10 Wealthy Italians Have as Much as 3 Mln Poor Ones
The young ever poorer, wealth only accumulated; Bank of Italy
(ANSAmed) — ROME — In Italy the ten richest individuals have as much wealth as the 3 million poorest ones, according to a survey carried out by the Italian central bank analysing wealth and wealth disparities in Italy. The amount of assets and wealth held by the ten richest individuals in Italy is worth about 50 billion euros, according to the latest rankings drawn up by Forbes last month.
The following are Italy’s “Uncle Scrooges”: 1) Michele Ferrero: the owner of the group involved in the production of sweets boasts assets of 14.2 billion euros and is the richest person in the country, 23rd in the world. 2) Leonardo Del Vecchio: the founder of the eyewear giant Luxottica is in 74th place worldwide, with a fortune totalling 8.6 billion euros. 3) Giorgio Armani: the designer has brought the world of fashion into the rankings of the wealthiest in Italy. Armani holds assets worth 5.4 billion. 4) Miuccia Prada: also of the fashion world, Forbes considers her the 79th most powerful woman in the world. Founder Mario’s granddaughter has assets worth 5.1 billion euros. 5) Paolo and Gianfelice Rocca: the Rocca brothers inherited 10% of Techint Financial, which controls Tenaris, active in energy engineering. They are worth 6 billion and 4.5 billion euros. 6) Silvio Berlusconi: the former prime minister and founder of Mediaset and Fininvest is “only” sixth, with 4.4 billion in assets. 7) Patrizio Bertelli: Miuccia Prada’s husband and managing director of the group, he has 2.77 billion euros in assets. 8) Stefano Pessina: former nuclear engineer and owner of Alliance Unichem, merged with the British pharmaceuticals giant Boots in 2006. He holds assets worth 1.95 billion. 9) Benetton: the Venetian family and owner of the clothing brand of the same name is present in its entirety: Carlo, Gilberto, Giuliana and Luciano boast assets worth 1.5 billion each. 10) Mario Moretti Polegato: the top-ranked member of Geox, despite the decline in share prices, is among the wealthiest Italians, with 1.35 billion in assets.
In Italy the young are ever poorer and wealth in general consists ever more of assets accumulated in the past and ever less from income. Over the past few years wealth distribution has been inverted between age groups: today — unlike in the past — the elderly are richer than the young, who find themselves unable to accumulate. The data from the survey show a generational conflict in terms of income but also concludes that the level of disparity is on a similar level to that seen in other European countries, though in Italy the ten wealthiest individuals have wealth more or less the equivalent to 3 million of the poorest Italians. In 2010 the overall wealth of households was at about 8.638 trillion euros, over 7.5 times the value of 1965 measured at 2010 prices, with an annual growth of 4.6%, but with a reduction compared with 2009 values with 8.767 trillion.
As concerns per capita, wealth has gone from 21.875 euros in 1965 to 142.481 in 2010, substantial growth which stopped abruptly after 2007, when the value reached almost 150,000 euros per person. The loss in three years was almost 5%. Between 1965 and 2010, the ratio between wealth and GDP almost doubled (from 2.7 to 5.6), according to the survey, underscoring that over this 50-year period wealth had grown more than production; wealth coming from the past is ever more sizeable than that which it is possible to earn through daily labours. A significant data shows the change in wealth between age categories: while in 1987 young households (under age 34) were at average levels (on the basis of 100, the level was 82.5), beginning in 2000 these households saw their condition grow much worse (61.7 in 2008), while the opposite happened for the elderly (from 65.5 to 100.2). Also changing was the distribution between social classes: between 1987 and 2008 net household wealth of the working class went from 61.9% to 44%, and all other categories declined though maintaining a fairly high level, except for pensioners who saw an increase from 61.6 to 97.8, although the figure was flat in 2008. As concerns territorial distribution, there was a clear worsening for conditions in the South (from 80.2 to 69.6) and an improvement for all the other geographical areas.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Deal on Taxation of Greek Money in Switzerland Soon
(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, APRIL 6 — Greece’s government said an agreement with Switzerland on the taxation of Greek deposits may be signed before the coming elections, in about a month’s time, as Reporter.Gr wrote. Finance Minister Philippos Sachinidis said on TV talks would begin in coming days, while the ministry was conducting cross-checks to identify transfers of money that was not taxed in Greece. He expressed reservations regarding the size of Greek deposits abroad. Sachinidis said there was no current consideration to fully compensate the private smallholders of Greek bonds after the haircut (PSI). “There are many legal problems… PSI is still developing. We must protect the country against legal complications,” he said. Regarding the competitiveness of the Greek economy, Sachinidis said it was a chronic problem of the country and that, “driving salaries as low as Bulgaria’s will not solve the problem”. Finally, he expressed the view that, “if all goes well, we anticipate the country will return to growth in 2013”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
ECB Says Can Tackle Symptoms But Not Cure Crisis
As fresh concerns over Spain and Italy rattled the markets Wednesday, the European Central Bank insisted it can only treat the symptoms of the eurozone debt crisis, but not cure it.
“The ECB has addressed the immediate symptoms but monetary policy cannot cure the underlying causes,” said ECB executive board member Benoit Coeure.
After three months of relative calm, the sovereign debt crisis returned with a vengeance this week, with stock markets plunging and borrowing costs for Spain and Italy jumping as doubts grow over their ability to control their finances.
In Italy, borrowing costs — which have been on the decline in recent months — doubled in a closely-watched auction of short-term debt Wednesday while Spanish 10-year bonds were flirting with rates around 6.0 percent, a level many consider unsustainable for the long term.
Talking to a conference in Paris, ECB board member Coeure insisted that the rise in Spanish bond yields did not reflect Spain’s economic fundamentals.
And seeing that the political will was there in Madrid, he saw no reason why the situation in Spain would not normalise, he argued.
Both Germany and France similarly felt that market fears over Spain’s finances was “excessive,” insisting that Madrid was pursuing the proper reforms.
The ECB’s Coeure said that taking the eurozone as a whole, “the situation in the financial markets has reached a turning point but recent market developments have highlighted that it remains fragile.”
Given the signs of fresh tension, there have been calls for the ECB to come to the rescue.
The central bank has acted as firefighter from the very beginning of the crisis, taking a series of what it calls “non-standard” measures to prevent a collapse of the single currency.
On top of conventional monetary policy moves such as cutting interest rates to historic lows, it has also bought up the bonds of debt-stricken countries.
And most recently, it pumped more than 1.0 trillion euros into the banking system via two so-called long-term refinancing operations (LTROs) in a bid to avert a dangerous credit squeeze.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Emerging Asia Maintains Boom Despite Western Woes
The emerging economies of Asia are seen shifting toward more sustainable growth based on domestic demand instead of exports, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said. But rising inequalities urgently need to be fixed.
Despite a slowdown in economic expansion, Asia’s emerging economies would continue to grow by a robust 6.9 percent this year, supported by rising domestic consumption, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a regional report published Wednesday.
The bank surveyed 45 newly industrializing countries except Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore South Korea and Taiwan, saying that growth in these emerging economies will “cool somewhat” before “edging higher” to 7.3 percent in 2013.
Continued uncertainties in the eurozone and a further decline in global trade would pose the biggest threats to the growth outlook, ADB Chief Economist Changyong Rhee said in a statement.
“At the same time, Asian economies are gradually diversifying into new markets, private consumption is trending up and the region has limited direct financial exposure to the eurozone, which should help sustain its momentum,” he added.
Growth in China — the world’s second largest economy — is seen slowing by the bank to 8.5 percent this year and 8.7 percent in 2013 compared with 9.2 percent in 2011.
The region’s other emerging giant, India, is expected to grow by 7.5 percent in 2012, while southeast Asia’s economies are forecast to expand 5.2 percent — up from 4.6 percent in 2011.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Euro-Armageddon is Still Coming, And It’s the Result of Europe’s Insane, One-Size-Fits-None Economic Policy
By Daniel Knowles
Austerity is not helping — it is pushing Spain ever further into recession, as any undergraduate economist could have predicted.
And the thing is, this is entirely the result of Europe’s insane, one-size-fits-none economic policy. Before the start of the economic crisis in 2007, Spain had a government budget surplus of 2.2 per cent of GDP — so the problem is not Spanish government overspending. Rather the country was importing vast amounts of capital — just as every country in southern Europe was. For Germany to run its absurd 5 per cent of GDP export surplus, someone else had to run an import deficit, and so Spain stepped up, just as Ireland did, and Greece did, and Italy did.
All that money inflated southern European wages and prices until they popped. The problem with the eurozone is fundamentally one of competitiveness. In short, Germany has too much of it; its wages are too low and its current account surplus is consequently too big. Since all things are relative, the result is that Spanish, Italian, Greek and Irish wages are all too high. Within the euro, either German wages must go up, or Spanish ones down. The Germans won’t budge, and so the Spanish must beat down wages with unemployment instead.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
European Nations Must be ‘Prudent’ In Comments on Spain: PM
(MADRID) — European Union countries must be “prudent” when making comments about Spain’s economic problems, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said Wednesday, following criticism from France and Italy.
“We all have our problems and we are working to find a solution to ours and also to help the eurozone. We expect that other countries should do the same, that they be prudent in their statements,” he said.
Rajoy did not specify exactly who he was referring to in his comments to lawmakers from his conservative Popular Party, saying only that he was talking about “statements made in the European Union on the part of certain leaders”.
In recent days both French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti have made critical comments about Spain’s handling of its debt crisis.
Late last month Monti said the European Union was worried about “contagion” from Spain’s debt crisis. He later apologised.
Last week Sarkozy warned French voters Thursday they should re-elect him as president to pursue his cost-cutting plans or face the kind of debt crises that have gripped Spain and Greece.
Spain’s bulging deficit, fragile banks as well as a slide into recession at a time of soaring unemployment, have sparked fresh concern on the markets about the sustainability of its rising sovereign debt.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
European Markets Dump Italian and Spanish Assets
Following a couple of relatively calm months, fears of a double-dip recession grew Tuesday when investors dumped Italian and Spanish bonds over renewed fears about the impact of austerity measures. Italian stocks fell almost 5%, to their lowest since November, and Spanish stocks closed at their lowest since March 2009.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Nerves Calm Slightly on Italian Bonds
Spread back below 400 ahead of key auction
(ANSA) — Rome, April 11 — Sovereign-debt fears calmed slightly on Wednesday as the spread between Italian and German 10-year bonds dropped to 375.3 points after breaking the 400 mark a day earlier. The yield, another key gauge of market confidence, went down to 5.53% at the close of trading as investors eyed a key three-year bond auction Thursday where Italy plans to offer up to five billion euros in State paper. The Milan bourse earned 1.6% and closed at 14,689 points after big banking losses pulled it down 4.98% Tuesday, the worst in Europe.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Monti’s Mission Hanging on a Thread
La Stampa, 11 April 2012
“Markets slump, spread skyrockets”: La Stampa resumes Tuesday’s financial scare which saw stocks plunge all across Europe. Italy was at the crest of the panic wave, with Milan losing almost 5 per cent and the spread between its bonds and Germany’s benchmark bund crossing the 400 point threshold, with Italian 10-year bonds selling at 5.66% against the latter’s 1.65%.
PM Mario Monti attempted to dispel fears and blamed Spain’s enduring economic troubles and weak international growth. According to the Turin daily, he has also privately lashed out at the Italian entrepreneurs’ association, which has shaken the government by criticising its labour reform for being too watered down and compliant to trade union demands. Writing in La Stampa, Bill Emmot, former editor in chief of The Economist, says -
It would be wrong to pay too much attention to daily or weekly market movements, as they have more to do with animal psychology. […] But behind them lies a substantial truth: neither Europe nor Italy’s sovereign debt problems have been solved. If recession in Italy or Spain is slightly worst than expected, they will fall short of their deficit reduction targets. That will call into question the issue of political will. […] Monti’s reforms have been huge compared to those of previous governments, but not are not adequate to the task he faces. He started a modest liberalisation program, gave a mild stimulus to the forces of competitivity, and launched a labour reform that will not make history. No bond buyer could get the feeling that Italy’s growth perspectives have been radically transformed.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Markets Wary Despite Extra Round of Spanish Cuts
BRUSSELS — The EU has welcomed Spain’s plan to cut another €10 billion off its yearly budget, but the measure failed to stop speculation the country could be next in line for a bail-out.
Olivier Bailly, a European Commission spokesman, on Tuesday (10 April) said Brussels “welcomes” the move because it “confirms both the Spanish government’s determination to implement the necessary reforms, and furthermore the Spanish government’s commitment to respect the 5.3 percent (of GDP) deficit (limit agreed) for 2012.”
He approved the move despite the fact the new cuts are mainly to hit education and healthcare.
The €10 billion savings are to come on top of €27 billion of cuts promised on 30 March. But Spain’s financial credibility has taken a battering in recent months, with the new centre-right government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy forced to admit the country’s economic situation is worse than previously thought.
Markets on Tuesday pushed the costs of 10-year Spanish bonds to almost 6 percent, prompting press to ask whether Madrid will need a Greek-type bail-out.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
MEP Cries Foul on Greek Pay-Out to Political Parties
BRUSSELS — The leader of the Liberal group in the EU parliament, Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt, has asked the European Commission to justify letting Greece dish out €29 million to its top political parties.
The Greek parliament on Monday (9 April) narrrowly passed the measure by 155 votes out of 300.
The money is to go to the five parties which made the parliamentary threshhold in the last elections in 2009: the centre-left Pasok, the centre-right New Democracy, the far-right Laos and the far-left Syriza and KKE factions.
Pasok interior minister Tassos Yiannitsis said the funds will be used for campaigning in upcoming elections in May and for unpaid wages and other debts, such as to the state social security fund, the IKA.
The move caused controversy in Greece, which is currently slashing public sector wages and jobs in line with EU-demanded austerity measures.
Inside Pasok itself, MP Anna Delara said: “Given the unprecedented economic crisis the country is experiencing, the parties should be asking for their funding to be reduced drastically.” Another senior Pasok MP, deputy defence minister Yiannis Ragousis, abstained from the vote and tendered his resignation.
The leader of New Democracy, Antonis Samaras, did not turn up for the vote. Laos and Syriza voted against the measure, while KKE MPs voted only that they were “present” at the decision-making process.
The smaller parties which do not qualify for the cash — including Verhofstadt’s Liberal group ally, the Democratic Alliance — also complained.
For his part, Verhofstadt in an open letter on Tuesday asked EU commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and economic affairs commissioner Olli Rehn whether EU institutions — which monitor how Greece spends its money under the terms of the Greek bail-outs — agreed the move.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Nokia Sinks on Profit Warning
Nokia Corp. Wednesday warned that intense competition, particularly in India, the Middle East, Africa and China would hit its first quarter performance, sending its shares plunging. Chief Executive Stephen Elop said the profit warning shows that the business is still in transition.
“Within our Smart Devices business unit, we have established early momentum with [the Lumia brand of mobile phones using Windows software] and we are increasing our investments in Lumia to achieve market success,” he said.
Mr. Elop announced last year that the company would ditch its own smartphone software Symbian and join forces with Microsoft Corp. to build a new family of phones using Microsoft’s Windows operating system. The strategy overhaul aims to recover ground Nokia has lost to rivals like Apple Inc. with its iPhone and phones based on Google Inc.’s Android software.
Nokia shares were down 18% in recent trade.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Portuguese Banks Borrow Record Amount From ECB
Banks in bailed-out Portugal borrowed a record amount from the European Central Bank in March, against a backdrop of rising debt in a sharply slowing economy, official data showed on Monday.
The banks’ ECB borrowings jumped to 56.3 billion euros ($73 billion) last month from 47.5 billion euros at end-February, the Bank of Portugal said.
The previous record of 49.1 billion euros came in August 2010 as the eurozone debt crisis worsened after the EU and International Monetary Fund had to rescue Greece in May that year.
The ECB began providing easy funding for the eurozone banks as the crisis deepened following that bailout and it has continued to offer money on generous terms so as to ease their liquidity problems.
Other figures meanwhile from the Bank of Portugal showed that corporate bad debt hit 8.28 billion euros in February while sour loans to households totalled 4.87 billion euros.
After Ireland in late 2010, Portugal itself needed an EU-IMF bailout in May 2011, adopting a series of tough austerity measures in return for the aid.
The measures have hit activity badly, however, and last month the Bank of Portugal said the economy would now shrink 3.4 percent this year, worse than its previous estimate for a contraction of 3.1 percent.
The economy shrank 1.6 percent last year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: Catalan Municipality Votes Yes on Cannabis Fields
Referendum on measures to tackle the current economic crisis
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, APRIL 11 — The people of the small rural Catalan village of Rasquera which counts 900 souls, have pronounced themselves as a majority in a referendum in favour of a cannabis cultivation project within a plan of measures to tackle the current economic crisis. The “Yes” as reported by El Pais online, has won with 56% of the votes. The left wing council which governs Rasquera, a town which survives mainly through work in the fields and the production of olive oil, has a public debt of 1.3 million euro and intends to accept the offer from the ABCDA (Barcelona Association for Cannabis and Personal usage) a club whose therapeutic and entertainment purposes counts five thousand members who organise the individual consumption of cannabis allowed by the Spanish government in a collective way. The ABCDA has proposed to pay the municipality thirty-six thousand euro for the permission to cultivate cannabis for non commercial purposes and inject 550,000 euro a year for the rental and management of the land.
The project should create 50 new jobs in the town. The initiative is being examined by the Catalan prosecutor’s office, as law number 368 of the Spanish penal code prohibits cultivation, elaboration and the trafficking of drugs. This particular case would be instead dealing with cultivation for personal usage.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Spain Can Cope Without Bailout: EU
(BRUSSELS) — Spain does not need a bailout or outside financial help to recapitalise its banks, the European Commission said Wednesday despite surging borrowing costs fuelling fears Madrid may need help.
Spain has unveiled a tough austerity budget to fight off eurozone debt contagion, but the rate demanded by investors to lend to Madrid surged to the worrisome 6.0 percent level on Wednesday before retreating to 5.9 percent.
When asked if the commission still stands by its assessment that Spain does not need a bailout to recapitalise struggling banks, spokesman Olivier Bailly told a news briefing: “Yes we do.”
The European Union’s executive arm again applauded the Spanish government’s efforts to reduce its public deficit and debt, including a “very substantial” reform of the labour market.
The measures are “very demanding and difficult” but necessary, Bailly said, adding that Brussels is waiting for the budgets of Spain’s autonomous regions by the end of April to fully assess the country’s efforts.
Spain has vowed to cut its public deficit — the shortfall between revenue and spending — to 5.3 percent of GDP in 2012 and 3.0 percent in 2013 after allowing it to run over target to 8.5 percent last year.
After Greece, Ireland and Portugal received bailouts, analysts have warned that Spain could be next in line as it battles to overcome the crisis amid a recession and the eurozone’s highest unemployment rate.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: IMF Warns of £750bn Pensions Time Bomb
Britain’s ageing population is threatening a pensions time bomb that could cost as much as £750billion, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
The IMF said yesterday that even a slightly faster than expected increase in life expectancy could impose a huge new financial burden on Western economies such as Britain. “The time to act is now,” it said. Governments and the financial sector have consistently underestimated how quickly average lifespans will rise, IMF researchers found. They believe it has been routinely understated by about three years, which could render public finances unsustainable, they warned.
For Britain, the IMF calculated that on the “not unreasonable” assumption that the entire cost would fall on taxpayers, the country’s public debt would rise from 76 per cent of gross domestic product to as much as 135 per cent. In today’s money, that additional cost would be about £750?billion.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
19 Things That the Talking Heads on Television Are Being Strangely Silent About
If the talking heads on television don’t tell us about something that happens, does it make that event any less real? Of course the answer to that question is quite obvious, but unfortunately way too many Americans allow their realities to be defined by what they hear from the mainstream media.
Way too many people use phrases such as “if that was true I would have heard about it on television” to deflect conversations that are starting to become uncomfortable. Critical thinking is a skill that is in short supply in America today, and most Americans seem content to let their televisions do their thinking for them. Sadly, the pretty people on television do not spend a lot of time talking about the things that are truly important. Instead, they love to talk about the latest celebrity scandal and they love to divide people into groups and get them fighting with one another. In this day and age, it is absolutely critical that we all learn to think for ourselves. The talking heads on television are concerned with keeping their bosses happy and with keeping the ratings up. Most of them are not really concerned about what happens to you. They just want you to keep watching them so that they can continue to earn their inflated salaries.
Unfortunately, most Americans seem perfectly content with the “infotainment” that they are getting from the major news networks, so major changes to the mainstream media are not likely to happen any time soon.
For those wanting something different, you will have to seek out alternative sources of news (such as this website) that are willing to discuss the truly earth shattering events that are continually taking place all over the globe.
So what are some of the things that the mainstream media has been ignoring?
The following are 19 things that the talking heads on television have been strangely silent about…
#1 Strange Things Happening On The Sun
A lot of really weird things have been happening on the sun lately. For example, recently there was a tornado on the sun that was five times larger than the earth. The following is how this solar tornado was described by a recent Wired article [url].
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Apple Sued Over Ebook Pricing
Apple colluded over ebook pricing with publishers including HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, Simon & Schuster and Hachette, a US lawsuit alleges.
The United States government sued Apple and the publishers in a New York district court, claiming the publishers colluded to fix ebook prices, rather than allowing retailers to set them. Simon & Schuster, Hachette and HarperCollins settled their suits today, two people familiar with the matter said, but Apple and Macmillan have refused to engage in negotiations and deny they colluded to raise prices for ebooks. The two firms will argue that pricing agreements between Apple and publishers enhanced competition in the ebook industry, which was dominated by Amazon.com.
The US Justice Department is probing how Apple changed the way publishers charged for ebooks on the iPad, Bloomberg reported. The Justice Department said it would announce an “unspecified” antitrust settlement today. Penguin Group is also reported to be preparing to fight the US Justice Department in court if necessary.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Apple Rolls Past $600-Billion Mark in Tuesday Trading
US consumer electronics giant Apple is now worth over $600 billion. Already the world’s most valuable company, it reached a new all-time high in early trade on Tuesday, and an end to the rise is not in sight.
Apple continued its success story on Tuesday by crashing through the $600-billion (459 billion-euro) barrier for the first time in its history.
Company shares hit $644 a piece in early trading, up 1.2 percent from Monday’s close. Apple stocks have thus risen by a staggering 59 percent since the start of the year. Analysts have interpreted the continued rally as a sign that stocks have been undervalued relative to the company’s even more enormous profits.
The most recent increase in share value has been fueled by reports of another successful quarter and announcements that Apple will start putting its $97.6-billion cash hoard to use this summer by paying a dividend and buying back a considerable amount of shares.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Astonishing Video of California Man So Distracted by Sending a Text He Walks Into a Bear
Texting while walking down the street can be dangerous — traffic, lamp posts and even pot holes can lead to accidents.
But for one California man the danger was even bigger.
TV helicopter crews in California managed to capture an oblivious phone user walking into the path of a 500lb black bear.
The homeowner calmly walks towards the giant animal, engrossed in his mobile.
However, just feet before he reaches it, he notices the huge bear — and turns and runs in the nick of time.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Attack of the Killer Fungi: Rising Threat Worries Scientists
An unprecedented number of diseases caused by fungi have been causing some of the most severe die-offs and extinctions ever witnessed in wild species and jeopardizing crops to boot, scientists now report.
Fungi are wiping out amphibians on several continents, decimating bats in eastern North America, contributing to the disappearance of bees dubbed colony collapse disorder, and killing corals and sea turtles.
They are even threatening humans, if indirectly, by attacking crops. Fungi and fungilike organisms called oomycetes can cause significant losses to rice, wheat, maize, potatoes and soybeans, according to the researchers who write that the problems “vary regionally but pose a current and growing threat to food security.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Bad Amendments of the 20th Century
At the dawn of the 20th Century, the U.S. Constitution had been unchanged for more than 40 years since the amendments of 1865-1870 that prohibited slavery. But then the country panicked. Fearful of the shift from an agrarian to industrialized society and the movement of people from the country to the city, the United States 100 years ago experienced a crisis of confidence that led to something called progressivism. Progressivism was the belief that the government could and should mandate something called the public good as opposed to traditional values of limited government and individual responsibility.
One of the ways that this manifested itself was the creation of the Federal Reserve System in which the federal government would retain some quasi-ownership of the nation’s banks, and would retain the right to intervene into economic affairs as a matter of public policy, but really political influence. All these things began under Republican Theodore Roosevelt and Democrat President Woodrow Wilson, the first progressive president who ushered in Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter and finally Barack Hussein Obama, and the long national nightmare of progressive (socialistic) politics.
Let the history lesson begin:
Amendment 16 — Income Taxes, Feb. 2, 1913.
This gave Congress the authority to collect taxes on income. There are several historians who question whether this amendment was actually legally adopted. But that’s another story.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Can Pro-American Right Unite to Defeat Anti-American Left?
Almost sixty-percent of GOP primary voters voted for someone other than Mitt Romney, making Romney the likely nominee, but with the support of only about forty-percent of primary voters. That’s the bad new…
The good news is that many of those primary voters were democrats, independents, communists and libertarians who crossed party lines to disrupt the GOP nomination process — not Republicans or Conservatives. Due to the stupidity of the Republican Party and their suicidal open primary process in which anyone, and I do mean anyone, democrat, liberal, progressive communist, illegal alien… ANYONE can vote in the GOP primary.
[…]
Leftist anti-American communist thugs know that this is war. Whites may not be at war with blacks, but many blacks sure are at war with whites. Christians and Jews may not be at war with Radical Islam and atheists, but atheists and Radical Islam sure is at war with both Christians and Jews. The ninety-percent of Americans who don’t belong to labor unions may not be at war with labor unions, but the labor unions certainly are at war with all free-market Americans, especially taxpayers. Don’t forget that the unions now control the voting booths.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Cops Can Request a Copy of Your Complete Facebook Activity
If police officers were to file a subpoena for your Facebook information, they would receive a printout of the data from the social network. This printout would be so detailed, complete and creepy that you should strive to be a good law-abiding citizen, just to prevent it from ever existing.
We have just learned about the true nature of Facebook’s responses to subpoenas thanks to documents uncovered by the Boston Phoenix, an alternative weekly.
While researching a story about a man dubbed the “Craigslist Killer,” reporters at the Phoenix had access to “a huge trove of case files released by the Boston Police Department.” And in the process of sifting through all of those documents, they discovered the Boston Police’s subpoena of the suspect’s Facebook information— as well as the data provided by the social network.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
NAFTA Partners Take Steps to Boost Trilateral Relationship
While bilateral initiatives have dominated North American issues over the last couple of years, the trilateral relationship has suffered. With a series of high-level meetings, the U.S., Canada and Mexico are taking steps to boost the NAFTA partnership. First, the defense ministers met to discuss shared continental security threats.
This was followed by a leaders summit which pledged to deepen trade, regulatory, energy and security cooperation. The recent meetings have caused some to once again take notice of the incremental efforts to merge all three countries into a North American Union.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Obama Receives Brazil’s Ex-Terrorist President
Would Obama receive Bin Laden in the White House if the terrorist had been elected President of Saudi Arabia?
Of course not. But this week, he is hosting this week a terrorist who is just as anti-American as Bin laden was, the head of a government that employs former terrorists who committed crimes against American citizens. Her name is Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil.
Dilma was part of a terrorist communist organization known as VAR-Palmares, whose goal was the establishment of a Marxist dictatorship in Brazil, funded and controlled by Fidel Castro.
Dilma confessed to keeping machine guns and plastic bombs under her bed for use by her buddies. Among other crimes, her organization robbed banks, exploded bombs on the street and killed people in cold blood. Most of the terrorists are now employed as ministers, heads of large state companies or influential politicians.
They also killed foreigners such as Major Edward Ernest Tito Otto Maximilian Von Westernhagen and a 19-year-old British sailor named David Cuthberg, besides dozens of Brazilians.
But their most heinous crime was perhaps the murder of American Captain Charles Rodney Chandler. Hero of the Vietnam War, he came to Brazil to study Sociology and Politics at the Alvares Penteado Foundation, Sao Paulo.
| [Return to headlines] |
Obama-Romney Race Gets Underway
With Rick Santorum’s departure from the Republican primaries, Mitt Romney is the main challenger to U.S. President Barack Obama. Now it’s Romney’s turn to play his trump card.
It is hard to imagine any situation by the end of August other than Mitt Romney becoming the Republican nominee for the U.S. presidency. For weeks, the former governor of Massachusetts has gained delegates’ votes in the primaries, along with the support of Republican Party leaders. Rivals Rick Santorum, the former Senator of Pennsylvania, Newt Gingrich, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, and Ron Paul, the Texas Congressman, have lagged far behind.
More than any other, the arch-conservative Santorum dealt Romney one setback after another during the campaign. Santorum forced the moderate Romney to adopt increasingly conservative views in order to compete for Santorum’s supporters. The campaign took on an especially negative tone and was full of personal attacks. None of this worked to Romney’s advantage as he tried to win over centrist voters but lost plenty of sympathy points.
In a direct comparison between Romney and U.S. President Barack Obama, Obama currently comes ahead in almost every respect. A majority of respondents to the latest opinion poll by the Washington Post and ABC News said Obama comes off as more likable and arouses more enthusiasm. The majority also said Obama is more consistent on his views, cares more about women’s rights, is a safer bet in the international arena, supports the middle class and understands the financial problems of average people.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Obama Looks to Make Romney the Villain
“And this election will probably have the biggest contrast that we’ve seen maybe since the Johnson-Goldwater election — maybe before that.”
— President Obama talking to donors at a fundraiser in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
President Obama will continue today in his opening salvo against presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney, attacking tax policies that allow investors, including the very rich, like Romney, to pay a 15 percent tax rate on income from their portfolios.
Obama has been holding up billionaire Nebraska investor and big Democratic donor Warren Buffett as the role model for the super-rich, as Buffett advocates the idea of raising the tax rate for top earners.
From a policy prospective, this is part of an overall Obama effort to promote “fairness” by increasing taxes on top incomes. Aside from increasing taxes on investment revenue, Obama seeks to reduce deductions for charitable donations by high earners and, most centrally, to raise income taxes for individuals earning more than $200,000 and families taking more than $250,000.
The millionaires tax would only raise a bit more than $1 billion a year, but Obama hopes that if he can win re-election campaigning for that, he will have won a mandate for a tax proposal aimed at increasing the burden on the top quartile of earners.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Obama Administration Proposes New Effort to Curb Antibiotic Use on US Farms
The National Pork Producers Council questioned the guidance’s rationale and said it would disproportionately hurt small and rural farmers who don’t have easy access to veterinarians to oversee their use of antibiotics.
“The guidance could eliminate antibiotic uses that are extremely important to the health of animals,” council President R.C. Hunt said in a statement. “FDA did not provide compelling evidence nor did it state that antibiotics use in livestock production is unsafe.”
| — Hat tip: Van Grungy | [Return to headlines] |
Thirteen Ways Government Tracks Us
Privacy is eroding fast as technology offers government increasing ways to track and spy on citizens. The Washington Post reported there are 3,984 federal, state and local organizations working on domestic counterterrorism. Most collect information on people in the US. (Source)
Here are thirteen examples of how some of the biggest government agencies and programs track people.
One. The National Security Agency (NSA) collects hundreds of millions of emails, texts and phone calls every day and has the ability to collect and sift through billions more. WIRED just reported NSA is building an immense new data center which will intercept, analyze and store even more electronic communications from satellites and cables across the nation and the world. Though NSA is not supposed to focus on US citizens, it does. (Source)
Two. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National Security Branch Analysis Center (NSAC) has more than 1.5 billion government and private sector records about US citizens collected from commercial databases, government information, and criminal probes. (Source)
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Trayvon Martin: Disinformation, Fake Reporting Fuelling the Illusion of an ‘American Race War’
In the wake of the Trayvon Martin shooting and the ensuing media circus, a new beast has reared its ugly head — this time in the form of media disinformation and race-baiting reports threatening to propel America in the direction of a new race war.
On Saturday April 7th, journalist Michael Miller’s Miami New Times blog clumsily ran with a report entitled,”Armed Neo-Nazis Now Patrolling Sanford, Say They Are “Prepared” for Post-Trayvon Martin”.
The Miami New Times report claims that National Socialist Movement’s mascot, Jeff Schoep, dubbed “The Hollywood Nazi” because of his adherence to TV stereotypes, is leading armed Neo-Nazi patrols of Sanford, Florida to protect white residents from black violence. But there’s only one problem — it isn’t actually happening. Infowars.com contacted the Sanford Police Department on Sunday, looking for confirmation on the Miami News Times story, but according to the department’s office of public information, “We can confirm there have been no reports of any Neo-Nazi, or armed Neo-Nazi patrols in Sanford.”
The Miami New Times have since updated their article to retract their earlier reports of armed Neo-Nazi patrols in Sanford.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Wounded Romney Set to Take on Obama
Rick Santorum has withdrawn from the Republican primary race, putting an end to a race that left many observers scratching their heads. It was a bruising battle for presumed nominee Mitt Romney, leaving him weakened as President Barack Obama goes on the attack.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
You Can Keep the Change, Part 1
Ultimately, what background training was used by President Obama to deceive the masses who love their freedoms and rights to elect a man to the Office of the President of the United States, whose obvious goal is to deny them their freedoms and rights? Simply speaking, the easiest way to describe President Obama’s background is to research the man who has become the driving force in his life. Of course, this man is not the man that most people would expect. It is not the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, even though he has definitely influenced President Obama. The man who has influenced President Obama more than anyone else was Saul Alinsky, a Marxist community organizer.
[…]
Now, since it is obvious that President Obama was influenced by Saul Alinsky, it is very important to know more about the man who influenced President Obama, in order for all Americans to get into the psyche of the President who may ultimately destroy America from within. Of course, the best method to learn about Saul Alinsky is to discuss parts of his 1971 book entitled Rules for Radicals. In fact, the opening page dedication should present the crux and truth of the matter. It reads, “Lest we forget at least an over-the-shoulder acknowledgment to the very first radical: from all our legends, mythology, and history… the first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own kingdom — Lucifer.” (1) Therefore, as written in John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” As a result, based just on the dedication, the rest of Rules for Radicals must proclaim an ideology that would be harmful if applied to a nation’s political structure. Sadly, this Marxist book has become America’s new political guide. Prayerfully, the next political guide will not be the Communist Manifesto.
Why did Mr. Alinsky write Rules for Radicals? According to the Prologue, it was written for the following reason:
[…]
Of course, most American do not want capitalism to be replaced by socialism and or communism. But, once the process of power has gained control of a community or a government, it might just be too late. As Mr. Alinsky stated in Rules for Radicals,
“From the moment the organizer enters a community he lives, dreams… only one thing and that is to build the mass power base of what he calls the army. Until he has developed that mass power base, he confronts no major issues… Until he has those means and power instruments, his ‘tactics’ are very different from power tactics. Therefore, every move revolves around one central point: how many recruits will this bring into the organization, whether by means of local organizations, churches, service groups, labor unions, corner gangs, or as individuals.” (1)
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Zimmerman’s Fla Arrest Follows Puzzling Disappearance; Experts Say He Should Stop Talking
PMAP SANFORD, Fla. — The neighborhood watch volunteer who shot Trayvon Martin to death had been out of touch and, his ex-lawyer says, “a little bit over the edge” before his arrest on a second-degree murder charge.
As George Zimmerman turned himself in Wednesday in the Feb. 26 shooting of the unarmed black teen, experts offered this advice: Stop talking.
“My advice to the client would be, ‘Save it for the trial. It can’t help you.’“ said Roy Kahn, a Miami defense attorney.
The 28-year-old Sanford man was in custody in Florida after a puzzling disappearance that had his lawyers expressing concern for his health and announcing they couldn’t represent him anymore. Zimmerman had called special prosecutor Angela Corey, his former lawyers said, had an off-the-record chat with a Fox News Channel host and put up a website asking supporters for money.
“It would not be in a client’s best interest to give any statement before it’s his time to testify at trial,” Kahn said. “For him to give a statement, since he already has given an interview to the police, any additional statement at the State Attorney’s Office would just create the possibility of him creating conflict with his previous statements.”
Zimmerman’s new attorney, Mark O’Mara, said after his client’s arrest Wednesday that Zimmerman “is very concerned about the charges, but he is OK.”
“I’m not concerned about his mental well-being,” O’Mara said.
Former lawyers Craig Sonner and Hal Uhrig on Tuesday portrayed Zimmerman as erratic, said he hadn’t returned their calls and texts and was buckling under the pressure that has built in the month since the shooting.
Jack Schafer, a professor at Western Illinois University and a former FBI behavioral analyst, said Zimmerman’s behavior shouldn’t cause undue concern. After all, Schafer said, he wasn’t charged with any crime and was free to go wherever he wanted after he spoke to authorities after the shooting.
“If I were him, I’d go somewhere in hiding,” said Schafer. “His life is at risk, not by jurisprudence, but by angry people who are rushing to judgment.”
Leslie Garfield, a Pace University law professor in New York, said Zimmerman’s behavior over the last 48 hours should not affect his prosecution.
“Whatever else goes on behind the scenes before charges aren’t really a factor,” she said. “All that should matter is what his intentions were at the time of the shooting.”…
| [Return to headlines] |
Royal Canadian Mint to Create Digital Currency
The Royal Canadian Mint wants to get rid of pocket change — and it’s enlisting hacker-types for help.
Less than a week after the government announced the penny’s impending death, the Mint quietly unveiled its digital currency called MintChip.
Still in the research and development phase, MintChip will ultimately let people pay each other directly using smartphones, USB sticks, computers, tablets and clouds. The digital currency will be anonymous and good for small transactions — just like cash, the Mint says.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Austria: Klimt Up Close
Paintings by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt are among the most expensive in the world, up there with Picasso and co. During the 150th anniversary of his birth, admirers get a close-up view of his famous Beethoven Frieze.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Bossi Hands in His “Irrevocable” Resignation to the Federal Council; The Party to be Run by a Triumvirate
“I’m resigning for the good of the movement and the activists; my priority is the good of the Northern League, but they’re sorely mistaken if they think I intend to disappear.
MILAN — Exactly 20 years on from the 1992 elections, the Northern League’s first real political victory, Umberto Bossi has resigned. The investigations into the Northern League treasurer, Francesco Belsito, being carried out by the public prosecutor’s offices of Milan, Naples and Reggio Calabria, caused the party leader to stand down, and he resigned as party secretary during the federal council meeting on Thursday. His “irrevocable” decision was accepted by the federal council, who will replace the secretary with three prince regents, entrusted with the interim running of the movement.
THE TRIUMVIRATE — There will in fact be a triumvirate at the head of the party, composed of the coordinator of the national branch offices, Roberto Calderoli; the former interior minister, Roberto Maroni (who is meeting Bossi in via Bellerio in Milan on Friday for a private talk); and the MP from Veneto, Emanuela Dal Lago. “I’m resigning for the good of the movement and the activists. My priority is the good of the Northern League, and continuing the battle”. These are the words with which Umberto Bossi left his post as party leader. The council nevertheless rewarded him for his service, appointing him party chairman in place of Angelo Alessandri. This appointment will allow him to continue to take part in the meetings of the federal council. Bossi commented that “If you make a mistake, you have to pay for it, regardless of who you are”. Later, in an interview with the editor of LaPadania Stefania Piazzo, Bossi pointed out that “Nobody asked me to resign. I decided to myself, because I was in the way, but the fact that I resigned doesn’t mean I’m disappearing from the scene. They are sorely mistaken. I’m staying in the Northern League, whether as a grassroots activist or secretary, I will always be ready to fight for the cause”. He continued: “As from tomorrow, they can call me an activist, or not even that; just a supporter”. As far as regards the investigations, Bossi’s views are clear: “this is clearly a manoeuvre to attack me and the Northern League”. And as far as regards the conflict with Maroni, he clarified: “It’s not true that Maroni’s a traitor”…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Brussels Transport Strike Extended After Fatal Attack
Brussels public transport workers decided Tuesday to extend their strike by at least two more days, keeping buses, trams and metros idle for almost a week after a colleague was fatally beaten. The work stoppage, which was on its fourth day, will continue until at least Thursday, the same day as the funeral for a supervisor who died after being punched in the face following an accident between a bus and a car.
The government announced Monday plans to deploy 400 extra police officers in Brussels and recruit 50 agents for the public transport system following Saturday’s assault, but it will take months to materialise. But unions demanded quicker action to stem what they see as an alarming number of attacks on public transport workers.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Bucharest Still Angry About Schengen Refusal
The new Dutch ambassador to Romania has been waiting for months to present his credentials to President Traian Basescu but so far, the Romanian leader has not found time to receive the Dutch diplomat.
Because he has been unable to present his credentials, Matthijs van Bonzel is not officially allowed to call himself ambassador. The situation is so unusual that the Dutch Labour party has asked Deputy Foreign Minister Ben Knapen for an explanation. The chair of the Romanian-Dutch Chamber of Commerce in Bucharest has also raised the issue with Dutch politicians.
Diplomats speculate that the cold shoulder from Bucharest is due to the Dutch refusal to allow Romania to join the Schengen Area, a treaty zone comprising the territories of 26 European countries that have abolished internal border controls. The Hague claims that Bucharest isn’t ready to join the area but the Romanian government claims that they have fulfilled all the criteria laid down in the treaty. Bucharest says the Dutch minority cabinet has been hijacked by its parliamentary backer, the right-wing Freedom Party.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Central Europe: Fortunately: We Still Have Strudel
Ekonom Prague
In the wake of the fall of communism, in 1991, Prague, Warsaw, Budapest and Bratislava formed the ‘ Visegrád’ Group. Inspired by a 14th Century alliance of the same countries aimed at fostering trade with Western Europe, the modern Visegrád Group’s objective is to foster integration into Western Europe and to give the group political heft. But some twenty years later, each country appears to be following a different piper.
Tomáš Krejcí
Thinking about what might, today, unite the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary, only one idea came to mind: with only a few variations, a few layers of flavoured puff pastry dough wrapped around apples, cinnamon and raisins. That’s the secret of grandmothers in Prague, Bratislava, Warsaw and Pest.
Only a few people are today capable of finding on the map the exact location [Visegrád, in Hungary] where, in 1335, the kings of Poland, Bohemia and Hungary met. Twenty-one years ago, the Visegrád Group [Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia] was inaugurated in great pomp. The member states shared a past, a pro-western European outlook and the aspiration to a sense of security guaranteed by joining NATO.
Czech children no longer understand Slovak
Although the four countries have, since then, joined the West’s structures, it seems, over time, always more difficult to find their common denominator. Many supranational firms make no difference between the West and the East of Europe. It can happen that Prague will have to submit to London or that Istanbul takes control of Budapest. The banks have settled their regional headquarters in Vienna.
Poland claims, by right, to be equal to France in terms of size and importance. Back home [in the Czech Republic], we are looking to the other side of the English Channel. As for the [Slovak] dream of a new Switzerland, it is fading because, among other reasons, in the deep forests of the Alps you do not risk running into a Gorilla [a recent major Slovak political scandal].
The Hungarian economy’s current difficulties do not favour optimism about the prospects for financial markets in the neighbouring countries.
Central Europe’s identity is becoming more and more diluted in the well-known melting pot of global culture. Those who are nostalgic for the days when German was the region’s lingua franca are forced to note that today, in the ski resorts, Austrians, Hungarians and Slovakians order “two small beers” [in English in the original].
Today, Czech children no longer understand Slovak; the language is no longer being used in the Czech media. And you [Czech readers], when exactly was the last time you went to see the latest Polish or Hungarian film to come out?
One of the aims of the meeting of the three kings at Visegrád, in 1335, was to create an anti-Habsburg coalition. The actual Euro-American Visegrád Group has no common foe. If it came to discretely disappear, no one would notice. We can only hope that strudel, at least, will stand the test of time.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Cinema Confronts the Fear of Islam
The Toulouse killings have reignited the debate on integration of Muslims in Europe. The issue is also being tackled by contemporary film-makers.
“In recent years, in France, the climate has deteriorated badly. Religions — and in particular Islam — are stigmatised and exploited for the sake of winning votes”, Adi, who was born in France into an Algerian immigrant family, told swissinfo.ch.
“At one time people used to ask me what nationality I was. Today they just want to know if I am Muslim.” Used as a bugbear by some political parties and media, transformed from a private matter into a public problem, the Muslim religion has become for many immigrants a place they can find their identity.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Denmark: “We Need a Real Press!”
CT-Interview with Lars Hedegaard on Mohammed cartoons, Denmark as a role model and one Million Euros
As a small country, Denmark is not very influential within the European Union. But ever since then there appeared the Mohammed cartoons, the country became the focus of international attention. Citizen Times Editor in Chief Felix Strüning spoke with the Dane Lars Hedegaard, president of the International Free Press Society, on developments in his country, the chances of a peaceful solution to the problem of Islam and what he would do with one million Euros.
Citizen Times: Mr. Hedegaard, six years ago, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Postenpublished the famous twelve Mohammed cartoons. Kurt Westergaard, one of the artists, still needs police protection. So, how is the mood in the Danish population right now?
Lars Hedegaard: There are some indications that parts of the public are getting tired and would dearly like to return to a state of “normality”. In early March the leading PC-paperPolitiken even claimed that the debate over Islam and immigration is over — which is exactly what the paper would like to happen.
However, we will probably never get back to the cosy and warm welfare state we knew just a few decades ago. And it has little or nothing to do with what Danes do or say. As one of the world’s leading Islam scholars Bernard Lewis pointed out back in 2006, the fact that Islamic states and fanatics all over the world would raise hell over a few drawings indicates that they already consider Denmark to be a part of the dar al-Islam, i.e. that part of the world where sharia law reigns.
They consider us to be a conquered country and those of us who refuse to accept this new state of affairs are considered as rebels against the theocratic order they want to impose. For the time being, people may be tired of discussing Islam and the demographic changes that are taking place in our country. But this debate is bound to return with a vengeance as more and more people realise what is happening to our country.
Citizen Times: In October 2011, the Danish Government changed after ten years of successful politics under Rasmussen. Do you already feel differences under the current leftwing and socialist government?
Lars Hedegaard: Yes, certain changes are obvious. Before the election the winning left-wing parties claimed that they would not deviate from the immigration policies introduced by the former centre-right government. They broke that promise — as they have broken practically every promise they made.
So now we are back to practically unfettered immigration. At the same time the Socialist government has made it more lucrative for immigrants to be on welfare rather than working.
Citizen Times: You are the president of International Free Press Society (IFPS) and connected to politicians like Geert Wilders, activists like Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff and Organizations like the U.S. based MEF of Daniel Pipes. What is your key role and how does the IFPS function?
Lars Hedegaard: The IFPS is actually a small group of people acting in an advisory capacity for those seeking our advice. We also keep in touch with like-minded people all over the Western world, i.e. people who will stand up for freedom and especially freedom of expression. My main job is to be President of the Danish Free Press Society, which has existed for more than eight years. It is a membership-based organisation with an elected Board of Directors and our sole purpose is the defence of free speech. Other than that our members are free to voice any opinion they hold — as long as they do not advocate violence or anything totalitarian. We welcome people of all religions and political persuasions.
Citizen Times: More generally, how can we improve the situation with Muslim migration in Europe?
Lars Hedegaard: The basic task is to make people understand what Islam is all about. That it is not a religion in our traditional sense of the word. It is more akin to a political ideology that is totally alien and antagonistic to the tenets of Western civilisation. Until we understand this basic fact, we will have no idea how to help Muslim immigrants to integrate and eventually assimilate to the nations that have let them in.
Citizen Times: Was the latest Danish immigration policy an example for the European Union?
Lars Hedegaard: No. The immigration policies of the former government were widely believed to have been very restrictive. That was not the case. Long-term they hardly made a dent in the rapid demographic transformation of our society, which is leading to the creation of immigrant enclaves more or less outside mainstream Danish society…
| — Hat tip: Steen | [Return to headlines] |
Dutch School Kids Copy US Gang Culture
Primary schoolchildren in a suburb of the southern Dutch city of Den Bosch are imitating the violent practices of the North and Central American gang MS-13, parents have been warned. School heads and social workers described in a letter to parents how schoolchildren were copying MS-13’s initiation ritual, in which a group of children beat up a would-be gang member for 13 seconds, or force them to steal something.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: 300 Women Fined Under Full-Face Veil Ban
One year after France introduced a law banning women from wearing full-face veils in public, officials report that around 300 have been fined. The ban on wearing the niqab in any public place was introduced on April 11th 2011.
It is illegal for any woman to wear the veil except when they are at home, worshipping in a religious place or travelling as a passenger in a private car.
Wearing the veil can lead to a fine of €150 ($200) and forced attendance at a citizenship class.
Interior ministry officials reported that “in one year there have been 354 police checks and 299 fines issued,” reported Le Parisien newspaper.
At the time of the law being passed, officials estimated that around 2,000 women were wearing the full-face veil.
In January, interior minister Claude Guéant told parliament that “the number of women wearing the veil has fallen by half” since the law was introduced.
The law remains controversial, with several groups continuing to oppose it.
Rachid Nekkaz of the group “Touche pas à ma Constitution” (Don’t Touch my Constitution) claims that 367 women have been fined and questioned in police stations for “between one and a half and three hours.”
Two-thirds of the women questioned are divorced or single, according to Nekkaz. He believes this proves the women are not wearing the veil “by force of a husband.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: Arab Nudes Defy Taboos in Paris Show
The naked body in Arab art is the theme of a new Paris exhibit meant to broaden views of Arab culture, spotlighting the many artists willing to break taboos and depict nudity in all its forms.
“The Body Uncovered” at Paris’ Arab World Institute aims to “challenge the stereotypes usually associated with the Arab world that reduce it to the single image of religious fanaticism,” said the institute’s chairman Renaud Muselier.
“It is intended instead to echo the reality of an Arab art scene that despite the conservative climate, exists, dares to overcome taboos and manages to find a place in the global contemporary art scene,” he explains in the show catalogue.
Until July 15 the institute bordering the River Seine will display 200 works by 70 modern and contemporary Arab artists, many of them women, which address eroticism, the sensuality of dance, violence, the exploitation of women and homosexuality through sculpture, collage, painting, photography and video.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: Disneyland Paris Turns 20, With Mixed Results
Disneyland Paris fetes its 20th anniversary Thursday, but while Mickey Mouse now draws nearly twice as many visitors as the Louvre’s Mona Lisa, his fantasy park is not yet out of the financial woods.
French theme parks in general have done well amid Europe’s debt crisis, offering a fairly low-cost escape for families, and Disney reported a record 15.7 million visitors in its fiscal year that ended on September 30 2011.
That compared with 8.4 million visitors to the Louvre art museum, and 6.6 million to Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower.
“It’s magic, we’re in France, but it feels like we’re in another country altogether,” a Belgian tourist named Christelle told AFP.
Britons Jojo and Jake added: “We’re students so we work very hard most of the time so it’s really nice to come away and do something really childish but really fun.”
But Disney, which bet heavily on a site east of Paris prone to damp, chilly winters, posted a net loss of 55.6 million euros ($72.8 billion) despite a modest increase in sales to 1.3 billion euros.
The sprawling park, served by high-speed trains and home to 57 attractions, boasts Big Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain Mission 2, but also lies beneath a debt mountain that amounted to 1.87 billion euros last year.
Disney says it will pay off that debt by 2024.
It also highlights employment opportunities for minorities that have had trouble even getting job interviews elsewhere in France.
Mourad Adli, a 40-year-old Algerian is cited as an example, starting as a pop-corn vendor when the park opened and now the head of its 60 restaurants.
A French intellectual slammed Disneyland Paris as a “Cultural Chernobyl” 20 years ago, a tag that has not stopped it from drawing more than 250 million visitors in the meantime, making it Europe’s leading tourist destination.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
German Car Makers Race to New Records in March
Driven by a seemingly insatiable global demand for German cars, luxury auto maker BMW has seen the best quarter in company history, while its mainstream rival VW has sold more cars than ever in a single month.
Germany’s top-of-the-range auto maker BMW sold 425,528 cars worldwide in the first quarter of 2012 — a rise of 11.2 percent compared with a year earlier, the company said Wednesday.
Powered by growth in key markets Germany, the United States and China, the period marked the best quarter in the company’s history.
Sales of 185,728 vehicles in March had also been the highest ever recorded for a single month, the Munich-based firm said, breaking the previous sales record of 165.855 cars set in June 2011.
Sales in China surged 36.8 percent compared with the first quarter of 2011, in addition to a rise of 16.6 percent in the United States and 2.0 percent for Germany.
The company said it hoped to grow stronger than the overall market in 2012, targeting more record sales of its BMW, Rolls-Royce and Mini brand cars.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: ‘A Koran in Every Home’ Project Makes Waves
A project by Salafist Muslims to give away 25 million German-language Korans across the country — by post and in town centres, has been slammed by a conservative politician calling it a disturbance of the religious peace.
“Wherever possible, this aggressive action must be stopped,” Günter Krings, a top member of Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union parliamentary party, told Die Welt daily newspaper on Wednesday.
“Although there is in principle nothing against the distribution of religious texts,” he said, Die Welt reported he added that the radical Salafists were disturbing the religious peace with their aggressive methods.
The newspaper said that German intelligence services rated the campaign’s initiator Ibrahim Abou Nagie as a dangerous Salafist preacher.
His aim is to give away 25 million free German-language copies of the Koran to non-Muslims — his campaign is called “Read! In the name of your Lord who created you.” Additional copies are also being distributed in Austria and Switzerland.
The Cologne-based preacher says the aim is to try to save people from eternal hell.
The project is being funded by Muslims who buy one Koran, which then funds the production of a second one to be given away and also by donations from wealthy people in Bahrain.
Die Welt said the first copies have already been given out — and that Abu Nagie claims to have given away more than 300,000 German-language Korans across the country already. People are also invited to order a free copy to be delivered by post.
The Easter weekend was the spark for a new phase, the paper said, with what it termed a “frontal offensive against the non- and other-believers”. Others might describe it as setting up stands in 35 town centres across the country and handing out free copies of the Koran.
The paper does admit that the version of the Koran is a moderate one — a translation by Mohammed Ibn Ahmad Rassoul with comments from the German convert Frank von Bubenheim and has been rated by intelligence agencies as not problematic.
Yet the Berlin state office for the protection of the constitution said, “Salafistism is strongly radicalising and is promoted by its followers as supposedly the only true Islam.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Lega: Bossi to Maroni, Clean-Up Already Underway
(AGI) Rome — Umberto Bossi said, “The clean-up is already underway and we already have the person to do it.” The former number one of the Lega Nord was speaking in reply to comments made by Roberto Maroni yesterday. The ‘Senatur’ made his reply to the Lega’s newspaper ‘Padania’, which opened with the headline: ‘Against the attack that aims to divide. Bossi: everyone united. The clean-up is already underway and we already have the person to do it’. The former interior minister spoke yesterday both in an interview with ‘Padania’ and on his Facebook page, to demand a clean-up within the party, after the legal earthquake that shook the Lega Nord and led to the resignation of Bossi
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Bossi Considers Running Again
Resigned League leader denounces ‘plot’
(ANSA) — Rome, April 6 — Umberto Bossi said Friday he has not ruled out running again after stepping down as the leader of the scandal-hit Northern League.
“We haven’t decided yet,” he said. “I’ll tell you later”. The firebrand politician resigned Thursday after he and his family were linked to probes into alleged fraud by the former treasurer of the party, Francesco Belsito.
Bossi repeated Friday that he believes the investigation is part of a plot against his party, a highly vocal opponent of Premier Mario Monti’s administration.
“This all seems organized to me. We’re enemies of Rome, an overbearing thief of Italy, a state that will never succeed at democracy,” he said. Bossi said that the new party treasurer, Stefano Stefani, “must look into the whole dark affair, even if it leads to people with ties to the mafia”.
A police warrant to search the League’s offices in Milan on Tuesday said prosecutors suspected party money was misspent on the former minister’s children.
The search was authorised after prosecutors in Milan, Naples and Reggio Calabria launched probes into the activities of Belsito, who resigned as party treasurer on Tuesday.
On the same day, the League’s administrative secretary Nadia Dagrada told prosecutors that the party had received money under the table, which police said they had suspected from wiretapped conversations. This week’s developments come after a senior League member, Davide Boni, the Lombardy regional assembly president, was put under investigation for alleged corruption and bribery last month.
Bossi has denied any wrongdoing.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Probe Into Northern League Finances Opened in Genoa
Investigators examine Ligurian regional secretary’s bank account
(ANSA) — Genoa, April 10 — Prosecutors in Genoa opened an investigation on Tuesday into alleged fraud by the populist party the Northern League, already being probed in Milan, Naples and Reggio Calabria.
Investigators are looking into deposits into the account of the Northern League’s regional secretary for Liguria, Francesco Bruzzone, by former treasurer Francesco Belsito amounting to 40,000 euros.
Party leader Umberto Bossi resigned last Thursday after he and his family were linked to alleged fraud by Belsito.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: No-TAV Protesters Occupy the Turin-Bardonecchia Highway
(AGI) Turin — The A32 Turin-Bardonecchia highway is closed in both directions of traffic. Approximately 150 students of the ‘Kollettivo Giovani’ of the No-Tav Movement marched out of Bussoleno and walked up onto the highway at the Chianocco exit.
At the moment, the highway is is closed in both directions of traffic. In the meantime, more protesters are flowing in from Giaglione while in the Maddalena construction site land-owners are convened in a meeting to discuss the details of the temporary occupation of their land.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
McDonald’s Looks to Lure French With ‘McBaguette’
The French branch of US fast food giant McDonald’s said Tuesday it was to introduce a “McBaguette” sandwich in a bid to cater to local tastes.
Often derided in food-mad France for its mass-production approach, the chain has worked to adapt with sandwiches featuring local ingredients such as goat’s cheese and pepper sauce, alongside its traditional burgers and chips.
The McBaguette will be launched as a test product on April 18 for six weeks in the chain’s 1,230 French restaurants, Nawfal Trabelsi, McDonald’s France’s vice president for marketing, told journalists.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: Rijksmuseum Distances Itself From Its Islam Cartoon
AMSTERDAM, 12/04/12 — The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is distancing itself “from the significance” of a cartoon from 1683 which it is currently exhibiting. A furore arose in Turkish media.
The print shows the Ottoman sultan lying sick in bed after losing a pitched battle by Vienna. A remarkable detail is that the royal commode is beside the bed with the Koran next to it as toilet paper. Such prints were popular in Europe after the Ottoman defeat in the siege of Vienna.
Wim Pijbes, director of the Rijksmuseum, has meanwhile placed an explanatory text beside the print. This says that such a print is part of the full picture
that the museum wants to give of 400 years of Turkish — Dutch relations, but that “this does not mean that the Rijksmuseum endorses the meaning of the print.” Pijbels says the text was necessary to prevent escalation.
The print is part of the exhibition ‘Ottomania: The Turkish world through Western eyes’. “After reports in the Turkish media came to our ears, we did make contact with the Turkish ambassador. He pointed out the ‘sensitivities’ that are linked with such a print, but he did not ask us to remove the print.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Netherlands: Thousands of Volunteers Prop Up Police Forces
Fourteen of the 25 Dutch police forces use members of the public as volunteers to carry out police tasks, RTL news reports.
Thousands of ordinary people volunteer for police tasks and some wear police uniforms and take part in surveillance or minor detective work, RTL says.
The projects are aimed at ‘improving safety’ and private individuals will play an even greater role when the new national police force is established, sources told the broadcaster.
Patrols
In the Haaglanden police region, for example, the local force wants to have 550 volunteers on its books by the end of the year. They will take over 120,000 hours-worth of tasks from the regular force, including patrols and minor detective work.
Without volunteers ‘we would be able to do substantially less,’ acting police chief Paul van Musscher told RTL news.
In Limburg, volunteers have walkie talkies they can use to alert the police if they spot vandals or burglars and ‘suspicious types’.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Northern League to Stay Until Padania is Free, Bossi Says
(AGI) Bergamo — Former Northern League leader Umberto Bossi claims once again the “only opposition party” was set up.
Speaking at the rally in Bergamo, he said “we will stay on until Padania, northern Italy, is set free. We are ready to battle free our rights and our land. What matters tonight is to take an oath of loyalty, the party leaders must work to prevent any further division in future. Maroni is not a traitor, Maroni is not Macbeth”, Bossi said. “We must stop being divided, being against each other. The Northern League is united. There is no magic circle. We must get going again and buck the archenemy, namely Roman centralism”.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Norway: Breivik’s Strategy: Secure a Jail Term
How to defend a mass-murderer whose guilt is not in question? Anders Behring Breivik’s defence will take the unusual approach of trying to prove he is criminally responsible and should be sent to prison.
The 33-year-old right-wing extremist who killed 77 people in twin attacks last July has said he does not want his lawyers to try to get him a light
sentence, but rather wants them to focus on arguing that he is of sound mind.
Their strategy received a boost this week when a second psychiatric examination concluded Tuesday that Breivik was not psychotic at the time of the massacre, contrary to the findings in an initial probe late last year.
“Breivik is very clear on this point: he believes his message would be delegitimized, as he says, if he is declared criminally insane,” one of his
lawyers, Vibeke Hein Baera, told AFP.
The confessed killer had told the first two psychiatric experts who examined him that the carnage had been “just a formality” aimed at drawing
attention to his “manifesto” — a more than 1,500-page Islamophobic rant published shortly before the attacks.
By concluding that he suffered from “paranoid schizophrenia” the two experts not only sparked a heated debate in Norway but also dealt a blow to the killer’s ambition to spread his ideas as a serious ideology and not the rantings of a crazy person.
In a letter to Norwegian media last week, Breivik acknowledged that the first expert conclusion was “the ultimate humiliation,” and insisted that
being sent to a psychiatric hospital instead of prison would be “a fate worse than death.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Real Estate: Huge Slump in Property Sales in Cyprus
(ANSAmed) — NICOSIA, APRIL 10 — The Cyprus Property News reports a dramatic fall in overseas demand for property in Cyprus, with just five properties sold in the south-east Famagusta region to overseas buyers last month. The figures show that home sales are enduring their worst slump in years.
According to the report, as Famagusta Gazette writes, during the first three months of 2012, overseas sales have fallen more than a quarter compared with the corresponding period last year. Of the 563 contracts of sale deposited at Land Registries across Cyprus last month, 129 (23%) were in favour of overseas buyers.
The report adds that although both Larnaca and Paphos saw a small increase in sales last month, these were more that offset by falling sales in Famagusta, Nicosia and Limassol. Domestic demand for property remains subdued with overall sales falling again in March, with just 434 contracts of sale deposited last month compared with the 465 deposited in March last year. The first three months have seen a 14% rise in sales compared with the same period last year, due to an almost doubling of sales in January. But there are signs that the decline in sales is getting smaller and sales may be about to reach their worst point. Beleaguered property investors in Cyprus, many of them British continue to demand their title deeds, which in most cases have not been issued.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Swedes Face Toilet Paper Shortage in Wake of Strike Threat
The threat of a toilet paper shortage looming large over Sweden on Wednesday after a labour union warned it would block deliveries from several Swedish toilet paper factories in a show of solidarity with another union group negotiating for higher pay.
“We’re going to block goods from leaving factories in Lilla Edet, Marestad, Pauliström, and Nyboholm,” Matts Jutterström of the Pappers labour union told the labour trade publication Dagens Arbete.
The action, which is set to go in effect on April 23rd, could wipe out toilet paper and paper towel supplies in stores across Sweden.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Swiss Magazine Under Fire for ‘Racist’ Roma Cover
A Swiss magazine has sparked a storm of criticism with a cover story warning against criminal gangs that features a photograph of a Roma child holding a gun. Now a German organization representing Roma and Sinti has filed a criminal complaint against the publication.
It’s a striking image, but is it racist? The conservative Swiss magazine Weltwoche has unleashed a storm of criticism after publishing a photograph on the front page of its current issue of a Roma child pointing a pistol at the camera above the headline: “The Roma Are Coming: Robberies in Switzerland.” The article deals with what is allegedly a growing problem of crime committed by Roma gangs in the country. “They come, steal and leave,” reads the article, which was published last Thursday.
The cover has sparked widespread outrage, which has now reached Germany too. The Central Council of German Sinti and Roma announced on Tuesday that they had filed a criminal complaint for racial incitement and libel against the magazine with the public prosecutor in Heidelberg. The council also announced it was taking steps to stop the issue being sold in Germany.
The weekly’s cover encourages the racist stereotyping of a minority, said the council’s leader Romani Rose in a statement, adding that it places Sinti and Roma under general suspicion. He said it was similar to propaganda from the Nazi era, as it created the impression that criminality was caused by an individual’s ethnic origin. The Nazis persecuted and murdered around 500,000 Sinti and Roma during the Holocaust.
The Central Council has also complained to Switzerland’s Federal Commission against Racism (EKR). EKR President Martine Brunschwig Graf announced earlier this week that the commission would investigate the Weltwoche article.
In a video message published on its website on Monday, Weltwoche defended itself against the criticism. Deputy editor in chief Philipp Gut, who is one of the co-authors of the article, said that although the article had triggered a storm of indignation, it had also met with approval. He said that growing “crime tourism” in Switzerland, largely perpetrated by Roma gangs from Eastern Europe, was a reality, calling it a “current and serious problem.” The photograph of the child symbolized “the fact that Roma gangs misuse their children for criminal purposes,” Gut also told the Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung.
Several criminal complaints have already been filed against Weltwoche in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. One of the people who has filed a complaint, Austrian journalist Klaus Kamolz, told the Swiss news agency SDA that he wanted to send a “symbolic signal” against the “blanket condemnation of Roma as criminals.” Peter Studer, a former president of the Swiss Press Council, said it was an “outrageous picture” with “racist overtones.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Switzerland: Magazine Sued for Racial Incitement
Die Weltwoche, a Zurich-based news weekly, has triggered outrage among some people in Switzerland, Germany and Austria with its latest cover and lead article.
The cover of the magazine, which has ties to the rightwing Swiss People’s Party, shows a Roma child who looks about four years old pointing a gun at the camera (see link). The headline says: “The Roma are coming: Plundering in Switzerland”.
One of those lodging a legal complaint is an Austrian journalist who says he wants to send a “symbolic signal” against what he sees as Weltwoche’s “sweeping generalisation and tarring of Roma as criminals”.
A woman in Basel has also lodged a complaint, accusing Weltwoche of breaching Swiss anti-racism laws.
Peter Studer, president of the Swiss Press Council between 2001 and 2007, said it was an “outrageous picture with racist tones”.
The deputy editor of Weltwoche, who co-wrote the lead article, said he couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about, adding that the real scandal was that none of the people complaining had spoken out against the abuse of Roma children by gangs for criminal purposes.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
UK: David Cameron ‘Must Retreat’ On Charities, Senior Tory MPs Warn
David Cameron must back down over plans to cap tax breaks on donations to charity or risk undermining Britain’s culture of philanthropy, senior Tory MPs have warned.
The Prime Minister promised to listen “very sympathetically” to charities concerned that philanthropic giving will decline after the Government criticised wealthy individuals who benefit from tax relief on donations.
Mr Cameron, speaking on a visit to Indonesia, said he wanted to “get the balance right” between encouraging charities and cracking down on tax avoiders, and indicated that there could be differing tax treatment for charities registered in Britain and abroad.
Higher rate taxpayers giving to a charity can reclaim more than half of the tax. From April, the maximum amount that can be reclaimed will be £50,000 per year or a quarter of the individual’s income.
Conor Burns, ministerial aide to the Northern Ireland Secretary, Owen Paterson, urged him go further and make a “quick review and retreat”.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: How Dare a Foreign Court Tell us What to Do?
Abu Hamza can now be taken to the United States.
Thank you for giving us permission, our worshipful unelected masters in Strasbourg on the European Human Rights Court!
We Britons are so happy! When can we come to the pleasant air of France and polish your shoes?
Or have we gone mad?
Britain — the country that not so long ago had the greatest Empire that the world has ever seen, or is ever likely to see — now has to wait for the permission of a foreign court to extradite evil villains that threaten its own people.
Why?
For God’s sake, Why can’t our Government see how embarrassing this is for our people and our extraordinary history?
Have we now conceded that we are a third rate banana republic donkey state that can’t breathe, move or wink without an international body telling us so?
This is a court that has some judges that do not even have proper legal training, who are from former Soviet countries that have poor law schools, and from states that are not entirely free from the corruption of the judicial office.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: The Honey Trap: How the Demise of Britain’s Bees Could Cost US £1.8billion a Year
Losing bees would cost Britain £1.8bn to foot the costs of hand-pollinating plants, a study has found.
Researchers at the University of Reading say the decline in their numbers would be disastrous for crops and drive up food prices.
Simon Potts, professor of biodiversity, and his team tested teams hand-pollinating all Britain’s major crops.
They worked out how many hours it would take them to cover all the crops in Britain and what they would be paid for their time at the minimum wage.
Using humans with paintbrushes to pollinate crops including apples, pears, strawberries, oildseed rape, field beans, courgettes, peaches and plums would cost £1.8bn — the equivalent of 60,000 teachers or nurses.
The shocking figure comes just a week after two studies last week found pesticides are stopping bees finding their way home.
Numbers of honeybees in managed hives have fallen by half since the 1980s and wild honeybees are nearly extinct. Bumblebees are in slower decline but some species have already been wiped out.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: The Brave Agent Who Exposed Hamza Only to be Betrayed by MI5
[WARNING: Disturbing content.]
At the Fourth Feathers Youth Club, a run-down building near London’s Baker Street, the Islamic cleric Abu Qatada banged his stick on the wooden floor as he preached a hate-filled speech against the British people.
Sixty Muslim men and boys at the Friday lunchtime prayers listened to the inflammatory sermon of Bin Laden’s right-hand man in Britain, before praying in deep devotion to Allah.
But kneeling among them that day in April 2000 was an undercover spy, Reda Hassaine, working for the British Government. He had been monitoring Abu Qatada’s evil activities for six years — and his cover was about to be blown.
Hassaine had reported to Scotland Yard’s Special Branch and the homeland secret service, MI5, that Abu Qatada and his sidekick, the hook-handed cleric Abu Hamza, were inciting terror attacks in London.
He had seen both men collect thousands of pounds from their congregations to pay to send young British Muslims abroad to train as suicide bombers and then return here.
He had warned his secret service minders that the clerics wanted nothing short of a takeover of the West and its Christian way of life, using any kind of atrocity necessary.
But the Daily Mail can reveal that the secret agent’s vital information was ignored because of a little-known deal described as a ‘covenant of security’ forged between the security agencies and radical Islamists in the UK.
The unwritten, if cynical, pact allowed radical clerics to orchestrate and encourage Islamist attacks abroad. Their brainwashing of young home-grown Muslims here was tolerated by the secret services in the hope there would be no attacks on targets in Britain.
[…]
Minutes after observing prayers in the Fourth Feathers Club that day in 2000, Hassaine was beaten up by Qatada’s henchmen. Hassaine recalled: ‘A sidekick of Qatada had learned I was a spy and pointed me out after the sermon that day. At that point, Qatada began to recite a special prayer of jihad, to encourage the killing of anyone who threatens Islam. I immediately sensed I was in trouble.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Woman Burglar With 207 Convictions is Finally Jailed… But She Laughs at Two-Year Sentence and Shouts: ‘Cushty’
A woman thief who preyed on the elderly was finally locked up yesterday — after amassing 207 convictions.
Despite her extraordinary criminal record, Caroline Pattinson, 34, had been spared prison on countless occasions.
But after targeting a 72-year-old grandmother in her home the heroin addict was at last sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail.
Pattinson, however, laughed it off. As she was led away from the dock she turned to the court and shouted: ‘Cushty, easily done.’
The serial offender, who has at least one child in care, began offending when she was just 14.
But in another illustration of soft justice, the one-woman crimewave was repeatedly handed community orders and suspended sentences, instead of time behind bars. It is believed she has only ever served time in prison while on remand.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Libya: Inquiry Threatens European Oil Firms
Corriere della Sera, The Wall Street Journal Europe
Libya’s National Transitional Council has launched an inquiry into oil contracts signed with foreign companies during the last years of the Gaddafi era, Corriere della Sera reports. The investigation focuses on alleged corruption of Libyan officials from 2008 and 2011, and involves, among others, two of Europe’s largest energy firms, Italy’s ENI and France’s Total.
The inquiry comes in the week after the US Securities and Exchange Commission opened a similar procedure. If convicted, companies could face massive fines and see their current and future contracts with the new government declared null and void. According to the Wall Street Journal, the investigation “casts a cloud on the companies’ ambitions to expand their foothold in the country with the largest oil reserves in Africa”.
ENI, in particular, was the biggest operator in Libya under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi and quickly recovered its lead after the regime change, with a current output share of about 14 per cent. The company was planning to invest over $30 billion (€22.9 billion) to double that figure over the next decade.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Stakelbeck: Israel a Safe Haven for Christians Amid Muslim Persecution
While Christians are being persecuted throughout the Muslim Middle East, they are finding safe haven in Israel. It’s a story the mainstream media won’t discuss.
Click the link above to watch my latest report.
| — Hat tip: Erick Stakelbeck | [Return to headlines] |
Territories: Netanyahu Studying Outpost Legalisation
In three villages of Bruchin, Rachelim and Sansana
(ANSAmed) — JERUSALEM, APRIL 4 — The Israeli Prime Minister, Benyamin Netanyahu, has ordered the government’s legal consultant, Yehuda Weinstein, to examine once more the status of three Israeli military outposts in the West Bank, with the aim of finally legalising the positions. Reports suggest that the three areas in question are Bruchin (in the north of the West Bank, set up in 2000 and populated by 10 families), Rachelim (north of the West Bank, set up in 1991 and populated by 50 families) and Sansana (southern West Bank, created in 2000, where 50 families live). The areas were created amid efforts from settlers, who in subsequent years received delayed and partial recognition from the Construction and Defence Ministries and are now awaiting definitive legalisation.
Netanyahu has also asked Weinstein to check if it is possible to avoid the demolition, ruled by the Supreme Court — of four buildings constructed illegally in the Beit El settlement close to Ramallah. Last month, the government tried in vain to reach a deal to avoid the demolition, again in spite of a Supreme Court ruling, of the most populous settler outpost in the West Bank, that of Migron (created in 1999, close to Ramallah). But the appeal presented by the government was rejected by judges and Migron now has to be definitively cleared by June.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Iran Cuts Oil Exports to Germany
Iran has stopped oil imports to Germany and reduced its consumption of EU products as the European Union moves towards a total embargo on Iranian oil, Iranian media reported on Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Siemens Allegedly Sold Surveillance Gear to Syria
German engineering giant Siemens and a spinoff company allegedly sold surveillance technology to the Syrian regime, according to a German television report. The government could be using the equipment to crack down on opposition supporters, human rights activists warn.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Syria: Damascus Accuses Turkey of Arming and Sending Rebels
(ANSAmed) — MOSCOW, APRIL 10 — In Moscow today, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Mouallem has accused Turkey of training and arming rebel forces as well as sending militants into Syria. “Turkey backs in all possible ways the actions of illegal Syrian groups, by supplying them with arms, by allowing for the creation of training camps and by fostering their illegal penetration into Syrian territory,” said Walid Al-Mouallem, underlining that this goes against the Annan paln.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Russian MPs’ Walkout Mars Putin Unity Call
Russian opposition deputies walked out of parliament in an unprecedented protest on Wednesday, overshadowing a speech by Vladimir Putin urging his compatriots to unite after a tense election contest.
After winning the March presidential election despite an outburst of protests against his rule, Putin outlined in a keynote address his vision for Russia’s future as a top five global economy with a growing population.
But in a sign his upcoming six year Kremlin mandate may not be as unchallenged as his past 12 years in charge, an entire opposition faction walked out of the session in protest at one of Putin’s comments.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Ukraine: Tymoshenko Calls Murder Allegations ‘Absurd’
KIEV — Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, serving a seven-year jail sentence on abuse-of-office charges, on Monday dismissed new allegations against her of involvement in the murder of a lawmaker almost 16 years ago. She said they were “absurd” and clearly politically driven.
Ukrainian prosecutors are investigating her possible involvement in the 1996 killing of Yevhen Shcherban, a powerful businessman and politician who died in a hail of bullets as he emerged from a plane in Donetsk. The attackers, disguised as airport mechanics, also killed his wife and several bystanders.
His killing followed several other murders in Donetsk, including a football stadium bombing that killed the owner of the Shakhtar Donetsk club and led to a realignment of political and business alliances in the key steel- and coal-producing region.
Both Tymoshenko and her rival, President Viktor Yanukovych, were already big players in the turbulent region, which seethed with intrigue and where fortunes were made and lost in murky dealings.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Kills Nine Rebels in North Caucasus: Report
Russian security forces have killed nine suspected Islamist rebels in two separate operations in its troubled Northern Caucasus region, the Interfax news agency said on Tuesday.
Five militants were killed during a raid by security forces overnight on the apartment where they were held up in the town of Mineralnye Vody, a security source told the agency.
In the second incident around the village of Achikulak, security forces opened fire on a car which had fired on them during a document check. Four militants were killed in the exchange of fire.
There were no reports of casualties among the security forces.
Both clashes took place in the Stavropol region which is officially part of the Russian Northern Caucasus but lies just to the north of the troubled mainly Muslim Russian republics that are regularly the scene of Islamist unrest.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Airbus Gets Multi-Billion-Dollar Order From Indonesia
European aircraft manufacturer Airbus will build 11 more long-haul passenger jets for Indonesia. The deal, worth almost two billion euros ($2.5 billion), will help the company overcome its current shortage of orders.
Indonesia’s flag carrier Garuda will purchase 11 A330 jets for long-distance travel from Europe’s leading plane producer, Airbus. The deal seems more than welcome for the multinational company, which has only secured firm orders for 90 planes in the first quarter of 2012, compared with more than 400 for US rival Boeing.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
India Says EU Tax a ‘Deal Breaker’ For Climate Talks
(NEW DELHI) — India’s environment minister said Wednesday that a European Union scheme to tax airlines for carbon emissions was “a deal breaker” ahead of global climate change talks, a warning rejected by the EU.
“I shall stick my neck out and say, for the environment ministry, yes the unilateral measure by the EU… is a deal breaker for the talks,” Jayanthi Natarajan said in New Delhi.
“I strongly believe that as far as climate change discussions are concerned, this is unacceptable,” said the environment minister, who is India’s negotiating leader at global climate change talks.
Natarajan, speaking at a function organised by the Energy Resources Institute, said she had written a letter to EU Commissioner for Climate Change Connie Hedegaard demanding a reversal of the carbon tax on airlines.
Her statements were the toughest by India so far on the EU plan.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, dismissed the minister’s warning and stressed that the system in place since January 1 seeks to encourage others to do the same in their countries.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Suu Kyi Meets With Myanmar President
Myanmar opposition leader and former political prisoner Aung Sang Suu Kyi has met with President Thein Sein to discuss ways of democratizing the country. The meeting precedes Suu Kyi’s historic entry into parliament. Myanmar’s opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, met with President Thein Sein on Wednesday for the first time since being elected to parliament earlier this month.
The pair met at Thein Sein’s official residence in the capital, Naypyidaw. Following the meeting, Suu Kyi told the AFP news agency that she was “satisfied,” but declined to reveal any details of the discussion.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
42,000-Year-Old Baby Mammoth on Show in Hong Kong
The world’s best-preserved mammoth, buried about 42,000 years ago, will go on display in Hong Kong this week, the organiser of its first exhibition in Asia said Wednesday.
Discovered in the permafrost of Russia’s Yamal Peninsula in 2007 by a reindeer herder, the female baby mammoth named Lyuba remained almost fully intact with organs and eyelashes preserved.
Only her toenails, part of her tail, right ear and fur were missing.
Traces of her mother’s milk were even found in Lyuba’s stomach, said the IFC mall, the city’s posh harbourfront shopping centre, which will showcase the animal for a month from Thursday.
Lyuba, which means “love” in Russian, has previously toured North America.
Scientists have said they believe the ice-age mammal was only a few months old when she probably drowned in a mudslide, which “pickled” her in near-perfect condition.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
North Korea Gives Current and Former Leaders New Titles
North Korea has officially given a new post to its leader, Kim Jong-un, further elevating his position. His late father was also honored with a posthumous title.
North Korea has appointed its new leader, Kim Jong-un, as first secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party — a title that appears to be a new top party post.
At the same time, it declared his father, the late leader Kim Jong-il, to be the party’s “eternal” general secretary.
The announcements were made at a special party conference in Pyongyang, one of two political gatherings this week that are expected to formally install the young Kim as the country’s supreme leader.
Kim Jong-un, who is thought to be 28, took over power from his father in December last year after the latter’s death on December 17. He has already been officially appointed supreme commander of the Korean People’s Army.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Philippines, China Look for Diplomatic Solution to Naval Standoff
The Philippines has said that Beijing and Manila will find a diplomatic solution to a naval standoff in the South China Sea. The two countries are at odds over possession of a small shoal and other landmasses in the sea.
Manila said its largest warship was in a tense standoff with two Chinese surveillance vessels on Wednesday. The incident took place at the disputed Scarborough Shoal, a rock formation in the South China Sea.
Philippine Foreign Minister Albert Del Rosario summoned the Chinese ambassador in Manila, Ma Keqing, early on Wednesday, telling her the Navy would enforce Philippine laws.
“The ambassador of China took the view that they have full sovereignty over the Scarborough Shoal,” said Del Rosario. Despite the impasse, he said, “We resolved to seek a diplomatic solution to the issue.”
The Philippine Foreign Ministry said that on Sunday, a navy plane spotted eight Chinese fishing vessels anchored in a lagoon at the shoal, which lies off the coast of the northwestern Philippine province of Zambales.
The Philippine military then sent its largest warship, the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, to the area.
The dispute is only the most recent in a region where maritime boundaries often appear to be blurred. Last year, the Philippines accused China of allowing vessels to intrude into other contested stretches of sea. They include the Spratly Islands, which — as well as being claimed by China — are also subject to claims by Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam. The islands are thought to be rich in oil and gas.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Serial Rapist’s Afghan Ethnicity No Excuse, Says Judge
A JUDGE has today rejected an Afghan refugee’s claim that he raped an intoxicated and vulnerable teenager because of cultural differences.
Esmatullah Sharifi, 30, was appearing in the County Court for the second time in less than three years on a charge of rape and Judge Mark Dean said his background as a traumatised Muslim refugee was no excuse.
The judge said a psychologist told the court Sharifi, who came to Australia in 2001 on a temporary protection visa, had “an unclear concept of what constitutes consent in sexual relationships” in Australia
But the judge said Sharifi’s background and flight from the Taliban in Afghanistan could not excuse an extreme act of violence.
“You well knew the victim was not consenting to the act of sexual penetration you performed,” Judge Dean said.
Sentencing Sharifi for the rape of the 18-year-old woman, Judge Dean said that he had driven from his home in Tullamarine to Frankston looking for a victim.
The woman was alone, intoxicated and sitting on the footpath near the 21st Century nightclub after she had a disagreement with her friends.
Sharifi sat down beside her, started talking to her and offered to drive her to a hotel in Mornington where here friends had gone.
Judge Dean said Sharifi drove in a different direction and the victim became concerned and texted her friends but he took her phone and found a dark street where he stopped.
As she cried and asked if he planned to kill her Sharifi put his hand around her neck and forced her to remove her clothes before raping her.
“Your offending is of the utmost seriousness,” Judge Dean said in his County Court sentence.
“You preyed upon a young vulnerable stranger who was alone and intoxicated at night. Your brutal conduct must be denounced by this court.”
Sharifi pleaded guilty to one count of rape committed on December 19, 2008…
| — Hat tip: Salome | [Return to headlines] |
South Africa, Australia to Share SKA?
A decision on the site of the Square Kilometre Array has been delayed to allow a scientific working group to explore ways of maximising investments already made by rival bidders South Africa and Australia-New Zealand — raising the possibility that the hosting of the world’s biggest radio telescope could be shared.
South Africa, allied with eight other African countries, is competing against Australia (allied with New Zealand) to host the €1.5-billion Square Kilometre Array (SKA), an instrument 50-100 times more sensitive and 10 000 times faster than any radio imaging telescope yet built.
The international SKA organisation members met in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on Tuesday to discuss a report and recommendation by an advisory committee on which site was thought to be technically superior, along with commentary made by the SKA board of directors at a meeting in Manchester, England last month.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
159 Rhinos Poached in S. Africa This Year: Minister
Almost 160 rhinos were poached in South Africa in the first three months of this year as trade in the animals’ horns drives up the illegal killings, a minister said Wednesday. “The toll of rhinos poached in South Africa for 2012 has reached the alarming figure of 159, in the midst of the increased anti-poaching effort,” said Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa.
“The Kruger National Park continues to bear the brunt of these losses, with the rhinos poached in the park having reached a staggering total of 95,” said Molewa at a media event at the iconic reserve. “This is no longer an environmental management problem only, but it has become a matter in which we have involved all law-enforcement agencies.”
The animals’ distinctive horns are hacked off to be smuggled to the lucrative Asian black market, where the fingernail-like substance is falsely believed to have powerful healing properties. Last year, a record 448 were poached.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Fighting Rages on Sudanese Border
Sudan and South Sudan are engaged in border clashes in an important oil-production area. Observers fear a relapse into all-out war. Sudan says fierce fighting is continuing for a second day on its border with South Sudan as the two neighbors wrangle over a disputed oil field.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
S. African Newspaper Launches Tabloid Aimed at Blacks
South Africa’s historic The Star newspaper launched an edition targeting blacks on Monday, hoping to cash in on the country’s growing middle class. Star Africa is the latest offering of the 125-year-old Star, part of the Irish Independent newspaper group. It is “an intelligent approach to tabloid journalism”, editor Makhudu Sefara said. “Our approach is one that says Africa is not about the texture of your hair, it’s about your approach and relation to the content,” Sefara told AFP.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Anger as Swiss Visa Rules Are Relaxed
Switzerland has suddenly relaxed visa requirements for workers from 33 countries, including many Balkan nations, in a move that has angered anti-immigrant opposition politicians. The liberalization of the visa regime by the Federal Department for Justice and Police (FDJP) would affect 33 non-EU countries whose citizens want to work or participate in training in Switzerland for a maximum of three months, newspaper Tages Anzieger reported.
“The FDJP plans obviously represent a serious change in practice. It is unthinkable that they are secretly trying to wave them through,” National Councillor for the Swiss People’s Party, Hans Fehr, told the newspaper. Although visas for entry under such circumstances would no longer be required, work permits would.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Belgium Must Shut Down Anti-Immigrant Website: NGOs
A network of European anti-racism groups urged the Belgian government on Wednesday to shut down a far-right website inciting people to denounce crimes committed by illegal immigrants.
The European Network Against Racism (ENAR) charged that the website set up by the Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) party “recalls Gestapo practices” and represents a call for hatred and violence.
“We call on the Belgian government to disable this website and to strongly condemn actions inciting to hatred directed at specific groups,” said ENAR chairman Chibo Onyeji.
“This is crucial to ensure that Europe remains — also for our children and grandchildren — an inclusive place for all, where everyone can participate on an equal basis,” he said.
The website allows people to file anonymous tip-offs of alleged social security fraud, work on the black market and more serious crimes.
“This website is thoughtless, but more dangerously, it deliberately targets groups on the basis of their national or ethnic origin. Anybody could be targeted because he/she is black or looks North African,” ENAR said in a statement.
Vlaams Belang leader Filip Dewinter said Tuesday that the website was necessary because of the presence of “tens of thousands of illegal immigrants” in Belgian cities and the problems that they cause.
A similar website caused a furore when it was set up by the far-right Freedom Party (PVV) in the neighbouring Netherlands, but Prime Minister Mark Rutte, whose coalition government has PVV backing, refused to condemn it.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Finland: Higher Threshold for Some Family Reunification
Regulations governing the reunification of some families may be tightened up. A report by the Interior Ministry says it is possible that in future, people resident on the grounds of humanitarian protection may have to prove sufficient income to support their families before being joined by spouses and children.
| [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Fear of Honor Killings: Immigrants Flee Families to Find Themselves
Hundreds of young female immigrants are hiding from their families in Germany after fleeing oppression, physical violence and even death threats. Charities and social workers help the women get new identities and build independent lives for themselves, but the risk of revenge from honor-obsessed relatives remains.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Greece: Parliament Approves Reception Centres
Clashes in Amigdalesa where the centre will be built
(ANSAmed) — ATHENS — With 117 votes in favour and 37 against, the Greek Parliament has approved the draft law proposed by the Citizens Protection Ministry on the creation of 30 reception centres for irregular immigrants in Greece, and the conditions on the basis of which the clandestine migrants will be kept. “Social peace,” said Citizens Protection Minister Michalis Chrisochoidis in speaking at the assembly, “is in danger.” Voting against the law were deputies from the Greek Communist Party (KKE) as well as those from Syriza (left), Laos (fare right), the Democratic Left and Greek Independents (right).
While discussion was underway on the draft law in Parliament, minor incidents occurred between police and the inhabitants of Amigdalesa, the area in which the first centre for immigrants will be built.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
‘Pay Foreign Convicts to Quit Switzerland’
Foreign-born offenders in Geneva will in future be offered 4,000 francs ($4,634) to leave the country, as part of a plan to reduce the burden on Switzerland’s prisons.
Frustrated by seeing the same North African offenders going through the courts time and again, Geneva has responded by launching a new plan which offers offenders a chance to return to their home countries rather than languish in a Swiss prison.
The move is also aimed at reducing the significant prison bill, which amounts to approximately 450 francs ($491) a day per inmate, newspaper Tages Anzeiger reported. Instead of serving a prison sentence, small crime offenders will be able to choose to return instead to their homelands.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Only 40% of Border Scandal Foreign Criminals Have Been Deported in the Last Six Years
Barely 40 per cent of the foreign criminals released from prison in a border scandal six years ago have been deported, a report reveals today.
In 2006, the Labour government was rocked by revelations that more than 1,000 foreign nationals had been let out without being considered for deportation.
By November last year, fewer than 400 had been removed from the country or deported, and more than 50 have still not been found. Hundreds more remain here despite their cases having been concluded.
[…]
In many cases, criminals use human rights laws to challenge their removal, or officials struggle to secure passports from their home countries, which do not want to take them back.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Agenda 21, The End of Western Civilization, Part 4
[Comment: Part 4 of an excellent series on Agenda 21.]
ICLEI, Unelected Councils and other NGO vehicles promoting Agenda 21/Sustainable Development and the New World Order.
America, as well as the rest of the entire world, is being deluged with schemes to do away with individual freedom, property rights and the Constitution. I do not exaggerate about the extent of the evils that are trying to control every aspect of our lives and to eliminate many of us. Lately I keep hearing (and often thinking myself) that it is too late to stop this train wreck; the global elite have taken us so far down the road toward global government that to return to a republican form of government here in the U.S. might be impossible. The elite have been doing this through ICLEI, Visioning plans and other unelected councils controlled by NGOs (non-governmental organizations) connected to the United Nations.
There are so many various schemes and layers of schemes to relieve us of our freedoms that it would take volumes to try to describe all of them and new ones are being invented almost daily.
This article will attempt to explain ICLEI and how unelected councils have invaded our towns, cities, counties, states and our lives — and how they are destroying each of those entities as they become entrenched.
ICLEI
ICLEI is the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, now known as Local Governments for Sustainability. As we expose what each of these NGOs is doing to attack us, they change their names in the hope of sneaking in under the radar of communities and towns that haven’t been exposed to them yet. It only works for a little while, then they need to change their names again and again as the rocks are lifted and sunlight shines on these evil entities.
ICLEI, a non-profit, private foundation, is based in Bonn, Germany and their nefarious ploy ostensibly is to assist local entities, usually cities and towns, to reduce their carbon footprints. As their website puts it:
ICLEI supports local governments in finding and implementing local solutions to global challenges by (in their words):
- helping local governments to establishing plans of action to meet their locally defined, concrete, measurable targets
- working toward meeting these targets through the implementation of projects and by offering tools that help local governments to reach their goals
- evaluating local and cumulative progress toward sustainable development and making the commitments and actions of local governments known on a global level
- working in partnership with regional, national and international organizations and institutions to ensure an international framework that supports local action
What that means is that when an entity joins ICLEI they agree to set certain targets (defined by ICLEI and measured by tools sold to them by ICLEI).
ICLEI was one of the groups instrumental in creating Agenda 21. Their whole scheme is to get communities to regulate everything that affects the environment which, of course, is everything including our exhalations.
ICLEI is now operating in more than 600 cities in all 50 states. They are shooting for 1,000 member cities in the US alone in the next three years.
ICLEI’s vice chair, Harvey Rubin, made the telling statement, “Individual rights will have to take a backseat to the collective.” If what I described above doesn’t convince you that this NGO at least is trying to take away our rights and freedoms, his statement should bring it home.
[…]
Comprehensive Development Plans, promoted by one or more NGO in city after city across the nation, are enforcing schemes to “cut their carbon footprint” by controlling energy use. One of the most popular tools now to control energy use is the energy audit and building review. They establish quotas for electrical use, and for heating and cooling pumps, and water use. The use of Smart Meters is meant not only to control our use but to track what we do in our homes.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
California Declares War on Family Homes to ‘Save the Planet’
The state of California has declared war on detached family homes, with laws passed to mitigate car use and carbon dioxide emissions now leading to policies that mandate up to 30 homes be built on a single acre of land, fulfilling the goal of climate change alarmists to pack people into densely populated prison cities.
“Metropolitan area governments are adopting plans that would require most new housing to be built at 20 or more to the acre, which is at least five times the traditional quarter acre per house. State and regional planners also seek to radically restructure urban areas, forcing much of the new hyperdensity development into narrowly confined corridors,” reports the Wall Street Journal.
In some areas of Los Angeles County and five other Southern California counties, 30 housing units per acre are being mandated, all under the auspices of laws passed in the name of cutting car use and limiting CO2 emissions, including the 2006 Global Warming Solutions Act and the 2008 Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act.
The rules on restricted development are driving up house prices and driving down standards of living. Even if you believe the justification of lowering greenhouse gases, the regulations won’t even achieve that, with greater traffic congestion merely confined to overpopulated cities as additional houses continue to use cars.
Transportation consultant Wendell Cox told the WSJ that the whole process represented an effort to make the construction of detached houses “illegal”.
This is all part of the United Nations’ Agenda 21 project which demands that member nations adopt “sustainable development” policies that are little more than a disguise for the reintroduction of neo-feudalism and only serve to reduce living standards and quality of life.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Mosque in Gay-Hate Row Opens a New Fee-Paying School Where Pupils Will Memorise the Koran and Speak Arabic
A mosque where clerics were filmed allegedly preaching hate against homosexuals and non-Muslims is opening a fee-paying school.
Pupils will be expected to memorise the Koran and wear traditional Pakistani uniforms when it opens in Birmingham this September, with fees of £3,500 a year.
Arabic will be the ‘key language’ taught to the annual intake of 20 students, aged 11 to 16, at Green Lane Masjid Independent Boys School.
Pupils will also follow the national GCSE curriculum in traditional subjects such as the sciences and geography.
Its refurbished £1.5million two-storey building is next to the main mosque in Small Heath.
In 2008 a Channel 4 TV documentary, titled Undercover Mosque, showed secret footage of Islamic scholars at Green Lane Masjid allegedly peddling hate against homosexuals and non-Muslims.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Tenfold Increase in Illegitimate Babies in Century Since Titanic, ONS Says
Ten times more babies are born out of wedlock today than 100 years ago as middle-class couples decide to co-habit rather than marry, while the divorce rate is 170 times higher than it was a century ago, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said.
The ONS released the statistics to show how much society has changed in the centenary since the sinking of the Titanic. Its figures showed that just under 38,000 illegitimate babies were born in England and Wales in 1911, the year before the Titanic set sail. This is out of a total of 881,138 babies born that year.
By 2010 the number of children in England and Wales born outside marriage had reached 338,790, an almost ten-fold increase, the ONS said. This amounts to just under half of the 723,165 babies born that year.
Meanwhile the number of divorces rose from 702 to 119,589 between 1911 and 2010. Some experts said that the figures provide a “fascinating insight” into how life in this country has changed. Others said that they demonstrate the gradual moral decline of society.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Ehrlich, Hansen, Lovelock: We Must Build “An Entirely New Kind of Global Society”
The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) has recently published a collection of “key messages” written by the usual suspects, including eugenicist Paul Ehrlich, climate dictator James Lovelock and NASA’s own terror-endorsing James Hansen.
In the statement titled “Environment and Development Challenges: The Imperative to Act”meant to inspire the UN and its upcoming 2012 Earth Summit, the fiends call for a global implementation of population policies. To effectively implement these policies the authors propose rights being infringed upon in order to address what they call “the population issue”:
“The population issue should be urgently addressed by education and empowerment of women, including in the work-force and in rights, ownership and inheritance; health care of children and the elderly; and making modern contraception accessible to all.”, they write.
We of course know perfectly well what they mean by “health care of children and the elderly”. We have recently seen the terrible results of health care for children in the eugenicists’ model-state of China.
[…]
This is just one out of many dehumanizing proposals from the mind of Paul Ehrlich. Also remember this when you read his proposals for a global society necessary to “address population issues” (also out of Ecoscience):
“… Perhaps those agencies, combined with UNEP and the United Nations population agencies, might eventually be developed into a Planetary Regime— sort of an international superagency for population, resources, and environment. Such a comprehensive Planetary Regime could control the development, administration, conservation, and distribution of all natural resources, renewable or nonrenewable, at least insofar as international implications exist.”
Here is your global society in a nutshell.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
0 comments:
Post a Comment