Congratulations, Mr President - the real winners from your dumb and dangerous betrayal of the heroic Kurds are Iran, Russia and ISIS!
By Piers Morgan
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
Defeating ISIS was one of Donald Trump’s main campaign pledges during the 2016 election race.
At the time, the terror group was America’s public enemy No1 - marauding around the Middle East with apparent impunity, killing US forces and committing despicable atrocities like burning pilots alive in cages and throwing gay people off roofs.
Candidate Trump repeatedly vowed to ‘bomb the hell’ out of ISIS and beat them into submission.
His words resonated powerfully around the world, especially in countries like Britain and France where ISIS were carrying out appalling acts of violence on civilians.
And to a large extent, President Trump kept his word.
US forces did indeed ‘bomb the hell’ out of ISIS, destroying its caliphate in Syria and Iraq, and neutering much of its very dangerous global threat in the process.
It would be a stretch to claim, as Trump has done, that ISIS is finished, because they’re demonstrably not in places like Afghanistan.
But since the successful dismantling of the caliphate, there has been a massive reduction in major ISIS terror attacks around the world.
President Trump is thus perfectly entitled to take credit for largely delivering on his promise.
Yet in one spectacularly ill-judged phone call, he’s now unleashed a horrendous can of worms that seems likely to undo all of that deserved kudos.
Nobody knows exactly what was said when Trump spoke to President Erdogan of Turkey last Sunday, but we’re all now seeing the gruesome consequences of that conversation.
Three days later, after Trump had announced the US would be pulling its small number of troops from northeast Syria, Erdogan did what he’d threatened to do for several years and invaded Syria.
He said he was launching Operation Peace Spring to ‘neutralize terror threats’ and ‘establish a safe zone’.
In reality, Turkish forces promptly attacked Kurdish forces – a historic foe - with savage brutality.
These are the same Kurdish forces who heroically helped the US defeat ISIS in the first place, and who’ve since been guarding thousands of captured Islamic State fighters.
And amid the chaos, hundreds of these fighters are now reported to have escaped.
So ISIS is back on the loose in Syria, free to re-group, re-arm, and re-launch its terrorism.
It gets worse.
As Turkey has rampaged through Kurdish territory, its forces have also killed many civilians and displaced over 130,000 from their homes, in what many horrified observers are describing as ‘ethnic cleansing’.
Some of the TV news interviews with devastated Kurdish women and their wounded or dead children are absolutely heart-breaking.
Let’s be blunt: America has betrayed the Kurds in horrifying, despicable fashion.
As the carnage unfurled - carnage that many experts predicted would happen – Trump warned Turkey its assault was a ‘bad idea’ and threatened on Twitter to destroy Turkey’s economy if it continued to wipe out the Kurds.
‘If Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits,’ said Trump, with unedifying arrogance given the gravity of the situation, ‘I will totally destroy and obliterate the economy of Turkey!
But Erdogan, having brazenly called Trump’s bluff, has shown no sign of being remotely deterred by such warnings, ruling out any mediation with the Kurds saying Turkey wouldn’t negotiate with ‘terrorists’.
As a result, the appalled and terrified Kurds are now fleeing into the gleeful arms of Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad, the man America wants ousted, and the man who is supported by two major U.S. rivals, Iran and Russia.
The Syrian government has offered to support the Kurds against Turkey’s invasion, a shift in alliances that could help Assad achieve total victory in the long-running Syrian conflict, and by association, achieve a victory too for Iran and Russia.
What an absolute shambles!
There can be few things more sickening than such cold-hearted betrayal of men and women who’ve risked their lives, and in many Kurd cases GIVEN their lives, to fight with another nation in battle.
The Kurds did that for America, to defeat ISIS and to make the world a safer place.
For President Trump to now throw those same Kurds to the Turkish wolves is an unforgivable act of treachery that may have very serious ramifications for the security of the United States.
The Kurds are under no illusion what’s happened to them.
The Wall Street Journal reported that a Kurdish commander who had spearheaded the fight against ISIS stormed out of a meeting with Americans shouting: ‘You sold us!’
Top U.S. military personnel feel the same way.
‘There is blood on Trump’s hands for abandoning our Kurdish allies,’ retired four-star Marine general John Allen told CNN.
Yes there is.
The only question now is how much blood, and what if anything America can do to stop it now the near-genocidal genie is out of the bottle?
Sending U.S. troops back into the area seems pointless.
‘I can’t see why you would leave U.S. forces there now,’ a senior military source told Fox News. ‘How would you get other partners? What would give them a reason to trust us?’
Well, exactly.
As even Trump loyalist Senator Lindsay Graham put it before the invasion began: ‘If we abandon them (the Kurds) good luck getting anybody to help America in the future with Al Qaeda and ISIS. You may be tired of fighting radical Islam, but they’re not tired of fighting you.’
General Allen added: ‘This is what happens when Trump follows his instincts and because of his alignment of autocrats.’
Sadly, this withering assessment is hard to argue.
Trump has regularly played footloose and fancy-free in his dealings with despotic foreign leaders.
But by letting himself get played by President Erdogan in this way, he has exposed America to the very worst kind of accusation: that it will ditch its allies when it suits them.
Trump, of course, doesn’t accept he’s done anything wrong.
‘Very smart not to be involved in the intense fighting along the Turkish border, for a change,’ he tweeted. ‘Those that mistakenly got us into the Middle East Wars are still pushing to fight. They have no idea what a bad decision they have made.’
Hmmm. I think the President needs to look closer to home when it comes to bad decisions.
I applaud Trump’s desire not to wage further war in the Middle East.
But I don’t applaud him for what he’s done to the Kurds.
It’s not ‘great and unmatched wisdom’ – it’s dumb, dangerous and disloyal.
The U.S. military has always operated under a sacred rule: ‘No man left behind.’
It is imbedded into the psyche of everyone in the American forces.
The U.S. Army Rangers creed states: ‘I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy.’
Whichever way Trump tries to spin this, the truth is that America just left its Kurdish comrades to fall into the hands of the enemy.
And that is a bloody disgrace.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Piers has been a frequent critic of how the Democrats and the media treat the president, but he doesn’t have his head stuck up Trump’s ass.
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
AVIATION IS NOT FOR THE INATTENTIVE
by Bob Walsh
On Saturday, about 8:45 in the morning at the Key West International Airport, two women in a private plane were about to take off when they discovered the plane did not want to move. The pilot got out to check to see if the wheel chocks were still in place. She walked into one of the propellers. That stings.
She lost an arm (and somehow also a foot) in the incident. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating.
On Saturday, about 8:45 in the morning at the Key West International Airport, two women in a private plane were about to take off when they discovered the plane did not want to move. The pilot got out to check to see if the wheel chocks were still in place. She walked into one of the propellers. That stings.
She lost an arm (and somehow also a foot) in the incident. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating.
FELONY FINGER GUNNING IN KANSAS CITY
by Bob Walsh
Yesterday the broadcast news announced that a 13-year old girl in Kansas City (I don't know which Kansas City) was being charged with a felony for finger-gunning a bully at school.
It is somehow comforting to know that California is not the only place in the country where significant decisions on public policy are being made by complete assholes.
Yesterday the broadcast news announced that a 13-year old girl in Kansas City (I don't know which Kansas City) was being charged with a felony for finger-gunning a bully at school.
It is somehow comforting to know that California is not the only place in the country where significant decisions on public policy are being made by complete assholes.
ONE GOOD THING (AND ONLY ONE) FROM GAVIN NEWSOM
by Bob Walsh
Governor Newsom did sign into law the "You kill it, you grill it" bill that allows drivers to keep animals they kill with their vehicles. I don't know if this covers out-of-season game animals or not, and to be perfectly honest I am not sure I much care. Bloodshot Bambi Burger does not have the right ring to it somehow.
Governor Newsom did sign into law the "You kill it, you grill it" bill that allows drivers to keep animals they kill with their vehicles. I don't know if this covers out-of-season game animals or not, and to be perfectly honest I am not sure I much care. Bloodshot Bambi Burger does not have the right ring to it somehow.
MAJOR PEDOPHILE FOUND DEAD IN HIS CELL IN U.K.
Damn, That Is A Real Shame
by Bob Walsh
Richard Huckle, 33, who admitted to 71 charges of sexual abuse of children as young as six months old, was doing 22 life sentences as a guest of HRH, was found stabbed to death in his cell in Full Sutton Prison in York in the U.K.
He is known to have abused at least 191 children in Malaysia. He photographed the abuse and sold or traded photos with other disgusting perverts. When he was arrested he was writing a guide for pedophiles on how to do it and get away with it.
The cops found over 20,000 encrypted indecent photos on his laptop.
There is reputedly a collection being taken up to pay for a lawyer for whoever killed him, assuming he is ever identified. That may be false. Then again, it may not.
by Bob Walsh
Richard Huckle, 33, who admitted to 71 charges of sexual abuse of children as young as six months old, was doing 22 life sentences as a guest of HRH, was found stabbed to death in his cell in Full Sutton Prison in York in the U.K.
He is known to have abused at least 191 children in Malaysia. He photographed the abuse and sold or traded photos with other disgusting perverts. When he was arrested he was writing a guide for pedophiles on how to do it and get away with it.
The cops found over 20,000 encrypted indecent photos on his laptop.
There is reputedly a collection being taken up to pay for a lawyer for whoever killed him, assuming he is ever identified. That may be false. Then again, it may not.
A GLIMPSE INTO THE FLAMING DUMPSTER
by Bob Walsh
This evening at 8 pm.m Eastern time will be the next liberal whacko extravaganza with a well-packed clown car of Democrat-Socialist candidates all on stage at the same time for a pseudo-debate. Each of these participants must have garnered at least 2% in an average of several recognized polls and picked up at least 130,000 unique donors.
Joe Biden, 76, AKA The Hair Sniffer, is still the front runner, at least statistically. He was Barry's V.P for two terms and served in the Senate from Delaware for about a million years.
Cory Booker, AKA Spartacus, is a youngster at 50. He was the mayor of Buttcrack, New Jersey, for seven years before becoming the firsts Black senator from New Jersey.
Pete Buttigieg, a baby at 37, is in his second term as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. He was an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve and is openly gay. He also likes Norwegian poetry.
Julian Castro, 45, was mayor of San Antonio, Texas and was the HUD secretary under Barack the Magnificent.
Tulsi Gabbard, a relative youngster at 38, is a congressional representative from Hawaii. She is a Samoan and a Hindu as well as a complete moron.
Kamala Harris, 54, is the junior senator from the formerly great state of California. She got into politics in California the old-fashioned way, by fucking Willie Brown for a political appointment job. She was formerly the District Attorney of San Francisco and the Attorney General of California and is a staunch opponent of the death penalty. When elected to the A. G. job she made no secret of the feelings but promised to uphold the law in California. There were, of course, no executions in CA during her tenure. She was the darling of the media when she announced, but has gotten zero traction, is polling about 7% in her own state and even Diane Feinstein, the senior senator from California, refused to endorse her.
Amy Klobuchar, 59, is the first female senator from Minnesota and had been the county attorney from Hennepin County before that.. That is pretty much all of her CV.
Robert Francis O'Rourke, 47, from Texas. He is a white guy who masquerades as a Hispanic named Beto. He lost to Ted Cruz in a shot at the U. S. Senate. He was hot shit until Mayor Pete came along. He rides a skateboard, wears a hoodie and is an idiot.
Bernie Sanders, 78, Socialist from New Hampshire. He is a millionaire with three homes who has never had a private sector job in his life and wants to tax the dogshit out of rich people to give all their money away to ex-felons and illegal aliens. Fortunately, with his recent medical history, he is toast. Plus Pocahontas Warren is stealing all his thunder, even is she is crazier than he is. Democrats don't care.
Tom Steyer, 62, is a billionaire who hates Donald Trump and wants to impeach him immediately. That's about it.
Pocahontas Warren, AKA Elizabeth, 70, is a Senator from Massachusetts. She masqueraded as an American Indian for all of her adult life when in fact she is about as White as a can of Crisco. She wants to confiscate wealth from those who have it (unconstitutional under current U. S. law) and give it to people who don't have it in order to buy their votes to keep her in power. She is a hard-core liberal psychopath pretending to be a liberal progressive and is running a solid second well behind Joe Bite-Me. If Joe goes down in flames with his current possible corruption problems she might actually have a shot at the nomination.
Andrew Yang, 44, is a techie who is afraid of automation.
This pseudo-debate will be at Oberlin College in Ohio and will be moderated by Anderson Cooper of the Clinton News Network, Erin Burnett, also of CNN, and Marc Lacy of the New York Times, a major part of the Democrat-Socialist propaganda machine.
I think there is a good rerun of Gilligan's Island in the same time slot, so..........
This evening at 8 pm.m Eastern time will be the next liberal whacko extravaganza with a well-packed clown car of Democrat-Socialist candidates all on stage at the same time for a pseudo-debate. Each of these participants must have garnered at least 2% in an average of several recognized polls and picked up at least 130,000 unique donors.
Joe Biden, 76, AKA The Hair Sniffer, is still the front runner, at least statistically. He was Barry's V.P for two terms and served in the Senate from Delaware for about a million years.
Cory Booker, AKA Spartacus, is a youngster at 50. He was the mayor of Buttcrack, New Jersey, for seven years before becoming the firsts Black senator from New Jersey.
Pete Buttigieg, a baby at 37, is in his second term as the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. He was an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve and is openly gay. He also likes Norwegian poetry.
Julian Castro, 45, was mayor of San Antonio, Texas and was the HUD secretary under Barack the Magnificent.
Tulsi Gabbard, a relative youngster at 38, is a congressional representative from Hawaii. She is a Samoan and a Hindu as well as a complete moron.
Kamala Harris, 54, is the junior senator from the formerly great state of California. She got into politics in California the old-fashioned way, by fucking Willie Brown for a political appointment job. She was formerly the District Attorney of San Francisco and the Attorney General of California and is a staunch opponent of the death penalty. When elected to the A. G. job she made no secret of the feelings but promised to uphold the law in California. There were, of course, no executions in CA during her tenure. She was the darling of the media when she announced, but has gotten zero traction, is polling about 7% in her own state and even Diane Feinstein, the senior senator from California, refused to endorse her.
Amy Klobuchar, 59, is the first female senator from Minnesota and had been the county attorney from Hennepin County before that.. That is pretty much all of her CV.
Robert Francis O'Rourke, 47, from Texas. He is a white guy who masquerades as a Hispanic named Beto. He lost to Ted Cruz in a shot at the U. S. Senate. He was hot shit until Mayor Pete came along. He rides a skateboard, wears a hoodie and is an idiot.
Bernie Sanders, 78, Socialist from New Hampshire. He is a millionaire with three homes who has never had a private sector job in his life and wants to tax the dogshit out of rich people to give all their money away to ex-felons and illegal aliens. Fortunately, with his recent medical history, he is toast. Plus Pocahontas Warren is stealing all his thunder, even is she is crazier than he is. Democrats don't care.
Tom Steyer, 62, is a billionaire who hates Donald Trump and wants to impeach him immediately. That's about it.
Pocahontas Warren, AKA Elizabeth, 70, is a Senator from Massachusetts. She masqueraded as an American Indian for all of her adult life when in fact she is about as White as a can of Crisco. She wants to confiscate wealth from those who have it (unconstitutional under current U. S. law) and give it to people who don't have it in order to buy their votes to keep her in power. She is a hard-core liberal psychopath pretending to be a liberal progressive and is running a solid second well behind Joe Bite-Me. If Joe goes down in flames with his current possible corruption problems she might actually have a shot at the nomination.
Andrew Yang, 44, is a techie who is afraid of automation.
This pseudo-debate will be at Oberlin College in Ohio and will be moderated by Anderson Cooper of the Clinton News Network, Erin Burnett, also of CNN, and Marc Lacy of the New York Times, a major part of the Democrat-Socialist propaganda machine.
I think there is a good rerun of Gilligan's Island in the same time slot, so..........
HE SHOULD HAVE HAD HIS OWN BRAIN OPERATED ON
Santa Cruz brain surgeon accused of child rape found dead in jail cell, suicide suspected
By Nick Ibarra
Santa Cruz Sentinel
October 13, 2019
SANTA CRUZ — James Kohut, a former neurosurgeon on trial for child sex crimes, was found dead in his jail cell Sunday morning, authorities said.
According to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, the body of 59-year-old Kohut was found alone in his cell when breakfast service began about 5:45 a.m.
An early assessment by a forensic pathologist suggests the former brain surgeon took his own life, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Kohut had been held since May 2017 on multiple felony counts related to the alleged sexual abuse of four children. Prior to his arrest, Kohut worked as a neurosurgeon at Dominican Hospital.
Two women — who prosecutors have described as Kohut’s girlfriends — were also charged in the case: Rashel Brandon, a former Dominican Hospital nurse, and Emily Stephens. Children of both Brandon and Stephens are among the alleged victims.
An autopsy is expected to be performed this week, and authorities said an investigation is underway to determine the cause and manner of Kohut’s death.
Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Ashley Keehn was not able to release information about any specific evidence found in Kohut’s cell that may be connected to his death.
“That’s something that we are investigating and that will most likely be released after the autopsy report on cause and manner of death,” Keehn said.
Kohut had been on suicide watch early in his incarceration, according to Keehn, but was not on suicide watch at the time of his death.
“There was no indication in the past several months that he would or wanted to harm himself,” Keehn said.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Kohut did not share a cell with any other inmates and was held in Santa Cruz County Jail’s protective housing unit.
Kohut did not appear in person at multiple recent hearings in the case, according to court records. The next hearing in the case was scheduled for Thursday.
An attorney representing Kohut, Jay Rorty, declined to comment.
By Nick Ibarra
Santa Cruz Sentinel
October 13, 2019
SANTA CRUZ — James Kohut, a former neurosurgeon on trial for child sex crimes, was found dead in his jail cell Sunday morning, authorities said.
According to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office, the body of 59-year-old Kohut was found alone in his cell when breakfast service began about 5:45 a.m.
An early assessment by a forensic pathologist suggests the former brain surgeon took his own life, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Kohut had been held since May 2017 on multiple felony counts related to the alleged sexual abuse of four children. Prior to his arrest, Kohut worked as a neurosurgeon at Dominican Hospital.
Two women — who prosecutors have described as Kohut’s girlfriends — were also charged in the case: Rashel Brandon, a former Dominican Hospital nurse, and Emily Stephens. Children of both Brandon and Stephens are among the alleged victims.
An autopsy is expected to be performed this week, and authorities said an investigation is underway to determine the cause and manner of Kohut’s death.
Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Ashley Keehn was not able to release information about any specific evidence found in Kohut’s cell that may be connected to his death.
“That’s something that we are investigating and that will most likely be released after the autopsy report on cause and manner of death,” Keehn said.
Kohut had been on suicide watch early in his incarceration, according to Keehn, but was not on suicide watch at the time of his death.
“There was no indication in the past several months that he would or wanted to harm himself,” Keehn said.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Kohut did not share a cell with any other inmates and was held in Santa Cruz County Jail’s protective housing unit.
Kohut did not appear in person at multiple recent hearings in the case, according to court records. The next hearing in the case was scheduled for Thursday.
An attorney representing Kohut, Jay Rorty, declined to comment.
TURKEY’S INCURSION INTO KURDISH AREA OF SYRIA NOT LIKELY TO BE DETERRED BY US SANCTIONS
Erdoğan is reviving the Islamic State; There is something disturbing and disappointing about the US decision to leave the Kurds to their fate
By Oded Granot
Israel Hayom
October 13, 2019
After the Turkish incursion into the Kurdish area of northeast Syria, everyone involved – the US, the European Union, the Arab League, Syria, Iran, and Iraq, even Russian President Vladimir Putin – was concerned. Some their agreement to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's military gambit through silence, some were apathetic.
Of course, the concern had nothing to do with the human tragedy that is resurging in the area west of the Euphrates river. No mercy for the hundreds of thousands of civilians, Kurds and others, women and children, who are being uprooted and are fleeing the villages near the border. No one is feeling any regret over the more than 500 people who have been killed and wounded after only five days of Turkish aerial bombardments and artillery shelling.
The main concern of those who took no particular steps to stop Erdogan is the threat that the Islamic State, tens of thousands of whose operatives are currently being held in prison by the Kurds, while tens of thousands of their relatives are being held in detainment camps controlled by the Kurds, could rise again. In a last attempt to thwart the Turkish military assault, the Kurds warned that there was a real danger that under cover of battle, their ISIS prisoners might escape and return to their native countries to resume jihad against the infidels.
Even if the Kurds' threat is somewhat exaggerated (most of the prisoners are located outside the zone in northern Syria Erdoğan is targeting), it is not baseless or unreasonable. The Kurds are busy defending themselves and devoting less time to guarding the ISIS prisoners. The Americans, who until now were helping them secure the prison facilities, are now more concerned with protecting the lives of their own forces in Syria, especially after a few of them were nearly hit on Saturday by errant Turkish artillery fire.
Aside from that, the war against the Islamic State, which is still alive and kicking in many places in eastern Syria, has been halted almost entirely due to Erdoğan's operation. This allowed ISIS operatives who are still walking around free to set off car bombs in Qamishli, a major logistics center for the Kurds, as it was being bombarded by the Turks.
The fear that ISIS could rise again as a result of Erdogan's attack has prompted the Europeans to do what they rarely do and fall in line with Washington by threatening to apply sanctions to Turkey if it does not cease its military action. Putin also expressed concern about ISIS operatives making their way back to Russian-controlled areas. The Arab League convened a special meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo on Saturday, many of whom condemned the Turkish incursion.
Now, US President Trump might be starting to regret his phone call to Erdoğan last week and his ensuing decision to withdraw a few dozen American soldiers from the area Turkey is now invading. The fear of an Islamic State revival and the harsh criticism from both parties over his abandonment of the Kurds have caused the US president to not only threaten Erdoğan with "paralyzing the Turkish economy," but also to instruct Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to prepare to hurt Turkish assets in the US if the Turkish operation continues.
Erdoğan won't blink at sanctions
Maybe out of a desire to prevent additional harm to the US, which is now seen as turning its back on its allies, Trump rushed to announce he was deploying additional forces and anti-aircraft defenses to Saudi Arabia to help defend it against Iran. But the Saudis don't really trust Washington anymore and have already asked Pakistan to help solve their conflict with Iran through diplomatic channels.
There is little to no chance Erdoğan will blanch at sanctions and stop his military campaign against the Kurds. This weekend, he threatened that if the Europeans took action against him, he would let millions of refugees in Turkey loose to "flood" Europe. The deal to hold refugees in Turkey in exchange for billions of dollars in European aid is due to expire soon.
Wiping out Kurdish autonomy
The Turkish incursion into northern Syria rests on an orderly, two-state plan designed to eradicate any possibility of establishing a Kurdish economy there. The first part of the plan is to run Kurdish residents and militias out of towns and villages that lie within a strip of territory along the Turkish-Syrian border and advance 32 kilometers (20 miles) into Syria to set up a buffer zone. The second stage will fill that territory with more than 2 million Syrian refugees who are currently in Turkey. In simple terms, this is known as ethnic cleansing.
Turkey, which has the second-biggest military in NATO, and its partners (such as the pro-Erdoğan Syrian rebels), have a clear military advantage over the Kurdish forces as well as superior air power. Occupying a security zone and pushing the Kurds out is one possible move, but holding it in the long-term without casualties won't be simple. The Kurds have a lot of experience in guerrilla warfare, and Erdoğan should learn a lesson from Israel's traumatic experience controlling the security zone in southern Lebanon until it withdrew in 2000.
Israel is following developments in northern Syria, and the responses from the superpowers (mainly the US) to the Turkish incursion, very closely. The alliance between Jerusalem and Washington is strong and different from Washington's commitments to its other partners in the region. However, there is something disturbing in the fact that the Kurds, a brave people, feel abandoned by the strongest country in the world, and the Saudis are already convinced that the US won't defend them against the big threat from Tehran.
By Oded Granot
Israel Hayom
October 13, 2019
After the Turkish incursion into the Kurdish area of northeast Syria, everyone involved – the US, the European Union, the Arab League, Syria, Iran, and Iraq, even Russian President Vladimir Putin – was concerned. Some their agreement to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's military gambit through silence, some were apathetic.
Of course, the concern had nothing to do with the human tragedy that is resurging in the area west of the Euphrates river. No mercy for the hundreds of thousands of civilians, Kurds and others, women and children, who are being uprooted and are fleeing the villages near the border. No one is feeling any regret over the more than 500 people who have been killed and wounded after only five days of Turkish aerial bombardments and artillery shelling.
The main concern of those who took no particular steps to stop Erdogan is the threat that the Islamic State, tens of thousands of whose operatives are currently being held in prison by the Kurds, while tens of thousands of their relatives are being held in detainment camps controlled by the Kurds, could rise again. In a last attempt to thwart the Turkish military assault, the Kurds warned that there was a real danger that under cover of battle, their ISIS prisoners might escape and return to their native countries to resume jihad against the infidels.
Even if the Kurds' threat is somewhat exaggerated (most of the prisoners are located outside the zone in northern Syria Erdoğan is targeting), it is not baseless or unreasonable. The Kurds are busy defending themselves and devoting less time to guarding the ISIS prisoners. The Americans, who until now were helping them secure the prison facilities, are now more concerned with protecting the lives of their own forces in Syria, especially after a few of them were nearly hit on Saturday by errant Turkish artillery fire.
Aside from that, the war against the Islamic State, which is still alive and kicking in many places in eastern Syria, has been halted almost entirely due to Erdoğan's operation. This allowed ISIS operatives who are still walking around free to set off car bombs in Qamishli, a major logistics center for the Kurds, as it was being bombarded by the Turks.
The fear that ISIS could rise again as a result of Erdogan's attack has prompted the Europeans to do what they rarely do and fall in line with Washington by threatening to apply sanctions to Turkey if it does not cease its military action. Putin also expressed concern about ISIS operatives making their way back to Russian-controlled areas. The Arab League convened a special meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo on Saturday, many of whom condemned the Turkish incursion.
Now, US President Trump might be starting to regret his phone call to Erdoğan last week and his ensuing decision to withdraw a few dozen American soldiers from the area Turkey is now invading. The fear of an Islamic State revival and the harsh criticism from both parties over his abandonment of the Kurds have caused the US president to not only threaten Erdoğan with "paralyzing the Turkish economy," but also to instruct Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to prepare to hurt Turkish assets in the US if the Turkish operation continues.
Erdoğan won't blink at sanctions
Maybe out of a desire to prevent additional harm to the US, which is now seen as turning its back on its allies, Trump rushed to announce he was deploying additional forces and anti-aircraft defenses to Saudi Arabia to help defend it against Iran. But the Saudis don't really trust Washington anymore and have already asked Pakistan to help solve their conflict with Iran through diplomatic channels.
There is little to no chance Erdoğan will blanch at sanctions and stop his military campaign against the Kurds. This weekend, he threatened that if the Europeans took action against him, he would let millions of refugees in Turkey loose to "flood" Europe. The deal to hold refugees in Turkey in exchange for billions of dollars in European aid is due to expire soon.
Wiping out Kurdish autonomy
The Turkish incursion into northern Syria rests on an orderly, two-state plan designed to eradicate any possibility of establishing a Kurdish economy there. The first part of the plan is to run Kurdish residents and militias out of towns and villages that lie within a strip of territory along the Turkish-Syrian border and advance 32 kilometers (20 miles) into Syria to set up a buffer zone. The second stage will fill that territory with more than 2 million Syrian refugees who are currently in Turkey. In simple terms, this is known as ethnic cleansing.
Turkey, which has the second-biggest military in NATO, and its partners (such as the pro-Erdoğan Syrian rebels), have a clear military advantage over the Kurdish forces as well as superior air power. Occupying a security zone and pushing the Kurds out is one possible move, but holding it in the long-term without casualties won't be simple. The Kurds have a lot of experience in guerrilla warfare, and Erdoğan should learn a lesson from Israel's traumatic experience controlling the security zone in southern Lebanon until it withdrew in 2000.
Israel is following developments in northern Syria, and the responses from the superpowers (mainly the US) to the Turkish incursion, very closely. The alliance between Jerusalem and Washington is strong and different from Washington's commitments to its other partners in the region. However, there is something disturbing in the fact that the Kurds, a brave people, feel abandoned by the strongest country in the world, and the Saudis are already convinced that the US won't defend them against the big threat from Tehran.
ALL-OUT WAR POSSIBLE AS RUSSIAN BACKED SYRIAN FORCES COMING TO THE RESCUE OF THE KURDS
'There is blood on Trump's hands': Retired four-star Marine general says 'the U.S. greenlighted' the unfolding crisis in Syria after ordering American troops to withdraw
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
A retired four-star Marine general has slammed President Donald Trump saying there is blood on his hands over the unfolding crisis in Syria after he ordered all U.S. troops to withdraw from the northern border area.
General John Allen told CNN on Sunday that the U.S. 'greenlighted' the current situation in Syria and that it was 'completely foreseeable'.
Syria's Kurds said Syrian government forces agreed on Sunday to help them fend off Turkey's invasion - a major shift in alliances that came after Trump ordered all U.S. troops withdrawn from the northern border area amid the rapidly deepening chaos.
Trump has suggested Kurdish fighters are deliberately letting ISIS jihadists out of prison to lure the US back into Syria, despite generals saying the camps are being targeted by Turkey.
__________
Trump demands immediate CEASEFIRE by Turkey after threatening sanctions on Erdogan who is holding 50 U.S. tactical nuclear weapons hostage - and says Kurds are Assad's problem so anyone including 'Napoleon' is welcome to protect them
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
Donald Trump said Monday that as U.S. troops withdraw from Syria, he has put the fate of America's former Kurdish allies in the hands of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, whose regime he called 'our enemy' in the same breath.
And he announced that his administration aims to punish Turkey's incursion into Syria by canceling a $100 billion trade agreement, hiking import tariffs on Turkish steel, and readying economic sanctions against anyone in Erdoğan's government who threatens 'peace, security, or stability' in Syria.
Turkey is a NATO ally. It's also the aggressor whose military incursion both the Syrian army and the Kurds are trying to push back.
And sitting inside the Incirlik air base 250 miles inside Turkey, whose operation the U.S. has shared since the mid-1950s, are about 50 American tactical nuclear weapons.
Trump phoned Recep Tayyip Erdogan and demanded an immediate end to Turkey's invasion of northern Syria, vice president Mike Pence said late Monday afternoon.
Pence said he was being dispatched 'as quickly as possible' to negotiate a ceasefire after Erdogan's forces stormed into northern Syria, bringing claims of executions by their allies and prompting the U.S.'s former Kurdish allies to turn to Bashar al-Assad for help.
Pence said the president is 'very concerned about instability in the region.' But hours earlier Trump washed his hands off the Kurds.
Incirlik is the strategically-vital air base where America has 50 tactical nuclear weapons which a senior official said were effectively Erdoğan's hostages.
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
A retired four-star Marine general has slammed President Donald Trump saying there is blood on his hands over the unfolding crisis in Syria after he ordered all U.S. troops to withdraw from the northern border area.
General John Allen told CNN on Sunday that the U.S. 'greenlighted' the current situation in Syria and that it was 'completely foreseeable'.
Syria's Kurds said Syrian government forces agreed on Sunday to help them fend off Turkey's invasion - a major shift in alliances that came after Trump ordered all U.S. troops withdrawn from the northern border area amid the rapidly deepening chaos.
Trump has suggested Kurdish fighters are deliberately letting ISIS jihadists out of prison to lure the US back into Syria, despite generals saying the camps are being targeted by Turkey.
__________
Trump demands immediate CEASEFIRE by Turkey after threatening sanctions on Erdogan who is holding 50 U.S. tactical nuclear weapons hostage - and says Kurds are Assad's problem so anyone including 'Napoleon' is welcome to protect them
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
Donald Trump said Monday that as U.S. troops withdraw from Syria, he has put the fate of America's former Kurdish allies in the hands of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, whose regime he called 'our enemy' in the same breath.
And he announced that his administration aims to punish Turkey's incursion into Syria by canceling a $100 billion trade agreement, hiking import tariffs on Turkish steel, and readying economic sanctions against anyone in Erdoğan's government who threatens 'peace, security, or stability' in Syria.
Turkey is a NATO ally. It's also the aggressor whose military incursion both the Syrian army and the Kurds are trying to push back.
And sitting inside the Incirlik air base 250 miles inside Turkey, whose operation the U.S. has shared since the mid-1950s, are about 50 American tactical nuclear weapons.
Trump phoned Recep Tayyip Erdogan and demanded an immediate end to Turkey's invasion of northern Syria, vice president Mike Pence said late Monday afternoon.
Pence said he was being dispatched 'as quickly as possible' to negotiate a ceasefire after Erdogan's forces stormed into northern Syria, bringing claims of executions by their allies and prompting the U.S.'s former Kurdish allies to turn to Bashar al-Assad for help.
Pence said the president is 'very concerned about instability in the region.' But hours earlier Trump washed his hands off the Kurds.
Incirlik is the strategically-vital air base where America has 50 tactical nuclear weapons which a senior official said were effectively Erdoğan's hostages.
ONE SHOT, ONE KILL, ONE RESIGNATION ….. WILL CRIMINAL CHARGES FOLLOW?
White cop who shot dead 28-year-old black woman in her own home during a wellness check RESIGNS as victim's family blasts Fort Worth police and calls for an independent probe
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
Fort Worth interim police chief Ed Kraus announced that Officer Aaron Dean tendered his resignation on Monday afternoon, two days after he shot and killed Atatiana Jefferson in her home.
The officer was called to the home to perform a wellness check after a neighbor noticed Atatiana's front door was open at around 2.30am Saturday.
Atatiana was playing video games with her eight-year-old nephew when they heard a noise outside and she went to investigate, assuming it was a prowler.
Body camera footage shows one of the officers shining flashlights into the back side home as Atatiana approached the bedroom window. 'Put your hands up! Show me your hands!' he shouted through the window. A split-second later, the officer fired a single shot, killing Atatiana.
The victim's loved ones spoke at a press conference on Monday. They called for an independent investigation into the 28-year-old's death. Lee Miller, the family's attorney, called the Fort Worth Police Department 'one of the deadliest in the United States' and said the incident was 'not a one-of'.
__________
THINGS HAPPENING FAST IN FORT WORTH
by Bob Walsh
Aaron Dean, 34, the former Ft. Worth Police Officer, resigned yesterday just ahead of being fired for the highly questionable shooting death of Atatiana Jefferson, 28, in a private residence.
Dean responded to a welfare check call made by a neighbor. He never did go to the front door, which was standing open, or announce himself. He moved around the outside of the house and when he saw Ms. Jefferson inside the house (allegedly holding a weapon, though that is also questionable) he fired on her thru the window, killing her. There was a handgun in the house, but it is not clear if Ms. Jefferson was holding it at the time she was shot. Ms. Jefferson was not apparently a prohibited person and would have been in legal possession of the weapon if she was in fact in physical possession of it at the time. Ms. Jefferson was minding her young nephew, who was in the house at the time of the shooting. They had been playing a video game.
The police camera footage seems to pretty clearly indicate that Dean screwed the pooch big time. He is being held on a murder charge pending a $200,000 bail. He was on the force 1 1/2 years at the time of the shooting.
Daily Mail
October 14, 2019
Fort Worth interim police chief Ed Kraus announced that Officer Aaron Dean tendered his resignation on Monday afternoon, two days after he shot and killed Atatiana Jefferson in her home.
The officer was called to the home to perform a wellness check after a neighbor noticed Atatiana's front door was open at around 2.30am Saturday.
Atatiana was playing video games with her eight-year-old nephew when they heard a noise outside and she went to investigate, assuming it was a prowler.
Body camera footage shows one of the officers shining flashlights into the back side home as Atatiana approached the bedroom window. 'Put your hands up! Show me your hands!' he shouted through the window. A split-second later, the officer fired a single shot, killing Atatiana.
The victim's loved ones spoke at a press conference on Monday. They called for an independent investigation into the 28-year-old's death. Lee Miller, the family's attorney, called the Fort Worth Police Department 'one of the deadliest in the United States' and said the incident was 'not a one-of'.
__________
THINGS HAPPENING FAST IN FORT WORTH
by Bob Walsh
Aaron Dean, 34, the former Ft. Worth Police Officer, resigned yesterday just ahead of being fired for the highly questionable shooting death of Atatiana Jefferson, 28, in a private residence.
Dean responded to a welfare check call made by a neighbor. He never did go to the front door, which was standing open, or announce himself. He moved around the outside of the house and when he saw Ms. Jefferson inside the house (allegedly holding a weapon, though that is also questionable) he fired on her thru the window, killing her. There was a handgun in the house, but it is not clear if Ms. Jefferson was holding it at the time she was shot. Ms. Jefferson was not apparently a prohibited person and would have been in legal possession of the weapon if she was in fact in physical possession of it at the time. Ms. Jefferson was minding her young nephew, who was in the house at the time of the shooting. They had been playing a video game.
The police camera footage seems to pretty clearly indicate that Dean screwed the pooch big time. He is being held on a murder charge pending a $200,000 bail. He was on the force 1 1/2 years at the time of the shooting.
THE LATE TANK’S SCROTUM WAS INJECTED TO THE SIZE OF A BASKETBALL
Boyfriends Sued Over Man’s Death From Silicone Genital Injections
By Blake Montgomery
Daily Beast
October 8, 2019
The mother of an Australian man killed by silicone injections to his penis and testicles has accused her son’s boyfriends of manipulating him into causing his own death.
Linda Chapman, mother of Tank Hafertepen, and her son Ben filed a lawsuit in King County, Washington, in September against Dylan Hafertepen, Daniel Balderas Hafertepen, Charles Osborn, Matthew Scott, and Philip Myers last month, alleging wrongful death, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy. The Chapmans are seeking punitive damages and plan to contest provisions of Tank’s will.
“They robbed her of her right to be his mother,” said the Chapmans’ lawyer Joe Murphy.
Tank and Dylan ran popular Tumblr accounts chronicling their relationship and sexual exploits, and Tank’s death caused an uproar among their fans and online community. The five men had been living together in a polyamorous relationship in Seattle at the time of Tank’s death, with Dylan acting as the “master” and the others serving as his submissives, his “pups.” Tank and the other pups had agreed to follow Dylan’s orders as part of dating him.
The five men worked hard to make their bodies as large as possible, lifting weights for multiple hours a day and eating vast amounts. In pursuit of a sexual fetish for huge genitals, they would inject their penises and testicles with saline to temporarily enlarge them. They would later graduate to using silicone to permanently engorge their genitals. The latter procedure is both illegal and dangerous, and it proved lethal for Tank. He died of a pulmonary embolism induced by his injections in October 2018.
Dylan never notified Linda or Ben Chapman of Tank’s illness, hospitalization, or death, according to the complaint, and he presented himself as having legal authority over Tank’s remains, which were cremated. Tank spent a week in the hospital, part of it in a coma, but his mother would not learn of his fate until a week after his death, the complaint states.
The Australian allegedly began injecting silicone on Dylan’s command in 2014 and continued until his death. The Chapmans alleged Dylan and the pups neglected their duty to care for Tank by requiring him to inject himself and possibly performing the injections themselves.
Chapman alleged that Dylan and the pups coerced Tank into inflating his scrotum to “the size of a basketball” through a mix of manipulation and humiliation. Dylan ordered Tank to use steroids to bulk up, degraded him, and forced him to publicly castigate himself for perceived violations of the relationship with Dylan, the complaint states.
As a pup, Tank went to great lengths to demonstrate his devotion to Dylan. He changed his name from Jack Chapman to Tank Heathcliff Hafertepen, thereby adopting his pup name as his legal name to take Dylan’s last name. He emigrated from Australia to the U.S. to join the pups and while in the States tattooed “Property of Master Dylan” on his lower back under Dylan’s astrological sign. His mother alleges Dylan forced him to cut off all contact to family in Australia.
Tank and Dylan often posted provocative pictures of themselves to the delight of thousands of fans, but when Dylan attempted to suppress news of Tank’s death, posting online as if Tank were still alive and later misstating his cause of death, those same fans turned on him and blamed him for his partner’s death.
The complaint references a contract Tank posted to his blog that describes ceding an extreme degree of control to Dylan, making use of lines like “A pup’s mind is the exclusive property of his master at all times” and detailing how he would relinquish control of his finances, his time, and his friends. He also wrote that he would submit to body modifications, including saline scrotal inflation. Dylan previously told BuzzFeed News the agreement as posted online was a work of erotic fiction, but Tank did follow through with some of its stipulations like the “property of” tattoo.
Both Tank and Dylan had acknowledged the dangers of silicone injections on their blogs, but when a reader asked Tank how big he intended for his scrotum to become, he wrote, “Master will decide when enough is enough.”
Several overlapping sexual subcultures played a role in their relationship: BDSM, puppy play, “bears” (hairy, husky gay men), and extreme body modification, but Tank’s friends said the romance exceeded the normal boundaries of kinky romance and bled into toxic abuse.
In periods where the two had broken up, the complaint alleges, Tank himself had told friends that Dylan abused him both psychologically and physically, including subjecting him to “physical imprisonment.” Dylan sued Tank at one point for thousands of dollars, claiming his former partner owed him backdated rent and had not paid for silicone Dylan purchased, the complaint alleges. The legal action was yet another display of dominance and ownership, according to the complaint. Despite the talk of abuse and legal threats, Tank and Dylan would eventually get back together.
The Chapmans are also planning to accuse Dylan and the pups of a more traditional type of coercion: the forced alteration of a will. Three weeks before his death, Tank drew up a will leaving everything to Dylan, most notably $200,000 from Tank’s father. Linda Chapman previously said her son had always intended to leave the money to his autistic brother. In June, Dylan and the pups laid claim to the money in Australian court, according to Murphy, though they have not received it yet.
Charles Osborn, one of the pups, is named as executor of Tank’s will, which Chapman plans to challenge in court. A probate hearing on the matter has been set for next week, according to Murphy, and Osborn’s status as a defendant in a wrongful death case may render him ineligible to execute the will.
“Tank had wanted the money to go towards our home together, but without Tank it’s a reminder of what I’ve lost,” Dylan previously said.
Murphy said he and his client hope the suit holds Dylan and company accountable for Tank’s death and ensures the man she calls her son’s abuser doesn’t benefit from his death.
“We filed this suit to bring some closure and resolution. One of the most important parts to her will be discovery. She wants to know what happened,” Murphy said. “Why was she never called?”
Dylan and the pups did not respond to a request for comment. When I previously sought comment from them in Seattle, they called the police, who arrested and jailed me.
By Blake Montgomery
Daily Beast
October 8, 2019
The mother of an Australian man killed by silicone injections to his penis and testicles has accused her son’s boyfriends of manipulating him into causing his own death.
Linda Chapman, mother of Tank Hafertepen, and her son Ben filed a lawsuit in King County, Washington, in September against Dylan Hafertepen, Daniel Balderas Hafertepen, Charles Osborn, Matthew Scott, and Philip Myers last month, alleging wrongful death, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy. The Chapmans are seeking punitive damages and plan to contest provisions of Tank’s will.
“They robbed her of her right to be his mother,” said the Chapmans’ lawyer Joe Murphy.
Tank and Dylan ran popular Tumblr accounts chronicling their relationship and sexual exploits, and Tank’s death caused an uproar among their fans and online community. The five men had been living together in a polyamorous relationship in Seattle at the time of Tank’s death, with Dylan acting as the “master” and the others serving as his submissives, his “pups.” Tank and the other pups had agreed to follow Dylan’s orders as part of dating him.
The five men worked hard to make their bodies as large as possible, lifting weights for multiple hours a day and eating vast amounts. In pursuit of a sexual fetish for huge genitals, they would inject their penises and testicles with saline to temporarily enlarge them. They would later graduate to using silicone to permanently engorge their genitals. The latter procedure is both illegal and dangerous, and it proved lethal for Tank. He died of a pulmonary embolism induced by his injections in October 2018.
Dylan never notified Linda or Ben Chapman of Tank’s illness, hospitalization, or death, according to the complaint, and he presented himself as having legal authority over Tank’s remains, which were cremated. Tank spent a week in the hospital, part of it in a coma, but his mother would not learn of his fate until a week after his death, the complaint states.
The Australian allegedly began injecting silicone on Dylan’s command in 2014 and continued until his death. The Chapmans alleged Dylan and the pups neglected their duty to care for Tank by requiring him to inject himself and possibly performing the injections themselves.
Chapman alleged that Dylan and the pups coerced Tank into inflating his scrotum to “the size of a basketball” through a mix of manipulation and humiliation. Dylan ordered Tank to use steroids to bulk up, degraded him, and forced him to publicly castigate himself for perceived violations of the relationship with Dylan, the complaint states.
As a pup, Tank went to great lengths to demonstrate his devotion to Dylan. He changed his name from Jack Chapman to Tank Heathcliff Hafertepen, thereby adopting his pup name as his legal name to take Dylan’s last name. He emigrated from Australia to the U.S. to join the pups and while in the States tattooed “Property of Master Dylan” on his lower back under Dylan’s astrological sign. His mother alleges Dylan forced him to cut off all contact to family in Australia.
Tank and Dylan often posted provocative pictures of themselves to the delight of thousands of fans, but when Dylan attempted to suppress news of Tank’s death, posting online as if Tank were still alive and later misstating his cause of death, those same fans turned on him and blamed him for his partner’s death.
The complaint references a contract Tank posted to his blog that describes ceding an extreme degree of control to Dylan, making use of lines like “A pup’s mind is the exclusive property of his master at all times” and detailing how he would relinquish control of his finances, his time, and his friends. He also wrote that he would submit to body modifications, including saline scrotal inflation. Dylan previously told BuzzFeed News the agreement as posted online was a work of erotic fiction, but Tank did follow through with some of its stipulations like the “property of” tattoo.
Both Tank and Dylan had acknowledged the dangers of silicone injections on their blogs, but when a reader asked Tank how big he intended for his scrotum to become, he wrote, “Master will decide when enough is enough.”
Several overlapping sexual subcultures played a role in their relationship: BDSM, puppy play, “bears” (hairy, husky gay men), and extreme body modification, but Tank’s friends said the romance exceeded the normal boundaries of kinky romance and bled into toxic abuse.
In periods where the two had broken up, the complaint alleges, Tank himself had told friends that Dylan abused him both psychologically and physically, including subjecting him to “physical imprisonment.” Dylan sued Tank at one point for thousands of dollars, claiming his former partner owed him backdated rent and had not paid for silicone Dylan purchased, the complaint alleges. The legal action was yet another display of dominance and ownership, according to the complaint. Despite the talk of abuse and legal threats, Tank and Dylan would eventually get back together.
The Chapmans are also planning to accuse Dylan and the pups of a more traditional type of coercion: the forced alteration of a will. Three weeks before his death, Tank drew up a will leaving everything to Dylan, most notably $200,000 from Tank’s father. Linda Chapman previously said her son had always intended to leave the money to his autistic brother. In June, Dylan and the pups laid claim to the money in Australian court, according to Murphy, though they have not received it yet.
Charles Osborn, one of the pups, is named as executor of Tank’s will, which Chapman plans to challenge in court. A probate hearing on the matter has been set for next week, according to Murphy, and Osborn’s status as a defendant in a wrongful death case may render him ineligible to execute the will.
“Tank had wanted the money to go towards our home together, but without Tank it’s a reminder of what I’ve lost,” Dylan previously said.
Murphy said he and his client hope the suit holds Dylan and company accountable for Tank’s death and ensures the man she calls her son’s abuser doesn’t benefit from his death.
“We filed this suit to bring some closure and resolution. One of the most important parts to her will be discovery. She wants to know what happened,” Murphy said. “Why was she never called?”
Dylan and the pups did not respond to a request for comment. When I previously sought comment from them in Seattle, they called the police, who arrested and jailed me.
Monday, October 14, 2019
IN DEFENSE OF PRESIDENT TRUMP
“The forecast for autumn: Gloomy” is an article by Amnon Lord that was published in Sunday’s issue of Israel Hayom. A portion of that article explains that the Kurds Trump abandoned were the PKK, a communist terrorist group aligned with Iran, something that most of his critics, including myself, are not aware of. Here is that portion of Lord’s article:
Are these the same Kurds?
The US move in Syria does not empower Iran, but it sends a message of American weakness in a critical area of the Middle East.
One of the problems with US President Donald Trump's announcement that the US was opening the door to a Turkish incursion into northeast Syria and abandoning the Kurds was exactly the use of the general name "Kurds."
The mid-1970s saw the first major US abandonment of the Kurds. Henry Kissinger managed to mediate a deal between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Iran, which was still ruled by the shah. The Kurds paid the price of the deal, and Kissinger forced Israel to cut off its ties with and assistance to the Kurds.
They were the Kurds of Iraqi Kurdistan, whereas the Kurds of northern Syria – no matter what initials you assign them – are the PKK, which is basically a communist terrorist group.
There have been endless analyses of and responses to Trump's announcement, and in the meantime, the Turks have already started aerial bombardments ahead of a ground incursion. I'm backing strategic analyst Michael Doran from the Hudson Institute, who was able to – in real time – parse former President Obama's complicated decisions and how he was moving closer to the Iranians and the Russians.
Doran lays out Trump's latest move in light of the long-standing war between the PKK and the Turks. Some 40,000 Turks have been killed in that war, and in the ongoing battle against the Islamic State, the Kurds of northern Syria occupied areas they had never dreamed of. Obama had bet on them as part of the deals he struck with Russia and Iran.
So no one needs to panic about Trump abandoning the Kurds; the problem is that it happened immediately after the Iranian attack on Saudi Arabia. The message received was that America was weak and fleeing the Middle East and betraying its allies.
Some claim that the move puts Iran into a stronger position, but Tehran was furious about it since the American move paved the way for the Turks. The Kurds, who will withstand the Turkish assault, were allies of Iran. During the years they were fighting ISIS, they received a lot of air support from the Americans, but the alliance was only temporary.
Are these the same Kurds?
The US move in Syria does not empower Iran, but it sends a message of American weakness in a critical area of the Middle East.
One of the problems with US President Donald Trump's announcement that the US was opening the door to a Turkish incursion into northeast Syria and abandoning the Kurds was exactly the use of the general name "Kurds."
The mid-1970s saw the first major US abandonment of the Kurds. Henry Kissinger managed to mediate a deal between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Iran, which was still ruled by the shah. The Kurds paid the price of the deal, and Kissinger forced Israel to cut off its ties with and assistance to the Kurds.
They were the Kurds of Iraqi Kurdistan, whereas the Kurds of northern Syria – no matter what initials you assign them – are the PKK, which is basically a communist terrorist group.
There have been endless analyses of and responses to Trump's announcement, and in the meantime, the Turks have already started aerial bombardments ahead of a ground incursion. I'm backing strategic analyst Michael Doran from the Hudson Institute, who was able to – in real time – parse former President Obama's complicated decisions and how he was moving closer to the Iranians and the Russians.
Doran lays out Trump's latest move in light of the long-standing war between the PKK and the Turks. Some 40,000 Turks have been killed in that war, and in the ongoing battle against the Islamic State, the Kurds of northern Syria occupied areas they had never dreamed of. Obama had bet on them as part of the deals he struck with Russia and Iran.
So no one needs to panic about Trump abandoning the Kurds; the problem is that it happened immediately after the Iranian attack on Saudi Arabia. The message received was that America was weak and fleeing the Middle East and betraying its allies.
Some claim that the move puts Iran into a stronger position, but Tehran was furious about it since the American move paved the way for the Turks. The Kurds, who will withstand the Turkish assault, were allies of Iran. During the years they were fighting ISIS, they received a lot of air support from the Americans, but the alliance was only temporary.
MORE FROM CALIFORNIA, THE NANNY STATE
by Bob Walsh
Yesterday was the last day for Gavin Newsom to act on bills put before him by the legislature.
He signed a bill that prohibits K-12 schools from starting class before 0800. That might be fine, but don't you think that is the sort of thing that local school boards should determine? That is kind of what they are there for.
He also vetoed a $2 billion housing bill. I guess he is OK with 10s of thousands of people living homeless on the street and six people living in a one-bedroom apartment because even middle class incomes can not afford to live in many places in CA. A significant number of the people living in the central valley, Stockton and Modesto, commute every day into the Bay Area because they can't afford to actually live there. The house around the corner from my dad's place in San Leandro, not quite 1,000 square feet, two bedroom and one bath on a 5,000 sq ft lot with a one car garage, just went for $610,000 last week.
The formerly great state of California is becoming unlivable for the middle class unless you inherited a house. Pretty soon there will be nobody here but tech billionaires, homeless people, illegal aliens and persons on parole or probation, who are likely also to be homeless. The middle class is the real tax base, no matter what Pocahontas Warren and Crazy Bernie tell you. If you kill them off or drive them out, your whole state turns into Detroit. There are whole square blocks of Detroit with no inhabited houses and wildlife incursion is becoming an issue within the city.
You might not get the government you deserve, but you sure as shit get the government you tolerate.
Yesterday was the last day for Gavin Newsom to act on bills put before him by the legislature.
He signed a bill that prohibits K-12 schools from starting class before 0800. That might be fine, but don't you think that is the sort of thing that local school boards should determine? That is kind of what they are there for.
He also vetoed a $2 billion housing bill. I guess he is OK with 10s of thousands of people living homeless on the street and six people living in a one-bedroom apartment because even middle class incomes can not afford to live in many places in CA. A significant number of the people living in the central valley, Stockton and Modesto, commute every day into the Bay Area because they can't afford to actually live there. The house around the corner from my dad's place in San Leandro, not quite 1,000 square feet, two bedroom and one bath on a 5,000 sq ft lot with a one car garage, just went for $610,000 last week.
The formerly great state of California is becoming unlivable for the middle class unless you inherited a house. Pretty soon there will be nobody here but tech billionaires, homeless people, illegal aliens and persons on parole or probation, who are likely also to be homeless. The middle class is the real tax base, no matter what Pocahontas Warren and Crazy Bernie tell you. If you kill them off or drive them out, your whole state turns into Detroit. There are whole square blocks of Detroit with no inhabited houses and wildlife incursion is becoming an issue within the city.
You might not get the government you deserve, but you sure as shit get the government you tolerate.
CARL JUNG, SYNCHRONICITY, FATE AND THE PHONE COMPANY
by Bob Walsh
Synchronicity is a term that was coined by Carl Jung. It is a temporary relationship of otherwise unconnected, often minor or even trivial events that can end up have a totally unexpected and even significant outcome when they come together at a certain time under certain circumstances.
About ten days ago my internet went down. After waiting a reasonable period of time I called AT&T, waded thru their phone tree and eventually got a live human being. After going around and around with the phone company IT guy ( he seemed really pissed at me that I could not tell him if the computer line had a dial tone. There is no phone hooked up to it, so how the hell would I know. He didn't like it when I pointed that out to him.) finally allowed as how there was in fact a problem on the line and we scheduled somebody to come out between 8-noon on Monday.
Monday morning came and went. No tech. I called AT&T about 12:15, waded thru their phone tree, finally got a live human being who told me there was in fact no scheduled appointment for me. I told her that I was not surprised, since nobody showed, but there HAD been an appointment as of Friday the previous week. The young lady finally confirmed that yes, there had been such an appointment, but it was cancelled from their end when the line cleared. I expressed my extreme unhappiness that nobody had the courtesy to call me and let me know as there were a lot of things I could have been doing other than waiting around for a tech to show up.
I was pissed. After a few hours I jotted off a very strongly worded letter to the HMFIC at AT&T back in New Jersey. I waited the few hours because that way I could be reasonably sure I would not threaten to kill his family and burn his house down. I did, however, point out my unhappiness at their complete lack of anything even approaching a reasonable level of customer service. The letter went out in the mail Monday late afternoon.
On both Monday evening and Tuesday morning I received moderately apologetic and polite phone calls telling me the line had been cleared and wanted to know if my computer was acting correctly.
On Friday I got a phone call from an older (as in older than 30 or even 35) person who confirmed he was calling in response to my letter. I explained to him that my beef was not with the tech on the phone (even though he was a dick) because I am something of a Luddite and have a hard time dealing with IT people. We do not share a common vocabulary. My problem was with their policy and / or procedure that said it was OK to leave a customer sitting on his ass half a day waiting for a tech that they KNEW would never come. He was noncommittal (big surprise there) but did say that if it was OK I would be getting another call from their tech people to schedule a guy to come out anyway and make very, very sure the problem had been cleared. That in fact happened and we set up an appointment for Monday (today) between 8-noon.
Saturday was a beautiful day. I washed both my 64 VW and my 65 Mustang and took the Mustang out for a drive. I didn't do a good job of clearing the hose out of the way and parked on it when I got home, something I didn't notice until Sunday.
On Sunday my dog trainer / handler came by just as I was moving the Mustang back off the hose. She told me that I had a non-functional brake light on one side. No problem. They are LED lights and I was pretty sure they were not burnt out so I got out my wiring diagram and tools, took out the spare tire, and started looking for a loose wire. Found it, fixed it.
While this was going on my neighbor Ernie came over and told me that there had been a phone company truck and guy looking for me about a half hour earlier. Ernie said he offered to call me but the phone company guy said NO and went on about his business. I was surprised on two counts. One, it was a Sunday. Phone company guys are not usually out on a Sunday. They hadn't called. And, I was at home. Why hadn't I heard him ring the bell. So, I tried my bell. No DingDong. Just a BUZZZZ. Same noise my clothes drying makes when it was done. I had some laundry in. It seems I had heard the door bell but mistook it for the clothes dryer while I was in the back of the house digging out my 65 Mustang wiring diagram. Had that not happened I maybe-probably could have gotten my phone computer line issue taken care of Sunday at my convenience rather than this morning, at my modest inconvenience.
So, there it is. The fickle finger of fate? Kismet? The Lords of Karma flipping me off. Carl Jung having a few laughs at my expense. I don't believe in absolute fate, but I do believe that things are a LOT more interconnected than they appear to be. Especially on a Sunday afternoon when you are bored. Hell, I even went to the hardware store and bought and installed a new bell.
Synchronicity is a term that was coined by Carl Jung. It is a temporary relationship of otherwise unconnected, often minor or even trivial events that can end up have a totally unexpected and even significant outcome when they come together at a certain time under certain circumstances.
About ten days ago my internet went down. After waiting a reasonable period of time I called AT&T, waded thru their phone tree and eventually got a live human being. After going around and around with the phone company IT guy ( he seemed really pissed at me that I could not tell him if the computer line had a dial tone. There is no phone hooked up to it, so how the hell would I know. He didn't like it when I pointed that out to him.) finally allowed as how there was in fact a problem on the line and we scheduled somebody to come out between 8-noon on Monday.
Monday morning came and went. No tech. I called AT&T about 12:15, waded thru their phone tree, finally got a live human being who told me there was in fact no scheduled appointment for me. I told her that I was not surprised, since nobody showed, but there HAD been an appointment as of Friday the previous week. The young lady finally confirmed that yes, there had been such an appointment, but it was cancelled from their end when the line cleared. I expressed my extreme unhappiness that nobody had the courtesy to call me and let me know as there were a lot of things I could have been doing other than waiting around for a tech to show up.
I was pissed. After a few hours I jotted off a very strongly worded letter to the HMFIC at AT&T back in New Jersey. I waited the few hours because that way I could be reasonably sure I would not threaten to kill his family and burn his house down. I did, however, point out my unhappiness at their complete lack of anything even approaching a reasonable level of customer service. The letter went out in the mail Monday late afternoon.
On both Monday evening and Tuesday morning I received moderately apologetic and polite phone calls telling me the line had been cleared and wanted to know if my computer was acting correctly.
On Friday I got a phone call from an older (as in older than 30 or even 35) person who confirmed he was calling in response to my letter. I explained to him that my beef was not with the tech on the phone (even though he was a dick) because I am something of a Luddite and have a hard time dealing with IT people. We do not share a common vocabulary. My problem was with their policy and / or procedure that said it was OK to leave a customer sitting on his ass half a day waiting for a tech that they KNEW would never come. He was noncommittal (big surprise there) but did say that if it was OK I would be getting another call from their tech people to schedule a guy to come out anyway and make very, very sure the problem had been cleared. That in fact happened and we set up an appointment for Monday (today) between 8-noon.
Saturday was a beautiful day. I washed both my 64 VW and my 65 Mustang and took the Mustang out for a drive. I didn't do a good job of clearing the hose out of the way and parked on it when I got home, something I didn't notice until Sunday.
On Sunday my dog trainer / handler came by just as I was moving the Mustang back off the hose. She told me that I had a non-functional brake light on one side. No problem. They are LED lights and I was pretty sure they were not burnt out so I got out my wiring diagram and tools, took out the spare tire, and started looking for a loose wire. Found it, fixed it.
While this was going on my neighbor Ernie came over and told me that there had been a phone company truck and guy looking for me about a half hour earlier. Ernie said he offered to call me but the phone company guy said NO and went on about his business. I was surprised on two counts. One, it was a Sunday. Phone company guys are not usually out on a Sunday. They hadn't called. And, I was at home. Why hadn't I heard him ring the bell. So, I tried my bell. No DingDong. Just a BUZZZZ. Same noise my clothes drying makes when it was done. I had some laundry in. It seems I had heard the door bell but mistook it for the clothes dryer while I was in the back of the house digging out my 65 Mustang wiring diagram. Had that not happened I maybe-probably could have gotten my phone computer line issue taken care of Sunday at my convenience rather than this morning, at my modest inconvenience.
So, there it is. The fickle finger of fate? Kismet? The Lords of Karma flipping me off. Carl Jung having a few laughs at my expense. I don't believe in absolute fate, but I do believe that things are a LOT more interconnected than they appear to be. Especially on a Sunday afternoon when you are bored. Hell, I even went to the hardware store and bought and installed a new bell.
MORE SENTENCES ON COLLEGE CHEATING SCANDAL
by Bob Walsh
Peter Sartorio of California managed to get away with zero prison time for his evil deeds. He paid $15,000 to have his daughter's ACT score tweaked. He did not exercise any pressure or pay any bribes to try to get her admitted to a school. He got nailed with a $9,500 fine, one year of probation and 250 hours of community service.
Gregory Abbott, 68, and his wife Marcia, 59, were also sentenced after pleading to one count of fraud and conspiracy. The Abbotts each got one month in custody, a year of supervised release, and a $45,000 fine each as well as 250 hours each of community service. The prosecution had asked for eight months in custody. They used a family foundation to pay $50,000 for the ACT (on which their daughter received 35/36) and $150,000 for the SAT, on which she received a perfect 800 on Math and a very decent 710 on English Lit.
So far of the 35 parents charged 16 have pleaded guilty. All but one (Sartorio) has received at least some in-custody time.
So far actress Lori Laughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli are still vowing to fight it to the wall, admitted that what they did was "wrong" but not unlawful. Sources claiming to be close to Laughlin assert that she is terrified of actually going to prison and will fight it out tooth and nail to avoid ANY custody time.
Peter Sartorio of California managed to get away with zero prison time for his evil deeds. He paid $15,000 to have his daughter's ACT score tweaked. He did not exercise any pressure or pay any bribes to try to get her admitted to a school. He got nailed with a $9,500 fine, one year of probation and 250 hours of community service.
Gregory Abbott, 68, and his wife Marcia, 59, were also sentenced after pleading to one count of fraud and conspiracy. The Abbotts each got one month in custody, a year of supervised release, and a $45,000 fine each as well as 250 hours each of community service. The prosecution had asked for eight months in custody. They used a family foundation to pay $50,000 for the ACT (on which their daughter received 35/36) and $150,000 for the SAT, on which she received a perfect 800 on Math and a very decent 710 on English Lit.
So far of the 35 parents charged 16 have pleaded guilty. All but one (Sartorio) has received at least some in-custody time.
So far actress Lori Laughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli are still vowing to fight it to the wall, admitted that what they did was "wrong" but not unlawful. Sources claiming to be close to Laughlin assert that she is terrified of actually going to prison and will fight it out tooth and nail to avoid ANY custody time.
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
by Bob Walsh
In 1066 King William of Normandy whooped King Harold at the Battle of Hastings, making William the ruler of Britain.
In 1912 former president Teddy Roosevelt was shot in an assassination attempt. The folded up copy of his speech in his jacket pocket absorbed most of the impact of the pistol bullet and he went ahead and gave his speech though wounded.
In 1930 Ethel Merman held a HIgh C for 16 bars while singing I GOT RHYTHM, stunning her audience.
In 1947 Chuck Yeager broke the sounder barrier in the Bell X-1 rocket plane.
In 1066 King William of Normandy whooped King Harold at the Battle of Hastings, making William the ruler of Britain.
In 1912 former president Teddy Roosevelt was shot in an assassination attempt. The folded up copy of his speech in his jacket pocket absorbed most of the impact of the pistol bullet and he went ahead and gave his speech though wounded.
In 1930 Ethel Merman held a HIgh C for 16 bars while singing I GOT RHYTHM, stunning her audience.
In 1947 Chuck Yeager broke the sounder barrier in the Bell X-1 rocket plane.
CRAZY ROSE LASHES OUT AT CROOKED HILLARY
Rose McGowan calls out Hillary Clinton over husband's accusers: 'Predators are her style'
By Jessica Chasmar
The Washington Tines
October 11, 2019
Actress Rose McGowan, who became one of the first women to publicly accuse movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault, fired off a series of tweets Friday attacking former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for her relationship with Mr. Weinstein and her handling of the multiple sexual misconduct accusations against her husband, former President Bill Clinton.
In Ronan Farrow’s forthcoming book, “Catch and Kill,” Mr. Farrow alleges that Mrs. Clinton’s former presidential campaign reached out to him in 2017 and expressed concerns about his reporting on Mr. Weinstein.
“In summer 2017, while Farrow was trying to lock down an interview with Clinton for his foreign policy book — while also still working on the Weinstein story — he received a call from Clinton’s publicist, Nick Merrill, who told him that the ‘big story’ Farrow was working on was a ‘concern for us,” writes The Hollywood Reporter, which obtained the book.
Ms. McGowan, whose allegations against Mr. Weinstein played a part in sparking the Me Too movement, responded to The Hollywood Reporter’s story by accusing Mrs. Clinton of “protecting” the disgraced executive.
“I knew that Hillary Clinton’s people, were protecting the Monster. I can’t believe I used to support her. I guess predators are her style,” she tweeted to her 890,000 followers.
“Hillary Clinton, did you have any concern for your husband’s victims? And what about HW victims? No? Didn’t think so,” she wrote.
“I am against abuse of power, whether it be Trump, Clinton, HW, @NBC … the list is long. I’m not raging, I just really, really dislike liars and those who protect them,” the actress concluded.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ha ha ha ha ha!
By Jessica Chasmar
The Washington Tines
October 11, 2019
Actress Rose McGowan, who became one of the first women to publicly accuse movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault, fired off a series of tweets Friday attacking former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for her relationship with Mr. Weinstein and her handling of the multiple sexual misconduct accusations against her husband, former President Bill Clinton.
In Ronan Farrow’s forthcoming book, “Catch and Kill,” Mr. Farrow alleges that Mrs. Clinton’s former presidential campaign reached out to him in 2017 and expressed concerns about his reporting on Mr. Weinstein.
“In summer 2017, while Farrow was trying to lock down an interview with Clinton for his foreign policy book — while also still working on the Weinstein story — he received a call from Clinton’s publicist, Nick Merrill, who told him that the ‘big story’ Farrow was working on was a ‘concern for us,” writes The Hollywood Reporter, which obtained the book.
Ms. McGowan, whose allegations against Mr. Weinstein played a part in sparking the Me Too movement, responded to The Hollywood Reporter’s story by accusing Mrs. Clinton of “protecting” the disgraced executive.
“I knew that Hillary Clinton’s people, were protecting the Monster. I can’t believe I used to support her. I guess predators are her style,” she tweeted to her 890,000 followers.
“Hillary Clinton, did you have any concern for your husband’s victims? And what about HW victims? No? Didn’t think so,” she wrote.
“I am against abuse of power, whether it be Trump, Clinton, HW, @NBC … the list is long. I’m not raging, I just really, really dislike liars and those who protect them,” the actress concluded.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ha ha ha ha ha!
JUDGE TEARS INTO BRONX TRINITARIOS GANG MEMBERS WHO KILLED TEEN
Five of ‘Junior’ Guzman-Feliz’s attackers sentenced to up to life in prison
By Georgett Roberts and Natalie Musumeci
New York Post
October 11, 2019
A Bronx judge slammed the five gangbangers who killed Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz with lengthy prison terms Friday, but saved his sharpest rebuke for the teen’s “cowardly” executioner.
Judge Robert Neary handed down the sentences to the Trinitarios gang members separately in Bronx Criminal Court, first sending Jonaiki Martinez Estrella, 25, to prison for life without the possibility of parole for the heinous caught-on-camera June 20, 2018 machete and knife killing of 15-year-old Guzman-Feliz.
“Certain words come to mind when I think about your involvement,” Neary said to Martinez Estrella. “Senseless is one of these words. Savage is another word. But the one that often comes to my mind is cowardly.”
Surveillance video shows that it was Martinez Estrella who delivered the 4-and-a-half-inch-deep knife blow to Guzman-Feliz’s neck, which ultimately killed him, prosecutors had argued.
The savage pack stabbed the teen outside of the Cruz and Chiky bodega after he was dragged out of the Belmont store in a case of mistaken identity — a slaying that shocked the city, and grabbed national headlines.
“You and your fellow gang members chased down and slaughtered a 15-year-old, defenseless boy in the most gruesome manner and we in this courtroom had the misfortune of witnessing it on tape,” the judge said.
Neary, who called Martinez Estrella the “executioner,” continued: “You destroyed a young life, condemned his family and yours to a lifetime of pain and despair.”
Before being hit with the sentence, a Spanish-speaking Martinez Estrella said through a translator, “First of all, I want to say sorry to his family and ask forgiveness,” prompting someone in the courtroom to yell out, “Bulls—t!”
“My intention was not to cause the death of this kid or cause injuries that would end up in the loss of his life,” continued Martinez Estrella, who claimed he was “under the influence of alcohol and drugs.”
“Regrettably, I’m responsible for the death of the young child, Junior,” he said.
But the judge was having none of it.
He told Martinez Estrella that he has previously “shown little remorse” and that the sudden show of emotion “is the first indication I’ve had that you have any empathy for the victim or remorse and it rings a little hollow this late in the game.”
Indeed, before his sentencing, Martinez Estrella, along with Jose Muniz, 23, smirked for cameras in the courtroom and threw up gang signs for the violent Dominican street crew.
But ahead of his sentencing, Muniz begged for forgiveness.
“I do not know what it’s like to lose a child,” Muniz, who also spoke in Spanish, told the court. “But from the bottom of my heart, I ask that you can forgive me.”
Muniz admitted he was there, but had no role in the teen’s death. “That is why I used the other side of the machete to cause no injury,” he told the court.
“I’d like to ask for forgiveness from all his family, Dominicans, and the state of New York and all my family for dirtying their name,” Muniz said.
Muniz, along with co-defendants Antonio Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, 25, Elvin Garcia, 25, were each hit with a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.
Nineteen-year-old co-defendant Manuel Rivera was sentenced to 23 years to life behind bars.
“You disgraced your own family,” Neary told Muniz. “I’m not sure the remorse you expressed is genuine. I’m not sure about that because it’s the first time I’m hearing about it … you threw your future in the garbage.”
The judge also added that it was “troubling” to him when Muniz shouted at the court “Popote, hasta la muerte” or “Trinitarios until death” when he was convicted in June.
Neary then turned his venom to Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, telling him: “What you’ve done brought disgrace to any real Dominican.”
“I find it ironic that when you were arrested you bragged to the detective ‘I’m a real Dominican,’ puffing out your chest. Well, I’m here to tell you…you are not a real Dominican,” the judge said.
Dominicans, he went on, “work hard every day,” “seek an education,” and “obey the law.”
Guzman-Feliz’s devastated parents kept their composure throughout the morning’s proceedings. In victim impact statements, read in unwavering Spanish, they let the courtroom know the depth of their unending grief.
“Here I am, a mother without my son…an innocent, 15 year-old boy who was not a gang member who roamed the streets with bad intentions,” mom Leandra Feliz said. “These criminals ripped him away from me leaving all his family and school friends.”
“They killed an innocent child. Then all these men, not a single one said, ‘No, no, no, don’t do it,” Feliz continued, adding that on that tragic night “there were two deaths: Junior and I, who was left dead inside.”
“This group of evil criminals using their gang-related activities decided to go out and kill,” she said. “These actions were all captured on camera leaving millions of people devastated. In the same way the videos of their violence went viral the punishment should be equal so that the New York City can be safer for everyone.”
The mom said her son, who was in the NYPD’s Explorers program, “dreamed of becoming a detective so he can protect this city.”
“Unfortunately, his dream was crushed by these dangerous gang members,” said Feliz.
Guzman-Feliz’s dad, Lisandro Guzman, said the since his son’s murder, he struggles “daily to find meaning in my life.”
In addressing the defendants, Guzman said: “I will never forgive you for deciding to murder my son. You deserved to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. You deserved to be punished for causing so much pain. You are the poster children for danger to society.”
“My hope is that you will never have a chance to hurt another child in the way you hurt mine,” the heartbroken dad said. “My hope is that another family will never have to live with the pain of losing a child, the pain that I will have to live with for the rest of my life.”
In June — less than a week before the one-year anniversary of the vicious murder — a jury convicted the five Trinitarios gang members on charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, second degree conspiracy and second-degree gang assault.
Eight other defendants in the case are still awaiting trial.
By Georgett Roberts and Natalie Musumeci
New York Post
October 11, 2019
A Bronx judge slammed the five gangbangers who killed Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz with lengthy prison terms Friday, but saved his sharpest rebuke for the teen’s “cowardly” executioner.
Judge Robert Neary handed down the sentences to the Trinitarios gang members separately in Bronx Criminal Court, first sending Jonaiki Martinez Estrella, 25, to prison for life without the possibility of parole for the heinous caught-on-camera June 20, 2018 machete and knife killing of 15-year-old Guzman-Feliz.
“Certain words come to mind when I think about your involvement,” Neary said to Martinez Estrella. “Senseless is one of these words. Savage is another word. But the one that often comes to my mind is cowardly.”
Surveillance video shows that it was Martinez Estrella who delivered the 4-and-a-half-inch-deep knife blow to Guzman-Feliz’s neck, which ultimately killed him, prosecutors had argued.
The savage pack stabbed the teen outside of the Cruz and Chiky bodega after he was dragged out of the Belmont store in a case of mistaken identity — a slaying that shocked the city, and grabbed national headlines.
“You and your fellow gang members chased down and slaughtered a 15-year-old, defenseless boy in the most gruesome manner and we in this courtroom had the misfortune of witnessing it on tape,” the judge said.
Neary, who called Martinez Estrella the “executioner,” continued: “You destroyed a young life, condemned his family and yours to a lifetime of pain and despair.”
Before being hit with the sentence, a Spanish-speaking Martinez Estrella said through a translator, “First of all, I want to say sorry to his family and ask forgiveness,” prompting someone in the courtroom to yell out, “Bulls—t!”
“My intention was not to cause the death of this kid or cause injuries that would end up in the loss of his life,” continued Martinez Estrella, who claimed he was “under the influence of alcohol and drugs.”
“Regrettably, I’m responsible for the death of the young child, Junior,” he said.
But the judge was having none of it.
He told Martinez Estrella that he has previously “shown little remorse” and that the sudden show of emotion “is the first indication I’ve had that you have any empathy for the victim or remorse and it rings a little hollow this late in the game.”
Indeed, before his sentencing, Martinez Estrella, along with Jose Muniz, 23, smirked for cameras in the courtroom and threw up gang signs for the violent Dominican street crew.
But ahead of his sentencing, Muniz begged for forgiveness.
“I do not know what it’s like to lose a child,” Muniz, who also spoke in Spanish, told the court. “But from the bottom of my heart, I ask that you can forgive me.”
Muniz admitted he was there, but had no role in the teen’s death. “That is why I used the other side of the machete to cause no injury,” he told the court.
“I’d like to ask for forgiveness from all his family, Dominicans, and the state of New York and all my family for dirtying their name,” Muniz said.
Muniz, along with co-defendants Antonio Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, 25, Elvin Garcia, 25, were each hit with a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.
Nineteen-year-old co-defendant Manuel Rivera was sentenced to 23 years to life behind bars.
“You disgraced your own family,” Neary told Muniz. “I’m not sure the remorse you expressed is genuine. I’m not sure about that because it’s the first time I’m hearing about it … you threw your future in the garbage.”
The judge also added that it was “troubling” to him when Muniz shouted at the court “Popote, hasta la muerte” or “Trinitarios until death” when he was convicted in June.
Neary then turned his venom to Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, telling him: “What you’ve done brought disgrace to any real Dominican.”
“I find it ironic that when you were arrested you bragged to the detective ‘I’m a real Dominican,’ puffing out your chest. Well, I’m here to tell you…you are not a real Dominican,” the judge said.
Dominicans, he went on, “work hard every day,” “seek an education,” and “obey the law.”
Guzman-Feliz’s devastated parents kept their composure throughout the morning’s proceedings. In victim impact statements, read in unwavering Spanish, they let the courtroom know the depth of their unending grief.
“Here I am, a mother without my son…an innocent, 15 year-old boy who was not a gang member who roamed the streets with bad intentions,” mom Leandra Feliz said. “These criminals ripped him away from me leaving all his family and school friends.”
“They killed an innocent child. Then all these men, not a single one said, ‘No, no, no, don’t do it,” Feliz continued, adding that on that tragic night “there were two deaths: Junior and I, who was left dead inside.”
“This group of evil criminals using their gang-related activities decided to go out and kill,” she said. “These actions were all captured on camera leaving millions of people devastated. In the same way the videos of their violence went viral the punishment should be equal so that the New York City can be safer for everyone.”
The mom said her son, who was in the NYPD’s Explorers program, “dreamed of becoming a detective so he can protect this city.”
“Unfortunately, his dream was crushed by these dangerous gang members,” said Feliz.
Guzman-Feliz’s dad, Lisandro Guzman, said the since his son’s murder, he struggles “daily to find meaning in my life.”
In addressing the defendants, Guzman said: “I will never forgive you for deciding to murder my son. You deserved to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. You deserved to be punished for causing so much pain. You are the poster children for danger to society.”
“My hope is that you will never have a chance to hurt another child in the way you hurt mine,” the heartbroken dad said. “My hope is that another family will never have to live with the pain of losing a child, the pain that I will have to live with for the rest of my life.”
In June — less than a week before the one-year anniversary of the vicious murder — a jury convicted the five Trinitarios gang members on charges of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, second degree conspiracy and second-degree gang assault.
Eight other defendants in the case are still awaiting trial.
FEAR AND HATRED OF POLICE INSTILLED IN PITTSBURGH FIRST GRADERS
Pittsburgh Public Schools Investigating Anti-Police Homework
By Bob Bauder
The Tribune-Review
October 11, 2019
PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Public Schools officials on Thursday denounced part of a reading homework assignment distributed to first-graders that centered on children running away from a police officer, saying it was not an acceptable part of district curriculum.
“Tom will run. He will run from the cop,” the assignment says. “Tom will run with Rob. They will not stop.”
It ends with: “Get them! yells the cop to his dog. The dog gets Tom and Rob. Rob’s socks is wet from the pond.”
Superintendent Anthony Hamlet said in a statement that the district is investigating the assignment distributed to students at Linden Pre-K in Point Breeze, calling it inappropriate.
“The homework assignment, which has been circulated throughout social media, has justifiably caused outrage among families, staff and community,” he said. “First, let me be clear: The worksheet is not a part of any district curriculum or intervention program. Not only does the content send the wrong message to our students, but it also does not meet our expectations for student instruction.”
School District Solicitor Ira Weiss said he was told that two teachers are involved and that the administration is investigating, but he could not provide further information. He said his office is not involved in the investigation.
Nina Esposito-Visgitis, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers and a reading specialist, said the exercise was one page in a packet of homework given to students. She said it was apparent that the teachers were schooling the kids in “short O” words, meaning words with an “O” in the middle.
Esposito-Visgitis described the incident as a mistake, but criticized its posting on social media.
“It’s very unfortunate that instead of someone asking the teachers what happened, it blew up on social media, and I mean the parents,” she said. “I’m going to go to the teachers first and ask them what happened because that’s what I think is socially appropriate to do.
“I’m not saying what was written there was appropriate,” she continued. “What was written there was disgusting. What was written there should never have been written.”
School Board President Lynda Wrenn said she believed the assignment was unintentionally given to students.
“That’s not the message we want to send to our kids,” she said. “You don’t want kids reading that they should be running from the police. It could be a matter of life and death. It’s a bad example on many levels.”
Allegheny County Police Superintendent Coleman McDonough said the homework’s message undermines police efforts to connect with communities and keep residents, particularly kids, safe.
“I found the assignment to be so utterly irresponsible and depressing I’m at a loss for words,” he said.
Robert Swartzwelder, president of Fraternal Order of Police Fort Pitt Lodge 1, said he was glad the district is investigating.
“You’re sort of encouraging people to resist, you’re encouraging them to engage in flight at a very young age when everyone knows that if you comply with an officer’s directives that there’s a 99.9 percent chance that nothing will happen. You don’t want to encourage anyone to flee,” he said.
By Bob Bauder
The Tribune-Review
October 11, 2019
PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Public Schools officials on Thursday denounced part of a reading homework assignment distributed to first-graders that centered on children running away from a police officer, saying it was not an acceptable part of district curriculum.
“Tom will run. He will run from the cop,” the assignment says. “Tom will run with Rob. They will not stop.”
It ends with: “Get them! yells the cop to his dog. The dog gets Tom and Rob. Rob’s socks is wet from the pond.”
Superintendent Anthony Hamlet said in a statement that the district is investigating the assignment distributed to students at Linden Pre-K in Point Breeze, calling it inappropriate.
“The homework assignment, which has been circulated throughout social media, has justifiably caused outrage among families, staff and community,” he said. “First, let me be clear: The worksheet is not a part of any district curriculum or intervention program. Not only does the content send the wrong message to our students, but it also does not meet our expectations for student instruction.”
School District Solicitor Ira Weiss said he was told that two teachers are involved and that the administration is investigating, but he could not provide further information. He said his office is not involved in the investigation.
Nina Esposito-Visgitis, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers and a reading specialist, said the exercise was one page in a packet of homework given to students. She said it was apparent that the teachers were schooling the kids in “short O” words, meaning words with an “O” in the middle.
Esposito-Visgitis described the incident as a mistake, but criticized its posting on social media.
“It’s very unfortunate that instead of someone asking the teachers what happened, it blew up on social media, and I mean the parents,” she said. “I’m going to go to the teachers first and ask them what happened because that’s what I think is socially appropriate to do.
“I’m not saying what was written there was appropriate,” she continued. “What was written there was disgusting. What was written there should never have been written.”
School Board President Lynda Wrenn said she believed the assignment was unintentionally given to students.
“That’s not the message we want to send to our kids,” she said. “You don’t want kids reading that they should be running from the police. It could be a matter of life and death. It’s a bad example on many levels.”
Allegheny County Police Superintendent Coleman McDonough said the homework’s message undermines police efforts to connect with communities and keep residents, particularly kids, safe.
“I found the assignment to be so utterly irresponsible and depressing I’m at a loss for words,” he said.
Robert Swartzwelder, president of Fraternal Order of Police Fort Pitt Lodge 1, said he was glad the district is investigating.
“You’re sort of encouraging people to resist, you’re encouraging them to engage in flight at a very young age when everyone knows that if you comply with an officer’s directives that there’s a 99.9 percent chance that nothing will happen. You don’t want to encourage anyone to flee,” he said.
NOT SATISFIED WITH ATTACKING ISRAEL, NOW THE UN GOES AFTER THE US
The U.S. Military Killed Dozens of Civilians While Trying to Bomb Meth Labs, U.N. Alleges
by Mike Power
Vice News
October 9, 2019
At least 30 civilians, including women and children, were killed by U.S. forces in May airstrikes on alleged methamphetamine labs in western Afghanistan, a UN agency alleged in a report on Wednesday.
The majority of those killed or injured were not working in drug labs, the agency said.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that it has received reports on 145 civilian casualties resulting from the airstrikes on May 5. Of those, UNAMA "verified 39 civilian casualties (30 deaths, five injured and four whose status of killed or injured remains undetermined), including 14 children and one woman." The report states that 17 of these civilians were working in drug labs at the time.
In addition, “UNAMA received reliable and credible information to substantiate at least a further 37 more civilian casualties (30 deaths and seven injured), including 30 children and two women. It is working to further verify these civilian casualties,” said the report. The remaining 69 casualties for which UNAMA has received reports remain unverified.
The report also confirmed claims that some of the sites struck were not drug labs. "Moreover, UNAMA received credible information that several of the sites that were hit were not associated with drug production activities, including residential homes," added the new UN report.
The U.S. has dismissed the UN’s report. “United States Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A) disputes the findings, legal analysis, and methodology of the UN report,” it said in a statement. It questioned the UN's sources: “USFOR-A is deeply concerned by UNAMA’s methods and findings. Sources with limited information, conflicted motives and violent agendas are not credible. USFOR-A follows the highest standards of accuracy and accountability to avoid harm to non-combatants and collateral damage,” the agency's statement said.
This is not the first time that the U.S. military has been accused of hitting civilian targets in its anti-drug bombing campaigns. VICE has previously reported on the last two years of these campaigns, including an investigation by researchers from the London School of Economics that found some targets chosen by the U.S. military were not drug-making facilities, but civilian homes.
David Mansfield, a Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics, led the team that first investigated an earlier US drug-lab bombing campaign, Operation Iron Tempest, that targeted Afghan opium labs from 2017-2018.
The LSE team used on-the-ground reporting with local experts, along with high-resolution satellite imagery and open-source intelligence to report on civilian casualties during Operation Iron Tempest.
That campaign did little to disrupt the flow of heroin from Afghanistan, which is still the world’s leading producer of the drug.
“The decision to bomb labs always struck me as overreach,” said Mansfield.
The US returned to its failed strategy in May this year, this time targeting methamphetamine production facilities, which Mansfield’s team again investigated.
Afghanistan drug chemists have adopted a new route to methamphetamine synthesis using a wild mountain shrub, known as oman, containing ephedra, a precursor to crystal meth production. This has led to a boom in local production and use.
“I'd like to think that the kind of painstaking research we have done at LSE on both the lab strikes and methamphetamine production over the last few years has helped highlight how costly and counterproductive the bombing of drug labs has been, and helps point to more effective responses that are compliant with international law," Mansfield added.
Those who were killed inside the labs were not legitimate military targets, UNAMA said in its new report.
“Personnel working inside the drug production facilities were not performing combat functions. They were therefore entitled to protection from attack, and could only have lost this protection if, and for such time, as they had been directly participating in hostilities," the UN report said.
The US again rejected this claim, calling this definition of legally targetable combatants “narrow.”
U.N. data shows a sharp spike in meth seizures in Afghanistan from 9kg in 2014 to the 127 seized in 2017. Annual seizures hit 180kg in 2018 and have already reached 650kg in the first half of 2019, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
by Mike Power
Vice News
October 9, 2019
At least 30 civilians, including women and children, were killed by U.S. forces in May airstrikes on alleged methamphetamine labs in western Afghanistan, a UN agency alleged in a report on Wednesday.
The majority of those killed or injured were not working in drug labs, the agency said.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that it has received reports on 145 civilian casualties resulting from the airstrikes on May 5. Of those, UNAMA "verified 39 civilian casualties (30 deaths, five injured and four whose status of killed or injured remains undetermined), including 14 children and one woman." The report states that 17 of these civilians were working in drug labs at the time.
In addition, “UNAMA received reliable and credible information to substantiate at least a further 37 more civilian casualties (30 deaths and seven injured), including 30 children and two women. It is working to further verify these civilian casualties,” said the report. The remaining 69 casualties for which UNAMA has received reports remain unverified.
The report also confirmed claims that some of the sites struck were not drug labs. "Moreover, UNAMA received credible information that several of the sites that were hit were not associated with drug production activities, including residential homes," added the new UN report.
The U.S. has dismissed the UN’s report. “United States Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A) disputes the findings, legal analysis, and methodology of the UN report,” it said in a statement. It questioned the UN's sources: “USFOR-A is deeply concerned by UNAMA’s methods and findings. Sources with limited information, conflicted motives and violent agendas are not credible. USFOR-A follows the highest standards of accuracy and accountability to avoid harm to non-combatants and collateral damage,” the agency's statement said.
This is not the first time that the U.S. military has been accused of hitting civilian targets in its anti-drug bombing campaigns. VICE has previously reported on the last two years of these campaigns, including an investigation by researchers from the London School of Economics that found some targets chosen by the U.S. military were not drug-making facilities, but civilian homes.
David Mansfield, a Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics, led the team that first investigated an earlier US drug-lab bombing campaign, Operation Iron Tempest, that targeted Afghan opium labs from 2017-2018.
The LSE team used on-the-ground reporting with local experts, along with high-resolution satellite imagery and open-source intelligence to report on civilian casualties during Operation Iron Tempest.
That campaign did little to disrupt the flow of heroin from Afghanistan, which is still the world’s leading producer of the drug.
“The decision to bomb labs always struck me as overreach,” said Mansfield.
The US returned to its failed strategy in May this year, this time targeting methamphetamine production facilities, which Mansfield’s team again investigated.
Afghanistan drug chemists have adopted a new route to methamphetamine synthesis using a wild mountain shrub, known as oman, containing ephedra, a precursor to crystal meth production. This has led to a boom in local production and use.
“I'd like to think that the kind of painstaking research we have done at LSE on both the lab strikes and methamphetamine production over the last few years has helped highlight how costly and counterproductive the bombing of drug labs has been, and helps point to more effective responses that are compliant with international law," Mansfield added.
Those who were killed inside the labs were not legitimate military targets, UNAMA said in its new report.
“Personnel working inside the drug production facilities were not performing combat functions. They were therefore entitled to protection from attack, and could only have lost this protection if, and for such time, as they had been directly participating in hostilities," the UN report said.
The US again rejected this claim, calling this definition of legally targetable combatants “narrow.”
U.N. data shows a sharp spike in meth seizures in Afghanistan from 9kg in 2014 to the 127 seized in 2017. Annual seizures hit 180kg in 2018 and have already reached 650kg in the first half of 2019, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
TIME OUT FOR SOME JOKES
Praying at the Western Wall
A CNN journalist heard about a very old Jewish man who had been going to the Western Wall to pray, twice a day, every day, for a long, long time.
So she went to check it out. She went to the Western Wall and there he was, walking slowly up to the holy site. She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave, using a cane and moving very slowly, she approached him for an interview.
"Pardon me, sir, I'm Rebecca Smith from CNN. What's your name?
"Morris Feinberg," he replied.
"Sir, how long have you been coming to the Western Wall and praying?"
"For about 60 years."
"60 years! That's amazing! What do you pray for?"
"I pray for peace between the Christians, Jews and the Muslims. I pray for all the wars and all the hatred to stop. I pray for all our children to grow up safely as responsible adults and to love their fellow man. I pray that politicians tell us the truth and put the interests of the people ahead of their own interests."
"How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?"
"Like I'm talking to a fucking wall."
__________
Texans have a proud, creative spirit
From the state where drunk driving is considered a sport, comes this true story. Recently a routine police patrol parked outside a bar in Houston, Texas . After last call the officer noticed a man leaving the bar so apparently intoxicated that he could barely walk.
The man stumbled around the parking lot for a few minutes, with the officer quietly observing. After what seemed an eternity in which he tried his keys on five different vehicles, the man managed to find his car and fall into it. He sat there for a few minutes as a number of other patrons left the bar and drove off.
Finally he started the car, switched the wipers on and off--it was a fine, dry summer night, flicked the blinkers on and off a couple of times, honked the horn and then switched on the lights.
He moved the vehicle forward a few inches, reversed a little and then remained still for a few more minutes as some more of the other patrons' vehicles left.
At last, when his was the only car left in the parking lot, he pulled out and drove slowly down the road.
The police officer, having waited patiently all this time, now started up his patrol car, put on the flashing lights, promptly pulled the man over and administered a breathalyzer test.
To his amazement, the breathalyzer indicated no evidence that the man had consumed any alcohol at all!
Dumbfounded, the officer said, I'll have to ask you to accompany me to the police station. This breathalyzer equipment must be broken.'
"I doubt it", said the truly proud Redneck. 'Tonight I'm the designated decoy.'
__________
Truer words were never spoken
A father says to his son, "My boy, when you understand why a pizza is baked round, put in a square box, and eaten in triangles, you might be able to understand women."
__________
The beautiful woman was not worth four inches
A man asked a waiter to take a bottle of Merlot to an unusually attractive woman sitting alone at a table in a cozy little restaurant.
So the waiter took the Merlot to the woman and said, "This is from the gentleman who is seated over there" and indicated the sender with a nod of his head.
She stared at the wine coolly for a few seconds, not looking at the man, then decided to send a reply to him by a note. The waiter, who was lingering nearby for a response, took the note from her and conveyed it to the gentleman.
The note read: "For me to accept this bottle, you need to have a Mercedes in your garage, a million dollars in the bank, and seven inches in your pants."
After reading the note, the man decided to compose his own in return. He folded the note, handed it to the waiter, and instructed him to deliver it to the lady.
His note read: "Just to let you know that things aren't always what they appear to be. I have a Ferrari Maranello, a BMW Z8, a Mercedes CL600, and a Porsche Turbo in my several garages. I have beautiful homes in Aspen and Miami, and a 10,000 acre ranch in Texas. There is over eighty million dollars in my bank account and portfolio. But not even for a woman as beautiful as you, would I cut off four inches. Just send the damn wine back."
__________
Sociology 101
A young African-American kid asks his mother, "Mama, what is Socialism and what is Racism?"
"Well, Child...Socialism is when the white folks work hard every day so we can get all our governmental entitlement stuff for free.
"You know...like our free cell phones for each family member, rent subsidy, food stamps, EBT, WIC, free school breakfast, lunch, and in some places supper; free healthcare, utility subsidy, and on and on...you know, that's Socialism."
"But, Mama, don't the white people get mad about that?"
"Sure they do, Honey. That's called Racism."
A CNN journalist heard about a very old Jewish man who had been going to the Western Wall to pray, twice a day, every day, for a long, long time.
So she went to check it out. She went to the Western Wall and there he was, walking slowly up to the holy site. She watched him pray and after about 45 minutes, when he turned to leave, using a cane and moving very slowly, she approached him for an interview.
"Pardon me, sir, I'm Rebecca Smith from CNN. What's your name?
"Morris Feinberg," he replied.
"Sir, how long have you been coming to the Western Wall and praying?"
"For about 60 years."
"60 years! That's amazing! What do you pray for?"
"I pray for peace between the Christians, Jews and the Muslims. I pray for all the wars and all the hatred to stop. I pray for all our children to grow up safely as responsible adults and to love their fellow man. I pray that politicians tell us the truth and put the interests of the people ahead of their own interests."
"How do you feel after doing this for 60 years?"
"Like I'm talking to a fucking wall."
__________
Texans have a proud, creative spirit
From the state where drunk driving is considered a sport, comes this true story. Recently a routine police patrol parked outside a bar in Houston, Texas . After last call the officer noticed a man leaving the bar so apparently intoxicated that he could barely walk.
The man stumbled around the parking lot for a few minutes, with the officer quietly observing. After what seemed an eternity in which he tried his keys on five different vehicles, the man managed to find his car and fall into it. He sat there for a few minutes as a number of other patrons left the bar and drove off.
Finally he started the car, switched the wipers on and off--it was a fine, dry summer night, flicked the blinkers on and off a couple of times, honked the horn and then switched on the lights.
He moved the vehicle forward a few inches, reversed a little and then remained still for a few more minutes as some more of the other patrons' vehicles left.
At last, when his was the only car left in the parking lot, he pulled out and drove slowly down the road.
The police officer, having waited patiently all this time, now started up his patrol car, put on the flashing lights, promptly pulled the man over and administered a breathalyzer test.
To his amazement, the breathalyzer indicated no evidence that the man had consumed any alcohol at all!
Dumbfounded, the officer said, I'll have to ask you to accompany me to the police station. This breathalyzer equipment must be broken.'
"I doubt it", said the truly proud Redneck. 'Tonight I'm the designated decoy.'
__________
Truer words were never spoken
A father says to his son, "My boy, when you understand why a pizza is baked round, put in a square box, and eaten in triangles, you might be able to understand women."
__________
The beautiful woman was not worth four inches
A man asked a waiter to take a bottle of Merlot to an unusually attractive woman sitting alone at a table in a cozy little restaurant.
So the waiter took the Merlot to the woman and said, "This is from the gentleman who is seated over there" and indicated the sender with a nod of his head.
She stared at the wine coolly for a few seconds, not looking at the man, then decided to send a reply to him by a note. The waiter, who was lingering nearby for a response, took the note from her and conveyed it to the gentleman.
The note read: "For me to accept this bottle, you need to have a Mercedes in your garage, a million dollars in the bank, and seven inches in your pants."
After reading the note, the man decided to compose his own in return. He folded the note, handed it to the waiter, and instructed him to deliver it to the lady.
His note read: "Just to let you know that things aren't always what they appear to be. I have a Ferrari Maranello, a BMW Z8, a Mercedes CL600, and a Porsche Turbo in my several garages. I have beautiful homes in Aspen and Miami, and a 10,000 acre ranch in Texas. There is over eighty million dollars in my bank account and portfolio. But not even for a woman as beautiful as you, would I cut off four inches. Just send the damn wine back."
__________
Sociology 101
A young African-American kid asks his mother, "Mama, what is Socialism and what is Racism?"
"Well, Child...Socialism is when the white folks work hard every day so we can get all our governmental entitlement stuff for free.
"You know...like our free cell phones for each family member, rent subsidy, food stamps, EBT, WIC, free school breakfast, lunch, and in some places supper; free healthcare, utility subsidy, and on and on...you know, that's Socialism."
"But, Mama, don't the white people get mad about that?"
"Sure they do, Honey. That's called Racism."
Sunday, October 13, 2019
YOU TELL EM WILD BILL
Texas Sheriff Bill Waybourn’s White House comments about criminal aliens
Daily Mail
October 10, 2019
'In Tarrant County, Texas, it's the 15th largest county in the nation, this morning we had 4,200 inmates. Out of that, 7 per cent were illegal aliens.
And they were being held for such offense as murder, sexual assault of children -- there were about 70 of them. And there were robbers in there, and kidnappers, and people who committed arson, and people who were DWI [offenders].
And out of that, you know, you think about that, if we returned them, with this radical ruling out of California where you have a federal judge making law for the nation, or attempting to, it will put our communities in jeopardy.
Of those people that we have in custody, we know for a fact that 72 per cent of them are repeat offenders.
So, if we have to turn them loose, or they get released, they're coming back to your neighborhood and my neighborhood. These drunks will run over your children, and they will run over my children. And if that happens, I know that you will want, and I would want for you, the full force of the law. And immigration is part of that full force.'
Daily Mail
October 10, 2019
'In Tarrant County, Texas, it's the 15th largest county in the nation, this morning we had 4,200 inmates. Out of that, 7 per cent were illegal aliens.
And they were being held for such offense as murder, sexual assault of children -- there were about 70 of them. And there were robbers in there, and kidnappers, and people who committed arson, and people who were DWI [offenders].
And out of that, you know, you think about that, if we returned them, with this radical ruling out of California where you have a federal judge making law for the nation, or attempting to, it will put our communities in jeopardy.
Of those people that we have in custody, we know for a fact that 72 per cent of them are repeat offenders.
So, if we have to turn them loose, or they get released, they're coming back to your neighborhood and my neighborhood. These drunks will run over your children, and they will run over my children. And if that happens, I know that you will want, and I would want for you, the full force of the law. And immigration is part of that full force.'
THAT DIDN'T TURN OUT TOO WELL
by Bob Walsh
A couple of days ago the Fort Worth P D answered a call for a welfare check about 2:25 a.m. at a private residence. The neighbors reported both family cars were there but the front door was standing open and that this was a very unusual situation.
The cops showed up and started moving around the outside of the house. One of the cops on the outside saw the outline of someone standing inside a window inside the house with a handgun that was more or less pointing towards the officer. The officer fired. The "suspect" died at the scene. The suspect was in fact a resident of the home.
It isn't clear at this stage if the officer announced himself. The cop is white and the dead resident is black, though that would not necessarily have been noticeable thru the window. Also, it seems likely that the neighbors would have told the cops the residents were black and given an approximate description, but one never knows.
In any event the cop is on routine administrative leave and the investigation is pending.
I have never been a street cop. That being said, I don't understand why the cops seem to think that anybody inside the residence with a gun is a bad guy. I can damn well tell you that if I hear somebody moving around outside my house at 2:30 in the freaking morning I'm going to have a gun in my hand until I KNOW it is the good guys out there.
A couple of days ago the Fort Worth P D answered a call for a welfare check about 2:25 a.m. at a private residence. The neighbors reported both family cars were there but the front door was standing open and that this was a very unusual situation.
The cops showed up and started moving around the outside of the house. One of the cops on the outside saw the outline of someone standing inside a window inside the house with a handgun that was more or less pointing towards the officer. The officer fired. The "suspect" died at the scene. The suspect was in fact a resident of the home.
It isn't clear at this stage if the officer announced himself. The cop is white and the dead resident is black, though that would not necessarily have been noticeable thru the window. Also, it seems likely that the neighbors would have told the cops the residents were black and given an approximate description, but one never knows.
In any event the cop is on routine administrative leave and the investigation is pending.
I have never been a street cop. That being said, I don't understand why the cops seem to think that anybody inside the residence with a gun is a bad guy. I can damn well tell you that if I hear somebody moving around outside my house at 2:30 in the freaking morning I'm going to have a gun in my hand until I KNOW it is the good guys out there.
L.A. FIRE IS GETTING REALLY NASTY
by Bob Walsh
The fire burning in the San Fernando valley, pushed by the Santa Ana winds and fueled by a lot of dry brush, has cut several of the main roads into the LA area, killed at least two people and destroyed a few dozen homes.
The fire was sparked when a garbage truck driver dumped his load, which had for some reason caught fire, to avoid incinerating his truck. He ended up incinerating a chunk of the valley instead (which might have happened anyway if the truck had caught fire).
About 100,000 people have been ordered out of about 20,000 homes in the Granada Hills and Porter Ranch areas in response to a second fire. This fire MAY HAVE been caused by power lines according to witnesses in the area the fire started.
The fire burning in the San Fernando valley, pushed by the Santa Ana winds and fueled by a lot of dry brush, has cut several of the main roads into the LA area, killed at least two people and destroyed a few dozen homes.
The fire was sparked when a garbage truck driver dumped his load, which had for some reason caught fire, to avoid incinerating his truck. He ended up incinerating a chunk of the valley instead (which might have happened anyway if the truck had caught fire).
About 100,000 people have been ordered out of about 20,000 homes in the Granada Hills and Porter Ranch areas in response to a second fire. This fire MAY HAVE been caused by power lines according to witnesses in the area the fire started.
CALIFORNIA EXPANDS "RED FLAG" GUN SEIZURE LAW
by Bob Walsh
Anti-gun psychopath Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that greatly expands the number of people who can apply for a temporary court order to seize a person's firearms "temporarily" without judicial review until after the seizure.
This list now includes co-workers and school teachers as well as the prior listed family members and law enforcement officers.
So, if little Johnnie does his presentation at show-and-tell and mentions the trip to grandpa's farm where you helped with a little squirrel and rabbit control with your 22 rifle and little Johnnie's teacher is a hard core anti-gun PETA activist, you can be pretty well fucked. They take your guns away and then let you talk to a judge later about why this action is bullshit. Your get-back under the law against questionable complainants is very thin.
Anti-gun psychopath Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that greatly expands the number of people who can apply for a temporary court order to seize a person's firearms "temporarily" without judicial review until after the seizure.
This list now includes co-workers and school teachers as well as the prior listed family members and law enforcement officers.
So, if little Johnnie does his presentation at show-and-tell and mentions the trip to grandpa's farm where you helped with a little squirrel and rabbit control with your 22 rifle and little Johnnie's teacher is a hard core anti-gun PETA activist, you can be pretty well fucked. They take your guns away and then let you talk to a judge later about why this action is bullshit. Your get-back under the law against questionable complainants is very thin.
SECOND SHOE FALLS FOR LOCAL POLITICIAN
by Bob Walsh
Regular readers will remember I have written a couple of times about Victor Mow. He is 77 years old and has been prominent in the local political scene for as long as I can remember.
About eleven months ago he was driving home from a function for his gig as a member of the Stockton Port Commission if I remember correctly. He was slightly sloshed, but had no priors for DUI. He ran over and killed an 82-year old jaywalker, Muhammad Butt.
Mow pleaded nolo to vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and was sentenced to two days in the slammer, three years probation and 250 hours community service.
The accident investigation confirmed that the dead man was jaywalking at night wearing dark clothing and that while Mow was legally intoxicated he was only slightly over the legal limit, as opposed to being totally sloshed. He blew 0.10 on the machine, twice. He did not leave the scene and did cooperate with the cops. The legal limit in CA now is 0.08. Mow requested blood tests be taken, which was done about three hours after the accident. They came up 0.76.
No member of the Butts family appeared at sentencing. They did submit a victim statement which asserted that they did not believe locking Mow up beyond the legal minimum sentence would serve any useful purpose.
Regular readers will remember I have written a couple of times about Victor Mow. He is 77 years old and has been prominent in the local political scene for as long as I can remember.
About eleven months ago he was driving home from a function for his gig as a member of the Stockton Port Commission if I remember correctly. He was slightly sloshed, but had no priors for DUI. He ran over and killed an 82-year old jaywalker, Muhammad Butt.
Mow pleaded nolo to vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and was sentenced to two days in the slammer, three years probation and 250 hours community service.
The accident investigation confirmed that the dead man was jaywalking at night wearing dark clothing and that while Mow was legally intoxicated he was only slightly over the legal limit, as opposed to being totally sloshed. He blew 0.10 on the machine, twice. He did not leave the scene and did cooperate with the cops. The legal limit in CA now is 0.08. Mow requested blood tests be taken, which was done about three hours after the accident. They came up 0.76.
No member of the Butts family appeared at sentencing. They did submit a victim statement which asserted that they did not believe locking Mow up beyond the legal minimum sentence would serve any useful purpose.
MOSCOW IS ALREADY POSITIONING ITSELF FOR A ROLE AS INTERMEDIARY IN RESOLVING THE LATEST TWIST IN SYRIA’S LONG-DRAWN-OUT CONFLICT
Turkish move into Syria gives Putin a chance to ramp up Middle East role
Israel Hayom
October 11, 2019
Turkey’s incursion into Syria is an opportunity for Russia to dial up its influence in the region as Washington appears to be pulling back, but the risks to Moscow’s diplomacy will rise the longer the operation goes on, people close to the Kremlin say.
In a phone call with Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan before the operation against US-allied Kurdish fighters, Russian leader Vladimir Putin, an ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, made clear he hoped the incursion would be limited in time and scale, the sources said.
“The sooner this conflict situation is over, the better for everyone,” said Andrei Klimov, a senior pro-Putin lawmaker in Russia’s Senate.
“I really hope our Turkish partners do everything to avoid even a chance conflict on the ground with Syrian government forces and even more so with Russian soldiers.”
For Russia, it’s a delicate balancing act. It has pledged to use its air power to help Assad retake all the territory he has lost in Syria’s eight-year-old war and has repeatedly stressed the importance of the country’s territorial integrity.
But it is also working with Turkey and Iran to push for a peaceful settlement it hopes will eventually reshape Syria’s constitution and show that Russia can make peace as well as war.
Critics say Moscow’s efforts are a sham, aimed at yielding a fake political settlement to relegitimize Assad and attract funds from the European Union and the Gulf to rebuild Syria.
For Moscow, success would cap a 2015 intervention in Syria that gave Russia new clout in the Middle East and that it is keen to build on, particularly at a time when Washington appears to be distancing itself from the region.
US President Donald Trump pulled US troops out of the way of Turkey’s offensive earlier this week, drawing bipartisan criticism from members of Congress who credit the Kurds with fighting alongside Americans to defeat Islamic State.
Ankara brands the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia as terrorists because of their ties to militants who have waged an insurgency in Turkey.
A Turkish operation that drags on too long or gets too messy may upset the Kremlin’s diplomatic efforts.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Thursday that while Moscow was sympathetic to Ankara’s security concerns, Putin told Erdoğan his forces should tread carefully.
“We consider it important that all sides show restraint and carefully weigh their practical steps so as not to damage the measures taken to achieve a political settlement,” said Ushakov.
He pointed to the first scheduled meeting of a Moscow-backed Syrian constitutional committee on Oct. 29 as something that should not be disrupted and said it would be unacceptable for Moscow if civilians suffered in the Turkish offensive.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made clear on Thursday that Moscow is already positioning itself for a role as intermediary in resolving the latest twist in Syria’s long-drawn-out conflict.
That could involve brokering talks between Ankara and Damascus, which wants Turkish forces out, and between Damascus and the Kurds, who want a measure of autonomy inside Syria that Assad has so far shown no sign of giving.
Lavrov told reporters Moscow would try both, noting apparent enthusiasm for Russia’s services from both the Syrian and Kurdish sides.
“Let us see what we can do,” Lavrov said.
Mathieu Boulègue, a research fellow at Chatham House in London, said: “Russia is probably the only player in the room among the grown-ups who can talk with everyone in the room at the same time. Whether it’s Israel and Iran, or with Kurdish forces and Turkey, or Assad and everyone else.”
For Putin, this would be a significant geopolitical win.
“If he manages to fix this it would be considered a major political victory,” said Andrey Kortunov, head of the Russian International Affairs Council, a think tank close to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“Putin could argue that the Americans failed to sort this out but we managed it, which implies our approach to the conflict is more efficient than our geopolitical opponents.”
If Turkey limits its operation to a 30-mile security zone inside Syria and conducts a quick operation, Russia is likely to tolerate it, said Vladimir Frolov, a senior former Russian diplomat.
Given Russia’s deployment of advanced air defense systems in Syria and its air base there, it has the technical ability to halt any Turkish advance if it wants, he said.
“If Erdoğan wanted to go further into Syria and all but partition it ... Moscow will try to block this by forward deploying Russian observation posts with Russian air cover,” predicted Frolov.
“Russia controls the skies in Syria and Turkey flies its planes now at Moscow’s pleasure.”
Israel Hayom
October 11, 2019
Turkey’s incursion into Syria is an opportunity for Russia to dial up its influence in the region as Washington appears to be pulling back, but the risks to Moscow’s diplomacy will rise the longer the operation goes on, people close to the Kremlin say.
In a phone call with Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan before the operation against US-allied Kurdish fighters, Russian leader Vladimir Putin, an ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, made clear he hoped the incursion would be limited in time and scale, the sources said.
“The sooner this conflict situation is over, the better for everyone,” said Andrei Klimov, a senior pro-Putin lawmaker in Russia’s Senate.
“I really hope our Turkish partners do everything to avoid even a chance conflict on the ground with Syrian government forces and even more so with Russian soldiers.”
For Russia, it’s a delicate balancing act. It has pledged to use its air power to help Assad retake all the territory he has lost in Syria’s eight-year-old war and has repeatedly stressed the importance of the country’s territorial integrity.
But it is also working with Turkey and Iran to push for a peaceful settlement it hopes will eventually reshape Syria’s constitution and show that Russia can make peace as well as war.
Critics say Moscow’s efforts are a sham, aimed at yielding a fake political settlement to relegitimize Assad and attract funds from the European Union and the Gulf to rebuild Syria.
For Moscow, success would cap a 2015 intervention in Syria that gave Russia new clout in the Middle East and that it is keen to build on, particularly at a time when Washington appears to be distancing itself from the region.
US President Donald Trump pulled US troops out of the way of Turkey’s offensive earlier this week, drawing bipartisan criticism from members of Congress who credit the Kurds with fighting alongside Americans to defeat Islamic State.
Ankara brands the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia as terrorists because of their ties to militants who have waged an insurgency in Turkey.
A Turkish operation that drags on too long or gets too messy may upset the Kremlin’s diplomatic efforts.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Thursday that while Moscow was sympathetic to Ankara’s security concerns, Putin told Erdoğan his forces should tread carefully.
“We consider it important that all sides show restraint and carefully weigh their practical steps so as not to damage the measures taken to achieve a political settlement,” said Ushakov.
He pointed to the first scheduled meeting of a Moscow-backed Syrian constitutional committee on Oct. 29 as something that should not be disrupted and said it would be unacceptable for Moscow if civilians suffered in the Turkish offensive.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made clear on Thursday that Moscow is already positioning itself for a role as intermediary in resolving the latest twist in Syria’s long-drawn-out conflict.
That could involve brokering talks between Ankara and Damascus, which wants Turkish forces out, and between Damascus and the Kurds, who want a measure of autonomy inside Syria that Assad has so far shown no sign of giving.
Lavrov told reporters Moscow would try both, noting apparent enthusiasm for Russia’s services from both the Syrian and Kurdish sides.
“Let us see what we can do,” Lavrov said.
Mathieu Boulègue, a research fellow at Chatham House in London, said: “Russia is probably the only player in the room among the grown-ups who can talk with everyone in the room at the same time. Whether it’s Israel and Iran, or with Kurdish forces and Turkey, or Assad and everyone else.”
For Putin, this would be a significant geopolitical win.
“If he manages to fix this it would be considered a major political victory,” said Andrey Kortunov, head of the Russian International Affairs Council, a think tank close to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“Putin could argue that the Americans failed to sort this out but we managed it, which implies our approach to the conflict is more efficient than our geopolitical opponents.”
If Turkey limits its operation to a 30-mile security zone inside Syria and conducts a quick operation, Russia is likely to tolerate it, said Vladimir Frolov, a senior former Russian diplomat.
Given Russia’s deployment of advanced air defense systems in Syria and its air base there, it has the technical ability to halt any Turkish advance if it wants, he said.
“If Erdoğan wanted to go further into Syria and all but partition it ... Moscow will try to block this by forward deploying Russian observation posts with Russian air cover,” predicted Frolov.
“Russia controls the skies in Syria and Turkey flies its planes now at Moscow’s pleasure.”
351-MILE TREK COULD GET IDIOT 10-YEARS TO LIFE IN PTISON
Man walked from Indiana to Wisconsin to have sex with teen
NBC 2
October 11, 2019
NEENAH, Wis. - A 32-year-old man was arrested on Thursday by Wisconsin deputies and an FBI special agent after he walked from Indiana to Wisconsin to have sex with a 14-year-old girl, according to a news release from the Justice Department.
Tommy Lee Jenkins, a former resident of Oshkosh, Wisconsin who now lives in Whitestown, Indiana, started texting with a girl named Kylee on Oct. 1, according to the release.
What Jenkins didn't know, was "Kylee" was actually a Winnebago County Sheriff's Deputy who was assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Jenkins thought "Kylee" lived in Neenah, Wisconsin with her mother. The man had started demanding sexually explicit pictures from "Kylee" and kept asking her to come to live with him in Indiana, according to the release.
When "Kylee" rejected his requests for her to come live with him, Jenkins started walking from Whitestown, Indiana to Neenah, Wisconsin - a 351-mile trek.
During his walk, Jenkins kept talking to "Kylee" in a sexually explicit manner and updated her on his location throughout the journey, according to the release.
Once he reached Winnebago County on Thursday, deputies and a Special Agent with the FBI arrested Jenkins.
Jenkins is now facing a charge of using a computer to persuade, induce or entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity. According to the Justice Department, he could face a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison if he's convicted.
“Our nation faces an epidemic of child sexual abuse, with the Internet making it too easy for predators to communicate with children across the country,” said United States Attorney Krueger. “The Justice Department is committed to working with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to prosecute child sexual abuse aggressively.”
NBC 2
October 11, 2019
NEENAH, Wis. - A 32-year-old man was arrested on Thursday by Wisconsin deputies and an FBI special agent after he walked from Indiana to Wisconsin to have sex with a 14-year-old girl, according to a news release from the Justice Department.
Tommy Lee Jenkins, a former resident of Oshkosh, Wisconsin who now lives in Whitestown, Indiana, started texting with a girl named Kylee on Oct. 1, according to the release.
What Jenkins didn't know, was "Kylee" was actually a Winnebago County Sheriff's Deputy who was assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Jenkins thought "Kylee" lived in Neenah, Wisconsin with her mother. The man had started demanding sexually explicit pictures from "Kylee" and kept asking her to come to live with him in Indiana, according to the release.
When "Kylee" rejected his requests for her to come live with him, Jenkins started walking from Whitestown, Indiana to Neenah, Wisconsin - a 351-mile trek.
During his walk, Jenkins kept talking to "Kylee" in a sexually explicit manner and updated her on his location throughout the journey, according to the release.
Once he reached Winnebago County on Thursday, deputies and a Special Agent with the FBI arrested Jenkins.
Jenkins is now facing a charge of using a computer to persuade, induce or entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity. According to the Justice Department, he could face a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison if he's convicted.
“Our nation faces an epidemic of child sexual abuse, with the Internet making it too easy for predators to communicate with children across the country,” said United States Attorney Krueger. “The Justice Department is committed to working with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to prosecute child sexual abuse aggressively.”
NO RIOTING OVER SLAP ON THE WRIST GIVEN EX-COP BECAUSE THIS WAS BLACK ON BLACK SHOOTING
Ex-NYPD cop who shot rival over phone charger in the face gets probation
By Andrew Denney
New York Post
October 11, 2019
A former NYPD sergeant who tampered with evidence after shooting a rival in the face while off-duty copped to a plea deal on Friday that allows him to avoid jail time.
Ritchard Blake, 40, pleaded guilty in Brooklyn Supreme Court to two evidence tampering charges for planting a knife next to 21-year-old Thavone Santana’s torso on Aug. 2, 2018 after shooting him in the face.
Blake then came back to the scene in East New York and retrieved the blade — which was all caught by a surveillance camera.
Blake and Santana were initially thought to be quarreling over Blake’s girlfriend — but as attorneys delved into the evidence, it was revealed that the beef between the two, who were acquaintances, was over a borrowed phone charger.
In Santana’s pending civil suit against Blake and the city, he alleges that Blake’s girlfriend borrowed Santana’s charger and that he bumped into Blake on Livonia Avenue on his way to buy a new charger — and that’s when Blake told Santana to stay away from his girlfriend and fired two rounds into Santana’s face.
Prosecutors were pushing to put Blake behind bars for one to three years, but Judge Danny Chun promised to give the disgraced cop just five years of probation for taking the plea.
“With today’s guilty plea to a felony offense, this defendant is being held accountable for his troubling behavior,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in statement. “He admitted to tampering with evidence in a failed attempt to frame another person and is no longer a member of the NYPD.”
A spokesman for the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said that police found a box cutter next to Santana. But Abe George, Blake’s attorney, said that Blake acted in self-defense because he believed that Santana was armed.
“Today former NYPD Sgt. Ritchard Blake took responsibility for his actions on August 2, 2018,” George said.
“However what should not be forgotten is that this incident would not have occurred had the alleged victim, who was a convicted violent felony offender released just months before this incident, had not threatened my client’s life with a weapon,”
“Ultimately, the grand jury found that Sgt. Blake acted in self-defense when he was forced to shoot the alleged victim to defend his own life,” George continued.
By Andrew Denney
New York Post
October 11, 2019
A former NYPD sergeant who tampered with evidence after shooting a rival in the face while off-duty copped to a plea deal on Friday that allows him to avoid jail time.
Ritchard Blake, 40, pleaded guilty in Brooklyn Supreme Court to two evidence tampering charges for planting a knife next to 21-year-old Thavone Santana’s torso on Aug. 2, 2018 after shooting him in the face.
Blake then came back to the scene in East New York and retrieved the blade — which was all caught by a surveillance camera.
Blake and Santana were initially thought to be quarreling over Blake’s girlfriend — but as attorneys delved into the evidence, it was revealed that the beef between the two, who were acquaintances, was over a borrowed phone charger.
In Santana’s pending civil suit against Blake and the city, he alleges that Blake’s girlfriend borrowed Santana’s charger and that he bumped into Blake on Livonia Avenue on his way to buy a new charger — and that’s when Blake told Santana to stay away from his girlfriend and fired two rounds into Santana’s face.
Prosecutors were pushing to put Blake behind bars for one to three years, but Judge Danny Chun promised to give the disgraced cop just five years of probation for taking the plea.
“With today’s guilty plea to a felony offense, this defendant is being held accountable for his troubling behavior,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in statement. “He admitted to tampering with evidence in a failed attempt to frame another person and is no longer a member of the NYPD.”
A spokesman for the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said that police found a box cutter next to Santana. But Abe George, Blake’s attorney, said that Blake acted in self-defense because he believed that Santana was armed.
“Today former NYPD Sgt. Ritchard Blake took responsibility for his actions on August 2, 2018,” George said.
“However what should not be forgotten is that this incident would not have occurred had the alleged victim, who was a convicted violent felony offender released just months before this incident, had not threatened my client’s life with a weapon,”
“Ultimately, the grand jury found that Sgt. Blake acted in self-defense when he was forced to shoot the alleged victim to defend his own life,” George continued.
NEWS BRIEFS ABOUT A COUPLE OF SHOOTINGS
Daily Mail
October 12, 2019
Gunman in custody after 'multiple people' are shot inside a New Hampshire church just hours before the funeral of a minister who was gunned down in his home
Multiple people have reportedly been shot inside a church in New Hampshire Saturday morning.
Pelham police confirmed that the shooter has been apprehended.
EDITOR’S NOTE; The church shooting occurred during a wedding ceremony. A man and woman were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. The shooter was tackled and subdued by wedding guests before being arrested by the police.
__________
Four people are killed and three others are seriously injured in a wild shooting inside an illegal gambling club in Brooklyn
Four people have been killed and four are injured after a shooting outside a nightclub in New York on Saturday.
The deceased are four men, who were pronounced dead at the scene outside Triple A Aces Private & Social Rental Space when emergency responders arrived to the Weeksville neighborhood in Brooklyn around 7am.
A woman and a man were injured after being shot in the leg, and another of those hurt was a man who was shot in the arm.
__________
MORE FAKE NEWS
by Bob Walsh
Police in NYC announced that seven people were shot in an unlicensed, illegal gambling club over the weekend. This is obviously bullshit because everybody knows that criminals obey gun laws and criminals can't get guns so this didn't happen. MORE FAKE NEWS.
October 12, 2019
Gunman in custody after 'multiple people' are shot inside a New Hampshire church just hours before the funeral of a minister who was gunned down in his home
Multiple people have reportedly been shot inside a church in New Hampshire Saturday morning.
Pelham police confirmed that the shooter has been apprehended.
EDITOR’S NOTE; The church shooting occurred during a wedding ceremony. A man and woman were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. The shooter was tackled and subdued by wedding guests before being arrested by the police.
__________
Four people are killed and three others are seriously injured in a wild shooting inside an illegal gambling club in Brooklyn
Four people have been killed and four are injured after a shooting outside a nightclub in New York on Saturday.
The deceased are four men, who were pronounced dead at the scene outside Triple A Aces Private & Social Rental Space when emergency responders arrived to the Weeksville neighborhood in Brooklyn around 7am.
A woman and a man were injured after being shot in the leg, and another of those hurt was a man who was shot in the arm.
__________
MORE FAKE NEWS
by Bob Walsh
Police in NYC announced that seven people were shot in an unlicensed, illegal gambling club over the weekend. This is obviously bullshit because everybody knows that criminals obey gun laws and criminals can't get guns so this didn't happen. MORE FAKE NEWS.
BRITS SCORE BIG WIN IN WAR ON DRUGS
Police arrest 13 over 'biggest drug operation ever uncovered in UK'
The Guardian
October 8, 2019
Police have arrested 13 men across the country suspected of being part of the biggest drug smuggling gang ever uncovered in the UK.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said the men, aged between 24 and 59, were held in dawn raids on Tuesday in London, Manchester, Stockport, St Helens, Warrington, Bolton, Dewsbury and Leeds.
The raids follow an 18-month NCA investigation tracking drugs allegedly smuggled into the country hidden in
Investigators intercepted 351kg of cocaine, 92kg of heroin, 250kg of cannabis and 1,850kg of hashish with a total street value of more than £38m in three consignments in September 2018.
Subsequent inquiries led them to believe that 50 tonnes of drugs worth billions of pounds were imported on numerous occasions between February 2017 and October 2018.
Jayne Lloyd, the NCA’s regional head of investigations, said: “We suspect these men were involved in an industrial-scale operation – the biggest ever uncovered in the UK – bringing in tonnes of deadly drugs that were distributed to crime groups throughout the country.
“By working closely with partners here and overseas, in particular the Dutch national police, we believe we have dismantled a well-established drug supply route.”
As part of the same investigation, four men and two women from the Netherlands were arrested in April this year and are awaiting extradition to the UK.
This investigation is linked to an earlier NCA operation in which 13 people were jailed after the seizure of more than 100kg of heroin in 2015.
The Guardian
October 8, 2019
Police have arrested 13 men across the country suspected of being part of the biggest drug smuggling gang ever uncovered in the UK.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said the men, aged between 24 and 59, were held in dawn raids on Tuesday in London, Manchester, Stockport, St Helens, Warrington, Bolton, Dewsbury and Leeds.
The raids follow an 18-month NCA investigation tracking drugs allegedly smuggled into the country hidden in
Investigators intercepted 351kg of cocaine, 92kg of heroin, 250kg of cannabis and 1,850kg of hashish with a total street value of more than £38m in three consignments in September 2018.
Subsequent inquiries led them to believe that 50 tonnes of drugs worth billions of pounds were imported on numerous occasions between February 2017 and October 2018.
Jayne Lloyd, the NCA’s regional head of investigations, said: “We suspect these men were involved in an industrial-scale operation – the biggest ever uncovered in the UK – bringing in tonnes of deadly drugs that were distributed to crime groups throughout the country.
“By working closely with partners here and overseas, in particular the Dutch national police, we believe we have dismantled a well-established drug supply route.”
As part of the same investigation, four men and two women from the Netherlands were arrested in April this year and are awaiting extradition to the UK.
This investigation is linked to an earlier NCA operation in which 13 people were jailed after the seizure of more than 100kg of heroin in 2015.
DANGEROUS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM CHINA
Stunned Georgia angler finds vicious snakehead fish that can live on land for four days
By Matt Mathers
Daily Star
October 10, 2019
A predatory Chinese fish that can survive on land for up to four days has been found for the first time by a stunned angler.
The discovery was made by a man who had been fishing in a pond attached to a private property in Gwinnett County last week.
Wildlife authorities in Georgia confirmed that it is the first time the fish has been found in the state.
Matt Thomas, Chief of Fisheries for the Wildlife Resources Division (WRD), said: "Our first line of defence in the fight against aquatic invasive species, such as the northern snakehead, are our anglers.
"Thanks to the quick report by an angler, our staff was able to investigate and confirm the presence of this species in this water body. "
"We are now taking steps to determine if they have spread from this water body and, hopefully, keep it from spreading to other Georgia waters."
According to a press release by WRD, the northern snakehead is a long, thin fish, similar in appearance to the native bowfin.
They have a long dorsal fin that runs along their whole back and a dark brown blotchy appearance.
Northern snakeheads can get up to three feet in length.
They can also breathe air allowing them to survive on land and in low oxygenated systems.
The northern snakehead is native to the Yangtze River basin in China. However, snakeheads have been reported in 14 states in the United States.
Invasive species are often introduced through unauthorized release.
In Georgia, it is unlawful to import, transport, sell, transfer, or possess any species of snakehead fish without a valid wild animal license.
Northern snakeheads have the potential to impact native species in introduced areas by competing for food and habitat.
By Matt Mathers
Daily Star
October 10, 2019
A predatory Chinese fish that can survive on land for up to four days has been found for the first time by a stunned angler.
The discovery was made by a man who had been fishing in a pond attached to a private property in Gwinnett County last week.
Wildlife authorities in Georgia confirmed that it is the first time the fish has been found in the state.
Matt Thomas, Chief of Fisheries for the Wildlife Resources Division (WRD), said: "Our first line of defence in the fight against aquatic invasive species, such as the northern snakehead, are our anglers.
"Thanks to the quick report by an angler, our staff was able to investigate and confirm the presence of this species in this water body. "
"We are now taking steps to determine if they have spread from this water body and, hopefully, keep it from spreading to other Georgia waters."
According to a press release by WRD, the northern snakehead is a long, thin fish, similar in appearance to the native bowfin.
They have a long dorsal fin that runs along their whole back and a dark brown blotchy appearance.
Northern snakeheads can get up to three feet in length.
They can also breathe air allowing them to survive on land and in low oxygenated systems.
The northern snakehead is native to the Yangtze River basin in China. However, snakeheads have been reported in 14 states in the United States.
Invasive species are often introduced through unauthorized release.
In Georgia, it is unlawful to import, transport, sell, transfer, or possess any species of snakehead fish without a valid wild animal license.
Northern snakeheads have the potential to impact native species in introduced areas by competing for food and habitat.
Saturday, October 12, 2019
NONE OF THE ABOVE
I no longer plan to vote for president in the November 2020 election
By Howie Katz
Big Jolly Times
October 11, 2019
Having come to America in 1936 as a refugee from Nazi Germany, I have strongly felt that it was both a privilege and an obligation to vote in this great Democracy of ours. I have voted in every presidential election ever since I voted for Harry Truman in 1948. Of course, I also voted in local and state elections as well. I am sorry to say that I no longer plan to vote for president in the November 2020 election.
Three years ago, I held my nose when I voted for Trump. Actually, I did not vote for Trump, I voted against Hillary. I thought the two nominees -Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton – were the worst choices for president this country ever had. I chose the lesser of two evils.
To be fair to President Trump, he has accomplished much more in his first three years as president than did his predecessor, Barack Obama. Trump has been pro-police whereas Obama was antagonistic toward the police. He stopped the Justice Department’s race-driven investigations of police agencies that were ordered by AG Eric Holder at the direction of Obama. Trump has been the most pro-Israel president since Truman whereas Obama was unfriendly to the Jewish state. He recognized Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish people and moved our embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. And Trump’s policies have resulted in a booming economy with the highest employment rate in years.
But along the way, to me at least, he’s proven himself to be a jerk. Although his supporters love the constant barrage of tweets bad-mouthing his critics, many of Trump’s tweets are beneath the dignity of the president’s office.
And the Trump-haters have been very unfair to the President. Trump has been bashed daily by the Democrats and the media because he defeated their beloved Hillary. The are determined to destroy the Trump presidency. The media is adhering to the Goebbels principle by smearing him over and over and over again, hoping that the public will thus come to believe that Trump is a racist and a lawbreaker who has no regard for the Constitution.
The impeachment proceedings in the House have only on goal, and that is to end the Trump presidency prematurely. In my opinion, the accusations made against him by Adam Schitt (oops, typo) and Jerry Nadler are not grounds for impeachment. Neither is the fact that two whistleblowers are horrified over the phone call Trump made to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
It was dumb of Trump to ask Zelensky to investigate his possible opponent next year, Joe Biden. But being dumb is not an impeachable offense. Then, instead of putting the fire out, Trump threw gasoline on it by publicly asking the Chinese to investigate Biden. Dumb and dumber. Trump obviously never enrolled in Firefighting 101 - Neve try to extinguish a fire with gasoline. The Democrats accuse Trump of asking the Ukraine and China to interfere in our election, but trying to dig up dirt on Biden is a far cry from that.
For me, the straw that broke the camel’s back was Trump’s decision to pull our troops out of Syria, a move that leaves the Turks free to slaughter our close allies, the Kurds. For four years the Kurds have been fighting alongside our trioops against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. They have shed blood that would otherwise have been shed by American soldiers. Senator Lindsey Graham, one of Trump’s closest allies called Trump’s decision “a stain on America's honor.”
Within days of Trump’s announcement, the Turks started to bomb Kurdish positions in Syria. Reports say that in a phone call, Trump gave Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a ‘green light’ to attack the Kurds. Trump denies it. But if it’s not true, then why did Erdogan’s forces start attacking the Kurds so soon after Trump’s announced decision?
Trump reacted to criticism from Graham, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Nikki Haley and other Republicans by inviting Erdogan to the White House. Shame on top of Shame!
Erdogan is an Islamist slimeball who has vowed to exterminate the Kurds and who is viewing with Iran for domination of the Middle east. Although elected president, Erdogan is a despot who imprisons any of the opposition leaders to his regime. Invite a despot who wants to exterminate our Kurdish allies to the White House – how disgraceful and disgusting!
And then, in defending his betrayal of the Kurds and leaving them to be slaughtered by the far more superior Turkish forces, Trump said: “They didn’t help us in the Second World War, they didn’t help us with Normandy.” Fake news? No, he actually said it on Wednesday at a White House bill-signing event.
The Kurds didn’t help us with Normandy. What a jerk … no, make that an idiotic jerk! Or is Trump no longer of sound mind?
But what about the Democratic presidential candidates? For starters there is Joe Biden. He does not want to put anyone in jail. That makes him almost as crazy as Crazy Bernie. And the media has buried the fact that when he was Obama’s vice president, he demanded to have Ukraine’s top prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired if the government wanted $1 billion in U.S. aid. At the time it was rumored that Shokin was investigating corruption involving Biden’s son Hunter.
Biden's quid pro is exactly the same as the quid pro the Democrats are blistering Trump for.
As for Crazy Bernie, his socialist agenda is why he’s called crazy. Now that he’s had a heart attack, his chances of being nominated as the Democratic president are slim to none.
Elizabeth Warren? Forget that Pocahontas crap. She’s got a bigger problem now. She can’t make up her mind why she left a teaching position. Warren, who graduated from the University of Houston, has been saying on the campaign trail that in 1971, she was fired from a teaching job in Riverside, N.J. because she was visibly pregnant. But in 2007, she gave an interview at the University of California at Berkeley which indicated she left her teaching job by choice. Warren said:
“I worked with the children with disabilities. I did that for a year, and then that summer, I actually didn't have the education courses, so I was on an 'emergency certificate.’ I went back to graduate school and took a couple of courses in education and said, ‘I don't think this is going to work out for me.’ I was pregnant with my first baby, so I had a baby and stayed home for a couple of years, and I was really casting about, thinking, ‘What am I going to do?’”
Aside from conflicting tales about leaving her teaching job, Warren’s socialist agenda closely resembles that of Crazy Bernie.
Then there is lunatic Beto O’Rourke who wants to confiscate our AR-15s and AK-47s. He belongs in the funny farm, not in the White House.
And there is Kamala Harris. She appears to have had her 15 minutes of fame when during the first Democratic debate she attacked Biden for supporting two racist senators when he was in the Senate. She’s been fading ever since.
Pete Buttigieg, an Afghanistan war veteran and two-term mayor of South Bend, Indiana, isn’t going anywhere. And Corey Booker, who has proposed a national license for gun owners and a clemency plan that would shorten the sentences of and release 20,000 ‘non-violent’ inmates from federal prisons, is all but out of the race.
Amy Klobuchar, Julian Castro, Tom Steyer, Tutsi Gabbard and Andrew Yang also made it to the next Democratic debate, but they are also-rans with about as much chance of getting the nomination as a snowstorm in hell.
From here it looks like either Biden or Warren. Rumors have it that Hillary Clinton will present herself as an alternative candidate during the nomination process. Don’t count the Hildebeast out.
João Lemos Esteves, a lecturer in the Law Faculty of the University of Lisbon and a contributor to two major Portuguese newspapers, says: “Democrats have all but lost their minds – this is not a biased or partisan assumption; it is a fact which is right in front of us. And the strangest thing of all is that [Stormy] Daniels could actually be the most decent and competitive Democratic presidential candidate in 2020, considering the real potential nominees.”
So, in November 2020, we will be confronted with a Democratic candidate who is absolutely unacceptable to me and a Republican idiotic jerk who this time I don’t think I could vote for even if I held my nose again.
God, why couldn’t former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley be the Republican nominee?
Next year, if I’m still alive, it will be none of the above as I cast my vote down ballot.
By Howie Katz
Big Jolly Times
October 11, 2019
Having come to America in 1936 as a refugee from Nazi Germany, I have strongly felt that it was both a privilege and an obligation to vote in this great Democracy of ours. I have voted in every presidential election ever since I voted for Harry Truman in 1948. Of course, I also voted in local and state elections as well. I am sorry to say that I no longer plan to vote for president in the November 2020 election.
Three years ago, I held my nose when I voted for Trump. Actually, I did not vote for Trump, I voted against Hillary. I thought the two nominees -Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton – were the worst choices for president this country ever had. I chose the lesser of two evils.
To be fair to President Trump, he has accomplished much more in his first three years as president than did his predecessor, Barack Obama. Trump has been pro-police whereas Obama was antagonistic toward the police. He stopped the Justice Department’s race-driven investigations of police agencies that were ordered by AG Eric Holder at the direction of Obama. Trump has been the most pro-Israel president since Truman whereas Obama was unfriendly to the Jewish state. He recognized Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish people and moved our embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. And Trump’s policies have resulted in a booming economy with the highest employment rate in years.
But along the way, to me at least, he’s proven himself to be a jerk. Although his supporters love the constant barrage of tweets bad-mouthing his critics, many of Trump’s tweets are beneath the dignity of the president’s office.
And the Trump-haters have been very unfair to the President. Trump has been bashed daily by the Democrats and the media because he defeated their beloved Hillary. The are determined to destroy the Trump presidency. The media is adhering to the Goebbels principle by smearing him over and over and over again, hoping that the public will thus come to believe that Trump is a racist and a lawbreaker who has no regard for the Constitution.
The impeachment proceedings in the House have only on goal, and that is to end the Trump presidency prematurely. In my opinion, the accusations made against him by Adam Schitt (oops, typo) and Jerry Nadler are not grounds for impeachment. Neither is the fact that two whistleblowers are horrified over the phone call Trump made to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
It was dumb of Trump to ask Zelensky to investigate his possible opponent next year, Joe Biden. But being dumb is not an impeachable offense. Then, instead of putting the fire out, Trump threw gasoline on it by publicly asking the Chinese to investigate Biden. Dumb and dumber. Trump obviously never enrolled in Firefighting 101 - Neve try to extinguish a fire with gasoline. The Democrats accuse Trump of asking the Ukraine and China to interfere in our election, but trying to dig up dirt on Biden is a far cry from that.
For me, the straw that broke the camel’s back was Trump’s decision to pull our troops out of Syria, a move that leaves the Turks free to slaughter our close allies, the Kurds. For four years the Kurds have been fighting alongside our trioops against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. They have shed blood that would otherwise have been shed by American soldiers. Senator Lindsey Graham, one of Trump’s closest allies called Trump’s decision “a stain on America's honor.”
Within days of Trump’s announcement, the Turks started to bomb Kurdish positions in Syria. Reports say that in a phone call, Trump gave Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a ‘green light’ to attack the Kurds. Trump denies it. But if it’s not true, then why did Erdogan’s forces start attacking the Kurds so soon after Trump’s announced decision?
Trump reacted to criticism from Graham, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Nikki Haley and other Republicans by inviting Erdogan to the White House. Shame on top of Shame!
Erdogan is an Islamist slimeball who has vowed to exterminate the Kurds and who is viewing with Iran for domination of the Middle east. Although elected president, Erdogan is a despot who imprisons any of the opposition leaders to his regime. Invite a despot who wants to exterminate our Kurdish allies to the White House – how disgraceful and disgusting!
And then, in defending his betrayal of the Kurds and leaving them to be slaughtered by the far more superior Turkish forces, Trump said: “They didn’t help us in the Second World War, they didn’t help us with Normandy.” Fake news? No, he actually said it on Wednesday at a White House bill-signing event.
The Kurds didn’t help us with Normandy. What a jerk … no, make that an idiotic jerk! Or is Trump no longer of sound mind?
But what about the Democratic presidential candidates? For starters there is Joe Biden. He does not want to put anyone in jail. That makes him almost as crazy as Crazy Bernie. And the media has buried the fact that when he was Obama’s vice president, he demanded to have Ukraine’s top prosecutor Viktor Shokin fired if the government wanted $1 billion in U.S. aid. At the time it was rumored that Shokin was investigating corruption involving Biden’s son Hunter.
Biden's quid pro is exactly the same as the quid pro the Democrats are blistering Trump for.
As for Crazy Bernie, his socialist agenda is why he’s called crazy. Now that he’s had a heart attack, his chances of being nominated as the Democratic president are slim to none.
Elizabeth Warren? Forget that Pocahontas crap. She’s got a bigger problem now. She can’t make up her mind why she left a teaching position. Warren, who graduated from the University of Houston, has been saying on the campaign trail that in 1971, she was fired from a teaching job in Riverside, N.J. because she was visibly pregnant. But in 2007, she gave an interview at the University of California at Berkeley which indicated she left her teaching job by choice. Warren said:
“I worked with the children with disabilities. I did that for a year, and then that summer, I actually didn't have the education courses, so I was on an 'emergency certificate.’ I went back to graduate school and took a couple of courses in education and said, ‘I don't think this is going to work out for me.’ I was pregnant with my first baby, so I had a baby and stayed home for a couple of years, and I was really casting about, thinking, ‘What am I going to do?’”
Aside from conflicting tales about leaving her teaching job, Warren’s socialist agenda closely resembles that of Crazy Bernie.
Then there is lunatic Beto O’Rourke who wants to confiscate our AR-15s and AK-47s. He belongs in the funny farm, not in the White House.
And there is Kamala Harris. She appears to have had her 15 minutes of fame when during the first Democratic debate she attacked Biden for supporting two racist senators when he was in the Senate. She’s been fading ever since.
Pete Buttigieg, an Afghanistan war veteran and two-term mayor of South Bend, Indiana, isn’t going anywhere. And Corey Booker, who has proposed a national license for gun owners and a clemency plan that would shorten the sentences of and release 20,000 ‘non-violent’ inmates from federal prisons, is all but out of the race.
Amy Klobuchar, Julian Castro, Tom Steyer, Tutsi Gabbard and Andrew Yang also made it to the next Democratic debate, but they are also-rans with about as much chance of getting the nomination as a snowstorm in hell.
From here it looks like either Biden or Warren. Rumors have it that Hillary Clinton will present herself as an alternative candidate during the nomination process. Don’t count the Hildebeast out.
João Lemos Esteves, a lecturer in the Law Faculty of the University of Lisbon and a contributor to two major Portuguese newspapers, says: “Democrats have all but lost their minds – this is not a biased or partisan assumption; it is a fact which is right in front of us. And the strangest thing of all is that [Stormy] Daniels could actually be the most decent and competitive Democratic presidential candidate in 2020, considering the real potential nominees.”
So, in November 2020, we will be confronted with a Democratic candidate who is absolutely unacceptable to me and a Republican idiotic jerk who this time I don’t think I could vote for even if I held my nose again.
God, why couldn’t former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley be the Republican nominee?
Next year, if I’m still alive, it will be none of the above as I cast my vote down ballot.
SLEAZY RAT-BASTARD TRIES TO SLEAZE AROUND HIS RAT-BASTARDLINESS
by Bob Walsh
The "whistleblower" (apparently actually a pretty hardcore democrat activist) is now, thru his/her/its lawyers, trying to set up a deal where he/she/it can "testify" before congress indirectly, via written responses to written questions. Since the Democrat-Socialists who run half of the U. S. congress are not actually interested in either truth or justice but are in fact merely interested in throwing as much muck in the direction of Donald Trump as possible it is within the realm of possibility that the House will make some sort of attempt to make this possible. After all, the Democrat-Socialists changed the rules on what a "whistleblower" is, based on covert advanced information on this situation, in order to make a second or third hand informant able to assert "whistleblower" status with some modicum of legal cover.
It is clear the House of Representatives is turning itself into some sort of half-assed star chamber where unknown witnesses with dubious actual knowledge of the facts is able to shovel shit with impunity and without the ability of the accused to question or challenge "testimony."
The "whistleblower" (apparently actually a pretty hardcore democrat activist) is now, thru his/her/its lawyers, trying to set up a deal where he/she/it can "testify" before congress indirectly, via written responses to written questions. Since the Democrat-Socialists who run half of the U. S. congress are not actually interested in either truth or justice but are in fact merely interested in throwing as much muck in the direction of Donald Trump as possible it is within the realm of possibility that the House will make some sort of attempt to make this possible. After all, the Democrat-Socialists changed the rules on what a "whistleblower" is, based on covert advanced information on this situation, in order to make a second or third hand informant able to assert "whistleblower" status with some modicum of legal cover.
It is clear the House of Representatives is turning itself into some sort of half-assed star chamber where unknown witnesses with dubious actual knowledge of the facts is able to shovel shit with impunity and without the ability of the accused to question or challenge "testimony."
SYLMAR AT RISK IN MAJOR FIRE
by Bob Walsh
As I pound this out Sylmar in SoCal is at risk due to a major fire being pushed by the serious winds in the area. Due to power outages the cops ended up going door to door to wake people for emergency evacuations. The Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, with 278 teenage residents, had to be evacuated. In an extremely rare situation fixed wing fire fighting aircraft made water and retardant drops during the nigh. These were federal aircraft, CalFire regulations prohibit night drops by fixed wing aircraft.
A combination of very, very low humidity and very nasty winds is creating a huge fire risk over much of both northern and southern California.
As I pound this out Sylmar in SoCal is at risk due to a major fire being pushed by the serious winds in the area. Due to power outages the cops ended up going door to door to wake people for emergency evacuations. The Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall, with 278 teenage residents, had to be evacuated. In an extremely rare situation fixed wing fire fighting aircraft made water and retardant drops during the nigh. These were federal aircraft, CalFire regulations prohibit night drops by fixed wing aircraft.
A combination of very, very low humidity and very nasty winds is creating a huge fire risk over much of both northern and southern California.
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
by Bob Walsh
In 1915 the Germans executed Edith Cavell, an English nurse working in Belgium, for helping allied prisoners escape.
In 1933 Alcatraz was turned over to the Bureau of Prisons for operation as a federal prison.
In 1960 Inejirio Asanuma, the head of the Socialist Party in Japan, was assassinated on live television.
In 1915 the Germans executed Edith Cavell, an English nurse working in Belgium, for helping allied prisoners escape.
In 1933 Alcatraz was turned over to the Bureau of Prisons for operation as a federal prison.
In 1960 Inejirio Asanuma, the head of the Socialist Party in Japan, was assassinated on live television.
CALIFORNIA IS NOW A LITTLE LESS FREE
Which Hasn't Been All That Free For A Number Of Years
by Bob Walsh
Gavin Newsom, the gun hating and gun owner hating psychologically damaged hoplophobe who is more or less in charge of the formerly great state of California, has signed a bill into law that limits California residents to the purchase of one gun per month. Californians have been limited to the purchase of one NEW handgun per month for some time, but have previously been free to purchase as many used guns or long guns as they saw fit.
I guess I better stock up over the next two months.
by Bob Walsh
Gavin Newsom, the gun hating and gun owner hating psychologically damaged hoplophobe who is more or less in charge of the formerly great state of California, has signed a bill into law that limits California residents to the purchase of one gun per month. Californians have been limited to the purchase of one NEW handgun per month for some time, but have previously been free to purchase as many used guns or long guns as they saw fit.
I guess I better stock up over the next two months.
OH SHIT, THEY GOT ME ….. LINDSEY GRAHAM FALLS VICTIM TO RUSSIAN PRANKSTERS
Lindsey Graham prank called by Russians pretending to be Turkish defense minister
By Paul LeBlanc, Ted Barrett, and Alison Main
CNN
October 10, 2019
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was pranked by two Russians pretending to be Turkey's minister of defense in an August phone call, his office said on Thursday.
A spokesperson for Graham confirmed to CNN that the South Carolina Republican spoke with Russian pranksters Alexey Stolyarov and Vladimir Kuznetsov in a conversation he thought was with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar.
"We have been successful in stopping many efforts to prank Senator Graham and the office, but this one slipped through the cracks," Graham spokesman Kevin Bishop said. "They got him."
According to audio of the call provided to Politico, Graham calls the Kurds a "threat" to Turkey -- a label that appears to contradict his public statements in recent days regarding President Donald Trump's decision to pull American troops out of the way of a Turkish invasion of Syria. The attack has been widely condemned by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle for putting American allies, such as the Kurds, in harm's way.
"Your YPG Kurdish problem is a big problem," Graham told the pranksters in reference to the Kurdish People's Protection Units. Politico reports the pranksters have suspected ties to Russian intelligence.
"I told President Trump that Obama made a huge mistake in relying on the YPG Kurds," Graham continued. "Everything I worried about has come true, and now we have to make sure Turkey is protected from this threat in Syria. I'm sympathetic to the YPG problem, and so is the President, quite frankly."
The comments appear at odds with the senator's previous rhetoric on the conflict, including a tweet Wednesday in which he directed followers to "pray for our Kurdish allies who have been shamelessly abandoned by the Trump Administration."
In a second phone call, a few days after the first, Graham told Stolyarov that he met with Trump and discussed the initial call. Graham relayed the message from Trump that he wants a "better relationship with Turkey."
On Monday, Graham blasted Trump over his decision to remove US troops from northern Syria as Turkey plans a military offensive in the region, saying it was "shortsighted and irresponsible."
"This impulsive decision by the President has undone all the gains we've made, thrown the region into further chaos. Iran is licking their chops. And if I'm an ISIS fighter I've got a second lease on life. So to those who think ISIS has been defeated you will soon see," Graham said during an interview on Fox News' "Fox and Friends."
Bishop said Graham's statements in the call are in line with his desire for a stronger relationship between Turkey and the US.
"With Turkey's invasion into northern Syria the drive for better relations between our two countries has suffered a body blow," Bishop said. "Turkey should immediately withdraw their military forces and America should reinstitute the safe zone concept to keep the peace in the region. Until this is done, Senator Graham will continue to push for severe, biting sanctions against Turkey."
Graham also raised the US case involving Reza Zarrab, a Turkish businessman and client of Rudy Giuliani.
CNN reported earlier Thursday that Giuliani used a 2017 Oval Office meeting with Trump to press Rex Tillerson, then-secretary of state, to support a prisoner swap to resolve the Justice Department's prosecution of Zarrab who was accused of violating Iran sanctions. Tillerson refused because it would constitute interference in an ongoing investigation.
Graham also suggested to Stolyarov on the prank call that Trump would try to be helpful "within the limits of his power" to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the Zarrab case.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Another stain on America’s honor, this time by Lindsey Graham.
By Paul LeBlanc, Ted Barrett, and Alison Main
CNN
October 10, 2019
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was pranked by two Russians pretending to be Turkey's minister of defense in an August phone call, his office said on Thursday.
A spokesperson for Graham confirmed to CNN that the South Carolina Republican spoke with Russian pranksters Alexey Stolyarov and Vladimir Kuznetsov in a conversation he thought was with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar.
"We have been successful in stopping many efforts to prank Senator Graham and the office, but this one slipped through the cracks," Graham spokesman Kevin Bishop said. "They got him."
According to audio of the call provided to Politico, Graham calls the Kurds a "threat" to Turkey -- a label that appears to contradict his public statements in recent days regarding President Donald Trump's decision to pull American troops out of the way of a Turkish invasion of Syria. The attack has been widely condemned by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle for putting American allies, such as the Kurds, in harm's way.
"Your YPG Kurdish problem is a big problem," Graham told the pranksters in reference to the Kurdish People's Protection Units. Politico reports the pranksters have suspected ties to Russian intelligence.
"I told President Trump that Obama made a huge mistake in relying on the YPG Kurds," Graham continued. "Everything I worried about has come true, and now we have to make sure Turkey is protected from this threat in Syria. I'm sympathetic to the YPG problem, and so is the President, quite frankly."
The comments appear at odds with the senator's previous rhetoric on the conflict, including a tweet Wednesday in which he directed followers to "pray for our Kurdish allies who have been shamelessly abandoned by the Trump Administration."
In a second phone call, a few days after the first, Graham told Stolyarov that he met with Trump and discussed the initial call. Graham relayed the message from Trump that he wants a "better relationship with Turkey."
On Monday, Graham blasted Trump over his decision to remove US troops from northern Syria as Turkey plans a military offensive in the region, saying it was "shortsighted and irresponsible."
"This impulsive decision by the President has undone all the gains we've made, thrown the region into further chaos. Iran is licking their chops. And if I'm an ISIS fighter I've got a second lease on life. So to those who think ISIS has been defeated you will soon see," Graham said during an interview on Fox News' "Fox and Friends."
Bishop said Graham's statements in the call are in line with his desire for a stronger relationship between Turkey and the US.
"With Turkey's invasion into northern Syria the drive for better relations between our two countries has suffered a body blow," Bishop said. "Turkey should immediately withdraw their military forces and America should reinstitute the safe zone concept to keep the peace in the region. Until this is done, Senator Graham will continue to push for severe, biting sanctions against Turkey."
Graham also raised the US case involving Reza Zarrab, a Turkish businessman and client of Rudy Giuliani.
CNN reported earlier Thursday that Giuliani used a 2017 Oval Office meeting with Trump to press Rex Tillerson, then-secretary of state, to support a prisoner swap to resolve the Justice Department's prosecution of Zarrab who was accused of violating Iran sanctions. Tillerson refused because it would constitute interference in an ongoing investigation.
Graham also suggested to Stolyarov on the prank call that Trump would try to be helpful "within the limits of his power" to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the Zarrab case.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Another stain on America’s honor, this time by Lindsey Graham.
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