Society's Child
The TASS news network reported on Friday that figures from one of Russia's largest financial data firms showed sales of fur coats, hats and other products were up by 20 percent in January, compared to the same period last year. Experts from Platforms OFD, which collected the data, say outerwear had become a particularly popular purchase in Moscow during the second and third weeks of January.
The Russian capital saw a particularly frosty cold snap over the period, with heavy snow in volumes not seen for some years. Other regions of the country have also been battered by abnormally cold weather, with authorities in Siberia issuing warnings in December as forecasts predicted temperatures would plunge as low as -50 degrees Celsius (-58 Fahrenheit).
These answers and more this week on MindMatters, as we continue to delve into the sickest parts of the collective mind and conduct a forensic exploration of what is unfolding. If one is to help heal the mental illness that we see all around us, we'd better understand what exactly we're seeing - as objectively as possible. In order to discard the doublespeak of pseudo-reality being aggressively foisted upon us, the first person it is necessary to assist is oneself.
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Suad Abu Rmouz holding a written summons by Israeli forces. December 28, 2018.
For two weeks now, the Abu Rumouz family of the Palestinian town of Silwan in east Jerusalem, have been living with a new anguish. They could be evicted from their home at any moment. Earlier in January, the family learned about a 2016 Israeli court order of eviction from their house in Batan Al Hawa neighborhood in Silwan. The family discovered the court order by accident, when one of its members, 39-year-old Nizam Abu Rumouz went to the Israeli court to check some legal paperwork. He then received the order letter, issued 5 years ago.
According to the court, the property upon which the Abu Rumouz family's house stands today, used to belong to Yemenite Jews in 1881, reason for which, according to the Israel law, any Jew, with an acceptance of the descendants of the former Jewish owners, can claim the property at any time. The claimer in this case is the Ateret Cohanim organization. An Israeli settler organization, dedicated to conquer Palestinian neighborhoods of east Jerusalem, one house at the time, using Israeli law.
Comment:
- Israel has so far occupied over 85% of Palestinian land
- Israel's confiscation law means 'from now on it's legal to steal from Arabs'
- Evil Israeli tyrants to destroy another Haifa neighborhood, evict Palestinian residents
- Israeli Pathocrats Demand Villagers to Pay for Their Own Eviction
- 'Subsidising criminals': Israel's Culture Ministry funds settlers 'squatting illegally' in Palestinian home
A former FBI profiler recently took to NBC to complain that while Big Tech restricting Americans' ability to freely communicate was all well and good, it was making it harder for the US intelligence apparatus to properly snoop on every aspect of these people's lives.
FBI alum Clint Van Zandt complained that a 70-year-old man involved in the raid on the Capitol earlier this month was totally unknown to the bureau, showing up with a truck full of Molotov cocktails, a rifle, and some "improvised grenades" unheralded by any sort of presence on social media.
Bloomberg News reported that the House Oversight Committee has asked travel companies to help law enforcement ID suspected Capitol rioters.
When the Feds openly ask travel companies to help them ID suspected rioters EVERYONE'S privacy is at risk."The committee sent letters to hotel chains, bus lines, car rental companies and online travel agents, asking them to retain all records regarding reservations and services for the entire month of January for potential use, if necessary, in future law enforcement or Congressional investigations."
As Forbes noted, the Feds sent letters to more than two dozen travel companies, including nine bus companies.
Hundreds of people associated with the leftist organization antifa gathered around 2 p.m. Wednesday, two hours after President Biden's inauguration ceremony, and marched to the Democratic Party headquarters and began smashing windows, according to KOIN 6 News.
"To those gathered near the Democratic Party of Oregon Portland Headquarters: Members of this group have been observed damaging the building," the Portland Police Bureau tweeted. "Anyone who is involved in criminal behavior including: vandalism and graffittiing is subject to arrest or citation."
Comment: More carnage in Portland and Seattle; from RT:
Left-wing rioters have gathered in Seattle and Portland to burn flags, break windows, and destroy property just hours after Democrat President Joe Biden was inaugurated. Their right-wing counterparts, however, were absent.
Groups of black-clad Antifa rioters took to the streets in Portland and Seattle, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake as they protested against the inauguration of President Joe Biden along with their usual targets, law enforcement and racism.
In Seattle, demonstrators set multiple American flags on fire as they blocked traffic and defaced property on Wednesday night.
Photos posted by the Seattle Police Department and others on the ground showed extensive graffiti and broken glass at several locations.
At least two of the rioters were arrested for property damage and assault.
Meanwhile, over 100 rioters descended on Portland, wreaking havoc and destroying property just a few hours after Biden's inauguration ceremony. The so-called "J20 Protest" was advertised as an anti-Biden, anti-police event also aimed at supporting indigenous people's rights, according to local ABC affiliate KATU.
The group targeted the Democratic Party of Oregon building for special destruction, breaking windows, spray painting graffiti (including "anarchy" symbols and a "F**k Biden"), and overturning dumpsters. Some held signs with slogans including "We are ungovernable," "A new world from the ashes," and "We don't want Biden - we want revenge."
Portland police told local media they arrested eight people on charges including rioting, reckless burning, possession of a destructive device, and criminal mischief. There were at least two other post-inauguration protests scheduled for Wednesday.
Despite widespread hype about Trump supporters plotting to overtake state capitals on Wednesday, however, law enforcement agencies detailed to the Oregon Capitol building reportedly encountered more journalists than angry conservatives.
"As you begin your work leading the country out of COVID-19 crisis, Amazon stands ready to assist you in reaching your goal of vaccinating 100 million Americans in the first 100 days of your administration," Dave Clark, Amazon's senior vice president of world-wide operations, wrote in a letter to Biden, according to Axios.
"We are prepared to leverage our operations, information technology, and communications capabilities and expertise to assist your administration's vaccination efforts. Our scale allows us to make a meaningful impact immediately in the fight against COVID-19, and we stand ready to assist you in this effort," said Clark.
Comment: More from RT:
'Where were you a month ago?' With Trump gone, Amazon greets Biden with offer to help speed up distribution of Covid-19 vaccines
21 Jan, 2021 00:45
...
While many Americans cheered the offer, knowing Amazon's prowess as a global leader in distribution, the timing struck some as agonizing after watching US Covid-19 deaths spike above 4,000 a day earlier this month. The nation's accumulated death toll from the virus topped 400,000 on Tuesday.
Trump and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have feuded since at least 2015, and Amazon political donors favor Democrats over Republicans by a wide margin. Just as US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi admittedly stalled Covid-19 relief legislation to avoid letting Trump look good - and just as Pfizer was accused of delaying news of its positive vaccine trial results until after Trump lost the November 3 election - Amazon may have had political reasons for timing its offer to Biden's inauguration, social media users suggested.
...
Author and comedian Tim Young said Amazon was silent for weeks after US vaccinations began in mid-December, "because 'Orange Man bad' was more important than caring for fellow Americans."
A Twitter user known as RBPundit alleged that Amazon worked with the Trump administration task force on vaccine distribution to sort out the details of its plans to help, then waited for Biden's inauguration to announce its offer.
In its letter to Biden, the online retailer reiterated a request to move its 800,000 US employees up the priority list as early vaccine recipients and said it has made arrangements with a healthcare provider to administer inoculation shots to those workers on-site, at all of its facilities. "We are committed to assisting your administration's vaccination efforts as we work together to protect our employees and continue to provide essential services during the pandemic," Clark said.
While campaigning, Biden warned of a "dark winter" with a horrific rate of Covid-19 deaths, which he blamed on Trump. With Biden now installed as president, Amazon's offer to accelerate the vaccine rollout may be just part of a change in political tone around the virus.
"All of a sudden, Amazon offers their facilities for the vaccine," podcast host Brian Craig tweeted. "You will see Covid-19 disappear almost overnight. Just watch."
Fully one third of American small business owners were unable to pay rent for January, according to the survey published on Wednesday by Alignable showing the devastating economic impact of Covid-19 pandemic shutdowns has yet to be fully realized.
The financial strife wasn't evenly distributed - almost half of minority small business owners were unable to pay, and 35 percent of women small business owners couldn't make ends meet.
Worst hit among the 10 sectors tracked by the survey were restaurants and bars - a whopping 57 percent of which failed to make rent for January. Yoga studios, retail stores, massage and beauty salons, and gyms were among the other markets most severely hit. The economic fallout has broadened significantly since November, when only beauty salons, restaurants and bars had a rent delinquency rate of over 40 percent.
Comment: See also:
- The Economic Insanity of This Coronavirus Pandemic Plot and the Coming Global Reset
- UK's poorest hit hardest by lockdown-induced economic recession - here's the proof
- Despairing America: The astonishing psychological cost of lockdown
- If you thought 2020 was bad, watch what happens in 2021
U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein in Seattle said she wasn't dismissing Parler's "substantive underlying claims" against Amazon, but said it had fallen short in demonstrating the need for an injunction forcing it back online.
Amazon kicked Parler off its web-hosting service on Jan. 11. In court filings, it said the suspension was a "last resort" to block Parler from harboring violent plans to disrupt the presidential transition.
The Seattle tech giant said Parler had shown an "unwillingness and inability" to remove a slew of dangerous posts that called for the rape, torture and assassination of politicians, tech executives and many others.
Comment: See also:
- Whose fault is that? Establishment cyber-police drive Parler off the internet, act surprised when it works with THE RUSSIANS
- Parler CEO 'confident' platform will return by month's end after weekend of positive developments
- Parler said Amazon shut its service down to prevent Trump from joining
- How Silicon Valley, in a show of monopolistic force, destroyed Parler
Comment: Global warming Ideologies have been able to corrupt science and twist the political agenda but it's not as easy to distort economics: