will ever read, “a proposed foreign agent registration bill”. Nearly all countries on Earth have a foreign agent registration requirement, with few more draconian than the United States’. Their role in a democracy is unquestionably an important one: that organizations operating in the political, societal, or media sectors funded by foreign governments need to make that information available on a publically-managed database. Not only is it standard practice in America for foreign lobbyists to register their activities, benefactors, and presence with US intelligence, but the Georgian draft legislation is actually a milder copy of the US Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA). Yet in Georgia, the parliament’s attempts to force a bill creating such a program into law has been met with the staunchest opposition. US State Dept. Spokesman Ned Price told a reporter that 💬 “such a law…does not correspond to [what] we, the United States, aim to be Georgia’s partners and help them achieve this future.”
■ We closely followed the developments in Georgia - Ned Price (rustavi2)
■ Saakashvili party rallies “color” thugs to “physically confront Russians inside the Parliament” (rustavi2)
■ (7 Mar, 2023) Police break up anti-government protest in Georgia (RT.com) (Connect the dots...)
House Expected to Vote on Syria War Powers Resolution on Wednesday
Contact your representative and tell them to support H. Con. Res. 21 | The House is expected to vote on a War Powers Resolution this Wednesday introduced by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) that would order President Biden to withdraw all US troops from Syria. Americans can contact their representatives and urge them to support the resolution (H.Con.Res.21). Click here to find your representative, or call the House switchboard operator at (202) 224-3121. The US currently has about 900 troops stationed in eastern Syria and backs the Kurdish-led SDF in the region, allowing the US to control about one-third of the country. Gaetz’s resolution would give President Biden 180 days to end the US military occupation, which is opposed by Damascus. The text of H.Con.Res.21 reads: 💬 “That, pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 1544(c)), Congress directs the President to remove the United States Armed Forces from Syria by not later than the date that is 180 days after the date of the adoption of this concurrent resolution.” ● Gatez initially introduced a resolution that gave the president only 15 days to withdraw from Syria. The second resolution was introduced to gain more support for the effort as the longer timeline makes it more likely that Democrats will vote in favor of the bill. In July 2022, the House voted on a proposed amendment to the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act introduced by Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) that would have cut all funds for the US presence in Syria within one year if President Biden didn’t get authorization for the war. The amendment failed, but it received support from about 60% of House Democrats. According to the House Clerk, 130 Democrats voted in favor, while only 25 Republicans supported the amendment.
Pilots and Flight Attendants Who Recently Had Cardiac Arrests In-flight and “Died Suddenly”…
A flying instructor died in-flight after suffering a cardiac arrest, but his co-pilot thought he was fooling around . (click here) According to a newly published safety report on the incident, the pilot thought the instructor was pretending to be asleep as the pair flew a circuit near Blackpool Airport in Lancashire, England, on June 29, 2022. Shortly after takeoff, the instructor’s head rolled back. The pilot knew the 57-year-old instructor well and thought he was just pretending to take a nap. However, when he landed the plane and his co-pilot was still resting on his shoulder and not responding, he realized something was amiss (click here). A post-mortem examination concluded that the instructor died from acute cardiac failure. He had passed a medical four months earlier. The report found there was no indication that the instructor was unwell. “People who had spoken to him on the morning of the incident said he was his normal cheerful self and there were no indications that he was feeling unwell,” the report said. [My take…Notice how many in-flight pilot cardiac arrests and deaths there have been in the second half of 2022, as well as flight attendant deaths. There have also been a number of unusual helicopter crashes in Canada in 2022. I fear that we are inching closer to a major airline disaster in 2023, as a result of injuries being suffered by COVID-19 vaccinated pilots.]
What could possibly be the reason?
Link: https://twitter.com/DrEliDavid/status/1633474842996404226?cxt=HHwWhMCz5eKtoqstAAAA
Mystery!
What could possibly be the reason? pic.twitter.com/nTIuuePmUr— Dr. Eli David (@DrEliDavid) March 8, 2023
Texas Tech Suspends Head Basketball Coach For Quoting The Bible
Less than one month after Texas Tech University was busted for using race-based ideology as a litmus test for hiring candidates in the school’s biology department, the four-year university suspended head men’s basketball coach Mark Adams for quoting the Bible to a student-athlete. | TTU Director of Athletics Kirby Hocutt suspended Adams on Sunday after learning that the coach encouraged one of his basketball players 💬 “to be more receptive to coaching and referenced Bible verses about workers, teachers, parents, and slaves serving their masters.” The comment, according to the university, was “inappropriate, unacceptable, and racially insensitive” and deserved a formal written reprimand from Hocutt, suspension, and an investigation into Adams’ previous “interactions with his players and staff.” TTU claimed that when confronted with offense over the comments, Adams “immediately addressed this with the team and apologized.” Adams, however, said that was not the case.
Netanyahu justifies strikes on nuclear facilities
Link: https://www.rt.com/news/572511-israel-iran-nuclear-facilities/
The Israeli PM has challenged the UN watchdog’s statement that any attacks against nuclear plants are “outlawed” | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that the option of attacking an Iranian nuclear facility in “self-defense” must be left on the table, arguing that the chief of the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) made an “unworthy” statement when he declared that any such strikes are banned. 💬 “Are we forbidden to defend ourselves?” Netanyahu said on Sunday in a cabinet meeting. “Of course, we are allowed, and of course, we are doing this… Nothing will prevent us from protecting our country and preventing oppressors from destroying the Jewish state.” Netanyahu’s remarks came a day after IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi was asked by a reporter about US and Israeli threats to attack Iran if it doesn’t agree to curb its nuclear program. “Any military attack on a nuclear facility is outlawed, is out of the normative structures that we all abide by,” Grossi said at a press briefing in Tehran after meeting with Iranian leaders.
■ On the 40th Anniversary Of The Israeli Plan To Attack Iran (Video Rebel's Blog)
US deploys nuclear-capable bomber for Korea drills
Link: https://www.rt.com/news/572536-us-korea-nuclear-bomber/
The Pentagon has flown at least one B-52H bomber alongside South Korean aircraft in a show of force directed at Pyongyang | The US and South Korea held joint aerial drills on Monday in seas west of the peninsula, with the Pentagon deploying a nuclear-capable B-52H strategic bomber to participate, the South Korean Defense Ministry has said. The exercise was conducted above the waters of the Yellow Sea, with the bomber flying in formation alongside South Korean F-15K and KF-16 fighter jets, the ministry said. The event came just three days after the US deployed B-1B heavy bombers to the region, the South Korean military noted. 💬 “The deployment of the US B-52H strategic bomber to the Korean Peninsula demonstrates the allies’ decisive, overwhelming capabilities and posture to deter and respond to North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile threats,” the military said in a statement. ● The Pentagon previously deployed a B-52H bomber to the Korean Peninsula last December, with the new show of force coming ahead of major joint US-South Korean exercise Freedom Shield, scheduled to take place from March 13 to 23. The drills are set to become the largest joint exercise in at least five years, and will involve aerial training as well as amphibious landings.
■ North Korea warns of ‘overwhelming’ response (Yonhap News Agency)
Next Scare: World facing biggest cholera surge in 20 years – WHO
Link: https://www.rt.com/news/572556-who-warning-cholera-outbreak/
The water-borne infection can be fatal in up to 50% of untreated cases | Factors including economic crises, climate change and the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic have led to the ideal circumstances for cholera to flourish in high-risk countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned after noting a sharp surge of the illness in at least 30 countries. The scale of the various outbreaks rose sharply in 2022 after several years of decline, the WHO said. Between January and October of last year, 29 countries reported cases of the disease, compared to 23 the year before – with those numbers set to rise in 2023.
■ How the WHO was captured (Thomas Fazi / UnHerd)
Norway Rakes in Record Oil and Gas Revenues Amid Ukraine Conflict
The exorbitant windfall revenues amid a surge in demand and sky-high energy prices have earned Norway bitter accusations of profiteering from its numerous customers, including Germany, Poland and the EU at large. | The Norwegian state coffers earned record oil and gas revenues last year after the hostilities in Ukraine and ensuing sanctions sent energy prices soaring, Statistics Norway (SSB) reported. ● Altogether, Norway earned NOK 1.5 trillion ($140 billion) in revenues from oil and gas, by far the highest ever recorded, according to statistics, and nearly three times the NOK 498 billion ($48 billion) earned in 2021, the number-cruncher said. ● Norway, one of the world's leaders in the export of energy resources, assumed the role of the EU's top supplier following the bloc's massive sanctions campaign against Russia over its special op in Ukraine. In 2022, Brussels decided to stop imports from Russia and the Nordic country ramped up own production. ● Oslo's additional income was boosted by a record surge in European gas prices over the summer, which have since subsided.
editor2's Comment: We've never heard them complain about oil producers like Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates. Germany, Poland and the EU at large probably would not have given in to envy and anger if Norway had been a much bigger country, or more important on the world scene, if you like. What they really are complaining about, is that these windfall revenues seem inappropriate for tiny Norway, out of place kind of...In the time-honoured order of things, big countries may be rich (or not so rich) in terms of revenues, medium-sized nations a bit less so, and small countries are supposed to...well, to know their place. Plus, and this is extremely important, oil is supposed to be in the Middle East, and not up in the godforsaken North somewhere (Where is that damn country anyways?) See? Too rich for its own good - gotta send some troops up there. In fact, the U.S. already has done so, and as things now stand, they already have four bases in tiny Norway. Norway's done for. Sure thing! Germany and Poland, are you happier now?
Chinese Foreign Minister slams Ukrainian crisis 'tragedy that could have been avoided'
Link: https://tass.com/world/1585531
Qin Gang also stressed that China has always been in favor of dialogue and against unilateral sanctions 💬 "The Ukrainian crisis is a tragedy that could have been avoided," Qin Gang said. According to him, the scale of the crisis is a sad lesson for everyone. "The crisis in Ukraine is essentially the result of catastrophic contradictions on European security management," the Chinese foreign minister pointed out. He also stressed that China has always been in favor of dialogue and against unilateral sanctions. The country also sought to de-escalate tensions instead of adding fuel to the fire.
■ Chinese FM: US Needs to 'Hit the Brakes' Before Conflict Becomes Inevitable With Beijing (Sputnik News)
■ China, Russia set good example for intl relations, target no third party: Chinese FM (Global Times)
Atlanta's future police training facility 'Cop City' set ablaze
Link: https://www.foxnews.com/us/atlantas-future-police-training-facility-set-ablaze
Law enforcement officers clash with protesters at future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center | Smoke and flames shot and poured from equipment at the future Atlanta, Georgia public safety and training facility dubbed, "Cop City," on Sunday evening. FOX 5 Atlanta posted video on its website of a bulldozer and other pieces of equipment on fire, as well as a section of grass... The facility is in the southeast section of Atlanta on Key Road, where, according to FOX 5, protesters are clashing with law enforcement officials. The station also reported that a Georgia State Trooper said a Molotov cocktail was thrown.
■ 35 arrested after clashes at Atlanta police training center site (Axios)
US Announces $400 Million Arms Package for Ukraine
Link: https://news.antiwar.com/2023/03/05/us-announces-400-million-arms-package-for-ukraine/
The package includes ammunition for HIMARS and ammunition for Bradley Fighting Vehicles | The Biden administration on Friday announced a new $400 million weapons package for Ukraine that includes ammunition for the HIMARS rocket systems, artillery rounds, and 25mm ammunition for Bradley Fighting Vehicles. ● The package is being provided through the presidential drawdown authority, which allows President Biden to arm Ukraine with weapons and ammunition sitting in US military stockpiles. The new equipment comes as the US is helping Ukraine prepare for a potential counteroffensive against Russian forces.
REPORT: 880 Migrants Found Dead by Border Patrol in FY22 Shatters Prior Records
A Border Patrol report obtained by the Washington Examiner reveals that agents discovered the bodies or remains of 880 migrants in Fiscal Year 2022. The total makes FY22 the deadliest year on record for migrant deaths at the southwest border. | The number of deaths reflected in the data obtained by the Washington Examiner in a FOIA request includes only those recoveries reported by the Border Patrol. The number is likely to be significantly lower than the actual count of deceased migrants as it does not include migrant remains recovered by Mexican authorities or those recovered by authorities away from the border. The news outlet received the data this week after submitting the FOIA request in July 2022. The Examiner revealed the majority of migrant deaths were recorded in the South Central Region of Texas. Deceased migrant recoveries in the Del Rio Sector of the Border Patrol were highest at 255, followed by the Rio Grande Valley Sector at 210 according to the Examiner.
Biden's FAA Nominee Can't Answer a Single Question About Aviation
Link: https://legitgov.org/bidens-faa-nominee-cant-answer-single-question-about-aviation
Biden's FAA Nominee Can't Answer a Single Question About Aviation | Phil Washington, Joe Biden's nominee to serve as administrator of the FAA, continues to face questions about his qualifications to serve in the role, and his testimony before Congress isn't dispelling doubts about his ability to run America's civil aviation system... Washington's previous gigs have also seen accusations of wasteful spending and mismanagement of resources, as Townhall reported previously. And, while he served honorably in the military, lawmakers pointed out that Washington has no experience or qualifications related to aviation safety. That was abundantly clear this week as Washington testified before the Senate Commerce Committee when Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) asked Biden's FAA nominee questions that an FAA administrator would need to know. Not only did Washington fail to impress senators with his answers, he had no answers. In fact, it was absolutely brutal.
Another train derails in Ohio
Link: https://www.rt.com/news/572482-ohio-norfolk-train-derailment/
Between 20 and 30 cars have gone off the tracks, officials say | A Norfolk Southern cargo train derailed near Springfield, Ohio in the US on Saturday. The incident comes a month after another train operated by the same company came off the tracks in East Palestine, Ohio, causing a major toxic spill. This time there were no hazardous materials on the train, Norfolk Southern noted in a statement. “Our teams are en route to the site to begin cleanup operations,” the company said. There were no deaths or injuries as a result of the incident, it added. Residents within 300 meters (1,000 feet) of the crash site have been told to shelter in place “out of an abundance of caution,” the local emergency management agency said. ● Between 20 and 30 cars out of 212 on the train derailed at around 5 pm by State Route 41, the Springfield News-Sun reported, citing on-site emergency officials. Electricity was reportedly out in parts of Springfield as power lines were damaged in the crash.
■ ‘Shelter in Place’: Another Derailment Involving Norfolk Southern Train Occurs in Ohio
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