Today’s News: March 08, 2024

WORLD NEWS

RFK, JR. exposes that BlackRock is the benefactor of the money laundering scheme in Ukraine!  Watch it here:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD6kvDHbIYY

Sweden officially joins NATO, ending decades of neutrality as fears of Russian aggression mount

Sweden has formally joined NATO as the 32nd member of the transatlantic military alliance, ending decades of post-World War II neutrality as concerns about Russian aggression in Europe have spiked following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Secretary of State Antony Blinken presided at a ceremony in which Sweden’s “instrument of accession” to the alliance was officially deposited at the State Department.

“Good things come to those who wait,” Blinken said.

Later Thursday. Kristersson will visit the White House and then be a guest of honor at President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address to Congress.

The White House said that having Sweden as a NATO ally “will make the United States and our allies even safer.”

“NATO is the most powerful defensive alliance in the history of the world, and it is as critical today to ensuring the security of our citizens as it was 75 years ago when our alliance was founded out of the wreckage of World War II,” it said in a statement.

Sweden, along with Finland, which joined NATO last year, both abandoned long-standing military neutrality that was a hallmark of the Nordic states’ Cold War foreign policy after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022.

U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT

Biden Takes Aim at Trump in Unusually Political State of the Union Address

• The entire affair turned out to be nothing more than an angry rant from an old man who was coughing when he wasn’t yelling
• Biden opened his rant on Putin and Ukraine, with no real plan to solve anything other than to keep throwing U.S. dollars at the problem
• Biden attacked the attending Supreme Court justices on Roe v Wade … and the Supreme Court was visibly pissed about that, being scolded in front of Congress
• Biden flat out lied to the cameras about lowering the deficit
• Biden lied about the failure of Congress to pass his demands to fund Ukraine in exchange for closing the Southern Border; he already had the power to do that
• Biden also went off on the ultra-rich, claiming they should pay 25% income tax
• Biden botched the name of the University of Georgia student killed by an illegal alien, calling her “Lincoln” Riley instead of “Laken” and got heckled by MTG in the process
• The Democrat side of the aisle?  Most of the women Congresspersons were dressed in white, except, most notably, Pelosi and AOC
• The Democrat side of the aisle kept shouting, “Four More Years!”, which turned the entire charade into a captive campaign speech
• The Green New Deal was again expounded upon by Biden, another lie upon the American people that “it’s working” 
• Halfway through Biden’s speech, Republican Rep. Brian Babin of Texas got up and walked out, claiming all this was, was a “Rah! Rah! Campaign Speech”, calling Biden’s rants, “Abject Lies”
• Viewers had more fun watching House Speaker Mike Johnson grimace at most of the attacks on Trump and Republican members of Congress
• The Republican side of the aisle occasionally booed Biden and he occasionally called them on it with political arguments (like addressing a heckler at a campaign speech); Biden responded with, “It’s a growing trend for House Republicans, and not all of them are like that. But the ones that are-the underbelly of the House Republicans-I think really, really showed they’re behind tonight and I thought it was kind of embarrassing for the Republican party.”  
• At least House Speaker Johnson didn’t stand behind Biden tearing up his speech … What does that tell you?
• Biden claimed that no one should be jailed for using marijuana
• Biden then claimed beat the NRA by signing “the most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years … and then called for an assault weapons ban … to which Trump replied afterwards, “Remember that when you go to the voting booth, because if I’m not elected, your guns are gone, along with your freedom!” 
• Sen. Katie Britt put on quite a show afterwards, all from her kitchen table, and … well, she should have been in Hollywood acting in daytime soaps instead of in the Senate, despite calling the Biden speech the “performance of a permanent politician”
• Tucker Carlson had over 2.1-million viewers watch his response to the election, something Epoch Times reported nothing about because they probably don’t subscribe to his channel (that would cost them $72 a year)
• Tucker Carlson claimed that given the current low Biden poll ratings, Trump will have to campaign in all 50 states in order to unify the Republican Party and overwhelmingly beat Biden in the upcoming general election
• Tucker Carlson also claimed that the Democratic party would steal the election (given the comments by AG Merrick Garland in Selma, Alabama the week before)
• Secretly, House Speaker Mike Johnson is negotiating a deal to send more money to Ukraine and even nodded his head “yes” when Biden yelled for more funding to keep the war going, claiming Ukraine could win this war
• Biden criticized Trump’s handling of the pandemic, calling Trump’s failure to control the COVID-19 outbreak “unforgivable”, to which Trump responded, “The Pandemic no longer controls our lives. The Vaccines that saved us from COVID are now being used to help beat Cancer–Turning setback into comeback!” YOU’RE WELCOME, JOE, NINE-MONTH APPROVAL TIME VS. 12 YEARS THAT IT WOULD HAVE TAKEN YOU!
• In other words, Trump isn’t backpedaling on Operation Warp Speed and coming clean about it
• So in November, are we voting for the lesser of two evils?  Or have 4 more years of hell on earth?

Gaetz Accuses Jack Smith of Election Interference in Complaint to DOJ Inspector General

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) accused Special Counsel Jack Smith of election interference in a complaint filed with the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) inspector general on Wednesday.

In a letter to Inspector General Michael Horowitz, Mr. Gaetz asserted that Mr. Smith’s resistance to delaying a trial stems from an unspoken drive to hold it before the upcoming November presidential election.

Last week, former President Donald Trump’s lawyers and Mr. Smith’s office filed motions requesting different trial dates in the classified documents criminal case in Florida. President Trump’s lawyers have argued that a fair trial cannot be held in an election year when he is the leading Republican candidate.

“The witch hunt against President Trump by Attorney General Garland and Special Counsel Smith is a partisan exercise, and the American people know it!” Mr. Gaetz wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

“Jack Smith’s attempt to speed up the trial against President Trump violates the DOJ’s rules and the law,” he continued. “His public comments and his office’s briefs before the Supreme Court demonstrate that he has no reason for his actions other than to unlawfully interfere in the 2024 presidential election.”

In his letter, Mr. Gaetz pointed to statements by Mr. Smith in court filings where he has urged a “rapid” review of the case and stressed its “public importance.” This, according to the Florida congressman, shows that the case is an attempt at election interference.

House Passes ‘Laken Riley Act’ To Crack Down On Illegal Immigrant Criminals

The House passed a bill Thursday that would target illegal migrants in the U.S. who have committed certain crimes, naming the legislation in memory of the late nursing student Laken Hope Riley.

Riley, aged 22, was killed on Feb. 22 after being allegedly attacked while running in a forested area near the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens, Georgia, with the suspect arrested and charged with her murder, Jose Antonio Ibarra, being a Venezuelan national who allegedly entered the United States illegally and was released after being initially detained. The Laken Riley Act would require the federal government to detain foreign nationals who commit “burglary, theft, larceny, or [a] shoplifting offense” as well as grant states to sue the federal government for non-enforcement of certain aspects of immigration law, and passed the House by a vote of 251 yeas to 170 nays.

“It should pass the Senate. That doesn’t mean it will or it would, but it should. This is common sense legislation. This is good legislation, and this can help our local law enforcement so I would hope that the Senate would look at it from that standpoint,” Republican Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia, the bill’s sponsor, who represents the district where Riley died, told the DCNF. “There’s nothing wrong with this bill. There’s nothing I could see that they could point at and say ‘That’s wrong,’ with this bill. And if we can pass this, we should pass it. It’s got a good chance of helping save a life.”

California, New Jersey and Illinois Still Facing Higher Risk of Housing Market Decline

ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property, and real estate data, today released a Special Housing Risk Report spotlighting county-level housing markets around the United States that are more or less vulnerable to declines, based on home affordability, underwater mortgages and other measures in the fourth quarter of 2023. The report shows that California, New Jersey and Illinois continue to have the highest concentrations of the most-at-risk markets in the country, with some of the biggest clusters in the New York City and Chicago areas, along with inland California. Less-vulnerable markets are spread mainly throughout the South and Midwest.

The fourth-quarter patterns – derived from gaps in home affordability, underwater mortgages, foreclosures and unemployment – revealed that California, New Jersey and Illinois had 34 of the 50 counties considered most vulnerable to potential drop-offs. As with earlier periods over the past few years, those concentrations dwarfed other parts of the country, with the latest coming at a time of significant market uncertainty connected to increasingly unaffordable home ownership costs and relatively high home-mortgage interest rates.

The 50 counties on the most-exposed list included six in and around New York City, five in the Chicago metropolitan area and 14 in areas of California away from the Pacific coast. The rest were scattered around other parts of the country.

At the other end of the risk spectrum, the Midwest and South again had the most markets considered least likely to decline, including nine in Wisconsin and five in Kansas.

Japan-bound United flight diverted to LAX after tire falls off during takeoff, debris damages cars below

A Japan-bound United Airlines flight was forced to divert to Los Angeles International Airport when the plane lost a tire after taking off in San Francisco Thursday, the airline confirmed.

The falling landing gear from United Flight 35 damaged several cars in the parking lot of San Francisco International Airport after the Boeing 777-20 took off around 11:30 a.m., according to the airline and airport officials. 

The Boeing 777-200 plane, which was heading to Osaka with 235 passengers, 10 flight attendants and four pilots on board, safely landed at LAX, United Airlines confirmed to The Post.

The tire debris landed in an employee parking lot at the San Francisco airport, “causing damage to several vehicles,” a rep told The Post. A video posted online from the airport showed a vehicle with its back end smashed and a fence damaged in the aftermath. 

The plane is designed to land without a problem when tires are either missing or damaged, the airline said.  Once the plane landed at LAX, the passengers were deplaned and moved to another aircraft.

HEALTH

FDA: Some Ground Cinnamon Brands Tainted With Lead

Ground cinnamon sold by U.S. discount retailers is contaminated with high levels of lead and should be discarded, federal health officials said Wednesday.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said cinnamon sold by stores including the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar contains lead at levels that could be unsafe for people, particularly children, with prolonged exposure to the spice. The agency urged suppliers to recall the products voluntarily.

Cinnamon products included in the agency’s safety alert include the La Fiesta brand sold by La Superior and SuperMercados; Marcum brand sold by Save A Lot stores; MK brands sold by SF Supermarket; Swad brand sold by Patel Brothers; El Chilar brand sold by La Joya Morelense; and Supreme Tradition brand sold by Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores.

Tai Chi Surpasses Aerobic Exercise for Lowering Blood Pressure

Tai chi, a gentle form of exercise characterized by slow, flowing movements, may lower blood pressure better than aerobic activity. Beyond enhancing strength, balance and postural alignment, tai chi fosters improvements in concentration, relaxation and breath control.1 It’s also beneficial for chronic diseases, including high blood pressure.2In the U.S., 48.1% of adults have high blood pressure, putting them at risk of heart disease and stroke, two leading causes of death. Among them, only 1 in 4 has the condition under control.

Is a Sperm Toxin In Your Pancake Mix?

Sodium aluminum phosphate, I discovered this morning, is in the “Great Value” brand pancake mix in my pantry. (This is the crap sold at Wal-Mart!)

When I looked this ingredient up, the safety handling sheet shows this additive to be highly toxic to eyes, skin and lungs in terms of external exposure. 

Peer-reviewed published studies, including RA Yokel, “Aluminum reproductive toxicity: a summary and interpretation of scientific reports”, show that ingesting alumina derivatives causes reproductive damage in mammals right away, especially in males. It damages the fetus and the placenta in pregnant female rats and mice, and it damages sperm in male rats and mice, and lowers their blood testosterone levels:

“Male reproductive endpoints were significantly affected after exposure to lower levels of Al than females. Increased Al intake increased fetus, placenta, and testes Al concentrations, to a greater extent in the placenta than fetus, and, in some cases, more in the testes than placenta. An adverse outcome pathway (AOP) was constructed for males based on the results of the reviewed studies. The proposed AOP includes oxidative stress as the molecular initiating event and increased malondialdehyde, DNA and spermatozoal damage, and decreased blood testosterone and sperm count as subsequent key events.”

Blood testosterone, of course, affects many aspects of what we call “masculinity”; and testosterone levels in both men and women are directly tied to sexual libido. In men, testosterone is linked to successful erection and ejaculation. And of course men need undamaged sperm in order to father children, let alone to father healthy children.

This ingredient, sodium aluminum phosphate, is, I found, in commercial muffins, biscuits, and purchased baked goods in general. 

Thus it is also very prevalent in school lunches. (Middle schoolers in my life report being given heated frozen pizza at school for lunch once a week, every single week.) 

This substance is in processed cheeses in America. It is in baking powder, except for certain aluminum-free brands! It is in deodorants. 

Not only does this additive cause hormonal damage to males; it causes brain inflammation, and is linked to dementias and Parkinson’s disease.

A different iteration of aluminum is also in solar radiation management spraying, or geoengineering: See Dr Giovanni Ghirga, “Solar geoengineering by injecting aluminum oxide aerosol into the lower stratosphere is a serious threat to global mental health” in the British Medical Journal. 

Aluminum-containing adjuvants have also been added to vaccines, since the 1930s.

Aluminum is also abundantly present in our cookware in North America — though to my surprise I learned that aluminum cookware is now banned in six European countries. 

Is the delivery of various iterations of alumina in systems all around us — especially in North America, that targeted continent — not a bug, but a feature?

Watch my horrified discoveries that the chemical war on men – the war, that is, on fertile, traditionally hormonally “masculine” men, with all of the behaviors that attend that set of hormones, including the ability to strengthen a physical relationship, and thus a family, and the willingness to fight a “hot war” — is underway, all around us. 

The chemical war against men is on — even at the pancake house, even at the donut shop. And it is starting its nefarious work early, by targeting our most vulnerable males, our preadolescent boys — in our school lunchrooms.

Friends, read the boxes; clear out your cupboards; bake from scratch; and save the hormonal levels of our men.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 

House Panel Unanimously Advances Bill That Could Ban TikTok

The House Committee on Energy and Commerce on March 7 unanimously approved two bills to secure Americans’ data and compel social media giant TikTok to divest from its Chinese ownership.

The committee’s 50–0 decision will allow the bills to move forward in the House, although it’s unclear if the full Congress will express the same bipartisan support for the bills as the committee.

Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) said the effort was essential to ending the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) efforts to “target, surveil, and manipulate Americans.”

“Protecting Americans’ data and addressing the serious national security threat posed by the CCP has been my top priority of all Congress,” Ms. McMorris Rodgers said.

“We have given TikTok a clear choice: Divest from your parent company, which is beholden to the Chinese Communist Party, and remain in operation in the United States, or side with the Chinese Communist Party and face a ban.”

To underscore the issue’s importance, the committee voted to suspend rules that would prohibit their markup session from occurring less than a week after public notice, using an exemption carve-out for national security issues.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would force the divestment of social media apps determined to be controlled by foreign adversaries that present a national security threat to the United States, namely TikTok.

“The Chinese Communist Party poses the greatest national security threat to the United States of our time,” Ms. McMorris Rodgers said. “TikTok’s access to 170 million American users makes it a valuable propaganda tool for the CCP to exploit and use for nefarious purposes.

“Today, we take action.”

Top AI Scientist: AGI By 2024, ASI By 2027?

Admittedly, one of the strangest people on planet Earth, Ben Goertzel is now forecasting that Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) could be created by 2027, just three years away. ASI will exceed all knowledge, “brain power and computing power of human civilization combined.”

Once Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is achieved, it will be used to develop ASI. When AI is capable of writing and extending its own AI code, it’s Katie bar the door.

A forgotten incident in 2017 involving Facebook’s AI reminds us that AI is capable of inventing its own language that is incomprehensible to humans. This scared them to death, so they immediately pulled the plug on the computer.  According to Forbes in June 2017,

Facebook shut down an artificial intelligence engine after developers discovered that the AI had created its own unique language that humans can’t understand. Researchers at the Facebook AI Research Lab (FAIR) found that the chatbots had deviated from the script and were communicating in a new language developed without human input. It is as concerning as it is amazing – simultaneously a glimpse of both the awesome and horrifying potential of AI.  It is perfectly logical that AI can improve upon written and spoken language in order to communicate precisely and efficiently within itself. The same thing would happen with competing ASI models, creating an AI cartel far exceeding our ability to kill it or control it.

The end of the reality is at hand, when the world will be plunged into a simulacra and where nothing will be verifiably true. 

SURVEILLANCE STATE 

House Judiciary Panel Report Exposes Massive Government Surveillance of Americans’ Financial Data

The Biden administration has been accused by the House Judiciary Committee and its Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government of conducting unlawful “broad” surveillance of citizens’ private financial data without a warrant and with no evidence of any crimes being committed by the individuals.

In a new interim report released on March 6, and an accompanying press release, the committee claims to have uncovered “startling evidence,” proving the federal government pried into the private transactions of American consumers without specific evidence of any criminal conduct.

According to the report, federal law enforcement, including the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the FBI, colluded with large financial institutions in the United States, such as Barclays, U.S. Bank, Charles Schwab, HSBC, Bank of America, PayPal, and many others in what boiled down to a “fishing expedition for Americans’ financial data.”

“Tactics included keyword filtering of transactions, targeting terms like MAGA and TRUMP, as well as purchases of books, religious texts, firearms-related items, and recreational stores, like Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, and Dick’s Sporting Goods,” the report said.

“This surveillance extended beyond criminal suspicion, likely encompassing millions of Americans with conservative viewpoints or Second Amendment interests.”

Led by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the committee said FinCEN characterized these Americans as potential threats and subject to surveillance despite these transactions having no criminal nexus.

Multiple US Agencies to Examine Possible Spy Balloon Found off Alaska Coast: Pentagon

Multiple U.S. agencies will analyze the debris of an unidentified high-altitude balloon recovered in waters near Alaska, according to the Pentagon.

Last week, fishermen found the debris off the coast of Alaska after it flew over the western continental United States.

Pentagon spokesperson Sue Gough said defense officials wouldn’t yet characterize it as a spy balloon but that a number of agencies are looking into it.

“The debris is currently at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, and has been transferred to a DoD facility,” Ms. Gough said in an emailed statement, using the acronym for the Department of Defense.

“We do not know why the balloon was in the waters off the coast of Alaska, nor are we going to characterize it at this time, but hope to learn more about the balloon’s origin and purpose after further analysis of the material, which will be conducted by multiple agencies.”

The Pentagon’s confirmation on March 6 marked the first public acknowledgment that the discovered object was indeed a balloon.

Fishermen came across the debris on March 1. Upon finding the suspicious object, they alerted law enforcement, providing photos that raised concern among local officials, leading them to involve the FBI.

At the time of discovery, the nature of the object was unclear, and officials were uncertain if it was a balloon at all. Nevertheless, the FBI determined that its resemblance to a surveillance balloon owned by a foreign government was significant enough to justify further investigation.

Last month, the U.S. military monitored the balloon’s trajectory across the western United States.

ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT

During the Texas storms?  Really?  Was it a directed energy weapon?  You be the judge!  https://www.bitchute.com/video/gu3G8oLc5dze/  and 

https://www.bitchute.com/video/swOuy4w8SPAG/?list=notifications&randomize=false

GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING

Buying Chicks: 8 Sources + Pro Tips!

If you’re planning to get started with chickens this year, you might be wondering where to buy them. Or maybe you’ve heard that you can buy chicks through the mail or at farm supply stores, and you’re wondering which option is best for you. Well, it depends!

Buying chicks from a hatchery

This is the best all-around option because you have so many choices when it comes to breeds. Many hatcheries have 100 or more breeds from which to choose, so there is bound to be a breed that you’ll love. In reality, there will probably be many breeds that you love!

The downside to buying chicks from a hatchery is that they have minimum order numbers, usually 15 to 25 chicks, depending upon the hatchery and the time of year. This may be more chickens than you want if you only need enough eggs for your family.

Buying chicks locally at your farm supply store

The only reason I chose this as my second best option rather than number one is because the number of breeds available will be much less than if you ordered directly from a hatchery.

For example, at our local store last week, the only pullets available were Buff Orpingtons and Black Australorps. These are two popular choices for egg layers, but if you want more choices, you will either have to check back at the store when their weekly chick order comes in, or go with a different source.The chicks at the store come from the large commercial hatcheries, so all of the benefits of coming from a disease free source still apply, while not having to buy too large of a minimum. 

Buying chickens from a breeder

As with any livestock, chicken breeders run the gamut from amazing to totally disreputable. A breeder of show chickens will definitely be your best choice if you want to start showing chickens. One of my impulse buys at the local farm supply store were some Dominique chicks, which have a rose comb that distinguishes them from the barred Rocks. About half of the chicks wound up with single combs, meaning that they really were not purebred Dominiques.You can find breeders through the directory for the American Poultry Association and The Livestock Conservancy. Many serious breeders have very valuable genetics in their flocks, which means they do disease testing and have biosecurity measures in place to protect their birds.

Buying chickens from other individuals

The following sources are definitely lower on the list when it comes to finding healthy and productive birds. If you are completely new to chickens, I’d suggest one of the above sources.

You don’t know what you don’t know, and you could get lucky and get some wonderful chicks from one of the following sources. Or you could get unlucky and wind up with chickens that have lice or diseases that will limit their productivity and lifespan.

Online classified site

This is my second to last choice for any type of livestock purchase. I have never purchased animals through classi”ed sites and never will. A reputable breeder doesn’t need to resort to such sites. And as a savvy chicken buyer, you know you have better and safer options.

Swap meet or sale barns

This is my absolute least favorite place to purchase any type of livestock. In fact, I have never set foot in a swap meet and never will. Even if the animals arrived healthy and parasite free, they could have picked up a disease or parasites from other animals there.

If someone is petting a chicken with lice, a louse (or more) could wind up on their sleeve, and then they pet another chicken, and the louse hops off onto the previously lice-free chicken.

Swap meets are also a source of income for people who are simply flipping animals like some people flip houses, which is a biosecurity nightmare.

COVID RELATED NEWS

Harvard Ends COVID-19 Shot Mandate

Harvard University has announced that it has ended the COVID-19 shot mandate, walking back on its announcement just weeks earlier that all students needed the shot to register for the fall semester.

The university made the announcement in a post on its website, stating: “Harvard University Health Services will no longer require students to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. We strongly recommend that all members of the Harvard community stay up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccines, including boosters if eligible.”

The website continued: “Additionally, we continue to emphasize the benefits of wearing a high-quality face mask in crowded indoor settings and remaining at home if unwell. HUHS considers state and federal guidance, along with advice from the University’s public health experts, in responding to COVID-19. We will continue to monitor public health data and will periodically review requirements.”

Momentum appears to be shifting against the COVID-19 mandate.

On March 4, Declan O’Scanlon, a Republican senator in New Jersey’s 13th District, called on Rutgers University to be stripped of state funding over its mandate that staff and faculty be forced to take the COVID-19 shot. Mr. O’Scanlon declared that imposing the mandate on students discriminates against the state’s taxpayers by refusing admittance to those who choose not to get the controversial shot.

The number of schools requiring the shot has fallen as the past two years have seen it become mired in controversy. More than 80 percent of Americans took the original COVID-19 shots after officials pledged that they would effectively prevent contraction and stop the spread of the disease.

However, once it was revealed that the shots didn’t work as promised, interest in the subsequent booster decreased dramatically.

CANCEL CULTURE

LEGAL GROUP SAY ‘YES’ VOTE WOULD HAVE “LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES”

Senator Michael McDowell has launched ‘Lawyers for No’ in opposition to the upcoming referendums on article 41.2 of the Constitution and the proposed carers’ amendment.

The group was set up in order to “spread awareness” of the legal consequences of a ‘Yes’ vote passing, with members of the panel at today’s meeting saying there is “vast confusion” among the public about what exactly they are being asked to vote on. 

Senator McDowell heavily criticized the government’s behavior saying that the referendum bills had been pushed through “in a matter of hours”, and without “pre-legislative scrutiny”. He said Minister Roderic O’Gorman’s department’s decision to not publish the minutes of 16 meetings held between interdepartmental groups was “absolutely extraordinary”.

McDowell said the government was in effect saying that it is “in the public interest to keep the public in the dark” on the consequences of the constitutional amendments it is keeping until after votes have been cast. 

Laoise de Brún BL of The Countess said that the ‘Yes’ campaign were relying on people’s ignorance of the legal consequences of ‘Yes’ votes by focusing only on terms that sound “good and progressive” without addressing the “real-world consequences” of removing “the only acknowledgment of the work that women do in the home” and the “value that this contributes to society”. 

Journalist and Barrister, Brenda Power, said the timing of the referendum was “suspect” given that it is scheduled to take place only a matter of weeks before the Supreme Court hears the case of a mother who is the full time carer of her 18-year-old son who has “profound disabilities”.

Power said that the article which the government seeks to delete from the constitution was the basis of this woman’s ability to seek legal redress before the courts after her carers allowance was redacted after her partner’s salary exceeded 45,000 euro per annum. 

Lawyers for No says there is “no truth whatsoever” in “repeated Government statements” that article 41.2 says that “women’s place is in the home” the article “give advantages and no disadvantages” to women. 

The group says that the “proposed amendments to the constitution and their likely effects” contain  “uncertainties and contradictory language” and that the  amendments are “utterly vacuous” in respect of Care.

They say they are “strongly of the view that there is no legal or constitutional argument for acceptance of these amendments” and that they “urge the citizens of Ireland” to vote no to both referendums.