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No evidence of Russian involvement in 2014 ammunition depot blast, Czech president says, despite govt already expelling 18 diplomats

Zeman

Czech President Milos Zeman
Czech President Milos Zeman has said there are two theories about what caused the 2014 arms depot blast that has sparked a severe diplomatic rift with Russia, and that both must be investigated.

Speaking for the first time about the incident during a televised address to the nation on April 25, Zeman said that one version of events is that Russian intelligence was involved in the deadly explosion.

The other version, he said, was that the blast was caused by inexpert handling of ammunition.

"I take both lines [of investigation] seriously and I wish that they are thoroughly investigated," Zeman said.

Comment: RT reports:
Moreover, the very theory of the potential involvement of foreign intelligence in the 2014 ammo depot blast emerged only three weeks ago, Zeman revealed. Before that, such an idea had been never mentioned even in "non-public" reports by Czech intelligence services. Inept handling of ammunition remained the main theory of the cause of the blast. At the same time, it has been established that the cache of ammunition destroyed by the blast was destined for Bulgaria.


It certainly is notable that it's only now that this new theory comes into being; seven years after the blast, right after an escalation of hostilities by the US, and amidst a growing rift by the Baltic states against Russia. And it seems it has been building for a while, because, months before this baseless spat, Russia expelled a Bulgarian diplomat over spying accusations.


"The ammunition from the depot should have been delivered to Bulgaria," Zeman said. "There are trade invoices, a local arms dealer had made a deposit. We can consider the Bulgarian link confirmed."
Russian embassy
© Reuters / David W Cerny
FILE PHOTO. A national flag of Russia flies on the Russian embassy in Prague, Czech Republic.
The ammo depot incident must be "thoroughly investigated," the president stated, expressing his full confidence in Czech police and security services.

"When the investigation is over, the citizens of the Czech Republic will be fully informed and nothing will be kept secret," Zeman said. "Whether this suspicion is justified, and in that case, while I support fair relations with all major countries, the Russian Federation needs to pay for this possible terrorist act - for example, Rosatom's non-participation in the Dukovany tender."

The Rosatom corporation has been already barred from the contest for the renovation of the Dukovany nuclear power plant, which is valued at $7 billion.

Moscow has strongly rejected the accusations, retaliating with the expulsion of 20 Czech diplomats, while Russian media reported looming economic sanctions against the Czech Republic. The spat has apparently entered a downward spiral, as Czech authorities now want to send home even more staff from Russian diplomatic facilities. Moscow, in turn, has signaled that such a move won't be left without a response, with talk emerging of restrictions on Czech exports, such as beer.
See also: America's stake in the Czech elections, and President Zeman's policies


Bizarro Earth

Leviathan mobilises for decisive battle

Trump Leviathan
© Unknown
Globalist forces are being mobilised to win a last battle in the 'long-war' - looking to break-through everywhere.

In The Revolt of the Public, Martin Gurri, a former CIA analyst, contends that western élites are experiencing a collapse of authority deriving from a failure to distinguish between legitimate criticism and - what he terms - illegitimate rebellion. Once control over the justifying myth of America was lost, the mask was off. And the disparity between the myth and public experience of it became only too evident.

Writing in 2014, Gurri foresaw that the Establishment would respond by denouncing all evidence of public discontent, as lies and disinformation. The Establishment would, in Gurri's telling, be so constrained within their 'bubble' that they would be unable to assimilate their loss of monopoly over their own confected 'reality'. This Establishment denial would be made manifest, he argued, in a delusional, ham-fisted authoritarian manner. His predictions have been vindicated with Trumpist dissidence denounced as a threat to 'our democracy' - amidst a media and social platform crackdown. Such a response would only confirm the suspicions of the public, thus setting off a vicious circle of yet more "distrust and loss of legitimacy", Gurri concluded.

Comment: Is globalism the end product of American exceptionalism? This may be precisely why it does not, will not work. Neither the Russians, the Chinese nor what is left of the rational US public will bow to obey this master.


Gold Coins

The heroic congressional fight to save the rich

Pelosi
© Stefani Reynolds /Bloomberg
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
Josh Gottheimer, Democrat of New Jersey, made an inspired plea recently. The Harvard man and Alpha Epsilon Pi brother is a member of the so-called "SALT caucus," a group of congressfolk threatening to hold up Joe Biden's infrastructure bill if it doesn't include a full repeal of a Donald Trump-imposed $10,000 cap on deductions of state and local taxes.

"It is high time that Congress reinstates the state and local tax deduction, so we can get more dollars back into the pockets of so many struggling families," intoned Gottheimer, one of 32 members of the SALT caucus, which includes 8 Republicans.

Pressure on Biden to repeal the SALT cap has been amping up, mainly from tri-state Democrats like Gottheimer, fellow New Jerseyan Bill Pascrell, and Tom Suozzi of New York. "No SALT, no deal!" the trio power-tweeted a few weeks back. Just a few days ago, Gottheimer even came up with a new way to argue the plan, offering to pay for the repeal of the SALT cap by increasing audits.

"There is a way to do this by going after what people owe already," he said.

The effort by the "SALT caucus" to hold a $2 trillion relief bill hostage in order to help what they're calling "struggling families" in the "middle class" is just the latest development in a years-long saga revealing Congress at its phoniest and most shameless.

Star of David

How 'corrupt' British minister Priti Patel lied for Israel

Patel/Duncan
© Simon Dawspn/Dept. International Development/No 10/Simon Davis
Home Affairs Minister Priti Patel • Dep. Foreign Minister Alan Duncan
Alan Duncan was part of Theresa May's Conservative government in Britain and served as deputy to then foreign minister Boris Johnson. But unlike many in the current UK government, he is not a supporter of Conservative Friends of Israel, an influential lobby group. Indeed, in his new book In The Thick of It, he accuses the group of "disgusting interference in our public life." Duncan reveals that the group used its influence on the most senior levels of government to block him becoming Middle East minister.

In another section of the book - the diaries of his time in the Foreign Office - he excoriates Priti Patel, currently the British home secretary, as "compromised," "deceitful," "morally corrupt," "contemptible" and "quite despicable." All these characterizations were used by Duncan to describe Patel's relationship with Israel. Patel was then the UK minister for international development, deciding how to dole out British aid money around the world - a form of "soft power."

Duncan's diary entries on Patel stand out, because they shed new light on a 2017 scandal Patel briefly but memorably caused for May's government.

Comment: Having publicly stated the obvious, given Israel's abilities to infiltrate and compromise other governments, looking repeatedly over his shoulder should be Duncan's next move. He is, after all, In the Thick of It.


Dollar

Quid pro quo? Big tech bankrolls BLM cofounder's PAC, charities in exchange for support

Khan-Cullors/Moskovitz/Dorsey
© Drew Angerer/Getty Images/Business Insider/TEGlobalism/NAFTA/Free College/KJN
Patrisse Khan-Cullors • Dustin Moskovitz • Jack Dorsey
Big Tech has showered Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Khan-Cullors' PAC and charities with millions in donations — and censors her online criticsas she backs their battle to control the internet.

Philanthropists linked to Facebook, Twitter and Netflix have donated more than $7.5 million to a host of non-profits controlled by Khan-Cullors, who has helped them lobby for "net neutrality."

The issue of net neutrality is about who controls the Internet. Proponents, including human rights groups, want a free flow of views and information. They fear content can be controlled by phone and cable companies — the Internet service providers — in how they set fees and speeds for content producers and users. Big Tech firms, many of which already engage in censoring content they don't agree with, don't want ISPs to control the Internet — and their profits.

Fire

Oil tanker in flames off Syrian coast after suspected drone attack

Vessel fire
© Unknown
Vessel fire off coast of Syria
The Times of Israel reports a fire broke out on an oil tanker moored off the port of Banyas, located in northwestern Syria.

The source of the fire is unknown at the moment, but Syria's oil ministry reports "an apparent drone attack coming from Lebanese territory" is responsible for the incident.

The ministry didn't provide any information about the ship's name, but the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the vessel was Iranian.

Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) allegedly shows the vessel with a plume of black smoke rising in front of the bridge.

Mohamed Yehia, head of Multimedia Output, BBC Arabic, also tweets out an image of the vessel and recites the SANA report.
There are no official reports of the incident neither the source of the fire on the vessel.

However, we must add that Israeli and Iranian ships have been subject to regular attacks in recent weeks and months. Tel Aviv and Tehran blame each other.

Last week, the US issued a rare warning to its closest Mideast ally Israel over its escalating actions against Iran. The Biden administration has voiced displeasure with Israel's recent covert attacks against Iranian targets.

Some of those attacks have been Israeli forces bombing dozens of Iranian oil tankers.

Bullseye

Tara Reade: Doing diplomacy with the US is like trying to appease an abusive partner in a toxic relationship

biden mask
© REUTERS/Tom Brenner
Joe Biden purveyor of toxic diplomacy
The come-here-go-away approach Washington takes to diplomacy - insults, accusations, sanctions, then summit invitations and some more accusations - bears a striking resemblance to how an abuser behaves in an intimate relationship.

"Come here," demands A, crooking a finger.

"No, never mind. Go Away," A says angrily.

R leaves, confused.

'No, wait, come here," A says again.

"OMG why did you do that?!" A is now yelling.

"Do what?" R asks, alarmed.

"Oh, you know very well," A responds.

R steps back, defensively folds arms.

"R, come on, we have to talk," A pleads tearfully.

R shakes head, steps tentatively towards A.

"Never mind, go away. And YOU get no more of anything," A says petulantly.

R, confused, ignores A and looks over at C.

R and C walk off into the sunset.

A stomps foot angrily and yells threats at them both unless they return.

Our players in this little fiction? America, Russia and a cameo appearance by China.

Clipboard

Surprised? MSM crows that Biden scores majority approval after 100 days, but the poll numbers aren't adding up

biden confused dementia
© ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images
Joe Biden
A majority of Americans approve of Joe Biden's first 100 days in office, and the president has been treated to glowing media coverage. But behind the poll numbers might be a different story.

Biden's first 100 days in office have been busy. A slew of executive orders did away with nearly all of Donald Trump's policies as the Democratic president opened up the country's Mexican border, launched a bid for gun control and banned key fossil fuel projects. The coronavirus vaccine rollout continues at home, while internationally, Biden has hit Russia with economic sanctions and strained relations with Turkey by recognizing the Armenian genocide.

Dollars

Kamala hasn't gone to the southern border yet — but migrant kids are still getting Veep's book

kamala harris migrant children book
© The New York Post
Kamala Harris's children's book will be given to migrant children coming to Long Beach.
Vice President Kamala Harris hasn't been to the border to address a crisis she was tasked to help fix — but a children's book she wrote is waiting there for young migrants who are being welcomed into the country.

Unaccompanied migrant kids brought from the U.S.-Mexico border to a new shelter in Long Beach, Calif., will be given a copy of her 2019 children's book, Superheroes are Everywhere, in their welcome kits.

It's just the latest open-arms gesture by the Biden administration, whose mixed messaging regarding the border and immigration has been credited with the surge from Central America to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Comment: Government funds paid for Kamala's "book," with no disclosure of who is profiting from the purchase. That has to be all kinds of illegal.

Fox News reports:
A White House official told Fox News Harris wasn't aware of the welcome packs, and that these kinds of efforts are usually organized by members of the community.

Health and Human Services could not be reached for comment on who is purchasing the books for the children.

More than 172,000 migrants were encountered by authorities in March alone. Among those were 18,890 unaccompanied children - a 100% increase from the already high numbers encountered in February, and the highest number recorded.

Smugglers have used groups of child migrants to divert Border Patrol so they can get adults through a different part of the border when officials are overwhelmed, while images of children being dumped at the border alone by smugglers have been released.



Blue Pill

AOC says Biden 'exceeded' progressive expectations in first 100 days

AOC mask
© Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks outside of the Democratic National Committee headquarters on November 19, 2020 in Washington, D.C.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gave President Biden a progressive thumbs up for his 100 days in office Friday night.

"The Biden Administration and President Biden have definitely exceeded expectations that progressives had," Democratic Socialist Ocasio-Cortez said during a virtual town hall meeting.

"A lot of us expected a much more conservative administration."


Comment: Conservative now means anything to the left of AOC and Karl Marx. If you're not a member of the progressive ruling class cult, that makes you a 'conservative.' And when they say it, it's an insult, by the way.


Ocasio-Cortez gave Biden her leftist seal of approval largely based on his actions in pushing through the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package, known as the American Rescue Plan.

She said his willingness to show flexibility in negotiations has been "very impressive" and led to the passage of "progressive legislation."

"It's been good so far," the congresswoman said.