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Briefcase

Whitmer kidnapping plot suspects seek dismissal of charges, say FBI invented conspiracy

Madeleine Hubbard
Just the News
Sun, 26 Dec 2021 06:07 UTC
Whitmer
© IMGMichigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer
Defense attorneys for five men accused of plotting to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.) are seeking a dismissal of the indictment, citing "egregious overreaching" by federal officials, who they say invented a conspiracy and entrapped the men.

If convicted in the alleged extremist kidnapping conspiracy, the five men - ​​Adam Fox, 38, Barry Croft, 46, Kaleb Franks, 27, Daniel Harris, 24, and Brandon Caserta, 33 - face up to life in prison.

"When the government was faced with evidence showing that the defendants had no interest in a kidnapping plot, it refused to accept failure and continued to push its plan," the mens' attorneys wrote.

The Detroit News reports that the 20-page motion for dismissal was filed Christmas night. Defense attorneys claim that Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents and federal prosecutors took advantage of frustration with Whitmer's stringent COVID-19 restrictions and created the conspiracy.

If U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker, a George W. Bush appointee, dismisses the kidnapping conspiracy charge as requested, the defense argues that it would dismantle the government's case and all remaining charges, which are related to the original charge.

The defense's request follows a series of issues related to the government's handling of the case. One of the lead FBI agents, Richard Trask, was arrested on a domestic violence charge, fired, and convicted of a misdemeanor. The FBI used Stephen Robeson as an informant despite having a lengthy criminal rap sheet. Robeson pleaded guilty to a firearm-related crime but was released under a plea deal.

Comment: See also:

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Star of David

Israel's security minister needs 24/7 protection after threats by Jewish Israelis for discussing "settler violence"


The Times of Israel
Mon, 27 Dec 2021 13:50 UTC
Barlev
© Michael Giladi/Flash90Public Security Minister Omer Barlev, November 9, 2021.
Public Security Minister Omer Barlev on Monday accused fellow ministers of making him "the enemy" of West Bank settlers, after revealing that he has been given round-the-clock protection due to threats against him by Jewish Israelis.

"They came out against me and made me the enemy of all the settlers," he said during a Labor party faction meeting at the Knesset.

Asked by a reporter if he was concerned for his safety, Barlev said he wasn't.


Comment: So why the security?


Comment: It was probably only a matter of time before the pathological individuals that populate the country began to eat their own: Also check out SOTT radio's:

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Eye 2

Israel's not-so-covert war on Syria continues as airstrike sets port of Latakia ablaze, second attack on the facility this month


The Guardian
Tue, 28 Dec 2021 13:10 UTC
Latakia
© Sana/AFP/Getty ImagesFirefighters battling the blaze at Latakia port after the airstrike carried out at about 3.21am local time.
An Israeli airstrike hit Syria's Latakia port before dawn on Tuesday, sparking a fire that lit up the Mediterranean seafront in the second such attack on the cargo hub this month, Syrian state media reported.

Since the outbreak of Syria's civil war in 2011, Israel has routinely carried out airstrikes on its neighbour, mostly targeting Syrian government troops as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hezbollah fighters.


Comment: It wasn't a civil war, it was a Western backed coup attempt using terrorist proxies, and that ultimately failed thanks to Russian intervention.


But it is only the second time it has hit Latakia port, in the heartland of President Bashar al-Assad's minority Alawite community.


Comment: For Israel that's a bonus, not only do they get to attack critical infrastructure, they get to torture supporters of Syria's legitimate government.


Comment: It's not a 'conflict in Syria', it's yet another war against a country in the Middle East by the West and its allies, and evidently these criminal airstrikes have the backing of these countries because they have done absolutely nothing to stop them: Also check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Kabul Airport Atrocity - What Actually Happened?



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Bad Guys

Best of the Web: CDC changes 'The Science' of Covid quarantine from 10 to 5 days after critically low staff numbers threaten industries

Aria Bendix
Business Insider
Mon, 27 Dec 2021 23:38 UTC
woman desk mask
The CDC shortened its COVID-19 isolation recommendation to 5 days for asymptomatic people after some disease experts said 10 days was too long
The CDC shortened its COVID-19 isolation recommendation to 5 days for asymptomatic people after some disease experts said 10 days was too long The CDC's 10-day isolation period was excessive, experts say. The agency also reduced quarantine guidance for people exposed to COVID-19.

It was a steadfast rule for most of the pandemic: People with COVID-19 must isolate for 10 days after their symptoms start — or, if they're asymptomatic, for 10 days after their first positive COVID-19 test.


Comment: This just proves how these recommendations never were based on any real science, because once politicians realise that certain critical industries will collapse, and, more importantly, that they will be liable for the fall out, 'the science' suddenly changes.


But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention altered that recommendation on Monday amid a steep rise in Omicron cases across the US.


Comment: Unless these tests are checking for the particular variant, we don't know whether what people have caught is Omicron or not. Considering how unreliable the tests are, we can't even be sure these 'case' numbers are accurate.


Comment: Actually, South Africa has provided ample and reliable data about Omicron, we know that it's even milder than the other variants, and because of this the country has dropped the majority of its restrictions: Sigh of relief in South Africa as Omicron variant appears to be 'super mild' mutation with Covid death rate not jumping

The Wall Street Journal reports that part of the reason for this quarantine requirement shift is because certain industries have been suffering critically low staffing numbers. As just one example, just on Christmas Eve in the US, more than 800 flights were cancelled due to staff absence, with airlines claiming that lengthy quaratine periods being partly to blame. Note that if hospitals were to suffer a similar reduction of staff, the consequences would be deadly.

Also check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Pandemia Today, Pandemia Tomorrow, But Not Forever



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Light Saber

Romania's Constitutional Court rejects primacy of European law, follows similar refusal by Poland


Brussels Times
Sat, 25 Dec 2021 12:00 UTC
European Court of Justice
© WikimediaThe European Court of Justice in Luxembourg
Romania's Constitutional Court has ruled that a decision by the Luxembourg-headquartered European Court of Justice (ECJ) cannot be applied without first amending the country's constitution.

This means, de facto, that Romania, like Poland before it, has called into question the primacy of European law over national law, Belga news agency reported on Friday.

Romania's Constitutional Court reacted on Thursday by ruling that the ECJ's decision could not be applied in the country without amending the constitution.

Comment: Hungary has also condemned the EU for 'empire building' in its rather brazen attempts to replace the judiciary of nations with the EU's own, and, in turn, the EU threatened both countries that it would withhold desperately need financial aid; and one can expect that Romania will be the next target for similar threats if it continues to refuse to submit.

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Target

History Killers: The academic fraudulence of the 1619 Project

James M. Masnov
New Discourses
Tue, 07 Jul 2020 04:25 UTC
Dutch slave ship
© Hutton Archive/Getty ImagesDutch slave ship arrives in Jamestown, Virginia, 1619.
We are currently living in the beginning of a new dark age. Those of us who believe in the liberal values of liberty, free speech, reason, good faith debate, and academic freedom are engaged in an existential battle with the forces of darkness. A new religion, cloaked in postmodernist language, seeks to convert the masses by force. They employ shame tactics, character assassination, and defend acts of physical intimidation which compel obedience, demand fidelity to their designs, and enforce public declarations of original sin. They demand commitment to an ideological purity as they simultaneously present themselves as agents of equality, inclusion, and justice. They are a den of thieves trained in the art of a slippery lexicon where words don't carry their original public meaning and your words are verboten. As they deconstruct you and the world around you, reducing history and science to a glowing pile of embers, they claim that your very words are violence and your very thoughts dangerous. They engage in a form of witchcraft, believing that certain words contain metaphysical power. They invoke magic spells and incantations in the form of metaphorical self-immolation and have reprised notions of transgenerational guilt. They will label you a blasphemer for daring to assert that the sky is blue. Everything is constructed and nothing is authentic, save for what they decree.

Now, they are telling you what your history is, and it doesn't matter that what they tell you isn't actually true, that the history is more nuanced than they claim, or that they are telling lies by omission. You will be made to bend to the agents of the new dark age. If you do not, they will burn you at the stake in the town square of public opinion they themselves manipulate and curate.

The gamble they are making is that if they use tactics of conflation and obfuscation, people will no longer recognize objective truth. They think the truth doesn't matter — is just a matter of unjust politics — and are wagering that people will generally give up on notions of reality as a trade-off for a little bit of peace of mind.

"Maybe if we give them what they want, they will leave us alone."
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Stop

South Africa's SAGE tells government: End contact tracing and self-isolation for Covid because it's not worth it

Will Jones
The Daily Sceptic
Tue, 21 Dec 2021 12:00 UTC
Health minister Phaahla
© polity.org.zaHealth Minister Joe Phaahla
South Africa's Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) on Covid, a similar body to SAGE, has written to Health Minister Joe Phaahla recommending that all contact tracing and self-isolation of contacts for Covid be stopped because it is unnecessary and ineffective. South Africa is the original epicentre of the Omicron outbreak so this advice should be a strong signal to Boris Johnson and the rest of the world that the panic about Omicron is unwarranted.

The Committee's experts write:
We propose that quarantining be discontinued with immediate effect for contacts of cases of Covid. This applies equally to vaccinated and non-vaccinated contacts. No testing for Covid is required irrespective of the exposure risk, unless the contact becomes symptomatic. We further propose that contact tracing be stopped.
They explain:
Crucially, it appears that efforts to eliminate and/or contain the virus are not likely to be successful. Therefore, it is critical that the role of containment efforts like quarantine and contact tracing is re-evaluated.
They add:
The inability of the current testing strategy to identify the bulk of cases is illustrated by the high SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity rates seen across multiple provinces in serosurveys, implying that only a fraction of cases (perhaps one in 10, or even less) are ever diagnosed.

It stands to reason that if the vast majority of cases are not diagnosed, then the vast majority of case contacts are also not diagnosed. This means that quarantining and contact tracing are of negligible public health benefit in the South African setting.
The Daily Sceptic has been sent a copy of the memo, which is reproduced in full below.

Comment: The outlandish fallacies in current protocols won't be stated more plainly than that! It is the narratives (gone viral) that require mass inoculations!

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Hiliter

Cuba and China sign cooperation plan for joint promotion of Belt & Road Initiative


Kawsachun News
Sat, 25 Dec 2021 00:00 UTC
Cabrisas
© UnknownCuban Deputy Prime Minister, Ricardo Cabrisas signs the Cooperation Plan for the joint promotion of the Silk and Road Initiative
December 24, 2021
Cuba-China bilateral economic relations have hit an important milestone with the signing of a Cooperation Plan for the joint promotion of the Silk and Road Initiative. The document was signed on Friday, between the governments of Cuba and China, by Cuban Deputy Prime Minister, Ricardo Cabrisas, and President of National Development and Reform Commission, He Lifeng.

This Plan will allow for the effective implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding, signed by President Díaz-Canel during a visit to China in November 2018, which formalized the insertion of Cuba to this important Initiative. That MoU was prepared in correspondence with Cuba's short, medium and long-term economic and social development objectives, where China participates as a strategic partner, and based on the experiences acquired by China in the implementation of projects and actions in the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Plan promotes bilateral cooperation in priority sectors for Cuba, such as infrastructure development, education, culture, health and biotechnology, communications, science and technology and tourism, among other areas. Projects and actions to be executed jointly will be of mutual benefit, in order to further strengthen and diversify the ties between Cuba and China, as well as with third countries that are members of this Initiative.
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Arrow Down

Poland's president vetoes controversial media law following pressure from US


Euronews
Mon, 27 Dec 2021 18:46 UTC
Duda/tvn
© Flickr/Senat RP/KJNPolish President Andrzej Duda • TVN station
Poland's president has vetoed a controversial media law that had been passed in the country's parliament, under pressure from the US.

Andrzej Duda said on Monday he has decided to veto the bill that would have forced US company Discovery to give up its controlling share in Polish TV network TVN. The president noted that the bill was unpopular with many Poles and would have dealt a blow to Poland's reputation as a place to do business. He added that it is important for Poland to be seen as an honourable partner with its allies.

Duda was facing pressure from the US government over the bill.

The bill, which was passed by the lower house of parliament, would have prevented any non-European entity from owning more than a 49 percent stake in television or radio broadcasters in Poland.

Its practical effect would have targeted only one existing company, Discovery Inc, forcing the US owner of Poland's largest private television network, TVN, to sell the majority or even all of its Polish holdings.

Polish government leaders pushed the legislation and argued that it is important for national security and sovereignty to ensure that no company outside of Europe can control companies that help form public opinion.
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Blackbox

Sergei and Yulia Skripal are no more

John Helmer
Dance with Bears
Mon, 20 Dec 2021 00:00 UTC
Skripal's No More?

It is now one year and one month since there was a direct contact with Russia proving that either Sergei Skripal or Yulia Skripal, or both, are still alive. That was an hour-long telephone call from Yulia kripal to her cousin Viktoria Skripal on November 21, 2020.

There has been no direct evidence from Sergei Skripal himself that he is alive since he telephoned his family home on June 26, 2019.

Viktoria Skripal told a Moscow press interviewer three months ago that because there was no word from either of them following the death in Yaroslavl of Elena Skripal, Sergei's mother, on January 7 of this year, she believes they may be dead. "We can assume that they are not alive. Because they knew that their grandmother had died — in any case, we were assured that they had been accurately informed. But there were no condolences, no flowers, none of this from them."
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