Sep 242025
 


Vincent van Gogh Almond blossom 1890

 

Trump Changes Rhetoric On Ukraine Conflict (RT)
Trump Says Ukraine Can Win Back All Territory Lost to Russia (ZH)
NATO States Can Shoot Down Russian Planes – Trump (RT) /td>
Hungary Pledges To Keep Buying Russian Energy (RT)
Western Europe ‘Going To Hell’ – Trump (RT)
Turning Point Campus Tour Continues with Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson etc (CTH)
Who Charlie Kirk Really Was (CTH)
Is This the Media’s Newest Spin on Charlie Kirk’s Murder? (Margolis)
The Evolution of MAGA and The Perils Ahead (Pinsker)
President Trump Calls Out Democrats for Threatening Shutdown (CTH)
Secret Service Foils Massive Plot To Cripple NYC Cell Network (NYP)
Jimmy Kimmel Set For Return To ABC (NYP)
Bill O’Reilly Shreds Liberals’ ‘Free Speech’ Spin (ZH)
US Officials Say Regime Change in Venezuela Is the Real Goal (Antiwar)
Is Wired Trying to Get Elon Musk Assassinated Next? (Stephen Green)

 

 


https://twitter.com/SaiKate108/status/1970089397199802437

 

 

 

 

It looks like a sudden 180º. But how exactly do you get from Zelensky has no cards, to now is “time for Ukraine to act?” What changed?

Trump Changes Rhetoric On Ukraine Conflict (RT)

US President Donald Trump has claimed that Ukraine can still prevail in the conflict with Russia three years into the fighting, even as Kiev’s forces have been steadily losing ground in recent months. The statement marks a stark shift in rhetoric from the US leader. Since taking office, Trump has made repeated attempts to mediate the Ukraine conflict, initiating numerous rounds of talks with Russian officials, which culminated in a summit with Putin in Alaska in mid-August. The US president has recently expressed frustration over the lack of progress in settling the conflict but still referred to Russia as a powerful nation while arguing that Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky had no “cards.”

However, in a Truth Social post on Tuesday, following a meeting with Zelensky, Trump claimed that he believes Kiev is “in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back,” if the EU and NATO continue to support it. He also referred to Russia as a “paper tiger,” arguing that it had failed to defeat Kiev’s forces in three and a half years. The US president also claimed that Russia is “in [a] big economic trouble” over the conflict and it was “time for Ukraine to act.” He did not announce any new financial or military aid packages for Kiev, though, stating instead that the US would continue to “supply weapons to NATO” for the bloc to use them as it sees fit.

The Russian economy has recently showed signs of slowing down compared to the growth of 4.1% in 2023 and 4.3% in 2024. It is still expected to grow 2.5% this year, despite sweeping Western sanctions. President Vladimir Putin said last week that the country “is still far from a recession,” citing the “historically low unemployment rates.” The governor of Russia’s central bank, Elvira Nabiullina, also recently dismissed the rumors about recession. “The economy is slowing, but there is no recession,” she said at the Moscow Financial Forum last week. The nation’s military have also been steadily advancing on the front lines for months. Moscow’s forces had taken control of 3,500 square kilometers and 149 settlements since March, Chief of the General Staff General Valery Gerasimov reported in late August.

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To me, it feels like he’s hallucinating. But what do I know, right?

Trump Says Ukraine Can Win Back All Territory Lost to Russia (ZH)

In a dramatic reversal from his previous stance where he urged Zelensky to seek a ceasefire with Putin promptly as recently as a month ago following his summit with Putin in Alaska, on Tuesday afternoon President Donald Trump said that Ukraine should go on the offensive against Russia and reclaim all occupied territories. “After getting to know and fully understand the Ukraine/Russia Military and Economic situation and, after seeing the Economic trouble it is causing Russia, I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

The president said that, with backing from Europe and NATO and enough time and patience, it is “very much an option” for Ukraine to drive Russian forces out and restore its borders. “Why not? Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a War that should have taken a Real Military Power less than a week to win,” Trump wrote. “This is not distinguishing Russia. In fact, it is very much making them look like ‘a paper tiger.’” Trump said Russia’s faltering economy, shortages at home, and growing public discontent could tip the balance further in Ukraine’s favor. He described Ukraine as having “Great Spirit” and growing stronger as the war drags on, while warning that Russian President Vladimir Putin faces “BIG Economic trouble.” “This is the time for Ukraine to act,” Trump wrote, adding that he wishes both countries well, and that the United States would continue to supply weapons to NATO “for NATO to do what they want with them.”

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Oh sure, suddenly Russia flies war planes all over Poland, Romania and Estonia.

NATO States Can Shoot Down Russian Planes – Trump (RT)

US President Donald Trump has replied affirmatively when asked if NATO states should shoot down Russian aircraft that breach their airspace. The US president was asked the question at a joint press conference alongside Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky on Tuesday. “Yes, I do,” Trump replied. Estonia, a Baltic member of the US-led military bloc, last week claimed that three Russian MIG-31 jets breached its airspace. Moscow has denied the claims, saying that the planes did not deviate from their routine flight path, and arguing that NATO lacked evidence. Tallinn called for urgent consultations with bloc members under NATO Article 4, which allows members to seek talks if they believe their security or territorial integrity is threatened. Bloc members convened in Brussels on Tuesday.

According to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, the US-led military bloc decides whether to shoot down planes that violate the bloc’s airspace on a real-time case-by-case basis depending on the threat level. In the alleged Estonian incident, “NATO forces promptly intercepted and escorted the aircraft without escalation as no immediate threat was assessed,” he claimed during a press conference following the meeting. Earlier this month, another NATO member, Poland, accused Russia of sending at least 19 drones into its airspace – a claim Moscow has dismissed as baseless. The only damage from the incident was allegedly caused by a missile fired by a Polish F-16, which struck a residential building, the news outlet Rzeczpospolita reported last week.

The incident in Poland was a fabricated provocation meant to “undermine a political settlement of the Ukraine conflict,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said last week. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the accusations were levied without a shred of evidence. The claims “have never been supported by any reliable data or convincing arguments,” he told journalists on Tuesday.

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“Brussels has reportedly included twelve Chinese and three Indian entities in its 19th sanctions package..”

Hungary Pledges To Keep Buying Russian Energy (RT)

Hungary will continue importing Russian oil and gas, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has said, rejecting pressure from Washington and Brussels for a clean break from Moscow’s energy supplies. Szijjarto made the comments in an interview with The Guardian published on Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. For landlocked Hungary, he said, the issue of energy security is a matter of physical infrastructure – pipelines, refineries and existing contracts – that limit where it can source energy. “We can’t ensure the safe supply for our country without Russian oil or gas sources,” he said. “It can be nice to dream about buying oil and gas from somewhere else … but we can only buy from where we have infrastructure.”

In recent weeks, Washington has increasingly pushed its European NATO partners to stop purchasing Russian energy – and to introduce secondary tariffs on India and China – while refusing to impose any new sanctions unilaterally. President Donald Trump mocked them in his UNGA address on Tuesday, claiming “some in NATO are funding the war against themselves.” Hungary’s state-owned MOL Group imports about five million tonnes of crude annually via the Druzhba (“Friendship”) pipeline, which also supplies Slovakia. The route has come under direct threat in recent months, with Ukrainian forces striking pumping stations and other facilities along the line, causing temporary disruptions to shipments.

The European Commission has set a goal of phasing out Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Brussels has reportedly included twelve Chinese and three Indian entities in its 19th sanctions package, which must be unanimously approved before being adopted. Brussels has also been weighing separate trade measures that could curtail oil deliveries through Druzhba, even without unanimous consent, effectively allowing other EU members to outvote Budapest and Bratislava, according to Bloomberg. When asked about mounting European pressure, Szijjarto said it was “totally impossible to carry out a fact-based, rational dialogue based on common sense” with Western officials, whom he described as “fanatics.”

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No doubt there. “..each country is unique. But to stay this way, every sovereign nation must have the right to control their own borders and to limit the sheer number of migrants entering their countries,” he said.”

Western Europe ‘Going To Hell’ – Trump (RT)

US President Donald Trump has warned that open border policies and “suicidal energy ideas” will be “the death of Western Europe,” insisting that something must be done immediately to reverse course. “This cannot be sustained,” Trump told the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, calling the crisis of uncontrolled migration “the number one political issue of our time.” Your countries are being ruined,” he said, accusing the UN of funding an “assault on Western countries and their borders,” citing the $372 million spent by the organization in 2024 on supporting an estimated 624,000 people migrating to the US.

He went on to claim that Europe is in “serious trouble” and has been “invaded” by an unprecedented “force of illegal aliens” that is “pouring” into the continent. He criticized European leaders for failing to do anything about it due to political correctness. Trump pointed to London and its “terrible mayor,” Sadiq Khan, claiming that the city has changed beyond recognition and is moving toward Sharia law. “What makes the world so beautiful is that each country is unique. But to stay this way, every sovereign nation must have the right to control their own borders and to limit the sheer number of migrants entering their countries,” he said.

He stressed that while the US remains compassionate to people who have truly struggled in their home countries, it is important to “solve problems in their countries, not create new ones in our countries” by importing people from different cultural and religious backgrounds who break the law and make false asylum claims.“You’re doing it because you want to be nice,” Trump said, addressing his European counterparts. “You want to be politically correct, and you’re destroying your heritage,” he claimed, calling for an end to “the failed experiment of open borders.”

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Looks promising. But what if it takes a unique set of talents?

Turning Point Campus Tour Continues with Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson etc (CTH)

Turning Point USA has announced speakers to help maintain the TPUSA mission of Charlie Kirk. The schedule is being worked out, but names like Megyn Kelly, Vivek Ramaswamy, Rob Schieder, Tucker Carlson, Glenn Beck and Michael Knowles will assist. It is awesome to see people stepping into the breach.

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“Charlie Kirk’s Best Friend Debunks the Conspiracy Theories..”

Who Charlie Kirk Really Was (CTH)

Andrew Kolvet, the Executive Producer of The Charlie Kirk Show was Charlie’s best friend. Following the memorial service he sat down for a lengthy podcast interview with Alex Clark. WATCH:

Reference points:
0:00 intro
1:38 Charlie’s last weeks
3:59 Charlie’s urge for International travels
4:38 His favorite form of exercise
5:50 Sharing the Gospel in Tokyo
6:55 Conservative infighting about Israel

15:22 Prepping Erika for Opportunists
18:04 Andrew’s “out-of-body” experience
20:06 How Charlie treated women
22:14 Andrew calls Charlie a “prophet”
24:05 Erika’s confidence in Charlie’s investigation
26:29 Charlie’s problems with Alex
28:17 Charlie & Erika behind the scenes
31:10 Fox vs. Charlie?
34:16 Charlie was “Mr. MAHA”
36:26 Why did TPUSA Team take down cameras?
38:40 Charlie’s true view of politics
39:22 The future for Charlie’s tours & Charlie’s show
42:34 Andrew’s remedy for healing a sick culture

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“Not political”.

Is This the Media’s Newest Spin on Charlie Kirk’s Murder? (Margolis)

When it comes to political violence, the left far outpaces anyone else. Naturally, after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the media scrambled to obscure that reality. First, they falsely claimed that Kirk’s killer was a MAGA Republican, and that lie collapsed almost immediately. Then they trotted out bogus studies claiming that political violence is mostly a right-wing problem, only for conservative outlets to expose their deception. So what’s their next move? Now they’re trying to spin Kirk’s murder as “not political.”As PJ Media has previously reported, Tyler Robinson’s own text messages revealed that he killed Kirk because he was “tired of his hatred.” His mother told investigators that Robinson had become increasingly “pro-gay and trans-rights oriented” over the past year, and prosecutors indicate he acted because of Kirk’s stance on transgender issues.

But according to ABC News’ Jonathan Karl, Kirk’s murder “was not a political act.” “Later today, family, friends and supporters of Charlie Kirk will gather in Phoenix for his memorial service,” Karl said. “The 31-year-old activist’s murder shocked the nation and was condemned by sensible and compassionate Americans in and out of politics and across the political spectrum. It was also senselessly celebrated by some, a small minority, who didn’t like what Kirk stood for.” Karl continued: Celebrating or excusing violence is abhorrent. The murder of Charlie Kirk was not a political act. It was gruesome crime. His alleged killer now faces the death penalty. Our thoughts this morning are with the Kirk family, especially his two young children who will now grow up without their father.

Whatever you think of his political views – and there are many people deeply offended by things he said – Charlie Kirk was an unwavering advocate for free speech. On a personal note – he was always willing to engage with me and answer my questions. He welcomed debate with those he disagreed with. He didn’t try to silence his critics. He listened to them and tried to change their minds.”

Notice the sleight of hand? Karl acknowledges that some people celebrated Kirk’s murder because they “didn’t like what Kirk stood for,” then immediately claims that the murder itself wasn’t political. When someone kills you specifically because they disagree with your political views, that constitutes a political action, not a random crime of passion. This is media spin at its best. By this twisted logic, the assassination attempts against President Donald Trump weren’t political either. Perhaps Karl thinks the Capitol riot wasn’t political either. Oh, no, I’m sure that was. It’s only violence against the right that isn’t political. And when the outrage poured in, Karl’s cleanup attempt got even more ridiculous.

Of course, Karl’s claim that a small minority of people celebrated Kirk’s death is a gross attempt at gaslighting. A YouGov poll found that 24% of very liberal Americans agree it’s acceptable to be happy about the death of opposing political figures, compared to just 3% of very conservative Americans. The same poll revealed that 25% of very liberal Americans believe violence can be justified to achieve political goals, while only 3% of very conservative Americans agree.

That’s not a “small minority.” These numbers dismantle the left’s carefully constructed narrative about who really supports political violence in America. Liberal Americans consistently endorse both celebrating political opponents’ deaths and using violence for political purposes, yet the media continues pushing the fiction that conservatives are the real threat.

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“From now on, it’ll be commonplace for GOP candidates to urge supporters to attend church, surrender themselves to Christ, and emulate His example. The two are now permanently intertwined. This is the true legacy of Charlie Kirk..”

The Evolution of MAGA and The Perils Ahead (Pinsker)

“One day spent with someone you love can change everything.” —Mitch Albom

Charlie Kirk’s memorial service — and what a beautiful, sorrowful, unforgettable service it was — signaled the closing of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. Because, for a solid decade, Charlie’s journey and the Make America Great Again movement were indistinguishable; Charlie’s mission was MAGA’s mission — his path was MAGA’s path. Then, on the fateful day of Sept. 10, Charlie earned a new path. And today, he’s walking hand-in-hand with Jesus Christ; his horrible wounds cleansed, healed, and purified. Charlie’s earthly mission is now complete; his eternal rewards await.= Yet somehow, his widow, his young children — and the MAGA movement he so dearly loved — must endure.

The Democratic Party gave a master class on what NOT to do on Oct. 29, 2002: A week before the midterm elections, Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) died in a tragic plane crash. The Democrats staged a made-for-TV “memorial service” — and I’m using quote marks because it was less a memorial than a nakedly partisan political rally where Republican guests (including Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott) and independent guests (including Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura) were booed, cursed, and heckled until they left in protest. As CNN reported: “[Gov. Jesse] Ventura, who walked out of the service, said Democrats “should hang their head in shame.” […] “I feel used. I feel violated and duped over the fact that that turned into nothing more than a political rally,” [Ventura] said.”

The damage to Democrats was immediate: Ex-V.P. Walter Mondale, the favorite son of Minnesota who was tapped to replace Wellstone, went from the sentimental choice and a slam-dunk winner — buoyed by an eight-point lead over Republican Norm Coleman with just a week left — to losing the election by 2.2%. That won’t happen to the Republican Party. Not when the service’s most viral moment was Erika Kirk declaring her forgiveness of the man who made her a widow: And instead of boos, protests, or howls of indignation, her forgiveness was met with rapturous applause. Erika Kirk’s love and faith overshadowed everything else and everyone else — including the president and vice president. In an evening of indelible images and unforgettable moments, an army of angels sang as she spoke: The earth trembled and the heavens rejoiced.

And the trumpets of troubadours toppled more than the walls of Jericho. Charlie Kirk’s dearly beloved was baptized in a flash of gunfire, transformed from wife to widow to beacon of hope. None of us will ever be the same again. That includes the MAGA movement. As of today, the MAGA movement is now a Christian movement. That doesn’t mean Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and atheists are persona non grata in the Republican Party, but brands and movements evolve over time. Nothing stays the same. MAGA is no different. Since the end of World War II, the Republican Party has been governed by three key constituencies: The so-called Religious Right (pro-life, prayer in school, traditional values), economic conservatives (business leaders and the tax-cut crowd), and military hawks.

After the broken promises, exaggerated claims, and staggering cost of the Iraq War, the military hawks were diminished. They still haven’t recovered. A few years later, the 2008 Too Big to Fail financial crisis sullied the image of economic conservatives. From government bailouts to cries of cronyism, this gave an opening to today’s economic populists. It’s how the party of tax cuts became the party of tariffs. Unlike the other two, the Religious Right wasn’t damaged by a single watershed moment. Even after a few notable TV evangelists humiliated themselves in high-profile scandals, the Religious Right was mostly unfazed: Pat Robertson unapologetically carried their banner in the 1988 Republican primaries, finishing second in Iowa — ahead of George H. W. Bush — and first in Washington state.

In retrospect, that was the high-water mark for the Religious Right movement… until yesterday evening. When Americans yawned in indifference to the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal, conservative pundits and political strategists interpreted it as a cue to relegate moral conflicts to the back burner and focus instead on pocketbook issues. This, along with other cultural trendlines — including a 12-point drop among U.S. adults who regularly attend religious services — created an impression that Americans didn’t want to hear about God anymore. That impression was further reinforced when the thrice-married Donald Trump overcame the “grab ‘em by the p***y” Access Hollywood leak, winning the presidency. The Religious Right, they assumed, was dead and buried. Not anymore: We just witnessed its miraculous resurrection.

The MAGA mission is now a faith-based mission (and maybe it always was). From now on, it’ll be commonplace for GOP candidates to urge supporters to attend church, surrender themselves to Christ, and emulate His example. The two are now permanently intertwined. This is the true legacy of Charlie Kirk. Unfortunately, with it comes a new line of attack for GOP grifters. Because, whether we like it or not, grifters are gonna grift. That’s what they do. It’s how they make money. All movements have ‘em, and MAGA, alas, is no exception. Fortunately, they’re easy to spot:

Their success depends on attention, views, and clicks. They’re suddenly obsessed with causes and issues that they’ve never shown a heightened interest in before (cough, Israel, cough). They’ve flip-flopped on key positions over the last 10 years, often trafficking in conspiracy theories. They claim to speak on behalf of Charlie Kirk, putting words in his mouth that he never said. And now that Christianity has ascended, they’ll weaponize their faith to attack “the other.” Even if “the other” is a fellow conservative! No, I’m not gonna name names — because I don’t have to: If you’ve read the list, you already know EXACTLY who they are. Consider yourself warned. Consider all of us warned.

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“..Otherwise, it will just be another long and brutal slog through their radicalized quicksand.”

“All Congressional Democrats want to do is enact Radical Left Policies that nobody voted for — High Taxes, Open Borders, No Consequences for Violent Criminals, Men in Women’s Sports, Taxpayer funded “TRANSGENDER” surgery, and much more.”

President Trump Calls Out Democrats for Threatening Shutdown (CTH)

The Democrats are threatening to refuse to support a stopgap spending measure to extend federal spending. President Trump is calling them out and refusing to meet with them until they get serious about it. After passing a clean CR in the House, Republicans in the Senate are pushing a “clean” seven-week continuing resolution, which they say will buy time for more negotiations on full-year spending bills and possibly an extension of expiring health insurance subsidies. Democrats, meanwhile, wrote an alternative four-week punt that tacks on a laundry list of other demands, including a permanent extension of the insurance subsidies. Should the government shut down, Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought will determine which elements and agencies of the government are considered essential and which will be shuttered until the budget is extended.

President Donald Trump – “After reviewing the details of the unserious and ridiculous demands being made by the Minority Radical Left Democrats in return for their Votes to keep our thriving Country open, I have decided that no meeting with their Congressional Leaders could possibly be productive. They are threatening to shut down the Government of the United States unless they can have over $1 Trillion Dollars in new spending to continue free healthcare for Illegal Aliens (A monumental cost!), force Taxpayers to fund Transgender surgery for minors, have dead people on the Medicaid roles, allow Illegal Alien Criminals to steal Billions of Dollars in American Taxpayer Benefits, try to force our Country to again open our Borders to Criminals and to the World, allow men to play in women’s sports, and essentially create Transgender operations for everybody.”

“These Radical Left Views and Policies is what allowed me to win the Presidential Election, including all seven Swing States, and the Popular Vote, IN A HISTORIC LANDSLIDE. There are consequences to losing Elections but based on their letter to me, the Democrats haven’t figured that out yet. They are trying to eliminate the popular $50 Billion Dollar Rural and Vulnerable Hospital Fund, which was passed with only Republican Votes, and proudly signed into Law by ME. The Democrats in Congress seem to have totally lost their way. They obviously have no idea what it means to put America First or to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! All Congressional Democrats want to do is enact Radical Left Policies that nobody voted for — High Taxes, Open Borders, No Consequences for Violent Criminals, Men in Women’s Sports, Taxpayer funded “TRANSGENDER” surgery, and much more. Few people voted for what they represent, which would lead to the destruction of America.

Instead, people voted for COMMON SENSE, and that’s what the Republicans and your President, “DONALD J. TRUMP,” stand for. I look forward to meeting with them if they get serious about the future of our Nation. We must keep the Government open and legislate like true Patriots rather than hold American Citizens hostage, knowing that they want our now thriving Country closed. I’ll be happy to meet with them if they agree to the Principles in this Letter. They must do their job! Otherwise, it will just be another long and brutal slog through their radicalized quicksand. To the Leaders of the Democrat Party, the ball is in your court. I look forward to meeting with you when you become realistic about the things that our Country stands for. DO THE RIGHT THING!”

DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

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This is massive big. We’ll hear more about it.

“..a wide-range of telecommunications attacks — including spamming networks with up to 30 million text messages a minute..”

Secret Service Foils Massive Plot To Cripple NYC Cell Network (NYP)

A massive illegal electronic device network capable of crippling cell towers and jamming 911 calls across New York City was uncovered by the Secret Service — just as world leaders prepared to descend on Manhattan for the UN General Assembly, officials said Tuesday. Investigators discovered the trove of devices — including more than 300 co-located SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards – at multiple locations within 35 miles of the United Nations. “The potential for disruption to our country’s telecommunications posed by this network of devices cannot be overstated,” Secret Service Director Sean Curran said. Officials warned the devices had the capability of carrying out a wide-range of telecommunications attacks — including spamming networks with up to 30 million text messages a minute — that could have had “catastrophic” consequences for the city.

“It can take down cell towers, so then no longer can people communicate, right? …. You can’t text message, you can’t use your cell phone. And if you coupled that with some sort of other event associated with UNGA, you know, use your imagination there, it could be catastrophic to the city,” Matt McCool, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s New York field office, said. “Given the timing, location and proximity and potential for significant disruptions to the New York telecoms system, we moved quickly to disrupt this network.” It wasn’t immediately clear exactly when the cache of hidden devices was seized. The hidden network was found as part of a sweeping Secret Service probe that kicked off in the spring following telecommunications-related threats targeting senior US government officials, according to investigators.

When agents ultimately raided the locations, they uncovered rows of servers and shelves stacked with SIM cards – including more than 100,000 that had already been activated, as well as a large number still waiting to be deployed, McCool said. McCool warned of the havoc the network could have caused if it had been left intact — comparing the potential impact to cellular blackouts that followed the 9/11 terror attacks when networks crippled under the strain. Officials said they haven’t uncovered a direct plot to disrupt the UN General Assembly but noted there was no ongoing threat to the Big Apple. Investigators are still probing who is responsible but believe perps from certain countries used the system to send encrypted messages to organized crime groups, cartels and terrorist organizations.

Forensic analysis is still in its early stages, McCool said. “We need to do forensics on 100,000 cell phones, essentially all the phone calls, all the text messages, anything to do with communications, see where those numbers end up,” he said.

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More attention than Kimmel had in many years.

Now more people can voluntarily not watch. It all looks like one big PR thing.

“Where has all the leadership gone?”

Jimmy Kimmel Set For Return To ABC (NYP)

Jimmy Kimmel will be back on ABC Tuesday, but the country’s largest owner of its local affiliate stations won’t air his show as he still refuses to apologize for his incendiary, false claim about Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer. The $15 million-per-year ABC late-night host negotiated his return to the airwaves directly with Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger and his No. 2, Disney Entertainment Co-Chair Dana Walden, sources with knowledge of the situation told The Post. Kimmel will address the controversy during his monologue on Tuesday though he will stop short of apologizing, the sources said. The episode, however, won’t be aired on dozens of local ABC stations owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which announced Monday night that it will instead air news programming in its place.

“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming. Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return,” the company said in a statement. In response, Turning Point USA posted on X, “Good for @WeAre-Sinclair for blocking Kimmell [sic] from its 31 ABC affiliates. Reminder, Kimmell has yet to apologize for saying the assassin was MAGA, and he was reportedly going to double down. He’s an unrepentant liar, and affiliates have every right to demand accountability.” Sinclair had previously demanded Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and pledge a donation to Turning Point USA, the activist group Kirk founded. Nexstar Media Group, the other largest ABC station owner, has not yet said whether it’ll air Kimmel on its stations Tuesday. The Post has sought comment from the company.

Both media conglomerates had successfully pushed ABC to yank him from the airways for the Sept. 15 comments about Kirk’s assassination. In a statement Monday, Disney said it suspended Kimmel last Wednesday “to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country,” calling some of his comments “ill-timed and thus insensitive.” The suspension followed a monologue in which Kimmel claimed Kirk was killed by other Trump supporters — despite authorities saying the alleged shooter had left-wing views. It remains unclear what Disney and Kimmel agreed to secure his return to air. The company has not disclosed whether the talks involved new contract terms or a donation to Kirk’s organization. Reports have suggested those points were central to discussions, but no final details have been confirmed.

Kimmel’s current contract with ABC runs through May 2026, following a three-year extension signed in 2022. He reportedly earns between $15 and $16 million per year, with total compensation potentially exceeding $20 million with bonuses. The move left Disney squeezed from both sides: conservatives enraged by Kimmel’s remarks and his apparent refusal to apologize, and liberals angered that the company appeared to bow to pressure from FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and pro-Trump voices. Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner ripped the company for pulling “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in the first place. Eisner accused Disney of capitulating to “intimidation” from Washington regulators and demanded to know, “Where has all the leadership gone?”

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“..they have BANISHED all traditional conservative thought and discourse on all of their programs.”

Bill O’Reilly Shreds Liberals’ ‘Free Speech’ Spin (ZH)

Jimmy Kimmel will finally return to the air on Tuesday night, after his show was briefly yanked for falsely labeling Kirk’s suspected assassin as “one of them” in a distasteful dig at conservatives. Democrats rushed to defend Kimmel, calling it a “First Amendment issue.” But Bill O’Reilly says that story is, frankly, bullsh*t. The real free speech story, he argues, is what these mainstream networks have been doing for years. “Look, this [Trump v. Kimmel] story is bogus,” O’Reilly told Vittert. “The [real] story is that Disney and Kimmel, for three years, would not put on a non-liberal voice on his program.”

“You talk about no freedom of speech and expression? That story has been totally ignored,” O’Reilly lamented. “And it’s not just ABC. It was CBS, NBC, MSNBC, and CNN. Okay? They will not put any non-liberal voice on the air.” O’Reilly recalled how, before the Trump era, he was booked regularly on mainstream networks. Now, he says he and other conservatives have been deliberately excluded from those programs — something he called “Putin stuff.”“This whole freedom of speech BS is coming from the far left to make Kimmel a victim and to make Trump a villain when, for ten years, they have BANISHED all traditional conservative thought and discourse on all of their programs.” “All of them,” O’Reilly continued. “They don’t want non-liberal voices. That is Putin stuff!”

https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1970310297689678327

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Mario’s hobby.

US Officials Say Regime Change in Venezuela Is the Real Goal (Antiwar)

US officials have told The New York Times that the real goal of the US military buildup in the Caribbean, and the bombing of boats in the region, is regime change in Venezuela. The policy is being largely driven by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has long wanted to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power. Back in 2019, when the first Trump administration attempted to back a coup against Maduro, Rubio posted a photo on Twitter of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in the moment he was being brutally murdered in an apparent threat to the Venezuelan leader. The Trump administration claims that Maduro is the leader of a drug cartel, but has not produced any evidence for the charge.

Maduro and other Venezuelan officials have forcefully rejected the accusation and have pointed to data that shows the majority of the cocaine that is produced in Colombia doesn’t go through Venezuela. President Trump has also framed the military campaign in the region as a response to overdose deaths in the US due to fentanyl, but fentanyl isn’t produced in Venezuela, and it does not go through the country on its way to the US. The Times report, which was published over the weekend, reads: “Several current and former military officials, diplomats, and intelligence officers say that while fighting drugs is the pretext for the recent US attacks, the real goal is to drive Mr. Maduro from power, one way or another.”

The US began bombing boats allegedly running drugs in the Caribbean on September 2. According to numbers released by President Trump, at least 17 people have been extrajudicially executed by the US military since the campaign began. US officials have said the Trump administration is considering direct strikes on Venezuelan territory, which could lead to a full-blown war with the country. One US official speaking to Axios last month suggested that the US military buildup in the region could lead to a “Noriega part 2,” referring to the 1989 US invasion of Panama that led to the ouster of Manuel Noriega. Other US officials hope that the pressure and $50 million bounty on Maduro leads to his assassination.

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“With Starship, SpaceX hopes to reduce the cost to orbit by an additional 90-99%.”

Is Wired Trying to Get Elon Musk Assassinated Next? (Stephen Green)

You might think that the days and weeks after an assassin took the life of the guy who wanted nothing more than to engage with people would be a good time to tone down the “NAZI!” rhetoric against other public figures. Tell that to Wired’s Noah Shachtman, whose latest piece paints Elon Musk as an evil Bond villain “out to rule space” and demands to know “When the orbiting rifles are handed out, how many gun lockers will Elon have the keys to?” I’m trying hard not to sound paranoid here. But when Shachtman tells Wired readers that “you’ve watched Elon Musk stomp and smash and rage his way through politics and policy,” so they “get what’s at stake if he’s given an outsize role in the weaponization of space,” it’s easy to imagine the next Tyler Robinson carving death messages into a few shell casings.

Am I insane? Normally, this is where I’d urge you to go read the whole thing, but Shachtman’s article is behind Wired’s paywall (link here). Apple News seems to have it available to the public (link here). I’m not an Apple News subscriber, but they’re pushing one of those “Three Months Free!” offers at me since I bought a new phone. So maybe that link will work, maybe it won’t — good luck! Here’s more: Musk often lets Starlinks run under the table, sometimes as a way of pressuring governments to license the service legitimately. “But in Iran, they’re just straight-up flouting the rules,” says one knowledgeable observer, “trying to overthrow the government by giving power, giving internet access” to Tehran’s opponents. It wasn’t the first—or last—time Musk used Starlink in ways that seemed to support the Israeli government’s objectives.

Musk also likes and works with President Donald Trump, who is Literally Hitler™, except when Bibi Netanyahu is. “Musk isn’t afraid to use his technologies to advance his politics,” Shachtman warns. “We’ve seen Musk enable [Israel’s] war effort, and we’ve seen him deny that aid when it suited him to do so.” But Musk’s evil ambitions go so much further than just enabling Nazis, foreign and domestic. “This is really the elephant in the room. And Musk just points at Mars like, ‘This is my objective. Don’t look at Starlink,’” Novaspace’s Lucas Pleney told Shachtman. “This is why I’m thinking: Is he really pointing the finger toward Mars and believing in it? Or is he just trying to divert us from the big thing, which is Starlink and how much it will take over?”

Then there’s Golden Dome, which is where Shachtman’s Hitler-meets-Bond-villain theme shines through: “In an unusual twist, SpaceX has proposed setting up its role in Golden Dome as a ‘subscription service’ in which the government would pay for access to the technology rather than own the system outright.” Of course, a subscription is something that can be turned off. Musk would have the kill switch to America’s orbiting weapons system. The man behind “MechaHilter.” The guy who gave the thumbs up to using his satellites as part of a campaign to overthrow a government and appeared to do very little as hundreds of thousands starved. That dude, with an outsize role in the making and maintaining of an arsenal in space—one in which the guns are pointed down at Earth.

Somewhere, a deranged young man reads this and wonders what to carve into a 30-06 shell. While I’m a big supporter of Musk’s politics — and also a happy Starlink customer — Longtime Sharp VodkaPundit Readers™ know that what I’m really crazy about is Musk’s space ambitions. SpaceX, with its reusable Falcon 9 workhorse, has already reduced the cost of putting stuff in Low Earth Orbit by 25-40%, depending on the launch. That’s made things possible (like Starlink, our military’s growing Starshield, and much more) that simply weren’t possible before. With Starship, SpaceX hopes to reduce the cost to orbit by an additional 90-99%. At that price, Musk won’t just make a lot of money for his investors; he’ll open up the Solar System to the human race. There are riches out on the final frontier, starting with metals-rich 16 Psyche, just waiting for the nation able to reach them first.

Exploration? Pure science? Settlement? Whatever your space dream — and even if you don’t have one, because SpaceX is paying its own way to Mars — Musk could prove to be the most impactful human being since Christopher Columbus. It’s no coincidence that Lefties hate Columbus, too. I have one last question. Couldn’t we put politics aside long enough to give humanity its best shot at ending our dependence on a single, fragile planet?”Nah,” says the Left. “Let’s see if we can spur another nutcase like Tyler Robinson into action.”

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galagos

 

 

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Sep 232025
 


Frans Hals Two Laughing Boys with a Mug of Beer 1626

 

‘Absolute Miracle’ May Have Saved Lives During Charlie Kirk Murder (ET)
Bullet That Hit Charlie Kirk Purportedly Made No Exit Wound (HUSA)
Building a Legacy: Charlie Kirk’s Memorial (Salgado)
Moscow Ready To Respond To Any Threat – Putin (RT)
Putin Makes Nuclear Treaty Offer To US (RT)
Trump Declares Antifa a Terrorist Group (Catherine Salgado)
Biden’s FBI Tried to Entrap Trump’s Border Czar Before the Election (Margolis)
Why We Are at War (Richard C. Lyons)
Disney Gives Kimmel Show Back, But Nexstar & Sinclair Still Refuse To Air (ZH)
The Funniest Joke Jimmy Kimmel Never Told (Turley)
Trump Links Tylenol To Autism Risk During Pregnancy (RT)
Personal Note (James Howard Kunstler)
EU Looks To ‘Le Pen-Proof’ Its Budget – Politico (RT)
Macron Warns Against Seizing Frozen Russian Assets (RT)
Britain’s Fate Is Decline, Not Upheaval – And History Explains Why (Bordachev)

 

 

https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1970169307867890068

https://twitter.com/Juliesnark1731/status/1970092182196642217

https://twitter.com/TheBritLad/status/1970047562565488823

https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1970153374310945092

 

 

 

 

Hmmmm. “‘This would have taken a moose or two down, [or] an elk.’”

‘Absolute Miracle’ May Have Saved Lives During Charlie Kirk Murder (ET)

A spokesperson for Turning Point USA provided an update on the assassination of the group’s founder, Charlie Kirk, earlier in September and said Kirk’s body “stopped” the bullet from producing an exit wound. Citing a surgeon at the hospital that assisted Kirk, spokesman Andrew Kolvet wrote in a post on X that the bullet that killed Kirk on Sept. 10 at Utah Valley University “‘absolutely should have gone through, which is very very normal for a high powered, high velocity round.’ “‘I’ve seen wounds from this caliber many times and they always just go through everything,’” the surgeon said, according to Kolvet’s post. “‘This would have taken a moose or two down, [or] an elk.’” But the bullet “didn’t go through” because “Charlie’s body stopped it,” Kolvet said in the Sept. 20 post.

“I mentioned to his doctor that there were dozens of staff, students, and special guests standing directly behind Charlie on the other side of the tent,” he said. The doctor then told Kolvet, according to his post, that it “‘was an absolute miracle that someone else didn’t get killed’” by the bullet. According to the doctor, the shot “‘likely would have killed those standing behind [Kirk] too.’” “Even in death, Charlie managed to save the lives of those around him,” Kolvet wrote, noting that the doctor told him that the bullet had been recovered. It was discovered underneath Kirk’s skin. Officials have said the gun used in the shooting was a Mauser 98 model chambered in .30-06. According to prosecutors, the suspected assassin, Tyler Robinson, had told a male with whom he was in a romantic relationship that it was his grandfather’s gun. Authorities also said DNA on the trigger of the rifle that killed Kirk matched that of Robinson.

The authorities have released text messages said to be between Robinson and his romantic partner, whom prosecutors said identifies as a transgender female and was Robinson’s roommate. In these messages, Robinson allegedly said he plotted the attack for about a week and used a scope. Officials said Robinson had become “more political” in recent years, expressing more left-wing and pro-transgender views. When the roommate asked the suspect why he shot Kirk, according to the charging documents, Robinson said in response: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”Kirk had become a prominent force in politics and was credited with energizing the Republican base, particularly among youth, and helping President Donald Trump win back the White House in 2024.

Robinson’s roommate appeared shocked in the text exchange after the shooting, according to court documents, asking Robinson “why he did it and how long he’d been planning it.” While authorities say Robinson has not been cooperating with investigators, they say his family and friends have been talking to officials. Robinson made his first court appearance last week, with a judge declaring the suspect indigent and provisionally appointing a public defender. That public defender has not yet been named. The suspect faces capital aggravated murder, obstruction, witness tampering, and other charges. A capital murder charge means that Robinson could receive the death penalty. His next court date is set for Sept. 29. Robinson has not issued any public statements in response to the allegations.

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“Kolvet’s claims have been met with widespread skepticism online.”

Bullet That Hit Charlie Kirk Purportedly Made No Exit Wound (HUSA)

Call it a miracle—though many are calling bullshit. Andrew Kolvet, the executive producer of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” said Saturday that he spoke with the surgeon who worked on conservative activist Charlie Kirk at the hospital. According to Kolvet, the surgeon said the .30-caliber bullet that hit conservative activist Charlie Kirk made no exit wound because Kirk is “like the man of steel.” “He said the bullet ‘absolutely should have gone through, which is very very normal for a high powered, high velocity round. I’ve seen wounds from this caliber many times and they always just go through everything. This would have taken a moose or two down, an elk, etc.’ But it didn’t go through. Charlie’s body stopped it,” Kolvet said on Twitter/X.

The surgeon supposedly explained that “his bone was so healthy and the density was so so impressive that he’s like the man of steel. It should have just gone through and through. It likely would have killed those standing behind him too.” The coroner found the round just beneath Kirk’s skin, Kolvet added. By comparison, the .30-caliber round that Secret Service counter-sniper David King fired at alleged would-be Trump assassin Thomas Crooks made five wounds. According to the medical examiner who autopsied Crooks, he suffered five gunshot wounds—an entry wound, an exit wound, a re-entry wound, and “two corresponding, partial re-exit wounds.”

“There is a corresponding, partial gunshot re-exit wound on the lateral right upper back … There is an additional, corresponding partial gunshot re-exit wound on the lateral right upper back,” stated Crooks’s autopsy report, which was obtained exclusively by Headline USA. The bullet that hit Crooks came from a 300 Win Mag cartridge, which is more powerful than the .30-06 that allegedly was used in the Kirk assassination—but both have the same caliber bullet. Kolvet’s statement comes amidst public questions about what happened to the .30-06 round said to have slain Kirk. Ballistics experts have floated various theories about what really happened, speculating that Kirk may have been shot from somewhere else—possibly from his right side or even from below. Kolvet’s claims have been met with widespread skepticism online.

https://twitter.com/KitKlarenberg/status/1969707314618790326?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1969707314618790326%7Ctwgr%5E47736aecc70ef1bad7a6a7699346024dd87bba18%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fheadlineusa.com%2Fbullet-that-hit-charlie-kirk-purportedly-made-no-exit-wound%2F

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“‘Except a corn of wheat fall onto the ground and die, it abideth alone.”

Building a Legacy: Charlie Kirk’s Memorial (Salgado)

The most important officials in the United States, including the president, gathered to pay tribute to one man yesterday. Pastors glorified his faith, academics praised his intellect, and hundreds of thousands of people chanted his name. This man did not hold elected office. He was not a billionaire or an entertainer or a star athlete. He was a patriot who believed so strongly in free speech and the truth that he changed history. In a little over a decade, Charlie Kirk went from being a teenager with a lot of enthusiasm but no money or connections to becoming leader of a world-shaping movement, a man whom the most famous and powerful patriots of our era were proud to know. His loss to assassination was a grievous blow for America, which needed his talent and his vision for years to come. It was also a personal tragedy for his wife and little children.

But at only 31 years of age, Charlie Kirk left behind him a legacy much greater than that of many an octogenarian. As Donald Trump said, Charlie was “one of the giants of our nation,” a true “martyr for American freedom.” White House official Stephen Miller, speaking with intensity, declared, “The day Charlie died the angels wept, but their tears have turned to fire in our hearts.” He told Charlie’s enemies, “You have nothing, you are nothing, you are wickedness….You thought you could kill Charlie Kirk; you have made him immortal.” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth compared Kirk to St. Paul and described him as “a warrior for country, a warrior for [Christ],” in the best tradition of American courage. His fellow cabinet member, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said that Charlie Kirk, like Christ his Master, “changed the trajectory of history.

Charlie’s other overarching passion was free speech,” and “there’s a lot worse things than death and one of those is if we lost our constitutional rights in this country.” As the true warrior he was, Hegseth continued, “Charlie died with his boots on, and he died so that we did not have to undergo those fates worse than death.” Every speaker referred to the importance of faith for Kirk, from his pastor Rob McCoy to gospel singers to the president (read Chris Queen’s piece). As Kennedy said, “Charlie’s mission was Jesus Christ and also free speech.” Erika Kirk, before forgiving her husband’s murderer, said that “more than anything, Charlie wanted to do not his will but God’s will,” and “after Charlie’s assassination we didn’t see violence, we didn’t see rioting,” but “instead we saw what my husband always prayed we’d see in this country. We saw revival.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Charlie would want everyone watching or attending the memorial to believe we’re created by God, that we sinned and were redeemed, and that at the end of time all believers will have a great re-union, including with Charlie himself. Jack Posobiec, rosary in hand, urged attendees to put on the armor of God, “for Charlie.” Dr. Ben Carson read John 12:24 because Charlie was shot, he said, at 12:24 p.m. on Sept. 10: “‘Except a corn of wheat fall onto the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.’ And I want to thank Charlie for his sacrifice, because much fruit is going to be realized.” Kirk’s encouragement to young people to get married and raise families was also a recurring theme. Kirk’s Chief of Staff, Mikey McCoy, thanked Charlie for urging him to get married and helping him meet his wife, who stood beside him holding his arm.

While some ignorant, elitist leftists sneered at Kirk’s lack of a college degree, Hillsdale College President Dr. Larry Arnn lauded Kirk’s intellect and was proud to remember that Kirk had taken multiple online courses through Hillsdale. “I keep a list in my head of the 6 or 8 young people, and I’m very privileged, I get to know many inspiring young people who are the best I ever saw. Charlie is the only one who was never a full-time student at Hillsdale College who was on that list,” Arnn said, announcing an honorary degree for Kirk. Donald Trump Jr. said Kirk “was like a little brother to me,” but amid the heartbreaking tragedy, “we won’t be intimidated…Our message of faith, family, and country will not be silenced.” Don Jr. urged, “His legacy must be that when they took his life, a million more Charlies stepped up to fill the void. We are all Charlie!”

Vice President JD Vance, tears in his eyes, said of Kirk, “He changed the face of conservatism in our time and in doing so he changed the course of history….[Debate] was the vehicle for bringing the light of truth to dark places.” The most moving speech of the day was the eulogy by Mrs. Erika Kirk, who stood strong even as she wept, filled with love and forgiveness for friends and foes alike, describing the beauty of her marriage, the excruciating heartache of Charlie’s assassination, and her plans to carry on her husband’s vital work of free speech and outreach to young Americans.

Finally, Donald Trump paid tribute to the man he credits with ensuring his 2024 election victory. “Charlie’s murder was not just an attack on one man,” Trump stated, but on “our entire nation….The gun was pointed at him but the bullet was aimed at all of us.” Kirk changed history in his three decades of life on earth, Trump declared, before ending by calling Erika out on stage again to embrace her.

It was my great honor to attend the memorial of Charlie Kirk, a visionary and American hero. As someone only a few years younger than Kirk, his sudden death provokes a question in me as well as many of my fellow Gen Z and millennial Americans — what will my legacy be? Charlie Kirk was one in a billion. But while he was the indispensable man, he needed the staff, volunteers, fans, and friends who helped him make his movement a success. Now that he is gone, We the People are left to take up his banner, practice his courage, display his faith and patriotism, and prove to the bloodthirsty Democrats that we are all Charlie Kirk now.

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Trying to beat Russia amounts to suicide.

Moscow Ready To Respond To Any Threat – Putin (RT)

Russia is ready to respond to any threats, President Vladimir Putin has said, adding that Moscow still supports a diplomatic path to ease tensions despite the West’s destructive policies.Speaking ahead of the Security Council meeting on Monday, Putin sounded the alarm with regard to the “extreme danger of further deterioration” of the geopolitical situation, particularly amid the Ukraine conflict.= He added that while Russia had offered “specific ideas” to correct this trajectory, these “warnings and initiatives received no clear response.”There should be no doubt about this: Russia is capable of responding to any existing and newly emerging threats. Responding not with words, but through the application of military-technical measures, Putin warned.

He noted Moscow’s decision to abandon the unilateral moratorium on the deployment of ground-based intermediate- and shorter-range missiles last month, describing it as a forced step caused by the need to counter plans to deploy US- and other Western-made missiles in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Putin stressed, however, that Russia is not interested in warmongering and saber-rattling. “We are confident in the reliability and effectiveness of our national deterrent forces, but at the same time we are not interested in further escalating tensions or fueling an arms race.” He added that Russia has always prioritized “political and diplomatic methods for maintaining international peace, based on the principles of equality, indivisibility of security, and mutual consideration of interests.”

Putin signaled that Moscow is ready to prolong the 2010 New START Treaty, the last remaining arms control pact between Russia and the US, which expires in February. It limits each side to no more than 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads and 700 deployed delivery systems, and provides for inspections and data exchanges to verify compliance. This initiative, Putin said, “could make a significant contribution to creating an atmosphere conducive to substantive strategic dialogue with the United States.”

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“The New START Treaty will expire on February 5, 2026, signaling the imminent end of the last international accord directly limiting nuclear missile capabilities.”

Putin Makes Nuclear Treaty Offer To US (RT)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow will continue to adhere to a key nuclear arms control treaty signed with the US for one year after its expiration, provided Washington agrees to do the same. Speaking ahead of a Security Council meeting on Monday, Putin said global strategic stability has been increasingly threatened by what he described as the destructive actions of Western nations. He stressed that while Moscow is ready to meet any threat, it is and always has been interested in political and diplomatic methods of resolving conflicts.

Russia is prepared to follow the 2010 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) treaty for one year after its expiration next February, provided the US reciprocates and refrains from actions that could break the nuclear status quo, such as deploying interceptor systems in space, Putin offered. The Russia-US treaty establishes limits on the numbers of intercontinental-range nuclear weapons both sides can deploy. Below is the full text of Putin’s speech, as published on the Kremlin website:

Good afternoon, colleagues,

We have several topics to discuss today, including matters related to migration policy. However, I would like to begin with an issue of prime importance, one that is critical to safeguarding our national interests, Russia’s sovereignty, and without exaggeration, international security as a whole. I am referring to the situation in the realm of strategic stability, which, regrettably, continues to deteriorate. This is driven by a combination of factors, which are negative, compounding existing strategic risks and generating new ones. As a result of the destructive actions previously taken by Western countries, the foundations of constructive relations and practical cooperation between nuclear powers have been significantly undermined.

The basis for dialogue within relevant bilateral and multilateral frameworks has been eroded. Gradually, the system of Soviet-American and Russian-American agreements on nuclear missile and strategic defense arms control – long relied upon to stabilize relations between the two largest nuclear powers and to enhance global security – has been nearly dismantled. Let me reiterate: We have repeatedly examined the causes and potential consequences of this situation. We attribute the numerous challenges that have accumulated in the strategic sphere since the beginning of the 21st century to the destructive actions of the West, their destabilizing doctrines and military-technical programs designed to undermine global parity and pursue absolute, overwhelming superiority.

We have consistently and thoroughly addressed these issues, criticized this approach, and not only highlighted the extreme dangers of further deterioration but also repeatedly proposed concrete ideas for joint solutions. However, our warnings and initiatives have not received a clear response. Let me emphasize and let there be no doubt: Russia is fully capable of responding to any current or emerging threat, not with words, but through concrete military-technical measures. A clear example is our decision to end the unilateral moratorium on the deployment of ground-based short- and intermediate-range missiles. This was a forced move needed for ensuring an adequate response to the deployment of similar US and other Western-made weapons in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, which poses a direct threat to Russia’s security.

Our plans to strengthen the country’s defense capability are being developed with full regard to the evolving international situation, and they are being implemented in a comprehensive and timely manner. We are confident in the reliability and effectiveness of our national deterrent forces. At the same time, we are not seeking to further escalate tensions or fuel an arms race. Russia has consistently upheld the primacy of political and diplomatic methods for maintaining global peace, based on the principles of equality, the indivisibility of security, and mutual respect for interests.

Let me remind you that the last major political and diplomatic achievement in the field of strategic stability was the conclusion of the Russian-American New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) in 2010. However, owing to the profoundly hostile policies of the Biden administration, which undermined the fundamental principles on which this treaty was built, its full implementation was suspended in 2023. Nevertheless, both parties have declared their intention to continue voluntarily observing the central quantitative limits of the strategic offensive arms treaty until its expiry. For nearly 15 years, this agreement has played a constructive role in maintaining balance and predictability in the sphere of strategic offensive weapons.

The New START Treaty will expire on February 5, 2026, signaling the imminent end of the last international accord directly limiting nuclear missile capabilities. A complete renunciation of this treaty’s legacy would, from many points, be a grave and short-sighted mistake. It would also have adverse implications for the objectives of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. In order to prevent the emergence of a new strategic arms race and to preserve an acceptable degree of predictability and restraint, we consider it reasonable to maintain at this turbulent time the status quo established under New START. Accordingly, Russia is prepared to continue observing the treaty’s central quantitative restrictions for one year after February 5, 2026.

Following that date, based on a careful assessment of the situation, we will make a definite decision on whether to uphold these voluntary self-limitations. We believe that this measure is only feasible if the United States acts in a similar spirit and refrains from steps that would undermine or disrupt the existing balance of deterrence. In this connection, I would like to ask the relevant agencies to maintain close oversight of American activities related to the START arsenal in the first place. Particular attention must be directed towards US plans to expand strategic components of its missile defense system, including preparations for the deployment of interceptors in outer space. We believe that the practical implementation of such destabilizing measures could nullify our efforts to maintain the status quo in the field of strategic offensive arms. We will respond appropriately in this case.

I believe that Russia’s initiative, if implemented, could make a substantial contribution to creating the conditions necessary for a substantive strategic dialogue with the United States – provided, of course, that the grounds for its full resumption are secured and that broader steps are taken to normalize bilateral relations and remove core security contradictions.

Let us now turn to the current agenda.

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“..a militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law.”

Trump Declares Antifa a Terrorist Group (Catherine Salgado)

President Donald Trump officially designated Antifa a domestic terror organization on Monday. In his Sept. 22 executive order, Trump defined Antifa as “a militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law. It uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide to accomplish these goals.” Antifa became particularly infamous during the 2020 summer of love and the so-called “mostly peaceful” protests, and it remains a source of violence in the United States, with Portland just one city still enduring months of anti-ICE Antifa riots.

Antifa, as defined, Trump continued, “involves coordinated efforts to obstruct enforcement of Federal laws through armed standoffs with law enforcement, organized riots, violent assaults on Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement officers, and routine doxing of and other threats against political figures and activists.” It is obvious that the federal government needs to take action against Antifa, which follows in a very long tradition of Democrat domestic terrorism stretching back to the mid-19th century. The KKK’s power is almost entirely a matter of the past, and hopefully that will be said one day soon of Antifa.

The president explained further that “Antifa recruits, trains, and radicalizes young Americans to engage in this violence and suppression of political activity, then employs elaborate means and mechanisms to shield the identities of its operatives, conceal its funding sources and operations in an effort to frustrate law enforcement, and recruit additional members.” This enhances the threat, as does the fact that Antifa has ties to other political organizations. Therefore, since Antifa has made it obvious through the cities it has torched and the other crimes that its members have committed that it is a domestic terror organization, Trump officially announced:

Because of the aforementioned pattern of political violence designed to suppress lawful political activity and obstruct the rule of law, I hereby designate Antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization.” All relevant executive departments and agencies shall utilize all applicable authorities to investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any and all illegal operations — especially those involving terrorist actions — conducted by Antifa or any person claiming to act on behalf of Antifa, or for which Antifa or any person claiming to act on behalf of Antifa provided material support, including necessary investigatory and prosecutorial actions against those who fund such operations. The president previously expressed his intention not only of investigating Antifa and its funding sources further, but of designating other radical leftist organizations as domestic terror groups too.

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And these guys still work at the FBI?

Biden’s FBI Tried to Entrap Trump’s Border Czar Before the Election (Margolis)

Another day, another Biden scandal that the media desperately tries to dump on Trump. This time, MSNBC is working overtime to spin a damning story about Joe Biden’s FBI into yet another bogus hit piece on the Trump administration. Last year, while Biden and his minions were still calling the shots at the FBI, the bureau launched a brazen undercover operation targeting incoming Border Czar Tom Homan. Federal agents, posing as shady businessmen, tried to bait Homan with a $50,000 bribe in exchange for help securing contracts under a future Trump administration. It was a manufactured setup, designed from the start to entrap a Trump ally. The whole thing blew up in Biden’s face. When FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche reviewed the case, they immediately exposed it as a political hit job.

“This matter originated under the previous administration,” they said in a joint statement. “They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing.” Translation: Biden’s FBI wasted taxpayer dollars trying to entrap one of Trump’s top immigration advisors, and they failed. But instead of admitting Biden’s corruption, MSNBC twisted the story with a headline that made it sound like Trump’s DOJ covered up wrongdoing: “Tom Homan was investigated for accepting $50,000 from undercover FBI agents. Trump’s DOJ shut it down.” This isn’t journalism—it’s propaganda. Do you think it’s a mere coincidence that Biden’s team launched the sting while Homan was advising Trump’s 2024 campaign—knowing full well he would play a major role in Trump’s second term? They weren’t investigating a crime; they were trying to create one.

“Mr. Homan never took the $50,000 that you’re referring to. So you should get your facts straight, number one,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday during the White House daily press briefing. “Number two, this was another example of the weaponization of the Biden Department of Justice against one of President Trump’s strongest and most vocal supporters in the midst of a presidential campaign.” She added, “You had FBI agents going undercover to try and entrap one of the president’s top allies and supporters, someone who they knew very well would be taking a government position months later.” Leavitt continued, “They found zero evidence of illegal activity or criminal wrongdoing. And the White House and the president stand by Tom Homan 100% because he did absolutely nothing wrong, and he is a brave public servant who has done a phenomenal job in helping the president shut down the border.”

This is the Biden playbook: weaponize the Justice Department against political enemies. They tried it with Trump himself, dragging him through endless witch hunts. When that didn’t stop him, they moved on to targeting his inner circle. And when even that failed, the media stepped in to try and salvage the narrative. MSNBC’s shameless story proves the corporate media isn’t just biased—they’re active participants in political persecution. They took a story that completely vindicates Homan and twisted it into anti-Trump propaganda, counting on their audience to never read past the headline. The sad truth here is that Americans are being lied to by “journalists” who sold their souls to the Democrat Party.

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“..a Democratic Party that is diametrically opposed to the reconciling systems on which this nation was founded.”

Why We Are at War (Richard C. Lyons)

Polarity is in the nature of things, in fact, just as the poles of north and south exist, matter itself is drawn into being at opposites, as in the forces of magnets. So are we; we are social creatures of this world given to being at opposites. When our nation’s founders gathered in Philadelphia 238 summers ago, with the wealth of all of their collected libraries, they studied history’s opposed factions: from the Plains and Coastal parties of the Athenians, to the factions of Marius and Sulla in Rome, to the Byzantine parties of the Blue and the Green, to the Guelphs and Ghibellines of the Florentines, to the literary houses of Verona, the Montagues and Capulets, whose differences devoured the lives and loves of innocents. One of the great fears of that great intellectual company was that America would fall, broken by such opposing factions.

They deliberately wrote the Constitution, our social compact, to overcome such factions. Firstly, by creating a Constitution based on common law, with protections of individual and property that shield everyone against the ambitions of government, or any party thereof. The founders crafted a Constitutional Republic based first on federalism, which allowed people as varied in interests as a Boston lawyer and a Key West fisherman to live under distinct state and local laws best suited to themselves. Much of our Constitution has to do with voting into office, by a majority, those representatives freely chosen to represent the citizens’ interests. If anyone does not represent the citizens’ interests, they are as easily voted out, thus ensuring that governance is representative of the people’s will.

Our free enterprise system came into being with our nation; The Wealth of Nations, by Adam Smith, was published in the same year as the Declaration of Independence; and the personal property rights espoused by John Locke were ensconced in our highest law in the 5th Amendment, among the Bill of Rights, including the “takings clause,” which forbids government from taking from an individual what they have earned by their labors and investments. Lastly, at the time of our nation’s founding, the Judeo-Christian ethic was omnipresent, with it’s Ten Commandments, the first common law of humanity, and its highest law: to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” Each of these systems of law, of federalism, of representation, of free enterprise and of the ethos of Judeo-Christianity has helped reconcile our society as a whole and has been responsible for our nation’s peace and prosperity since the Constitution’s signing 237 years ago.

Who can argue with a common law that protects the wealthy and the poor? Who can argue about a system of diffused power, allowing localities and states to create their own laws? Who can argue with the right of people to empower those whom they would wish to represent them? Who can argue with the principle that the people who are entitled to wealth are those who have earned that wealth themselves? Who can argue with the notion that Judeo-Christianity is perhaps the best ethos for advancing peace through mutual respect, respect for the law, charitability, and humility? So why are we so opposed and at the point of war with one another in our nation today? Until November1963, both of our political parties, their patrons and, their constituents believed in every one of these societally reconciling systems. Then the momentum in the Democratic Party to more fully institute socialism began.

Today, the Democrats believe devoutly that the Constitution is a “living” document, which is to say, they can change or disregard whatever they don’t like in the text or kill it altogether as a document of “negative rights.” Today, the Democrats don’t believe in federalism; they desire all the wealth and power of the nation to be invested in one capital, Washington D.C., to be parceled out to family, friends and allies of their own. Today, Democrats do not believe in representative government; they believe in bureaucrats appointed for life to eternal agencies in the never constitutionally enumerated power of the Administrative State. Their only concern for the chambers of Congress is as a central exchange between the taxpayer and those agencies, which are the power base of the Democrat Party.

Today, Democrats do not believe in property rights; they believe that what is theirs is theirs and what is yours is theirs. They believe anyone who has earned wealth has done so illegitimately and those who haven’t have a superior moral right to it anyway, so long as the Democrats get an overall cut. Lastly, the Democrats’ idea of Judeo-Christianity is to pronounce publicly that they privately believe in it, while acting against it with every meaningful national vote they take and every regulatory rule they make. What is at opposition today is a conservative Republican Party that believes profoundly in the reconciling promise of these foundations of our society. And a Democratic Party that is diametrically opposed to the reconciling systems on which this nation was founded.

The Democratic Party has become what this nation fought against in the Second World War, the Cold War and the Middle Eastern wars. The Democrats — or the liberal left, progressives, or Democratic Socialists — have become a tyrannical bunch of bastards who have renounced their good parentage, and they are getting very violent about it. God Bless Charlie Kirk, who fought and died for all of these reconciling societal blessings.

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But you can still not watch it.

Disney Gives Kimmel Show Back, But Nexstar & Sinclair Still Refuse To Air (ZH)

Hours after 400 artists signed an ACLU letter in response to Jimmy Kimmel’s firing, the late-night host’s ‘indefinite termination’ for propaganda surrounding the Charlie Kirk assassination has been turned into a week’s vacation. According to Variety, Disney and ABC are bringing the comedian back to its schedule Tuesday night. “Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country. It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive,” the company said in a statement. “We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”

Of note, none of the Nexstar or Sinclair affiliates will carry the show. Despite Kimmel’s return, it is not immediately clear if his show will be available across the entire country. Sinclair, for its part, had said that it would not go back to running Kimmel’s show on its stations until the late night host apologized for his comments, met with Sinclair representatives and made a donation to Turning Point, the organization that Kirk founded. Sinclair, it should be noted, owns the ABC station in the Washington, D.C., metro area, among other markets. Nexstar, similarly, could also choose to continue to preempt the show, though of course it would still be accessible online across the country after it runs on ABC. -Hollywood Reporter

Kimmel’s show was pulled last Wednesday after the host said that Charlie Kirk assassination suspect Tyler Robinson was ‘MAGA’ – when he’s very clearly not based on what we know. In response, FCC Chair Brendan Carr threatened to revoke ABC affiliate licenses over the comments, which he described in a podcast interview with host Benny Johnson as “the sickest conduct possible.” As The Blaze’s Auron Macintyre opines: “ABC is putting Jimmy Kimmel back on the air because terrorism works in America.” Guess who predicted it? Does Roseanne Barr get her show back too now?

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“So Kimmel is now a hero of democracy — all he had to do was spread disinformation. That makes this the funniest joke that Kimmel never told.”

The Funniest Joke Jimmy Kimmel Never Told (Turley)

Democrats were finally outraged this week. No, it was not about the murder of Charlie Kirk, but rather the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night comedy show. Democratic leaders are taking to the airways to denounce the decision to take Kimmel off the air after he spread disinformation about Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer. The same leaders and pundits who have for years fought for censorship in the name of combating disinformation are now making the very arguments they ridiculed just months ago. Democrats once wrote letters to Internet carriers suggesting that Fox News, the most popular cable news network, should be taken off the air in the name of combating disinformation. That was when the Democrats controlled the White House and were targeting conservatives.

Suddenly, now, disinformation is no longer a valid reason to censor and alleged government-corporate alliances are a menace to free speech. After the tragedy in Utah, many on the left immediately tried to deflect responsibility for the murder by claiming that Kirk’s killer was actually a Trump supporter. On his show, Kimmel declared that “the MAGA Gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” The far-left motivations of the alleged assassin, Tyler Robinson, were already well known. His family confirmed that he had been radicalized with leftist ideology and cited pro-transgender views. This was not even a joke — it was just a false factual claim made by Kimmel on national television. And it came at a time when others were spreading this lie.

Despite stories to the contrary, many repeated the false claim. For example, Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe posted that “Kirk’s apparent assassin seems to have been ultra-MAGA, exploding the GOP/MAGA attempt to pin the blame for this tragedy on liberals.” (Previously, Tribe had claimed that the October 2023 massacre of Israelis by Hamas was a “wag-the-dog” operation to distract from corruption allegations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu). The disinformation took hold on the Internet and social media. One poll showed that a plurality of Americans think Robinson was a conservative. Call it assassination denial. It is all the rage. Former MSNBC and ESPN host Keith Olbermann wrote after Kimmel’s suspension, “Burn in hell, Sinclair. Alongside Charlie Kirk.” He added that “nothing [Kimmel] said was untrue.”

Curiously, some of these politicians and pundits are claiming that, yet again, democracy will die if Kimmel is not allowed to spread disinformation. There are reports that Kimmel was refusing to apologize and planned to double down on the attacks on conservatives in his next show. Faced with a revolt by affiliates and a potential exodus of advertisers, Disney’s head, Bob Iger, pulled the plug. (By the way, Kimmel’s ratings had been falling for years, and he had a smaller audience than the Colbert Show, which was itself discontinued due to loss of money). The hypocrisy was pure comedy. For years, these same voices demanded censorship of individuals deemed to be spreading disinformation, misinformation, and malinformation. The last category was used by the Biden administration to target statements “based on fact, but used out of context to mislead, harm, or manipulate.”

At the same time, they mocked claims that corporations were working with the government to maintain this censorship system. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) ran on a pledge to impose new criminal and civil penalties for anyone spreading disinformation. Now, however, censorship is intolerable. Warren told CNN “we know there was federal interference … We saw the government step up and give a hard shove and then we saw a compliant company turn around and suspend Mr. Kimmel.” She added that his collaboration with corporations “truly undermines the whole premise of the First Amendment.”

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) called the suspension one of “the most blatant attacks on the free press in American history.” Schiff had previously demanded that Twitter suspend an array of users and “reduce the visibility” of blacklisted individuals — including a journalist who held opposing views. When Elon Musk reduced censorship at X, it was Schiff who warned Facebook not to follow his example by restoring free speech protections. Schiff threatened legislative action if the company moved to “alter or roll back certain misinformation policies.” This week, Schiff is outraged by a company’s decision to suspend a host who refused to correct a false story he had spread.

For years, I appeared before these same leaders in Congress as they defended corporate censorship and dismissed allegations of collaboration with the government. I would not cancel Kimmel so long as his show was profitable. But I have long maintained that companies can limit the free speech of employees at work. I do not believe Kimmel should be censored on social media for spreading false information. At the same time, ABC does not have to lose money or viewers because an employee attacks others with vile, false claims. Now Disney is accused of killing democracy itself, in league with Trump. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) attacked Trump for “trying to destroy our democracy” and acting like “many would-be despots.”

Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) used Kimmel’s suspension as evidence that “fascism is not on the way, it is here.” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) insisted that suspending a host for spreading false information about a murder was “North Korea-style stuff” while Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) insisted that it is “what Putin would do.” It is a curious spin, since Putin and Kim Jong Un value media figures who spread false information — particularly about murders. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) went so far as to compare Kimmel to Thomas Paine, the author of Common Sense and “Penman of the revolution.” So Kimmel is now a hero of democracy — all he had to do was spread disinformation. That makes this the funniest joke that Kimmel never told.

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It deactivates something?!

Trump Links Tylenol To Autism Risk During Pregnancy (RT)

US President Donald Trump has drawn a connection between the use of Tylenol during pregnancy and rising autism rates in America, calling the increase in diagnoses “one of the most alarming public health developments in history.”Speaking at a White House briefing alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Monday, Trump said pregnant women should avoid acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, unless absolutely necessary. He said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would begin updating warning labels and launch an information campaign aimed at pregnant women.

“Taking Tylenol is not good,” Trump said during the event. “They are strongly recommending that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy unless medically necessary… If you can’t tough it out, if there’s a problem, you’re going to end up doing it, but ideally you don’t take it at all.”= Citing an increase in autism rates, Trump said the condition has become far more prevalent over the last two decades. “The meteoric rise in autism is among the most alarming public health developments in history,” he said. The FDA issued two separate news releases confirming a formal response to growing evidence of neurological risks linked to acetaminophen during pregnancy. The agency said it has initiated a label change for all acetaminophen-containing products, including Tylenol, to reflect studies suggesting an association with autism and ADHD.

“The FDA is taking action to make parents and doctors aware of a considerable body of evidence about potential risks associated with acetaminophen,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary said. The FDA acknowledged that while some studies show an association between prenatal acetaminophen use and neurodevelopmental disorders, a causal link has not been established. It stressed that acetaminophen remains the only over-the-counter medication approved for fever relief during pregnancy and warned that alternatives like ibuprofen and aspirin can pose known risks to fetal development.

Tylenol manufacturer Kenvue responded to the developments by defending the drug’s safety. “We strongly disagree with any suggestion that acetaminophen causes autism,” the company said, warning that discouraging appropriate use during pregnancy may put mothers and infants at risk from untreated fever or pain. In another announcement, the FDA said it is initiating approval of leucovorin calcium tablets for patients with cerebral folate deficiency (CFD), a condition linked to developmental delays and autistic features. Though the agency cautioned that more studies are needed to assess the drug’s full efficacy in autism-related populations, it said the initiative reflects a broader strategy to repurpose existing medications for neurological conditions.

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“I’ve never talked to a Democrat who ever wanted to listen. They start to glitch out if you try.” — Sasha Stone

Personal Note (James Howard Kunstler)

This past summer, I tried to open a line of communication with a West Coast relative. We exchanged a few letters. I tactically steered the conversation away from the political. Here was the closer salvo from my relative:

Jimmy, on a completely personal level, and in different times, I think we could have been very good friends. At this point in our history, I find what you say in your blogs and Kunstlercast to be outrageous, deceptive, and ugly. I disagree with almost everything you hold dear politically, and even if, for instance, we agree about the horrors of Big Pharma, your worship of Kennedy makes me ill. Your language falls right into all the clichés of the far right ideologies I loathe.Maybe someday things will change. For now, this is the last you’ll be hearing from me.

Frankly, what stung most keenly was the accusation that my language fell “into all the clichés of the far right ideologies. . . .” I like to think that I am allergic to clichés, though it’s possible that I am deluded about that. If anything, the dynamic collective thought disorders of our time present themselves in astonishingly fresh ways — for instance, a Supreme Court nominee who can’t define what a woman is. (Makes you kind of wonder how such a mind could parse Article Two of the Constitution.)

Mostly, I would have liked to know what those “far right ideologies” are, exactly, but it looks like I will never find out now. Maybe it is being opposed to censorship. . . or against Ukraine’s entry into NATO. . . or wanting coherent procedure for foreigners seeking to enter the USA. . . or keeping biological men out of the women’s swim lanes. . . or saying that ivermectin is a safe and effective anti-viral med. . . or supposing that people charged with felonies should not be released to the streets without significant cash bail. Stuff like that.

As it happened, we were not discussing these matters in our brief correspondence, but I was at something of a disadvantage since I am a professional writer who posts his opinion for public scrutiny and my relative is not. Of course, I describe what is a pandemic of broken family relations in our country. And social relations. I have been cancelled by most of my old friends, too, and I’m quite sure that I am not a special case. I am mystified by what these relatives and old friends actually believe these days. When we were hippies back in the day, they were very much opposed to war, turned-off by attempts at censorship, and deeply averse to the dark operations of the CIA and FBI. Now, they seem avid for intel ops and hoaxes, eager for war, and all-in for censoring ideas that make them feel “unsafe.”

There are various useful theories for this state-of-affairs, all pretty cross-compatible. Strauss and Howe’s Fourth Turning template of generational cycles explains a lot. Elizabeth Nickson has some fine insights about the extreme discontents of women these days leading them to summon political demons. Mattias Desmet, the Belgian psych professor has his Mass Formation theory, which states that societal anxieties provoke aligned “radical intolerance” among a populace. I recommend Wendy Williamson’s recent blog discussion of The Law of Reversal. Joseph Tainter’s classic, The Collapse of Complex Societies lays out the pitfalls of our “over-investments in complexity.” I wrote a book in 2005 titled The Long Emergency which describes the drawn-out collapse of our techno-industrial economy — the widespread apprehension of which helps define the societal anxieties described by Dr. Desmet that bring on his “Mass Formation Psychosis.”

All these theories tend to imply an inflection point where our assumptions about human progress get undermined, provoking an intense loss of faith in institutions and authorities, resulting in epochal socio-political disorder. Wouldn’t you agree we are seeing exactly that now? That the net effect of all this is of a society driven insane. Surely, the craziness is amplified by the novel connectivities of the Internet and exacerbated by many other high-tech innovations from ubiquitous camera surveillance to cryptocurrency to drone warfare.

In our country these days, all of this has apparently produced two camps at war psychologically, now verging on something like a hot civil war. One camp calling itself “progressive” insists on a roster of ideas, policies, and practices that look patently absurd, abusive of the public interest, and hostile to the values of Western Civ. The other camp styles itself as “conservative” seeking to preserve Western Civ and the advancement of our so-called way of life — an ever growth-seeking high-tech economy.

Personally, I doubt that the latter is possible. I believe we’re due for a pretty serious time-out from the sort of economic “growth” we enjoyed the past two-hundred years. That high-tech mega-fiesta has thrown off a lot of entropy, which is now working hard to slow things down and make us stop a lot of what we are doing. It manifests in many ways, but most vividly by flinging us into social disorder, turning what had been communication and correspondence into a rising babel that is driving us crazy. That is exactly why it is so hard to talk to our relatives and old friends. But mark this: there is a time coming when we will get tired of being crazy, and then things will go differently for us. We’ll start talking again.

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“At the European Council in December 2026, there will be blood on the walls..”

EU Looks To ‘Le Pen-Proof’ Its Budget – Politico (RT)

The EU leadership is trying to fast-track talks to reach a deal on the bloc’s new budget before the French presidential election in April 2027, Politico reports. EU officials reportedly fear it could be won by right-wing firebrand Marine Le Pen or one of her allies from the National Rally party. The EU’s next seven-year budget is scheduled to come into force on January 1, 2028. The proposal by the European Commission currently being discussed amounts to €1,816 trillion ($2,136). It requires unanimous approval from all 27 member states to pass. The risk of the right-wing forces defeating French President Emmanuel Macron in the election is the main reason budget negotiations are being accelerated, the outlet said in an article on Monday, citing five officials and EU diplomats.

The concern in Brussels is that the National Rally’s platform, which includes slashing Paris’ contribution to the EU budget and reducing military aid to Ukraine, could disrupt the already complex talks, it said. Le Pen has been banned from running for public office after a French court found her guilty of embezzling European Parliament funds earlier this year. She has challenged the ruling. The National Rally’s second most prominent figure, Jordan Bardella, is also believed to be capable of winning the election, according to the article. European Council President Antonio Costa is working to secure a budget deal in the council by the end of 2026, his spokesperson, Maria Tomasik, told journalists on Friday.

“At the European Council in December 2026, there will be blood on the walls,” a senior EU diplomat told Politico, referring to the negotiations. There is “annoyance” over attempts to speed up the budget talks in countries including Italy and Poland, which argue that it leaves them less time to make changes to the proposal and benefits the Northern European nations, according to the outlet. A poll by Ifop published on Saturday suggested that Macron’s ratings have fallen to 17%, the lowest during his two-term presidency. Hundreds of thousands protested across France last week against government policies, including additional austerity measures proposed by newly appointed Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu.

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Word from your banker.

“Ignoring international law would lead to “the beginning of total chaos,” the French president has said..”

Macron Warns Against Seizing Frozen Russian Assets (RT)

French President Emmanuel Macron has pushed back against the idea of seizing frozen Russian assets, warning that doing so could backfire on the West and undermine global stability. In an interview with CBS’s Face the Nation aired on Sunday, Macron was asked about what the West was planning to do with the $300 billion in Russian sovereign assets which were frozen after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. “We are all very much attached to being compliant with international rules. You cannot seize these assets from the central bank, even in such a situation,” the French leader said, describing it as “a matter of credibility.”

“When some countries start to disrespect international laws… this is the beginning of a total chaos. So we will respect international law. We are predictable, and we will not do all impossible things with these frozen assets,” he added, recalling that Kiev’s Western backers are already using proceeds from the frozen assets to prop up Ukraine. Throughout the conflict, Western policymakers have considered seizing Russian assets – most of which fall under EU jurisdiction – but have so far refrained due to the lack of a legal basis and fears it would damage global trust.

Last year, however, G7 nations supported a $50 billion loan to Ukraine secured by the income from Russian reserves. Western nations have also directly handed over to Kiev approximately $4.3 billion in proceeds from Russian assets. This month, the EU Commission floated a proposal to use Russian assets to back a reparation loan to Ukraine, which Kiev would be obligated to repay only if it receives “compensation” for damages from Moscow. Russia has denounced both the freeze and the profit-transfer scheme as “theft,” warning that confiscation would damage the global financial system and trigger retaliation from Moscow.

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“Protests in London will change nothing – Britain’s people were bred to endure..”

Britain’s Fate Is Decline, Not Upheaval – And History Explains Why (Bordachev)

The demonstrations in London earlier this month – up to 150,000 people protesting immigration and government incompetence – drew attention in Russia and abroad. Some observers even wondered if Britain might finally be approaching a breaking point. Perhaps, like Nepal or France in past years, mass anger could reshape politics. But such hopes are misplaced. Britain will never experience revolutionary upheaval. Its culture is not one of defiance but of endurance. The United Kingdom has, over centuries, become a bastion of injustice disguised as stability, where ordinary people are conditioned to accept their powerlessness. This cultural inheritance, once an imperial advantage, now guarantees slow decline.

Britain is unique in Western Europe: it was created not through union or invitation, but through conquest. In 1066 Norman knights crushed the native English and divided the land into fiefdoms. Unlike Russia, where foreign warriors were invited to defend the realm, or Hungary, where nomads fused with locals to form a people, England’s story was one of subjugation. That pattern hardened in 1215, when barons forced King John to sign the Magna Carta. Propaganda later elevated the charter as the foundation of English liberty. In reality it entrenched oligarchy: the power of the wealthy over crown and people alike. Where monarchs elsewhere often stood with peasants against feudal tyranny, in England the crown itself was shackled by landowners. Injustice became not an aberration but the system’s operating principle.

Geography reinforced the pattern. For centuries there was no frontier of freedom. Only in 1620 did dissenters finally flee on the Mayflower, planting English settlements in North America. By then, 600 years of endurance had shaped a national character: patient, fatalistic, and resigned. In Russia, by contrast, peasants had begun migrating east as early as the 11th century. Freedom was found in movement: new villages, new lands, and eventually a new people. This restless expansion created Russia’s unique statehood and ethnic identity. The English, trapped on their island, cultivated instead a tradition of enduring injustice. By the 18th century, Britain was sending its sons to wars around the world. They returned crippled, if at all – as Rudyard Kipling later immortalized. Yet they went meekly. A society drilled in obedience did not question orders, however insane. That made Britain dangerous abroad, but docile at home.

Popular uprisings were crushed without hesitation. Laws such as the Settlement Act of 1662, tying workers to their parishes, or the Poor Law of 1834, abolishing basic relief, stripped away rights. Only after 1945, under pressure from the USSR’s example, did Britain adopt limited welfare protections. Even these are now eroding, with no real resistance. This tradition once gave Britain its edge. Armies could be raised, colonies conquered, wars fought with little domestic dissent. But in the modern world, where political vitality depends on public will, the same habit of resignation has become a liability. Unlike Russians, who carved out freedom by settling new lands, or French and Germans, who rebelled and migrated, the English learned to endure. Their legacy is a society where injustice is not challenged but accepted – and where any hope of transformation evaporates before it begins.

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statin

 

 

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Sep 202025
 


Paul Gauguin Blue Trees (Your Turn Will Come, My Beauty!) 1888

 

Charlie Kirk’s Tour To Continue, Including Stop At Utah State (CB)
The Power of God Compels You! (James Howard Kunstler)
Senate Passes ‘National Day of Remembrance for Charlie Kirk’ Resolution (ET)
The Real Story Behind Jimmy Kimmel’s Firing (ZH)
Trump Requests Supreme Court Intervention in Lisa Cook Removal from Fed (CTH)
Drone Attack Claims Meant To Derail Ukraine Peace Talks – Zakharova (RT)
Poland’s Attempt To Blackmail China Will Hurt Itself Most (MoA)
Trump Admits Possibility Of US Government Shutdown From October 1 (TASS)
US Senators Introduce Bill To Transfer Frozen Russian Assets To Kiev (TASS)
Medvedev Slams EU’s Ukraine ‘Compensation’ Plan, Vows Response (TASS)
Kremlin Replies After Trump Says ‘Putin Let Me Down’ (RT)
EU Names Member States Still Importing Russian Gas (RT)
EU Spent €8.7 Billion On Russian Imports In Three Months (RT)
India Ramping Up Russian Oil Imports Amid US Trade Talks (RT)
How The West Screwed Itself In Energy Geopolitics (Doshi)
Larry Ellison To Become Most Powerful US Media Mogul Ever – NYT (RT)

 

 

https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1968878332008706498

https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1969041696940859805

 

 

 

 

We’ve had 10 days for Charlie. That seems about right. Tomorrow’s funeral will be the spectacular culmination. In many religions, once the body is in the ground, it’s time to party, so the deceased arrives in a good mood.

Charlie Kirk’s Tour To Continue, Including Stop At Utah State (CB)

Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk, announced that his “American Comeback Tour” would continue. “Our campus tour this fall will continue,” she said. “There will be even more tours in the years to come. AmericaFest here in Phoenix this December will go on. It will be greater than ever. The radio and podcast show that he was so proud of will go on. And in a world filled with chaos, doubt, and uncertainty, my husband’s voice will remain. And it will ring out louder and more clearly than ever. And his wisdom will endure.” Tyler Bowyer, chief operating officer of Turning Point Action, confirmed that the tour would continue this fall, including a stop at Utah State University on Sept. 30.

A new release from law enforcement suggests a political motive in the killing of Charlie Kirk. Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray said accused gunman Tyler Robinson, 22, texted his transgender roommate, urging him to “drop everything” and read a note he had left under his keyboard. “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it,” the note read, according to charging documents. “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out,” he added in his texts, referring to Kirk. Furious Republicans have pushed back on the left-wing narrative that Robinson was somehow tied to President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement. They have also called out Democrats for days after Kirk’s assassination over their years-long use of harsh rhetoric to describe Trump and his supporters, calling them “Nazis,” “fascists,” “homophobes,” and “threats to democracy,” among others.

In that vein, tensions flared on Fox News’ The Five on Monday after co-host Greg Gutfeld forcefully rejected fellow co-host and lefty Jessica Tarlov’s attempt to frame political violence as a “both sides” issue in the wake of the assassination. Gutfeld opened by noting a one-sided trend. “What is interesting here is, why is only this happening on the left and not the right? That’s all we need to know,” he said. Tarlov interjected, pointing to other recent incidents of political violence, including the killing of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and other attacks that have targeted Democrats. Gutfeld immediately cut her off, raising his voice. “None of us were spending every single day talking about Mrs. Hortman. I never heard of her until after she died.

And the… Don’t play that bulls—t with me. There was no demonization, amplification about that woman before she died. It was a specific crime against her by somebody who knew her.” The back-and-forth escalated as Gutfeld rejected the premise of equivalence between Kirk’s assassination and other killings. “The both sides argument not only doesn’t fly, we don’t care. We don’t care about your both sides argument. That s—t is dead,” he said. He framed the dispute as one between reality and rationalization. “On your side, your beliefs do not match reality, so you’re coming up with these rationalizations, like, ‘What about this,’ or, ‘What about that?’ We’re not doing that, because we saw it happen. We saw a young, bright man assassinated and we know who did it. We are not coming up with rationalizations. We are calm, we are honest, and we are resolute. We’re not defensive.”

Gutfeld argued that left-wing rhetoric had created the conditions for violence. “If you sat around and you defended the mutilation of children, you’re not the good guys. If you sat 600, 700 cases of harassment against Republicans and you said, ‘But what about this? What about this?’ And then you see this murderer after calling somebody a fascist, you realize, ‘Maybe I’m not the good guy.’” He added that Kirk’s assassin, Robinson, had been influenced by what he called “direct-to-consumer nihilism” and radical ideologies. “He was a patsy. He was under the hypnotic spell of a direct-to-consumer nihilism, the trans cult,” Gutfeld said. “If you can decide that biology is false, you can agree that murder is okay and that humanity’s expendable.”

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“You have no idea the fire you have ignited.” – Erika Kirk.

The Power of God Compels You! (James Howard Kunstler)

He was about as fine a young man as you could have dreamed up in a country so busy disgracing itself, Jesus-like in quality, if not in exact manner. Jesus, after all, was not a family man. But then there was nothing supernatural about Charlie Kirk. He was vividly of this time and place on earth. Now, in death, you can imagine him up on a mural in the post office. They’ve gone and turned him into legend, like Davy Crockett, Joseph Smith, Abe Lincoln. Yeah, it goes that deep. The Woke-Jacobin Left broke into a happy-dance when they heard the news, and I bet 90-percent of them didn’t even know what Charlie was about, except that their minders had painted a bullseye on him and somebody hit it. They have forgotten what their country is about, too. They have unwittingly acted-out Biblical-grade wickedness.

Jimmy Kimmel didn’t just tell a bad joke about the president — “This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish” — he made a Judas of himself. He demonstrated exactly what it means to betray whatever remains of goodness in this land. You are at a loss to understand how bad it got, years of officially enforced insanity, absurdities jammed down your craw, treasonous mischief, vile abuses under color-of-law (Tina Peters still rots in jail in Colorado!), and, lately, gunning down whoever stands in their way. You look at an old, established political party and you begin to see actual demons. You understand that destroying the country might not be enough for them. At this point, nothing will save the Democratic Party from itself. It will not fade quietly into irrelevance like the Whigs did in the 1850s.

No, you are witnessing something more like spontaneous combustion, a conflagration of the vicious and unholy. If you happened to watch Kash Patel in the Senate Judiciary Committee the other day going at Adam Schiff, what you saw was an actual exorcism. Mr. Patel said, “You are the biggest fraud to ever sit in the United States Senate. You are a disgrace to this institution and an utter coward. You continue to lie from your perch and put on a show so you can go raise money for your charades. You are a political buffoon at best! I challenge you to say anything credible to the truth. Go ahead and run to the cameras where you wanna go now!”

He might as well have just said: “I cast you out, unclean spirit, along with every satanic power of the enemy, every specter from hell, and all your fell companions. . . .” In the process, Mr. Patel reminded Senator Schiff that he is Director of the FBI now and, well. . . things have changed. Perhaps other Senators who have trafficked in sedition and malicious perfidy — say, Mark Warner on the Intel Committee — viewed these goings-on with a twinge of dread for what is coming. Notice that no one on the Judiciary Committee dared move to hold Mr. Patel in contempt, because what he said is self-evidently true, and they all know it. Senator Schiff is, of course, already under investigation for mortgage fraud, which is inconvenient enough, but before long he will have to answer graver charges for offenses against the nation, along with many co-conspirators in and out of office.

His over-speaking the witness (Mr. Patel) in committee the other day was the sort of climactic mummery you see in movies when the iniquitous are brought low in an official proceeding — think the babbling Bryan character in Inherit the Wind or Captain Queeg in the Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. Schiff knows he is cooked and Mr. Patel just flambéed him. If Mr. Trump had any qualms about turning the full force of the law on this party and its demonic confederates in government and the old news media, then you can safely assume that after Charlie Kirk’s murder every lever of power will be used to get them all into courtrooms under fair and correct proceedings with the basic aim of laying out the truth of what has happened to our country, so that everyone can see what it was.

By the way, and in case you missed it, Associate Deputy Attorney General Ed Martin, on or about September 5, visited Tina Peters in her cell in the Colorado State Prison at Pueblo. Peters (who turns 70 today), the former Mesa County Clerk convicted in 2024 of nine felony counts related to a security breach of voting equipment (stemming from efforts to “prove” 2020 election fraud claims), was sentenced to nine years in prison. The DOJ has filed a “review” of her conviction in federal court. I wouldn’t want to be Jena Griswold, Colorado Secretary of State, who spearheaded Tina Peter’s prosecution for daring to voice concern over election fraud.

Then, just this week, the same Ed Martin paid a call to the Fulton County, GA, election headquarters to initiate federal grand jury proceedings to access 148,000 ballots held under seal and unexamined in a county warehouse since the 2020 election. The ballots have long been suspected of irregularities and possible fraud. “Joe Biden” won the state by 11,799 votes out of 5,017,000 cast (a 0.23% plurality), and thus the national election — as did both of Georgia’s Democratic senators, Jon Ossof and Raphael Warnock.

The post -Charlie Kirk America is a new reality. Prepare accordingly.

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They need a Charlie Kirk Day under the same conditions as Martin Luther King Day.

Senate Passes ‘National Day of Remembrance for Charlie Kirk’ Resolution (ET)

The U.S. Senate passed a resolution on Sept. 18 expressing support for Oct. 14, 2025, to be designated a “National Day of Remembrance for Charlie Kirk,” the conservative commentator who was assassinated during an event at a Utah university on Sept. 10. The resolution, introduced by Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), recognizes Kirk’s contributions to civic education and public service. The date coincides with what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday. “Charlie was taken from us in a disgusting act of political violence on September 10, 2025, but his legacy lives on,” Scott told the Senate floor before the resolution’s passage. In his remarks, Scott described Kirk as a “good man” whose life was “shaped by his faith and the idea that in America, debate and discussion are crucial to the betterment of our country.”

“We have the opportunity to carry on his memory by believing in the power of our ideas, discussion, and the values of our nation,” he added. The simple resolution encourages educational institutions, civic organizations, and citizens to observe Oct. 14, 2025, “with appropriate programs, activities, prayers, and ceremonies” promoting civic engagement and the principles that Kirk championed. A simple resolution is used to express the sentiments of a single house and does not create a federally mandated holiday. Kirk’s death has been mourned at vigils and memorial services across the country, where students and community members have gathered to honor his life. This included vigils in Salt Lake City, Washington, Houston, Phoenix, Florida, and cities around the world.

A similar resolution was introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-Fla.). House Speaker Mike Johnson said the House will pass the resolution to honor Kirk and to condemn the “political violence that led to his untimely passing.” “Charlie Kirk was more than a conservative thought leader. He was a fearless warrior of free speech, faith, and the principles that make America the greatest country in the world,” Patronis said on Sept. 16. Kirk, who co-founded nonprofit organization Turning Point USA, was shot and killed on Sept. 10 while speaking to a crowd of students at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. He is survived by his wife, Erika Kirk, and their two young children.

Erika was appointed CEO and board chair of Turning Point USA on Sept. 18. In a live-streamed message on Sept. 12, she emphasized that her late husband’s mission would continue. “I will never let your legacy die,” she said. “I’ll make Turning Point USA the biggest thing this nation has ever seen.” Authorities have arrested Tyler Robinson, 22, as the suspected gunman. He faces multiple charges, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, witness tampering, and committing a violent offense in the presence of a child.

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Dying on the hill of a show that nobody was watching … Seems quite desperate.

The Real Story Behind Jimmy Kimmel’s Firing (ZH)

After Wednesday’s decision by Disney / ABC to fire late-night host Jimmy Kimmel for lying about the suspect in Charlie Kirk’s assassination, the left (the architects of cancel culture) exploded with rage – saying that Kimmel’s firing was because major affiliate Nexstar needs the FCC to sign off on its $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna. To recap, during Kimmel’s opening monologue on Monday, he suggested that Tyler Robinson – the 22-year-old charged in the fatal shooting at Utah University – was aligned with conservatives. “The MAGA gang [is] desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.” By Wednesday, he was fired – leading to cries of censorship and ‘free speech’ by the left, which is hilarious.

Yet, according to an insider report by the Wall Street Journal, Kimmel’s ouster was prompted by an immediate revolt by viewers and affiliate networks including Nexstar, and concerned advertisers. “Advertisers and affiliates soon called the network expressing concern about Kimmel’s show… -WSJ” “Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located,” said Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division. “Continuing to give Mr. Kimmel a broadcast platform in the communities we serve is simply not in the public interest at the current time, and we have made the difficult decision to preempt his show.”

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr blasted Kimmel on Wednesday, telling podcaster Benny Johnson that Kimmel’s comments were “truly sick,” and that there’s a “strong case” for legal action against both ABC and Disney (ABC is a Disney subsidiary). “This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney,” said Carr. “These companies can find ways to take action on Kimmel or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.” Yet according to Nexstar, Carr’s comments weren’t a factor. “The decision to preempt ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ was made unilaterally by the senior executive team at Nexstar, and they had no communication with the FCC or any government agency prior to making that decision,” a Nexstar spokesman said.

Disney executives weighed whether Kimmel should address the controversy directly on Wednesday night’s program. According to people familiar with the matter, Dana Walden, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, and Chief Executive Robert Iger decided his planned remarks risked inflaming the situation further. After the conversation between Kimmel and Walden, she and other senior executives thought that the star’s approach could make the situation worse, people familiar with their conversations said. Executives also discussed staff safety, including threatening emails staff on Kimmel’s show had received after Carr’s remarks and the posting of some of their personal information online, the people said. Walden huddled with her team and Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger before the two executives decided to temporarily take “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off the air, the people said. She then informed Kimmel of the decision. -WSJ

According to a person close to the show, Kimmel was planning to say that MAGA was purposefully twisting his words. So, another lie. Hollywood unions and producers criticized Disney’s move, calling it corporate capitulation. Damon Lindelof, co-creator of the ABC drama Lost, said he would not want to work for a company that sidelined Kimmel. Former late-night host David Letterman described the decision as “managed media” and warned of broader consequences. “We all see where this is going, correct? It’s managed media. And it’s no good,” David Letterman, the former late-night host, said at an Atlantic magazine event Thursday. Actor Ben Stiller said (and then blocked replies) “This isn’t right,” to which Elon Musk replied “He went full retard. Never go full retard.”

Democratic lawmakers and former President Barack Obama accused the Trump administration of censorship, while Trump applauded the decision and urged other networks to follow. “They give me only bad press, but they’re getting a license,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One. Some media critics said Kimmel’s benching, coupled with CBS’s recent decision to cancel its late-night show hosted by frequent Trump critic Stephen Colbert when its season ends in May 2026, will lead shows to self-censor. Kimmel’s removal comes as CBS prepares to sunset Stephen Colbert’s late-night program in 2026. Media critics say the combination of events could have a chilling effect on political commentary in late-night television.

“The degree of capitulation going forward will to some extent be a function of what kind of financial cudgel the administration has to wield,” said Lee Levine, a retired media lawyer. “Whenever the cudgel has been pretty significant, sooner or later the network caved in the recent past.” For Disney, the choice to take Kimmel off the air was the product of overlapping political pressure, regulatory risk, affiliate revolt, and advertiser anxiety – a convergence that left little room for delay. By late Wednesday afternoon, the decision was made: Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be “preempted indefinitely.” Of course, who was even watching?

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“..interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself..”

NNB: I love this Modern English: “Cook maintains she dindunuffin.”

Trump Requests Supreme Court Intervention in Lisa Cook Removal from Fed (CTH)

U.S. Solicitor General John Sauer has filed a motion with the Supreme Court requesting intervention in a lower court ruling that blocks President Trump from firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.
As noted in the filing, “As her removal notice observed, before taking office, Cook had made contradictory representations in two mortgage agreements a short time apart, claiming that both a property in Michigan and a property in Georgia would simultaneously serve as her principal residence. Each mortgage agreement described the representation as material to the lender, reflecting the reality that lenders usually offer lower interest rates for principal-residence mortgages because they view such mortgages as less risky.

When her apparent misconduct came to light, the President determined that Cook’s “deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter” renders her unfit to continue serving on the Federal Reserve Board, and at a minimum demonstrates “the sort of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question[her] competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.” App., infra, 29a. To this day, Cook has never attempted to reconcile these representations.”

“The Federal Reserve Act’s broad ‘for cause’ provision rules out removal for no reason at all, or for policy disagreement,” Sauer wrote. “But so long as the President identifies a cause, the determination … is within the President’s unreviewable discretion.”“The President may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself — and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” Sauer wrote.

Cook maintains she dindunuffin.

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“Militants of the neo-Nazi Kiev regime are using drones to hunt defenseless people virtually around the clock, cynically targeting children, women, and the elderly”..

Drone Attack Claims Meant To Derail Ukraine Peace Talks – Zakharova (RT)

Accusations of Russian drone violations of Polish airspace have been fabricated to demonize Moscow and derail the Ukraine peace process, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. Polish officials have claimed that 19 Russian drones entered the country’s airspace on September 10, describing the incident as a deliberate provocation intended to test NATO’s response. Several western European governments have summoned Russian diplomats in protest while NATO has announced additional military measures. In a statement on Friday, Zakharova stressed that the episode follows a familiar pattern and that Russia has again been blamed without any investigation or evidence. She added that Warsaw has refused Moscow’s proposal for consultations and has dismissed facts provided by the Russian Defense Ministry.

“This is clearly yet another element in a large-scale information campaign aimed at demonizing Russia and mobilizing additional support for the Kiev regime, as well as an attempt to undermine a political settlement of the Ukraine conflict,” Zakharova said. Russian officials have said drones used in operations against Ukrainian military targets could not physically have reached Polish territory, and have suggested that the incident may have been a provocation by Kiev designed to pit NATO directly against Moscow. Zakharova also drew attention to the 20-nation “drone coalition” supplying Kiev, accusing its members of ignoring the daily reality of Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian civilians.

“Moralizing and demarches by the coalition states regarding Russia’s alleged violations of international law are, in this context, blatantly hypocritical and inappropriate,” she said.According to the spokeswoman, Ukrainian drone attacks killed 16 people and injured 116 more in Russian regions over the summer and early September, with the victims including children. “Militants of the neo-Nazi Kiev regime are using drones to hunt defenseless people virtually around the clock, cynically targeting children, women, and the elderly” while deliberately targeting residential buildings, medical and social institutions, schools, and stores, Zakharova said. She added that by supplying such weapons, Western states have become complicit in the crimes committed by Kiev’s forces.

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“Poland is currently the recipient of the largest EU’s agricultural subsidies. Why should Germany and others continue to pay for those when Poland is impeding their trade?”

Poland’s Attempt To Blackmail China Will Hurt Itself Most (MoA)

Over the last decade China developed the longest railway in the world running more than 8,000 miles from the east coast of China to Spain. The line crosses China, Russia, Belarus and Poland before splitting up into various European connections. Over the last year the railway has carried goods between China and Europe at a value of about $25 billion. The line is now blocked: “Poland’s decision to close its border with Belarus in response to thequadrennial Zapad-2025 military exercises and Russian drone incursion on September 10 has abruptly severed one of the fastest-growing trade arteries between China and the EU.”

“The impact of the closure of the Belarusian border is significant. The land corridor already represents 3.7% of all EU–China trade, up from 2.1% a year earlier. While that share remains small compared to seaborne shipments, its importance lies in speed and reliability.[..] Poland’s government underlined that the decision was driven by security imperatives rather than economics. Warsaw stated that “the logic of trade” was being replaced by “the logic of security,” underscoring the geopolitical risks attached to the Belt and Road corridors.” The Zapad-2025 military exerciss is long over but Poland continues to block the railroad. Its government is taking Europe’s trade with China as hostage to press China to change its policy towards Russia:

“Polish Foreign Minister RadosBaw Sikorski has said that during his meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in a suburb of Warsaw on Monday 15 September, he will insist that China put pressure on Russia to stop “a hybrid operation” on Poland s eastern border, which has led to the closure of Beijing s key trade route to Europe. [..] Tensions escalated in May last year, when a Polish border guard was attacked and killed by a migrant. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk accused Belarus and Russia of weaponising migration. Last year, Warsaw threatened to block the export route to the European Union to secure China’s help. Polish then-president Andrzej Duda raised the border tensions issue during his visit to Beijing, which “helped for a few months”, Sikorski said. “But unfortunately, this hybrid operation has intensified again. So, we need to talk again,” he added.

Interestingly the Chinese reporting on the meeting between Wang Ye and Sikorski did not mention the blocking: “At the 4th meeting of Poland-China Intergovernmental Committee on Monday, the two parties exchanged views on the importance of developing effective and economically competitive Eurasian transport corridors and the pivotal role of Poland in this process. The two sides recognized the benefits of providing mutually beneficial services for volumes of goods transported by railway, maritime and air means and of consolidating the existing and potential routes and logistical chains. Both sides expressed their willingness to ensure the safety and accessibility of the China-Europe Railway Express.”

I suspect that, behind the scene, less polite words were used by Wang Yi to express the Chinese view on Poland’s attempt the hinder the freedom of global trade. The migrants do not ride on Chinese freight trains. Blocking the railroad connection between China and Europe to prevent migrants from coming through Belarus is a very crude form of blackmail that will hit back. Should the blockade continue Poland will have to bury all hope of any future investment from China. Western European companies who depend on the railroad connection for their trade will also become more hostile to Poland. The coming defeat of NATO in Ukraine will contribute to the end of the military alliance. Poland’s outrageous behavior makes it more likely that the defeat in Ukraine will also help to break up the European Union. Poland is currently the recipient of the largest EU’s agricultural subsidies. Why should Germany and others continue to pay for those when Poland is impeding their trade?

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It’s all animosity as far as the eye can see. Perfect for a shutdown.

Trump Admits Possibility Of US Government Shutdown From October 1 (TASS)

US President Donald Trump admitted that the federal government could shut down if Republicans and Democrats in Congress fail to reach a consensus on a bill to fund the government by October 1. “We’ll continue to talk to the Democrats, but I think you could end up with a closed country for a period of time,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We’ll take care of the military, we’ll take care of Social Security, we’ll take care of the things that we have to take care of,” he noted, adding that in the event of a shutdown, “a lot of the things that Democrats fight for, which in many cases aren’t very good, will not be able to be paid for.”

“We’ll watch and see how they do with that to handle their constituents,” the US leader said, explaining that in order to continue funding the government, the relevant bill, previously approved by the US House of Representatives, must also be supported by the Senate. “But in the Senate, we have 53 Republicans in total, and we need 60 votes. That means we need Democrat votes [in favor of the bill drafted by Republicans]. And I don’t know if you can make a deal with these people,” Trump concluded.

Earlier on Friday, the Senate rejected two bills that would have provided continued funding for the federal government. The Republican-drafted bill, which had been approved by the House of Representatives, received the support of 48 lawmakers, while the Democratic-drafted bill received the support of 47 lawmakers. Thus, the Senate failed to pass a bill that would have prevented a potential government shutdown on October 1. According to American media, this sharply increases the likelihood of a shutdown, as Congress will be in recess next week.

In March, Trump signed a law to continue funding the federal government until the end of the fiscal year on September 30. This prevented a shutdown that had been expected on March 15. Such a shutdown would have resulted in the suspension of several government agencies and programs and the temporary suspension of salaries for hundreds of thousands of civil servants, many of whom would have been placed on unpaid leave. Since 1977, funding has been interrupted more than 20 times due to disagreements between the administration and Congress. The longest shutdown, which occurred during Trump’s first presidential term, lasted 35 days, from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019.

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“Moscow will take immediate action in response to the possible confiscation of its assets in the West.”

US Senators Introduce Bill To Transfer Frozen Russian Assets To Kiev (TASS)

A group of US senators from both parties introduced a bill that would require Washington to regularly transfer Russian assets frozen in the US to Kiev.According to a document published by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, several amendments must be made to laws signed by former President Joe Biden in 2024. These laws allow the US government to confiscate Russia’s frozen assets and provide military assistance to Ukraine. According to lawmakers from both parties, the Washington administration, in particular, should begin transferring the aforementioned funds to Kiev “every 90 days.” It is assumed that the top US diplomat would allocate at least $250 million to Ukraine during this period.

According to the bill, the Washington administration should “implement a robust, sustained diplomatic campaign to persuade US allies” to also start using at least 5% of frozen Russian assets in Ukraine’s interests. US lawmakers estimate that this would initially amount to approximately $15 billion. Senators believe that other countries should transfer funds to Kiev at least once every 90 days. In addition, senators want to require the Washington administration to report on the amount of Russian sovereign assets, including frozen assets, held outside the United States.

Since the start of the special military operation, the EU, Canada, the US, and Japan have frozen approximately $300 billion in Russian assets. Of these, about $5-6 billion are in the US, with most in Europe, including $210 billion held at the Euroclear international platform in Belgium. As the Russian Foreign Ministry has warned, Moscow will take immediate action in response to the possible confiscation of its assets in the West.

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“The boundless folly of the authors of this project will not absolve them from responsibility or retribution.”

Medvedev Slams EU’s Ukraine ‘Compensation’ Plan, Vows Response (TASS)

Moscow will deliver a firm response to the creation of yet another Russophobic structure within the Council of Europe aimed at extracting “compensation” from Russia in connection with the situation in Ukraine, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said on his Max channel.”The closer we approach the moment of our ultimate victory over the Kiev neo-Nazis, the further into its own cosmos this strange and senseless organization – the Council of Europe – drifts. Our withdrawal from this discriminatory farcical entity was by no means accidental. A truly psychedelic draft convention has now emerged, proposing the creation of an international claims commission for Ukraine,” he said.

De facto, Medvedev continued, the initiative represents an attempt to establish, under the “umbrella” of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, “yet another anti-Russian quasi-judicial body aimed at extracting from [Russia] compensation for alleged ‘consequences of aggression against Kiev.’” He added, “our firm response to it will not be long in coming. The boundless folly of the authors of this project will not absolve them from responsibility or retribution.”

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“I’m willing to do other things, but not when the people that I’m fighting for are buying oil from Russia,”

Kremlin Replies After Trump Says ‘Putin Let Me Down’ (RT)

The “emotional” attitude of US President Donald Trump to the Ukraine peace process is “completely understandable,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. The US leader has repeatedly expressed his frustration with the state of the process lately, admitting that he had previously believed Ukraine “would be easiest” to resolve given his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “He’s really let me down,” Trump said on Thursday. Asked for comment on Trump’s remarks, Peskov signaled that Moscow understands his frustration, given the US president’s personal investment in trying to settle the hostilities.

“We assume that the US and President Trump personally maintain their political will and intention to continue their efforts to facilitate a settlement in Ukraine. Therefore, of course, President Trump is quite emotional, so to speak, about this issue. This is completely understandable,” Peskov told reporters on Friday. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov touched upon Trump’s remarks in an interview with Russia’s Channel One, suggesting his disappointment stems from his business-like approach to politics. The US president is “a man of action, deals, and business, as he himself constantly emphasizes,” Russia’s top diplomat said.

“When President Trump says he’s disappointed… it’s partially explained by the fact that he wants quick solutions,” Lavrov stated. “In some areas, this may work; in others, it’s unlikely.” In recent weeks, the US president voiced his displeasure with the lack of progress in negotiations, threatening new sanctions on Russia. In the past few days, he has repeatedly reaffirmed his willingness to impose more restrictions on Moscow, but urged Washington’s European partners to halt their purchases of Russian oil first. “I’m willing to do other things, but not when the people that I’m fighting for are buying oil from Russia,” Trump said on Thursday.

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“..the economies of EU countries have already lost €1.3 trillion ($1.5 trillion) due to reduced Russian gas supplies..”

EU Names Member States Still Importing Russian Gas (RT)

Eight EU countries continue to import Russian gas, media cited European Commission energy spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen as saying. Earlier on Friday, Brussels unveiled plans to ban Russian energy imports to the bloc. Belgium, France, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain are still receiving Russian supplies, either by pipeline or in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Itkonen added that the European Commission does not have data on the shipments’ ultimate end users. Despite repeated pledges to cut dependence, around 19% of the EU’s gas imports still come from Russia – down from about 45% before 2022.

Reuters noted that Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and France import LNG, while pipeline deliveries through TurkStream reach Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria. With Nord Stream pipelines disabled by sabotage in 2022 and transit via Ukraine halted this year, TurkStream remains the only direct route for Russian pipeline gas into the EU. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Friday that the bloc intends to end imports of Russian LNG from January 1, 2027, as part of new sanctions proposals. At present, there is no blanket ban, with restrictions limited to certain terminals and re-exports.

Earlier this year, Brussels dropped the idea of an outright LNG embargo after resistance from several member states, including Hungary and Slovakia, but in May set out a roadmap to phase out Russian oil and gas by the end of 2027.Moscow has maintained that every new wave of restrictions primarily harms the very countries that initiate them. Presidential aide on international economic affairs, Kirill Dmitriev, said in June that the economies of EU countries have already lost €1.3 trillion ($1.5 trillion) due to reduced Russian gas supplies.

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“..this is the true cost of the EU’s anti-Russian agenda.” “Russophobia is an expensive obsession..”

EU Spent €8.7 Billion On Russian Imports In Three Months (RT)

EU member states imported €8.7 billion ($10.2 billion) worth of Russian goods in the first three months of 2025 alone, Bild has reported, citing data from the German Economic Institute. In the first quarter of this year, the EU-Russia trade balance was slightly skewed in Moscow’s favor, meaning that the bloc purchased more from its eastern neighbor than it sold. The German media outlet singled out natural gas imports, accounting for €4.4 billion, and crude oil at €1.4 billion as the top two items being imported by Russia to the EU In the wake of the Ukraine conflict escalation in February 2022, the bloc declared its intention to cut economic ties with Moscow. While imports of Russian gas and oil have dropped significantly since, a number of EU nations still source a large proportion of their energy supplies from Russia.

Several member states have watched their industries lose ground globally after switching to costlier alternatives. Also topping the list in early 2025 were Russian fertilizers, iron and steel, as well as nickel, according to Bild. Earlier this year, the European Commission proposed its RePowerEU Roadmap that envisages a complete phase-out of all Russian energy imports by the end of 2027. Hungary and Slovakia, both heavily dependent on Russian energy supplies, have strongly opposed the plan, saying that it would undermine their respective energy security. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto accused certain member states earlier this month of “hypocrisy,” claiming that they are still buying “Russian oil secretly” via Asian intermediaries.

In August, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz acknowledged that his country was “not just in a period of economic weakness, we are in a structural crisis of our economy,” citing falling earnings by Germany’s major automakers. Commenting on the bloc’s economic woes back in April, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that “this is the true cost of the EU’s anti-Russian agenda.” “Russophobia is an expensive obsession,” she concluded.

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They’re not going to stop.

India Ramping Up Russian Oil Imports Amid US Trade Talks (RT)

Indian refiners intend to continue purchasing Russian crude to meet rising fuel demand, even as New Delhi restarts trade talks with the US for a bilateral deal, Bloomberg reported on Thursday. India’s imports of Russian oil are likely to remain strong for November and December deliveries, although volumes may fall short of recent highs, the media outlet said, citing people familiar with the procurement plans. Deliveries of Russian crude to India rose by 5.6% in August to 1.6 million barrels per day (mbd), according to data from analytics firm Kpler. New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil have drawn the ire of the US, which has slapped 25% punitive tariffs on India, in addition to 25% levies imposed after the two countries could not arrive at a trade deal.

At a press conference with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday, US President Donald Trump said he had imposed “sanctions” on India, a country he claimed to have a close relationship with, in an effort to help bring an end to the Ukraine conflict. ”When I found out that the European nations were buying oil from Russia… And, as you know, I am very close to India, I am very close to the prime minister of India. I spoke to him the other day, I wished him a happy birthday. We have a very good relationship. He put out a beautiful statement, too… But I sanctioned them,” Trump said.

Before Trump’s comments on Thursday, India’s chief economic adviser, V. Ananatha Nageswaran, said he felt the US may soon scrap the penal import tariff on Indian goods and also cut the tariff to 10-15% from the existing 25%, according to a Reuters report. A delegation led by US Trade Representative for South Asia Brendan Lynch held a new round of negotiations with Indian officials in New Delhi on Monday. Following the talks, India’s Commerce Ministry characterized the discussions as “positive and forward-looking.”

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In 1,000 different ways.

How The West Screwed Itself In Energy Geopolitics (Doshi)

The recent Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin, China, offered vivid optics of a shifting global order. Images of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping sharing smiles and warm embraces spoke volumes about a realignment that few could have predicted at the start of 2025. Against the backdrop of a “binding memorandum” for the Power of Siberia 2 (POS-2) pipeline supplying Russian natural gas to China, this summit was no mere public relations exercise. The summit marks a profound shift in global energy geopolitics, one that underscores Europe’s slide into irrelevance, the competitive headwinds facing US LNG exports and the spectacular failure of former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski’s vision of US strategic supremacy over Russia largely constructed during the tumultuous 1990s.

The United States, in its pursuit of Eurasian hegemony, has alienated a critical ally in India, pushed Russia and China closer together, and left Germany — once an industrial powerhouse — prostrate. This is a tale of hubris, miscalculation and unintended consequences. The Tianjin summit crystallised a new geopolitical reality. The warm camaraderie among the leaders of India, Russia, and China —three of the world’s five largest economies — signalled a growing alignment, not just in rhetoric and optics but in tangible energy partnerships. The “binding memorandum” for POS-2, a 50 billion cubic meter pipeline to deliver gas from Russia’s Yamal fields to China via Mongolia, is a cornerstone of this realignment.

Unlike the existing Power of Siberia 1, which draws gas from Irkutsk (north of Mongolia), POS-2 taps into the same Arctic reserves in Yamal that once fuelled Germany’s industrial might for half a century. For decades, German prosperity rested on a bargain: cheap Russian gas in exchange for high-value German manufactured exports. This was the essence of Willy Brandt’s Ostpolitik and the foundation of Germany’s rise as Europe’s economic powerhouse. Russia’s pivot to Asia – accelerated by Western sanctions since 2014 (after the annexation of Crimea) and intensified after the 2022 Ukraine invasion – is now consolidating. With POS-2 and the expansion of existing pipelines, Russia could supply China with up to 100 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas annually after 2030 when the new pipeline would be up and running.

This is significantly less than the 150 bcm Russia once exported to Europe at its peak. Furthermore, the price for Russia’s natural gas sold to a price-sensitive China will be materially less than what it received from its European customers. But this re-orientation, while costing Russia lost revenues from lower prices and volumes, significantly alleviates Russia’s economic security after the Nordstream pipeline sabotage. It also reduces China’s reliance on seaborne LNG, which is typically two to four times as expensive as piped gas. Critically, this reduces China’s vulnerability to US naval dominance in chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz and Straits of Malacca through which all Middle East gas exports to China must pass through.

[..] The results of the sanctions regime have been contrary to what was predicted. In 2022, European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen said that the “Russian industry was in tatters” and it was “taking chips from dishwashers and refrigerators to fix their military hardware”. Von Der Leyen is eating crow now as Germany, France and the UK teeter on the edge of economic and political collapse while Russian shows little sign of being in “tatters”. Russia has pivoted East to forge energy and trade ties with China and India as well as other countries such as Turkey and Brazil.

The POS-2 deal, though not yet a finalised sales and purchase contract between buyer and seller, signals Russia’s success in finding alternative markets for its gas. The “binding memo” still lacks details on price, ‘take or pay’ terms, tenor of the long-term contract and relative contributions to capital costs. Nevertheless, the POS-2 memorandum signed in Tianjin shows that China is now willing to overcome its longstanding reservations over greater dependence on Russia’s energy resources. The gas that powered German factories and made the country the world’s manufacturing export powerhouse will now underpin China’s ambitions for continued economic dominance.

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“..giving Trump “an extraordinarily powerful media ally..”

Larry Ellison To Become Most Powerful US Media Mogul Ever – NYT (RT)

Billionaire Larry Ellison, 81, is set to become the most powerful media magnate in US history, the New York Times has claimed. In a Thursday opinion piece, the outlet lamented that one of the world’s richest men, and a supporter of US President Donald Trump, is preparing to take control of major American media. The founder of Oracle already holds a large stake in CBS and Paramount through his son David Ellison’s Skydance Media, which closed an $8.4 billion merger with Paramount last month, creating Paramount Skydance Corporation. Within weeks of the merger, Paramount Skydance signed a seven-year, $7.7 billion contract to broadcast and stream Ultimate Fighting Championship events. UFC’s chief executive Dana White, a longtime Trump supporter, spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention.

”The effect of Mr. Ellison’s gambit could be every bit as consequential, if not more so, than what happened a generation ago when Rupert Murdoch… created what has become Fox News, intensifying our political polarization,” the NYT wrote. Ellison’s expected push into Hollywood and big media could go further than other tech moguls’ forays, according to the outlet. Plans also include joining a consortium with Oracle and Andreessen Horowitz to take a major stake in TikTok as part of a Trump-backed deal. The Ellisons are also reportedly preparing an all-cash bid of up to $80 billion for Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns CNN, HBO and Warner Bros. studios.

Ellison could soon control “a powerful social media platform, an iconic Hollywood movie studio and one of the largest content streaming services,” as well as two of the country’s leading news outlets, giving Trump “an extraordinarily powerful media ally,” the NYT claimed. Trump has repeatedly argued that most mainstream outlets, including the NYT, are left-leaning, with bias against conservatives. He has accused them spreading false stories about him to undermine his presidency.

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Elon

https://twitter.com/RickyDoggin/status/1968867510805021009

rfk

Putin
https://twitter.com/RussiaIsntEnemy/status/1968728683767570509

Banff

 

 

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Sep 192025
 


Caspar David Friedrich The Monk by the Sea c1809

 

Prove Charlie Right (David DesRosiers)
TPUSA Names Charlie Kirk’s Widow Erika as New CEO (Salgado)
Chris Cuomo Schools the Left on Kimmel’s Suspension (Margolis)
Jimmy Kimmel Missed This Clue About Trump; It Was His Downfall (Tim O’Brien)
Kimmel Has No One to Blame but Himself for Cancellation by ABC (Perrotta)
Trump to Antifa: IT’S GOING DOWN (Victoria Taft)
Brigitte Macron To Prove To US Court She’s A Woman (NYP)
Macron Is In A Political Death Spiral (Amar)
‘Not The Right Time’ To Call For Russia-Ukraine Ceasefire – Trump (RT)
Trump Files Emergency Request With SCOTUS To Make Lisa Cook Fired Again (ZH)
RFK Jr. Cannot Proceed With Overhaul of Health Agencies, Court Rules (ET)
The ‘Golden Billion’ Has Lost Its Crown (Bobrov)
Bank of Russia Governor Dismisses Talk Of Recession (RT)
Great Moments In The History Of Chrystia Freeland’s Failure (Helmer)
China To Test Arctic Express Route To Europe (RT)

 

 

https://twitter.com/TONYxTWO/status/1968488772468650199

Benny

 

 

 

 

The Charlie tragedy enters day 10 today.

Prove Charlie Right (David DesRosiers)

On Sept. 10, 2025, Charlie Kirk was assassinated for the political sin of showing up on college campuses across our country and taking and answering questions. These queries came from students and guests whether they were allies or adversaries – or simply curious-minded Americans engaging in their unalienable birthright to engage in civics openly. Charlie Kirk was martyred for the free exercise of his First Amendment rights. And the right to free speech, which he championed, was critically wounded in the attack. The aftermath marks a turning point in our nation’s “house divided” future. Let’s do as Charlie did masterfully and probe the mindset of the other – in this case his assassin’s and that of his like-minded enablers. It was Charlie’s way. It is the Socratic way. It is the Western Civ, the American way.

Who will rid us of this meddlesome apostle of free expression? Progressives don’t like to think of themselves as King Henry, the man who uttered the fateful words that caused four loyalists to murder Thomas Becket. But where else can their constant denunciations of Republicans as “Nazis” or “fascists” lead? A young man, who was being groomed to be a moral monster by our culture and the passions it unleashes, heard the dog whistle call to arms, seized the opportunity of a public event in his home state, and did what was collectively seen by his ilk as necessary and proper. To do so, he suspended morality, the rule of law, and human decency in order serve what he and too many others see as a higher political purpose. Sadly, this moral madness is what is taught in our nation’s colleges. This is the ethic that guided the global left – paired now with America’s identitarian vanguard –to fundamentally remake America.

Their immoral reasoning not only led to the killing of Charlie Kirk, but it is also the rationale of messianic monsters through the ages. In the 20th century alone, under the guise of National Socialism and global communism, it led to the murder of a hundred million souls. Social media has given it another Great Leap Forward. It is the justification for the show trials, the guillotine, the oven, the suicide vest, and the lone sniper. This assassin’s creed is not for everyone. Only a few have the wherewithal to take this beyond-good-and-evil step. But those who do take things to their evil conclusion do so knowing that those with less nerve but shared adjacency on the ends will find in their partisan hearts that what they did was needed and therefore good, if not praiseworthy.

This is the recipe for political madness and incompatible with our venerable experiment in self-government that we must now defend in common. What does Charlie Kirk’s assassination portend for our country? I see the potential of a natural turning point towards the good, the restoration of the First Amendment’s spirit, and a return of political, civic, cultural, religious, and economic toleration. That would be a big rainbow following a storm. So far, there has been little call for retaliatory violence. So much for the “Hitler Youth” handwringing. There have only been completely peaceful prayer vigils. Unlike this assassin’s creed and its enablers, Charlie Kirk’s soul and mind would not allow such a demonic transvaluation of value. His true followers share that moral position. On this point, the partisan calls for moral equivalence don’t hold.

The good news for us, the living, is that Charlie is being honored in death by his followers in a way that gives us all a new political lease on life. I first heard of his shooting from my 28-year-old son and 18-year-old nephew. They saw Charlie’s execution with their own eyes within moments of it happening and captured the core un-American inhumanity of it all. “A man is gunned down for the thought crime of debating on a college campus.” “This guy is a family man,” they said. “He has a wife and two young children.” What happens going forward? Charlie’s influence was huge before he was shot. It appears to be growing by the day in death. I hope something good is happening in real time. I believe you can see, hear, and feel it.

It turns out that when a public figure with 35 million followers gets assassinated for the whole world to see for simply speaking on a college campus, those who never heard of him – or heard something, good or bad – will naturally check it out themselves. A national re-examination may be happening. The curious are finding an immediate and growing corpus, which is deconstructing the demonic caricature made of him, and are standing up for this smart, fast-talking, civil, happy man in the prime of this life. Charlie’s wife Erika gave a speech full of love and principle that brought tears to those with open hearts. This organization Charlie dedicated half of his life to is not going anywhere but onward and upward. Since his assassination, Turning Point USA has received tens of thousands of applications to set up TPP college chapters.

College Mandarins in charge of green-lighting or gaslighting student organizations and regulating speech to their Orwellian liking should tread lightly going forward. The Justice Department will be watching. Charlie is dead but not gone. His happy warrior spirit and first-rate mind are already immortalized in the cloud. TPP should enlist the help of AI to give Charlie’s mind and his “Prove Me Wrong” method a second lease on life for our collective sake. To the legion of young people whose hearts are broken and want to do more, you know that Charlie would want you to follow in his footsteps. The time for being a spectator was canceled with an assassin’s bullet. Today, it is time to stand up, show up, and be like Charlie. You know his mind and his method. From heaven, Charlie is saying to all those who love him, “Prove Me Right.”

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“We have a country to save.”

TPUSA Names Charlie Kirk’s Widow Erika as New CEO (Salgado)

Turning Point USA lost its beloved CEO and founder, Charlie Kirk, to an assassination last week. Who better to take his place than his widow, Erika? Erika Kirk not only lost a friend and inspirational leader but also her much-loved husband last Wednesday. Now she has to raise their children alone. But she is not cowed by the horrific leftist violence that took her husband’s life, and she will be taking his place as the CEO and chairwoman of the board at TPUSA.= During her heartbreaking but inspiring comments after Charlie’s death, Erika declared, “You have no idea the fire that you have ignited within this wife. The cries of this widow will echo around the world like a battle cry. To everyone listening tonight across America, the movement my husband built will not die.” She is more committed than ever to his life’s work.

In the X post announcing Mrs. Kirk’s new position, TPUSA’s Board explained that Charlie had told multiple executives within the organization that, if he should die prematurely, he would want his wife to take over his job. The TPUSA Board voted accordingly for her yesterday, on Constitution Day. The statement from TPUSA began by citing Ecclesiastes in the Bible and expressing faith in God, just as Charlie always did: In Ecclesiastes, King Solomon wrote that mankind is to be tested by God. Today we are facing such a test, yet we also know that God has prepared us with everything we need to overcome this ordeal. It was the honor of our lives to serve as board members at Charlie’s side. Charlie prepared all of us for a moment like this one. He worked tirelessly to ensure Turning Point USA was built to survive even the greatest tests. And now, it is our great pride to announce Erika Kirk as the new CEO and Chair of the Board for Turning Point USA.

Charlie said he wanted his legacy to be his faith. And he wanted to inspire a whole generation of young patriots to carry on his work. The outpouring of love for him, not just in America but around the world, highlights his great success. The TPUSA board emphasized that every member of the organization has “a special role in carrying Charlie Kirk’s mantle and completing his vision of bringing us all closer to our Lord and fostering a prosperous country for generations to come.” It quoted Charlie’s famous saying, “We have a country to save.” Notably, just before his death, Charlie expressed a goal of putting a TPUSA “Club America” chapter at every high school in the country (somewhere around 25,000). Since Charlie’s assassination, TPUSA has had 37,000+ applications for new chapters.

Therefore, the Board affirmed: We will not surrender or kneel before evil. We will carry on. The attempt to destroy Charlie’s work will become our chance to make it more powerful and enduring than ever before. May God Bless Erika, the Kirk family, and the entire team at Turning Point USA. As Erika Kirk very truly said to her husband’s murderer, “You have no idea what you have just unleashed across this entire country and this world.”

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If Kimmel had been a big hit, he would never have been cancelled. Nothing to do with Trump.

Chris Cuomo Schools the Left on Kimmel’s Suspension (Margolis)

Chris Cuomo just dropped a dose of inconvenient truth about Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension, and it’s not what the left wants to hear. Instead of feeding the narrative that this was some grand assault on free speech, Cuomo cut through the noise—and his blunt take won’t sit well with leftists desperate to turn Kimmel into a martyr. Cuomo began by stripping the drama down to the essentials: “You can like or not like Disney’s decision on Kimmel.” He then explained the obvious point the media refuses to entertain: absent evidence of state interference, this is a brand protecting itself. “But until I see proof of actual government coercion of their decision, this is about Disney making a business decision about its brand and the responsibility it has to respect the desires of its audience and its license.”

Throughout, Cuomo refused to barter facts for feelings. “I don’t care how you feel about it,” he said, adding bluntly, “We don’t have the proof before us. Maybe we will, then I’ll change my analysis.” In other words: show me the evidence or stop pretending the First Amendment has been violated. After the tragic murder of Charlie Kirk, the facts quickly confirmed what many already suspected: his killer was a radicalized leftist. Yet on his show, Jimmy Kimmel mocked the truth, sneering, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

https://twitter.com/JasonJournoDC/status/1968833785513828511

That wasn’t just inaccurate—it was blatant propaganda, and it crossed a legal line. Under 47 CFR § 73.1217, better known as the FCC’s “broadcast hoaxes” rule, television networks and radio stations are strictly prohibited from airing false information about crimes or catastrophes when they know it isn’t true. And it simply wasn’t and there was no excuse for anyone at ABC not to know that. Cuomo reiterated the point that should shut down every hysterical hot take on the left: the First Amendment limits government action, not private companies. “And no, it is not a First Amendment issue until you have proof of government intervention because the First Amendment doesn’t apply to private industry in this context. It’s a restriction on government regulation. Okay?”

That’s the core of Cuomo’s point. The idea that a network’s license hinges on personal loyalty to a president—or that Disney somehow lost its autonomy because of political pressure—is the stuff of tabloid headlines, not court-ready proof. “The basis of having a license is not on whether or not you are good to Trump. Okay?” Cuomo said, cutting through the noise. That suspicion is precisely why he insists on proof. And right now, the left has none.

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“And she reassured the president, because as his friend, she knew he may have needed this reassuring, that Charlie knew the president loved him, too. This is powerful because anyone who knows how men actually think knows that there is a good chance this was on the president’s mind..”

Jimmy Kimmel Missed This Clue About Trump; It Was His Downfall (Tim O’Brien)

If you didn’t know that Jimmy Kimmel has been suspended from his nightly gig producing a propaganda broadcast in front of a live audience, you’ll be forgiven for actually having a life. But for those of us who’ve been inundated with online reports of how this is bad or good for Western civilization, our forensic investigation continues. My colleague Stephen Kruiser put it all in perspective in The Morning Briefing today. And if gloating is your thing, you have to read about Roseanne Barr’s epic reaction, courtesy of Matt Margolis. Going by the headlines, the major reason Kimmel now has more time on his hands is that, when he inserted the Charlie Kirk assassination into his “comedy” monologue, he spread the myth that the alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson, was MAGA.

This has raised the question of whether comedians should be held to the same standards for truth and accuracy as journalists. While it’s one thing to debate how far-reaching the government should be in policing speech, it’s certainly within the purview of Disney, the owner of Kimmel’s show, to make the prudent decision to take him off the air if he’s spreading a dishonest narrative that adds to the current culture of toxicity. A culture that many blame for Charlie’s assassination. But there was another part to Kimmel’s monologue that demonstrated just how out-of-touch he has become and why his humor so consistently misses the mark.

He set up his joke by saying, “On a human level, you can see how hard the president is taking this.” And then he played a clip of President Trump taking impromptu questions from a scrum of White House reporters. One off-camera reporter offered the president his condolences and asked him how he was holding up. The president in DJT style answered by deflecting and pivoting in less than a second. “I think very good, and by the way right there you see all the trucks. They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House,” the president said as he proceeded to change the subject. Kimmel’s punchline then is that Trump is at the fourth stage of grieving, “construction.” He then went on to frame the president’s approach to grieving as that of how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.

OK, we all know it’s a joke, and a bad one, and timing-wise, a very insensitive one. But it also shows just how clueless Kimmel is when it comes to how real men deal with personal loss and grief. Kimmel, who’s surrounded by Hollywood types who revel in their identities of victimhood, doesn’t get real men, which is why he doesn’t get Trump. Trump is among the richest people in the world, and yet he does not afford himself the luxury of showing off his vulnerabilities to the world. He grew up on movies where John Wayne and Clint Eastwood presented the classic male archetype. Fortitude in the face of danger, death, and tragedy. In all of these stories, the hero is not distracted by all of the madness around him. He stays cool and focused, and he serves as a solid guidepost for those around him.

The current, more fashionable term for this is stoicism. Trump came up in the construction industry. It’s always been a man’s world, populated by no small number of tough and unsavory characters. To deal with all of the interests he’s had to deal with over the years, and to change skylines, he’s learned not to show weakness. Now in his second term as president, he knows the world is watching his every move. The Middle East is watching. Europe is watching. Vladimir Putin is watching. Xi Jinping is watching. The last thing Trump wants to show them is a crack in his armor. In terms of his public persona, Trump is easy to understand. He almost never takes off his tie or suit, and when he does, he’s on the golf course. When he talks in public, he’s rarely introspective.

For those who’ve met him, it’s always about you when he talks. He wants to talk about you. When he talks to the press, it’s almost always about the thing he’s trying to get done, or the people who stand in his way. One of his skills is to break this up often enough to entertain, and he does that by bragging a little (or a lot) and by praising or taking shots at famous people. He never uses the media to serve as his therapist, as so many celebrities do. This approach to compartmentalizing personal feelings is not unique to Trump. Most men are this way in some fashion, especially men of his generation. But Kimmel has lost sight of that, and that’s why he couldn’t comprehend why the President of the United States wouldn’t vomit his vulnerabilities to the press corps on demand.

Last Friday night, when Erika Kirk gave her address to the nation, one of the most touching parts of an extremely touching speech was when she looked into the camera and spoke directly to Charlie’s friend, President Trump. She told the president that Charlie loved him. And she reassured the president, because as his friend, she knew he may have needed this reassuring, that Charlie knew the president loved him, too. This is powerful because anyone who knows how men actually think knows that there is a good chance this was on the president’s mind. Just don’t expect him to talk about such a personal and intimate thing in public. It’s ironic that Kimmel’s breakout venture into entertainment was a show about men called “The Man Show,” and in 2025, the one thing Kimmel doesn’t have a clue about is men.

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“(A decision made easier by the fact Kimmel’s audience is down to about 12 leftists and whatever tourists and homeless he can drag off Hollywood Boulevard into his studio.)”

Kimmel Has No One to Blame but Himself for Cancellation by ABC (Perrotta)

Jimmy Kimmel has been yanked faster than a pitcher who gave up five home runs in a row … and spit on the bat boy. The longtime late-night host who self-identifies as a comedian was pulled off the air “indefinitely” by ABC/Disney after making a horrific slur against the “MAGA gang” in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination. Specifically, despite mountains of public evidence that the suspect held in connection with Kirk’s killing is an antifa-echoing, trans-loving, MAGA-loathing leftist, Kimmel declared in somber tones Monday night: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

He lied to his audience. Period. He explicitly pinned the killing on supporters of President Donald Trump. Period. This was not a poor attempt at a joke. At this point, Kimmel wouldn’t know a joke from a jukebox. This was not a live, on-the-air slip-up. (Like ABC News reporter Matt Gutman gushing about the “very touching” nature of accused gunman Tyler Robinson’s texts to his live-in transitioning lover.) This was a deliberate, scripted, placed on the cue-cards, vicious character assassination against a grieving segment of the population. It would be like Johnny Carson after James Earl Ray’s arrest for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1968 assassination going on “The Tonight Show” and saying, “The Negroes are acting like a white man did this to hide that it was a brother, just so they can get more welfare.”

It was outrageous, and decent people agree: “No more.” As conservative podcaster Megyn Kelly posted on the social media platform X: “But what the Left doesn’t seem to understand and needs to hear is that MAGA has f****** HAD IT. We are ANGRY. We are INCENSED watching the [Left] smear us, our [people], literally getting some of our friends killed (not to mention our president shot and nearly assassinated again weeks later) and then LYING about it. (‘Trump faked his injury! He wasn’t actually shot!’ ‘We have no idea what the motives ever are … if they are bad for our side!’)” Two major TV-station owners of ABC affiliates, Sinclair and Nexstar, also had enough. ABC/Disney finally had it as well. (A decision made easier by the fact Kimmel’s audience is down to about 12 leftists and whatever tourists and homeless he can drag off Hollywood Boulevard into his studio.)

Faux Outrage
Naturally, Democrats and some in the liberal media are gnashing their teeth over Kimmel’s cancellation. As are those dozen Kimmel viewers. Daily Signal Executive Editor Rob Bluey laid out five of the most egregious examples, from Sen. Chris Murphy to CNN’s Van Jones. Too bad the Emmys were last Sunday night. These performances would have swept the awards. Even Barack Obama, the nation’s Divider Emeritus, weighed in. They’re the worst breed of hypocrites. As Bluey noted, these sudden champions of free speech were perfectly happy to sit on their pampered rear ends while the Biden administration launched an all-out war on conservative voices. And Obama? He’s the one who unleashed the rabid dogs of the IRS to maul the Tea Party movement to death. On this, he should on Mount Shushmore.

It’s not just that they’re hypocrites. They’re gaslighters. Again, they’re talking about the oppressive Trump regime (read “fascists”) stamping out dissent, the same basic messaging that got Kirk killed, when Kimmel’s canning was simply a corporate decision. In recent years, when cancel culture was at its peak, the very same woke ABC/Disney machine: • Fired Roseanne Barr from her show because of a single Ambien-fueled joke on Twitter about former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett that was deemed racist. • Fired “The Mandalorian” star Gina Carano over some pointed political posts on social media that did not fit their woke view of the world. • Forced out longtime “Bachelor” host Chris Harrison for showing sympathy for a contestant who got canceled after trolls dug up that she had attended an antebellum plantation-themed party years before in college. Not a peep from those weeping and gnashing teeth over Kimmel’s ouster.

Let’s go back even further. This same ABC canceled Bill Maher’s show “Politically Incorrect” after 9/11 when he suggested the hijackers were not “cowards” because they undertook a suicide mission … as opposed to the U.S. military lobbing bombs from a thousand miles away. Nobody’s infringing Kimmel’s free speech. He’s free to launch a podcast tomorrow … free to play the martyr on X …. free to do more blackface. Free to hit open mic nights and pretend to again be a comedian. And ABC is free to say they don’t want Kimmel representing the network.

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Shapiro undoubtedly thinks he makes a coherent argument. It’s just that I don’t see it.

The Assassination and the Violent Movements We Must Denounce (Ben Shapiro)

This week, my friend Charlie Kirk was murdered in cold blood in front of a crowd of thousands at Utah Valley University. He was assassinated while debating with students — something Charlie did frequently, and with aplomb — by a radicalized leftist with a trans boyfriend. That assassin decided to kill Charlie because of Charlie’s belief that men cannot become women, and vice versa; as he allegedly wrote in a text message to that trans boyfriend, “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out. If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence.”

I was in Los Angeles when Charlie was shot. My first reaction was shock; my second, horror; and my third, the realization that the shooting was almost certainly the result of a radicalized leftist, probably associated with transgender ideology. If we are to be honest with ourselves, we all have such reactions upon learning of acts of evil: We jump to the most likely conclusion about the source of that evil. If a synagogue is targeted in a mass shooting, the suspect will almost certainly be either a radical Muslim or a white supremacist; if a church is targeted, a radical Muslim or a trans activist; if a CEO is shot, a Marxist radical of some sort. There is a reason for such suppositions: Not all ideologies are equally likely to produce violence at the margins.

Ideologies that breed violence share three specific elements. First, they share a conspiratorial view of the universe in which a shadowy cabal of powerful people are responsible for all of your failures and shortcomings, and in which their arguments are not in fact arguments, but instead, a la Michel Foucault, a facade for power. Second, such ideologies share a belief that you or your group are being targeted for destruction by that shadowy cabal. Finally, such ideologies hold that violence is justifiable self-defense.

All the ideologies listed above fit this model. Trans ideology argues that trans people are victims of a conspiracy — a conspiracy to deny their identity; that such denial is responsible for all their life problems and amounts to a form of “erasure” or “genocide”; and that the proper response to such “hate” is violence. Radical Marxism argues that poor people are victims of a conspiracy of the wealthy, who exploit them; arguments on behalf of free markets are merely false consciousness promoted by the powerful; violence is therefore an appropriate response (“FREE LUIGI!”). White supremacy argues that whites are being targeted by people of color, Jews, and other minorities and fellow travelers; their very existence is a threat, and force is thus a justifiable response. Radical Islam argues that the failures of Islamic civilization are due to imperialism and colonialism; that the success of the West is inherently violent; and that violence is the proper response.

When politicians say, therefore, that they are against “political violence” but then move to justify violence by massaging these ideologies, their words are useless. They are a prettification of reality, an attempt to gloss over radical evils gnawing at the intestines of a functional society. Even worse, politicians who continue to foment such ideologies provide a permission structure for violence, excusing it and even valorizing it. The only way to truly fight political violence is to denounce the ideologies that breed it. Anything less means that more radicals take their ideologies to the logical extreme — and the result is blood in the streets, innocents dead and an ever-widening cycle of violence.

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“..it’s possible that the very organizations he needed to carry out his order — the FBI and DOJ — were too busy trying to destroy his presidency.”

Trump to Antifa: IT’S GOING DOWN (Victoria Taft)

President Trump announced on TruthSocial on Constitution Day that he is officially designating Antifa a domestic terrorist organization. To commemorate the occasion, I’ve used one of Antifa’s own hype quotes from its posters, websites, and signs to announce: Antifa: It’s Going Down. It’ll take some work, but at least some of the people in this destructive, antisocial organization will likely get rolled up in the Trump Administration’s efforts to treat Antifa like the terror organization it has proven itself to be. Trump 45 gave oxygen to the idea of treating Antifa like a terrorist organization, but it’s possible that the very organizations he needed to carry out his order — the FBI and DOJ — were too busy trying to destroy his presidency. Political treachery carries a cost. And Portland has carried much of that cost.

Despite Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s endorsement of Antifa in that feature photo above, Antifa has been a scourge on the American political landscape for more than a decade. You saw their work in Portland, starting in 2015 when they made their presence known by running “security” as “allies” of the Black Lives Matter movement. There were swarming assaults on independent journalists such as Mike Strickland and Andy Ngo before and after Donald Trump’s election, and, most notoriously, you, like most of the nation, were horrified by the “Summer of Love” in 2020. Those riots were so calamitous that Portland hasn’t yet recovered from the untold hundreds of millions of dollars in damage and the ongoing public relations disaster that cost the city and local businesses millions more. The recent sale of a downtown high-rise for pennies on the dollar shows the disrepute in which Portland — and the security of its citizens — is held.

Seattle’s autonomous zone, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Kenosha, and Antifa in San Diego were all involved in what looks like a conspiracy to foment violence. Professional protesters started hundreds or thousands of riots with impunity. Those few who were arrested were freed by woke George Soros district attorneys. The damage done by this group is unquantifiable. It certainly was for Aaron Danielson’s family. He’s the man who was assassinated on the streets of Portland in 2020 during Antifa’s “Summer of Love.” Danielson was part of the group Patriot Prayer. That group would hold free speech rallies, and when Antifa invariably showed up to start the violence, the Patriot Prayer guys would make sure the Anti-First Amendment collection of trans, soy boys, and strapped and trained Antifa members regretted it.

Patriot Prayer was eventually and unofficially PNG’d from Portland by city and county officials. That’s right: Portland eventually kicked out the only people doing anything about Antifa. That happened after an Antifa shoot-out on Portland streets. We digress, however. Danielson was walking with his buddy in downtown Portland during the riots and was shot at point-blank range by a “100% Antifa” assassin. I wrote about it in this story, “Police Say Suspected Antifa Hit-Man Stalked Pro-Trump Victim Before Portland Murder.” Oh, Antifa has much to answer for. If you think designating them as a terrorist organization is impossible because of our First Amendment laws, however, you may have a point. But there is hope of finally bringing these bastards to court.

In 2021, God bless San Diego County for charging a violent sect of Antifa, some of them on loan from L.A., under state law. I wrote about it then in this story, “Violent Antifa Terrorists Are Finally Prosecuted for Attacking Conservatives,” and in 2023, a swath of this group was found guilty. Three years later, I wrote about their sentencing in my West Coast, Messed Coast™ report, in which one of the defendants apologized at his sentencing, saying, “I want to apologize to the victims and the city of San Diego. No one should be attacked for their political views.” I wrote at the time, “…another blaring advertisement for requiring civics to be taught in schools.” Defendants were brought up on a variety of charges. But they were also charged with a conspiracy to commit riot.

The Antifa of their day were members of the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and Animal Liberation Front (ALF). A federal prosecution that few remember occurred in Oregon — if you can believe it — and was against ELF and ALF, which the feds dubbed “The Family.” These were the same losers that, over a period of years from mid-1990s until someone set that Vail ski lodge on fire, incinerated a lab and 20 years of research at the University of Washington Horticulture Center, burned a “street of dreams” multi-million dollar home in Seattle, torched a San Diego condo complex under construction, and firebombed SUV dealerships, attacked furriers, torched an excavator in Mexico, and conspired to do it all in their commune in Eugene, Ore. It was a case that no one thought would ever come to fruition, and the members of those domestic terrorist groups were rolled up by the feds in Operation Backfire in 2006. The last person was sentenced in 2009.

On Wednesday, Ryan Mauro of the Capital Research Center released his report about the tentacles of the George Soros empire in the violent movements on college campuses and America’s streets. It’s quite enlightening. You should read it. The most salient part of his research concerns the funding of Antifa’s violent takeover of what they called “Cop City” in Atlanta. Antifa expert, independent reporter Andy Ngo, said he thinks there might be some problem going after Antifa as a terrorist organization because, under current U.S. law, there must be an international touchstone. Mauro’s report may indeed be the international touchstone connecting Antifa in America. On page 60 of his 95-page report, Mauro discovered that the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, which has ties to Hamas and the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, helped support the Antifa group in their “Stop Cop City” reign of terror.

The Alliance has also come to the defense of the aforementioned Stop Cop City/Defend the Atlanta Forest terrorists. …In 2020, the Alliance endorsed violence against law enforcement, posting a graphic showing weapons and criminal tactics used by protestors, such as blockading roads in order to impede police cars and encouraging demonstrators not to provide information about each other’s crimes. Over 40 of the anarchists are being prosecuted on domestic terrorism charges as of February 2024 and over 60 were indicted in August 2023 on racketeering charges. Among those accused of being terrorists is Thomas Jurgens, one of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s attorneys.

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This should be good.

Brigitte Macron To Prove To US Court She’s A Woman (NYP)

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, will present photographic and scientific evidence to a US court to prove the French first lady is, in fact, a woman. The two are submitting the documentation as part of a defamation lawsuit against conservative influencer Candace Owens, who claimed that Brigitte Macron was born a male and later secretly transitioned. The Macrons’ attorney, Tom Clare, told the BBC’s “Fame Under Fire” podcast that there will be “expert testimony that will come out that will be scientific in nature.” The attorney did not elaborate on exactly what it would be, beyond that it would include pictures of Brigitte, now 72, when she was pregnant with their kids.

The French power couple is ready to demonstrate “both generically and specifically” that the allegations are false, Clare stated firmly. “It is incredibly upsetting to think that you have to go and subject yourself, to put this type of proof forward,” he said of the distress it has caused the first lady. “It is a process that she will have to subject herself to in a very public way. But she’s willing to do it. She is firmly resolved to do what it takes to set the record straight,” he said. Owens has repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that Brigitte Macron, 72, was born male — going as far as to say on her podcast earlier this year that she “would stake my entire professional career on all of those points.”

The Macrons filed a lawsuit against Owens in Delaware in July, alleging Owens “disregarded all credible evidence disproving her claim in favor of platforming known conspiracy theorists and proven defamers.”Owens’ claims are similar to those previously made in France by two women whom Brigitte Macron sued in 2021. That case was initially ruled in the French first lady’s favor but has been overturned on appeal. She has taken the case to France’s highest appeals court. Brigitte Macron was 39 years old when she became the future French leader’s teacher when he was 15 in 1993. The pair married in 2007.

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“Two British experts discussing the French mess for the conservative British magazine Spectator could not help but recall that the French Revolution – the big one, 1789 – started with a debt crisis, too.”

Macron Is In A Political Death Spiral (Amar)

The France of President Emmanuel Macron, who is really the egomaniac-in-chief, is somewhere on the spectrum between “spiraling political crisis” (Financial Times), “big trouble” (The Economist) and terminal collapse. Again. Barely a week after a new, if fragile, government was cobbled together in acute crisis mode, the country is bracing “for big anti-austerity street marches and labor strikes,” while the state’s finances are “pernicious” and the budget for 2026 a big question without an answer. In Paris, for instance, the Metro is semi-comatose; in the country as whole, a third of teachers are on strike. An earlier wave of protests – under the slogan “Let’s block everything”– did not quite achieve that ambitious aim, but it did attract double the number of participants the authorities had expected.

In that respect – even if they were different in their ideological background – the French protests resemble the recent ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally in London. On both sides of the Channel, decrepit, unpopular, unresponsive Centrist regimes are barely hanging on now. As the French have taught us to say “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” (“The more things change, the more they stay the same”). Especially after Macron’s two irresponsible and egotistic decisions of 2024, France can’t find a way out of the mess he has created: first, he called snap parliamentary elections to then, second, ignore the will of the French voters.

If Macron had respected the results of the elections that he himself initiated, he would have had to charge either a left-wing bloc, with the most combined votes, or the new-right Rassemblement National (RN), which obtained the most votes for a single party, with building a new government. Yet the man with a vast ego and an incredibly shrinking popularity base, clearly rejected by a preponderant majority of his people, felt he knew better. Since then Macron has tried to impose his will against parliament. The problem? Parliament won’t agree.

So, after what the YouTube channel of venerable left journal l’Humanité calls “the parliamentary hara-kiri” of the last politically short-lived prime minister, here we go again. Total deadlock at the political center; in the streets, picturesque unrest featuring traditional folklore, such as burning rubbish bins, baton-charging police, and teargas galore; and finally, yet another compulsive attempt by Macron the Unpopular to succeed with what keeps failing: installing a new – his fifth in less than two years – prime minister (his name is Sébastien Lecornu, but don’t bother remembering) who has no majority in parliament and thus, cannot possibly pass the budget ex-investment banker Macron wants in order to get his kind of austeritarian-neoliberal handle on France’s very real debt crisis. Please the rich, squeeze all others.

In short, since Macron refuses to either call fresh parliamentary elections or go away, let’s do the doom loop again. That at least is a tempting reading of the current situation in Paris and the unfortunate country that its detached president plagues. And yet, perhaps things are different this time. As in, even worse. Maybe this crisis is not just bad-business-as-usual but a sign that a bigger political earthquake is coming, the kind that reshapes the landscape. Consider for starters the intriguing frequency with which commentators are making historic comparisons. Two British experts discussing the French mess for the conservative British magazine Spectator could not help but recall that the French Revolution – the big one, 1789 – started with a debt crisis, too.

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“Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that Trump had shifted “from issuing an ultimatum for an unconditional ceasefire to advocating for a long-term, sustainable solution.”

‘Not The Right Time’ To Call For Russia-Ukraine Ceasefire – Trump (RT)

US President Donald Trump said it is not the right time for him to call for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. A reporter asked Trump aboard Air Force One whether it was time to press for a ceasefire, noting that a month has passed since his rare face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. “It doesn’t feel like it,” Trump said. “But at the right time, if I have to do it, it will be harsh,” he added. Trump, who has at times criticized both Russia and Ukraine, recently admitted that negotiating an end to the conflict would be harder than he had anticipated. Speaking at a press conference with Prime Minister Keir Starmer during his trip to the UK on Thursday, Trump said that Putin had “really let me down.”

Last week, the US president said he would impose additional “major sanctions” on Moscow, but only if all NATO members stop purchasing Russian oil. “This is not TRUMP’S WAR (it would never have started if I was president!), it is Biden’s and Zelenskyy’s WAR,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform, referring to his predecessor and the leader of Ukraine. In an interview aired on Russian TV on Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that Trump had shifted “from issuing an ultimatum for an unconditional ceasefire to advocating for a long-term, sustainable solution.” Moscow has demanded that Ukraine recognize its new borders, abandon its plan to join NATO in favor of permanent neutrality, and agree to limit its military. Zelensky has rejected these terms.

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“..the district court judge “lacked authority to order reinstatement as an equitable remedy for the removal of an officer of the United States..”

Trump Files Emergency Request With SCOTUS To Make Lisa Cook Fired Again (ZH)

The Trump administration filed an emergency request with the Supreme Court on Thursday to allow it to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook from the central bank’s board while a lawsuit plays out in lower court over Cook’s ouster by President Trump last month. The request comes after a federal appeals court in Washington DC rejected the administration’s attempt to remove an order blocking Cook’s removal in a 2-1 decision the night before the Fed’s meeting earlier this week. “This application involves yet another case of improper judicial interference with the President’s removal authority — here, interference with the President’s authority to remove members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors for cause,” wrote the administration’s lawyer, Solicitor General John Sauer.

According to court filings, the Trump administration maintains that Cook committed mortgage fraud based on evidence provided by Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte – which showed that Cook claimed two properties as her primary residence within weeks of each other. On Aug. 25, Trump announced that he was firing Cook from the seven-member Fed Board. Cook sued in response, resulting in a federal district court on Sept. 9 barring her removal while the suit plays out – which the appeals court upheld. Sauer says that the Supreme Court, for various reasons, should stay the district court judge’s preliminary injunction reinstating Cook to the Fed, claiming that the DOJ is likely to prevail in the lawsuit “because Cook lacks a Fifth Amendment property interest in her continued service as a Governor of the Federal Reserve System,” and her job is not protected by due process considerations.

Sauer also disputed the judge’s alternative finding that Cook’s firing “for cause” was invalid because the alleged conduct occurred before she was appointed to the Fed. “The Federal Reserve Act’s broad ‘for cause’ provision rules out removal for no reason at all, or for policy disagreement,” he wrote, adding “But so long as the President identifies a cause, the determination of ‘some cause relating to the conduct, ability, fitness, or competence of the officer’ is within the President’s unreviewable discretion.” “Cook had made contradictory representations in two mortgage agreements a short time apart, claiming that both a property in Michigan and a property in Georgia would simultaneously serve as her principal residence,” Sauer continued. “Each mortgage agreement described the representation as material to the lender, reflecting the reality that lenders usually offer lower interest rates for principal-residence mortgages because they view such mortgages as less risky.”

“When her apparent misconduct came to light, the President determined that Cook’s ‘deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter’ renders her unfit to continue serving on the Federal Reserve Board, and at a minimum demonstrates ‘the sort of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question [her] competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.” Sauer also says that the district court judge “lacked authority to order reinstatement as an equitable remedy for the removal of an officer of the United States, as we have discussed in several recent stay applications.” Cook has denied wrongdoing, and has argued that unproven allegations are not sufficient grounds for removing the Biden appointee.

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“.. the administration “does not have the authority to order, organize, or implement wholesale changes to the structure and function of the agencies created by Congress.”

RFK Jr. Cannot Proceed With Overhaul of Health Agencies, Court Rules (ET)

A federal appeals court on Sept. 17 declined to lift a preliminary injunction blocking a plan by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to overhaul the department in line with the Trump administration’s policy priorities. Attorneys general from 19 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit in May challenging Kennedy’s restructuring of HHS, including layoffs and the reorganization of several agencies, arguing that the changes violate federal law and the U.S. Constitution.= On Wednesday, a three-judge panel of the Boston-based First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Trump administration’s claim that the states could not show they would be immediately harmed if the injunction were lifted pending an appeal. The panel noted that the lower court relied on hundreds of pages of testimony from state officials.

“The government does not explain how the district court clearly erred in crediting these uncontroverted facts,” the court said in an unsigned order. Kennedy announced on March 27 that his department would “streamline the functions” of its federal workforce by consolidating subagencies, reducing the number of regional offices, and implementing a reduction-in-force plan that would impact 10,000 HHS employees. They were all offered buy-out options to incentivize them to quit ahead of the announced job cuts. The restructuring plan looked to streamline 28 divisions into 15, and close half of the department’s 10 regional offices. Four HHS sub-agencies were named in the restructuring: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, the Administration for Children and Families’ Office of Head Start, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE).

Attorneys general filed a lawsuit in federal court in Rhode Island challenging the restructuring plan. Plaintiffs said the executive action violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded the scope of executive authority, violating the Constitution’s separation of powers doctrine and appropriations clause. They also pointed to potential harms their states would face if the executive action were allowed to proceed, saying their agencies would be unable to conduct sufficient laboratory testing or process critical health data needed to track infectious diseases and improve maternal and infant health outcomes. They added that the reforms would create financial strain, forcing the states to cover funding gaps left by the pullback in federal resources.

The Trump administration had argued that the states’ case rested on speculation about what harms they would suffer as a result of changes to department services, and that any challenges to the firings had to be pursued by the federal employees themselves before the Merit Systems Protection Board. In July, the District Court for the District of Rhode Island granted a preliminary injunction to the plaintiffs. U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose ruled that the administration “does not have the authority to order, organize, or implement wholesale changes to the structure and function of the agencies created by Congress.” Her injunction ordered the HHS to freeze its reduction-in-force and restructuring plans at the four agencies. On Aug. 12, the government filed to temporarily lift the injunction, pending court proceedings.

In its appeal, the HHS said that the lower court ruling should be set aside as the lawsuit was functionally identical to two earlier cases in which the U.S. Supreme Court lifted orders requiring it to reinstate employees let go en masse at other agencies by the administration. The Epoch Times contacted the HHS and the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, which is spearheading the lawsuit, for comment but received no response by publication time. HHS’s mandate is to “enhance the health and well-being of all Americans, by providing for effective health and human services and by fostering sound, sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services,” according to its website.

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“Today, these countries not only occupy most of the earth’s land and constitute the majority of the world’s population but they also account for the majority of the world’s GDP.”

The ‘Golden Billion’ Has Lost Its Crown (Bobrov)

In economics and sociology, there’s a well-known observation called the Pareto Principle. Named after the Franco-Italian thinker Vilfredo Pareto, it is often summarized as the “80/20 rule”: 20 percent of efforts yield 80 percent of results, while the remaining 80 percent of efforts account for just 20 percent. Over time, this idea inspired Western “elite theory,” a convenient justification for why every society contains an active minority that dominates a passive majority – why 20 percent of the population holds 80 percent of the wealth. Today, the principle has outgrown national borders. In diplomacy, it has come to symbolize a deeper conflict: the “global minority” versus the “global majority.”

The first group, sometimes called the “golden billion,” began to take shape in the late 20th and early 21st centuries under the Democratic administrations in the United States and their allies in the G7 and NATO. This group gradually solidified its position through exploiting globalization in their favor. In contrast, the latter group, resisting the formation of a unipolar world and advocating for a more equitable multipolar global order, has gained increasing significance on the world stage. This momentum has been fueled not only by the individual efforts of nations like Russia, China, and India but also through the establishment of fundamentally new institutions for multilateral diplomacy such as BRICS, the SCO, and others.

Achieving significant progress in diminishing the hegemony of the collective West, evidenced by the SCO+ summit in Tianjin (August 31 – September 1, 2025) which became the largest in the organization’s history, and the second BRICS summit during Brazil’s presidency this year (September 8, 2025), the nations of the ‘global majority’ have effectively reversed the Pareto principle. Today, these countries not only occupy most of the earth’s land and constitute the majority of the world’s population but they also account for the majority of the world’s GDP. Leveraging their vast reserves of essential resources and consistently demonstrating robust economic growth, these nations have achieved remarkable success by overcoming internal divisions and consolidating power with the support of their populations.

In stark contrast, the countries of the “global minority” are witnessing an opposite trend. As they lose their leading positions in the global economy and access to key natural resources, political fragmentation is becoming prevalent. In many of these nations, an active minority with low trust ratings clings to power. This has resulted in deepening societal divides in numerous countries – from the US, UK, and France to Poland and Israel – and a clear paralysis of government authority. For instance, in the US, the Democrats, who are rapidly losing ground, are resorting to increasingly radical political tactics.

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NOTE: Russian debt-to-GDP is 18-20%. US debt-to-GDP is 124%.

Bank of Russia Governor Dismisses Talk Of Recession (RT)

Russia is not in recession, central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said on Thursday, adding that a slowdown in growth should not be mistaken for an outright contraction. Since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022, Russia has operated under sweeping Western sanctions. The economy, however, has proved resilient, with GDP expanding 4.1% in 2023 and 4.3% in 2024. Growth is expected to slow to 2.5% this year, with the central bank’s forecast even more cautious, at 1-2%. Nabiullina said Russia was experiencing an economic slowdown but not a recession, stressing that even the criteria for a technical recession — two consecutive quarters of contraction — had not been met.

“One should not confuse a recession, which I agree is associated with very negative phenomena, with an economic slowdown. Yes, the economy is slowing, but there is no recession,” she said at the Moscow Financial Forum. She noted that growth had cooled to more moderate levels after a period of overheating, though the summer months had brought signs of renewed activity, including stronger consumer demand and rising corporate lending. Earlier this month, Russian Economic Development Minister Maksim Reshetnikov said growth was slowing faster than expected and that forecasts were being revised. He had earlier warned that the country was close to recession, with the outcome hinging on policy and interest rates.

The central bank, which raised its key rate to a record 21% in October 2024 to curb inflation, has since cut it to 17%. His warnings were echoed by Sberbank CEO Herman Gref, who described the second quarter (April-June) as a period of “technical stagnation” and urged timely measures, including lower borrowing costs, to avoid slipping into recession. “July and August showed clear signs we are approaching zero growth,” he said. Russian President Vladimir Putin disagreed with the assessment, saying that while many were unhappy with the central bank’s key rate, it was necessary to fight inflation. He warned that sharp cuts to the rate could trigger higher prices.

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She almost took over Canada.

“ACHIEVED MORE FOR UKRAINIAN FASCISM (2013-2025) THAN HER GRANDFATHER ACHIEVED AS HITLER’S PROPAGANDIST AND SPY (1939-45)”

Great Moments In The History Of Chrystia Freeland’s Failure (Helmer)

Chrystia Freeland’s final leap at political power in her 12-year attempt to rule Canada ended yesterday when she fell flat on her face. Prime Minister Mark Carney, whose push has proved more kinetic than Freeland’s jump, allowed this to be understood when he offered Freeland the less than face-saving post of reconstructing the Ukraine which her warfighting campaign against Russia has all but destroyed. The cost to Canada of this destruction since the Special Military Operation began in February 2022 has been C$22 billion, including about C$13 billion in loans which the Kiev regime cannot repay but which are being serviced from the interest earned on Russian assets seized by the NATO allies. Freeland’s ouster was so rushed, there was no time for her to explain what the hurry was in her departure, nor for Carney to prepare what Freeland would be doing as his special envoy to the Ukraine without any staff or diplomatic rank.

In his official release, Carney appeared not to know that Freeland is resigning her parliamentary seat. According to Carney’s announcement, Freeland had “helped to secure historic trade negotiations, guide the response to a global pandemic, complete early learning and child care agreements across Canada, and…remove all federal barriers to internal trade.” Not a word about the priorities of Freeland’s career, war against Russia and war against China. “I have asked Chrystia to serve as Canada’s new Representative for the Reconstruction of Ukraine,” Carney said, “in addition to her responsibilities as a Member of Parliament.” Carney is believed to have authorized press leaks ahead of his cabinet meeting on Tuesday to reveal Freeland was resigning her combined portfolio of internal trade and transport. In the rush, Carney took several hours before deciding to split the portfolios and assign them to different individuals.

After the cabinet meeting Freeland avoided the press. Returning to her office, she drafted the social media post of a letter which she addressed, not to the prime minister, but to “dear neighbours, dear Canadians.” She then announced: “I do not intend to run in the next federal election.” As her reason for the exit, Freeland claimed she “is not leaving to spend more time with my family or because the burden of elected office is too heavy to bear.” Instead, “after twelve fulfilling years in public life, I know that now is the right time for me to make way for others and to seek fresh changes for myself.”

Freeland had her 57th birthday last month. A Canadian source in a position to know commented that there have been growing policy differences between Carney and Freeland. “Carney has signaled his willingness to lower tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle (EV) imports in order to secure Chinese cooperation on their tariffs on Canadian canola. Freeland is recognized in Beijing as a China-hater who, as we know, made sabotaging Canada’s relationship with Beijing a top priority.” Canola is Canada’s most valuable field crop and farm export, with farm cash receipts of C$12.9 billion in 2024.

China had been importing about two-thirds of the Canadian canola crop until Beijing imposed a 100% tariff on canola oil and canola meal in March, and then a 76% tariff on canola seed in August. This was retaliation against a series of hostile Canadian political and trade attacks on China, culminating in August 2024 in a 100% tariff on EV imports and a 25% tariff on imported Chinese steel and aluminium. Freeland’s “past behaviour”, said the source, “displays that she’s not at all trustworthy, let alone capable of putting the government’s goals in front of her own ambitions. Other members of cabinet didn’t hide their dislike of her from Carney. She has the reputation of blowing up cabinet meetings with clumsy, hysterical attempts to run everyone else’s business. That has threatened Carney. Freeland then underestimated his ruthlessness in getting rid of her.”

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One oil tanker disaster and….

China To Test Arctic Express Route To Europe (RT)

China is preparing to launch a new shipping route along Russia’s Northern coast, via the Arctic to Europe, Politico has reported on Thursday. The Northern Sea Route (NSR), which runs for thousands of miles through Russia’s Arctic waters along its northern coast, has become more accessible due to receding sea ice and has been hailed in Moscow as an opportunity for new international projects. On September 20 China is sending the Istanbul Bridge container ship on an 18-day trip with icebreaker escort from Ningbo-Zhoushan port to Felixstowe in the UK. The new route is significantly faster than traditional voyages, which take about 40 days via the Suez Canal, 50 days via the Cape of Good Hope at Africa’s southern tip, and around 25 days via Eurasian railways.

“The Arctic is the first region where climate change is changing the geopolitical map,” Malte Humpert of the Arctic Institute told Politico, adding that the region is “changing the geopolitical dynamics because of resources and access to shipping routes.” He noted that while most trade still flows through the Suez Canal, Mediterranean and Singapore, the Arctic could soon become an alternative because the voyage is about 40% shorter and faces “a lot less geopolitical uncertainty.” His comments come as traditional corridors like the Suez Canal have faced piracy flare-ups near the Horn of Africa and missile and drone threats in the Red Sea, pushing some carriers to detour around Africa.

Russia has repeatedly called for international cooperation to develop the Arctic. Earlier this year, President Vladimir Putin outlined goals for the region, including making the Northern Sea Route a central part of the Trans-Arctic Transport Corridor and raising cargo volumes to 70–100 million tons by the end of the decade. He also announced plans to ensure year-round navigation supported by Russia’s exclusive nuclear icebreaker fleet, as well as to expand existing ports such as Murmansk and build new ones along the route. Putin has further highlighted the vast opportunities for oil, gas, metals and rare earth extraction in the Arctic, calling for joint ventures with foreign partners such as China, India, the UAE and others. He has also pledged to expand development of Arctic cities and promote tourism across the region.

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Rogan

Yeadon

statins

 

 

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Sep 182025
 
 September 18, 2025  Posted by at 10:10 am Finance Tagged with: , , , , , , , , ,  60 Responses »


Georgia O’Keeffe Sky above clouds III 1963

 

President Trump and Vice President JD Vance To Attend Charlie Kirk Funeral (CTH)
When Charlie Kirk Died, So Did the Democratic Party (Pinsker)
Kid Rock Blasts Mainstream Media as ‘Public Enemy Number One’ (MN)
Jimmy Kimmel’s Rejection By Broadcasters a ‘Turning Point’ In Media (NYP)
This Ain’t Your Democratic Party’s FBI (Margolis)
Antigone 2.0: Liberals Denounce and Destroy Memorials for Charlie Kirk (Turley)
‘We’d Kick Russia’s Ass’ – Trump’s Special Envoy To Ukraine (RMX)
Zelensky Has No Intention of Ending Conflict With Moscow – MP (RT)
Zelensky Tells West To Put Ukraine First (RT)
EU Plans To Seize €170bn of Russia’s Frozen Funds – FT (RT)
‘No Place’ For EU At Ukraine Talks – Lavrov (RT)
Zelensky Reveals Major Change In Ukrainian Troop Training (RT)
Lavrov Accuses Kiev of ‘Sabotaging’ US Peace Efforts (RT)
Zelensky ‘Losing Touch With Reality’ – Foreign Policy Analysis (RT)
Western ‘Peacekeepers’ In Ukraine Would Be Seen As Occupiers – Lavrov (RT)
‘Russian Drone Attack’ Damage Was Caused By Polish Missile (RT)

 

 

https://twitter.com/nicksortor/status/1968410917638397998

https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1968109282886398179

jordan
https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1968334714860974158

fetterman

https://twitter.com/SaltyGoat17/status/1968277053050167446

 

 

 

 

“..my prayers and life lessons have guided me to understand that is exactly when it is best to say nothing..”

President Trump and Vice President JD Vance To Attend Charlie Kirk Funeral (CTH)

It is not common when both the sitting President of the United States and the Vice President attend the same funeral together, when it is not a nationally recognized dignitary. Both President Trump and Vice President JD Vance will be honoring Charlie Kirk at the funeral service. It is a fitting and considerate reflection of great honor, worthy of Kirk’s impact.

My dear friends, there is so much background stuff happening we are all watching in the aftermath of the Kirk assassination, it is difficult to find the words for any outline of value. I cannot imagine how challenging life is for Charlie Kirk’s family right now, and out of the greatest respect I feel the best thing to do is just do nothing except honor his faith, work and legacy. I have made the decision not to cover any of the controversial aspects, direct or ancillary, beyond what I have already shared.

Do I have opinions, yes. And when my brain is full of things I want to say – my prayers and life lessons have guided me to understand that is exactly when it is best to say nothing. My inner voice tells me to remain silent on any of the ancillary subjects until Charlie Kirk is laid to rest with great honor and tribute. Then, when it is appropriate, to provide my personal thoughts on facets that may be valuable in context. Feel free to share any subject matter in/around the storyline of this tragedy on any open thread where we can gather in fellowship. I know a lot of people are hurting. Channel that hurt into meaningful prayer for them.

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“What’s Coming Next Is Even Worse.”

When Charlie Kirk Died, So Did the Democratic Party (Pinsker)

Up until the early 2010s, the emotional appeal of being a good, loyal Democrat was twofold: It signaled to your peers how much you cared about the poor, the environment, and the disadvantaged; and — if you were white — it was “proof” you weren’t a racist. Meanwhile, the GOP was the party of old white dudes, business tycoons, and religious weirdos. As Bill Maher put it in 2011, “[Republicans are] the squares. I’m not putting them down. You need squares to run s**t.” And more or less, that’s how the media portrayed the two parties: Republicans were the stodgy old farts in “Footloose,” and the Democrats were the cool kids who simply wanted to dance, dance, dance. That’s how it was for a very long time. Those were the long-established brand identities, pushed and promoted by Hollywood propaganda.

In the 1972 rom-com Butterflies Are Free, Goldie Hawn quipped, “I joined the Young Republicans. Another mistake. There’s no such thing as a young Republican.” It was a funny line with more than a kernel of truth. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party branded itself as the one-stop shop for young people with big hearts — the party of people with compassion and empathy. The Donkeys were the dreamers, thinkers, lovers, and optimists. Whereas Republicans were bitter, unimaginative, stuck-in-the-past realists, the Democrats led with love. It was showcased in their sloganeering: Make love, not war! Love conquers hate! Keep hope alive! Give peace a chance! Putting people first! The man from Hope! Yes we can! That all began to unravel during the Obama years.

Before, the Democrats were a left-leaning coalition party, comprised of union workers, Catholics, minorities, feminists, tradesmen, Jews, gays, and others. But by the beginning of President Obama’s second term, the Democratic Party had handed the keys to the far left — and the far left alone. This was the first shoe to drop. A union dockworker in New Jersey never had much in common with, say, a committed socialist from Portland, but they still voted Democratic because they believed the Democratic Party better protected their political interests. But when the far left ascended, union workers — and other essential parts of the Donkey’s coalition — began looking elsewhere for representation. Enter Donald Trump and the MAGA movement.

“Give a man a mask, and he will show you his true face.”
—Oscar Wilde

When the Democratic Party swung to the far left, it created an opening for an outsider like Trump to champion the plight of all the Americans left behind. This became the backbone of the MAGA movement, and if the Democrats had half a brain, they would’ve realized this a helluva lot sooner. But they didn’t. They figured that Donald Trump was a bizarre, historic anomaly — a master propagandist with an inexplicable, Svengali-like hold over a gullible audience — and if they got rid of Trump, they’d get rid of the movement. They didn’t understand that MAGA was as much about the left as it was about the right. So they tried character assassination. Criminal charges. A nonstop #Resistance campaign. They even called him Hitler, a fascist, a dictator, a Nazi, and an existential threat to democracy. The American people listened to them, listened to Trump, and then voted MAGA in an electoral landslide.

“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster. For when you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”
—Fredrich Nietzsche

The Democrats failed to change Donald Trump’s brand identity: Trump is still Trump. But they spectacularly succeeded in changing how we perceive them. Between 2016 and 2018 (Trump’s first term), Republicans gained 100,000 more registered voters than Democrats. But just between 2024 and today, the Republican edge has exploded tenfold: They’ve now gained over a million. Something big is happening in the heartland. It’s no secret that the Democratic Party’s brand is in the toilet. As NBC News reported in March of 2025: The Democratic Party has reached an all-time low in popularity in the latest national NBC News poll, as it searches for a path forward after a painful loss to President Donald Trump — and as the party’s voters spoil for a fight between their leaders in Washington and Trump.

Just over a quarter of registered voters (27%) say they have positive views of the party, which is the party’s lowest positive rating in NBC News polling dating back to 1990. Just 7% say those views are “very” positive. And that was all BEFORE the murder of 31-year-old Charlie Kirk shocked and appalled the nation. Question for the audience: If the Democrats’ brand was in the toilet before, where do you think it is today?

“The tiger can’t change his spots. No, wait, he did! Good for him!”
—Jack Handey

Changing a long-established brand identity is very difficult. There’s a reason why rebranding campaigns are so frickin’ expensive: Changing minds and hearts isn’t easy. Usually, it happens one of two ways: “Gradually, then suddenly.” After the gruesome murder of Charlie Kirk, we’re now in the “suddenly” part. For decades, the Democratic Party was shielded by the halo effect: They were the party of love, compassion, and virtue signaling. It gave their brand Teflon. That Teflon is now gone. After a decade of unhinged rhetoric, violence, hate, lawfare, and anger, the American people have realized the ugly truth about today’s Democratic Party:

In 2022, 82% of Democrats said that political violence in the U.S. was a problem. Today, it’s just 58% — a 24-point drop in just three years! (Guess for Democrats, it all depends on who’s in office.) Liberals are four times more likely than conservatives to celebrate the deaths of their political opponents. (Which, if you’ve been online lately, you’ve almost certainly witnessed.) A jaw-dropping one in four “very liberal” Americans believe political violence is justified. (Just 6% of conservatives agreed.) That’s an astonishing 25% of American liberals!

They’ve gone from “Make love not war” to “Make war not love.” They went from “Do your own thing” and “Give peace a chance” to murdering Charlie Kirk because, in the killer’s own words, “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” On this, the killer is exactly right: Some hate can’t be negotiated out. Instead, it needs to be excised completely. Not just Charlie Kirk died on Sept. 10, 2025. So did the old Democratic Party. Unfortunately, what’s coming in its place is even worse. Today’s Democratic Party is in the process of transitioning to the Democratic Socialist Party. A new national poll from Jacobin makes it crystal clear:

Democrats prefer democratic socialism to capitalism by a 58 point margin. Socialism wins overall with likely voters under forty-five years old. […] Candidates who identify as democratic socialists are viewed just as favorably (+69) among registered Democrats as candidates who identify only as Democrats (+67). Prediction: The Democratic Party will rebrand itself as the Democratic Socialist Party, because that’s what their liberal base demands. Each year, as older Democrats die off, the Democratic Socialist advantage will steadily grow within the party. This divide will spread like wildfire during the 2026 midterms — and by 2028, it will devour the remnants of whatever’s left. The future is theirs. The Democratic Party is dead. Long live the Democratic Socialists.

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“..the media is “incentivizing these loner kids to take shots so that they can be heroes.”

Kid Rock Blasts Mainstream Media as ‘Public Enemy Number One’ (MN)

Musician and outspoken conservative Kid Rock has labelled the mainstream media as “public enemy number one” in the aftermath of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s shocking murder… In an interview with Fox News’ Jesse Watters, Rock argued that inflammatory rhetoric from outlets like The New York Times and other “nut houses” has fueled dangerous narratives. “I’ve said it and I’ll say it again… The mainstream media is the fricking public enemy number one right now,” he declared, further noting that repeated labels of “racist” and “Nazi” directed at conservatives like himself and Kirk incite unstable individuals to violence.

https://twitter.com/JesseBWatters/status/1967765814473294227?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1967765814473294227%7Ctwgr%5E6ec01cdec1cbe1a86846d2d037fa5993658d73cf%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fmodernity.news%2F2025%2F09%2F16%2Fkid-rock-blasts-mainstream-media-as-public-enemy-number-one-following-kirk-assassination%2F

Drawing from personal experience, Rock noted, “They’ve called me a racist Nazi for years now… Go look up the few facts about my life.” He described how such echoes build up, influencing “nut house kids” who spend their time “playing video games, watching these occult movies that are all over our streaming services” instead of engaging in productive activities. These individuals, he said, end up thinking, “I’m going to go kill a Nazi, I’ma go kill a racist,” leading to tragic outcomes like Kirk’s death. Rock, a longtime Trump supporter, warned that the media is “incentivizing these loner kids to take shots so that they can be heroes.” He criticized the cycle where, after violence, calls for unity quickly dissolve into more divisive language, with conservatives again branded as “fascists.”

Shifting to a broader message, Rock emphasized restraint but issued a stark warning to those celebrating Kirk’s death or vandalizing vigils: “You’re gonna keep it up, you’re gonna run into the wrong people.” “It’s not gonna be pretty. It’s gonna be very ugly, terrible,” he further urged. The musician stressed the need for dialogue, saying, “We gotta start listening to each other and respect one another,” while acknowledging extremists exist on both sides but pointing to the left’s “echo chamber” as particularly problematic. Rock highlighted the need for de-escalation while holding the media accountable for escalating rhetoric.

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Not some top down decision. It was the small local broadcasters who’d had enough.

Jimmy Kimmel’s Rejection By Broadcasters a ‘Turning Point’ In Media (NYP)

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr described the “unprecedented” rejection of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel by local broadcasters on Wednesday as a “turning point” for legacy media outlets — which he argued have been serving viewers “progressive foie gras.” The comedian’s show, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was taken off the air indefinitely by ABC earlier Wednesday after local broadcasters Nexstar and Sinclair announced plans to pre-empt the program over the host’s controversial comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. “This action today by NexStar and Sinclair, frankly, it’s unprecedented,” Carr told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “I can’t imagine another time when we’ve had local broadcasters tell a national programmer like Disney that your content no longer meets the needs and the values of our community.”

Disney is the parent company of ABC, which airs Kimmel’s show on several independently owned affiliates. NexStar and Sinclair, which have licenses with the FCC that require them to operate in the public interest, “stood up” to Disney and ABC, according to Carr. “This is an important turning point,” he said of Kimmel’s show being taken off the air. “There’s more work to go, but I’m very glad to see that American broadcasters are standing up to serve the interests of their community, and we don’t just have this progressive foie gras coming out from New York and Hollywood,” the chairman added. Kimmel, who has long been held in low regard by Republicans and President Trump, outraged conservative viewers Monday by starting his show arguing that Kirk’s suspected killer was part of the “MAGA gang.”

“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” the late-night host said, one day after authorities announced that suspected assassin held a “leftist ideology.” Kimmel has also mocked Trump’s response to the assassination of the Turning Point USA founder, describing it as “how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish,” and he has accused the president of “fanning the flames” of violence. In an interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, Carr had suggested the FCC might take action against Kimmel, ABC and Disney over the comedian’s “news distortion.” “Any license granted by us at the FCC, that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest,” the chairman explained.

“You can make a strong argument that this is sort of an intentional effort to mislead the American people, about a very core, fundamental fact, of a very important matter,” Carr said of Kimmel’s remarks about Kirk’s alleged killer. “Frankly, when you see stuff like this, I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” he continued, teasing that action against Kimmel isn’t taken by ABC or Disney “there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.” Sinclair, the nation’s largest ABC affiliate group, informed ABC earlier Wednesday that it would not continue to air “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” as a result of the host’s comments. “Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country,” Vice Chairman Jason Smith said in a statement. “We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful, constructive dialogue in our communities.”

“We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today and this incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks.” Nexstar, which owns dozens of stations affiliated with ABC, similarly said it would pre-empt Kimmel’s show “for the foreseeable future.” “Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located,” Nexstar President Andrew Alford said in a statement. “Continuing to give Mr. Kimmel a broadcast platform in the communities we serve is simply not in the public interest at the current time, and we have made the difficult decision to preempt his show in an effort to let cooler heads prevail as we move toward the resumption of respectful, constructive dialogue.”

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“Americans deserve an FBI that protects the country, not political agendas.”

This Ain’t Your Democratic Party’s FBI (Margolis)

FBI Director Kash Patel returned to Capitol Hill this week, and Democrats probably wish he hadn’t. After embarrassing them in the Senate on Tuesday, Patel appeared before the House on Wednesday, where Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) teed up one of the most devastating moments yet. In a rapid-fire back-and-forth, Jordan highlighted the FBI’s most notorious past controversies, giving Patel the chance to dismantle the smears against him and prove just how different the Bureau looks under his leadership. The exchange left Democrats’ talking points in tatters. “Director, yes or no? Is the FBI still spying on parents at school board meetings?” Jordan asked. “Uh, no sir,” Patel responded. “Is the FBI still targeting Catholics?” Jordan pressed. “No sir.” “Is the FBI still spying on President Trump?” Jordan continued. “I don’t believe so,” Patel said.

Jordan then asked, “Is the FBI still censoring Americans?” “Uh, no sir,” Patel replied. Moving down the list of scandals, Jordan asked if Americans were still being targeted for shopping at Cabela’s or buying Bibles. Patel was clear: “Nobody is targeted for their faith.” Jordan followed up: “Is the FBI still targeting Americans who are pro-life?” “Nobody is targeting anyone for their beliefs,” Patel said.= “What about cooking the books on crime data?” Jordan asked. “The crime data is real,” Patel answered. Jordan pressed further: “Is the FBI still purging agents for conservative viewpoints?” “No one at the FBI is asked their viewpoints on policy,” Patel said. Finally, Jordan raised another notorious controversy: “Is the FBI still labeling the Betsy Ross flag, the flag of the American Revolution, a hate symbol?” “No,” Patel replied.

With those answers on record, Jordan pivoted to the FBI’s progress. “Well, maybe that’s why you’ve been able to… What was the number? Twenty-three thousand bad guys you’ve arrested? A huge increase from the same time period in the previous administration. Think you said 1,400 predators, 4,000 children rescued. It’s those, were those the facts?” “Forty-seven thousand, 35% increase on children rescued,” Patel confirmed. Jordan then referenced the capture of the terrorist responsible for the Abbey Gate bombing during the botched Afghanistan withdrawal. “Yeah. And you got the guy that… Abbey Gate? We had, we had—” “We got the Abbey, we got the Abbey Gate guy,” Patel said.

Jordan noted the sacrifice of a soldier from his own district who was killed in that attack. “Got a guy from the Fourth District of Ohio, lost his life there serving our country. We appreciate that. Maybe when you’re not focused on politics, you can actually do what the FBI is supposed to do, go get the bad guys, right?” “That’s what the men and women of the FBI do,” Patel agreed.

https://twitter.com/EricLDaugh/status/1968334714860974158

For years, Americans wondered if they could ever trust the FBI again. Under questioning, Patel made one thing clear: sunlight and accountability work. Corruption and political bias don’t survive exposure. Under previous Democrat administrations, the Bureau spied on parents, targeted conservatives, and questioned people for their faith or politics, turning inward on Americans instead of focusing on real threats. Now the FBI is finally doing what it’s supposed to do: going after criminals, rescuing children, and bringing terrorists to justice. The results speak for themselves. The challenge is keeping it that way. Oversight must remain strong, and Congress must hold the bureau accountable. Americans deserve an FBI that protects the country, not political agendas. This ain’t the Democratic Party’s FBI anymore.

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“A city which belongs to just one man is no true city.”

Antigone 2.0: Liberals Denounce and Destroy Memorials for Charlie Kirk (Turley)

Throughout his short life, Charlie Kirk enraged many by exposing the hate and hypocrisy of the left in higher education. What is astonishing is that he continues to do it even in death. As millions mourn his murder around the world, any expressions of sorrow or respect for Kirk are triggering some on the left. Liberals have been arrested for stomping on or burning memorials to Kirk and others have taken to social media to denounce or mock people expressing regrets over the loss. A courthouse memorial was vandalized while a mural to Kirk had to be restored after an attack. Former Gawker editor Elizabeth Spiers wrote an essay for Nation under the headline: “Charlie Kirk’s Legacy Deserves No Mourning.”

Some of the loudest voices have come from academia. University of California Irvine lecturer Larry Tenney went on the liberal safe space site, BlueSky, to rave in all caps: “WE KNOW WHO CHARLIE KIRK WAS…”F**k off America” “F**k off Trump” and “F**k all you motherfuckers, idgag about any of you.” (For the non-profane literate, “idgag” means “I don’t give a f**k”). What is clear from the diatribe is that Kirk also knew exactly who people like Tenney are. He knew that even his appearance or that of his group on campus would trigger many in academia. For the speech-intolerant, any invitation to debate issues like abortion or transgender policies is intolerable. You are expected to accept their positions as righteous or face their rage.

What was even more annoying was the fact that Kirk was winning the debate, young people trapped in the academic echo chamber were showing up en masse as they did at the rally where he died. Faculty converted higher education into the current echo chamber and then treated students as a captive audience. When given a choice, many rushed to hear alternative views. Fordham School of Law Professor John Pfaff joined the chorus of those objecting to expressions of respect or regret. Most tellingly, the sin that disqualified Kirk was that he implemented Professor Watchlist, a list of professors deemed the most intolerant and partisan on campuses, so that students could avoid their classes. Pfaff posted: “Just a reminder Kirk’s organization established the Professor Watchlist, which even the NYT framed as a threat to academic freedom. I don’t get why ppl keep describing him as a good-faith debater. One can say ‘Kirk should not have been murdered’ (which is true!) without engaging in hagiography.”

In Pfaff’s siloed world, the New York Times is apparently so conservative that it is remarkable that “even the NYT” criticized the list. The comment only served to confirm that the relevant scale of comparison for academics today runs exclusively from the left to the far left. At the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Anthropology professor Tamar Shirinian. Tamar Shirinian wrote: “The world is better off without him in it. Even those who are claiming to be sad for his wife and kids….like, his kids are better off living in a world without a disgusting psychopath like him and his wife, well, she’s a sick fuck for marrying him so I dont care about her feelings.”

Syracuse University political science assistant professor Jenn M. Jackson announced “him dying this ways seems both ironic and in line with his own politics.” Others warned that anyone expressing sorrow was only self-identifying for future lists of fascists. Martin Pfeiffer, PH.D candidate at the University of New Mexico, warned, “Charlie Kirk was a vicious, hateful fascist and white supremacist. To say anything else is a lie and, quite frankly, fascist collaboration.” Across the country, efforts by a few professors to get their colleagues to sign letters expressing condolences or concerns over the murder were derailed by some of the same passive-aggressive ideologues who engaged in pearl-clutching objections over divisive positions.

What is most striking about these academics is the total lack of self-awareness, even as they adopt the very intolerance of historical villains in their classes. The response of these professors is reminiscent of the Greek tragedy Antigone by Sophocles in 441 BCE. In the story, the two sons of Oedipus fight to the death for the throne of Thebes. The tyrant ruler Creon ordered that his favorite of the brothers, Eteocles, be buried with honors while banning anyone from mourning or burying the other brother, Polynices. To be left on the ground unburied and unmourned was considered a great dishonor and sacrilege. It was too much for his sister, Antigone, who defied the tyrant and buried her brother. For that, Antigone was walled up in a cave and committed suicide. Kirk’s critics will allow him to be buried, of course, but some cannot tolerate mourning his passing any more than they could tolerate his speaking.

I have opposed calls for firing academics making hateful comments outside of their official duties or accounts. Charlie spent his life opposing cancel campaigns and censorship. However, it is crushingly ironic to see media and faculty suddenly outraged about cancel campaigns after years of ignoring the purging of conservatives from campuses. Most faculty crying foul today have been entirely silent when conservatives, including Kirk, were targeted in the past. Faculty have spent decades purging conservatives and libertarians from departments, leaving higher education mired in orthodoxy and intolerance. It is the education version of what Sophocles wrote in Antigone: “A city which belongs to just one man is no true city.” In the same way, a university which belongs to only liberal idelogy is no true university.

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Trump has two special envoys. Witkoff travels around, Kellogg stays in Kiev. He’s either too dumb to be true, or an empty propaganda tool. In either case, he can be useful to Trump.

‘We’d Kick Russia’s Ass’ – Trump’s Special Envoy To Ukraine (RMX)

Assistant to U.S. President Donald Trump and Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg had a lot to say on Russia’s famed might and those recent drone incursions into NATO airspace. Claiming 19 incursions cannot be an accident, Trump’s envoy said Vladimir Putin “is acting purposefully, he’s sending a signal, and he wants to hear a response,” reports Ukrainska Pravda. “Ukraine will not lose this war. Ukrainians have a moral superiority over Russia, that’s obvious,” Kellogg also noted, specifically praising Ukraine’s advanced drone production capabilities. As to Russia, he said during the interview at the YES Annual Meeting 2025, “They talk a big game,” adding that Putin often likes to tout that Russia is a nuclear power, but other Western powers have nuclear weapons too.

On the topic of Russian superiority, “We’d kick their ass (…) They’re not as good as Putin says they are.” He also credits Ukraine with helping curb Moscow’s military might. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine also confirmed to U.S. President Trump that Russia is “not winning” the war, according to Kellog. “If he was winning, he’d be in Kyiv,” Kellog added, again giving credit to Ukraine for slashing Russia’s military power. Posting on X, Kellog said, “The vision of our country is to see a halt to the death and destruction and restore peace and stability in Europe. Promoting peace over endless wars and proxy conflicts abroad is a defining feature of the America First leadership of President Donald J. Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.”

Kellogg also spoke about Russia’s total dependence on China. “Russia has now become China’s junior partner. At present, we can say that China has both an economic advantage over Russia and a military advantage, and even historically. I will say more – if China completely cut off its aid to Russia, – this war would end tomorrow,” Kellogg claims. Urging more aggressive action, including further sanctions, against Putin, Trump’s envoy maintained that Russia does not have “the capacity that they had that they could march towards Berlin or anywhere else.”

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“..he intends to fight to the last, but, of course, with others doing the fighting..”

Zelensky Has No Intention of Ending Conflict With Moscow – MP (RT)

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has no intention of ending the hostilities with Russia, while ordinary people pay the price, Verkhovna Rada MP Georgy Mazurashu has said. Mazurashu said Zelensky outlined his position at a meeting with members of his Servant of the People party on Tuesday, a stance the MP claimed is widely shared by the Ukrainian leader’s inner circle. ”At yesterday’s closed meeting… Zelensky, like other individuals exempt from military service, made it clear that he intends to fight to the last, but, of course, with others doing the fighting,” the deputy said in a video on his Telegram channel on Wednesday.

Ukraine’s mobilization drive, launched to refill depleted ranks amid heavy losses and Russia’s steady frontline advances, has become increasingly chaotic and violent, marred by abuse, injuries, and even deaths of conscripts. Mazurashu has previously called it a “shameful hunt for citizens.” The MP said Zelensky estimated Ukraine would need another $120 billion to fund the armed forces if the conflict drags into 2026, adding that the leader was “still unclear where to get” half of that sum. “And he now wants to focus on finding these funds – abroad, of course,” Mazurashu remarked. Amid battlefield losses, Zelensky has pressed Western backers for more aid, tying it to the security guarantees he says Kiev needs before agreeing to any settlement.

In a Sky News interview on Tuesday, he urged the West to put Ukraine’s needs above its own, boost financial and military support, and impose sanctions that would “really hurt” Russia’s economy.Moscow has warned that foreign aid only prolongs the conflict. It says it does not oppose security guarantees for Kiev in principle, but insists they must follow a peace deal – one requiring Ukraine’s neutrality, demilitarization, and recognition of new territorial realities – not precede it. On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Kiev of sabotaging peace efforts, including mediation by US President Donald Trump. He said Washington understands the conflict cannot be resolved without addressing its root causes, while Kiev and its European backers refuse to do so.

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“I believe that all countries need to stop thinking about themselves..”

Zelensky Tells West To Put Ukraine First (RT)

Western states should put Ukraine’s needs above their own, Vladimir Zelensky has suggested, accusing the EU and US of dragging their feet on new sanctions against Russia. Moscow has faced sweeping restrictions from Kiev’s Western backers since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022. The EU has adopted 18 sanctions packages and is debating its next measures. Since Donald Trump returned to the White House, Washington has been cautious about new measures amid a thaw with Moscow. Trump has warned, however, that he could turn to sanctions if the conflict persists. In an interview with Sky News aired on Tuesday, Zelensky claimed deliberations about possible blowback from further sanctions were a “dangerous” waste of time.

“I believe that all countries need to stop thinking about themselves and their future relations with Russia, but instead think more about Ukraine, because it’s today and now,” he said. “This is very dangerous, and to be frank, dishonest.” Zelensky said Trump’s call for European countries to cut Russian energy imports and impose tariffs on buyers such as China and India was understandable, but claimed the US must not wait for Brussels, which he accused of hiding behind bureaucracy. “President Trump, I think, believes that if he were to apply all strong sanctions, he would close diplomacy with Russians… But we can’t wait for all European countries to stop relations with Russia,” he said. “All that’s lacking now is a strong sanctions package from the US.”

Zelensky also insisted that Kiev needs a “clear position” from Trump on sanctions and firm security guarantees before any settlement. Trump has urged European countries to stop importing Russian oil and gas and pledged to then consider sanctions. He has also demanded the bloc impose steep tariffs on India and China, the top buyers of Russian crude. According to reports on Tuesday, the European Commission will delay its next sanctions package while members weigh how to meet Trump’s demands. Moscow insists sanctions have been unable to harm its economy and that they will inevitably backfire. It says any settlement must include Ukrainian neutrality, demilitarization, and recognition of territorial changes, while security guarantees for Kiev are possible only after a final deal.

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Plenty European assets in Russia. American, even better. Tell Chevron to apply for compensation in Brussels.

EU Plans To Seize €170bn of Russia’s Frozen Funds – FT (RT)

Brussels is pressing ahead with a plan to use €170 billion of Russia’s frozen sovereign assets to back “reparation loans” for Ukraine, the Financial Times has reported. The EU faces growing pressure to find additional funding for Kiev as US cuts back its support. Moscow has condemned the asset freeze and warned that any seizure of its money would amount to “theft.” Western nations froze an estimated $300 billion in Russian funds after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 – some €200 billion of which is held by Brussels-based clearinghouse Euroclear. The funds have accrued billions in interest, and the West has explored ways to use this revenue to finance Ukraine. While refraining from outright seizure, the G7 last year backed a plan to provide Kiev with $50 billion in loans to be repaid using the profits generated by the funds. The EU pledged $21 billion.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has proposed going further by creating a ‘reparation loans’ mechanism, which she described as urgently needed to finance Kiev. People familiar with discussions said the plan involves channeling cash balances from Russia’s immobilized assets into EU-issued bonds, with the proceeds transferred to Ukraine in tranches. Brussels argues the system would provide Kiev with immediate support while sidestepping a formal seizure. A second option under consideration would involve creating a special-purpose vehicle to manage the loans, which could also allow non-EU partners to take part.

Of the funds frozen at Euroclear, about €170 billion has already matured and now sits as cash on the clearinghouse’s books, the sources said. The plans have already drawn objections from member states. Belgium, Germany, and France have warned that dipping into the principal risks breaking the law and undermining confidence in the euro. Brussels is under pressure to cover a significant portion of Ukraine’s needs as Washington holds back on new aid, the FT wrote. According to a US note circulated among G7 capitals and cited by the outlet, members were urged to consider seizing the sovereign assets principal “innovatively” to fund Ukraine. Moscow warned that any attempt to use the assets “will not go unanswered.”

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“..maintains a “position of revanchism, of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia” while debating a potential troop deployment to Ukraine in case of a ceasefire.”

‘No Place’ For EU At Ukraine Talks – Lavrov (RT)

EU nations are trying to elbow their way into the Ukraine peace process despite their openly hostile stance toward Russia, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said, stressing that the bloc should be kept out of the talks for that reason. Speaking at an embassy roundtable about the Ukraine crisis on Wednesday, Lavrov said that EU countries are “clearly trying, quite brazenly, to reclaim a place at the negotiating table.” The minister, however, signaled that they have no business there. The bloc, he argued, maintains a “position of revanchism, of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia” while debating a potential troop deployment to Ukraine in case of a ceasefire. “There is, of course, no place for it at the negotiating table,” he stressed.

Moscow has consistently opposed the deployment of any Western troops in the neighboring country under any pretext, saying that one of the key reasons for the conflict was NATO’s expansion towards Russia’s doorstep. It has also warned that any unauthorized foreign troops in Ukraine would be considered “a legitimate military target.” Lavrov also noted that both the EU and Kiev are seeking to convince US President Donald Trump to abandon his push to settle the conflict and relapse into a stand-off with Russia. [They want], essentially, to turn Biden’s war into Trump’s war,” he said.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has been seeking to mediate an end to the Ukraine conflict, spearheading several rounds of talks with Russia. The effort culminated in a US-Russia summit in Alaska in mid-August — notably without EU or Ukrainian participation — which both sides described as highly productive. Although no breakthrough was reached, Trump later said Ukraine could neither expect to join NATO nor reclaim Crimea, which voted to join Russia in a 2014 referendum held after a Western-backed coup in Kiev. He has also shifted focus from seeking a temporary ceasefire to pursuing a permanent peace settlement.

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HA! They will train “at home” from now on, because:

“Earlier this year, it was revealed that Ukraine’s elite 155th Mechanized Brigade, partially trained in France, was plagued with mass desertion, with dozens of recruits reportedly going AWOL on French soil.”

Zelensky Reveals Major Change In Ukrainian Troop Training (RT)

Kiev no longer needs to send soldiers to train abroad because its troops learn more by fighting the Russian army, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has said. Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Kiev has dispatched groups of recruits to Britain, France, Germany, Poland, the US, and other countries, primarily to train using Western-made armored vehicles and artillery. By 2023, “we understood that we can’t train our people there because the war [has] changed,” Zelensky told Sky News in an interview aired on Tuesday. When the soldiers returned home, they already had to be “retrained,” he added.

Earlier this year, it was revealed that Ukraine’s elite 155th Mechanized Brigade, partially trained in France, was plagued with mass desertion, with dozens of recruits reportedly going AWOL on French soil. Mikhail Drapaty, who led Ukraine’s Ground Forces at the time, said that the poor quality and low morale of the officers contributed to the unit’s problems. Zelensky claimed that currently only Russia and Ukraine know how to fight a modern “technological” war, particularly using state-of-the-art drones, adding that Kiev is ready to share its knowledge.

“We are inviting officers and representatives of other countries to learn here. Some of them are coming,” he said. “We are in the best shape technologically. We can be helpful to all of the world.” The technology and tactics on the battlefield evolve faster than the West makes decisions to fund Ukraine’s military, Zelensky said, urging Kiev’s backers to put more pressure on Russia. In March, Vadim Sukharevsky, the then-commander of Ukraine’s UAV forces, warned that “not a single NATO army is ready to resist the cascade of drones.” Military experts have said that a recent alleged drone incursion in Poland exposed the lack of robust anti-UAV defenses.

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“..neither Kiev nor its European backers appear to be genuinely interested in peace and are actively trying to prolong the conflict.”

Lavrov Accuses Kiev of ‘Sabotaging’ US Peace Efforts (RT)

Kiev is actively trying to sabotage US President Donald Trump’s efforts to peacefully resolve the Ukraine conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said. He added that Washington appears to understand the need to resolve the root causes of the crisis.Speaking at a roundtable discussion of the Ukraine conflict on Wednesday, Lavrov noted that during the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska last month, the American side agreed that actions need to be taken to address the underlying issues of the crisis. He added that US special envoy Steve Witkoff later conveyed his assessment of the summit to the Ukrainian side.

”As we understand it, these assessments, these considerations, and these proposals have been rejected by Kiev,” Lavrov said, adding that the Ukrainian side is “trying in every way to sabotage this American administration’s line.” The foreign minister suggested that both Ukrainian and Western European leaders are trying to convince Trump to abandon his peacemaking efforts and return to confrontation with Russia, and “essentially turn Biden’s war into Trump’s.”

Lavrov went on to say that Europe has been desperately trying to win a place for itself at the negotiating table. He stressed, however, that given its open position of revanchism and its goal of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia, it has “nothing to do at the negotiating table.” Throughout the conflict, Moscow has stressed that it is open to a peaceful settlement, as long as it includes a Ukrainian commitment to neutrality, demilitarization, denazification, and acceptance of the new territorial realities. However, Russian officials, including Lavrov, have said neither Kiev nor its European backers appear to be genuinely interested in peace and are actively trying to prolong the conflict.

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“A draft law imposing sentences for military insubordination, described as “draconian,” proposed that desertion or absence without leave carry a prison term of up to 12 years, with no amnesty even for voluntary return.”

Zelensky ‘Losing Touch With Reality’ – Foreign Policy Analysis (RT)

Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky and his closest advisers are “losing touch with reality,” as shown by a series of policy and legislative mistakes that have sparked public uproar, analysis published in Foreign Policy claims, citing local sources and experts. The Ukrainian government recently attempted to push through two major measures designed to buttress the armed forces, but sources in Kiev have told journalist Paul Hockenos that each spawned backlash and raised questions about whether the country’s leadership is in tune with the concerns of ordinary Ukrainians. A draft law imposing sentences for military insubordination, described as “draconian,” proposed that desertion or absence without leave carry a prison term of up to 12 years, with no amnesty even for voluntary return.

The bill triggered protests, with activists carrying placards reading “Army service is not slavery,” prompting the authorities to withdraw the legislation. The second move relaxed martial law travel restrictions by allowing men aged between 18 and 22 to leave Ukraine. Martial law had previously barred all men aged between 18 and 60 from travel outside the country. Instead of relief, the reform stirred concern that young men might leave in large numbers, undermining future recruitment and worsening Ukraine’s long-standing demographic problems. One of the most significant blunders of Zelensky’s team was an attempt to crack down on anti-corruption bodies. This summer, Kiev attempted to strip the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) of independence, citing Russian influence, but the move resulted in mass protests, prompting the Ukrainian leadership to backpedal on the reform.

Defense analyst Dmitry K. told Hockenos that Zelensky’s inner circle “exists in a vacuum … They live in a bubble. Some advisers are very good, but they’re obviously not getting a consistent flow of relevant information.” An August poll by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology suggested that public trust in Zelensky had slumped by 7% in a month, standing at 58%. In July, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service reported that Western officials had secretly met with key Ukrainian powerbrokers to discuss ousting Zelensky and lining up a potential replacement.

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“[Western Europeans] tried… to prevent [US President Donald] Trump’s administration from moving toward promoting a real settlement…”

Western ‘Peacekeepers’ In Ukraine Would Be Seen As Occupiers – Lavrov (RT)

Russia would view Western ‘peacekeepers’ in Ukraine simply as “occupation forces,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said. Speaking at an embassy roundtable on Wednesday, Lavrov warned that any foreign troops entering the conflict zone alongside Kiev’s forces would be treated as legitimate targets by the Russian military. Members of the so-called “coalition of the willing,” a group of Western states pushing for continued aid to Kiev, have floated deploying NATO troops to Ukraine to monitor a potential ceasefire as part of security guarantees demanded by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky. Moscow has repeatedly rejected any Western military presence, whether labeled peacekeepers or otherwise.

Lavrov dismissed the proposals as absurd, likening the people behind them to pompous characters from old Russian satire – full of themselves but with no real influence. He argued that these initiatives are just a way to delay serious peace talks that could actually deal with the deeper causes of the conflict. “[Western Europeans] tried… to prevent [US President Donald] Trump’s administration from moving toward promoting a real settlement… by pumping up the Zelensky regime with weapons, and recently also by forming some peacekeeping, but essentially occupational, forces, by talking about creating a no-fly zone over Ukraine,” Lavrov said. “If some part of Ukraine becomes a territory where so-called peacekeepers are deployed, and Western security guarantees aimed against Russia are in effect for this part of Ukraine, this will mean only one thing: that the West has occupied [this territory],” he added.

The diplomat stressed that any European military contingents in Ukraine would be legitimate targets for the Russian military, noting that Moscow has long warned about this. While Russia says it does not oppose Western security guarantees for Ukraine in principle, it insists they be backed by UN Security Council members, including China. Moscow has stressed that such guarantees must not be “one-sided” or aimed at containing Russia and should come only after a peace deal, not before. Moscow has repeatedly said it is open to a diplomatic solution to the conflict but insists any settlement must address its underlying causes and include Ukraine abandoning its NATO ambitions, pledging neutrality, demilitarizing, and recognizing the new territorial realities.

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“.. cited sources in Poland’s security agencies as saying the object was in fact an AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile fired from a Polish F-16 jet.”

‘Russian Drone Attack’ Damage Was Caused By Polish Missile (RT)

The only confirmed damage from what Poland claims was a Russian drone incursion was actually caused by a Polish missile which struck a residential building by mistake, Rzeczpospolita has reported, citing sources. Polish officials last week reported at least 19 violations of the country’s airspace by drones, saying up to four UAVs had been downed while accusing Moscow of being behind the incident. Russia has rejected the accusation, insisting its drones only strike Ukrainian military-related facilities and noting that Western leaders “accuse Russia of provocations on a daily basis, most often declining to offer any arguments.” Rzeczpospolita reported on Tuesday that most of the drones involved in the incident were not carrying explosives and caused no damage.

However, one exception was in the village of Wyryki Wola near the border with Belarus, where what was described by Poland as an “unidentified flying object” crashed into a private home, damaging the roof but without causing casualties. Western media reports claimed that the home had been hit by a Russian drone. Investigators have declined to say what exactly struck the building, only stating that the object was not identified as a drone. Rzeczpospolita, however, cited sources in Poland’s security agencies as saying the object was in fact an AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missile fired from a Polish F-16 jet. The missile reportedly suffered a guidance system malfunction and did not explode only because its safety devices prevented detonation.

The missile, around three meters long and weighing over 150kg, is said to have struck the house after being fired in an attempt to shoot down a drone.Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk did not comment on the report but scrambled to take aim at Moscow. “The entire responsibility for the damage to the house in Wyryki rests with… Russia… Hands off Polish soldiers,” he said. On Sunday, Tusk also complained that the drone incident had caused a wave of “antipathy towards a struggling Ukraine,” claiming, without proof, that this was being fueled by Moscow. He stressed that Warsaw’s goal is “to stem this tide,” portraying it as a “test of patriotism.”

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CDC


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GMO

 

 

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