The NFL should kick out of the league any players who refuse to stand for the national anthem instead of suspending and fining players for fighting
By Howie Katz
Big Jolly Times
November 25, 2019
By now, unless you are deaf dumb and blind, you’ve seen or heard about the brawl that broke out last week between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns. It all started when Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph took offense to what he thought was a late hit by Browns defensive end Myles Garrett.
Mason tried unsuccessfully to rip off Garrett’s helmet, but Myles not only succeeded in ripping off Mason’s helmet, but he then used it to konk the quarterback over the head with all his might. That’s when the other players chimed in. What sports writers called a brawl looked like mostly pushing and shoving with an added kick or two.
Garrett was suspended indefinitely and Rudolph was fined $50,000. A total of $732,422 in fines were meted out to 33 players. Each team was fined $250,000.
The NFL thinks the sky will fall in if kids see players fighting. The fines and suspensions are designed to prevent fighting among players because such fights would make kids believe that violence is the way to go. But watching fight-less violence for three hours will make kids believe that violence is not OK … yeah, right.
Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association also do not want kids to see players fighting.
Actually, the National Hockey League has it right. The NHL allows fighting between players. When two players drop their gloves and engage in some good old fisticuffs, officials will not break up the fight until the fighters go down on the ice. Each of the combatants is then sent to the penalty box for five minutes. If two players start slugging each other with their gloves still on, they are sent to the penalty box for two minutes for ‘roughing.’
The NHL does meet out fines and suspensions to players for any aggravated commission of penalties designed to keep players from being injured.
Talk about brawls, there have been some really good ones with even the goalies dropping their gloves and coming to center ice to exchange blows. The 5-minute fighting penalties and the 2-minute roughing penalties are designed to discourage fighting and there are actually few fights. But the NHL does not believe, and rightfully so, that the fights will have an adverse impact on kids.
Back to the Steelers-Browns brawl, the indefinite suspension of Garrett is correct. He could have caused Rudolph a serious injury by konking him in the head with his helmet. However, Rudolph’s fine seems ridiculous. As for the rest of the players, most of those involved in the brawl should have been kicked out of the game at most. The player trying to kick Garrett should have also been fined. That’s it, period.
The NFL has a much, much bigger problem than players fighting, and that’s the disrespect for flag and country by players that was started by a disgraceful Colin Kaepernick. Instead of fining players for fighting, the NFL should kick out any player who refuses to stand for the national anthem. President Trump would love for people to hear NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell shout: “Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired. He’s fired!”
Tuesday, November 26, 2019
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE
Almost, But Not Quite
by Bob Walsh
Congressman Devin Nunes is a good solid conservative. He announced yesterday that he is suing CNN and The Daily Beast for defamation. It seems they printed a load of bullshit stating he had a bunch of inappropriate meetings with Ukrainians.
As a public figure it is difficult for an elected official to sue for defamation successfully. But not impossible. He has to demonstrate that the material was wrong, that they KNEW it was wrong and went ahead and published it anyway with malicious intent to damage him.
It is a very high bar. You need time, resources and a thick skin to prevail. You also need to be right.
The bad guys do this sort of thing fairly often. Remember Harry Reid and his assertion that "somebody told him" that Mitt Romney had paid no income taxes for years. It was complete bullshit and Reid apparently KNEW it was complete bullshit but he put it out there anyway and it did to some extent throw Romney off his game. He finally came up with his tax returns to show it was false. By then it didn't matter much.
Assuming Nunes' assertions are correct and he is willing to put up with the crap he may very well prevail. I hope he takes it to the wall. There should be some standards. There mostly aren't any more. Maybe we can get a little of that back.
by Bob Walsh
Congressman Devin Nunes is a good solid conservative. He announced yesterday that he is suing CNN and The Daily Beast for defamation. It seems they printed a load of bullshit stating he had a bunch of inappropriate meetings with Ukrainians.
As a public figure it is difficult for an elected official to sue for defamation successfully. But not impossible. He has to demonstrate that the material was wrong, that they KNEW it was wrong and went ahead and published it anyway with malicious intent to damage him.
It is a very high bar. You need time, resources and a thick skin to prevail. You also need to be right.
The bad guys do this sort of thing fairly often. Remember Harry Reid and his assertion that "somebody told him" that Mitt Romney had paid no income taxes for years. It was complete bullshit and Reid apparently KNEW it was complete bullshit but he put it out there anyway and it did to some extent throw Romney off his game. He finally came up with his tax returns to show it was false. By then it didn't matter much.
Assuming Nunes' assertions are correct and he is willing to put up with the crap he may very well prevail. I hope he takes it to the wall. There should be some standards. There mostly aren't any more. Maybe we can get a little of that back.
IT SEEMS THAT N Y NANNY MIKE IS REALLY IN
by Bob Walsh
Mike Bloomberg has just released the largest single ad buy in U S political history, $31 million, for his opening salvo. He is not jumping directly in until Super Tuesday, which may not be a winning strategy. It didn't work so good for Rudy.
A lot of people consider him to be a middle-of-the-road guy, unless you ever want to own a gun or buy a big gulp soda. Personally I think he is an asswipe who wants to control everybody elses lives because he thinks he is that much smarter than everybody else. Fuck him and the limo he rode in on.
Mike Bloomberg has just released the largest single ad buy in U S political history, $31 million, for his opening salvo. He is not jumping directly in until Super Tuesday, which may not be a winning strategy. It didn't work so good for Rudy.
A lot of people consider him to be a middle-of-the-road guy, unless you ever want to own a gun or buy a big gulp soda. Personally I think he is an asswipe who wants to control everybody elses lives because he thinks he is that much smarter than everybody else. Fuck him and the limo he rode in on.
THEY THINK IT WAS A GANG THING
How Totally Unsurprising
by Bob Walsh
The local constabulary is voicing the opinion that it is very likely that the 11-year old and 14-year old boy shot to death in Union City at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday were probably victims of a gang shooting.
No shit Sherlock.
by Bob Walsh
The local constabulary is voicing the opinion that it is very likely that the 11-year old and 14-year old boy shot to death in Union City at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday were probably victims of a gang shooting.
No shit Sherlock.
THAT IS AN INTERESTING WAY TO DEAL WITH ILLEGAL ALIEN PRISONERS
by Bob Walsh
The state of Florida is set to have the feds deputize a number of it's state correctional officers as ICE agents. This status, along with the accompanying special training, will allow them to process illegal alien guests of the state prison system.
Except for the final memorandum the program, known as 287 (g), is all set to go.
The Governor and the Secretary of Corrections both think this is a great idea. Many in the legislature do not.
Three other states have gone thru this procedure. The training is a live-in four week operation, undertaken at state expense. A total of 14 Florida jails already participate in the program.
The state of Florida is set to have the feds deputize a number of it's state correctional officers as ICE agents. This status, along with the accompanying special training, will allow them to process illegal alien guests of the state prison system.
Except for the final memorandum the program, known as 287 (g), is all set to go.
The Governor and the Secretary of Corrections both think this is a great idea. Many in the legislature do not.
Three other states have gone thru this procedure. The training is a live-in four week operation, undertaken at state expense. A total of 14 Florida jails already participate in the program.
WELL, IT'S A STORY ANYWAY
by Bob Walsh
Elon Musk has given an explanation of sorts for the spectacular failure of the "armored glass" in his new funny-looking pickup truck. He believes that the sledge hammer tested on the body panels prior to the glass demonstration disrupted the glass just enough so the steel ball did it's thing rather spectacularly when used against the glass.
Also, in case you are interested, the odd body shape is necessary because the alloy used in the body is the same stuff they make the SpaceX rocket bodies out of. It can not be shaped in a stamping press, the existing presses are not strong enough to do it. To fold the panels they have to score the back side of the panel and fold along that line or the material will not fold over properly.
That's his story and he is sticking by it, so far at least. Hell, it might even be true.
Elon Musk has given an explanation of sorts for the spectacular failure of the "armored glass" in his new funny-looking pickup truck. He believes that the sledge hammer tested on the body panels prior to the glass demonstration disrupted the glass just enough so the steel ball did it's thing rather spectacularly when used against the glass.
Also, in case you are interested, the odd body shape is necessary because the alloy used in the body is the same stuff they make the SpaceX rocket bodies out of. It can not be shaped in a stamping press, the existing presses are not strong enough to do it. To fold the panels they have to score the back side of the panel and fold along that line or the material will not fold over properly.
That's his story and he is sticking by it, so far at least. Hell, it might even be true.
SHERIFF MURDERED OVER LOUD RADIO
by Bob Walsh
Big John Williams was the Sheriff of Lowndes County, Alabama. He was murdered Saturday evening at the gas pumps at a convenience store. He walked up to a car at the pumps that had the radio blasting and asked the occupant(s) to turn the music down. He was shot in the head and died.
The cops took William Chase Johnson into custody around midnight. Interestingly enough he survived being taken into custody. He walked back to the scene of the shooting, holding a firearm in his hand, and was arrested. Johnson was taken to jail in neighboring Elmore County.
Johnson is being held without bond on a murder charge.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Johnson is the son of a Montgomery County sheriff's deputy.
Big John Williams was the Sheriff of Lowndes County, Alabama. He was murdered Saturday evening at the gas pumps at a convenience store. He walked up to a car at the pumps that had the radio blasting and asked the occupant(s) to turn the music down. He was shot in the head and died.
The cops took William Chase Johnson into custody around midnight. Interestingly enough he survived being taken into custody. He walked back to the scene of the shooting, holding a firearm in his hand, and was arrested. Johnson was taken to jail in neighboring Elmore County.
Johnson is being held without bond on a murder charge.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Johnson is the son of a Montgomery County sheriff's deputy.
CA GOVERNOR WANTS TO SHUT DOWN A PRISON
by Bob Walsh
This isn't knew. California has been trying to shut down a prison or three pretty much ever since there has been a California. The usual target is San Quentin. Due to it's age its cost of maintenance per inmate is higher than any other prison in the state, and the real estate there is very, very valuable.
Another likely candidate is CRC Norco. This was originally a resort hotel, taken over by the military during WW II. It is almost as decrepit as San Quentin.
That being said, the federal courts now have a great deal of sayso over CDCr operations and even after flushing a huge number of turds into the county system the state system still has crowding issues. In addition the California Correctional Peace Officer's Association is still a political force to be reckoned with in California. Also, prisons are major money generators for local economies.
The prison system in the formerly great state of California takes up $15.8 billion dollars for the current fiscal year.
Much of the noise along these lines is touting rehabilitation instead of punishment. I can assure you, based on many years of experience, rehabilitation is bullshit. The system can not rehabilitate criminals. The system CAN provide services and opportunities for criminals who have finally gotten tired of the madness and who WANT to change. The system can not compel chance, and can not even really effectively propel chance. Most criminals are self-described criminals. They view "criminal" as a valid life-style or occupational choice. Going to the slammer once in a while is part of the cost of doing business. Most crime, especially property crime, is committed by a fairly small number of repeat life-long criminals. The way to stop the crime is to lock the criminals up until they get too old or too tired to continue.
This isn't knew. California has been trying to shut down a prison or three pretty much ever since there has been a California. The usual target is San Quentin. Due to it's age its cost of maintenance per inmate is higher than any other prison in the state, and the real estate there is very, very valuable.
Another likely candidate is CRC Norco. This was originally a resort hotel, taken over by the military during WW II. It is almost as decrepit as San Quentin.
That being said, the federal courts now have a great deal of sayso over CDCr operations and even after flushing a huge number of turds into the county system the state system still has crowding issues. In addition the California Correctional Peace Officer's Association is still a political force to be reckoned with in California. Also, prisons are major money generators for local economies.
The prison system in the formerly great state of California takes up $15.8 billion dollars for the current fiscal year.
Much of the noise along these lines is touting rehabilitation instead of punishment. I can assure you, based on many years of experience, rehabilitation is bullshit. The system can not rehabilitate criminals. The system CAN provide services and opportunities for criminals who have finally gotten tired of the madness and who WANT to change. The system can not compel chance, and can not even really effectively propel chance. Most criminals are self-described criminals. They view "criminal" as a valid life-style or occupational choice. Going to the slammer once in a while is part of the cost of doing business. Most crime, especially property crime, is committed by a fairly small number of repeat life-long criminals. The way to stop the crime is to lock the criminals up until they get too old or too tired to continue.
PIERS BLASTS THE BLOOM OUT OF BLOOMBERG
Michael Bloomberg’s sickening suppression of his own journalists would shame even Putin, proves Trump is right about fake news, and makes him unfit to be President
By Piers Morgan
Daily Mail
November 25, 2019
Thirty years ago this month, New York financial data tycoon Michael Bloomberg telephoned Wall Street Journal writer Matthew Winkler and asked: ‘What would it take to get into the news business?’
Knowing that Bloomberg had no experience in journalism, Winkler presented him with a hypothetical ethical dilemma:
‘You have just published a story that says the chairman of your biggest customer has taken $5 million from the corporate till,’ he said. ‘He is with his secretary at a Rio de Janeiro resort, and the secretary’s spurned boyfriend calls to tip you off. You get an independent verification that the story is true. Then the phone rings. The customer’s public-relations person says, “Kill the story or we will return all the terminals we currently rent from you.’”
Winkler then asked Bloomberg a simple question: ‘What would you do?”
Bloomberg didn’t hesitate.
‘Go with the story!’ he replied.
Winkler later cited this as the ‘deciding moment’ he chose to help Bloomberg build a news organization.
It was an inspired decision.
Bloomberg News is now one of the biggest and most powerful news agencies on the planet.
It boasts 2,300 journalists in 72 countries and 146 bureaus worldwide and has developed a reputation for important impartial journalism.
In the past four years, it has intensively reported on, and aggressively investigated, first Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and now his presidency – the vast majority of its Trump coverage being negative.
Like many US mainstream media organizations, Bloomberg News quickly realized that relentless Trump-bashing is a big money-spinner.
But behind this clear editorial strategy lies an intriguing personal back-story.
Until Trump ran for president in 2015, he and Michael Bloomberg were good friends.
The two most famous billionaires in New York played golf together, frequently rubbed shoulders on the same elite Manhattan social scene, and worked professionally on common projects – most notably when Trump delivered a luxury golf course on a discarded municipal waste site in the Bronx, enabling Bloomberg to take credit for it just before he left office as New York mayor.
‘If there is anybody who has changed this city, it is Donald Trump,’ said Mayor Bloomberg, delightedly. ‘He has done an amazing thing and this is another part of it!’
Then Trump announced he was running for the White House, and Bloomberg very quickly turned against his friend – enraged by his views on everything from guns to climate change, and what he saw as Trump’s ‘offensive’ lack of civility.
He later described Trump’s run as ‘the most divisive and demagogic presidential campaign I can remember, preying on people’s prejudices and fears.’
Trump, predictably, responded in kind, tweeting: ‘Little Michael Bloomberg, who never had the guts to run for president, knows nothing about me. His last term as Mayor was a disaster!’
At the heart of their relationship lies billionaire ego.
As their mutual friend, Republican congressman Peter King, told the New York Times: ‘One New York billionaire thinks he is better than another New York billionaire. I can see Mike resenting the fact he is not getting the recognition Donald Trump gets. Each guy thinks he is smarter than the other.’
I met them both together when I was a contestant on Celebrity Apprentice in 2008 and Bloomberg turned up with Trump in midtown Manhattan to assess my hotdog selling skills.
The swaggering rivalry between them, albeit cordial at the time, was palpable. In a city of big dogs, pun intended, these were arguably the two biggest, though Bloomberg is substantially richer than Trump.
Now, if Bloomberg wins the Democrat nomination – and it’s a very big ‘if’ - they may be pitted against each other in the 2020 Election.
In announcing his decision to enter the race, Bloomberg said: ‘I’m running for president to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America. We cannot afford four more years of President Trump’s reckless and unethical actions. He represents an existential threat to our country and our values. If he wins another term, we may never recover from the damage.’
Bloomberg is thus positioning himself as the ‘good billionaire’ on a mission to save America from the bad billionaire.
Yet, just how good IS he?
For example, Bloomberg has a history of making unsavory comments denigrating women.
A 1990 booklet of quotations attributed to him included this observation: ‘If women wanted to be appreciated for their brains, they’d go to the library instead of Bloomingdale’s.’
And a suggestion, during a pitch to sell Bloomberg terminals, that his computers could ‘do anything’ including the ability to perform oral sex on the user, which, he said, would ‘put…a lot of you girls out of business.’
At a Christmas party in 2012, he pointed to a woman in a tight dress and said, ‘look at the ass on her.’
He was also reported to have said in a 1998 deposition, taken during a case where a saleswoman accused a Bloomberg manager of raping her, that he would only believe a rape claim if there was an ‘unimpeachable third-party witness.’
And he was accused by a Bloomberg female employee of saying ‘kill it’ when she told him she was pregnant, a claim he denied.
Bloomberg has also been accused of racism.
He recently issued a grovelling apology for his controversial ‘stop-and-search’ policy as New York Mayor that a federal judge determined in 2013 violated the constitutional rights of racial minorities.
He operated a very contentious policy of surveillance of Muslim Americans, a dictatorial crackdown of Occupy Wall Street protestors, and he presided over a huge spike in homelessness, sparked by massively increased income inequality and lack of affordable housing. So Bloomberg’s critics, led by Trump, will have plenty of ammunition against the self-styled savior.
And that’s before we get to the fact that he’s changed his party allegiance when it’s suited him, switching from Democrat to Republican to Independent.
But it’s what Bloomberg did yesterday that should give most serious cause for concern.
In this era of ‘FAKE NEWS!’, and hyper-partisan media coverage, many were curious to see how Bloomberg News would handle the confirmation that their owner was running for president.
The answer is absolutely atrociously.
In an astonishing email to staff, Bloomberg Editor-in-Chief John Mickelthwait, revealed the news agency won’t ‘investigate’ Bloomberg, or any of his Democratic rivals.
But it WILL continue to obsessively investigate President Trump.
‘We will continue our tradition of not investigating Mike (and his family and foundation),’ said Mickelthwait, ‘and we will extend the same policy to his rivals in the Democratic primaries. We cannot treat Mike’s democratic competitors differently to him.’
Yet they will treat President Trump differently.
He alone will be exposed to the full investigative scrutiny of Bloomberg’s 2,700 journalists.
I had to read this memo several times to ensure I hadn’t misunderstood it.
I hadn’t.
Bloomberg News is also suspending its opinion section’s editorial board, because most of them are joining his campaign!
It’s hard to imagine a more egregious abuse of a major news organization owner’s power than for the owner to ban his own journalists from investigating him as he runs for president but continues to dig dirt on his opponent.
As former Bloomberg Businessweek editor and Washington bureau chief Megan Murphy said on Twitter: ‘It is truly staggering that *any* editor would put their name on a memo that bars an army of unbelievably talented reporters and editors from covering massive, crucial aspects of one of the defining aspects of our time.’
She added: ‘I was presented with a near identical “memo” during his 2016 flirtation and I was very clear that I would quit the second it ever saw the light of day.’
Murphy also cited comparisons to Amazon chief Jeff Bezos who owns the Washington Post.
‘Can you imagine if Bezos decided to run, the Washington Post telling reporters it a) wouldn’t do hard reporting on Bezos and b) wouldn’t do hard reporting on any other candidates either. It’s absolutely unimaginable (thank god).'
Exactly.
It’s an absolute disgrace that Michael Bloomberg’s very first act as presidential candidate is to order a blanket ban on ANY investigative reporting on him or any Democrat candidate.
It’s even more of a disgrace that he’s ordered his journalists to ONLY carry on digging for dirt on President Trump.
Ironically, this is just the kind of extreme media bias that Trump has persistently ranted about since winning the White House, and will creature a ‘fake’ picture of news in this 2020 campaign.
Bloomberg’s shameful self-protective censorship is also the exact opposite of the pledge he made to Matthew Winkler when he persuaded him to launch Bloomberg News.
It means that if Bloomberg journalists discover their boss has taken $5m from the corporate till and is with his secretary at a Rio de Janeiro resort, the response from Bloomberg to their request to publish it will be: ‘DON’T go with the story!’
Michael Bloomberg’s been very vocal about the need to stop Vladimir Putin interfering with US elections, yet here is the same Michael Bloomberg pulling a disgustingly cynical stunt to suppress journalism that even Putin might hesitate to pull, and that frankly should disqualify him from becoming President.
Bloomberg News just ceased to be a news organization and became a dictator’s puppet. Shame on him for doing this, and shame on any of his journalists who accept it.
By Piers Morgan
Daily Mail
November 25, 2019
Thirty years ago this month, New York financial data tycoon Michael Bloomberg telephoned Wall Street Journal writer Matthew Winkler and asked: ‘What would it take to get into the news business?’
Knowing that Bloomberg had no experience in journalism, Winkler presented him with a hypothetical ethical dilemma:
‘You have just published a story that says the chairman of your biggest customer has taken $5 million from the corporate till,’ he said. ‘He is with his secretary at a Rio de Janeiro resort, and the secretary’s spurned boyfriend calls to tip you off. You get an independent verification that the story is true. Then the phone rings. The customer’s public-relations person says, “Kill the story or we will return all the terminals we currently rent from you.’”
Winkler then asked Bloomberg a simple question: ‘What would you do?”
Bloomberg didn’t hesitate.
‘Go with the story!’ he replied.
Winkler later cited this as the ‘deciding moment’ he chose to help Bloomberg build a news organization.
It was an inspired decision.
Bloomberg News is now one of the biggest and most powerful news agencies on the planet.
It boasts 2,300 journalists in 72 countries and 146 bureaus worldwide and has developed a reputation for important impartial journalism.
In the past four years, it has intensively reported on, and aggressively investigated, first Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and now his presidency – the vast majority of its Trump coverage being negative.
Like many US mainstream media organizations, Bloomberg News quickly realized that relentless Trump-bashing is a big money-spinner.
But behind this clear editorial strategy lies an intriguing personal back-story.
Until Trump ran for president in 2015, he and Michael Bloomberg were good friends.
The two most famous billionaires in New York played golf together, frequently rubbed shoulders on the same elite Manhattan social scene, and worked professionally on common projects – most notably when Trump delivered a luxury golf course on a discarded municipal waste site in the Bronx, enabling Bloomberg to take credit for it just before he left office as New York mayor.
‘If there is anybody who has changed this city, it is Donald Trump,’ said Mayor Bloomberg, delightedly. ‘He has done an amazing thing and this is another part of it!’
Then Trump announced he was running for the White House, and Bloomberg very quickly turned against his friend – enraged by his views on everything from guns to climate change, and what he saw as Trump’s ‘offensive’ lack of civility.
He later described Trump’s run as ‘the most divisive and demagogic presidential campaign I can remember, preying on people’s prejudices and fears.’
Trump, predictably, responded in kind, tweeting: ‘Little Michael Bloomberg, who never had the guts to run for president, knows nothing about me. His last term as Mayor was a disaster!’
At the heart of their relationship lies billionaire ego.
As their mutual friend, Republican congressman Peter King, told the New York Times: ‘One New York billionaire thinks he is better than another New York billionaire. I can see Mike resenting the fact he is not getting the recognition Donald Trump gets. Each guy thinks he is smarter than the other.’
I met them both together when I was a contestant on Celebrity Apprentice in 2008 and Bloomberg turned up with Trump in midtown Manhattan to assess my hotdog selling skills.
The swaggering rivalry between them, albeit cordial at the time, was palpable. In a city of big dogs, pun intended, these were arguably the two biggest, though Bloomberg is substantially richer than Trump.
Now, if Bloomberg wins the Democrat nomination – and it’s a very big ‘if’ - they may be pitted against each other in the 2020 Election.
In announcing his decision to enter the race, Bloomberg said: ‘I’m running for president to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America. We cannot afford four more years of President Trump’s reckless and unethical actions. He represents an existential threat to our country and our values. If he wins another term, we may never recover from the damage.’
Bloomberg is thus positioning himself as the ‘good billionaire’ on a mission to save America from the bad billionaire.
Yet, just how good IS he?
For example, Bloomberg has a history of making unsavory comments denigrating women.
A 1990 booklet of quotations attributed to him included this observation: ‘If women wanted to be appreciated for their brains, they’d go to the library instead of Bloomingdale’s.’
And a suggestion, during a pitch to sell Bloomberg terminals, that his computers could ‘do anything’ including the ability to perform oral sex on the user, which, he said, would ‘put…a lot of you girls out of business.’
At a Christmas party in 2012, he pointed to a woman in a tight dress and said, ‘look at the ass on her.’
He was also reported to have said in a 1998 deposition, taken during a case where a saleswoman accused a Bloomberg manager of raping her, that he would only believe a rape claim if there was an ‘unimpeachable third-party witness.’
And he was accused by a Bloomberg female employee of saying ‘kill it’ when she told him she was pregnant, a claim he denied.
Bloomberg has also been accused of racism.
He recently issued a grovelling apology for his controversial ‘stop-and-search’ policy as New York Mayor that a federal judge determined in 2013 violated the constitutional rights of racial minorities.
He operated a very contentious policy of surveillance of Muslim Americans, a dictatorial crackdown of Occupy Wall Street protestors, and he presided over a huge spike in homelessness, sparked by massively increased income inequality and lack of affordable housing. So Bloomberg’s critics, led by Trump, will have plenty of ammunition against the self-styled savior.
And that’s before we get to the fact that he’s changed his party allegiance when it’s suited him, switching from Democrat to Republican to Independent.
But it’s what Bloomberg did yesterday that should give most serious cause for concern.
In this era of ‘FAKE NEWS!’, and hyper-partisan media coverage, many were curious to see how Bloomberg News would handle the confirmation that their owner was running for president.
The answer is absolutely atrociously.
In an astonishing email to staff, Bloomberg Editor-in-Chief John Mickelthwait, revealed the news agency won’t ‘investigate’ Bloomberg, or any of his Democratic rivals.
But it WILL continue to obsessively investigate President Trump.
‘We will continue our tradition of not investigating Mike (and his family and foundation),’ said Mickelthwait, ‘and we will extend the same policy to his rivals in the Democratic primaries. We cannot treat Mike’s democratic competitors differently to him.’
Yet they will treat President Trump differently.
He alone will be exposed to the full investigative scrutiny of Bloomberg’s 2,700 journalists.
I had to read this memo several times to ensure I hadn’t misunderstood it.
I hadn’t.
Bloomberg News is also suspending its opinion section’s editorial board, because most of them are joining his campaign!
It’s hard to imagine a more egregious abuse of a major news organization owner’s power than for the owner to ban his own journalists from investigating him as he runs for president but continues to dig dirt on his opponent.
As former Bloomberg Businessweek editor and Washington bureau chief Megan Murphy said on Twitter: ‘It is truly staggering that *any* editor would put their name on a memo that bars an army of unbelievably talented reporters and editors from covering massive, crucial aspects of one of the defining aspects of our time.’
She added: ‘I was presented with a near identical “memo” during his 2016 flirtation and I was very clear that I would quit the second it ever saw the light of day.’
Murphy also cited comparisons to Amazon chief Jeff Bezos who owns the Washington Post.
‘Can you imagine if Bezos decided to run, the Washington Post telling reporters it a) wouldn’t do hard reporting on Bezos and b) wouldn’t do hard reporting on any other candidates either. It’s absolutely unimaginable (thank god).'
Exactly.
It’s an absolute disgrace that Michael Bloomberg’s very first act as presidential candidate is to order a blanket ban on ANY investigative reporting on him or any Democrat candidate.
It’s even more of a disgrace that he’s ordered his journalists to ONLY carry on digging for dirt on President Trump.
Ironically, this is just the kind of extreme media bias that Trump has persistently ranted about since winning the White House, and will creature a ‘fake’ picture of news in this 2020 campaign.
Bloomberg’s shameful self-protective censorship is also the exact opposite of the pledge he made to Matthew Winkler when he persuaded him to launch Bloomberg News.
It means that if Bloomberg journalists discover their boss has taken $5m from the corporate till and is with his secretary at a Rio de Janeiro resort, the response from Bloomberg to their request to publish it will be: ‘DON’T go with the story!’
Michael Bloomberg’s been very vocal about the need to stop Vladimir Putin interfering with US elections, yet here is the same Michael Bloomberg pulling a disgustingly cynical stunt to suppress journalism that even Putin might hesitate to pull, and that frankly should disqualify him from becoming President.
Bloomberg News just ceased to be a news organization and became a dictator’s puppet. Shame on him for doing this, and shame on any of his journalists who accept it.
LEE ZELDIN ON IMPEACHMENT
'Adam Schiff really does think that many Americans are idiots'
By Nick Givas
Fox News
November 24, 2019
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is treating the American public like "idiots" by relying on hearsay and circumstantial evidence to impeach President Trump, Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., said Sunday on "America's News Headquarters."
"The people who are pushing for impeachment have been pushing for impeachment since Donald Trump was elected -- since he was getting sworn into office," Zeldin told Fox News' Eric Shawn. "Adam Schiff really does think that many Americans are idiots.
"If you remember March 22nd, 2017, he goes on another network, and he says that he has more than circumstantial evidence that President Trump colluded with the Russians. This is evidence that he hasn't yet produced, [that] I haven't seen, [former Special Counsel Robert] Mueller couldn't find," he continued. "He made up what he called a parody version of the [July 25] call transcript, but he only said that after he got called out."
Schiff had attempted to clarify in September, "Of course, the president never said, 'If you don't understand me, I'm going to say it seven more times.' My point is, that's the message that the Ukraine president was receiving in not so many words."
Zeldin also challenged Schiff for failing to disclose that his congressional team met in private with the whistleblower who sparked the impeachment inquiry. The Republican also said the facts of the case remained on the president's side.
"It turns out that [Schiff's] team was in contact with the whistleblower before this person had even filed the whistleblower complaint or had even hired an attorney," he said.
"He's made claims during his opening statements and his closing statements -- trying to write the world's greatest parody... trying to connect dots that aren't actually connected," Zeldin added.
"He'll say something's a firsthand truth that shouldn't be doubted and then you dig deeper and you realize it's actually Ambassador [William] Taylor telling us that, Tim Morrison told him that [Amb. Gordon] Sondland told Morrison -- the president told Sondland, give me a break... The facts are on the president's side."
He also said Congress should be passing the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement, "but instead, he is trying to pay off the people who put the gavel in his hand."
Schiff commented on the Democrats' impeachment push during an interview earlier Sunday with CNN's "State of the Union," and said despite an "ironclad" case against the president, he couldn't say if his party will impeach Trump or not.
"If the facts aren’t contested and your committee is writing up the report and you don't, at least as of now, have any scheduled witnesses or depositions -- do you think President Trump should be impeached?" host Jake Tapper asked.
"I want to discuss this with my constituents and my colleagues before I make a final judgment on it," Schiff replied. "But, there are a couple of really important things we need to think about."
EDITOR’S NOTE: You know, Schitt is right when he thinks many Americans are idiots … at least when it comes to politics.
By Nick Givas
Fox News
November 24, 2019
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is treating the American public like "idiots" by relying on hearsay and circumstantial evidence to impeach President Trump, Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., said Sunday on "America's News Headquarters."
"The people who are pushing for impeachment have been pushing for impeachment since Donald Trump was elected -- since he was getting sworn into office," Zeldin told Fox News' Eric Shawn. "Adam Schiff really does think that many Americans are idiots.
"If you remember March 22nd, 2017, he goes on another network, and he says that he has more than circumstantial evidence that President Trump colluded with the Russians. This is evidence that he hasn't yet produced, [that] I haven't seen, [former Special Counsel Robert] Mueller couldn't find," he continued. "He made up what he called a parody version of the [July 25] call transcript, but he only said that after he got called out."
Schiff had attempted to clarify in September, "Of course, the president never said, 'If you don't understand me, I'm going to say it seven more times.' My point is, that's the message that the Ukraine president was receiving in not so many words."
Zeldin also challenged Schiff for failing to disclose that his congressional team met in private with the whistleblower who sparked the impeachment inquiry. The Republican also said the facts of the case remained on the president's side.
"It turns out that [Schiff's] team was in contact with the whistleblower before this person had even filed the whistleblower complaint or had even hired an attorney," he said.
"He's made claims during his opening statements and his closing statements -- trying to write the world's greatest parody... trying to connect dots that aren't actually connected," Zeldin added.
"He'll say something's a firsthand truth that shouldn't be doubted and then you dig deeper and you realize it's actually Ambassador [William] Taylor telling us that, Tim Morrison told him that [Amb. Gordon] Sondland told Morrison -- the president told Sondland, give me a break... The facts are on the president's side."
He also said Congress should be passing the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement, "but instead, he is trying to pay off the people who put the gavel in his hand."
Schiff commented on the Democrats' impeachment push during an interview earlier Sunday with CNN's "State of the Union," and said despite an "ironclad" case against the president, he couldn't say if his party will impeach Trump or not.
"If the facts aren’t contested and your committee is writing up the report and you don't, at least as of now, have any scheduled witnesses or depositions -- do you think President Trump should be impeached?" host Jake Tapper asked.
"I want to discuss this with my constituents and my colleagues before I make a final judgment on it," Schiff replied. "But, there are a couple of really important things we need to think about."
EDITOR’S NOTE: You know, Schitt is right when he thinks many Americans are idiots … at least when it comes to politics.
BURGLARS MAKE OFF WITH PRICELESS JEWELRY COMMISSIONED IN THE 18TH CENTURY BY AUGUSTUS THE STRONG
‘World’s biggest ever heist’ sees thieves steal up to €1 BILLION of diamonds jewellery from ultra secure German museum
By Guy Birchall
The Sun
November 25, 2019
AUDACIOUS thieves have stolen what could be the world's biggest heist after grabbing a BILLION euros' worth of treasure from a museum said to be as 'secure as Fort Knox'.
The Gruenes Gewoelbe (Green Vault) in Dresden, Germany, was targeted by crooks that broke into the building in the early hours of this morning.
The €1billion theft would be comfortably the largest in history, surpassing the $500million raid on the Gardner Museum in Boston nearly 30 years ago.
The villains cut off a power supply at 5am before breaking through a window into the museum which once boasted it was “as secure as Fort Knox”.
Thieves made off with jewellery and diamonds which may have been worth up to £850million, Bild reports.
Police are yet to confirm exactly what was taken.
The robbers made their getaway in a saloon car and remain on the run but it is hoped that CCTV may have captured them on video despite the electrical outage.
A fire broke out on a nearby bridge overnight and it is believed that the blaze may be connected to the attack on the power supply.
Local reports in Germany say the thieves were “noticeably small” and able to fit through a tiny window.
Saxony police said in a statement this morning that 'unknown' thieves had broken inside the museum but said further details were not yet available.
State police officers are now at the crime scene as they investigate how the thieves gained entry.
A notice on the museum's website this morning states only that the building is closed today for “organisational reasons”.
Regional premier Michael Kretschmer said: “Not only our state collections but we the people of Saxony have been robbed.
“You cannot understand the history of our state without the Green Vault and the state collections of Saxony.”
Two thieves disguised as police officers stole 13 works of art from the Boston museum in March 1990 and the crime remains unsolved.
In 2010, then-museum director Martin Roth boasted in an interview with Die Welt that the Green Vault was 'as secure as Fort Knox'.
The collection dates back to 1723, while the Dresden royal palace which houses it was first built in 1533.
The Green Vault gets its name from the green-coloured columns and decoration in some of the rooms.
This latest heist calls to mind the notorious Pink Panther gang who are behind several of Europe's most daring heists.
Hailing from Eastern Europe, the network of criminals has stolen more than £280million during highly-planned jobs for more than 30 years.
The crime syndicate is made up of around 200 criminals who made their name hiding a giant diamond in a pot of skin cream during an audacious 2003 raid in London.
Made up mostly of Serbians and Montenegrins, the gang has struck all around the world - including cities such as Cannes, Singapore, Dubai and Tokyo.
By Guy Birchall
The Sun
November 25, 2019
AUDACIOUS thieves have stolen what could be the world's biggest heist after grabbing a BILLION euros' worth of treasure from a museum said to be as 'secure as Fort Knox'.
The Gruenes Gewoelbe (Green Vault) in Dresden, Germany, was targeted by crooks that broke into the building in the early hours of this morning.
The €1billion theft would be comfortably the largest in history, surpassing the $500million raid on the Gardner Museum in Boston nearly 30 years ago.
The villains cut off a power supply at 5am before breaking through a window into the museum which once boasted it was “as secure as Fort Knox”.
Thieves made off with jewellery and diamonds which may have been worth up to £850million, Bild reports.
Police are yet to confirm exactly what was taken.
The robbers made their getaway in a saloon car and remain on the run but it is hoped that CCTV may have captured them on video despite the electrical outage.
A fire broke out on a nearby bridge overnight and it is believed that the blaze may be connected to the attack on the power supply.
Local reports in Germany say the thieves were “noticeably small” and able to fit through a tiny window.
Saxony police said in a statement this morning that 'unknown' thieves had broken inside the museum but said further details were not yet available.
State police officers are now at the crime scene as they investigate how the thieves gained entry.
A notice on the museum's website this morning states only that the building is closed today for “organisational reasons”.
Regional premier Michael Kretschmer said: “Not only our state collections but we the people of Saxony have been robbed.
“You cannot understand the history of our state without the Green Vault and the state collections of Saxony.”
Two thieves disguised as police officers stole 13 works of art from the Boston museum in March 1990 and the crime remains unsolved.
In 2010, then-museum director Martin Roth boasted in an interview with Die Welt that the Green Vault was 'as secure as Fort Knox'.
The collection dates back to 1723, while the Dresden royal palace which houses it was first built in 1533.
The Green Vault gets its name from the green-coloured columns and decoration in some of the rooms.
This latest heist calls to mind the notorious Pink Panther gang who are behind several of Europe's most daring heists.
Hailing from Eastern Europe, the network of criminals has stolen more than £280million during highly-planned jobs for more than 30 years.
The crime syndicate is made up of around 200 criminals who made their name hiding a giant diamond in a pot of skin cream during an audacious 2003 raid in London.
Made up mostly of Serbians and Montenegrins, the gang has struck all around the world - including cities such as Cannes, Singapore, Dubai and Tokyo.
THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT NO NFL TEAM HAS SHOWN ANY INTEREST IN UNPATRIOTIC ASSHOLE
Colin Kaepernick has received NO interest from any teams after backing out of NFL's 'PR stunt tryout' in favor of his self-organized workout for scouts amid growing animosity with league
Daily Mail
November 24, 2019
A week after Colin Kaepernick's NFL workout fell apart, disagreements and distrust about it remain as the controversial quarterback has failed to draw any interest from the league.
A total of 25 teams were supposed to attend the league's workout run by two former head coaches at the Atlanta Falcons' practice facility on November 16. Instead, Kaepernick ditched that workout and ended up throwing passes in front of representatives from eight NFL teams at his own event at a site 60 miles away.
Sources previously told NFL.com that the former San Francisco 49ers star showed good arm strength, but only average accuracy during the tryout. According to ESPN, Kaepernick has still yet to receive any interest following his self-organized workout.
It's not clear if Kaepernick would have gotten calls from teams had he participated in the NFL tryout, but disagreements on several fronts doomed that arrangement before it began.
In conversations with The Associated Press, representatives from both sides blamed each other for what went wrong. Kaepernick's side said the NFL orchestrated a workout as a public relations stunt destined to fail, while the league said it gave him a real chance to show off his skills - and he didn't show up.
Kaepernick, who led the 49ers to the Super Bowl seven years ago, hasn't played since 2016 when he sparked a wave of protests and divisive debate by kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial injustice. The league in February settled a collusion grievance filed by Kaepernick and Eric Reid.
The AP reviewed both waivers from the event and talked to a person who was involved in the negotiations from Kaepernick's side and two NFL officials with knowledge of the process, all speaking on condition of anonymity because the discussions between the two sides were private.
A look at the issues raised by both sides regarding the botched workout:
DEADLINE TO ACCEPT
Kaepernick's camp said the NFL gave him only two hours to accept an invitation four days ahead of the workout. His side questioned the timing, purpose and motivation behind a take-it-or-leave-it offer presented in Week 11. They believe the NFL cared more about creating the impression it wanted to give Kaepernick a chance for a new job than actually giving him a legitimate opportunity.
The NFL said it was Commissioner Roger Goodell's idea to give Kaepernick a platform for an unprecedented workout. The league, which hasn't arranged tryouts for other free agents, said Goodell felt it was right to give the exiled QB the chance to showcase his skills. Teams were expressing interest in knowing whether Kaepernick was serious about playing. Kaepernick posted on social media that he was working out five days a week and ready to play again. Goodell spoke to other league officials and people outside the organization and decided an open tryout would give teams an opportunity to see for themselves. Jay-Z, who is in a partnership with the NFL, was involved in the conversations. Goodell also spoke to Dr. Harry Edwards, a civil rights activist.
SATURDAY INSTEAD OF TUESDAY
Kaepernick's side requested to move the workout to a Tuesday when most teams bring free agents in for tryouts. It was concerned that team 'decision-makers' wouldn't be present on a weekend.
According to author, sports journalist, and ESPN radio personality Howard Bryant, one team sent a scouting intern to Kaepernick's tryout on November 16 rather than an actual scout.
The NFL said coaches wouldn't travel on a Tuesday or any other day during game week to see a free agent. It also said general managers rely on their scouts to evaluate free agents. The league says it didn't want to push the date back because it 'did not want a circus.' The league pointed out that free agents are usually given a call one day before a workout, 'don´t bring in their own receivers, dictate the order of the workout, bring in their own media crew or have media onsite.'
CLOSED TO MEDIA
Kaepernick's side wanted to open the workout to the media to ensure transparency.
The NFL said it made clear from the start the workout would be closed to media. The league wasn't comfortable opening Atlanta's practice facility to media and says it wanted to give Kaepernick 'the best platform from which to perform,' and having camera crews present would't help him concentrate on the workout. It said the issue of media presence didn't come up until the day of the scheduled workout.
ATTENDEES
Kaepernick's camp said the NFL agreed to provide a list of team representatives who committed to coming. The league later shifted and did not share that list.
The league said it never made that promise because it didn't want individual team personnel to face media questions leading up to the workout.
UNCERTAIN DETAILS
Kaepernick's team said he didn't know which receivers he'd be throwing to and what routes they would run, so he brought in his own guys. He also wasn't immediately informed that former Browns coach Hue Jackson would run the workout along with former Dolphins coach Joe Philbin.
The NFL said it understood those concerns and addressed them to Kaepernick´s satisfaction. It said it even complied with Kaepernick's request on the morning of the workout to change the order of events and begin with a throwing session instead of Jackson's original plan to start with the interview portion.
NIKE’S ROLE
The NFL said it agreed to Nike's request to shoot an ad featuring Kaepernick and mentioning all the teams present at the workout. The league said the ad was supposed to be a social post featuring handwritten notes by a young Kaepernick that said he wanted to be a football player when he grew up.
A spokesman for Nike said the company did not have a film crew at the workout and declined further comment.
THE FILM CREW
Kaepernick's side wanted to bring their own film crew because they didn't trust that the NFL would provide accurate video and were concerned the league would edit it to make him look bad.
The NFL said it invited Kaepernick's representatives to sit in with the Falcons' video director at the facility to ensure the crew was capturing all the footage. The league said it planned to send the raw video to all 32 teams.
THE WAIVERS
Kaepernick's representatives said the NFL 'demanded' as a precondition for the workout that he sign an 'unusual liability waiver' that addressed employment-related issues. They countered with a waiver from physical injury that the league rejected.
The NFL said it sent Kaepernick a standard liability waiver based on the one used by National Invitational Camp at all NFL Combines and by teams when trying out free agents. Kaepernick signed a waiver with similar language before attending the combine in 2011.
The NFL said it became concerned when Kaepernick's side wanted to know who would own commercial rights to the video, adding that such an issue is not part of a typical workout.
Kaepernick's side says it was concerned that not only did the NFL document seek to waive employment rights, but it contained a clause that would give the NFL and its teams commercials rights to the workout footage that could be used for what it called 'phony' public service announcements and other 'NFL marketing gimmicks.' The waiver provided by Kaepernick's camp did not grant the commercial rights to anyone.
The NFL disputes the interpretation of the clause, saying it was intended to enable the video to be sent to the clubs for evaluation with no marketing or commercial use. The league says it provided the waiver on Wednesday, didn't hear back on it until Friday night, and didn't receive a revised waiver until 12:03 p.m. on the day of the workout.
FINAL WORDS
Kaepernick's side believes the NFL was using the workout as a PR stunt and wanted to avoid the NFL using the footage 'for its marketing and propaganda since the NFL waiver included a clause granting it these rights.'
The NFL said it accommodated all of Kaepernick's football requests, but non-football issues derailed it. The league said it would have invited the NFL Network to broadcast the workout if it wanted publicity.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Roger Goodell and the NFL should never have given this ungrateful and unpatriotic asshole the time of day. And lest we forget, the league defended the right of players to protest against what Kaepernick called police brutality against blacks.
Also, boycott Nike! Do not buy any Nike products! Let's not forget that Nike has given Kaepernick a lucrative platform.
Daily Mail
November 24, 2019
A week after Colin Kaepernick's NFL workout fell apart, disagreements and distrust about it remain as the controversial quarterback has failed to draw any interest from the league.
A total of 25 teams were supposed to attend the league's workout run by two former head coaches at the Atlanta Falcons' practice facility on November 16. Instead, Kaepernick ditched that workout and ended up throwing passes in front of representatives from eight NFL teams at his own event at a site 60 miles away.
Sources previously told NFL.com that the former San Francisco 49ers star showed good arm strength, but only average accuracy during the tryout. According to ESPN, Kaepernick has still yet to receive any interest following his self-organized workout.
It's not clear if Kaepernick would have gotten calls from teams had he participated in the NFL tryout, but disagreements on several fronts doomed that arrangement before it began.
In conversations with The Associated Press, representatives from both sides blamed each other for what went wrong. Kaepernick's side said the NFL orchestrated a workout as a public relations stunt destined to fail, while the league said it gave him a real chance to show off his skills - and he didn't show up.
Kaepernick, who led the 49ers to the Super Bowl seven years ago, hasn't played since 2016 when he sparked a wave of protests and divisive debate by kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial injustice. The league in February settled a collusion grievance filed by Kaepernick and Eric Reid.
The AP reviewed both waivers from the event and talked to a person who was involved in the negotiations from Kaepernick's side and two NFL officials with knowledge of the process, all speaking on condition of anonymity because the discussions between the two sides were private.
A look at the issues raised by both sides regarding the botched workout:
DEADLINE TO ACCEPT
Kaepernick's camp said the NFL gave him only two hours to accept an invitation four days ahead of the workout. His side questioned the timing, purpose and motivation behind a take-it-or-leave-it offer presented in Week 11. They believe the NFL cared more about creating the impression it wanted to give Kaepernick a chance for a new job than actually giving him a legitimate opportunity.
The NFL said it was Commissioner Roger Goodell's idea to give Kaepernick a platform for an unprecedented workout. The league, which hasn't arranged tryouts for other free agents, said Goodell felt it was right to give the exiled QB the chance to showcase his skills. Teams were expressing interest in knowing whether Kaepernick was serious about playing. Kaepernick posted on social media that he was working out five days a week and ready to play again. Goodell spoke to other league officials and people outside the organization and decided an open tryout would give teams an opportunity to see for themselves. Jay-Z, who is in a partnership with the NFL, was involved in the conversations. Goodell also spoke to Dr. Harry Edwards, a civil rights activist.
SATURDAY INSTEAD OF TUESDAY
Kaepernick's side requested to move the workout to a Tuesday when most teams bring free agents in for tryouts. It was concerned that team 'decision-makers' wouldn't be present on a weekend.
According to author, sports journalist, and ESPN radio personality Howard Bryant, one team sent a scouting intern to Kaepernick's tryout on November 16 rather than an actual scout.
The NFL said coaches wouldn't travel on a Tuesday or any other day during game week to see a free agent. It also said general managers rely on their scouts to evaluate free agents. The league says it didn't want to push the date back because it 'did not want a circus.' The league pointed out that free agents are usually given a call one day before a workout, 'don´t bring in their own receivers, dictate the order of the workout, bring in their own media crew or have media onsite.'
CLOSED TO MEDIA
Kaepernick's side wanted to open the workout to the media to ensure transparency.
The NFL said it made clear from the start the workout would be closed to media. The league wasn't comfortable opening Atlanta's practice facility to media and says it wanted to give Kaepernick 'the best platform from which to perform,' and having camera crews present would't help him concentrate on the workout. It said the issue of media presence didn't come up until the day of the scheduled workout.
ATTENDEES
Kaepernick's camp said the NFL agreed to provide a list of team representatives who committed to coming. The league later shifted and did not share that list.
The league said it never made that promise because it didn't want individual team personnel to face media questions leading up to the workout.
UNCERTAIN DETAILS
Kaepernick's team said he didn't know which receivers he'd be throwing to and what routes they would run, so he brought in his own guys. He also wasn't immediately informed that former Browns coach Hue Jackson would run the workout along with former Dolphins coach Joe Philbin.
The NFL said it understood those concerns and addressed them to Kaepernick´s satisfaction. It said it even complied with Kaepernick's request on the morning of the workout to change the order of events and begin with a throwing session instead of Jackson's original plan to start with the interview portion.
NIKE’S ROLE
The NFL said it agreed to Nike's request to shoot an ad featuring Kaepernick and mentioning all the teams present at the workout. The league said the ad was supposed to be a social post featuring handwritten notes by a young Kaepernick that said he wanted to be a football player when he grew up.
A spokesman for Nike said the company did not have a film crew at the workout and declined further comment.
THE FILM CREW
Kaepernick's side wanted to bring their own film crew because they didn't trust that the NFL would provide accurate video and were concerned the league would edit it to make him look bad.
The NFL said it invited Kaepernick's representatives to sit in with the Falcons' video director at the facility to ensure the crew was capturing all the footage. The league said it planned to send the raw video to all 32 teams.
THE WAIVERS
Kaepernick's representatives said the NFL 'demanded' as a precondition for the workout that he sign an 'unusual liability waiver' that addressed employment-related issues. They countered with a waiver from physical injury that the league rejected.
The NFL said it sent Kaepernick a standard liability waiver based on the one used by National Invitational Camp at all NFL Combines and by teams when trying out free agents. Kaepernick signed a waiver with similar language before attending the combine in 2011.
The NFL said it became concerned when Kaepernick's side wanted to know who would own commercial rights to the video, adding that such an issue is not part of a typical workout.
Kaepernick's side says it was concerned that not only did the NFL document seek to waive employment rights, but it contained a clause that would give the NFL and its teams commercials rights to the workout footage that could be used for what it called 'phony' public service announcements and other 'NFL marketing gimmicks.' The waiver provided by Kaepernick's camp did not grant the commercial rights to anyone.
The NFL disputes the interpretation of the clause, saying it was intended to enable the video to be sent to the clubs for evaluation with no marketing or commercial use. The league says it provided the waiver on Wednesday, didn't hear back on it until Friday night, and didn't receive a revised waiver until 12:03 p.m. on the day of the workout.
FINAL WORDS
Kaepernick's side believes the NFL was using the workout as a PR stunt and wanted to avoid the NFL using the footage 'for its marketing and propaganda since the NFL waiver included a clause granting it these rights.'
The NFL said it accommodated all of Kaepernick's football requests, but non-football issues derailed it. The league said it would have invited the NFL Network to broadcast the workout if it wanted publicity.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Roger Goodell and the NFL should never have given this ungrateful and unpatriotic asshole the time of day. And lest we forget, the league defended the right of players to protest against what Kaepernick called police brutality against blacks.
Also, boycott Nike! Do not buy any Nike products! Let's not forget that Nike has given Kaepernick a lucrative platform.
ATTEMPTED REVENGE BECAUSE SAME SEX ROMANCE WENT KAPUT
Chicago Police Officer’s Ex-Girlfriend Accused Of Trying To Hire Undercover Cop To Kidnap, Murder 62-Year-Old Woman
By Steven Graves
CBS Chicago
November 24, 2019
CHICAGO -- The former girlfriend of a Chicago police officer has been charged in a murder-for-hire plot, accused of trying to hire an undercover cop to kidnap and kill the woman she blamed for the end of the relationship.
Lissette Ortiz, 54, has been charged with one felony count of solicitation of murder for hire. She was ordered held without bail at her first court appearance on Sunday.
As CBS 2’s Steven Graves reported, Cook County prosecutors said Ortiz concocted a calculated plan, which came into focus last week.
Prosecutors said after breaking up with her police officer girlfriend this summer, Ortiz believed the officer started a romantic relationship with a 62-year-old woman, who Ortiz blamed for their breakup. Sources said Ortiz is the former girlfriend of a police officer assigned to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s security detail.
Seeking to have the 62-year-old woman kidnapped and killed, prosecutors said Ortiz first approached a man identified only as “witness 2” on Nov. 18, and said she wanted to hire him or someone he knew to abduct the woman and bring the victim to her so she could “take care of the rest.”
Prosecutors said Ortiz offered to pay that witness $5,000 for the kidnapping, or $500 and a large TV if he introduced her to someone else to carry out the kidnapping.
After that witness contacted Chicago police, he arranged for Ortiz to meet with an undercover officer posing as a kidnapper for hire.
The officer met Ortiz on Nov. 20 in the parking lot of a business near her home, and got in her car. She drove the officer around for about an hour, and said she wanted the officer to kidnap the victim, drive her to a remote location, and set the vehicle on fire. Ortiz also told the officer she wanted the victim to know she was responsible for the murder, and preferred she still be alive when the vehicle was set on fire.
Prosecutors said Ortiz told the officer she planned to be somewhere else at the time of the kidnapping and murder, because she knew police would suspect her of the killing, and she wanted to have an alibi.
Ortiz wanted to carry out the plot before Thanksgiving, so the victim couldn’t celebrate the holiday in the same home Ortiz had shared with her ex-girlfriend, according to prosecutors. She offered to pay the officer $5,000 for the kidnapping and murder.
Prosecutors said Ortiz planned to flee to Puerto Rico after the victim was killed.
After leaving the meeting with the undercover officer, she was arrested.
Ortiz’s defense claimed she was not a flight risk, and also claimed she has text message proof that the man she tried to hire extorted her.
Ortiz’s former girlfriend was acquitted of domestic battery charges this summer. Ortiz had accused her of pinning her against a wall and ripping her clothes while taking away her car keys. A judge found the officer not guilty.
Ortiz also has a prior record. She was convicted of theft and forgery, and she has a current retail theft case.
By Steven Graves
CBS Chicago
November 24, 2019
CHICAGO -- The former girlfriend of a Chicago police officer has been charged in a murder-for-hire plot, accused of trying to hire an undercover cop to kidnap and kill the woman she blamed for the end of the relationship.
Lissette Ortiz, 54, has been charged with one felony count of solicitation of murder for hire. She was ordered held without bail at her first court appearance on Sunday.
As CBS 2’s Steven Graves reported, Cook County prosecutors said Ortiz concocted a calculated plan, which came into focus last week.
Prosecutors said after breaking up with her police officer girlfriend this summer, Ortiz believed the officer started a romantic relationship with a 62-year-old woman, who Ortiz blamed for their breakup. Sources said Ortiz is the former girlfriend of a police officer assigned to Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s security detail.
Seeking to have the 62-year-old woman kidnapped and killed, prosecutors said Ortiz first approached a man identified only as “witness 2” on Nov. 18, and said she wanted to hire him or someone he knew to abduct the woman and bring the victim to her so she could “take care of the rest.”
Prosecutors said Ortiz offered to pay that witness $5,000 for the kidnapping, or $500 and a large TV if he introduced her to someone else to carry out the kidnapping.
After that witness contacted Chicago police, he arranged for Ortiz to meet with an undercover officer posing as a kidnapper for hire.
The officer met Ortiz on Nov. 20 in the parking lot of a business near her home, and got in her car. She drove the officer around for about an hour, and said she wanted the officer to kidnap the victim, drive her to a remote location, and set the vehicle on fire. Ortiz also told the officer she wanted the victim to know she was responsible for the murder, and preferred she still be alive when the vehicle was set on fire.
Prosecutors said Ortiz told the officer she planned to be somewhere else at the time of the kidnapping and murder, because she knew police would suspect her of the killing, and she wanted to have an alibi.
Ortiz wanted to carry out the plot before Thanksgiving, so the victim couldn’t celebrate the holiday in the same home Ortiz had shared with her ex-girlfriend, according to prosecutors. She offered to pay the officer $5,000 for the kidnapping and murder.
Prosecutors said Ortiz planned to flee to Puerto Rico after the victim was killed.
After leaving the meeting with the undercover officer, she was arrested.
Ortiz’s defense claimed she was not a flight risk, and also claimed she has text message proof that the man she tried to hire extorted her.
Ortiz’s former girlfriend was acquitted of domestic battery charges this summer. Ortiz had accused her of pinning her against a wall and ripping her clothes while taking away her car keys. A judge found the officer not guilty.
Ortiz also has a prior record. She was convicted of theft and forgery, and she has a current retail theft case.
PRIVACY ADVOCATES GO APOPLECTIC OVER POLICE TRACKING TACTICS
An accused bank robber claims the police broke the law when they used Google location data to track him down. Privacy advocates agree
By Mack DeGeurin
Insider
November 23, 2019
When, if ever, should police be able to gather up Google location data to track down a criminal suspect? That's one of the questions being posed by the lawyers of an alleged Virginia bank robber, who claims local police overstepped their bounds and committed privacy violations when they requested data from Google on him and 18 others near the vicinity of the crime. Privacy advocates say the implications of this case reach far beyond the alleged burglar and could affect the rights of millions of Americans using Google products.
The robbery took place this May at a Call Federal Credit Union. Surveillance footage of the robbery obtained by CBS 6 shows the burglar, armed with a handgun, charging into the bank. The Department of Justice alleges that 24-old Okello Chatrie made off with more than $195,000 dollars.
Google provided police with anonymous data of 19 people near the bank
To try and crack the case, Chesterfield police requested the location data of everyone in the vicinity of the bank within an hour of the robbery. Google complied and provided the police with anonymized data on 19 individuals within a 150-meter radius, according to NBC News. Then law enforcement started digging deeper.
Investigators narrowed down their search to nine suspects and asked Google for slightly more specific information. The search was then whittled down even further to four individuals. At this level police requested additional specific data that reportedly included user names, email addresses, and phone numbers.
With all the necessary data, police moved forward with arresting Chatrie on August 13 on charges of forced accompaniment and brandishing a firearm. Chatrie could face life in prison if convicted.
Chatrie's lawyer and privacy advocates object to the police's decision to target a geographic region rather than a given individual. This method of data collection, which has grown in popularity among law enforcement in recent years, is referred to as a "geofence warrant."
In theory, the geofence warrant attempts to take the idea of a physical crime scene and reimagine it for an internet-connected world. But that can lead to situations where innocent bystanders may have their personal information sucked up by police in wholesale ways that wouldn't have happened before the ubiquity of internet-connected smartphones.
"Individuals may be caught up in this search by merely using an Android phone, conducting an Internet search using Google, running a Google application such as Google Maps or YouTube, or even receiving an automatic weather update from an Android service," Chatrie's attorney, Michael Price, wrote in an October motion viewed by the Washington Post.
"Police have access to a completely new capability."
Chatrie's lawyer isn't the only only one with concerns. In an interview with Insider, ACLU staff attorney Nathan Wessler expressed concern over what appears to be a lack of accountability associated with geofence warrants.
"The issue in these cases is that Google is sitting on an incredible volume of user location data," Wessler said. "That information can reveal extraordinarily private details of people's lives. There's a real risk that without proper constraints, these requests will start to resemble the types of things the framers of the Fourth Amendment were so concerned about."
Those constitution questions persist, Wessler said, regardless of whether or not Chatrie is found guilty of robbing the bank.
Wessler also disagreed with the notion that the geographic data collection is synonymous with a physical crime scene.
"When police are searching a physical crime scene, they are looking for physical evidence left behind like blood samples," Wessler said. "What we are talking about here is a digital record held by a company [Google] that millions of Americans trust to take care of their most sensitive data. Police have access to a completely new capability without comparison in the history of policing."
Google weighs the privacy of its users with the requests of law enforcement
Google defended the way it handles geofence warrant requests by police. In a statement provided to NBC News, Google explained their methods for striking a balance between protecting the privacy rights of its customers and complying with law enforcement requests.
"We vigorously protect the privacy of our users while supporting the important work of law enforcement," Richard Salgado, Google's director of law enforcement and information security, the company said.
"We have created a new process for these specific requests designed to honor our legal obligations while narrowing the scope of data disclosed and only producing information that identifies specific users where legally required."
Issues surrounding personal data and law enforcement have increasingly gone to court. Last year, in what was viewed as a significant win for privacy advocates, the Supreme Court rule that police must first receive a warrant before requesting cell phone tower data on individuals from telecommunications companies. That ruling was limited to cell phone towers. Still, with an ever-increasing proportion of cell phones connected to major location service apps like Google Maps, many of those same principles may apply to tech companies as well.
Google's compliance with police demands marks a notable divergence from some of its top competitors. Apple, for example, has security features in places (like the blocking of access to an iPhone's Lightning port after an hour) that would make it more difficult for police to access the contents of a phone. In 2016, Apple made national headlines when it refused requests by the FBI to unlock an iPhone used by one of the shooters in the San Bernardino terrorist attack.
Wessler, the ACLU attorney, credited Google with trying to protect users, but said that there needed to be more official legislation written to ensure police don't overstep.
"At the end of the day Americans shouldn't have to be put in the position of having to trust negotiations between private companies and policies to protect our rights," Wessler said. "What we need is clear, strong rules from courts and lawmakers explaining what's appropriate and what's not appropriate for police to do."
By Mack DeGeurin
Insider
November 23, 2019
When, if ever, should police be able to gather up Google location data to track down a criminal suspect? That's one of the questions being posed by the lawyers of an alleged Virginia bank robber, who claims local police overstepped their bounds and committed privacy violations when they requested data from Google on him and 18 others near the vicinity of the crime. Privacy advocates say the implications of this case reach far beyond the alleged burglar and could affect the rights of millions of Americans using Google products.
The robbery took place this May at a Call Federal Credit Union. Surveillance footage of the robbery obtained by CBS 6 shows the burglar, armed with a handgun, charging into the bank. The Department of Justice alleges that 24-old Okello Chatrie made off with more than $195,000 dollars.
Google provided police with anonymous data of 19 people near the bank
To try and crack the case, Chesterfield police requested the location data of everyone in the vicinity of the bank within an hour of the robbery. Google complied and provided the police with anonymized data on 19 individuals within a 150-meter radius, according to NBC News. Then law enforcement started digging deeper.
Investigators narrowed down their search to nine suspects and asked Google for slightly more specific information. The search was then whittled down even further to four individuals. At this level police requested additional specific data that reportedly included user names, email addresses, and phone numbers.
With all the necessary data, police moved forward with arresting Chatrie on August 13 on charges of forced accompaniment and brandishing a firearm. Chatrie could face life in prison if convicted.
Chatrie's lawyer and privacy advocates object to the police's decision to target a geographic region rather than a given individual. This method of data collection, which has grown in popularity among law enforcement in recent years, is referred to as a "geofence warrant."
In theory, the geofence warrant attempts to take the idea of a physical crime scene and reimagine it for an internet-connected world. But that can lead to situations where innocent bystanders may have their personal information sucked up by police in wholesale ways that wouldn't have happened before the ubiquity of internet-connected smartphones.
"Individuals may be caught up in this search by merely using an Android phone, conducting an Internet search using Google, running a Google application such as Google Maps or YouTube, or even receiving an automatic weather update from an Android service," Chatrie's attorney, Michael Price, wrote in an October motion viewed by the Washington Post.
"Police have access to a completely new capability."
Chatrie's lawyer isn't the only only one with concerns. In an interview with Insider, ACLU staff attorney Nathan Wessler expressed concern over what appears to be a lack of accountability associated with geofence warrants.
"The issue in these cases is that Google is sitting on an incredible volume of user location data," Wessler said. "That information can reveal extraordinarily private details of people's lives. There's a real risk that without proper constraints, these requests will start to resemble the types of things the framers of the Fourth Amendment were so concerned about."
Those constitution questions persist, Wessler said, regardless of whether or not Chatrie is found guilty of robbing the bank.
Wessler also disagreed with the notion that the geographic data collection is synonymous with a physical crime scene.
"When police are searching a physical crime scene, they are looking for physical evidence left behind like blood samples," Wessler said. "What we are talking about here is a digital record held by a company [Google] that millions of Americans trust to take care of their most sensitive data. Police have access to a completely new capability without comparison in the history of policing."
Google weighs the privacy of its users with the requests of law enforcement
Google defended the way it handles geofence warrant requests by police. In a statement provided to NBC News, Google explained their methods for striking a balance between protecting the privacy rights of its customers and complying with law enforcement requests.
"We vigorously protect the privacy of our users while supporting the important work of law enforcement," Richard Salgado, Google's director of law enforcement and information security, the company said.
"We have created a new process for these specific requests designed to honor our legal obligations while narrowing the scope of data disclosed and only producing information that identifies specific users where legally required."
Issues surrounding personal data and law enforcement have increasingly gone to court. Last year, in what was viewed as a significant win for privacy advocates, the Supreme Court rule that police must first receive a warrant before requesting cell phone tower data on individuals from telecommunications companies. That ruling was limited to cell phone towers. Still, with an ever-increasing proportion of cell phones connected to major location service apps like Google Maps, many of those same principles may apply to tech companies as well.
Google's compliance with police demands marks a notable divergence from some of its top competitors. Apple, for example, has security features in places (like the blocking of access to an iPhone's Lightning port after an hour) that would make it more difficult for police to access the contents of a phone. In 2016, Apple made national headlines when it refused requests by the FBI to unlock an iPhone used by one of the shooters in the San Bernardino terrorist attack.
Wessler, the ACLU attorney, credited Google with trying to protect users, but said that there needed to be more official legislation written to ensure police don't overstep.
"At the end of the day Americans shouldn't have to be put in the position of having to trust negotiations between private companies and policies to protect our rights," Wessler said. "What we need is clear, strong rules from courts and lawmakers explaining what's appropriate and what's not appropriate for police to do."
Monday, November 25, 2019
TRUMP BACKS DOWN
Trump WON'T stop bid to kick SEAL Eddie Gallagher out of elite unit after Navy secretary and admiral threatened to resign as the soldier says he will release evidence of 'meddling' in his case
Daily Mail
November 24, 2019
A senior official said Sunday that the White House had given the green light to proceed with the review as planned on Friday, the day after Trump tweeted that the Navy 'will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher's Trident Pin'.
The Navy responded to the president's tweet by saying that it would be awaiting further guidance, and Navy Secretary Richard Spencer remarked that he did not consider the tweet to be a formal order.
Spencer and SEAL commander Rear Admiral Collin Green both reportedly threatened to resign if Trump halted the review.
Trump's apparent about-face came just as Gallagher, who was demoted in rank after he was convicted in July of a war crime for posing with a corpse, appeared on Fox & Friends Sunday morning and praised the president for his continued support.
Gallagher claimed the move to revoke his SEAL status was 'retaliation' for Trump's public bid to restore his rank the week prior.
The SEAL charged that Navy officers engaged in 'corruption' during his case - and revealed that he is armed with additional evidence against top officials, including Spencer.
EDITOR’S NOTE: As he is prone to do, Trump put his big mouth in motion before putting his brain in gear. But the Trumpers love it.
__________
NAVY SECRETARY RICHARD SPENCER RESIGNS
Eddie Gallagher THANKS 'true leader' Donald Trump for showing 'moral fiber' after Navy Secretary Richard Spencer resigned over the disgraced SEAL's war crimes case
Daily Mail
November 25, 2019
Embattled Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher released a statement Sunday night thanking President Donald Trump for the numerous times he has intervened on his behalf shortly after Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer announced his resignation.
Gallagher, who was convicted by a military jury in July of illegally posing for pictures with the corpse of an Islamic State fighter in Iraq in 2017, called Trump a 'true leader'.
Gallagher said: 'President Donald Trump, you have my deepest gratitude and thanks. You stepped in numerous times and showed true moral fiber by correcting all the wrongs that were being done to me.'
The SEAL's statement comes just hours after Spencer announced his resignation.
Spencer wrote in his resignation letter that he 'cannot in good conscience' obey the order to stop Gallagher's case going before the review board, because he believes it 'violates the sacred oath' he took.
Daily Mail
November 24, 2019
A senior official said Sunday that the White House had given the green light to proceed with the review as planned on Friday, the day after Trump tweeted that the Navy 'will NOT be taking away Warfighter and Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher's Trident Pin'.
The Navy responded to the president's tweet by saying that it would be awaiting further guidance, and Navy Secretary Richard Spencer remarked that he did not consider the tweet to be a formal order.
Spencer and SEAL commander Rear Admiral Collin Green both reportedly threatened to resign if Trump halted the review.
Trump's apparent about-face came just as Gallagher, who was demoted in rank after he was convicted in July of a war crime for posing with a corpse, appeared on Fox & Friends Sunday morning and praised the president for his continued support.
Gallagher claimed the move to revoke his SEAL status was 'retaliation' for Trump's public bid to restore his rank the week prior.
The SEAL charged that Navy officers engaged in 'corruption' during his case - and revealed that he is armed with additional evidence against top officials, including Spencer.
EDITOR’S NOTE: As he is prone to do, Trump put his big mouth in motion before putting his brain in gear. But the Trumpers love it.
__________
NAVY SECRETARY RICHARD SPENCER RESIGNS
Eddie Gallagher THANKS 'true leader' Donald Trump for showing 'moral fiber' after Navy Secretary Richard Spencer resigned over the disgraced SEAL's war crimes case
Daily Mail
November 25, 2019
Embattled Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher released a statement Sunday night thanking President Donald Trump for the numerous times he has intervened on his behalf shortly after Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer announced his resignation.
Gallagher, who was convicted by a military jury in July of illegally posing for pictures with the corpse of an Islamic State fighter in Iraq in 2017, called Trump a 'true leader'.
Gallagher said: 'President Donald Trump, you have my deepest gratitude and thanks. You stepped in numerous times and showed true moral fiber by correcting all the wrongs that were being done to me.'
The SEAL's statement comes just hours after Spencer announced his resignation.
Spencer wrote in his resignation letter that he 'cannot in good conscience' obey the order to stop Gallagher's case going before the review board, because he believes it 'violates the sacred oath' he took.
FEEBS NOT TOTALLY CONVINCED EPSTEIN SELF-REHABILITATED
by Bob Walsh
It seems that the FBI is NOT convinced that Jeffrey Epstein hung himself in his cell. Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, Grand Poobah of the Federal BOP, told the Senate Judiciary Committee a few days ago that the feds are looking into the possibility his death is related to or part of a 'criminal enterprise."
I am still betting on the whole thing being a string of one fuck-ups after another, which is not exactly an unknown thing in a large, reactive and not too bright bureaucracy. It took a string of about five things coming together at the same place and the same time for this to happen. Is it more likely that was a visit from the fuck-up fairy, or part of some grand conspiracy to silence Epstein?
I am guessing on Option One. That being said you can bet those two correctional officers are going to get their lives analyzed to the point that if $50 showed up in their bank account three months ago without adequate explanation they will be prosecuted under RICO.
Like I said, I am going with Option One. That being said, I am not saying Option Two is bullshit. Merely less likely.
It seems that the FBI is NOT convinced that Jeffrey Epstein hung himself in his cell. Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, Grand Poobah of the Federal BOP, told the Senate Judiciary Committee a few days ago that the feds are looking into the possibility his death is related to or part of a 'criminal enterprise."
I am still betting on the whole thing being a string of one fuck-ups after another, which is not exactly an unknown thing in a large, reactive and not too bright bureaucracy. It took a string of about five things coming together at the same place and the same time for this to happen. Is it more likely that was a visit from the fuck-up fairy, or part of some grand conspiracy to silence Epstein?
I am guessing on Option One. That being said you can bet those two correctional officers are going to get their lives analyzed to the point that if $50 showed up in their bank account three months ago without adequate explanation they will be prosecuted under RICO.
Like I said, I am going with Option One. That being said, I am not saying Option Two is bullshit. Merely less likely.
TRUMP SAYS HE WELCOMES IMPEACHMENT TRIAL
Is He Right And Does He Mean It? ... Probably Yes On Both
by Bob Walsh
My guess, for what its worth, is that he does mean it. He is tired of being sniped at with what are demonstrably lies from the peanut gallery. There is for all practical purposes zero chance he would be removed from office by the senate, but in that forum he believes (maybe correctly) that he will be able to bring a LOT of stuff into the record that is not there now.
Did Adam Schiff orchestrate "the whistleblower" complaint? Probably yes.
Schiff said on the record numerous times he had absolute proof that Trump colluded with the Russians. He has never put that proof up, at least in public. Maybe it is time the public saw this proof. (If it exists, which it probably doesn't.)
Did the Obama administration start the ball rolling on a politically motivated investigation of a political opponent with faked material? It looks like maybe they did.
Did various members of the permanent bureaucracy and intelligence community, aka The Deep State, act as individuals, and maybe collude as a group, against Trump both before and after his election? It is starting to look like that is maybe-probably true. Getting it on the record would be nice.
Will an impeachment trial throw a monkey wrench into the Democrat nomination run? Hell yes. Won't that be fun to watch.
Will the soon-to-be-released Horowitz 2.0 report shed some light on the subject and throw at least some mud on the Democrats and the Deep State? Maybe-probably yes. It will at least make the anti-Trump psychos look more demented than they already do.
Will the Durham criminal investigation throw some major excrement into the air circulation device? I am putting a strong probably on that one. That is, however, still at least weeks and maybe months down the road.
Will an actual Impeachment trial move the middle 20-25% closer to Trump or further away from Trump? My guess, for what my guess is worth to you, is that Trump will come off as an aggrieved party being attacked by power hungry and personally greedy trolls and thugs. It will help him probably and at worst be neutral, plus make some of the Democrats look like the clowns and thieves they really are. It may also serve to solidify the Democrat base even further to the lunatic left wing, turning the 2020 election into Dukakis revisited.
Bread and circuses. LET THE GAMES BEGIN.
by Bob Walsh
My guess, for what its worth, is that he does mean it. He is tired of being sniped at with what are demonstrably lies from the peanut gallery. There is for all practical purposes zero chance he would be removed from office by the senate, but in that forum he believes (maybe correctly) that he will be able to bring a LOT of stuff into the record that is not there now.
Did Adam Schiff orchestrate "the whistleblower" complaint? Probably yes.
Schiff said on the record numerous times he had absolute proof that Trump colluded with the Russians. He has never put that proof up, at least in public. Maybe it is time the public saw this proof. (If it exists, which it probably doesn't.)
Did the Obama administration start the ball rolling on a politically motivated investigation of a political opponent with faked material? It looks like maybe they did.
Did various members of the permanent bureaucracy and intelligence community, aka The Deep State, act as individuals, and maybe collude as a group, against Trump both before and after his election? It is starting to look like that is maybe-probably true. Getting it on the record would be nice.
Will an impeachment trial throw a monkey wrench into the Democrat nomination run? Hell yes. Won't that be fun to watch.
Will the soon-to-be-released Horowitz 2.0 report shed some light on the subject and throw at least some mud on the Democrats and the Deep State? Maybe-probably yes. It will at least make the anti-Trump psychos look more demented than they already do.
Will the Durham criminal investigation throw some major excrement into the air circulation device? I am putting a strong probably on that one. That is, however, still at least weeks and maybe months down the road.
Will an actual Impeachment trial move the middle 20-25% closer to Trump or further away from Trump? My guess, for what my guess is worth to you, is that Trump will come off as an aggrieved party being attacked by power hungry and personally greedy trolls and thugs. It will help him probably and at worst be neutral, plus make some of the Democrats look like the clowns and thieves they really are. It may also serve to solidify the Democrat base even further to the lunatic left wing, turning the 2020 election into Dukakis revisited.
Bread and circuses. LET THE GAMES BEGIN.
LINK BETWEEN USE OF POT AND REDUCED INTELLIGENCE
Daily Mail
November 24, 2019
Peter Hitchens says:
I note that the [British] Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson, defending her party’s moronic policy of marijuana legalisation (which has failed to do what its supporters claim, everywhere it has been tried), says she smoked the drug with enthusiasm at university.
Yet more evidence, as if it were needed, for the link between marijuana use and reduced intelligence.
November 24, 2019
Peter Hitchens says:
I note that the [British] Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson, defending her party’s moronic policy of marijuana legalisation (which has failed to do what its supporters claim, everywhere it has been tried), says she smoked the drug with enthusiasm at university.
Yet more evidence, as if it were needed, for the link between marijuana use and reduced intelligence.
250 PROMINENT ISRAELI RABBIS BELIEVE GOD WILL HAVE TRUMP REELECTED
Israeli Rabbis Hail Trump for Further Fulfilling Biblical Prophecy
Israel Today
November 24, 2019
US President Donald Trump is facing a tidal wave of criticism and allegations of wrongdoing at home, and American Jews are mostly lining up against him. But, in the Jewish state, Trump continues to be hailed as the most prophetically-significant US leader in recent memory.
A letter sent to the White House last week thanked Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for reversing the decades-old American policy of viewing the Jewish settlements in the biblical heartlands of Judea and Samaria as illegal.
The letter was signed by no fewer than 250 prominent Israeli rabbis, including the country’s two Chief Rabbis, Rabbi David Lau and Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
The letter read:
“Over 2,500 years ago the Prophet Jeremiah stood and prophesied that the people of Israel will return to the mountains of Samaria, and will plant in them vineyards: ‘Again shalt thou plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria.’ On the cities of Judea Jeremiah said: ‘Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall turn their captivity, the Lord bless thee.’
“We are honored to be in a generation where one of these prophecies is being fulfilled, as are all the other prophesies. 130 years ago, Jews from all over the world began to return to Israel. 72 years ago, we were freed from foreign rule. 52 years ago, we were allowed to return to Jerusalem, Hevron and other cities of Samaria and Judea.
“Our enemies are never silent and try to stop the process. But G-d has already promised our forefather Abraham: ‘and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.’ And with our own eyes we see what is happening with us: ‘Five of you shall give chase to a hundred, and a hundred of you shall give chase to ten thousand; your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.’ We are particularly pleased with the blessings of peace. On the beautiful mountains of Israel, on the growing Israeli economy. For the world to recognize Israel’s mission to bring a blessing to the world, to bring faith, to strengthen justice and to bring peace. Two years ago, you, the United States, recognized us and Jerusalem as our capital. Then there was the announcement about the Golan Heights, and now we have come to recognize the legality of settlement in Judea and Samaria.
“The United States of America was one of the first to support the establishment of the State of Israel. The Presidents of the United States have taken the side of Israel, and shared in the vision of the prophets on the return of Zion and the State of Israel.
“You have a special merit now, to be the first president to lead that recognition. We are sure that you will be remembered on the lips of the people of Israel forever as someone who was at the forefront and not afraid. And may you fulfill the promise G-d made to Joshua: ‘Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not affrighted, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.'”
EDITOR’S NOTE: By God, I hope they are right!
Israel Today
November 24, 2019
US President Donald Trump is facing a tidal wave of criticism and allegations of wrongdoing at home, and American Jews are mostly lining up against him. But, in the Jewish state, Trump continues to be hailed as the most prophetically-significant US leader in recent memory.
A letter sent to the White House last week thanked Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for reversing the decades-old American policy of viewing the Jewish settlements in the biblical heartlands of Judea and Samaria as illegal.
The letter was signed by no fewer than 250 prominent Israeli rabbis, including the country’s two Chief Rabbis, Rabbi David Lau and Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
The letter read:
“Over 2,500 years ago the Prophet Jeremiah stood and prophesied that the people of Israel will return to the mountains of Samaria, and will plant in them vineyards: ‘Again shalt thou plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria.’ On the cities of Judea Jeremiah said: ‘Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall turn their captivity, the Lord bless thee.’
“We are honored to be in a generation where one of these prophecies is being fulfilled, as are all the other prophesies. 130 years ago, Jews from all over the world began to return to Israel. 72 years ago, we were freed from foreign rule. 52 years ago, we were allowed to return to Jerusalem, Hevron and other cities of Samaria and Judea.
“Our enemies are never silent and try to stop the process. But G-d has already promised our forefather Abraham: ‘and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies.’ And with our own eyes we see what is happening with us: ‘Five of you shall give chase to a hundred, and a hundred of you shall give chase to ten thousand; your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.’ We are particularly pleased with the blessings of peace. On the beautiful mountains of Israel, on the growing Israeli economy. For the world to recognize Israel’s mission to bring a blessing to the world, to bring faith, to strengthen justice and to bring peace. Two years ago, you, the United States, recognized us and Jerusalem as our capital. Then there was the announcement about the Golan Heights, and now we have come to recognize the legality of settlement in Judea and Samaria.
“The United States of America was one of the first to support the establishment of the State of Israel. The Presidents of the United States have taken the side of Israel, and shared in the vision of the prophets on the return of Zion and the State of Israel.
“You have a special merit now, to be the first president to lead that recognition. We are sure that you will be remembered on the lips of the people of Israel forever as someone who was at the forefront and not afraid. And may you fulfill the promise G-d made to Joshua: ‘Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not affrighted, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.'”
EDITOR’S NOTE: By God, I hope they are right!
‘HOW DO YOU JUST KILL KIDS?’
2 California boys, ages 11 and 14, killed in shooting outside elementary school
By Stephen Sorace
Fox News
November 24, 2019
Two boys in California were killed early Saturday while sitting inside a van in the parking lot of an elementary school when an unknown number of gunmen opened fire into the vehicle, authorities said.
The boys, ages 11 and 14, were shot outside Searles Elementary School in Union City, located about 30 miles southeast of San Francisco, Union City police said in a news release.
Multiple residents called 911 and reported hearing gunshots around 1:30 a.m., the East Bay Times reported. Police arrived at the school and found the boys with gunshot wounds.
The older boy died at the scene and the younger boy died while being rushed to a hospital, police said. Their names were being withheld because of their age.
"How do you just kill kids?" a mother, whose son was a schoolmate of one of the deceased boys, told KGO-TV. "I don't think he has quite grasped this yet,” she said of her son. “He is afraid to go outside."
While it was unclear which schools the boys attended, New Haven Unified School District Superintendent John Thompson confirmed they attended schools in the district.
Family and friends set up a makeshift memorial at the school as police collected shell casings and other evidence for their investigation, KGO reported.
No arrests have been made in connection to the killings. Police said they were still investigating a motive for the shooting.
The possibilities that the shooting was gang-related or related to a previous shooting on Wednesday that left two men wounded have not been ruled out, police said.
Police Lt. Steve Mendez told the Times that there was no sign of a connection between the shooting and the school where it took place. He said people occasionally gather in the relatively secluded parking lot.
__________
NON-TYPICAL SCHOOL SHOOTING
by Bob Walsh
I may be the wrong person to comment on this. I have no children and I am now officially old so maybe I don't relate. That being said...
At 1:26 a.m. two boys, ages 11 and 14, were shot to death in a vehicle outside the Searles Elementary School in Union City, California. This is in the East Bay area.
Maybe this is me being an old fart, and maybe this is me blaming the victims, but I can't figure out for the life of me what the hell two kids of that age were doing out at that time and what the hell they were doing. Something strange is going on, there is more to this story.
By Stephen Sorace
Fox News
November 24, 2019
Two boys in California were killed early Saturday while sitting inside a van in the parking lot of an elementary school when an unknown number of gunmen opened fire into the vehicle, authorities said.
The boys, ages 11 and 14, were shot outside Searles Elementary School in Union City, located about 30 miles southeast of San Francisco, Union City police said in a news release.
Multiple residents called 911 and reported hearing gunshots around 1:30 a.m., the East Bay Times reported. Police arrived at the school and found the boys with gunshot wounds.
The older boy died at the scene and the younger boy died while being rushed to a hospital, police said. Their names were being withheld because of their age.
"How do you just kill kids?" a mother, whose son was a schoolmate of one of the deceased boys, told KGO-TV. "I don't think he has quite grasped this yet,” she said of her son. “He is afraid to go outside."
While it was unclear which schools the boys attended, New Haven Unified School District Superintendent John Thompson confirmed they attended schools in the district.
Family and friends set up a makeshift memorial at the school as police collected shell casings and other evidence for their investigation, KGO reported.
No arrests have been made in connection to the killings. Police said they were still investigating a motive for the shooting.
The possibilities that the shooting was gang-related or related to a previous shooting on Wednesday that left two men wounded have not been ruled out, police said.
Police Lt. Steve Mendez told the Times that there was no sign of a connection between the shooting and the school where it took place. He said people occasionally gather in the relatively secluded parking lot.
__________
NON-TYPICAL SCHOOL SHOOTING
by Bob Walsh
I may be the wrong person to comment on this. I have no children and I am now officially old so maybe I don't relate. That being said...
At 1:26 a.m. two boys, ages 11 and 14, were shot to death in a vehicle outside the Searles Elementary School in Union City, California. This is in the East Bay area.
Maybe this is me being an old fart, and maybe this is me blaming the victims, but I can't figure out for the life of me what the hell two kids of that age were doing out at that time and what the hell they were doing. Something strange is going on, there is more to this story.
900 GERMAN MEN ARE ASKED TO GIVE DNA SAMPLES TO SOLVE A 1996 MURDER
German police start DNA testing hundreds over murder of Claudia Ruf
BBC
November 23, 2019
Investigators in the west German town of Grevenbroich have started DNA tests on hundreds of men in the hope of solving a 23-year-old murder cold case.
Claudia Ruf, 11, was found sexually assaulted and murdered 70km (43 miles) south of the town in 1996. No-one has been charged with her death.
Police sent invitations to at least 900 men in an effort to match DNA samples recovered from the scene.
The first day of testing started at 10:00 (09:00 GMT) on Saturday.
Those who agreed had saliva swabs taken at a local primary school, where the samples were being collected.
Claudia Ruf was kidnapped in May 1996 while walking a neighbour's dog in Grevenbroich, which is about 40km north-west of Cologne.
Her body was found two days later having been strangled, doused in petrol and partially burned.
Hiding 'far too long'
Claudia's father, Friedhelm Ruf, made an emotional appeal in a video message last week.
"After more than 23 years, there's a big possibility to solve the sad fate of my daughter," he was quoted by AP as saying. "The perpetrator has been able for too long to hide behind all of us."
A police spokesman told Bild newspaper that there had been a lot of interest in their renewed effort to solve the case, including dozens of tips.
Men aged over 14 at the time of her death have been invited to take part in the DNA testing.
One volunteer who turned up on Saturday, 46-year-old Stefan Oberlies, told Bild that he "immediately" knew he would accept the invite.
"Hopefully the culprit will be found. Of course I have read a lot about the bad case," he was quoted by the newspaper as saying.
Reinhold Jordan, the lead investigator on the case, told German media that analysis of the collections would take four to eight weeks.
Police tested 350 local DNA samples in 2010, but made no breakthrough.
According to German media, investigators hope they can utilise a recent change which allows closely-related samples, from relatives, to be flagged in results.
BBC
November 23, 2019
Investigators in the west German town of Grevenbroich have started DNA tests on hundreds of men in the hope of solving a 23-year-old murder cold case.
Claudia Ruf, 11, was found sexually assaulted and murdered 70km (43 miles) south of the town in 1996. No-one has been charged with her death.
Police sent invitations to at least 900 men in an effort to match DNA samples recovered from the scene.
The first day of testing started at 10:00 (09:00 GMT) on Saturday.
Those who agreed had saliva swabs taken at a local primary school, where the samples were being collected.
Claudia Ruf was kidnapped in May 1996 while walking a neighbour's dog in Grevenbroich, which is about 40km north-west of Cologne.
Her body was found two days later having been strangled, doused in petrol and partially burned.
Hiding 'far too long'
Claudia's father, Friedhelm Ruf, made an emotional appeal in a video message last week.
"After more than 23 years, there's a big possibility to solve the sad fate of my daughter," he was quoted by AP as saying. "The perpetrator has been able for too long to hide behind all of us."
A police spokesman told Bild newspaper that there had been a lot of interest in their renewed effort to solve the case, including dozens of tips.
Men aged over 14 at the time of her death have been invited to take part in the DNA testing.
One volunteer who turned up on Saturday, 46-year-old Stefan Oberlies, told Bild that he "immediately" knew he would accept the invite.
"Hopefully the culprit will be found. Of course I have read a lot about the bad case," he was quoted by the newspaper as saying.
Reinhold Jordan, the lead investigator on the case, told German media that analysis of the collections would take four to eight weeks.
Police tested 350 local DNA samples in 2010, but made no breakthrough.
According to German media, investigators hope they can utilise a recent change which allows closely-related samples, from relatives, to be flagged in results.
CONFESSIONS OF A DEPORTED US SOLDIER: MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS ARE RECRUITING US AND ‘THE SYSTEM IS FAILING’
Miguel Perez has lived in the U.S. since he was 8, and did two tours in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army, suffering a brain injury in the process. Then he was deported to Mexico
By Miguel Perez
Daily Beast
November 22, 2019
“Hey, Andrew. It’s Miguel. Listen... they got rid of me.”
The guards came in the middle of the night and sent me to Tamaulipas, a state in Mexico with U.S. travel restrictions due to violence. Only after landing was I able to call my family to tell them what happened. I should have had two more weeks before deportation.
The whole process—from the initial moment I learned my case had an immigration hold to the midnight wake-up call—can only be described as surreal. I’ve considered myself an American my entire life. If “home is where the heart is,” my home is in Chicago with my family and the Cubs. My grandfather is a natural-born American citizen but moved to Mexico to start his family. And his son, my father, moved our family back to the U.S. when I was only 8 years old.
When the time came to serve this country, my country, I never questioned it. I served two tours in Afghanistan with the understanding that I was a U.S. citizen. I was proud to serve a country that had become my home.
A part of me never returned from the war. Similar to many veterans, I live with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from my time in the military. As a way to cope, I turned to drugs, which led to a conviction and a sentence of seven-plus years.
While in prison, my doctor and I figured out the right medication that positively impacted my mental health. I noticed a distinct difference in my behavior, however, after being brought into ICE custody.
As I was processed into Mexico, they gave me 13 days of medicine. My family brought a little more when visiting me, but the lack of resources to get the medicine I needed impacted my mental health and PTSD. There are no Veterans Affairs hospitals in Tijuana, so once I ran out of my medicine, I could feel my body almost shut down. I started shaking and sweating in November of last year and didn’t stop until I returned home in September. I couldn’t stand in line at the store or even leave my apartment without the memories of my deployment taking over my body.
As I sat shaking alone in my apartment, violence raging outside my windows, I made plans to end it all. But God had other plans for me, and by his grace I survived a year and a half in Mexico without the proper medication or any resources to keep my PTSD under control.
On Oct. 4, 2019, I finally took the oath to become an American citizen. While I couldn’t stop smiling throughout the whole process, my emotions were still mixed. I’m happy to put this ordeal behind me but I will always question why I had to do this again. In my eyes, it’s something that I had already done in my heart.
The first thing I did after returning home was visit my doctor. The resources I had longed for in Mexico are now easily available so I’m starting anew with a healthy, positive lifestyle, seeing a psychologist and visiting my doctor regularly. It’s hard for me to fathom that just three months ago I was in Tijuana shaking in my apartment. The horrible ordeal has left its scars, but I’m healing and finding the right balance.
Now that I’m back in America, I’m doing what I can to take care of myself and the veterans we left behind in Mexico. Sadly, I know fellow soldiers who have been deported for 14-15 years, so I’ve traveled back and forth to Washington, D.C., with LULAC and Green Card Veterans to push for legislative change. For Veterans Day this year, I joined Senator Tammy Duckworth, a veteran of the Iraq War, to visit Tijuana and spend time with the other deported veterans still in Mexico. I hope my story gives them faith that they too can return home soon.
This issue isn’t an immigration problem—it’s a veterans issue. The system is failing those who are willing to die for our country. When veterans are unable to get the resources they need to live with PTSD and the effects of war, they get into trouble. For those of us with different birth certificates, we’re faced with deportation from a country we’ve given everything to.
As soon as I faced deportation, the job offers came pouring in from fellow inmates involved in cartels. “You don’t have to worry about a thing,” they said. I eerily learned early on that they weren’t job offers at all, they were demands. This is a direct consequence of deporting military veterans that is going unnoticed.
I’m thankful to be back home with my family, but I’m a rare case for those in my shoes. Our country is failing those who fought to keep us safe, and I hope Ready for War sheds light on the human aspect of this issue and the national security implications.
(The documentary Ready for War premiered Nov. 22 on Showtime.)
By Miguel Perez
Daily Beast
November 22, 2019
“Hey, Andrew. It’s Miguel. Listen... they got rid of me.”
The guards came in the middle of the night and sent me to Tamaulipas, a state in Mexico with U.S. travel restrictions due to violence. Only after landing was I able to call my family to tell them what happened. I should have had two more weeks before deportation.
The whole process—from the initial moment I learned my case had an immigration hold to the midnight wake-up call—can only be described as surreal. I’ve considered myself an American my entire life. If “home is where the heart is,” my home is in Chicago with my family and the Cubs. My grandfather is a natural-born American citizen but moved to Mexico to start his family. And his son, my father, moved our family back to the U.S. when I was only 8 years old.
When the time came to serve this country, my country, I never questioned it. I served two tours in Afghanistan with the understanding that I was a U.S. citizen. I was proud to serve a country that had become my home.
A part of me never returned from the war. Similar to many veterans, I live with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from my time in the military. As a way to cope, I turned to drugs, which led to a conviction and a sentence of seven-plus years.
While in prison, my doctor and I figured out the right medication that positively impacted my mental health. I noticed a distinct difference in my behavior, however, after being brought into ICE custody.
As I was processed into Mexico, they gave me 13 days of medicine. My family brought a little more when visiting me, but the lack of resources to get the medicine I needed impacted my mental health and PTSD. There are no Veterans Affairs hospitals in Tijuana, so once I ran out of my medicine, I could feel my body almost shut down. I started shaking and sweating in November of last year and didn’t stop until I returned home in September. I couldn’t stand in line at the store or even leave my apartment without the memories of my deployment taking over my body.
As I sat shaking alone in my apartment, violence raging outside my windows, I made plans to end it all. But God had other plans for me, and by his grace I survived a year and a half in Mexico without the proper medication or any resources to keep my PTSD under control.
On Oct. 4, 2019, I finally took the oath to become an American citizen. While I couldn’t stop smiling throughout the whole process, my emotions were still mixed. I’m happy to put this ordeal behind me but I will always question why I had to do this again. In my eyes, it’s something that I had already done in my heart.
The first thing I did after returning home was visit my doctor. The resources I had longed for in Mexico are now easily available so I’m starting anew with a healthy, positive lifestyle, seeing a psychologist and visiting my doctor regularly. It’s hard for me to fathom that just three months ago I was in Tijuana shaking in my apartment. The horrible ordeal has left its scars, but I’m healing and finding the right balance.
Now that I’m back in America, I’m doing what I can to take care of myself and the veterans we left behind in Mexico. Sadly, I know fellow soldiers who have been deported for 14-15 years, so I’ve traveled back and forth to Washington, D.C., with LULAC and Green Card Veterans to push for legislative change. For Veterans Day this year, I joined Senator Tammy Duckworth, a veteran of the Iraq War, to visit Tijuana and spend time with the other deported veterans still in Mexico. I hope my story gives them faith that they too can return home soon.
This issue isn’t an immigration problem—it’s a veterans issue. The system is failing those who are willing to die for our country. When veterans are unable to get the resources they need to live with PTSD and the effects of war, they get into trouble. For those of us with different birth certificates, we’re faced with deportation from a country we’ve given everything to.
As soon as I faced deportation, the job offers came pouring in from fellow inmates involved in cartels. “You don’t have to worry about a thing,” they said. I eerily learned early on that they weren’t job offers at all, they were demands. This is a direct consequence of deporting military veterans that is going unnoticed.
I’m thankful to be back home with my family, but I’m a rare case for those in my shoes. Our country is failing those who fought to keep us safe, and I hope Ready for War sheds light on the human aspect of this issue and the national security implications.
(The documentary Ready for War premiered Nov. 22 on Showtime.)
MEXICAN DOCUMENT DESCRIBED CAUSE OF DEATH AS A HEART ATTACK WHEN THE DECEASED HAD A BULLET WOUND ON THE BACK OF HIS HEAD
Body of wanted drug suspect found in New Mexico mortuary
Associated Press
November 21, 2019
ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico -- The hunt for a suspected gang leader by federal narcotics agents has ended after the man’s body was discovered in a New Mexico mortuary, officials said.
The body of 43-year-old Johnny Lee Padilla was found last week at Albuquerque’s Gabaldon Mortuary, The Albuquerque Journal reported.
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents are investigating whether Padilla was tortured and executed in Mexico, where they believe he lived under the protection of a cartel leader.
Authorities found Padilla’s body through an obituary on the mortuary’s website, officials said.
Authorities have linked Padilla to the Juarez Cartel and identified him as a leader in the Los Padillas gang, which they said has operated for decades out of Albuquerque’s South Valley.
A federal grand jury indicted Padilla on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in 2015, but authorities said he was out of their reach in Mexico.
Agents were told in early November that Padilla died in Mexico and then found the mortuary’s online announcement of his death and pending funeral services. Agents served a search warrant on the mortuary and found the body.
“A person associated with the Padilla DTO (Drug Trafficking Organization) paid $21,000 in cash for funeral services, including a $15,000 payment of all one-hundred-dollar bills,” the search warrant affidavit said. “A drug dog alerted to the presence of controlled substances on those one-hundred-dollar bills.”
Documents indicated Padilla’s body was transported by a Mexican funeral home through Mexican customs, but there were no records of the body clearing U.S. customs.
The Mexican documents listed Padilla’s cause of death as heart attack and diabetes, but an examination found a bullet hole in the back of the head, stab wounds, scratches on the back, and “signs of torture,” U.S. records said.
A DEA spokesman would not comment on an ongoing investigation.
Associated Press
November 21, 2019
ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico -- The hunt for a suspected gang leader by federal narcotics agents has ended after the man’s body was discovered in a New Mexico mortuary, officials said.
The body of 43-year-old Johnny Lee Padilla was found last week at Albuquerque’s Gabaldon Mortuary, The Albuquerque Journal reported.
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents are investigating whether Padilla was tortured and executed in Mexico, where they believe he lived under the protection of a cartel leader.
Authorities found Padilla’s body through an obituary on the mortuary’s website, officials said.
Authorities have linked Padilla to the Juarez Cartel and identified him as a leader in the Los Padillas gang, which they said has operated for decades out of Albuquerque’s South Valley.
A federal grand jury indicted Padilla on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in 2015, but authorities said he was out of their reach in Mexico.
Agents were told in early November that Padilla died in Mexico and then found the mortuary’s online announcement of his death and pending funeral services. Agents served a search warrant on the mortuary and found the body.
“A person associated with the Padilla DTO (Drug Trafficking Organization) paid $21,000 in cash for funeral services, including a $15,000 payment of all one-hundred-dollar bills,” the search warrant affidavit said. “A drug dog alerted to the presence of controlled substances on those one-hundred-dollar bills.”
Documents indicated Padilla’s body was transported by a Mexican funeral home through Mexican customs, but there were no records of the body clearing U.S. customs.
The Mexican documents listed Padilla’s cause of death as heart attack and diabetes, but an examination found a bullet hole in the back of the head, stab wounds, scratches on the back, and “signs of torture,” U.S. records said.
A DEA spokesman would not comment on an ongoing investigation.
Sunday, November 24, 2019
WIDESPREAD LACK OF OVERSIGHT IN CALIFORNIA SHERIFF'S OFFICE
by Bob Walsh
A long-standing lack of oversight is about to bite Orange County on the ass big time, and will without a doubt result in dozens and maybe hundreds of criminals, some of them violent assholes, hitting the streets when they should be in the can.
It seems that the S.O. had a very, very casual attitude about booking evidence. They found that in as many of one third of the 98,000 cases studied the deputies lied about when or even if they booked evidence. Procedure requires that evidence is to be booked before the deputy goes home. Deputies ROUTINELY waited days or even weeks after the incident to book property. A second audit, done after the first audit showed major discrepancies, revealed that in a study of 450 cases NO evidence was booked in 121 of the cases where deputies had said they had in fact booked evidence.
In fairness to Sheriff Barnes it should be noted that he launched the investigation once he became aware of this wide-spread problem, apparently indulged in by more than half of his street deputies.
So far four deputies have been sacked, seven others disciplined and at least 17 current prosecutions shitcanned as a result of this mess. It is believed that as much as 30% of the evidence that was actually booked in was mishandled in some substantial way.
A long-standing lack of oversight is about to bite Orange County on the ass big time, and will without a doubt result in dozens and maybe hundreds of criminals, some of them violent assholes, hitting the streets when they should be in the can.
It seems that the S.O. had a very, very casual attitude about booking evidence. They found that in as many of one third of the 98,000 cases studied the deputies lied about when or even if they booked evidence. Procedure requires that evidence is to be booked before the deputy goes home. Deputies ROUTINELY waited days or even weeks after the incident to book property. A second audit, done after the first audit showed major discrepancies, revealed that in a study of 450 cases NO evidence was booked in 121 of the cases where deputies had said they had in fact booked evidence.
In fairness to Sheriff Barnes it should be noted that he launched the investigation once he became aware of this wide-spread problem, apparently indulged in by more than half of his street deputies.
So far four deputies have been sacked, seven others disciplined and at least 17 current prosecutions shitcanned as a result of this mess. It is believed that as much as 30% of the evidence that was actually booked in was mishandled in some substantial way.
SLAIN DETROIT POLICE OFFICER WAS AMBUSHED BY PAROLEE
Detroit Police Officer Rasheen McClain's body camera captured the final seconds of his life as he led a team of officers into the basement of a house, where a man armed with a rifle lay in wait
By George Hunter
The Detroit News
November 22, 2019
DETROIT — Rasheen McClain's body-worn camera captured the final seconds of his life as he led a team of fellow Detroit police officers into the basement of a house on the city's west side, where a man armed with a rifle lay in wait.
The 28-year-old suspect, whom police say has a history of violence and was on parole after serving eight years in prison for an assault, ambushed the four officers as they descended the basement stairs, police Chief James Craig said.
The suspect fired two shots from an SKS semi-automatic carbine rifle. One of the rounds struck McClain in the neck. He died Wednesday night in Sinai-Grace Hospital, making him the 228th Detroit police officer killed in the line of duty.
The suspect's second shot hit McClain's partner, Phillippe Batoum-Bisse, in the left ankle. He was listed in temporary serious condition Thursday.
Police officers shot the suspect in the arm as he tried to flee, Craig said. He's also listed in temporary serious condition.
"This is a heartbreaking day for the brave men and women of the Detroit Police Department," Craig said Thursday at a press conference at Public Safety Headquarters.
Mayor Mike Duggan added: "We’ve had far too many of these, and each one gets even more painful."
Craig described what he saw when he reviewed the body-cam video from McClain, a 16-year Detroit police veteran and married father of two stepchildren.
McClain, 46, and his partner in the 12th Precinct, Batoum-Bisse, arrived at a home near Wyoming and Chippewa about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, about eight minutes after they received a call to investigate a report of a home invasion in progress, the chief said.
When the officers pulled up to the scene, they spotted a resident running out of the house; that person told them a man armed with a rifle had forced his way into the home and was hiding inside, Craig said.
"It's no surprise that when (McClain) arrived at the scene, he took charge," said Craig, adding McClain was known throughout the police department as a leader. "He requested additional officers to respond, and he also requested a supervisor to the scene."
When a backup unit arrived, Craig said McClain decided to go into the house, although he didn't want to kick in the door, so he obtained a key from a resident and "entered the home stealthily," the chief said.
"Officer McClain quickly developed a plan: Once the other officers came, they'd go in, clear the location, and try to apprehend a dangerous suspect.
"The officers learned this location had been shot up two weeks earlier, and there was a notion that (the suspect) had a dispute with his girlfriend, and the reason he shot up the house two weeks prior is because a relative of the girlfriend wouldn't let him inside."
McClain, Batoum-Bisse, a military veteran with two-and-a-half years on the police force, and two other officers walked into the house and searched the upper level, where the lights were shut off, Craig said. They found nothing on the top floor.
"All four officers moved down the stairs to the basement," Craig said. "Looking at the body camera, I could see the suspect as they got about halfway down the stairs. The suspect came from the left and quickly fired twice."
McClain and Batoum-Bisse were hit. "The two rear officers backed out to get a tactical advantage," Craig said. "No shots were returned by any of the officers at this time.
"(The suspect) ran (out of the basement) and as he came out with his rifle, two officers engaged the suspect. One of the officers was armed with a shotgun, and the other had his department-issued .40 caliber pistol; we believe one round from the shotgun struck the suspect.
"But he continued to evade the officers. He literally ran about a block before he was finally apprehended."
Duggan pointed out that police on the scene not only rendered aid to the fallen officers but also helped the suspect.
"Think about what our officers did," the mayor said. "They got Officer McClain and Officer Batoum-Bisse into an ambulance and to the hospital, but after two firefights, they also got the suspect to the hospital. That's the ultimate standard of professionalism. Even in that environment, the suspect's rights were upheld."
Craig said the suspect, whose criminal career started at age 14 when he was convicted of home invasion, was experienced with weapons and tactics, although he said the man was not in the military.
"Given the manner in which this was carried, it's clear (the suspect) had some type of tactical training," Craig said. "It was also very clear this suspect was trying to bait the officers. He also wanted suicide by cop.
"He had a plan. He purposely left the lights on in the basement only ... because it was easier for him in the lightness to identify his targets."
Craig said after the suspect's initial arrest as a teenager, he committed "a series of violent crimes. He was paroled in March from his prison sentence.
"It was a weapons charge and assault with intent to do great bodily harm," Craig said. "He was only given 1-10 years and served eight years. We're going to do a deeper dive into his background, but he was on active parole and (because of the shooting), he has been violated."
The Officer Collin Rose Memorial Foundation, named after the Wayne State University police officer who was killed in 2016, has started a Facebook fundraising page to help raise money for McClain's family.
Officers throughout the department mourned McClain's death, with many of them changing their Facebook profile pictures to a photo of a Detroit police badge wrapped in a black memorial band.
"With immeasurable sadness, the men and women of the Detroit Police Department are mourning the loss of another dedicated officer who gave his life in the service of this community," Detroit Police Officers Association President Craig Miller said in a statement.
"The members of the Detroit Police Officers Association will continue to strive to follow in his footsteps and to be worthy of his sacrifice."
During its meeting on Thursday, the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners passed a resolution honoring McClain.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy also sent out a release expressing her condolences.
“This is a stark reminder of what police officers in Detroit, Wayne County, and across this country face every minute of every day," she said. "They sign up to do this. They run into danger to protect us.
"We must never forget this and should not need a horrible tragedy to remind us."
By George Hunter
The Detroit News
November 22, 2019
DETROIT — Rasheen McClain's body-worn camera captured the final seconds of his life as he led a team of fellow Detroit police officers into the basement of a house on the city's west side, where a man armed with a rifle lay in wait.
The 28-year-old suspect, whom police say has a history of violence and was on parole after serving eight years in prison for an assault, ambushed the four officers as they descended the basement stairs, police Chief James Craig said.
The suspect fired two shots from an SKS semi-automatic carbine rifle. One of the rounds struck McClain in the neck. He died Wednesday night in Sinai-Grace Hospital, making him the 228th Detroit police officer killed in the line of duty.
The suspect's second shot hit McClain's partner, Phillippe Batoum-Bisse, in the left ankle. He was listed in temporary serious condition Thursday.
Police officers shot the suspect in the arm as he tried to flee, Craig said. He's also listed in temporary serious condition.
"This is a heartbreaking day for the brave men and women of the Detroit Police Department," Craig said Thursday at a press conference at Public Safety Headquarters.
Mayor Mike Duggan added: "We’ve had far too many of these, and each one gets even more painful."
Craig described what he saw when he reviewed the body-cam video from McClain, a 16-year Detroit police veteran and married father of two stepchildren.
McClain, 46, and his partner in the 12th Precinct, Batoum-Bisse, arrived at a home near Wyoming and Chippewa about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, about eight minutes after they received a call to investigate a report of a home invasion in progress, the chief said.
When the officers pulled up to the scene, they spotted a resident running out of the house; that person told them a man armed with a rifle had forced his way into the home and was hiding inside, Craig said.
"It's no surprise that when (McClain) arrived at the scene, he took charge," said Craig, adding McClain was known throughout the police department as a leader. "He requested additional officers to respond, and he also requested a supervisor to the scene."
When a backup unit arrived, Craig said McClain decided to go into the house, although he didn't want to kick in the door, so he obtained a key from a resident and "entered the home stealthily," the chief said.
"Officer McClain quickly developed a plan: Once the other officers came, they'd go in, clear the location, and try to apprehend a dangerous suspect.
"The officers learned this location had been shot up two weeks earlier, and there was a notion that (the suspect) had a dispute with his girlfriend, and the reason he shot up the house two weeks prior is because a relative of the girlfriend wouldn't let him inside."
McClain, Batoum-Bisse, a military veteran with two-and-a-half years on the police force, and two other officers walked into the house and searched the upper level, where the lights were shut off, Craig said. They found nothing on the top floor.
"All four officers moved down the stairs to the basement," Craig said. "Looking at the body camera, I could see the suspect as they got about halfway down the stairs. The suspect came from the left and quickly fired twice."
McClain and Batoum-Bisse were hit. "The two rear officers backed out to get a tactical advantage," Craig said. "No shots were returned by any of the officers at this time.
"(The suspect) ran (out of the basement) and as he came out with his rifle, two officers engaged the suspect. One of the officers was armed with a shotgun, and the other had his department-issued .40 caliber pistol; we believe one round from the shotgun struck the suspect.
"But he continued to evade the officers. He literally ran about a block before he was finally apprehended."
Duggan pointed out that police on the scene not only rendered aid to the fallen officers but also helped the suspect.
"Think about what our officers did," the mayor said. "They got Officer McClain and Officer Batoum-Bisse into an ambulance and to the hospital, but after two firefights, they also got the suspect to the hospital. That's the ultimate standard of professionalism. Even in that environment, the suspect's rights were upheld."
Craig said the suspect, whose criminal career started at age 14 when he was convicted of home invasion, was experienced with weapons and tactics, although he said the man was not in the military.
"Given the manner in which this was carried, it's clear (the suspect) had some type of tactical training," Craig said. "It was also very clear this suspect was trying to bait the officers. He also wanted suicide by cop.
"He had a plan. He purposely left the lights on in the basement only ... because it was easier for him in the lightness to identify his targets."
Craig said after the suspect's initial arrest as a teenager, he committed "a series of violent crimes. He was paroled in March from his prison sentence.
"It was a weapons charge and assault with intent to do great bodily harm," Craig said. "He was only given 1-10 years and served eight years. We're going to do a deeper dive into his background, but he was on active parole and (because of the shooting), he has been violated."
The Officer Collin Rose Memorial Foundation, named after the Wayne State University police officer who was killed in 2016, has started a Facebook fundraising page to help raise money for McClain's family.
Officers throughout the department mourned McClain's death, with many of them changing their Facebook profile pictures to a photo of a Detroit police badge wrapped in a black memorial band.
"With immeasurable sadness, the men and women of the Detroit Police Department are mourning the loss of another dedicated officer who gave his life in the service of this community," Detroit Police Officers Association President Craig Miller said in a statement.
"The members of the Detroit Police Officers Association will continue to strive to follow in his footsteps and to be worthy of his sacrifice."
During its meeting on Thursday, the Detroit Board of Police Commissioners passed a resolution honoring McClain.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy also sent out a release expressing her condolences.
“This is a stark reminder of what police officers in Detroit, Wayne County, and across this country face every minute of every day," she said. "They sign up to do this. They run into danger to protect us.
"We must never forget this and should not need a horrible tragedy to remind us."
HOUSTON COP WHO LED DEADLY RAID HAD SEX WITH CI
Judge does not rule during Goines’ detention hearing in Harding Street case
By Brandon Walker and Daniela Sternitzky-Di Napoli
Click2Houston
November 22, 2019
HOUSTON – One of the former Houston Police Officers charged in connection with the botched raid on Harding Street appeared in federal court Friday for an arraignment and detention hearing.
Gerald Goines was arrested Wednesday on multiple federal charges.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Palermo ended Friday’s hearing by saying she would issue a decision based on the evidence presented. It was unclear when that decision would be rendered as of Friday evening.
It may come Monday, KPRC2 has learned.
During Goines detention hearing Friday, FBI Special Agent O’Neil Brown testified about the investigation.
According to Brown, Tuttle and Nicolas were not determined to be drug dealers, although a small amount of cocaine and marijuana were found inside the home after the raid.
The FBI interviewed the judge who signed off on the no-knock warrant, who told Brown he thought Goines was being truthful and that the account from Goines’ criminal informant was probable cause for the issuance of the warrant, Brown said.
According to warrant, the informant claimed there was heroin and a 9mm gun inside the home and the judge told him he would not have signed the warrant without that info.
Brown said HPD and the FBI interviewed all five informants who were overseen by Goines and they all said they did not purchase drugs from the Harding Street home and they had not been to that address.
Brown's testimony brought forward new revelations about the investigation into Goines' alleged activities. He testified Goines was involved in a sexual relationship with one of his confidential informants. That's the same confidential informant who told investigators the drugs Goines said were purchased from 7815 Harding Street came from a different address -- one unrelated to Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, Brown testified. Brown also said investigators uncovered a stolen gun in Goines' unmarked HPD unit and various illegal drugs, including cocaine, and ecstasy.
The government argued Brown's testimony proved Goines lied repeatedly to get what he wanted -- evidence prosecutors argued confirmed he would continue to do if granted bond.
Goines' attorney said the government did not prove its case that Goines was a danger to society or a flight risk with Brown's testimony.
"It's clear to me from everything that we know and everything that was presented in court today that Mr. Goines is guaranteed to return to court when asked to do so and he is absolutely safe," said Nicole Deborde, Goines' defense attorney.
Deborde also cross-examined Brown on the depth of his knowledge of no knock warrants, confidential informants, as well as the extent to which he had experience with police work. Brown testified prior to working for the FBI he was an attorney and never worked as a police officer.
Five witnesses testified on Goines' behalf, including Elyse Lanier, widow of former Houston Mayor Bob Lanier. Goines has provided security detail for the Lanier's for years.
"He works for my whole family. We love him. We support him. We are here with him," Lanier said, addressing reporters following the detention hearing.
Arguing whether bond should be granted is a tough task in federal court, as opposed to state court where Goines remains on a $300 thousand bond.
"In federal court the defendant seeking release on bond is sometimes a two to three touchdown underdog because the presumption against release essentially puts the burden on the defendant," explained Brian Wice, KPRC2 legal analyst.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Goines falsified evidence and obstructed justice related to the January raid that left Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas dead.
He is accused of entering the Harding Street home on fake intel and making a false police report, claiming an informant bought drugs from the home one day before the raid.
Goines’ attorney said she and her team are ready to fight for Goines.
"We are looking forward to vigorously defending Mr. Goines in state court and in federal court."
Another former officer Steven Bryant and civilian Patricia Garcia are also facing federal charges in connection with the case.
Goines is also facing two counts of felony murder on the state level.
If convicted of his federal charges, Goines is facing up to life in prison.
By Brandon Walker and Daniela Sternitzky-Di Napoli
Click2Houston
November 22, 2019
HOUSTON – One of the former Houston Police Officers charged in connection with the botched raid on Harding Street appeared in federal court Friday for an arraignment and detention hearing.
Gerald Goines was arrested Wednesday on multiple federal charges.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Palermo ended Friday’s hearing by saying she would issue a decision based on the evidence presented. It was unclear when that decision would be rendered as of Friday evening.
It may come Monday, KPRC2 has learned.
During Goines detention hearing Friday, FBI Special Agent O’Neil Brown testified about the investigation.
According to Brown, Tuttle and Nicolas were not determined to be drug dealers, although a small amount of cocaine and marijuana were found inside the home after the raid.
The FBI interviewed the judge who signed off on the no-knock warrant, who told Brown he thought Goines was being truthful and that the account from Goines’ criminal informant was probable cause for the issuance of the warrant, Brown said.
According to warrant, the informant claimed there was heroin and a 9mm gun inside the home and the judge told him he would not have signed the warrant without that info.
Brown said HPD and the FBI interviewed all five informants who were overseen by Goines and they all said they did not purchase drugs from the Harding Street home and they had not been to that address.
Brown's testimony brought forward new revelations about the investigation into Goines' alleged activities. He testified Goines was involved in a sexual relationship with one of his confidential informants. That's the same confidential informant who told investigators the drugs Goines said were purchased from 7815 Harding Street came from a different address -- one unrelated to Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, Brown testified. Brown also said investigators uncovered a stolen gun in Goines' unmarked HPD unit and various illegal drugs, including cocaine, and ecstasy.
The government argued Brown's testimony proved Goines lied repeatedly to get what he wanted -- evidence prosecutors argued confirmed he would continue to do if granted bond.
Goines' attorney said the government did not prove its case that Goines was a danger to society or a flight risk with Brown's testimony.
"It's clear to me from everything that we know and everything that was presented in court today that Mr. Goines is guaranteed to return to court when asked to do so and he is absolutely safe," said Nicole Deborde, Goines' defense attorney.
Deborde also cross-examined Brown on the depth of his knowledge of no knock warrants, confidential informants, as well as the extent to which he had experience with police work. Brown testified prior to working for the FBI he was an attorney and never worked as a police officer.
Five witnesses testified on Goines' behalf, including Elyse Lanier, widow of former Houston Mayor Bob Lanier. Goines has provided security detail for the Lanier's for years.
"He works for my whole family. We love him. We support him. We are here with him," Lanier said, addressing reporters following the detention hearing.
Arguing whether bond should be granted is a tough task in federal court, as opposed to state court where Goines remains on a $300 thousand bond.
"In federal court the defendant seeking release on bond is sometimes a two to three touchdown underdog because the presumption against release essentially puts the burden on the defendant," explained Brian Wice, KPRC2 legal analyst.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Goines falsified evidence and obstructed justice related to the January raid that left Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas dead.
He is accused of entering the Harding Street home on fake intel and making a false police report, claiming an informant bought drugs from the home one day before the raid.
Goines’ attorney said she and her team are ready to fight for Goines.
"We are looking forward to vigorously defending Mr. Goines in state court and in federal court."
Another former officer Steven Bryant and civilian Patricia Garcia are also facing federal charges in connection with the case.
Goines is also facing two counts of felony murder on the state level.
If convicted of his federal charges, Goines is facing up to life in prison.
POSSIBLE CONFLICTS OF INTEREST BY DATING POLICE CHIEF COST AWARD WINNING REPORTTER HER JOB
NBC Boston investigative reporter claims she was fired for not telling her bosses she was dating a nearby town's police chief
By Maxine Shen
Daily Mail
November 23, 2019
An NBC Boston investigative reporter has been fired from her job after failing to tell her bosses that she was dating a nearby town's chief of police.
NBC Boston reporter Karen Hensel was said to have revealed to coworkers in an email Monday that she was fired from her job because she was dating Auburn Police Chief Andrew Sluckis Jr.
In the email, which was obtained by FTV Live, Hensel wrote: 'Someone filed an anonymous complaint to corporate that I am dating the auburn police chief which I am.'
She then noted that she 'did not do any stories while I dated him and thought self policing myself was sufficient. I did not disclose the relationship Even though we are not doing any stories together. Whoever did it had their reason instead of coming to me with their concern.'
It's unclear when Hensel and Sluckis started dating, but it was noted that she had done a story on the police chief in May 2017. She also appeared on screen with Sluckis and two other police chiefs in an NBC Boston interview that aired in June 2018.
NBC Boston executives did not elaborate on Hensel's firing, other than to say that she 'is no longer employed by the station,' the Boston Globe reported.
Hensel herself told the newspaper that she is 'exploring my options. I’m not sure what I am going to do next.'
The newspaper also reported that NBC Boston told staffers that their journalists are allowed to date or marry whoever they want, but that they needed to disclose their relationship to a manager if there was either a conflict of interest or potential for one to arise.
Investigative reporter Hensel appeared then to have been fired because she failed to tell her bosses she was dating a police chief - one that she had previously done segments on.
Experts speculated that the reason why she was fired, instead of given a lighter punishment, had to do with journalistic ethics, as it was possible that neither Hensel's bosses nor viewers would've learned about her relationship with Sluckis had she not been outed by the anonymous tip.
Emerson College's journalism department chair Jane Kolodzy told the Boston Globe that Hensel not disclosing her relationship was an issue because it offered up the 'infamous' appearance of a conflict of interest, 'even though nothing may have happened.'
Hensel 'needed to be as upfront as soon as anything went from professional to personal,' Kolodzy added.
Poynter Institute senior faculty member Al Tompkins noted that while it's possible for a journalist and a public figure to have a personal relationship, 'disclosure is the key here.'
Tompkins told the newspaper that 'It becomes the company’s business when a journalist’s personal life affects the credibility of the journalism,' especially at a time when it's important for the public to know that journalists are impartial about the subject matter they're covering.
NBC Boston put employees through ethics training, which includes telling them to avoid conflicts of interest or anything that would seem like one.
By Maxine Shen
Daily Mail
November 23, 2019
An NBC Boston investigative reporter has been fired from her job after failing to tell her bosses that she was dating a nearby town's chief of police.
NBC Boston reporter Karen Hensel was said to have revealed to coworkers in an email Monday that she was fired from her job because she was dating Auburn Police Chief Andrew Sluckis Jr.
In the email, which was obtained by FTV Live, Hensel wrote: 'Someone filed an anonymous complaint to corporate that I am dating the auburn police chief which I am.'
She then noted that she 'did not do any stories while I dated him and thought self policing myself was sufficient. I did not disclose the relationship Even though we are not doing any stories together. Whoever did it had their reason instead of coming to me with their concern.'
It's unclear when Hensel and Sluckis started dating, but it was noted that she had done a story on the police chief in May 2017. She also appeared on screen with Sluckis and two other police chiefs in an NBC Boston interview that aired in June 2018.
NBC Boston executives did not elaborate on Hensel's firing, other than to say that she 'is no longer employed by the station,' the Boston Globe reported.
Hensel herself told the newspaper that she is 'exploring my options. I’m not sure what I am going to do next.'
The newspaper also reported that NBC Boston told staffers that their journalists are allowed to date or marry whoever they want, but that they needed to disclose their relationship to a manager if there was either a conflict of interest or potential for one to arise.
Investigative reporter Hensel appeared then to have been fired because she failed to tell her bosses she was dating a police chief - one that she had previously done segments on.
Experts speculated that the reason why she was fired, instead of given a lighter punishment, had to do with journalistic ethics, as it was possible that neither Hensel's bosses nor viewers would've learned about her relationship with Sluckis had she not been outed by the anonymous tip.
Emerson College's journalism department chair Jane Kolodzy told the Boston Globe that Hensel not disclosing her relationship was an issue because it offered up the 'infamous' appearance of a conflict of interest, 'even though nothing may have happened.'
Hensel 'needed to be as upfront as soon as anything went from professional to personal,' Kolodzy added.
Poynter Institute senior faculty member Al Tompkins noted that while it's possible for a journalist and a public figure to have a personal relationship, 'disclosure is the key here.'
Tompkins told the newspaper that 'It becomes the company’s business when a journalist’s personal life affects the credibility of the journalism,' especially at a time when it's important for the public to know that journalists are impartial about the subject matter they're covering.
NBC Boston put employees through ethics training, which includes telling them to avoid conflicts of interest or anything that would seem like one.
AND HOW ABOUT THAT WOMAN WITH COCAINE BREAST IMPLANTS
Heroin and Meth Discovered Hidden at Alaska Airport in Rancid Goat Meat
By Jeffery Martin
Newsweek
November 22, 2019
More than 11,000 doses of heroin and methamphetamine worth $400,000 were discovered Wednesday in Alaska at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport hidden in a package of rotting goat intestines. Cenen Placencia, 71, was arrested on federal drug trafficking charges, according to a press release by Alaska State Troopers.
As Placencia prepared to board a Ravn Air flight to Kodiak, he allowed law enforcement agents to search his checked luggage, which was a fish box that weighed in at 47 pounds. The box was sealed with duct tape and tied with a rope.
"Investigators opened the contents of the frozen meat and located 10 slightly larger than golf ball-sized balls of duct tape inside the intestine of what Investigators believed to be a goat," wrote agent Adam Carron in an affidavit. "During further inspection, it was determined that inside of the duct tape wrapped balls were plastic bags containing what appeared to be heroin and methamphetamine."
When a drug-sniffing dog reacted to the scent of narcotics in the box, Placencia withdrew his consent and bought a ticket for a later flight.
Placencia told authorities he knew nothing about the drugs and was planning on eating the goat's intestines which he had allegedly purchased from a California rancher for $140. It was at that point that Placencia was arrested.
Troopers reported that 740 grams of heroin and 389 grams of methamphetamine were stashed within the goat intestines.
Since February, Placencia had been on the authorities' radar as a possible drug source in Kodiak.
After warrants were served at Placencia's home in March, 130 doses of meth and 2,470 doses of heroin were seized, along with $2,279 in what a Coast Guard Investigative Service special agent referred to as "drug proceeds."
Placencia was not arrested at the time, but in July, authorities were informed that Placencia had used the carcass of a lamb to move drugs into Kodiak from Anchorage.
Counting the drugs seized at Placencia's home in March with the narcotics seized at the airport, the estimated street value of the entire haul would be $400,000.
Livestock isn't the only kind of animal smugglers have used to move drugs from place to place.
Along with the Marine Corps, Mexican authorities found packages of cocaine inside the bodies of frozen sharks in 2009. Containers suspected of carrying illicit cargo were x-rayed. There was enough evidence from the radiographs to warrant examining the containers with drug-detecting dogs.
German customs officials arrested a Colombian woman in 2016 at a Frankfurt airport after she confessed to having over two pounds of cocaine hidden inside her recently obtained breast implants, according to Business Insider.
After the woman complained of severe stomach pain, airport officials noticed her fresh surgery scars. Doctors removed a plastic-wrapped 500-gram lump of cocaine from each one of her breasts.
By Jeffery Martin
Newsweek
November 22, 2019
More than 11,000 doses of heroin and methamphetamine worth $400,000 were discovered Wednesday in Alaska at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport hidden in a package of rotting goat intestines. Cenen Placencia, 71, was arrested on federal drug trafficking charges, according to a press release by Alaska State Troopers.
As Placencia prepared to board a Ravn Air flight to Kodiak, he allowed law enforcement agents to search his checked luggage, which was a fish box that weighed in at 47 pounds. The box was sealed with duct tape and tied with a rope.
"Investigators opened the contents of the frozen meat and located 10 slightly larger than golf ball-sized balls of duct tape inside the intestine of what Investigators believed to be a goat," wrote agent Adam Carron in an affidavit. "During further inspection, it was determined that inside of the duct tape wrapped balls were plastic bags containing what appeared to be heroin and methamphetamine."
When a drug-sniffing dog reacted to the scent of narcotics in the box, Placencia withdrew his consent and bought a ticket for a later flight.
Placencia told authorities he knew nothing about the drugs and was planning on eating the goat's intestines which he had allegedly purchased from a California rancher for $140. It was at that point that Placencia was arrested.
Troopers reported that 740 grams of heroin and 389 grams of methamphetamine were stashed within the goat intestines.
Since February, Placencia had been on the authorities' radar as a possible drug source in Kodiak.
After warrants were served at Placencia's home in March, 130 doses of meth and 2,470 doses of heroin were seized, along with $2,279 in what a Coast Guard Investigative Service special agent referred to as "drug proceeds."
Placencia was not arrested at the time, but in July, authorities were informed that Placencia had used the carcass of a lamb to move drugs into Kodiak from Anchorage.
Counting the drugs seized at Placencia's home in March with the narcotics seized at the airport, the estimated street value of the entire haul would be $400,000.
Livestock isn't the only kind of animal smugglers have used to move drugs from place to place.
Along with the Marine Corps, Mexican authorities found packages of cocaine inside the bodies of frozen sharks in 2009. Containers suspected of carrying illicit cargo were x-rayed. There was enough evidence from the radiographs to warrant examining the containers with drug-detecting dogs.
German customs officials arrested a Colombian woman in 2016 at a Frankfurt airport after she confessed to having over two pounds of cocaine hidden inside her recently obtained breast implants, according to Business Insider.
After the woman complained of severe stomach pain, airport officials noticed her fresh surgery scars. Doctors removed a plastic-wrapped 500-gram lump of cocaine from each one of her breasts.
TO KEEP THEM FROM BECOMING ANTI-SEMITIC JEWS, MAYBE JEWISH PARENTS SHOULD STOP SENDING THEIR KIDS TO COLLEGES OTHER THAN JEWISH UNIVERSITIES IN THE US OR UNIVERSITIES IN ISRAEL
The campus war against the Jews: Today, we see a different type of cultural destruction—a slow and steady attempt to fragment American Jewry and, in turn, dilute its support for the State of Israel
by Melissa Landa
Israel Hayom
November 23, 2019
Culture is comprised of beliefs, values and behaviors that are passed down in families from generation to generation.
Sadly, however, at various times throughout American history, those with power and authority have facilitated the cultural destruction of groups of people that were under their control. At the end of the 1800s, for example, the American government created “Indian” boarding schools that promoted the motto “Kill the Indian: Save the Man.”
The government believed that Native Americans were “savages” who needed to be Americanized, and so they took Native American children away from their parents and instituted a policy of forced assimilation. They cut their hair, put them in American clothing, forbade them from speaking their tribal languages and forced them to pray to the Christian god.
Simply put, the children had their Indian-ness stolen from them. The children’s cultural bonds with their parents and ancestors were severed—never to be recovered again.
Today, we are seeing a different type of cultural destruction—a slow and steady attempt to fragment American Jewry and, in turn, dilute its support for the State of Israel. This assault is being led by young, dynamic “progressive” academics in some of the country’s finest colleges and universities, who support the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI)—the American chapter of the international BDS movement that calls for the destruction of the State of Israel.
The decision to recruit American academics as the leaders of this assault was well reasoned. Professors, particularly those with tenure, are some of the most privileged and powerful members of American society. They have life-long job security that grants them the freedom to say and write what they believe to be true. They also have access to hundreds of thousands of Jewish adolescents during the latter’s most intellectually formative years.
Indeed, it is at colleges and universities with large percentages of Jewish students that we see some of the most egregious assaults being enacted—Oberlin College, Columbia University and New York University, to name just a few.
Native American children were stripped of their rituals and behaviors as the conduit to the destruction of their peoplehood. The cultural assault we are seeing today is similar in its target: Jewish peoplehood. The goal is to destroy the State of Israel. The method is slightly different as the target of today’s assaults is not Jewish religious rituals, but the feelings and behaviors that link all Jews together and the underlying source of those feelings: the emotional and spiritual connection that all Jews have with their homeland.
It is important to note, however, that in the case of the Jews, the distinction between religious ritual and peoplehood is nominal. The two are inextricably linked. In fact, Jews were a people before the religion took form. Individuals who convert to Judaism are required to say the words, “Your people are my people.” When Jews pray, they face east, toward Jerusalem. Jewish community members comfort their mourners with the words, “May God comfort you with the mourners of Zion.” And when Jews conclude their Passover seders, they say, “Next year in Jerusalem.”
Nevertheless, with Jewish peoplehood as their target, these young, seemingly hip professors manipulate the feelings and beliefs of their Jewish students and persuade them that the land they believed was their birthright actually belongs to another—that it was stolen from the Palestinians by racist colonizers—and that it is up to them to see that it is returned. In many cases, they identify themselves as Arab, or people of color from other backgrounds, and skillfully personalize their revisionist accounts of history, making these emotional presentations extremely difficult for Jewish students to challenge.
(On a national level, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) engages in the same practice. Despite being a congresswoman in the most powerful country in the world, she presents herself as a forlorn granddaughter of an old persecuted Palestinian grandmother—one she chose not to visit when granted the opportunity.)
The “scholars” who are engaging in this attack on young American Jews are also adept in exploiting the power structure of the professor-student relationship in which grades and letters of recommendation lie in the balance. They might offer extra credit for attending a lecture by a known anti-Israel activist, like Marc Lamont Hill. They might take students on an anti-Israel propaganda tour through Israel and the West Bank (as is the case with professor Sa’ed Atshan at Swarthmore College). Or, they might present a syllabus with readings by Jasbir Puar and other anti-Israel propagandists and offer no counter-arguments, as was the case when Meredith Raimondo taught courses at Oberlin College, and many others.
To seal the deal, these faculty members then intensify their assault by mentoring student groups like Students for Justice in Palestine—the student arm of the international BDS campaign. Indeed, on campuses across the country, chapters of SJP engage in a relentless campaign to persuade Jewish students that Israel is a “colonial” country built on “stolen” land, and that it is their duty—as Jews who believe in justice—to fight for the right of Palestinians to “return” “home.”
Evidence that students have internalized the core message aimed at destroying American Jewry is ubiquitous. In Vassar College’s student newspaper, after harassing Hen Mazzig as he spoke, SJP students write, “Palestinian activists have articulated their right to live freely in the entirety of their homeland.” (Emphasis added.) In the same article, the SJP protégés argue that it is possible to separate a Jewish person from the Jewish people. They write, “We believe it is both possible and necessary to stand against anti-Semitism and to stand with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and the Palestinian fight for freedom.” In other words, we object to swastikas on the door of a Jewish person, but not on the flag of the Jewish people.
In a recent article in the Massachusetts Daily Collegian at the University of Massachusetts, student Anna Ben-Hur echoes the same message and writes, “I reject claims of Judaism having one unanimous voice supporting Israel”; “Israel is not my vision of Jewish liberation,” and “Many Jews at UMass desire a Jewishness that doesn’t come attached to ethno-nationalism.”
In another illustration of the effectiveness of this insidious campaign, I recall speaking to the Jewish parent of a student at Swarthmore College. After taking a course with professor Sa’ed Atshan, her son refused to attend the synagogue in which he was raised because of its close affiliation with Israel. As she explained, the professor had persuaded the young man that Israel was an illegitimate country built on stolen land, and that no good and decent person would support it in any way.
The professors who are engaged in this assault are attacking the Jewish people, the Jewish religion, Judaism and the Jews. The distinctions are meaningless—being made by the perpetrators as an attempt to obfuscate their sinister mission and to avoid accusations of anti-Semitism. Furthermore, their actions are systematic.
It is, therefore, incumbent on all concerned stakeholders in the American Jewish community to familiarize themselves with the professors and institutions that are leading this campaign to harm our children and to initiate legal action against them. If they do not, this assault against the Jewish people may, in fact, succeed in severing a generation of cultural ties—never to be recovered again.
by Melissa Landa
Israel Hayom
November 23, 2019
Culture is comprised of beliefs, values and behaviors that are passed down in families from generation to generation.
Sadly, however, at various times throughout American history, those with power and authority have facilitated the cultural destruction of groups of people that were under their control. At the end of the 1800s, for example, the American government created “Indian” boarding schools that promoted the motto “Kill the Indian: Save the Man.”
The government believed that Native Americans were “savages” who needed to be Americanized, and so they took Native American children away from their parents and instituted a policy of forced assimilation. They cut their hair, put them in American clothing, forbade them from speaking their tribal languages and forced them to pray to the Christian god.
Simply put, the children had their Indian-ness stolen from them. The children’s cultural bonds with their parents and ancestors were severed—never to be recovered again.
Today, we are seeing a different type of cultural destruction—a slow and steady attempt to fragment American Jewry and, in turn, dilute its support for the State of Israel. This assault is being led by young, dynamic “progressive” academics in some of the country’s finest colleges and universities, who support the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI)—the American chapter of the international BDS movement that calls for the destruction of the State of Israel.
The decision to recruit American academics as the leaders of this assault was well reasoned. Professors, particularly those with tenure, are some of the most privileged and powerful members of American society. They have life-long job security that grants them the freedom to say and write what they believe to be true. They also have access to hundreds of thousands of Jewish adolescents during the latter’s most intellectually formative years.
Indeed, it is at colleges and universities with large percentages of Jewish students that we see some of the most egregious assaults being enacted—Oberlin College, Columbia University and New York University, to name just a few.
Native American children were stripped of their rituals and behaviors as the conduit to the destruction of their peoplehood. The cultural assault we are seeing today is similar in its target: Jewish peoplehood. The goal is to destroy the State of Israel. The method is slightly different as the target of today’s assaults is not Jewish religious rituals, but the feelings and behaviors that link all Jews together and the underlying source of those feelings: the emotional and spiritual connection that all Jews have with their homeland.
It is important to note, however, that in the case of the Jews, the distinction between religious ritual and peoplehood is nominal. The two are inextricably linked. In fact, Jews were a people before the religion took form. Individuals who convert to Judaism are required to say the words, “Your people are my people.” When Jews pray, they face east, toward Jerusalem. Jewish community members comfort their mourners with the words, “May God comfort you with the mourners of Zion.” And when Jews conclude their Passover seders, they say, “Next year in Jerusalem.”
Nevertheless, with Jewish peoplehood as their target, these young, seemingly hip professors manipulate the feelings and beliefs of their Jewish students and persuade them that the land they believed was their birthright actually belongs to another—that it was stolen from the Palestinians by racist colonizers—and that it is up to them to see that it is returned. In many cases, they identify themselves as Arab, or people of color from other backgrounds, and skillfully personalize their revisionist accounts of history, making these emotional presentations extremely difficult for Jewish students to challenge.
(On a national level, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) engages in the same practice. Despite being a congresswoman in the most powerful country in the world, she presents herself as a forlorn granddaughter of an old persecuted Palestinian grandmother—one she chose not to visit when granted the opportunity.)
The “scholars” who are engaging in this attack on young American Jews are also adept in exploiting the power structure of the professor-student relationship in which grades and letters of recommendation lie in the balance. They might offer extra credit for attending a lecture by a known anti-Israel activist, like Marc Lamont Hill. They might take students on an anti-Israel propaganda tour through Israel and the West Bank (as is the case with professor Sa’ed Atshan at Swarthmore College). Or, they might present a syllabus with readings by Jasbir Puar and other anti-Israel propagandists and offer no counter-arguments, as was the case when Meredith Raimondo taught courses at Oberlin College, and many others.
To seal the deal, these faculty members then intensify their assault by mentoring student groups like Students for Justice in Palestine—the student arm of the international BDS campaign. Indeed, on campuses across the country, chapters of SJP engage in a relentless campaign to persuade Jewish students that Israel is a “colonial” country built on “stolen” land, and that it is their duty—as Jews who believe in justice—to fight for the right of Palestinians to “return” “home.”
Evidence that students have internalized the core message aimed at destroying American Jewry is ubiquitous. In Vassar College’s student newspaper, after harassing Hen Mazzig as he spoke, SJP students write, “Palestinian activists have articulated their right to live freely in the entirety of their homeland.” (Emphasis added.) In the same article, the SJP protégés argue that it is possible to separate a Jewish person from the Jewish people. They write, “We believe it is both possible and necessary to stand against anti-Semitism and to stand with the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and the Palestinian fight for freedom.” In other words, we object to swastikas on the door of a Jewish person, but not on the flag of the Jewish people.
In a recent article in the Massachusetts Daily Collegian at the University of Massachusetts, student Anna Ben-Hur echoes the same message and writes, “I reject claims of Judaism having one unanimous voice supporting Israel”; “Israel is not my vision of Jewish liberation,” and “Many Jews at UMass desire a Jewishness that doesn’t come attached to ethno-nationalism.”
In another illustration of the effectiveness of this insidious campaign, I recall speaking to the Jewish parent of a student at Swarthmore College. After taking a course with professor Sa’ed Atshan, her son refused to attend the synagogue in which he was raised because of its close affiliation with Israel. As she explained, the professor had persuaded the young man that Israel was an illegitimate country built on stolen land, and that no good and decent person would support it in any way.
The professors who are engaged in this assault are attacking the Jewish people, the Jewish religion, Judaism and the Jews. The distinctions are meaningless—being made by the perpetrators as an attempt to obfuscate their sinister mission and to avoid accusations of anti-Semitism. Furthermore, their actions are systematic.
It is, therefore, incumbent on all concerned stakeholders in the American Jewish community to familiarize themselves with the professors and institutions that are leading this campaign to harm our children and to initiate legal action against them. If they do not, this assault against the Jewish people may, in fact, succeed in severing a generation of cultural ties—never to be recovered again.
SALAMI POISONED US AND ISRAEL
'US and Israel are common enemies of the Muslim world,' says Iranian commander
Israel Hayom
November 22, 2019
"America and Israel are common enemies of the Muslim world," the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, said Thursday during a meeting with the chief of staff of Pakistan's military, Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa.
Amid ongoing civil unrest across Iran, Salami also called for Muslim solidarity to thwart "enemy conspiracies" and said he appreciated Pakistan for its valuable efforts for de-escalation in the region.
Bajwa also met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iranian army chief Maj. Gen. Mohammad Hossein Baqeri and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani.
During his meeting with Rouhani, Bajwa stated that Pakistan was prepared to strengthen bilateral relations between the countries.
Iran, meanwhile, began restoring internet access in the capital Tehran and a number of provinces on Thursday, local news agencies and residents said, after a five-day-long nationwide shutdown meant to help stifle the protests against fuel price hikes.
The IRGC said calm had returned across Iran, Iran's state TV reported. Amnesty International said over 100 demonstrators had been killed by security forces, a figure rejected as "speculative" by the government.
"The internet is being gradually restored in the country," the semi-official news agency Fars said, quoting unidentified informed sources.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo early Friday called on Iranians to send the US videos “documenting the regime’s crackdown on protestors.”
He wrote in a tweet: “The US will expose and sanction the abuses.”
Fars quoted the sources as saying the National Security Council that had ordered the shutdown approved reactivating the internet in "some areas and, according to reports so far, fixed-line internet has been restored in Hormozgan, Kermanshah, Arak, Mashhad, Qom, Tabriz, Hamadan and Bushehr provinces, and parts of Tehran."
"We again have internet as of an hour ago," a retired engineer, who declined to be named, said by telephone from Tehran.
The internet blockage made it difficult for protesters to post videos on social media to generate support and also to obtain reliable reports on the extent of the unrest.
Internet blockage observatory NetBlocks said the restoration of connectivity in Iran covered only about 10% of Iran.
News agencies and residents said only fixed-line internet, not mobile internet, was partially restored.
Protests began on Nov. 15 in several provincial towns after the government announced gasoline price hikes of at least 50%. They spread to 100 cities and towns and quickly turned political with protesters demanding top officials step down.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday criticized Iran for blocking the internet.
"Iran has become so unstable that the regime has shut down their entire Internet System so that the Great Iranian people cannot talk about the tremendous violence taking place within the country," Trump tweeted.
"They want ZERO transparency, thinking the world will not find out the death and tragedy that the Iranian Regime is causing!" he added.
The International Monetary Fund said it regretted the violence and loss of life during the protests and had not discussed the gasoline price hike with Iran.
IMF spokeswoman Camilla Andersen added: "In general, the IMF continues to advise oil-producing countries in the Middle East and Central Asia region to reduce fuel subsidies ... while compensating the poor with targeted cash transfers, which we understand is the approach Iran has taken."
On Thursday, state TV showed thousands marching in pro-government rallies in a dozen cities, carrying national flags and signs with slogans including "Rioting is not protesting."
Amnesty International said it had documented at least 106 protesters killed by security forces, which would make it the worst street unrest in Iran in at least a decade and possibly since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran’s UN mission on Wednesday dismissed the casualty report as "speculative, not reliable."
Iranian authorities said several people, including members of the security forces and policemen, were killed in street violence, which Tehran blamed on "foreign foes."
Israel Hayom
November 22, 2019
"America and Israel are common enemies of the Muslim world," the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, said Thursday during a meeting with the chief of staff of Pakistan's military, Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa.
Amid ongoing civil unrest across Iran, Salami also called for Muslim solidarity to thwart "enemy conspiracies" and said he appreciated Pakistan for its valuable efforts for de-escalation in the region.
Bajwa also met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iranian army chief Maj. Gen. Mohammad Hossein Baqeri and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani.
During his meeting with Rouhani, Bajwa stated that Pakistan was prepared to strengthen bilateral relations between the countries.
Iran, meanwhile, began restoring internet access in the capital Tehran and a number of provinces on Thursday, local news agencies and residents said, after a five-day-long nationwide shutdown meant to help stifle the protests against fuel price hikes.
The IRGC said calm had returned across Iran, Iran's state TV reported. Amnesty International said over 100 demonstrators had been killed by security forces, a figure rejected as "speculative" by the government.
"The internet is being gradually restored in the country," the semi-official news agency Fars said, quoting unidentified informed sources.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo early Friday called on Iranians to send the US videos “documenting the regime’s crackdown on protestors.”
He wrote in a tweet: “The US will expose and sanction the abuses.”
Fars quoted the sources as saying the National Security Council that had ordered the shutdown approved reactivating the internet in "some areas and, according to reports so far, fixed-line internet has been restored in Hormozgan, Kermanshah, Arak, Mashhad, Qom, Tabriz, Hamadan and Bushehr provinces, and parts of Tehran."
"We again have internet as of an hour ago," a retired engineer, who declined to be named, said by telephone from Tehran.
The internet blockage made it difficult for protesters to post videos on social media to generate support and also to obtain reliable reports on the extent of the unrest.
Internet blockage observatory NetBlocks said the restoration of connectivity in Iran covered only about 10% of Iran.
News agencies and residents said only fixed-line internet, not mobile internet, was partially restored.
Protests began on Nov. 15 in several provincial towns after the government announced gasoline price hikes of at least 50%. They spread to 100 cities and towns and quickly turned political with protesters demanding top officials step down.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday criticized Iran for blocking the internet.
"Iran has become so unstable that the regime has shut down their entire Internet System so that the Great Iranian people cannot talk about the tremendous violence taking place within the country," Trump tweeted.
"They want ZERO transparency, thinking the world will not find out the death and tragedy that the Iranian Regime is causing!" he added.
The International Monetary Fund said it regretted the violence and loss of life during the protests and had not discussed the gasoline price hike with Iran.
IMF spokeswoman Camilla Andersen added: "In general, the IMF continues to advise oil-producing countries in the Middle East and Central Asia region to reduce fuel subsidies ... while compensating the poor with targeted cash transfers, which we understand is the approach Iran has taken."
On Thursday, state TV showed thousands marching in pro-government rallies in a dozen cities, carrying national flags and signs with slogans including "Rioting is not protesting."
Amnesty International said it had documented at least 106 protesters killed by security forces, which would make it the worst street unrest in Iran in at least a decade and possibly since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran’s UN mission on Wednesday dismissed the casualty report as "speculative, not reliable."
Iranian authorities said several people, including members of the security forces and policemen, were killed in street violence, which Tehran blamed on "foreign foes."
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