Sunday, March 31, 2019

Stories For The End Of March

As the year comes to the end of its first quarter, here are some things going on:

First, in a YouTube video by "Blue Collar Logic", president Trump is a fever.


From National Review, since today is National Border Control Day and the birthday of Cesar Chavez, let's look at his views on illegal immigration.

From Townhall, two CNN hosts find a way to bash Fox News over their coverage of the Mueller report.

From The Washington Free Beacon, GOP congresscritters push for a vote on the Born Alive Act.

From the Washington Examiner, congresscritter AOC (D-NY) fails the history class about FDR and the 22nd Amendment.

From American Thinker, inside the mind of the New Zealand mosque shooter.

From LifeZette, Saturday Night Live satirizes Jussie Smollett.

From Conservative Fighters, the border crisis has become "staggering".

From Global News, the head of Canada's steel workers union wants tariffs to end before the new North American trade deal is ratified.

From the Express, U.K. Prime Minister May's cabinet "faces total collapse".

From BBC News, four more people are stabbed in the city where knives are allegedly illegal.

From the Evening Standard, according to U.K. Justice Secretary David Gauke, the government cannot ignore a vote for a "softer" Brexit.

From the Independent, what is London's "ultra-low emission zone"?

From RFI, French banks are angry over violence by "yellow vest" protesters against their machines and personnel.

From VRT NWS, five demonstrations took place today in Brussels, Belgium.

From Radio Poland, Poland's largest port terminal in Gdańsk will get a multi-billion Euro upgrade.

From Radio Praha, Slovak president-elect Zuzana Čaputová says that her first visit outside her country will be to the Czech Republic.

From The Slovak SpectatorČaputová called the election a "struggle between good and evil".  (Most of the TSS stories about the election may be read in their entirety only if you subscribe.  From what I can gather, however, she is the first female Slovak president and the fifth overall.)

From the Hungary Journal, Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjarto "slams global liberal fake news producers".

From Daily News Hungary, Leonardo da Vinci comes to Budapest.

From Sputnik International, a woman dances near the Moscow Kremlin, briefly risking hypothermia.

From The Moscow Times, a comedian takes the early lead in Ukraine's presidential election.

From Morocco World News, Pope Francis has some advice for Morocco's Christians.

From SwissInfo, a Swiss engineer changed the face of New York City.

From the Malta Independent, the ship hijacking by migrants raises concerns for rescues at sea.

From Malta Today, Malta celebrates the 40th anniversary of the day when British forces finally left.

From Total Croatia News, Croatia commemorates Operation Plitvice.

From Ekathimerini, the rights of ethnic Greeks in Albania are again in dispute.

From Hürriyet Daily News, results of Turkey's mayoral elections.

From Turkish Minute, two opposition party members are killed at a polling station in Turkey's Malatya province.

From Rûdaw, Chechnya offers to repatriate ISIS children.

From Arutz Sheva, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar wants to bomb Tel Aviv.

From The Times Of Israel, the comic who might become Ukraine's president might be Jewish.

From The Jerusalem Post, Brazil opens a diplomatic office in Jerusalem but delays moving its embassy.

From YNetNews, "the Gaza time bomb is still ticking".

From the Egypt Independent, France and Egypt start a joint military drill.

From Radio Farda, Iran goes on a nationwide flood alert.

From Dawn, protesters in Punjab demand an end to forced conversions.

From Pakistan Today, a teenage boy in Rawalpindi, Pakistan is shot after resisting being raped.

From Khaama Press, at least 61 are killed or wounded in flash floods in 13 provinces of Afghanistan.

From Kurdistan 24, ISIS executes a British recruit for spying.

From Gatestone Institute, the U.K. welcomes radical Muslims and turns away persecuted Christians.

From The Straits Times, Singaporeans get to enjoy a car-free weekend.

From the New York Post, Tesla CEO Elon Musk releases a rap song eulogizing Harambe the gorilla.

And from NewsHub, to the consternation of men, Tinder introduces height verification.

Saturday, March 30, 2019

Saturday Stuff

On the last Saturday of March, here are some things going on:

From Voice Of Europe, a look at some migrants who attack vulnerable Europeans, young and old.

From Russia Today, Russia's new military transport aircraft makes its maiden flight.

From Sputnik International, a magnitude 6.1 earthquakes strikes the Pacific island of New Britain.

From the Hungary Journal, according to British conservative Douglas Murray, "turning Europe into Mogadishu won't solve any problems".

From Daily News Hungary, the Hungarian woman who wrote The Scarlet Pimpernel has a namesake crater on Venus.

From The Slovak Spectator, Slovaks vote today in their presidential runoff election.

From Radio Praha, Kuwait's ambassador to the Czech Republic advises against moving their embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

From Radio Poland, futuristic concept cars go on display in Poznań, Poland.

From Deutsche Welle, will Germany become the world's largest market for medical marijuana?

From VRT NWS, Russia targets Belgium with fake news.

From France24, French "yellow vest" protesters put on their "act 20".

From RFI, the Eiffel Tower turns 130.

From the Express, Brexit protesters demand Prime Minister May's resignation.

From BBC News, May considers making a fourth attempt to get her Brexit deal passed.

From the Evening Standard, anti-Brexit protesters set up mock checkpoints on the border with Ireland.

From the (U.K.) Independent, the E.U. could let the U.K. delay Brexit to allow time for a second referendum.

From the (Irish) IndependentGerman Chancellor Merkel and French President Macron will put pressure on Irish Taoiseach Varadkar in talks next week.

From the Irish Examiner, more on the anti-Brexit protests at the U.K.-Ireland border.

From CBC News, civil liberties groups try to challenge the "secularism bill" in Quebec.

From Global News, conservative leader Andrew Scheer will go to New Brunswick to discuss Canada's carbon dioxide tax.  (The article calls it a "carbon tax", omitting "dioxide", as if diamonds, graphite and soot are the items to be taxed.)

From CTV News, could you gals please mooooove out of my way?

From Morocco World News, Pope Francis and Moroccan King Mohammed VI sign the "Al-Quds Call".  (Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.)

From SwissInfo, some stories involving numbers.

From Gli Occhi Della Guerra, Brunei makes homosexuality a capital offense.

From the Malta Independent, three migrants, two of whom are under 18, are charged with hijacking the tanker which docked in Malta this past week.

From Total Croatia News, Croatia disputes border claims made by Slovenia's foreign minister.

From Ekathimerini, Albania removes from its gazette a law allowing arbitrary confiscation of land belonging to ethnic Greeks.

From the Greek Reporter, strong winds in Eratini, Greece sends a board flying into and knocking down a monument.

From Independent Balkan News Agency, an interview with Greek Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Christos Spirtzis.

From Novinitecelebrations marking 140 years of Sofia being the capital of Bulgaria include cultural heritage tours.

From Hürriyet Daily News, Turkey opens a military center in Şanlıurfa province.

From Rûdaw, some members of the Saudi team that killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi reportedly received training in the United States.

From Arutz Sheva, Hamas says that they have an agreement, but not a peace agreement, with Israel.

From The Times Of Israel, to the satisfaction of Israel, Hamas contains today's protests.

From The Jerusalem Post, the protests still lead to three deaths and about 200 injuries.

From YNetNews, Western countries struggle with whether and how to repatriate ISIS children.

From the Egypt Independent, Egyptian President Sisi issues seven directives on women's issues.  (I think that these are what we Americans call "executive orders".)

From Egypt Today, 30 defendants are sentenced to prison for plotting to attack a church in Alexandria, Egypt.

From Radio Farda, Iran evacuates villages threatened by floods near dams.

From AhlulBayt News Agency, five ISIS leaders are killed in Samarra, Iraq.

From Dawn, a man in Peshawar, Pakistan cuts off his wife's hair because she did not cover her head at a wedding.

From The Express Tribune, at least 35 people have been killed by floods in Afghanistan.

From Pakistan Today, Indian troops fire upon a motorcyclist and his passenger in Pulwama, Kashmir.

From Khaama Press, in four provinces in Afghanistan, at least 25 Taliban terrorists are sent to their virgins.

From Gatestone Institute, stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons.

From National Review, there are no winners in the "collusion" war.

From Townhall, social justice is not.

From The Washington Free Beacon, a fisherman's association suing energy producers over climate change won't answer questions about its own "greenness".

From the Washington Examiner, will former Vice President Biden get a #MeToo reckoning?

From American Thinker, the media must be held accountable for the collusion hoax.

From LifeZette, Democratic congresscritters pressure Attorney General Barr to release the entire Mueller report.  (Except for any classified material, I would agree with them.)

From Conservative Fighters, the fastest-ever women's marathon runner doesn't want trans-women in women's sports, to which activists object.

From Red State, President Obama's DHS secretary recognizes the reality at the border.

From Fox News, a woman in Arizona is arrested for allegedly leading police on a chase, with two illegal aliens in her trunk.

From the New York Post, a man is charged with two felonies after breaking in to a woman's apartment and then kissing her in a canine manner.

And from the Inquirer, a thief steals only eggs from a restaurant in Tokyo.

Friday, March 29, 2019

Friday Links

As some warm weather arrives around my area, here are some things going on:

From Breitbart, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) blames President Trump for the actions of Jussie Smollett.

From AOL, Donald Trump the Younger criticizes congresscritter AOC (D-NY), but the crowd he's speaking to oversimplifies his ideas.

From National Review, there are legitimate concerns about the environment, but our planet will still be here in 12 years.  (As I wrote in a "Random Musings" post, I don't trust predictions about the end of the world, because so far none have come true.)

From FrontpageMag, soldiers at Fort Bragg are arrested for immigration fraud.

From Townhall, the Illinois Prosecutors Bar Association calls State's Attorney Kim Foxx's actions "dishonest" and "unethical".

From The Washington Free Beacon, according to wiretaps, the Turkish government helped ISIS terrorists move into and out of Syria.

From the Washington Examiner, the woman who allegedly should not have been named is set to run for Senator as a Democrat from New Mexico.

From The Federalist, the dropping of Jussie Smollett's charges shows a new form of identity politics-based entitlement.

From American Thinker, the parallels between the Bolshevik revolution and the "über-leftward turn" of today's Democrats.

From CNS News, congresscritter Jim Jordan (R-GA) explains why the wall should be built.

From LifeZette, Speaker Pelosi's district goes NIMBY on a proposed homeless shelter.

From Conservative Fighters, Luke Skywalker needs to lighten up.

From Snouts in the Trough, it's hard to put one's finger on what the victims of knife crime in London have in common.

From The Conservative Woman, a columnist explains why he voted to leave the E.U.

From the Express, the U.K. House of Commons votes down the third version of the Brexit deal.

From the Evening Standard, meanwhile outside Parliament, Brexit supporters protest.

From the (U.K.) Independent, the latest rejection of the Brexit deal could bring on a general election.

From the (Irish) Independent, a teenager who was told that he would never walk again after breaking his neck in a rugby game walks out of the hospital.

From the Irish Examiner, two women taken in as refugees by Ireland and later granted citizenship lose their appeal over family reunification rights.

From France24, a Frenchman who rented his flat to the ringleader of the 2015 Paris attacks is sentenced for "hiding terrorists".

From RFI, an ancient Greek play in which actors darkened their faces to portray Egyptians will be restaged.

From VRT NWS, 10,239 Belgians living in the U.K. are registered to vote for Belgian candidates in the E.U. elections.

From the NL Times, a man is arrested in Breda, Netherlands for allegedly joining Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

From Dutch News, Dutch Health Minister Hugo de Jonge wants buffer zones around abortion facilities.

From Deutsche Welle, German parliament member Norbert Röttgen calls Brexit "a disaster".

From Radio Poland, Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz will go to the U.S. to discuss the Middle East and NATO.

From Radio Praha, a Czech man hitchhikes across the Atlantic Ocean.

From Daily News Hungary, according to Foreign Minister Szijjarto, Hungary could import gas from Azerbaijan starting in 2021.

From About Hungary, the Hungarian government wants the European Commissioner to explain the bank cards given to migrants.

From Russia Today, according to Russian Prime Minister Medvedev, Russia only wants to protect its interests, not to "regulate" the Internet.

From Sputnik International, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake hits the Kuril Islands in Russia's far east.

From The Moscow Times, in Russia's autonomous republic of Ingushetia, an entire police unit is disbanded for siding with protesters.

From Hürriyet Daily News, according to Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Turkey's purchase of Russian air defense systems is a "done deal".

From Turkish Minute, according to Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, over 16,000 military personnel have been purged since the coup attempt of 2016.

From Ekathimerini, an anarchist group damages the offices of Greece's power distribution agency.

From the Greek Reporter, the pre-Holocaust history of Greece's Jews is presented in the American museum of the Holocaust.

From Novinite, the prime ministers of Bulgaria and Romania discuss three more bridges being built over the Danube.

From Independent Balkan News Agency, "the Bucharest declaration".

From Total Croatia News, Croatia prepares for Brexit.

From the Malta Independent, the captain of the ship hijacked by migrants feared that he and his crew would be killed.

From Malta Today, gender quotas will bring "the death of Maltese democracy", says a female Maltese MP.

From ANSA, the controversial World Conference of Families starts in Verona, Italy.

From El País, the conservative Popular Party faces controversy after one of their candidates makes comments about abortion.

From Morocco World News, Morocco approves a draft decree against violence against women.

From Egypt Today, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan and Iraq discuss regional security.

From Arutz Sheva, Israel and Hamas reportedly agree to calm down.

From The Times Of Israel, the IDF sends a warning to the Gazans.

From The Jerusalem Post, the group Islamic Jihad promises nonviolent protests tomorrow.

From YNetNews, an archaeological site in the West Bank is said to have been the location of the tabernacle, despite no evidence.

From Rûdaw, in Turkey, some Syrian children go back to school.

From Radio Farda, "fragmented reports" indicate widespread flood damage in Iran.

From Dawn, according to police in Karachi, Pakistan, a woman is shot dead by her brother for marrying a man of her own choosing.

From The Express Tribune, a policeman in Gujranwala, Pakistan is arrested for parading a teenager naked.

From Pakistan Today, Indian troops kill two youths in Budgam, Kashmir.

From Khaama Press, 12 Taliban terrorists are killed or wounded in Afghanistan's Helmand and Paktika provinces.

From CBC News, beware the giant goldfish.

From Global News, U.S. President Trump issues a new permit for the Keystone XL pipeline.

From CTV News, a "towering" ice wall emerges near Port aux Chois, Newfoundland.

From Mexico News Daily, Honduras denies the existence of the latest alleged migrant caravan.  (I have 2 pages left at MND this month.)

From Gatestone Institute, "the West's crimes against persecuted minorities in the Middle East".

From FirstPost, Hindus in Pakistan struggle in a country hostile to them.

From Numbers USA, Trump threatens to close the border of Mexico, or at least part of it.

From Twitchy, former CIA Director John Brennan defends congresscritter Peter Schiff (D-Cal).

From Yahoo News, a Dutch inventor attempts to teach cows to use toilets.  (The article cites AFP as its source, and comes via Twitchy.)

From Fox News, a Scottish schoolboy discovers a stone monument from the ancient kingdom of Strathclyde.

From the YouTube user "Hard Target Podcast", the best Brexit video of the year.  (Discretion is advised due to vulgar language.)

And from the New York Post, a man in Osmaniye, Turkey does his best Mary Poppins.

Thursday, March 28, 2019

Plastic Pollution And Other Stories

Recently, some parts of the United States have taken action against plastic drinking straws, because of the harm they cause to marine animals.  Plastic in other forms has also been found in the oceans.  But while the West has taken up this concern, it has not caused most of the plastic pollution.  A relevant question comes from Defend Europa:
The mainstream media has been bombarding Western countries with news about the need for a more circular economy and slow phasing out of plastic from our daily lives in order to protect the environment, focusing on the World’s oceans. But how much of that plastic pollution is actually the West’s fault?
As it turns out, according to the information in the DE article, the United States is the 12th worst plastic polluter of our oceans, with 0.11 million metric tons, and is the only Western country among the top 12.  Thus, we Yanks can certainly do better, but as DE notes, if those who are concerned about all that plastic really want to get their point across, they need to have their concerns translated into Mandarin, Hindi, or an African language.  The worst culprit is China, with 3.53 million metric tons.  The article also points out the 10 rivers which spew the most plastic into the oceans.  I won't recite them here, but I'll provide a hint.  Zero of those rivers are in North America, Europe or Australia.  Read the story at the link above, which comes via Voice Of Europe.
****
In other stories:


From the Evening Standard, a complete "Brexit jargon buster".













From Independent Balkan News Agency, if Montenegro finds oil in the Adriatic Sea, Croatia will try to do the same.  (How do you say "drill baby drill" in Serbo-Croatian?)

From Novinite, "what does Bulgaria export?"

























From Clarion Project, sex, drugs, and........sharia?













Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Wednesday Whatnot

Here in the middle of the week are some things going on:


From National Review, "the Jussie Smollett disgrace".




From the Washington Examiner, this past Monday, the Border Patrol in the southwest apprehended more people than on any day in the past 10 years.  (And yet, according to some people, there's no border crisis.)



From LifeZette, concerning violence against women, former Vice President Joe Biden (D-Del) blames whitey.  (He apologizes for how he once treated Anita Hill.  As a bonus, the article links a piece from The Daily Wire setting forth six reasons why Hill's accusations against Clarence Thomas were not credible.)


From The Conservative Woman, "everyone hates Hamas - except the BBC".




















From Sputnik International, according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko, NATO has increased its reconnaissance near Russia's borders.  (The name "Grushko" is similar to the Polish word gruszka, which means "pear".)



From Ekathimerini, changing the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque would require UNESCO's permission, says UNESCO.  (The site was originally a Christian cathedral, later converted into a mosque, and most recently became a museum.)
















From Hürriyet Daily News, according to Turkish President Erdoğan, the U.S. has no right to "give" the Golan Heights to Israel.  (Technically, he's correct.  The Golan Heights was not given to Israel by the U.S., but was taken by Israel from Syria.  The U.S. merely agrees with Israel's actions.)


From Rûdaw, members of the Kurdish Women’s Protection Units hold a parade in Hasaka, Syria to celebrate the end of the ISIS caliphate.  (These are some of the women who fought against ISIS while numerous Syrian males were fleeing toward Europe.)





From Gli Occhi Della Guerra, Saudi women who fought for the right to drive have been detained and tortured.  (It looks like I've found another source from Italy.)




And from WKYT, a man in California goes nuts after seeing Spanish words on a bilingual Mexican food menu.  (It's Mexican food.  Even many of the English words are derived from Spanish.)

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Tuesday Stories

Here on the afternoon which the Moody Blues once sang about are some things going on:




















From The Slovak Spectator, sexual abuse at a summer camp in Slovakia.























From Independent Balkan News Agency, Greece will allow hydrocarbon exploration in 11 areas.



From Turkish Minute, Turkish authorities issue 79 more detention warrants for people with suspected Gülen links.  (The article goes as far as calling this action a "witch hunt".)


From Arutz Sheva, oops, wrong country!

From The Times Of Israel, Hamas fires more rockets.











From Culture Watch, it's time to get a clue.




Monday, March 25, 2019

Monday Links

As the dreaded rainy day and Monday coincide, here are some things going on:







From CNS News, congresscritter Adam Schiff (D-Cal) promises to "haul people before the Congress".  (I guess you could say that Schiff happens.)





From Mexico News Daily, Mexico overtakes Canada among the world's top exporters.  (I have three MND pages left this month.)

From Morocco World News, Lebanon refuses to allow a Moroccan journalist to enter because she had visited Israel.  (This might be something to bring up when someone talks about Trump's "Muslim ban".)









From VRT NWS, climate protesters camp out on a Brussels ring road.  (Is the embassy of China, the world's largest carbon dioxide producer, anywhere along that road?)

From the NL Times, it's yet another hand grenade.











From The Moscow Times, Russian Officials claim vindication.

From Independent Balkan News Agency, Kosovo marks the 20th anniversary of the bombing of Serbia.











From The Times Of Israel, more on the IDF attacks on Hamas.

From The Jerusalem Post, Hamas promises to respond to any attacks.











From Breitbart, Jussie Smollett's lawyer Mark Geragos is allegedly Avenetti's co-conspirator.  (The article cites the Wall Street Journal, but only links a Tweet.  From previous experience, I'd say that any real WSJ article is probably behind a paywall.)



And as a bonus, also from The Babylon Bee, ten proofs that Jesus was a socialist, and ten proofs that He was a conservative.