Rachel Marsden
RTSat, 04 Jan 2025 22:05 UTC
The immigration scheme is inherently racist and anti-meritocratic - and I should knowThe H-1B visa program is a bad deal for everyone. And the online civil war between Elon Musk and Trump's MAGA supporters is missing the point.
All the drama started recently when a user of Musk's X platform suggested that the supporters of US President-elect Donald Trump basically consist of tech bros insisting on the need for foreign
"skilled workers" on one hand, and those insisting on keeping American jobs for Americans on the other.
Musk said he was in favor of "bringing in via legal immigration the top ~0.1% of engineering talent as being essential for America to keep winning," and told critics to "go f**k yourself in the face," referring to them as "subtards."
RTSat, 04 Jan 2025 21:53 UTC
© Getty Images/FileUkrainian soldiers.
Ukraine has launched an investigation into skyrocketing desertions within its elite Western-trained 155th Brigade, Tatyana Sapyan, the spokeswoman for the State Bureau of Investigations, has said.
Sapyan made the announcement on Thursday, saying, according to Interfax, that the bureau is looking into allegations of dismal conditions in the brigade, potential abuse of authority and desertions.
The announcement followed a scathing assessment of the French-trained unit by Yury Butusov, editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian outlet Censor.net, in which he described the unit as being plagued by systemic issues, including the removal of some service members from the brigade for use elsewhere.
Comment: So at the behest of his Western masters, Zelensky will now conscript high-school kids. There is no low the Deep State won't sink to.
Julianna Frieman
ZeroHedgeFri, 03 Jan 2025 17:34 UTC
Some states reinstated mask mandates as so-called health "experts" claim holiday social gatherings have caused an increase in four different types of viral infections, the
Daily Mail reported on Thursday.
The "quad-demic" consists of a surge in infections caused by the flu, COVID-19, the respiratory illness RSV and norovirus, commonly called the stomach flu, according to the outlet.Headlines about the quadruple threat emerged just weeks before President-elect
Donald Trump takes office, fresh after talk about the risk of bird flu fell flat.
Comment: So, will we see a real rebellion against this potential new round of government/medical tyranny? Let's hope the lessons of the Covid-era lunacy are still fresh in society's mind.
© Imago via ZUMA Press
To such people, this article will be a rude awakening.
I grew up in Bhopal in central India. Since as early as I can remember, I worked in my father's printing press. I studied engineering in the nearby city in Indore and went to Manchester Business School in Britain to do an MBA. I returned to India to set up a subsidiary of a British company, which was a huge success. When I lived in Delhi, I wrote for the mainstream Indian media. I traveled widely in India and around the world.
I had first returned to India with the idea of improving it, but after 11 years, I realized that India was a sinking ship, with worsening and increasingly shameless corruption, degraded people, and a society that was falling apart. I had never met an honest bureaucrat or politician. I applied to emigrate to Canada and my application was approved in a record three weeks.
Comment:
1)
The history of India has many nuances, which it would be hard to cover in just one presentation, but which might still be helpful to consider. During the time of the
British Raj (1858-1947) the area administered by the British included most of what is today Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
The New World Encyclopedia entry for the
British Raj, says:
Eleven provinces (Assam, Bengal, Bihar, Bombay, Central Provinces, Madras, North-West Frontier, Orissa, Punjab, and Sindh) were headed by a governor. The remaining six (Ajmer Merwara, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Baluchistan, Coorg, Delhi, and Panth-Piploda) were governed by a chief commissioner.
There were also several hundred Princely States, under British protection but ruled by native rulers. Among the most notable of these were Jaipur, Gwalior, Hyderabad, Mysore, Travancore and Jammu and Kashmir.
Here is an old map that gives an idea where some of these places were located:
Source: Vincent Arthur Smith (1848–1920) - Vincent Smith's India in the British Period (part III, Oxford History of India), Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1920., PD-UK
2a)
One question might be
How many british citizens were there in India, Pakistan, before independence?
Here is an answer from
ChatGPT:
ChatGPT said:
Before the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947, the British population in the subcontinent was significant, but not as large as the indigenous population. The exact number of British citizens (mostly British officials, soldiers, merchants, and other expatriates) in India and Pakistan is difficult to pinpoint precisely, as records from that time are not always comprehensive. However, estimates give us a general idea.
British Citizens in India (pre-independence):
- At the time of Indian independence in 1947, there were roughly 100,000 to 150,000 British citizens living in British India. This number included British civil servants, army officers, merchants, and their families.
- The British community in India was mostly concentrated in urban centers like Calcutta (now Kolkata), Bombay (now Mumbai), Delhi, Madras (now Chennai), and Simla, and also in the regions where British colonial enterprises were most active, like the tea plantations in Assam and the railway network.
British Citizens in Pakistan (post-independence context):
- When India was partitioned into India and Pakistan in 1947, Pakistan was formed out of the areas of Punjab, Sindh, North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), and Balochistan.
- The British population in what became Pakistan was also relatively small. Most of the British expatriates were located in the cities of Karachi and Lahore, and they were part of the colonial administration and military.
- While the precise number of British citizens in Pakistan before independence is not readily available, it is generally accepted that they made up a significant portion of the British population in the entire subcontinent. However, their number would have been a fraction of the total 100,000-150,000 in British India, and likely much smaller.
Composition of the British Population:
- Civil Services: The British were heavily involved in administering the Indian subcontinent. The Indian Civil Services (ICS) was predominantly British, with Indians being gradually allowed to join in the latter half of the 19th century.
- Military: A significant portion of the British community in India was composed of military officers. The British Army in India had tens of thousands of British soldiers, though they were a part of the much larger Indian Army.
- Business and Trade: British merchants, traders, and businessmen were also a notable part of the population, especially those involved in managing the trade and resource extraction industries.
In summary, there were around 100,000 to 150,000 British citizens in India and Pakistan prior to independence, but their exact numbers varied by the region and specific time period. After independence in 1947, many British citizens left, and the number significantly dropped.
2b)
history.stackexchange.com has a similar question. In the discussion, there is one passage:
The total Number of British subjects in India in 1921 as per the 1921 census was 165,485.
The 1931 census was was the last census that was not subject to inaccuracies. The 1941 census was hampered by war and self-return from an illiterate populace.
The European British subjects totalled 155,555 of whom 110,137 were males and 45,418 females. Of these again 7,205 males and 3,422 females were found in Burma, and while in Burma the figures show a total increase of 1,434 males and 1,365 females since 1921, the figures for India proper show a further fall since 1921 and are now little more than 80 per Cent. of those recorded in 1911, while males taken alone are fewer than in 1901.
Reference from census record.
Either way, it was limited compared to an estimated population in 1947 of India, Pakistan, including what is now Bangladesh, of over 350 million. It was also a mere fraction of the number of people from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh that have settled in Britain.
3)
According to the
Nations Encyclopedia, during the partion of the
British Raj/India into India and Pakistan (West and East (since 1971 Bangladesh), about 6 million Indian Muslims migrated to Pakistan. Perhaps a question for Jayant Bhandari if he thinks there is a difference between how people from these different areas establish themselves and interact once they are in Britain?
4)
From the article:
Of course, Britain is no longer what it once was. Over the years, policing has evolved to accommodate the challenges presented by the lowest common denominator introduced by immigrants from the Third World.
The examples are not missing:
5) See also:
History:
To this one could add a selection of articles on:
Contemporary politics
Science lessons could be made less 'Western' under the Government's overhaul of the school curriculum.
An independent review of what is taught in schools was launched by Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson shortly after Labour's general election victory in July.
It is seeking to 'refresh' what pupils learn after Ms Phillipson complained the current curriculum is 'outdated'.
RTFri, 03 Jan 2025 17:07 UTC
Screenshot of the aftermath of the bombing at the Las Vegas Trump Tower
The suspect in the Tesla Cybertruck explosion on New Year's Day, identified as Master Sgt. Matthew Alan Livelsberger, was a veteran US special forces operative who not only deployed to Afghanistan twice but also served in Ukraine, AP reports, citing the US Army.
The blast outside the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Wednesday left seven people with minor injuries. Livelsberger died at the scene from an allegedly self-inflicted gunshot wound before the truck exploded, according to Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill.
© kieferpix – stock.adobe.comA number of new travel regulations are set to be enacted this year, which will require extra steps for passengers wanting to travel both domestically and abroad.
If your New Year's resolution was to travel more, don't just double-check your passport expiration.
Your ID may be rendered useless when flying due to
new travel restrictions that will be enacted in 2025.
Starting in May, all travelers will be required to use a Real ID — or appropriate alternative, like
a passport — in order to take domestic flights or enter some government buildings, according to
Gothamist.
The implementation of the updated identification requirement has
been postponed a number of times due to the pandemic, reported
Good Morning America.
Comment: The noose is tightening on people's freedom of movement, while government becomes even more intrusive, The shadow cast by 9/11 is a
strong one.
REAL ID's will also be needed to access certain federal facilities.
Congress mandated the REAL ID's in 2005 on the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. It requires minimum security requirements for travel documents.
Joe Marino and Anna Young
NY PostTue, 31 Dec 2024 15:31 UTC
© Paul Martinka
The maniac accused of randomly pushing a Big Apple straphanger onto Manhattan subway tracks Tuesday afternoon was charged with attempted murder, cops said.
Kamel Hawkins, 23, was also charged with second-degree assault after he allegedly shoved a complete stranger onto the tracks at the 18th Street station shortly after 1:30 p.m., according to police.
The terrifying ordeal, which was captured on chilling video footage obtained by The Post, showed the hooded brute roaming the edge of the platform while the victim appeared to be looking at his phone as the train pulled into the station.Without warning, the suspect pushed the man onto the tracks, with the unsuspecting straphanger disappearing under the train.
Tyler Durden
ZeroHedgeFri, 03 Jan 2025 15:14 UTC
© Iyah May
Australian medical doctor and
independent artist Iyah May has released a new track titled "Karmageddon," which sheds light on the harsh realities of Twitter wars, political division, media manipulation, out-of-control inflation, Covid bioweapon, Dr. Fauci, and corporate greed.
The song reflects the turmoil the world has endured over the past five years and might as well serve as a striking anthem of our time.
© Emil Helms/Ritzau via AP/TTThe capital Nuuk and a suburb were left without power early on Saturday afternoon
After a comprehensive power outage on Greenland, the power is fully back, announces the national energy company Nukissiorfiit.
Shortly after 5 am on Sunday morning, Nukissiorfiit announced that
two-thirds of Nuuk had regained power. However, citizens who got their power back were urged to conserve their electricity usage. That warning has now been lifted.
According to the energy company,
a fault was found on a power line from a wind turbine in Buksefjorden to Nuuk. The cause of the power outage is still being investigated.The police's landline phones were knocked out during the power outage, and the public service company KNR's broadcasts were down. Extra police patrols were sent out in Nuuk, the suburb Qinngorput, and the village Nuussuaq. Nuuk's hospital was forced to use backup generators.
Comment:
1) From
Times of India though the outage was longer than 10 hours:
© Times of India
Greenland has recently been in the news, since it is on the list of countries, along with Panama and Canada, that President Elect, Donald Trump would like to see as parts of the US. See also, Best of the Web:
Trump resurrects idea of buying Greenland2) From Greenland there was a
Tweet by @OJoelsen
The national power company in Greenland, Nukissiorfiit, has now found the cause of yesterday's huge power outage in Nuuk.
Nukissiorfiit has today carried out an inspection of the transmission line via helicopter, and has been able to establish that a conductor has come loose on the fjord span over the Ameralikfjorden, which is the cause of the breakdown.
The transmission line is built with an extra conductor, which acts as a reserve should problems arise, and therefore Nukissiorfiit will be able to solve the problem.
Technical Director, Filip Sivertsen comments on the situation:
"The extra conductor on the transmission line, simplifying processes for re-establishing supply via the hydroelectric power plant in Buksefjorden. If wind and weather conditions permit, Nukissiorfiit, with the help of meadow professionals and supervisors from Norway, will be able to carry out the work within a week".
The supply of electricity, water and heat to Nuuk, Nuussuaq and Qinngorput is normal again, and is currently being supplied via the emergency power in Nuuk.
Nukissiorfiit continues to work at high pressure, and would like to thank all citizens for their great understanding and help during the breakdown.
3)
Regarding the above: "
a conductor has come loose on the fjord span over the Ameralikfjorden" Citizen Watch Report carried details that may explain, or at least give a plausible explanation, even if something else was going on:
GREENLAND'S CAPITAL PLUNGES INTO DARKNESS AS TEMPS HIT -27°F December 28, 2024 10:27 pm by CWR
[...]
The power failure has left homes, businesses, and essential services without electricity. While the cause is still under investigation, early reports suggest ice buildup and a severe storm may have damaged power lines. The Buksefjord hydroelectric plant, which powers Nuuk, failed, and restarting it has been nearly impossible due to the harsh weather conditions.
The impact is already being felt — businesses are shut down, and residents are struggling to stay warm. Communication networks are down too, making it difficult for emergency services to coordinate. Kaspar Mondrup, the director of energy at Nukissiorfiit, the company responsible for power, described the situation as highly dramatic.
One of the most concerning aspects is the failure of the backup diesel generators, which hadn't been used in 25 years. They couldn't start, leaving the city without power for longer than expected. This highlights a bigger problem: Greenland's power infrastructure has been neglected. Nukissiorfiit admitted in 2020 that it was only spending 19% of what was needed for maintenance, leaving the grid vulnerable.
[...]
4) Since Greenland has been in the cross hairs, below are more comments on the situation in Greenland:
From Orla Joelsen:
5) To give an idea of what Qupanuk Olsen also is working on, in one
FB post she says that the number of children moved away from their families to care homes is 5-6 times higher than for Danish children, and that many are taken in by Danish families. There are many social problems in Greenland, including domestic violence, but is removing the children according to North European Danish standards necessarily the solution?
6) Regarding her claim, made in the Tweet and news headline, that Denmark will disappear from the World Map when Greenland is removed from the equation, is someone preparing for that to happen. The Sweden Herald carried this article:
Denmark abolishes three crowns after 600 years
Since the time of the Kalmar Union, the symbol of three crowns has been part of Denmark's national coat of arms. Now Denmark is removing the symbol.
» Published: 02 January 2025
On the first day of the year, the Danish royal house presented the country's new coat of arms. This after the new king Frederik X appointed a committee to review the coat of arms shortly after he took the throne last year, writes Göteborgs-Posten.
"The three crowns have been removed from the coat of arms, as they no longer have a current character and are therefore not considered relevant", writes the Danish royal house on its website.
In the new coat of arms, a ram and a bear have instead been given more space, in the absence of the three crowns. [...]
If Greenland leaves or is removed from the Danish Realm, the Polar Bear might go too. The ram is probably an allusion to the Faroe Islands.
7)
Here is one perspective on the intention of the US to incorporate Greenland, from a Tweet by @OJoelsen
8) Greenland independence is a comforting dream which for its existence requires a lack of awareness of history and current global politics. The people in Greenland might be interested to begin a study by investigating how independent the Danish Government has been in its decisions since at least WWII. They might end up being shocked out of a dream!
9) Where is the happy ending after all these comments? We just entered 2025 and here are the fireworks from Nuuk:
Comment: So at the behest of his Western masters, Zelensky will now conscript high-school kids. There is no low the Deep State won't sink to.