Month: August 2022

A group of Left-SPD lawmakers have had enough of the unprecedented Ukraine arms shipments following on the heels of Berlin boosting its military budget by €100 billion. They’ve sent a letter to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz with the title, “The weapons must be silent!”

Instead of pumping weapons into a hot conflict with a nuclear-armed superpower, the group within Scholz’s own party are demanding the pursuit of a diplomatic negotiations, pushing the Ukrainians to the peace talks table. “The escalation spiral must be stopped,” letter states, urging a “modus vivendi” until a final settlement can be found.

As predicted, Europeans weary of being told to make “sacrifices” in what for them is a somewhat distant conflict on the continent’s eastern periphery will reach a point of saying enough… for some within Scholz previously pacifist Social Democratic Party, that time is now. Yet critics of the letter are already calling it “capitulation” and other denunciations which come close to essentially saying the signatories are ‘traitors’ to the German and European cause while standing up to Russian aggression. 

As spelled out in the letter, the lawmakers not only warn of a German economy plunged into recession and an energy emergency which will hit the common people and the poor especially hard – all for supporting one side of a war that will “have no military victors” – but it could eventually lead to runaway escalation with a nuclear-armed power.

“With every delivery of weapons, it is important to carefully weigh up and consider where the ‘red line’ lies, which could be perceived as entering the war and provoke corresponding reactions,” the SDP lawmakers wrote. 

“NATO or individual Western states must not be part of the war because this will inevitably extend the war to a third party – possibly atomic – world war.”

And addressing the energy crisis and impact on German citizens at home, they wrote:

The war threatens to plunge the world into a recession with rising unemployment. Even now there are far-reaching effects on everyday life, also here in Germany, inflation and tighter emerging energy resources hit the poorest in particular. Therefore we must be war winners have to pay up and tax high incomes more heavily. This not only strengthens the welfare state, but is also a question of justice.

Ein herausragendes Beispiel für unsere Unterstützung der 🇺🇦 ist die Ausbildung der ukrainischen Streitkräfte in #Putlos. Wir liefern 30 dringend benötigte Gepard-Panzer. Die Hälfte davon ist schon da. Ein wichtiger Beitrag für ihren Kampf um die Freiheit der Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/ioRHOGH5VP

— Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz (@Bundeskanzler) August 25, 2022

The SPD group behind the letter includes the following leaders: 

The pacifist wing of the SPD, led by parliament whip Rolf Mützenich, has long been a thorn in the side of Scholz, who is not tired of repeating “Ukraine must not lose” and has ruled out peace by diktat.

Amongst the signatories are two EU parliamentarians of the EU-SPD, Dietmar Köster, Joachim Schuster and Constanze Krehl. Krehl is on the committee for regional development and part of the parliament’s delegation to Belarus.

Given the timing, it seems this is their response to top EU leadership growing louder in urging governments and populations to harden their resolve amid general war-weariness. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in particular has been out front with the public call, telling the AFP this week that Russia’s Vladimir Putin sees “the weariness of the Europeans and the reluctance of their citizens to bear the consequences of support for Ukraine.” Borrell said: “We will have to endure, spread the costs within the EU.”

Critics are piling on with the accusation of “capitulation” and lack of “empathy” and support for the embattled Ukrainians…

Even their own young left wing is saying:

“Kiev is deciding when they want to negotiate with Russia. Demanding from Germany that the guns must be silent is a lack of empathy.”https://t.co/WRD4KXYzpP

— HE IS A LEGEND 🇩🇪🇪🇺🇺🇦 / 🇸🇪♥️ (@alanisalegend) August 26, 2022

Below is the entire letter demanding an end to the Ukraine war, in the most significant public challenge yet to Scholtz hard-charging “Zeitenwende” – premised on the idea that “We all share one goal, Russia must not win this war, Ukraine must prevail.” The English is according to machine translation…

* * *

The guns must be silent!

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has been going on for more than half a year now and has caused immeasurable suffering and destruction. War crimes such as attacks on homes, shopping malls, hospitals, Universities and other civilian institutions are showing the full abomination of Russia’s actions.
Germany and the EU show solidarity with the people of Ukraine. We emphasize Ukraine’s right to self-defense and support political, financial, economic and military measures that contribute to a speedy ceasefire and an end to this war.

We stand by it: NATO or individual Western states must not be part of the war because this will inevitably extend the war to a third party – possibly atomic – world war. The spiral of escalation must be stopped. That’s why it applies to of each shipment of weapons and to consider where the “red line” lies, which be perceived as entering the war and could provoke corresponding reactions. the
Establishment of no-fly zones, the delivery of battle tanks or fighter jets would do this. We stand with those Russians who bravely stand up against the war.

Increasingly Russians want to refuse military service or desert. They refuse to be part of a war that violates international law. You must be granted residency in the EU. The right to conscientious objection is a human right and everyone is entitled to it, including Ukrainians.

Time for diplomacy

This war will have no military victors. A continuation of the war will only be result in more deaths and destruction. We need a ceasefire as soon as possible as a starting point for comprehensive peace negotiations. Therefore, It is the time of diplomacy. The EU and its member states must step up their diplomatic efforts to promote a ceasefire. To do this, the exchange with previously neutral countries such as Indonesia, India or South Africa, but also intensified with China in order to persuade them to act as mediators between the warring parties. The United Nations must also launch new initiatives.

The war threatens to plunge the world into a recession with rising unemployment. Even now
there are far-reaching effects on everyday life, also here in Germany: inflation and tighter
emerging energy resources hit the poorest in particular. Therefore we must be war winners
have to pay up and tax high incomes more heavily. This not only strengthens the welfare state, but is also a question of justice. Far more dramatic are the effects on the countries of Africa. According to the UN World Food Program, 50 million people are on the verge of famine – 750,000 at risk of starvation in some African countries. Also to prevent these famines, the war must be stopped as soon as possible.

The guns must be silent!

Sept 2022

Authored by Andrew Thornebrooke via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The United States’ dependency on China for rare earth elements is a security risk, according to lawmakers and experts, and is being exacerbated by the Biden administration’s forced transition to so-called “green” technologies.

The Biden administration’s top-down push toward renewables requires an enormous growth in the mining of rare earth elements. Currently, the United States relies on the mining and processing powers of China, which has far worse environmental regulations, to achieve many of its needs.

“We’re heavily dependent on foreign adversarial nations,” said Rep. Pete Stauber (R-Minn.) during an Aug. 22 interview with NTD, an affiliate media outlet of The Epoch Times.

“If today, the communist country of China stopped selling us their critical and rare earth minerals, we would be in deep trouble from our national defense to our manufacturing across the globe.”

Rare earth elements are a number of elements with unique characteristics, which have made them vital to new technologies. Critical minerals are those rare earth elements that have no substitute, are limited in supply, or are economically vital.

Stauber’s comments came just weeks after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the United States would try to end its “undue dependence” on rare earths, which it requires to manufacture various technologies from solar panels to electric vehicle batteries to smartphones.

“It’s unfortunate that this administration has put their dependency for both critical minerals and rare earth minerals in the hands of the communist country of China,” Stauber said.

“It’s simply unacceptable when we are we have the critical minerals and a few of the rare earths right here in the United States. This administration just won’t let us mine.”

According to Stauber, the Biden administration lacks the political will to simply mine the needed elements domestically. For example, nickel, copper, and cobalt are all present at extant mining operations in Minnesota. Instead of allowing American companies to mine these, however, the administration is pursuing a policy of “friendshoring,” wherein it merely transfers supply chains for offshored goods from China to more friendly nations such as South Korea.

“We have the best environmental standards, best labor standards, and the opportunity to secure our supply chain dependency and put the destiny of our great nation in the palm of our own hands,” Stauber said.

“It doesn’t have to be this way. We must have an administration that understands the importance of securing our critical minerals and our rare earth minerals. We have to return this country, the United States of America, to mining and mineral dominance. And we can do that, if we have the political will.”

China Weaponizing Rare Earths

Ann Bridges, a Silicon Valley author and policy adviser at the Heartland Institute, said that the fear of China weaponizing its growing power of rare and critical elements was not without precedent.

“In 2010, Japan and China actually had a conflict over rare earths,” Bridges told NTD. “China responded by cutting off Japan’s access to the rare earths which really had an impact on Japan’s manufacturing capabilities.”

The 80% rise in the U.K.’s cap for consumer electricity and natural gas bills this fall will drive millions of households into energy poverty this winter as the worsening cost-of-living crisis stokes fears of recession.  

All the chatter today among British people is energy regulator Ofgem’s rise in the cap on power bills to a record £3,549 ($4,189) beginning Oct. 1 from £1,971 ($2,330) at present. That cap is expected to rise to £5,439 ($6,427) by January and £7,272 ($8,594) by spring — all due to skyrocketing wholesale NatGas and electricity prices caused by declining Russian energy supplies to Europe, made worse by Western sanctions that have backfired. 

“An increase of this much cannot be budgeted for by households with no wiggle room,” said Peter Smith, director of policy and advocacy for the National Energy Action charity. “Come October, low-income households will simply not turn on their heating.”

Reuters spoke to one Brit, Philip Keetley, who said: 

“The cost of living has increased and yet you’re still expected to live on the money provided for when there wasn’t a crisis … I either can have my heating on or eat.” 

Another Brit, Dawn White, who has kidney failure, fears the cost of soaring energy costs means she won’t be able to afford life-saving medical treatment:

“Without my (dialysis) machine five times a week, 20 hours, I will die,” the 59-year-old woman said. 

Soaring energy inflation has crushed real earnings for Brits, forcing many to pull back on spending. 

The higher cap rate could push inflation to even more elevated levels as U.K. economists at Citi warned CPI inflation could reach a mindboggling 18.6% print in January due to soaring energy prices. 

The last time CPI printed above 18% was during the stagflationary years of the mid-1970s (more precisely, 1976) after an oil supply shock led to soaring energy prices worldwide. 

Currently, the CPI stands at 10.1% in July for the first time in four decades, primarily driven by skyrocketing food and fuel prices as households crumble under the weight of the cost of living crisis. 

Inflation at decades highs has pushed U.K. Misery Index, an economic indicator to gauge how the average person is doing, to three-decade highs, a sign discontent is emerging.

“It’s going to be horrendous,” said Bill Bullen, chief executive officer of Utilita Energy Ltd., which supplies 810,000 homes in the U.K. “We are going to see a big increase in people struggling to pay for their energy bills.”

Last winter’s cap was £1,277, but that was before European leaders sanctioned the hell out of Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine. With the cold season just a few short months away, power prices are already at record highs as Russia’s Nord Stream 1 NatGas pipeline to the bloc experiences supply disruptions. 

UK NatGas prices are also hyperinflating. 

This winter could be one of the darkest in decades for U.K. households. The government has provided billions of pounds to support families, but that may not reduce the growing discontent. 

The resistance is growing as more than 116,000 irritated people have pledged not to pay their electricity bill this fall when the new price cap begins, in a movement called “Don’t Pay U.K.” 

“Ofgem just passed a debt and death sentence on millions – we’ve been left with no options but to refuse to pay,” the anonymous group spearheading the effort to have more than one million Brits boycott paying their power bill by Oct. 1. 

🚨 Our call to the country: No one cold or hungry this winter!

🔥 Ofgem just passed a debt and death sentence on millions – we’ve been left with no options but to refuse to pay.

We can’t pay, we won’t pay! Strike! https://t.co/RYOlAVpjfL#DontPayUK #CostOfGreedCrisis pic.twitter.com/h8VhsmIOpo

— Don’t Pay. (@dontpayuk) August 26, 2022

Soaring power bills will have a devastating impact on society, far greater than the GFC over a decade ago, warned James Cooper, a partner at Baringa. He warned:

“We’re now moving into territory where a majority of households are placed into debt or a very fragile financial position.”

A financial implosion of the households will spur discontent in what could be winter from hell across the U.K.

Authored by Mark Bauerlein via The Epoch Times,

Never in my lifetime have so many people been so obsessed with one man.

People despised Nixon; they cheered or reviled Reagan, and they revered or dismissed Obama, but none of those responses comes close to the mania attached to Donald Trump. I mean the hate side, not the adoration. The former feeling and the cult it spawns dwarfs the latter. Liberals mock the idol worship they find among Trump’s supporters, but while Trumpists smile and cheer and vote for the man, liberals abhor him with a passion three times as fierce. It’s visceral, fanatical, knee-jerk. If nearly the entire psychology profession didn’t suffer from the condition to greater or lesser degrees, it would be a likely subject for diagnosis, particularly given the unself-conscious way in which the victims of Trump Derangement Syndrome act out their animus. 

It doesn’t occur to the diseased ones to ask why they can’t get the Orange-Haired Man out of their heads. They hate him; they loathe him; they fear him . . . We get it nonstop; we hear them; they can’t stop saying so. But the expression doesn’t bring them any relief—not that we can see. Their exasperation only grows and sputters. Voicing what one feels deep inside is supposed to ease the feeling, to externalize it and let the anger, love, bitterness, joy, etc. flow, not be dammed up within. One of Freud’s patients called it “the Talking Cure,” when he asked her to speak, just speak of anything that pops into her mind, and she and other patients found that they did feel a little better once the session concluded.

But those with TDS don’t. He lingers in their heads. Like a bad penny, he won’t go away. Nothing that has happened has “disappeared” him. Jeb Bush couldn’t beat him, nor could Hillary, the Mueller Team, Avenatti and Stormy, Vindman and House Democrats, or The Washington Post, NPR, and MSNBC. Not even the 2020 defeat, January 6th, and Liz Cheney’s hearings have removed him from the body politic. If anything, the Mar-a-Lago raid will only ensure his continuance. Martyrs have sticking power. The prospect of Trump 2024 appears ever more likely, and if the inconceivable happened once (November 2016), it can happen again. 

If Trumpist candidates for Congress do well in the midterms, the agony will only intensify. The media’s reaction as the results of that dark day six years ago unfolded was shock and incredulity.  This time, if Republicans take the House and lots of Trumpy types prevail, we will see a different reaction. Liberal elites now know that “it can happen here,” which leads them past incredulity and toward resolve.

He must be stopped! He and his enablers are demons, cretins, bigots, and monsters. They are not fellow citizens and ordinary Americans. They are something else—odd, frightening, unenlightened, vandals, and barbarians. I have seen liberals of sterling egalitarian profile speak of the ones who go to Trump rallies in terms one usually reserves for bugs in the woodwork. Now, in 2022, liberals and progressives and Never Trumpers believe they have tolerated these dunces and villains long enough. They’re out of patience. No more generosity, no more pluralism.

Hence, it’s OK with them to withhold from Trump the rights of free speech, due process, innocence-until-proven-guilty. It is downright extraordinary to see how liberals have flipped on principle now that Trump and his backers have persisted. The intelligence agencies liberals used to suspect and decry earn liberal praise when they target the ex-president. Traditional liberal sympathy with the working class dissipates when Trump wins the lion’s share of that voting bloc. Liberals flatter themselves as cosmopolitical and nonjudgmental, able to mingle with diverse others, jumping from culture to subculture with relaxed facility. But put them amidst a group of MAGA souls and the blood pressure rises—they can’t converse, and any escape route will do.

It would be laughable if not for the power of the cancel. Irrationality rightly gets shuttled off for professional help, but when college students stomp into their president’s office irate at an essay a professor wrote against woke activism, and the president bows and commiserates, the tantrum worked. When a corporate chain bends to a few Twitter posts demanding that produce be withdrawn from its shelves because it’s offensive to the posters, the spirit of the First Amendment is broken.

Donald Trump is the ultimate rationale for this abandonment of American tolerance. Liberals have made him into the embodiment of all the social evils of racism, nativism, etc. He’s done them a favor, offering them a concrete focus for resentments and worries otherwise hazy and fluctuating. Anxiety lessens when it can find an object. It wants to attach to something, and the attachment eases the uncertainty. Trump gives them psychological relief even as they huff and puff at the sound of his voice.

Which means that liberals don’t want to give him up. Every day we watch the obsession continue, the conversation eventually turning to Orange-Man-Bad whether the topic be Biden, Russia, gas prices, or COVID.  No person, no thing, and no event in living memory has so unified and mobilized liberals and their institutions—not even 9/11. That attack 21 years ago produced ample debate and divisions on both sides—on the right and the left (for example, Bush conservatives vs. Pat Buchanan conservatives). This time, however, with Trump, there is no debate on the left, no dissenting voices. In their eyes, he is beyond discussion, outside the world of ideas and policy. The Overton Window doesn’t include him. To witness him still in the public sphere, drawing crowds to his rallies and endorsing candidates who proceed to win, is infuriating. They love to hate him, but the hate nonetheless takes a toll on their hearts. They know they’re being illiberal, and so they have to cast him as a demon to justify it.

Don’t expect liberals to resolve this dilemma before November. The pain will only get worse—especially if Trump candidates poll well. Smart populist conservatives such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis aggravate the problem. He spotlights liberal illiberalism and moves forward to squelch it. His popularity, along with Trump’s, widens the public square to include them both, which means that liberals must address them as a political force, not a demonic one. I just read a Tweet from former-Clinton cabinet member Robert Reich calling DeSantis a fascist, but the charge has no force. Liberal outrage is spent. The rabid indignation gets chuckles from everyone except the True Believers, the ones who cling to their outrage as a psychological crutch. That will bring on more manic behavior, more delusion on the left.  Be ready for it.

Australian police found a record 1.8 metric tons (2 tons) of methamphetamine concealed inside marble slabs from the Middle East in the country’s largest seizure of illicit drugs. 

New South Wales Police said three men aged 24, 26, and 34 — have been arrested and charged in connection with 748 kilograms (1,649 pounds) of meth that arrived at Port Botany (a suburb in south-eastern Sydney) in 24 sea containers earlier this month. 

Another 1,060 kilograms (2,337 pounds) of meth encased in marble stone arrived in 19 containers at the same port last week. The drugs were all shipped from the United Arab Emirates. 

Police said in total, 1,800 kilograms (4,000 pounds) of meth were seized with an estimated street value of approximately 1.6 billion AUD ($1.1 billion). They said this was the “largest detection of the drug” ever to be seized as part of ongoing investigations by the Drug and Firearms Squad. 

Police Detective Chief Supt. John Watson said this criminal drug organization “was extremely well connected in several corners of the globe.”

“The fact that we have seized a further tonne – potentially ten million street deals – of this insidious drug just shows how little regard these types of groups have for the wellbeing of the community.

“Combined with the seizure from earlier this month, NSW Police and ABF officers have stopped more than 1.8 tonnes of ‘ice’ at the border – this is now the largest’ ice’ bust in Australian history.

“It’s once again proof that through the collaboration of all our partner law enforcement agencies, we will continue to stop this dangerous drug from hitting our streets,” Watson said. 

Australian Border Force Assistant Commissioner Erin Dale said, “the audacity of these individuals to think they could import such vast quantities of harmful drugs into Australia is astounding … this is the largest seizure of meth at the Australian border and therefore a massive blow to organized criminals.” 

Australia’s previous record meth bust was 1.6 metric tons (1.8 tons) in Melbourne from Bangkok in April 2019. 

Meth is a huge issue in the land Down Under. The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s (ACIC) most recent report found meth consumption in the country was the highest per capita compared with countries in Europe, Asia, and Oceania. 

ACIC determined Perth, the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia, has the most meth use among rural Australians. 

While alcohol and nicotine are the most popular substances, meth is Australia’s most popular illicit drug.