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Russian Orthodox Church seeks ban on free abortions, embryo experimentation, genetic screening

abortion Moscow
© Global Look Press / Komsomolskaya Pravda
FILE PHOTO: A rally against abortion is held in Moscow on November 15, 2016.
The right to life should be guaranteed for embryos, the Russian Orthodox Church has said as it presented a document which calls for abortions and scientific experiments on human embryos to be banned.

"An embryo is a human being, who therefore has certain rights that should be protected," the paper, rolled out for public discussion, states. The document specifically lists the right to life, human identity, and personal developments as indispensable to any unborn child from the moment of conception.

The Orthodox Church has asked the Russian government to grant doctors a right to refuse to perform an abortion on grounds of conscience. It also called for a ban on any experiments on human embryos and freezing them.

Comment: The other issues are debatable, although, for most cases, highly unnecessary. Regarding abortion, it seems a reasonable approach has already been addressed by Russia's Deputy Health Minister:
"We won't solve the problem with restrictive measures, but only make it worse," Deputy Health Minister Tatyana Yakovleva said, adding that she was a pediatrician herself and knew the issue from the inside.

Making abortions illegal "will only lead to increased maternal and infant mortality as well as criminalization of the situation. No way!" she warned the guests of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

Besides, the Russian state has already successfully managed to bring the abortion rate down through consulting and supporting women, Yakovleva pointed out. According to her stats, 582,000 such operations, not caused by medical grounds, were performed in the country in 2013, while last year the number of abortions requested by females only stood at 294,450.

The trend reveals that women in Russia are themselves trying to avoid having an abortion if it's possible, she said.
See also: Also check out SOTT radio's: Objective: Health - Law or Flaw? Let's Talk About Abortion


Black Cat

'Unmasker in Chief' Samantha Power spewed anti-Trump bias in government emails

samantha powers_obama
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power may share an unflattering stage with a text-loving FBI agent and his Donald Trump-hating paramour from the bureau.

Fired agent Peter Strzok and ex-FBI lawyer Lisa Page are infamous today for texting on FBI phones their anti-Trump sentiments while allegedly having an affair. They played key roles in the now-debunked Russia collusion investigation.

It turns out that Power - the diplomat whose authority inexplicably was used to unmask hundreds of Americans' names in secret intelligence reports during the 2016 election - engaged in similar Trump-bashing on her official government email, according to documents unearthed by an American Center for Law and Justice lawsuit. The conservative legal group is run by Trump defense attorney Jay Sekulow.

The discovery could add a new dimension - a question of political bias - to a long-running congressional investigation into why Power's authority was used to unmask hundreds of Americans' names in secret National Security Agency intercepts during the 2016 election. That practice of unmasking continues to grow today.

Post-It Note

Iran: Message sent - message delivered

rouhani trump
It is clear that Iran is sending the U.S. a stern message. And that message is we can hurt you asymmetrically as much as you hurt us.

Over the weekend Iran's leadership made it clear there was no mistake in their actions last week. They purposefully shot down one of our most advanced drones to send the U.S. a very clear warning.

'Our capabilities far exceed your tolerance for withstanding them.'

The more we learn about this incident the more the initial story concocted by the U.S. looks specious. Drone in international airspace? Most likely not.

Trump said someone made a mistake? No, completely deliberate.

The drone that was shot down, an RQ-4A Global Hawk, was the cream of our surveillance drones. It was flying in tandem with an anti-submarine Poseidon P-8 spy plane, which, according to Elijah Magnier was carrying far more than its normal crew of 9.

Try 38.

That was not reported at first either in the initial flush for war. Iran then revealed just how loose with the truth the U.S. turned out to be and that forced a complete rethink of the situation.

Rocket

The Indian-Turkish embrace of Russia's S-400 is a punch to the gut of US "Full Spectrum Dominance"

Russia’s advanced S-400 defense system
India and Turkey's recent embrace of Russia's advanced S-400 defense system represents a major turning point in the international battle now underway between two opposing paradigms of global affairs.

Both nations are standing up to immense pressure by an Anglo American empire which has been working desperately since 2007 to build a vast military infrastructure around Russia under the utopian doctrine of "Full Spectrum Dominance" (aka: the belief that a nuclear war can be won with a first strike monopoly). This missile shield began to target China and Russia's South Pacific flank in 2011 when Obama unveiled the military branch of the anti-Chinese "Pivot to Asia" (1).

The S400 Solution to Full Spectrum Dominance

However if nations like India, and Turkey who were meant to be participants of the encirclement of Russia and China were to adopt next generation defensive radar/missile systems like Russia's S400, then the entire formula for unipolar dominance breaks down. Already, China has adopted the S400 as of 2015 which features short to long range supersonic interception of missiles, aircraft and bombs at altitudes of 38 km and at distances of 400 km. Other nations which have expressed interest in the S400 include Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Vietnam.

The rise of the S400 and the new security architecture which comes with it has come to be known as "Full Spectrum Defense" and is one of the most important transformations of the world order. When considered in tandem with the globally extended Belt and Road Initiative (which is tightly integrated with the Eurasian Economic Union and Shanghai Cooperation Organization), represents the greatest hope for mankind currently available.

Snakes in Suits

Mueller agrees to publicly testify before Nadler and Schiff led committees

mueller
© Reuters/Jim Bourg
Special counsel Robert Mueller: accused of "scorched earth" methods and "Gestapo tactics."
Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller will testify before open House committee hearings on July 17 following issuance of a subpoena compelling his appearance, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee announced Tuesday night. (UPDATE at end: each committee will hear from Mueller separately the same day.)

"I am pleased to announce that @HouseJudiciary and House Intel will have Special Counsel Robert Mueller testify in open session on July 17, pursuant to a subpoena issued this evening. We look forward to having Mr. Mueller testify, as do all Americans."

Network

India mulls offering incentives to companies moving from China

India trade
© Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg News
India is weighing offering incentives to attract companies moving out of China amid its trade war with the U.S., a person familiar with the development said.

Financial incentives such as preferential tax rates and the tax holiday provided by Vietnam to lure companies are among measures being considered, the person said, asking not to be identified as the discussion is still private. Industries identified for incentives include electronics, consumer appliances , electric vehicles, footwear and toys, according to a trade ministry document seen by Bloomberg.

Economies, including Vietnam and Malaysia, have benefited from businesses trying to sidestep tariffs, while India has largely missed out on any investment gains. The trade ministry's effort is part of a larger plan to cut reliance on imports, while boosting exports, and needs Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's approval.

Russian Flag

Russia reinforces Iranian air defense, mobilizes advisers for support

blitz wolf
The Russian General Staff has reinforced the air defences for Russians at the Iranian nuclear reactor complex at Bushehr, on the Persian Gulf, according to sources in Moscow. At the same time, Iran has allowed filming of the movement of several of its mobile S-300 air-defence missile batteries to the south, covering the Iranian coastline of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. More secretly, elements of Russian military intelligence, electronic warfare, and command and control advisers for Iran's air defence systems have been mobilized to support Iran against US and allied attacks.

The range of the new surveillance extends well beyond the S-300 strike distance of 200 kilometres, and covers US drone and aircraft bases on the Arabian peninsula, as well as US warships in (and under) the Persian Gulf and off the Gulf of Oman. Early warning of US air and naval-launched attacks has now been cut below the old 4 to 6-minute Iranian threshold. Counter-firing by the Iranian armed forces has been automated from attack warning and target location.

This means that if the US is detected launching a swarm of missiles aimed at Iran's air-defence sites, uranium mines, reactors, and military operations bunkers, Iran will launch its own swarm of missiles at the US firing platforms, as well as at Saudi and other oil production sites, refineries, and pipelines, as well tankers in ports and under way in the Gulf.

"The armed forces of Iran," said a Russian military source requesting anonymity, "have air defence systems capable of hitting air targets at those heights at which drones of the Global Hawk series can fly; this is about 19,000 to 20,000 metres. Iran's means of air defence are both foreign-purchased systems and systems of Iran's own design; among them, in particular, the old Soviet system S-75 and the new Russian S-300. Recently, Iran transported some S-300's to the south, but that happened after the drone was shot down [June 20]. Russian specialists are working at Bushehr now and this means that the S-300's are also for protection of Bushehr."
iran drone

Flight distance between Bushehr and Bandar Abbas is about 570 kms. From Bandar Abbas southeast to Kuhmobarak, the site of the Iranian missile firing against the US drone, is another 200 kms.

Pills

Russian Parliament approves law on growth of opioid plants for drug production

Opium poppies
© REUTERS / Carlos Jasso
Opium poppies in Mexico.
A government-sponsored bill that makes legal the growth of opioid plants for raw materials in pharmaceutical firms in Russia has been fully approved by legislators. It is meant to prevent possible cuts in supply due to sanctions.

The draft law was greenlit on Wednesday by the Russian senate. The State Duma, the lower chamber of parliament, passed it in the third reading last week. Once signed into law by the president, it will allow the government to license larger-scale growth of plants like opium poppy, which would then be delivered to Russian drug producers. At the moment only small-scale growth is allowed for scientific research, teaching purposes or use by forensic experts in their work.

The government introduced the legislation in January, saying it was necessary to ensure that Russian drug producers won't find themselves short on supply if foreign nations producing precursors for opioid painkillers impose sanctions on Russia.

There are 13 domestically produced drugs, including nine listed as essential for the national healthcare system, that are at risk, according to the sponsors. The plan is to allow two state-owned companies, which are currently licensed to grow opium poppy, to prepare for a possible expansion of their fields, should a need arise. The government estimates that it would need to allocate about two square kilometers of land to poppy growth to cover all domestic demand.

Attention

Trump's pick for Sec of Defense is staunchly anti-Chinese, aims to be 'ready for full spectrum of conflict'

Mark Esper
© REUTERS/Virginia Mayo
Acting US Secretary for Defense Mark Esper
US President Donald Trump continues to surround his administration with people who - when it comes to the issue of China - will be nothing but "yes men" who agree entirely with his administration's policies towards Beijing.

For someone who platformed his election campaign on ending unnecessary wars and focusing more on making his country "great again," Donald J. Trump sure does voluntarily opt to appoint some of the most hawkish people who exist in Washington's circles as part of his advisory team. I could write an entire essay on this fact alone, but the infamous past of the likes of John Bolton, Mike Pompeo and Elliot Abrams is fast becoming common knowledge anyway.

Trump's latest warhawk, who appears all set to enter the fray which has to be one of the most cursed administrations of all time, is Mark Esper, currently the Army's civilian chief. Esper is Trump's favorite to lead the US military, following the resignation of James 'Mad Dog' Mattis some time ago. Apparently, no one is "mad dog" enough to keep up with Donald Trump.

Esper has had a specific focus on China for decades (or so he says). According to Reuters, Esper said he saw China as a personal priority as far back as the 1990s, dating back to when he worked as an aide on Capitol Hill after serving over ten years in the army.

Comment: See also:


Arrow Up

The high cost for US war with Iran: $250 oil and a repeat of Afghanistan

Bomb going off
© Getty Images/Frank Rossoto Stocktrek
Iran's downing of a US military surveillance drone last week predictably led to another flare-up in tense relations between Tehran and Washington. What could be the implications of a potential conflict between the two nations?

Right after the Global Hawk UAV was shot down, the New York Times reported that US President Donald Trump approved military strikes against Iran, but then changed his mind.

Let's start by saying that the decision to launch a military operation against Iran (which is what this is really about), including the specific time and place, would have to be taken by a very small group of top US political and military officials. At such meetings, no leaks could possibly occur by definition.

Now, let's take a look at some of the details. The difference between a 'strike' and an 'operation' is quite significant, at the very least in terms of duration, and forces and equipment involved. It would be nice to know if the NYT actually meant a single airstrike or an entire air operation.

Amusingly enough, the publication reported that the strikes were scheduled for early morning to minimize the potential death toll among the Iranian military and civilians. It's worth pointing out that the US has never cared about the number of victims either among the military personnel or the civilian population of its adversaries.