WORLD NEWS
Breitbart Business Digest: What China’s ‘Static Management’ Means for the U.S
Forget lockdowns.
The Chinese regime has started to describe the state-imposed restrictions on movement and activity as putting communities “under static management.” Apparently, the phrase lockdowns was causing people to panic. So China has decided to address public concerns in the very old-fashioned communist way: by changing the language. You aren’t locked down, you are just being managed in a stasis.
We expect that in rather short order we will start to see the effects of static management show up in global supply chains and the supply of goods in the United States. The U.S. imported a jaw-dropping $90 billion of goods from China in just the first two months of the year. That’s a 20 percent increase over the first two months of 2019. In other words, the U.S. economy has become more dependent on imports from China. That makes us even more vulnerable to the impact of closed factories and ports.
When the pandemic first struck, imports from China plummeted by nearly one-third, going from $33 billion in January to $22 billion in February. While trade is unlikely to plunge at that pace this time around, there will be shortages. The production disruptions could last for weeks, which could reverberate through global supply chains for months to come. Both components in U.S.-built goods and components in goods manufactured elsewhere around the world could become scarce. Some consumer goods may experience severe shortages. The upshot is likely to be more inflation for longer.
The U.S. is in a better position than many of our allies. Our exports to China make up only around two percent of U.S. GDP. So, a fall in demand for goods in China will not hurt all that much. Germany and Korea, which export manufactured goods to China at an economically important scale, could be in for the roughest time if the lockdowns last for several weeks. Australia and Russia, which are major commodities exporters to China, could also be hurt.
There is something of a silver lining. Static management should lower demand from China for commodities, especially in the energy sector. That should reduce crude oil prices. A recent estimate by Bank of America analysts found that COVID-related lockdown news out of China had lowered WTI crude oil prices by ten percent. That could offset some of the pricing pressure created by what appears to be further escalation of the war in Ukraine.
China Lockdowns: Shanghai Factories Allowed to Reopen if ‘Workers Live On-Site’
Shanghai on Saturday issued an edict allowing local factories to resume production — which had been halted in recent days due to a city-wide Chinese coronavirus lockdown — as long as “workers live on-site,” China’s state-run Global Times reported Sunday.
The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy issued the back-to-work notice on April 16 and included specific anti-epidemic guidelines for all district governments and authorities to follow while resuming operations at Shanghai factories.
Russia Keeping Economy Afloat with Fertilizer Sales to Brazil
Reuters on Monday cited shipping data showing at least 24 ships filled with 678,000 tonnes of Russian fertilizer are en route to Brazil, despite heavy sanctions imposed after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February.
The data was compiled by Agrinvest Commodities, a Brazilian brokerage and market analysis firm. According to the report, 11 of the 24 fertilizer-laden vessels inbound for Brazil left port after the beginning of the Ukraine invasion. The latest departure is a ship carrying 35,000 tonnes of potassium chloride that left Russia for Brazil on April 4.
“A fertilizer trader said deals were still possible as foreign units of Russian firms continue to fill orders, while banks untouched by Western sanctions process the payments,” Reuters noted.
Russia was one of Brazil’s top three sources for fertilizer chemicals before the invasion and Brazilian buyers worried their summer grain season could be ruined if Russian supplies were lost.
Russia is a major supplier of potash, ammonia, urea, and other vital fertilizer components worldwide.
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Major US Airlines, Amtrak Drop Mask Mandate for Travelers After Judge Strikes Down CDC Order
The Biden administration’s mask mandate will not be enforced while federal agencies review a federal judge’s ruling that the mandate was unlawful, an official said Monday as major U.S. airlines and other transportation entities moved to drop the policy.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which issued the mandate in 2021, said the order is no longer in effect due to the ruling.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said separately that, effective immediately, the agency would stop enforcing its directive that required masks at airports and on planes.
U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, a Trump appointee, ruled earlier Monday that the CDC exceeded its authority with the mask mandate and inappropriately did not seek public comment before imposing the order.
Major airlines, including United Airlines, said they were no longer requiring masks.
“Masks are no longer required on domestic flights, select international flights (dependent upon the arrival country’s requirements) or at U.S. airports,” United said on Twitter, adding that people may continue donning face coverings if it makes them feel more comfortable.
Masks Are Now Optional on These Airlines After Biden Mandate Struck Down
Following a federal judge’s order that rescinded the federal government’s mask mandate for travel, a significant number of companies moved quickly Monday to do away with the requirement.
Major U.S. carriers such as American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, JetBlue, Frontier Airlines, and Spirit Airlines announced they would not require masks on airplanes as of Monday.
American Airlines
American Airlines said that customers or employees won’t be mandated to wear face coverings on planes or at U.S. terminals.
United Airlines
United said that masks are merely optional, writing in a Twitter post: “Masks are no longer required on domestic flights, select international flights (dependent upon the arrival country’s requirements) or at U.S. airports.”
JetBlue
JetBlue noted that masks are optional but said that crew members and passengers traveling internationally “should always have a mask with them in case they continue to be required at their destination.”
Southwest Airlines
Southwest said employees and customers have the option to wear a face covering on domestic flights and airports—and some international locations.
Delta Air Lines
While Delta said that it would make masks optional, it called for patience as the policy shift is carried out.
Alaska Airlines
Meanwhile, Alaska said in a statement to customers that it welcomed “the opportunity to “see your smiling faces.”
Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines said late Monday that masks are optional.
Frontier Airlines
As with other carriers, Frontier Airlines said that it will not mandate masks on planes but it noted that they could be still required at airports in some localities.
Amtrak
Amtrak, the most-used passenger rail system in the country, similarly announced Tuesday that passengers and employees would no longer be mandated to wear face coverings.
‘Treasure Trove’: GOP Investigator Says House Republicans Have Hunter Biden’s Laptop
A longtime House Republican confirmed that Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings are currently being investigated in Congress and now Republicans apparently have possession of the infamous laptop that is believed to have belonged to the president’s son.
Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said that “we have the laptop,” and “in the meantime, we’re investigating.” Issa described the findings on the laptop as a “treasure trove” before saying that “we’re going to need a special prosecutor” to look into other allegations about Biden’s business dealings in various countries, including China.
On the laptop is “direct communication between [President Joe Biden] and his son,” “a good dive into how sick and vulnerable Hunter Biden was,” and “some of the things he did,” Issa said, adding that there were photos on the hard drive that allegedly showed the younger Biden’s “drug stash.”
While the younger Biden has denied any wrongdoing in his business dealings, he has publicly admitted to having struggled with substance abuse in the past. President Biden, meanwhile, has categorically denied his son was involved in any improper business arrangements and has maintained he had no knowledge or communication about any deals.
Issa said that there were business deals that “went forward” for Hunter Biden, including a deal with the wife of the former mayor of Moscow “and including China” as he was dealing with drug problems.
The FBI said it took possession of the actual hardware after the owner, suspected to be Hunter Biden, left it for repairs at a Delaware shop in 2019 and never returned for it.
Durham Filing Reveals CIA Knew in Early 2017 That Data Tying Trump to Russia Was Fake
News Analysis
As the trial of Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann approaches, special counsel John Durham and Sussmann’s lawyers are arguing over what evidence can be admitted. As part of those arguments, Durham filed a “routine” response late on April 15, detailing why the evidence he’s seeking to admit is both relevant and admissible.
These back-and-forth filings are common in the weeks leading up to federal trials, but the disclosures made by Durham are anything but routine.
The most striking of these disclosures concerns data trails that Sussmann and his cohorts, including “Tech Executive-1” Rodney Joffe, had supposedly uncovered between Trump and the Russian Alfa Bank. It was widely claimed that these data trails established a direct communications channel between Trump and the Russian government.
Sussmann took the data to the FBI in September 2016 hoping to trigger an investigation into Trump and his campaign. The existence of an FBI investigation would then be used by the Clinton campaign as a media kill shot against Trump in the final weeks of the 2016 election.
The scheme didn’t work as planned, and Trump went on to win the election. But this setback didn’t put the brakes on an operation that had now turned into an effort to hobble Trump’s presidency. In February 2017, after Trump was inaugurated, Sussmann took the same data trails to the CIA.
Sussmann’s Attorneys Want FBI Officials’ Notes Nixed as Evidence
Former Clinton Campaign attorney Michael Sussmann’s attorneys want notes recorded by two FBI officials from being introduced as evidence when their client goes on trial for lying to the agency in September 2016 as he delivered debunked allegations regarding a “secret server” link between the Trump Organization and a Russian bank.
In a 46-page motion filed on April 15, attorneys Sean Berkowitz, Michael Bosworth, Natalie Hardwick Rao, and Catherine Yao of Latham & Watkins LLP argue the notes are inadmissible “unreliable triple hearsay” and unrelated to the charge against Sussmann.
Special Counsel John Durham has entered as evidence notes taken by then-Assistant FBI Director for Counterintelligence E. William “Bill” Priestap and then-Deputy General Counsel Trisha Anderson, who both spoke with FBI General Counsel James Baker shortly after he met with Sussmann on Sept. 19, 2016, at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Sussmann is set to go on trial beginning May 16 in the U.S. District Court in Washington for claiming he was acting as “a concerned citizen” when he met with Baker while working for Rodney Joffe, a cybersecurity expert whose firm had a contract with Executive Office of the President to monitor DNS (Domain Name System) traffic; and for Hillary For America, Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign committee, which Sussmann’s Washington, D.C.-based law firm Perkins Coie represented.
In their motion, Sussman’s attorneys argue that Durham himself has said in previous court statements that a “jury will have to decide only whether the defendant knowingly and willfully made a materially false statement” when meeting with Baker.
“Nothing more, nothing less,” they write. “We agree. And yet throughout this case and his motion, the Special Counsel seeks to put other people, other conduct, and other issues on trial that have nothing to do with the narrow false statement crime the Special Counsel has actually brought against Mr. Sussmann.”
The motion requests that U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper “deny the Special Counsel’s motion to admit Mr. Priestap’s and Ms. Anderson’s notes.”
Researchers: Garland Should Reopen OKC Bombing Case He Helped Prosecute
During the tenure of Attorney General Merrick Garland, the Department of Justice launched an investigation into threats of violence against school board members, pushed for severe sentences against Jan. 6 defendants, and created a new domestic counterterrorism office—all with the stated aim of combatting white supremacy and domestic extremism.
But if Garland really wants to combat violent racists, according to researchers of the subject, then he should reopen the case he worked on 27 years ago and find the accomplices of Oklahoma City bomber and avowed white supremacist Timothy McVeigh.
“Garland can kick off any effort to curtail white supremacists by finishing his work on the OKC bombing case,” OKC researcher Richard Booth wrote last year when Garland took the helm at DOJ. “And he can finish by apologizing to the American people for letting dangerous still-unidentified white supremacists get away with being accessories to murder for the last 25 years.”
Booth provided records to The Epoch Times for this story—which marks the 27th anniversary of the April 19, 1995, domestic terrorism attack—and he’s far from alone in arguing that the case should be reexamined. Others include Kathy Sanders, who spent decades looking for answers after her two grandchildren died in the attack; Utah attorney Jesse Trentadue, who’s procured thousands of FBI records via lawsuits against the U.S. government; historian Wendy Painting, who wrote her doctoral thesis on McVeigh; and the late investigator Roger Charles.
These researchers have spent untold thousands of hours documenting the connections between McVeigh, the criminal underground of the white supremacist movement, and undercover federal informants—making the case that this tangled web has shielded some of those culpable for murdering 168 people, including 19 children, in the deadliest domestic terrorist attack in this country’s history. They have also chronicled the dozens of witnesses who reportedly saw one or more unidentified co-conspirators in the days and hours leading up to the attack.
And the researchers aren’t alone in calling for another investigation. Retired FBI agents Danny Coulson and Danny Defenbaugh, who both worked on the case, have publicly supported reopening the matter.
Garland should be aware of these matters, having discussed McVeigh’s enigmatic accomplice, “John Doe 2,” court transcripts show.
OKC Bombing Anniversary: Ex Neo-Nazi With Plot Knowledge Sits in Female Prison
On the 27th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, the deadliest domestic terror attack in U.S. history, an inmate believed to have knowledge about potential co-conspirators in that bombing languishes in a Texas prison awaiting a sex change.
Prison staff are in the process of retaining surgeons to perform the operation for the inmate, who now goes by the name Donna Langan.
Some 30 years ago, white supremacist Pete Langan was terrorizing the Midwest with a series of bank robberies he committed with the Aryan Republican Army (ARA)—hiding his secret life as transgender “Donna McClure” all the while.
According to Utah attorney Jesse Trentadue, Langan holds a much graver secret to this day.
Attorneys for the former Aryan bank robber, who has reportedly disavowed white supremacism, did not respond to interview requests. But Trentadue provided The Epoch Times with a sworn declaration from Langan, where he talks about his fellow ARA members sharing responsibility for the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City that killed 168 people, including 19 children on April 19, 1995.
According to Langan’s 2007 sworn declaration, filed for a separate lawsuit Trentadue was pursuing against the FBI, some of his ARA cohorts were involved in the Oklahoma City attack. Langan said he first told the FBI of this in January 1996, when he was arrested in relation to the ARA’s numerous bank robberies, and after agents said his friends had betrayed him.
“When [FBI Special Agent Ed] Woods taunted me with the inference that my associates had betrayed me and would testify against me, I had had enough. I told him, ‘You’re going to have problems with your witnesses, because they have the blood of Oklahoma City on their hands,’” Langan said in the declaration.
“Subsequently, my attorney informed me that the government wanted to talk to me about the Oklahoma City bombing.”
Florida’s DeSantis Asks Lawmakers to Eliminate Disney World’s Self-Governing Status
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on April 19 formally asked state lawmakers to take up eliminating Walt Disney World’s self-governing status during a special session that was set to start on Monday.
DeSantis, a Republican, announced the move in a proclamation (pdf), telling members of the Florida House of Representatives and Senate that the state’s updated Constitution in 1968 “generally disfavors” special laws granting privileges to private corporations but does permit creating special districts such as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
A law passed by Florida legislators in 1967 created the district, which lets Disney run some 25,000 acres in Orange and Osceola counties largely free of outside input.
DeSantis said that “it is necessary” to review all special districts made before 1968 “to ensure that they are appropriately serving the public interest” and to make sure they’re complying with requirements of the updated Constitution.
Additionally, it is in Florida’s interest to win a court battle regarding a separate law that aims to protect people from censorship by social media platforms but a federal judge blocked it in part because Florida law exempts companies that operate a theme park or entertainment complex from being a platform, the proclamation states.
Texas Gov. Suggests Sending Illegal Immigrants to Biden’s Home State
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott suggested Monday that his office may transport illegal immigrants picked up along the U.S.-Mexico border to Delaware, President Joe Biden’s home state.
In recent days, Abbott has authorized sending seven buses with unlawful immigrants from his state to Washington.
“This busing process is going to continue. I want you and the audience to know exactly why we’re doing what we’re doing,” Abbott, a Republican, told Fox News on Monday night. “The Biden administration, they were dropping off illegal immigrants just [into] small towns on the border … we’re not going to allow that to happen.”
If the plan to send illegal immigrants to Washington falls through, Abbott added, “Delaware looks like a great location.”
His comment is similar to one made by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, also a Republican, several weeks ago when he said that his office would transport illegal immigrants from his state to Delaware. Biden owns a home in Delaware and was a U.S. senator representing the state for decades.
Abbott previously said he is attempting to highlight what he described as the Biden administration’s mismanagement of the U.S.-Mexico border after the White House confirmed it would allow the Title 42 health rule to expire next month.
US to Release Up to 600,000 Illegal Immigrants in Coming Months
A U.S. immigration enforcement agency plans to release up to 600,000 illegal immigrants as it deals with a projected surge in migration, an official revealed in a court filing.
Deane Dougherty, a coordinator for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said that officials expect “historic border surge, with projections forecasted to triple current arrivals.”
Because of the forecasts and the recently announced decision to end Title 42, “ICE must shift its focus and prepare to manage its resources for a population of up to 600,000 by the end of the fiscal year,” Dougherty added.
The fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Center for Immigration Studies, said that means ICE will be releasing the immigrants, which include unaccompanied minors and family units, by then.
“I was very surprised at that number that they seem to be just casually talking about releasing,” Vaughan told The Epoch Times. “There doesn’t seem to be any sense of concern for what the effects of the new arrivals are in the communities where they’re going to be settling. There’s no concern about the cost. There’s no concern about their ability to identify these people or their ability to keep track of them and make sure that they show up for their immigration proceedings, and that they know where they are in case they have to remove them.”
ICE takes control of some immigrants who are processed by Border Patrol, another agency inside the Department of Homeland Security.
The Biden administration is preparing for a flood of illegal immigrants once Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that enables quick expulsions, ends in May.
The court document, entered in an ongoing case over how illegal immigrant children are treated, gives a concrete number for what one agency expects to encounter in the coming months.
Report: Biden May Back Down on Ending Title 42 as GOP Sounds Alarm on Illegal Immigration
RIVERSIDE COUNTY, California — President Joe Biden is considering backing down on plans to end the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Title 42 — the public health authority that has doubled as a border control measure — as Republican lawmakers head to the United States-Mexico border to sound the alarm on illegal immigration.
On Tuesday, a source told Axios that Biden and his top agency officials are considering not following through on their current plans to end the use of Title 42 on May 23 — a move that they admit could bring a wave of illegal immigration never seen before in American history.
Redistricting War: DeSantis’s Map to Face ‘Sue to Blue’ Strategy in Court
Chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) claimed on Tuesday the DeSantis-proposed state redistricting map will be rejected in court upon passage by lawmakers.
On Wednesday, the Florida legislature will consider Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) map that would create 20 red-leaning and eight blue-leaning congressional districts. The district lines will serve the state for the next ten years, shaping national politics. But Maloney claimed the map violates the Voting Rights Act and does not shape districts by race.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Elon Musk Snapping Up Twitter: Free Speech Revival or Socialist Expansion?
While some feel that tech mogul Elon Musk’s recent 9.2 percent Twitter stock purchase and his offer to buy Twitter outright is a sign that the restoration of free speech could return to the platform, to others, Musk is a threat to the left’s control of the platform.
Speaking at a TED event in Vancouver, Canada, on April 14, Musk said that the reason he’s attempting to buy Twitter is not to make money but to reduce the “civilizational risk” censorship poses to democracy and freedom and to remove restrictions to free speech.
Despite his stated good intentions, Musk has lavishly praised the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) on various occasions.
Speaking in the “Daily Drive Podcast” in 2020, Musk said “China rocks in my opinion,” referring to one of the most tyrannical regimes in the world that routinely enslaves its own people. He also said that China is a “world leader in digitalization.”
In March 2021, Musk praised China’s climate plans during an appearance on CCP state television—despite the communist regime having recently ramped up its coal production, postponing its carbon reduction plans.
“I’d like to strike an optimistic note and I’m very confident that the future of China is going to be great and that China is headed towards being the biggest economy in the world and a lot of prosperity in the future,” the Tesla CEO told China Central Television in March 2021.
To Peter Navarro, former White House trade adviser under the Trump administration—what someone did is more important than what they say they will do.
“I don’t trust Elon Musk. I don’t trust him because he made a deal with the communist Chinese devil to produce his Tesla cars there. And he’s very vulnerable to the blackmail of the CCP,” Navarro, author of “In Trump Time,” told The Epoch Times.
Tweet This: Will The Real Elon Musk Please Stand Up?
The title is the conclusion of the old TV game show To Tell The Truth, after several contestants would try to convince you that they were the real person in question. Like a chameleon, Elon Musk can simultaneously play the role of all the contestants and have the audience twisted in a knot of confusion. Who is this guy, anyway; and, will the real Elon Musk please stand up?
Identity #1: Transhumanist
In 2017, Musk spoke at the World Government Summit in Dubai: “Think of the limbic system — the animal brain and the cortex as the thinking part of the brain, and your digital self as a third layer… If you die, your digital ghost is still around. All of their emails, and social media – that still lives if they die.” Musk can fix this by inserting a chip into your brain to interface to the digital world, putting all knowledge at your instant disposal. It would also put all of YOUR information at their disposal. Oh, Musk already has a company called Neuralink ready to chip the world.
Identity #2: Technocrat
At his company, Tesla, Musk crowned himself with the title of “Technoking” in addition to his role as CEO. This is probably not surprising in that he grew up in a Technocrat home in South Africa before eventually ending up in the United States as the richest person in the world. Musk’s grandfather. Joshua Haldeman, D.C., was the Grand Poobah of Technocracy, Inc. in Canada during the 1930s and 40s. Musk has repeatedly said that robots are going to take over all the meaningful jobs in society, which will necessitate Universal Basic Income (UBI) for everyone. UBI was an original concept of Technocracy from the 1930s.
Identity #3: Space pioneer
Elon Musk doesn’t believe in man-made global warming. Instead, he thinks the real danger is the expansion of the sun that will cook everyone on earth. The only answer, he says, is to leave planet earth and flee to outer space. First stop: Mars.
Identity #4: Eccentric fatherhood
Currently at age 50, Musk has fathered 8 children. His first marriage to Justine Wilson produced five children but the first-born died. The next two (Griffin, Xavier) were twins and the next 3 (Kai, Saxon, Damian) were triplets.
Currently, Musk has had two additional children from a girlfriend who is a self-described pagan witch, Transhumanist and Technocrat. Born Claire Elise Boucher, she first changed her name to Grimes but now addresses herself simply as “C”. Her first male child with Musk was named X Æ A-Xii, or “X” for short, and she recently received a daughter named Exa Dark Sideræl, or simply “Y”, born to a surrogate mother in December 2021.
Identity #5: Champion of free speech
Elon Musk says he wants to save free speech, but has never clarified how he defines free speech. This is problematic given his eccentric views on so many controversial technologies and ideas. The Verge wonders if Musk can be taken seriously:
If this really is Elon’s bid to save free speech, you have to wonder why he’s not looking at some other, bigger options. On the other hand, this is a truly groundbreaking troll — and maybe all that’s all it’s meant to be. I expect Jack Dorsey is laughing his head off.
I wonder, too.
Perhaps we should reverse the game and have only the fake Elon Musk stand up: that would most likely be Identity #5.
Dallas Fed Explains Why OPEC Cannot Fill The Oil Supply Gap
Do not expect OPEC and its allies to ride to the rescue of the global economy with a big jump in oil production.
The members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied producers such as Russia, collectively known as OPEC+, have been producing less oil than their collective quota allows in recent months, lowering global supplies and likely pushing prices higher. An examination of the situation by three economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas found that this “supply gap” is due to capacity constraints that are likely to become even more binding as we approach summer.
“There are several reasons this supply gap has emerged. One important explanation—and one that continues to play a role in 2022—is the inability of some OPEC+ members to increase production to take advantage of their growing quotas. These countries are bumping into capacity constraints for several reasons, including infrastructure issues and the difficulty of attracting sufficient investment to offset production declines at existing wells,” economists Lutz Kilian, Michael D. Plante, and Kunal Patel wrote in a piece published on the Dallas Fed’s website on Tuesday.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Doublespeak? DHS Fusion Center Launches ‘Disinformation Portal’
It appears that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is no longer satisfied with Fox News and Tucker Carlson spreading fear and wants to deliver their own version of fear-induced news.
As NBC New York revealed, DHS has decided that the best way to counter Americans growing disdain over the never-ending war on terror is to open its very first government-approved disinformation portal.
“New Jersey’s Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness has unveiled a new disinformation portal designed to help people identify truth-obscuring, manufactured information — from deepfakes to altered videos and text and the groups behind them.”
DHS claims the government has a ‘higher responsibility’ to disseminate news to the public.
“Disinformation can have an insidious impact on the overall threat landscape,” NJOHSP Director Laurie Doran said. “In an age where the public has become increasingly dependent on online forums and social media platforms to stay informed, we all have a higher responsibility to scrutinize the information we’re consuming.”
Oh no, insidious ‘truth-obscuring, manufactured disinformation’, is now an ‘overall threat landscape’ to Americans. What will the Feds do to help us?
“The reality is no one platform or agency has the manpower or means to track and dispel the amount of disinformation being circulated,” added NJOHSP Deputy Director Eric Tysarczyk. “With this portal, we’re now equipping the public with the tools needed to decipher the information for themselves.”
According to the Feds, there is not one platform or government agency that can dispel disinformation so who do you think officials want to use?
One of biggest perpetrators of disinformation in the business and it is not a federal agency named the CIA or the FBI.
The feds have decided to let DHS-run fusion centers disseminate government-approved news using their newly created ‘disinformation portal’.
HEALTH
Ways to Protect Yourself From the 3rd Leading Cause of Death
According to the latest survey, 1 in 44 American 8-year-olds is now on the autism spectrum
A former expert witness for the government claims the Department of Justice misrepresented his opinion, and that he in fact found evidence of a link between autism and vaccinations in certain children
Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the U.S., killing an estimated 250,000 Americans each year; side effects from drugs, taken as prescribed, account for the vast majority of iatrogenic deaths
Aside from educating yourself on the risks and benefits of vaccines, 10 additional suggestions are offered that can help you avoid medical injury, including doing due diligence before undergoing colonoscopy and enlisting a personal health advocate during hospitalization
Other suggestions include knowing the most effective protocol for sepsis, optimizing vitamin D rather than getting the flu shot, avoiding antibiotics and drugs unless absolutely necessary, and using drug-free strategies to treat pain
10 Reasons Behind Most Chronic Health Issues
Obesity is a driving force behind preventable chronic diseases, and diet is a major factor in maintaining a healthy weight. Just 10 food companies control the manufactured food in your grocery store, most of which is ultraprocessed and high in sugar
Many of those foods are made with genetically modified crops, which make up 70% of crops grown in the U.S. and 70% of the American diet is processed food, leading to many of the current chronic diseases
Some doctors have become legalized drug dealers, overprescribing pharmaceutical products as a symptom of a larger issue in medicine, in which doctors are more influenced by Big Pharma than by the health care needs of their patients
Government policies began favoring large corporate farmers in the 1970s, and now Big Pharma also controls agriculture and seed supplies, which means they control the food you eat and when you get sick, supply you with drugs to treat your chronic disease
Replacing saturated fat with sugar, whole grain and vegetable and seed oils has had a significant effect on the rising number of people with obesity and chronic illness. With each passing year, it becomes more important to be aware of the food choices you make as they impact your health and wellness
Is It True That Salt Is Bad for Your Heart?
“Conventional wisdom” states that a high-sodium diet will increase your blood pressure, thereby raising your risk for a cardiac event. However, this claim is largely based on uncontrolled case reports from the early 1900s
A 2018 systematic review found no evidence of benefit from a low-sodium diet for those with heart failure
The randomized controlled SODIUM-HF trial, published in April 2022, also found no benefit for patients with Class 2 or 3 heart failure, as lower sodium intake had no statistically significant impact on clinical events
Contrary to popular belief, it’s actually hard to consume harmful amounts of sodium, but it’s easy to end up with too little. Symptoms of sodium deficiency include muscle fatigue, muscle spasm, cramps, heart palpitations, lethargy and confusion
Low-salt recommendations rarely take coffee intake into account, even though coffee consumption is extremely common and will rapidly deplete your salt stores. Sweating will also eliminate salt from your body, so if you sweat a lot, you may get rid of more than you add back in if you’re on a low-salt diet
COVID RELATED NEWS
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) did not rely on any documents for its claims that the COVID-19 vaccines do not alter or integrate into people’s genetic material, according to an advocacy group for vaccine and pharmaceutical safety and the right to informed consent.
The Informed Consent Action Network (ICAN) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) against the CDC on April 28, 2021, for “all documents relied upon” by the federal agency to make the following claims on its websites regarding the COVID-19 vaccines:
- “The genetic material delivered by the viral vector does not integrate into a person’s DNA,”
- “They [viral vector vaccines] do not affect or interact with our DNA in any way,”
- “The “mRNA never enters the nucleus of the cell where our DNA (genetic material) is located, so it cannot change or influence our genes,” and,
- “They [mRNA vaccines] do not affect or interact with our DNA in any way.”
The three COVID-19 vaccines administered in the United States contain genetic material in the form of RNA (Pfizer and Moderna) or DNA (Johnson & Johnson) to tell our body to produce the virus’s spike protein.
Nearly a year after the nonprofit filed its FOIA request, the CDC responded, saying it could not provide the necessary documents that ICAN had asked for.
“A search of our records failed to reveal any documents pertaining to your request,” the CDC wrote in its response letter (pdf), adding that the federal agency “saves lives and protects people from health threats.”
The CDC goes on to say that additional information about the vaccines should be directed at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as it is the “sole agency responsible for the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs.”
Posting the statements online without supporting documents seems to be enough for the CDC, according to ICAN.
“All we are asking of the CDC is to back up the claims on its own website—claims it states are ‘facts,’” ICAN said in a press release on April 13. “Apparently, that’s too much to ask.”
CANCEL CULTURE
Malone: Techno-Fascism, Techno-Feudalism, Or Indentured Servitude?
In case you have not noticed, I have been in a bit of a funk lately. The big interdependent trifecta of censorship, state and corporatist-sponsored propaganda, and the role of “Davos Man” in the emerging new world order have been weighing heavy on my mind. Or maybe it’s just that I have been traveling too much, seen and heard too many things, and been the recipient of chronic targeted defamation for too long. Or perhaps I am just homesick for my quiet centered life with my wife Jill, our horses and fruit trees, and our modest Virginia farm/horticultural park. Or all the above.
What has really been eating away at my soul, like some kind of Dementor from JK Rowling’s darkest imaginings, is that we have allowed the billionaires to take over our world, and we have yet to come to terms with the consequences. The party of Davos, with its public facing mask behind the benign name of the World Economic Forum (WEF). What are the practical consequences for how both ourselves and our children will live their lives?
This issue touches the deepest questions. What is the fundamental nature of man, good or evil? What is justice, the proper order and character of political structures as they relate to justice, and what are the characteristics of a just and ethical man. The deep stuff which Plato covers in the foundation stone of western thought on politics, the Socratic dialog published as “The Republic”. Although pre-Christian (380BC), whether or not you have read the multi-volume work your ideas of right and wrong are profoundly influenced by this ancient text, and regardless of your personal opinion regarding the dialectic tension between Hobbes (“solitary, poore, nasty brutish, and short”) and Rousseau, “The Republic” is the bedrock upon which “western” political thought is built. By way of contrast, the work of Kong 孔 (Confucius, 551–479 BC) is often seen as the foundation for much of Chinese/Asian culture, Zoroaster (Zarathustra, 628-551 BC) in historic Persia, and the blend of the teachings of Gautama Buddha (563–483 BC) and the Hindu classification of āstika and nāstika schools of philosophy in India.
EDUCATION
More States Move to Affirm Parental Rights in Education
Florida has been the center of national attention for weeks over its new Parental Rights in Education law, but it’s not alone: Across the country, state lawmakers are introducing similar legislation.
Florida’s law—inaccurately dubbed “the Don’t Say Gay law” by opponents—prohibits “classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity” to children in kindergarten through third grade or in a manner that isn’t age appropriate according to state standards.
A report by The Heritage Foundation says that other states are responding to parent dissatisfaction by increasing classroom transparency and asserting parents’ rights as decision-makers for their children. (The Daily Signal is the news outlet of The Heritage Foundation.)
“Lawmakers around the country are considering parents’ bills of rights that affirm that parents are their children’s primary caregivers, prevent schools from compelling students to affirm ideas that violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964, require schools to receive parental permission before administering health services to children, and authorize parents to view the list of books and instructional materials for K–12 classrooms,” the Heritage report reads.
In recent months, these five states—among others—have taken action to limit discussion of gender ideology in the classroom and to protect parents’ rights in K-12 education.
- Alabama
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican, on April 8 signed into law a bill that goes further than Florida’s. It prohibits classroom instruction to children in kindergarten through fifth grade on gender identity or sexual orientation.
The new Alabama law also limits who may use which multiple-occupancy restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, and shower facilities in K-12 public schools, “based on their biological sex.”
- Ohio
As with Florida’s law, legislators in Ohio proposed a bill April 4 to prohibit teachers from instructing children from kindergarten through grade three on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The bill also would require any instructional materials used in grades four through 12 to be “age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”
The Legislature has not yet voted on the bill. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, has not yet indicated his position.
- Kansas
In March, the Kansas state Senate approved SB 496, which aims to create a parents’ bill of rights.
The bill states, in part, that “a parent shall have the right to play a central role in a child’s education, to obtain critical information about what is being taught or provided in the classroom and to take action when a parent feels that the quality or content of a child’s education does not align with the values and expectations the parent expects and deserves.”
If the bill becomes law, Kansas parents will be able to inspect any classroom materials, such as lessons, curriculums, surveys, and tests. Parents also would be able to object to any learning activities that infringe on their values.
The bill also would protect the right of parents to “challenge the material or educational benefit of any book, magazine, or any other material available to students in the school library such that a successful challenge results in the removal of the book, magazine, or material from the school.”
- Iowa
A proposed bill in Iowa would require schools to obtain parental consent to teach children in grades one through six about gender identity.
The legislation also states: “If a parent or guardian does not provide written consent, a student may opt out of instruction relating to gender identity.”
- Indiana
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita issued an updated parents’ bill of rights that, although only a legal opinion and not state law, provides what Rokita calls a “road map” for parents to direct their children’s educational and medical decisions.
Among the parental rights listed are the right to “question and address your child’s school officials via letters, electronic communications, and in-person meetings” and the right to “make medical care decisions on behalf of your child.”
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