Society's ChildS


Brick Wall

DHS Kelly tells Senate: Need a wall but not 'from sea to shining sea'

wall
© Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters
President Donald Trump's border wall is unlikely to stretch from one coast to the other, but it needs to be built to ensure the already significant drop in illegal border crossings becomes permanent, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly told senators.

"We've seen an absolutely amazing drop" in the number of people attempting to cross the southern border illegally and getting detained by Customs and Border Patrol, Kelly told the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee on Wednesday. There were fewer than 17,000 arrests in March, compared to more than 58,000 in December 2016, a decline of 71 percent.

That won't last unless the border wall is built, Kelly said. "It is unlikely we'll build a physical barrier from sea to shining sea," he told the senators at one point, but the border patrol has identified spots where such a barrier is absolutely necessary. "Physical barriers do work if they're put in the right place."

Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general who used to be in charge of the US Southern Command, described the migrants as "overwhelmingly nice people" migrating in search of economic opportunity and to escape "astronomical" rates of violence in places such as Honduras.

Comment: Barrier 'brief': DHS Kelly is alarmingly scant on details in answering the Senate committee questions and when he does, the answers are substantially inadequate.

See also: California closer to becoming a 'sanctuary state'


Arrow Down

Whole Foods' fall from grace: Customers leaving in staggering numbers

whole foods
When the very first Whole Foods store was launched in Austin, Texas, in 1980, there were fewer than half a dozen natural food stores in the whole of the U.S., and the concept was an immediate success. Over the years, however, more and more supermarkets have recognized the growing demand for organic produce and have expanded their businesses to include more such offerings. This more competitive marketplace, combined with several scandals which have damaged the image of the group, has led to a sharp decline in sales for Whole Foods stores nationwide.

Earlier this year, after six continuous quarters with declining sales, Whole Foods' CEO John Mackey announced the closure of nine of its 435 stores, including outlets in Georgia, New Mexico, Utah, Arizona, Chicago, California and Colorado. This represents the largest number of Whole Foods stores ever to be closed at one time, and is the supermarket giant's first downsizing initiative since 2008.

Stocks have fallen by 11 percent in the past year, and new figures released by analysts from Barclays report that the group has suffered a 3 percent loss of foot traffic. While 3 percent might not seem like much, it represents a loss of about 14 million customers. Since each of these customers could be expected to spend between $30 and $50, this relates to losses of between $420 million and $700 million. It is understandable, then, that the analysts called this loss "staggering."

Comment: Whole Foods seen as 'organic traitors'; profits plummet


Handcuffs

Russians detain 8 in connection with St. Petersburg Metro bombing

russian police
© Maxim Shemetov / SputnikPolice officers check a pedestrian's belongings, Russia April 5, 2017.
Eight suspects have been detained as part of the St. Petersburg terrorist attack investigation, according to the Russian Investigative Committee, which is leading the inquiry.

"As a result of investigative actions taken by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Interior Ministry, six suspects allegedly involved in the terrorist attack were detained in St. Petersburg and two more were arrested in Moscow," Investigative Committee spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko told journalists on Thursday.

She also said that an improvised explosive device (IED) was found in the detained suspects' apartments during a police raid, along with firearms and ammunition. The IED found by the police is similar to the one that the St. Petersburg Metro bomber is believed to have planted at Ploshchad Vosstaniya station, the spokeswoman added.

Comment: See also:


Nuke

Iran & Hungary to cooperate in joint mini nuclear plant project

Iranian (L) and Hungarian (R) flags
© Reuters / Global Look PressIranian (L) and Hungarian (R) flags
Hungary and Iran have agreed to cooperate in a joint mini nuclear power plant project. The countries will create a small nuclear reactor for scientific and educational purposes, said a Hungarian official on Thursday.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban's chief of staff Janos Lazar was asked if the project would comply with the nuclear deal between Tehran and the six leading world powers.

"When the Prime Minister was there, we undertook to take part in jointly creating a mini nuclear plant with educational, scientific purposes, and now this agreement will be implemented," Lazar said, referring to Orban's visit to Iran in 2015.

In February 2016, Iran's top nuclear official Ali Akbar Salehi said the country had proposed a pilot project with Hungary to design a 25-megawatt reactor and then a reactor of up to 100 megawatts to be sold in Africa and Asia.

Comment: See also: Hungary gains final EU approval for new Russian-backed nuclear power project


Attention

Blast in Lahore, Pakistan kills 4 army soldiers, 2 civilians, 18 wounded

Pakistan blast
© K.M. Chaudary/Associated Press
The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on an army census team that killed at least six people and wounded 18 in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore on Wednesday. Punjab government spokesman Malik Ahmed Khan said the blast, which hit an army vehicle taking part in Pakistan's first census in nearly two decades, killed four soldiers and two civilians.

Scores of people have been killed since the beginning of the year in a series of attacks that have dashed hopes of an end to the violence of recent years and stepped up pressure on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government to improve security.

TV footage showed security personnel blocking off the street around the site of the explosion, close to an elite police training school which was the site of a Pakistani Taliban attack in 2009. The apparent targeting of personnel involved in the census, the first in 19 years, underlined the challenge to government institutions in Pakistan, a nuclear-armed state of some 200 million people.

The army has been closely involved in the census, with soldiers accompanying civilian enumerators, a move authorities say is needed to prevent collectors being intimidated by local political figures trying to slant sensitive population data in their areas.

Comment: The New York Times reported:
Investigators said that a severed head had been found at the site of the explosion, suggesting that the act was a suicide bombing. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, but the government declined to comment on the militant group's statement.

The population count, the first since 1998, began last month, and 200,000 soldiers are providing security for about 120,000 government officials for the door-to-door collection of data. "The purpose of the attack apparently was to spread fear within the enumerators and other staff," the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said in a statement.

One possible reason for the attack on the members of the census team was that they were a relatively easy target because they were in a neighborhood, rather than in a fortified area. Witnesses and officials said that the census team, along with security forces, had been gathering near the site of the blast during the past few days, before dispersing to neighborhoods.

On Wednesday morning, the driver of the van carrying the census team had reported a problem with the vehicle and parked, after which the blast occurred. The van was badly damaged.

"The team was getting ready for work when the explosion took place," said Ghulam Haider, the owner of a barbershop about 50 feet from the site of the blast. "We saw lots of smoke, and a motorcycle caught fire. Bodies were lying around, including the soldiers," Mr. Haider added.

The driver of the van, who was among the wounded, has been taken into custody for interrogation, the police said.



Bomb

Another explosion in Russia injures 1 in Rostov-on-Don

Rostov-on-Don explosion
© Sergey Pivovarov / SputnikAt the site of the explosion near the school in Rostov-on-Don.
One person has been injured in an explosion in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, police sources told the Russian media. The blast reportedly took place near a school.

The explosive device detonated when a man picked it up off the ground.

The object was disguised as a flashlight, TASS reported, citing Russian National Guard sources.

"A homeless man found a package and decided to check its contents, which included a flashlight," a National Guard official said, according to the agency. When the man tried to switch the flashlight on, it exploded. The man had his hand blown off, the official added.

Comment: The suspect who left the explosive device was caught on camera:
rostov explosion suspect
An expert on Islamic terrorism in Russia offered the following commentary to Fort Russ:
Today's explosion in Rostov is a tiny episode in the larger terrorist war against Russia. It must be considered in the context of the confrontation between Russia and the West. In particular, American politicians are accusing Russia of aggression in the Middle East and the whole West's resources to confront Russia in Europe.

Let us recall that several resonant acts of terrorism have occurred in Russia in a very brief span of time lately. Islamist Kazakh immigrants attacked policemen in Astrakhan (a regional center in South Russia), killing two. A bit earlier, Islamists attacked a unit of the Russian National Guard in Chechnya, killing 6 serviceman. Finally, there was the explosion in Saint Petersburg organized by a suicide terrorist from Kyrgyzstan, specifically the city of Osh where the terrorist group Hizb ut-Tahrir has strong positions.

These terrorist attacks (there is no information on the explosion in Rostov yet, so we'll exclude it from the list) were organized by Islamists. ISIS even took the responsibility for the explosion in Chechnya. But it is not obvious that the ones ultimately behind, ordering these attacks are Islamists.

The fact that terrorist activity is concentrating in Russia and terrorist attacks (including those of Islamist sleeper cells) are taking place in a brief span of time speaks to the fact that they have one boss and organizer. The West is most likely the one ordering this.

Another side working on destabilizing Russia is the "non-systemic opposition" headed by Navalny organizing rallies. These are different methods but similar end goals in the "work" of Islamists and the liberal opposition, which boil down to overthrowing the existing order.

President Putin has made Russia an independent power center and the Western elites do not like this. Therefore, these attempts at destabilizing Russia in different ways (not only by terrorist and political means, but also economic) will continue and intensify.



Sherlock

School principal resigns after student journalists uncover her dubious credentials

Pittsburg High School Kansas
© Google MapsStudent reporters at Pittsburg High School in Kansas are being praised for their investigative work on their incoming principal, which led to her resignation.
An intrepid team of high school journalism students in Kansas is receiving nationwide recognition after an investigative piece questioning their incoming principal's qualifications led to her abrupt resignation this week.

Amy Robertson, who had been hired in March and planned to undertake the leading role at Pittsburg High School in July, resigned from the top position on Tuesday, the school district announced. The news came four days after the school's student-run paper, the Booster Redux, ran a front-page story that questioned Robertson's background.

No Entry

Construction mishap at St. Petersburg apartment causes bomb scare (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

construction mishap St. Petersburg
© Мегаполис / YouTube
Authorities in St Petersburg decided not to evacuate an apartment building after it determined that an earlier reported explosion was actually a construction mishap that caused a piece of wall siding to fall, scattering debris and damaging a car.

Reports of an explosion spread on social media as photos taken from the scene showed the damaged 16-story building and the debris on the ground below.

At least one image showed black smoke and fire coming from the building near the damaged wall.

Witnesses reported hearing a loud pop before the siding fell from the building.

Attention

Explosive device discovered and disarmed in St. Petersburg apartment building

residential building St. Petersburg
© RT
A residential building in St. Petersburg was evacuated after an explosive device was found in one of the apartments, a city official said, adding that the device was later defused and police had made several arrests.

"An explosive device has been located and disarmed," Konstantin Serov, head of the administration of the district where the device was located, told TASS.

Earlier Russian media reported that a nine-story residential building in St. Petersburg had been evacuated after a suspicious object was found in one of the apartments.

All residents of the building were brought to safety and sheltered in a nearby kindergarten, TASS added.

Investigators are still working in the building, Serov added.

Nuke

Radioactive parcel intercepted at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport

Vnukovo airport employee
© Alexey Fillipov/SputnikEmployees of Moscow's Vnukovo airport work in the customs control zone.
The Russian Postal and Federal Customs Services intercepted a radioactive parcel at a logistics center at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport and sent it to a special facility for disposal on Thursday.

The discovery was made "during a check of mail to be delivered outside Russia," the Russian Post's press-service told TASS news agency.

As the Yantar radiation control system was scanning one of the parcels, it registered "gamma rays exceeding the maximum permissible radiation background by dozens of times," it said. The source of dangerous emissions was immediately removed from the rest of the packages and placed in a protective container.

The parcel contained "an aeronautic measuring device with a built-in dial piece," the press service said, adding that the radioactive cargo had been sent to a specialized facility for disposal.

"The radiation level of the remaining postal items was at standard level," it stressed.

The radioactive parcel had been sent by a female Muscovite to an addressee in the UK, according to TASS's police source.