Society's ChildS


Star of David

Western officials in protest over Israel Gaza policy

Gaza
© Getty ImagesGaza
More than 800 serving officials in the US and Europe have signed a statement warning that their own governments' policies on the Israel-Gaza war could amount to "grave violations of international law".

The "transatlantic statement", a copy of which was passed to the BBC, says their administrations risk being complicit in "one of the worst human catastrophes of this century" but that their expert advice has been sidelined.

It is the latest sign of significant levels of dissent within the governments of some of Israel's key Western allies.

One signatory to the statement, a US government official with more than 25 years' national security experience, told the BBC of the "continued dismissal" of their concerns.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said:
"The voices of those who understand the region and the dynamics were not listened to. What's really different here is we're not failing to prevent something, we're actively complicit. That is fundamentally different from any other situation I can recall."
The statement is signed by civil servants from the US, the EU and 11 European countries including the UK, France and Germany. It says:
"Israel has shown 'no boundaries' in its military operations in Gaza, which has resulted in tens of thousands of preventable civilian deaths; and... the deliberate blocking of aid... putting thousands of civilians at risk of starvation and slow death. There is a plausible risk that our governments' policies are contributing to grave violations of international law, war crimes and even ethnic cleansing or genocide."
The identities of those who signed or endorsed the statement have not been made public and the BBC has not seen a list of names, but understands that nearly half are officials who each have at least a decade of experience in government.

Bad Guys

Construction worker killed as home built illegally collapses in NYC: officials

jewish brooklyn building
A worker died when a two-story home that was being illegally built collapsed in Brooklyn on Friday, fire and city officials said.

The 33-year-old construction worker was found unresponsive when first responders arrived at 1266 50th Street, near 13th Avenue, in Borough Park just after noon.

The man had been working on the home when the first floor of the dwelling suddenly gave way - pinning him under the debris in the basement, officials said.

Comment: This all sounds very sketchy and is reminiscent of the recent tunnel scandal involving the Orthodox Jewish community which has mysteriously disappeared from the news cycle. See also:


NY Times had this to say:
The home's owner, Juda Horowitz, was cited in January for having construction done without a permit, according to Department of Buildings records. Mr. Horowitz was also issued a partial stop-work order.

Mr. Horowitz did not immediately respond to calls and an email on Friday afternoon.

Inspectors went to the home in December after receiving two complaints, but were unable to gain access, James Oddo, the buildings commissioner, said at the briefing. When inspectors returned in January, they saw excavation being done and ordered a halt. The city had not been given plans for the construction, Mr. Oddo said
jewish home brooklyn
© Dave Sanders for The New York TimesSteel decking being used to build a floor at the home caved in, pinning a construction worker, officials said.Credit...



NPC

Student grades get even worse after California school drops $250,000 on 'Woke Kindergarten' program

San Francisco public schools, elementary school classroom
© Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
An elementary school in California paid an organization called "Woke Kindergarten" $250,000 to train teachers to confront "white supremacy" and "racism" in the classroom, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Woke Kindergarten has been giving teachers at Glassbrook Elementary School in Hayward training sessions for two years and is funded through a federal program for assisting low-performing schools, according to the Chronicle. Test scores for students at the school have fallen under the program, which pushes anti-police, anti-capitalism and anti-Israel messages.

Comment: Everyone who thought it was a good use of resources to spend $250k on disrupting whiteness training for elementary aged kids should be fired, banned from all education positions, and forced to pay that money back to the school.


Cow

Polish farmers announce Ukrainian border blockade

Ukrainian trucks at Polish border
© Getty Images / Dominika ZarczykaUkrainian trucks lined up to cross the Polish border at Medyka, the site of a previous protest blockade
Polish farmers will block border crossings with Ukraine during a general strike planned for next week, the Solidarity trade union announced on Thursday.

In addition to making Ukrainian crossings impassable, the union plans intermittent road blockades across Poland to last through March 10, it said.

"Our patience has run out. Brussels' position on the last day of January 2024 is unacceptable for our entire agricultural community," the union said in a statement, referring to Thursday's EU summit, which was loudly protested by farmers from across the bloc.

Comment: No one outside of ivory towers agrees with the European Commission, and the European Commission doesn't care about the thoughts or feelings of those not in ivory towers. So the protests roll on..


No Entry

Oregon GOP state senators who staged walkout over abortion can't run for reelection, high court says

Oregon Supreme Court, Republican Oregon senators
© Abigail Dollins / APAttorneys representing Republican Oregon senators and the Department of Justice speak before the Oregon Supreme Court in opening arguments on Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023 in Salem, Ore. Republicans are challenging the implementation of Measure 113, an effort to put a stop to legislative walkouts.
The Oregon Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that 10 Republican state senators are ineligible to run for reelection after they participated in a quorum-denying walkout for six weeks last year to stall legislation on abortion, transgender treatments and firearms.

The high court decided in favor of Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade, who had disqualified the senators from running for office again after voters approved a measure in 2022 to amend the state constitution to ban lawmakers with more than 10 unexcused absences from running again.

The measure to prevent walkouts passed after GOP lawmakers staged other walkouts from the Legislature in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Comment: With checks and balances removed, nothing can stay the heavy hand of majority rule.


Pills

WHO quietly admits there's no solid scientific backing for giving children 'gender affirming care'

WHO sign
© FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it would not be issuing recommendations on "gender affirming care" for children or adolescents, citing the lack of scientific literature addressing it.

The WHO is in the process of developing guidelines for the "health of trans and gender diverse people," but has declined to extend those guidelines to people under the age of 20, according to a Jan. 15 document released by the agency. Scientific findings on the long-term consequences of child sex changes are "limited and variable," according to the WHO.

"The scope will cover adults only and not address the needs of children and adolescents, because on review, the evidence base for children and adolescents is limited and variable regarding the longer-term outcomes of gender affirming care for children and adolescents," the document reads.

The WHO defines anyone between the ages of 10 and 19 as an adolescent, according to its website.

Comment: See also:


Bad Guys

EU citizens' taxes spent on financing terrorist organizations: Moscow

Donbas bakery
At least 28 people, including nine women and a child, were killed when Ukraine forces struck a bakery and restaurant in Russian-administered Donbas on Feb.3, 2024.
EU citizens' taxes are spent on financing terrorist organizations, Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said after a Ukrainian attack on a bakery in Lysychansk on Saturday killed at least 28 civilians including one child.

Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Saturday that the West is "complicit" in the Ukrainian military's killing of civilians in Lysychansk - a city in the Moscow-controlled Luhansk located in eastern Ukraine's Donbass region.

"According to preliminary information, the strike was conducted using Western weaponry," said.

She said the "terrorist attack" meant to convey Kiev's "gratefulness for the 'generous' financial support by EU countries."

She said EU nations' citizens should know what their taxes are being spent on, like "deadly weapons systems" used by the Ukrainian military to "kill civilians."

"We suggest that Parisians imagine how they go in the morning for a baguette, and Rome's residents - to have a cup of coffee with cornetto - but instead of freshly-baked pastry return home with relatives wounded or killed by Ukrainian terrorists," Zakharova said.

According to Zakharova, the deadly incident is "further proof of the criminal nature of the Kiev regime."

Moscow will inform "international organizations of yet another terrorist attack on the part of Zelensky's gang," she said, adding that Russia expects a swift and unequivocal condemnation of Kiev's actions.

According to the Luhansk Information Center, Ukraine shelled the bakery in Lysychansk using the US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket System.

The governor of Lugansk, Leonid Pasechnik, said the Ukrainian military deliberately targeted the building on a weekend to maximize civilian casualties.

Comment: At this point it might be fair to say that EU governments are themselves terrorist organizations.


No Entry

'Fear and suspicion': An EU state deports thousands of native-born Russian-speakers as the West turns a blind eye

Expulsion
© RT
Latvia has been persecuting its Russian-speaking residents for many years. Today, thousands of them face deportation. They include an 82-year-old retiree - whose family resides in the Baltic republic - and a 63-year-old woman who has lived in Latvia her entire life. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that these actions pose a threat to his state's national security.

Latvia intends to punish residents who have not learned the national language by deporting them. To remain in the country, they must pass a test. The requirement also applies to those with 'non-citizen' status - people who permanently reside in Latvia (sometimes from birth) but don't have the same rights as others.

The Latvian authorities have recently tightened their policy with regard to national minorities, supposedly due to concerns that arose after the start of Russia's military campaign in Ukraine. However, the trend towards further restricting the rights of the Russian-speaking population in Latvia has been developing for a long time.

Comment: The reaction from the EU might be motivated by many countries seeking to limit immigration and applying similar rules as those the administration in Latvia is applying. At the same time, other forces in the EU and the West encourage migration, including illegal, from countries that have little cultural or ethnic relation with the local populations leading to increased division and weakening of the EU countries, as if divide and conquer is a policy actively pursued. Below are some headlines from the last 10 years:

2024: Latvia to host NATO patrol aircraft, Sweden's military to be deployed to region for 'integration'
2022: Latvian president says NATO troop presence needed in Baltics permanently
2021: Iron curtain on the airwaves: Latvia becomes latest country to censor Russian TV shows, as Moscow diplomats slam new crackdown
2019: Fined €400, cold sober US soldiers disrespectfully urinated on Latvia's Freedom Monument
2019: Zakharova: Latvia's ban on Soviet uniforms during Victory Day celebrations an insult to liberators
2018: Latvia provokes anti-Russian sentiment with NATO drills targeting ethnic Russian towns
2017: Living the pre-Soviet dream! Latvian population has plunged 27% since 1991
2017: Poking the Bear: US deploys Black Hawk choppers in Latvia
2015: Western aggression: NATO conducting simulated troop deployment near Russian border
2014: ​Latvia joins eurozone, but half of population opposed
2014: Latvian mayor complains about NATO sailors: They behave like occupiers

Lativa (Wiki) is a Baltic state with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south, the area covers more about 65,000 km2 and is home to about 1.9 million people of which 63 % are Latvians and 24 % Russians. The official language is Latvian, with Latvian and Lataglian being the only recognized languages, which is odd considering the number of ethnic Russians in the country, but one can guess that is equality when it is applied in Eastern Europe.

Since medieval times control of Latvia has alternated between Germany, Sweden, Poland-Lithuania, and Russia. In this perspective, the current developments have little to do with Latvian independence. The return of the Swedish military for 'integration" into the expected NATO membership is more than just a little ironic considering that Riga, the capital of Swedish Livonia during the time of the Swedish Empire (1560-1815), was the largest town of the Empire.

From the Wiki there also is:
On 22 June 1941, German troops attacked Soviet forces in Operation Barbarossa.[65] There were some spontaneous uprisings by Latvians against the Red Army which helped the Germans. By 29 June Riga was reached and with Soviet troops killed, captured or retreating, Latvia was left under the control of German forces by early July.[66][58]: 78-96 The occupation was followed immediately by SS Einsatzgruppen troops, who were to act in accordance with the Nazi Generalplan Ost that required the population of Latvia to be cut by 50 percent.[58]: 64 [58]: 56
The Wiki on the Demographics of Latvia, reveals that there in 1935 were close to 2 million people. In 1943 the number was down by 200,000, or slightly more than the current population, and with the latest initiatives, the population is to be reduced still further.

From the notes on Lativa during WWII one also finds:
Latvian soldiers fought on both sides of the conflict, mainly on the German side, with 140,000 men in the Latvian Legion of the Waffen-SS,[68] The 308th Latvian Rifle Division was formed by the Red Army in 1944. On occasions, especially in 1944, opposing Latvian troops faced each other in battle.[58]: 299
All taken into consideration, one is left with the impression that behind the veneer of political slogans and democracy dressing, the struggle continues.


Bullseye

Utah joins list of states to pass a bill banning diversity programs in government and on campus

utah governor spencer cox
© Laura Seitz/The Deseret News via APUtah Gov. Spencer Cox
Utah's legislature became the latest in the U.S. to pass a bill Friday prohibiting diversity training, hiring and inclusion programs at universities and in state government.

The bill that cleared the state House and Senate by wide margins now heads to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican who has said he is likely to sign such a bill into law.

Headed into the final year of his first term as governor, Cox has shifted right on "diversity, equity and inclusion." After vetoing a ban on transgender students playing in girls sports in 2022, Cox signed a bill in 2023 regulating discussion of race and religion in public schools to ban, for example, the teaching that anybody can be racist merely because of their race.

Comment: The tide seems to be turning:


Arrow Down

Germany's economy is dying. Here's why and what happens next

Industry
The once mighty growth engine of the EU now seems vulnerable as the threat of deindustrialization looms

German Finance Minister Christian Lindner, injecting some humor at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, stated that Germany is not the "sick man" of Europe but rather "a tired man," following the recent years of crisis, in need of a "good cup of coffee."

However, the economic indicators point to something more than fatigue. Although Germany could be described as merely being in a mild recession - the GDP readings, after all, can hardly be called awful - in reality the economy finds itself in the uneasy place of having no clear prospects for an imminent recovery.

Economic figures paint a darkening picture

Initial estimates suggest a 0.3% decline in GDP in 2023, positioning Germany as the only major industrialized nation in the red. Germany's national debt saw an increase of about €48 billion, reaching almost €2.6 trillion. While this may appear alarming at first glance, it's crucial to consider the broader economic context. Germany's debt-to-GDP ratio, standing at approximately 65%, is relatively favorable compared to many Western countries.

Moreover, Germany has implemented strict limits on deficits, demonstrating a commitment to financial prudence. In light of these measures, there is a counterargument that Germany could potentially consider taking on more debt.


Comment: NATO's first General Secretary, Lord Ismay, said about NATO's role: 'Keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down'. That is a mindset that only ever served the US and one can say that they have succeeded very well.


Comment: A rudderless EU/Germany has serious consequences. The current leadership are following the globalist WEF agenda to the detriment of the European/German people.

See also this about Germany: