EU To Seize On Xi, Putin Absence At G20 To Woo Africa Closer
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s absence from the upcoming G20 Summit in New Delhi likely has a number of Western heads of state breathing a sigh of relief, given some sensitive agendas could more easily gain consensus in their absence.
China’s new premier, Li Qiang, is taking Xi’s place, while Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is representing Russia. EU officials will reportedly move to endorse the African Union’s bid to become a permanent member of Group of 20, while presenting themselves as the more stable path forward when it comes to Africa investment and engagement.
Bloomberg has reported that this will be the goal of a high-level meeting with African leaders on the summit’s sidelines. This comes at a very sensitive moment for Europe given the coup events in Niger.
More broadly, the past years have witnessed a series of junta governments come to power voicing anti-colonial sentiment, aimed particularly at France.
Russia and China have at the same time made deep inroads across the continent, offering investment, infrastructure and security agreements as a favorable alternative to “Western hegemony”. Bloomberg details based on diplomatic sources:
Among those due to take part are European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. From the African side, participants will include leaders from G-20 member South Africa as well as from Egypt, Nigeria and the Comoros, current chair of the African Union, the people said.
What’s being billed as a “mini-summit” takes place as competition intensifies for global influence amid a US-China standoff and divisions over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
If it goes through, this would result in the African Union having the same status as the EU (of “permanent membership”, rather than merely “invited international organization”).
Bloomberg further says that G20 summit host PM Narendra Modi is behind the plan:
Among the goals of their meeting in India on Sept. 9, European leaders want to endorse the African Union’s bid to become a permanent G-20 member, according to the people. Giorgia Meloni of Italy was among those leading on the AU’s G-20 membership at the last G-7 in Japan, while it is also a priority of this week’s summit host, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
But lest this be seen simplistically an ‘east vs. west’ issue, Russia in June said it backs the AU becoming a permanent part of the G20. Lavrov specifically said it has the “active backing” of Moscow.
Of course, this entails contrasting visions for the path of African states, given also President Putin has recently said Russia and Africa are going to “combat neo-colonialism, the practice of applying illegitimate sanctions, and attempts to undermine traditional moral values,” according to Russian media. But at least for this year’s G20, the West will have the upper-hand of engagement given their heads of state, including President Joe Biden, will be there, but not Xi or Putin… a first in a long time.
Can you imagine what tourists must think when they come to this country?
They spend a lot of money to fly all the way over here, and they are hoping to have amazing experiences that they will always remember. But instead, they quickly realize that the cities that they have come to see are rapidly degenerating. Today, our major cities are filthy, they are teeming with predators, and violent crime is completely out of control.
Let me give you an example of what I am talking about. New York City is the financial capital of the world, and millions of tourists still visit each year. But now the Big Apple has such an enormous rat problem “that rat tourism is fast becoming a boom industry”…
As the city grapples with a major rat problem – sightings doubled last year, prompting the mayor to advertise for a “somewhat bloodthirsty” head rat-catcher in December – the rodent issue is, according to some, New York’s latest must-experience trend.
As visitors to New York demand rat action, some of the city’s tour guides have started to add stops at notoriously infested sites, the New York Post reported this week.
It means that rat tourism is fast becoming a boom industry.
And with each passing day, the population grows even larger.
The east coast may have rats, but if you want to really have an experience with the crime wave that is sweeping across America the best place to do that is the west coast.
Some tourists from Malta recently found that out the hard way.
When they visited a beach in the San Francisco area, they had all of their possessions stolen from their vehicles within just 10 minutes…
Numerous groups of tourists visiting a beach in San Francisco had all their belongings stolen from their cars, including their passports, while at the ocean for just minutes.
On their second day in San Francisco, a group of tourists from Malta contemplated cutting their trip short and returning to Europe after the brazen smash and grab that occurred in broad daylight within a mere 10-minute window.
At the same beach, another European family enjoying a day by the ocean fell prey to a car break-in.
Shocking footage captured by Matty Lopez on Instagram and shared by journalist Arisley T. Pacheco, who documents robbery victims, revealed their car’s trunk vandalized, with shattered glass scattered across the ground.
The man recording the video questions the tourists, ‘So what happened – you went to the beach for five minutes?’ Their response is disheartening: ‘They took everything we had – passports, cameras, phones, iPads, laptops, luggage – everything.’
Whether we like it or not, this is our country now.
Once upon a time, Beverly Hills was world famous for the luxury retailers that lined Wilshire Boulevard.
A new video documenting the growing number of high-profile stores in Beverly Hills that have closed recently, places renewed emphasis on the crisis facing the retail sector in most major cities.
The video, posted by an account called cody90210, shows some 11 popular Beverly Hills retail stops now entirely shuttered, including the iconic former Barneys location, Brooks Brothers, All Saints, and the high-end women’s fashion boutique Escada. Both Escada and Barneys filed for bankruptcy in recent years.
The closed shops, which also include convenience retailers like Rite Aid and Chipotle, and even popular workout class option SoulCycle, have shuttered their doors on Wilshire Boulevard, leaving the area bereft of its former appeal. Their sad decline marks a departure from the area’s lengthy heyday, which even saw band Weezer pen a song with the lyrics ‘Beverly Hills, that’s where I want to be.’
I don’t know why anyone would want to live in southern California at this point.
A group of masked males brutally attacked a street vendor in front of his 8-year-old special needs daughter and stole all his money in south Los Angeles over the weekend, KTLA-TV reported.
These criminals have no respect for anyone or anything.
They just want to take what you have.
Of course this isn’t just a west coast phenomenon. In Washington D.C., carjackings are up more than 100 percent so far this year…
Washington D.C. has witnessed a staggering 670 reported carjackings in 2023 so far, representing 100 percent+ increase in the offense across the U.S. Capitol compared to the same period last year. The city’s Democrat-dominated city council, however, remains on vacation until September 15 and has shown no signs of trying to return early to solve the matter. In 2018, there were 140 carjackings, jumping to 360 by 2020, with total of 485 in 2022. The city has also seen a 113 percent increase in carjackings involving a firearm compared to 2022. A total of 513 incidents involved a gun, representing 77 percent of all D.C. carjackings. Only 157 incidents did not involve a firearm.
Things are even worse in Baltimore.
One young mother in the city that recently spoke to FOX45 News is deeply frustrated because she can’t seem to find a way to keep her 14-year-old daughter from stealing cars…
As another school year begins, a Baltimore mom isn’t scheduling after-school activities for her 14-year-old daughter; instead, she’s scheduling court appearances and trying to figure out what – if anything – will get her daughter to stop stealing cars and follow the rules of her home detention.
Rae spoke with FOX45 News about her 14-year-old daughter on the condition of not using her last name or showing her face on camera. In return, Rae spoke candidly about her daughter’s behavior, experience with police, and the Department of Juvenile Services.
Apparently this 14-year-old girl is really good at stealing vehicles, and authorities refuse to keep her locked up because she is not an adult.
Hopefully she will find a way to turn her life around.
But the reality of the matter is that there are millions of others just like her.
Our cities are being overwhelmed by hordes of young people that are totally out of control, and meanwhile police departments are shrinking.
America is in the midst of a police officer shortage that many in law enforcement blame on the two-fold morale hit of 2020 — the coronavirus pandemic and criticism of police that boiled over with the murder of George Floyd by a police officer. From Minnesota to Maine, Ohio to Texas, small towns unable to fill jobs are eliminating their police departments and turning over police work to their county sheriff, a neighboring town or state police.
What is going to happen if the number of police continues to shrink but the number of criminals continues to rise?
I think that we all know the answer to that question.
Our society has been trending the wrong way for a long time, and now we have reached a major tipping point.
* * *
Michael’s new book entitled “End Times” is now available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can check out his new Substack newsletter right here.
“Betrayed Customer Base”: Backlash Erupts After Gun Safe Company Gives FBI Customer’s Passcode
Liberty Safe, one of the leading gun safe manufacturers in the country, provided FBI agents with the combination of a safe belonging to an individual who attended the J6 protest, according to the Washington Examiner. This sparked instant backlash on social media among conservatives, calling for a ‘Bud Light-style’ boycott of the ‘not so safe’ company.
Days ago, conservative comedians and YouTubers Keith and Kevin Hodge shared a lengthy post on X about a friend whom the Feds raided over “crimes related to January 6th.” They said the FBI could access his Liberty Gun Safe because agents called the manufacturer for the passcode.
🚨 Last week, a friend of ours was raided by the feds over J6, his name is Nathan Hughes and he’s from Fayetteville, Arkansas. Nate was raided by the FBI and arrested at gun point. His girlfriend (who just had a miscarriage) was held at gun point and put in handcuffs. The FBI… pic.twitter.com/LOpMQ28eUJ
Liberty Safe stated on platform X, “Our company’s standard procedure is to share access codes with law enforcement when presented with a legitimate warrant for a property.”
The statement continued, “After receiving the request, we received proof of the valid warrant, and only then did we provide them with an access code.”
Totally betrayed customer base. It’s impossible to earn back that trust. They had a moral duty to protect customers, and instead placated feds through a secret back door. Ugly, ugly stuff. https://t.co/xUtoH2IiaZ
— Jordan Schachtel @ dossier.today (@JordanSchachtel) September 6, 2023
And one more thing: absent a court order, you weren’t required to give them anything. You voluntarily gave out a combination over a warrant, per your own release, that didn’t apply to you or your property.
The Texas Senate chamber was turned into a courtroom for the historic impeachment trial of state Attorney General Ken Paxton, which kicked off Tuesday morning at the state Capitol in Austin, Texas.
After the swearing-in of the 30 senators who will decide whether or not to remove Mr. Paxton from office, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick began ticking off the pretrial motions before hearing opening statements.
Mr. Paxton was impeached on 20 articles in late May by the GOP-led House of Representatives in a vote of 121–23. He is only the third sitting official to be impeached in the state’s nearly 200-year history. The last impeachment case was more than a century ago.
The articles of impeachment include allegations of abuse of power and bribery, among others. Mr. Paxton and his lawyers have maintained that all of the accusations are false.
The suspended attorney general is known as one of the most conservative lawmakers in the state of Texas. He has filed more than two dozen lawsuits against the Biden administration since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021.
Dozens of Paxton supporters wearing red shirts showed up to witness the proceedings.
Pretrial Motions
The first half of the day was spent handling dozens of pretrial motions to dismiss the articles of impeachment, exclude certain evidence, and other matters as filed by Mr. Paxton’s legal team—all were denied.
A simple majority, 16 of the 30 voting members, was needed to approve each of the motions. The most support Mr. Paxton received was 10 votes of 30 to dismiss one article. Many of the motions only garnered six to eight votes in Mr. Paxton’s favor.
Mr. Paxton’s wife, Sen. Angela Paxton, watched from her Senate seat as the proceedings against her husband began. She is barred from voting or participating in the trial, according to the rules approved earlier this summer.
Of the Senate Republicans, only six voted in support of Paxton to dismiss every article. They were Sens. Paul Bettencourt, Donna Campbell, Brandon Creighton, Bob Hall, Lois Kolkhorst, and Tan Parker.
Five other Republicans voted to dismiss at least one of the motions: Sens. Bryan Hughes, Charles Perry, Charles Schwertner, and Kevin Sparks.
The remaining Republicans, Sens. Brian Birdwell, Pete Flores, Kelly Hancock, Joan Huffman, Mayes Middleton, Robert Nichols, and Drew Springer, voted against every motion alongside the 12 Senate Democrats.
In a summary judgment, Mr. Paxton’s attorneys argued that all of the impeachment articles lacked supporting evidence and, therefore, should be dismissed.
The senators denied the first motion to dismiss all 20 articles in a vote of 24–6.
In a win for Mr. Paxton, he was granted a request to preclude him from testifying, citing a defendent’s right not to be called as a witness in a criminal trial.
“The attorney general cannot be compelled to testify,” Mr. Patrick stated, adding that the decision is “consistent with the reasoning and judgment” of the United States Supreme Court.
Mr. Patrick also laid out the timing for the trial. Each side will be allowed one hour for opening and closing statements and 24 hours for each side to present evidence, questioning, and cross-examination of witnesses. The trial is expected to last about two weeks.
House Rep. Andrew Murr presented the opening statements for House impeachment managers who say Mr. Paxton should be removed from office despite being re-elected to a third term in November.
House impeachment managers have accused Mr. Paxton of using his position to protect real estate investor Nate Paul, who they claim had the “keys” to the attorney general’s office.
They allege Mr. Paul helped Mr. Paxton cover up an extramarital affair and paid for a home renovation in exchange for the attorney general’s legal help.
“Voters did not know the whole truth.” Mr. Murr said. “Mr. Paxton went to great lengths to hide his misconduct from the public.”
Mr. Murr spent less than 20 minutes citing impeachable actions that included accusations that Mr. Paxton used burner phones, “ditched” his security detail, and set up secret email addresses to cover up his alleged misconduct.
He claims the evidence will show Mr. Paxton’s “slow creep of corruption,” adding that the attorney general’s conduct does not have to be proven criminal for him to be removed from office.
“We don’t have to show some type of quid pro quo to establish that his conduct warrants impeachment,” Mr. Murr said. “Wrongs justifying impeachment don’t have to be crimes. Wrongs justifying the impeachment are broader than that because they have the purpose of protecting the state, not punishing the offender.”
Opening Statements for Paxton
High-profile Houston attorney Tony Buzbee called the entire case a “whole lot of nothing” supported by no evidence.
Mr. Buzbee and defense attorney Dan Cogdell used nearly their full hour pushing back against the accusations they say will be disproven beyond a reasonable doubt.
They accused the media of fueling the falsehoods against their client and said the gag order issued by Mr. Patrick prevented them from responding to the “manufactured lies” leveled against their client.
Now, the House wants 30 people to decide whether Mr. Paxton is allowed to serve his office despite the more than 4.2 million who re-elected him less than a year ago. Mr. Buzbee said.
Mr. Buzbee pointed out the speedy impeachment process that occurred four days after Mr. Paxton called for House Speaker Dade Phelan’s resignation over accusations of drunkenness while presiding on the floor.
The lawyer also pushed back against accusations that Mr. Paul gave a job to the woman Mr. Paxton allegedly was having an affair with, adding that they would present the woman’s job application, employee contract, and paystubs to disprove the allegations of bribery. He said the woman was hired to do real work and that she is still employed in that position.
“You’re going to see her face,” Mr. Buzbee said. “You’re going to hear about the work that she did. And you’re also going to hear that she continues to do that work today. She’s doing real work.”
He said the accusations of burner phones, secret email addresses, and other actions are false.
Mr. Buzbee said his team will present evidence that the Paxtons paid for the repairs to their home after it sustained water damage. He said the chatter of $20,000 granite countertops is completely untrue, adding that the home still has “ratty” countertops after the couple shopped for new countertops but ultimately decided against them due to costs.
House impeachment managers also accused the attorney general of hiring Brandon Cammack, a Houston lawyer, to investigate Mr. Paul’s “baseless complaint” that his home and businesses were improperly searched by federal officials. Mr. Buzbee said Mr. Paxton was within his rights to hire the outside lawyer.
After wrapping up the opening statements, House impeachment managers called their first witness, Jeff Mateer. Mr. Mateer was second-in-command in Mr. Paxton’s office prior to his resignation in 2020, following his meeting with the FBI regarding the relationship between Mr. Paxton and Mr. Paul.
In what’ll likely come as a welcome relief to the city of Philadelphia, its police commissioner Danielle Outlaw – who has overseen years of surging crime, property destruction and violent attacks in the Northeast city – has had enough and is stepping down.
She’s leaving her role in Philadelphia for “a new job with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey”, according to Fox News.
After overseeing a massive crime wave in Philadelphia, Mayor Jim Kenney praised her work in the city, focusing not on the merits of her work (of which there are few), but her “reform” of “racism and gender discrimination”, stating: “Commissioner Outlaw has worked relentlessly for three and a half years during an unprecedented era in our city and a number of crisis situations, and she deserves praise for her commitment to bring long-overdue reform to the Department after years of racism and gender discrimination prior to her appointment.”
And why not focus on the merits of her work? Fox News broke it down:
Crime data from the Philadelphia Police Department shows there has been a 21% drop in homicides this year to date compared to the same day in 2021, when the city recorded 562 homicides throughout the year.
But prior to Outlaw leading the department, the data shows Philadelphia annually recorded between 246 to 391 homicides each year between 2007 and 2019.
In 2020, when she took over, there were 499 homicides, followed by 562 in 2021 and 516 in 2022.
Her last day will be September 22, and she will then become Deputy Chief Security Officer at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Outlaw, formerly the police chief of Portland during a time of “mass political protests”, was appointed to lead Philadelphia’s police at just 43 years old by Democratic Mayor Jim Kenney. “While I am new to Philadelphia, I am not new to the challenges of big-city, 21st century policing,” she said upon her appointment.
“I am appointing Danielle Outlaw because I am convinced she has the conviction, courage, and compassion needed to bring long-overdue reform to the Department,” Kenney had said at the time.
He continued: “With our support, she will tackle a host of difficult issues, from racism and gender discrimination, to horrid instances of sexual assault on fellow officers. These are issues that too often negatively impact women — especially women of color — within the Department. Commissioner Outlaw will implement reforms with urgency, so that racial, ethnic, and gender discrimination are not tolerated.”
It doesn’t seem like any public officials are actually interested in their jobs in Philadelphia – perhaps, rather, just collecting their pensions. Recall in 2022 we wrote when Mayor Kenney said he was “looking forward to the time he will no longer lead the city”.
When being interviewed by Fox 29’s Chris O’Connell, Kenney let it slip that he’s looking forward to no longer being mayor: “Everything we have in the city, over the last seven years, I worry about. I don’t enjoy the Fourth of July, I don’t enjoy the Democratic National Convention, I didn’t enjoy the NFL Draft. I’m waiting for something bad to happen all the time. I’ll be happy when I’m not here – when I’m not mayor and I can enjoy some stuff.”
That’s how much the additional electricity consumption per household would be if the average US home adopted electric vehicles (EVs).
Congressman Thomas Massie – an electrical engineer – revealed this information while discussing with Pete Buttigieg, the Secretary of Transportation, President Biden’s plan to have 50% of cars sold in the US be electric by 2030.
The current and future grid in most places will not be able to support each home running 25 refrigerators—not even close. Just look at California, where the grid is already buckling under the existing load.
Massie claims, correctly, in my view, that the notion of widespread adoption of electric vehicles anytime soon is a dangerous fantasy based on political science, not sound engineering.
Nonetheless, governments, the media, academia, large corporations, and celebrities tout an imminent “transition” to EVs as if it’s preordained from above.
It’s not.
They’re trying to manufacture your consent for a scam of almost unimaginable proportions.
Below are three reasons why something sinister is going on with the big push for EVs.
But first, a necessary clarification.
You no doubt have heard of the term “fossil fuels” before.
When the average person hears “fossil fuels,” they think of a dirty technology that belongs in the 1800s. Many believe they are burning dead dinosaurs to power their cars.
They also think “fossil fuels” will destroy the planet within a decade and run out soon—despite the fact that, after water, oil is the second most abundant liquid on this planet.
None of these ridiculous notions are true, but many people believe them. Using propaganda terms like “fossil fuels” plays a large role.
Orwell was correct when he said that corrupting the language can corrupt people’s thoughts.
I suggest expunging “fossil fuels” from your vocabulary in favor of hydrocarbons—a much better and more precise word.
A hydrocarbon is a molecule made up of carbon and hydrogen atoms. These molecules are the building blocks of many different substances, including energy sources like coal, oil, and gas. These energy sources have been the backbone of the global economy for decades, providing power for industries, transportation, and homes.
Now, on to the three reasons EVs are a giant scam at best and possibly something much worse.
Reason #1: EVs Are Not Green
The central premise for EVs is they help to save the planet from carbon because they use electricity instead of gas.
It’s astounding so few think to ask, what generates the electricity that powers EVs?
Hydrocarbons generate over 60% of the electricity in the US. That means there’s an excellent chance that oil, coal, or gas is behind the electricity charging an EV.
It’s important to emphasize carbon is an essential element for life on this planet. It’s what humans exhale and what plants need to survive.
After decades of propaganda, Malthusian hysterics have created a twisted perception in many people’s minds that carbon is a dangerous substance that must be reduced to save the planet.
Let’s entertain this bogus premise momentarily and assume carbon is bad.
Even by this logic, EVs do not really reduce carbon emissions; they just rearrange them.
Further, extracting and processing the exotic materials needed to make EVs requires tremendous power in remote locations, which only hydrocarbons can provide.
Additionally, EVs require an enormous amount of rare elements and metals—like lithium and cobalt—that companies mine in conditions that couldn’t remotely be considered friendly to the environment.
Analysts estimate that each EV requires around one kilogram of rare earth elements. Extracting and processing these rare elements produces a massive amount of toxic waste. That’s why it mainly occurs in China, which doesn’t care much about environmental concerns.
In short, the notion that EVs are green is laughable.
It’s simply the thin patina of propaganda that governments need as a pretext to justify the astronomical taxpayer subsidies for EVs.
Reason #2: EVs Can’t Compete Without Government Support
For many years, governments have heavily subsidized EVs through rebates, sales tax exemptions, loans, grants, tax credits, and other means.
According to the Wall Street Journal, US taxpayers will subsidize EVs by at least $393 billion in the coming years—more than the GDP of Hong Kong.
To put that in perspective, if you earned $1 a second 24/7/365—about $31 million per year—it would take you over 12,677 YEARS to make $393 billion.
And that’s not even considering the immense subsidies and government support that have occurred in the past.
Furthermore, governments impose burdensome regulations and taxes on gasoline vehicles to make EVs seem relatively more attractive.
Even with this enormous government support, EVs can barely compete with gasoline vehicles.
According to J.D. Power, a consumer research firm, the average EV still costs at least 21% more than the average gasoline vehicle.
Without government support, it’s not hard to see how the market for EVs would evaporate as they would become unaffordable for the vast majority of people.
In other words, the EV market is a giant mirage artificially propped up by extensive government intervention.
It begs the question, why are governments going all out to push an obviously uneconomic scam?
While they are undoubtedly corrupt thieves and simply stupid, something more nefarious could also be at play.
Reason #3: EVs Are About Controlling You
EVs are spying machines.
They collect an unimaginable amount of data on you, which governments can access easily.
Analysts estimate that cars generate about 25 gigabytes of data every hour.
Seeing how governments could integrate EVs into a larger high-tech control grid doesn’t take much imagination. The potential for busybodies—or worse—to abuse such a system is obvious.
Consider this.
The last thing any government wants is an incident like what happened with the Canadian truckers rebelling against vaccine mandates.
Had the Canadian truckers’ vehicles been EVs, the government would have been able to stamp out the resistance much easier.
Here’s the bottom line.
The people really in charge do not want the average person to have genuine freedom of movement or access to independent power sources.
They want to know everything, keep you dependent, and have the ability to control everything, just like how a farmer would with his cattle. They think of you in similar terms.
That’s why gasoline vehicles have to go and why they are trying to herd us into EVs.
Conclusion
To summarize, EVs are not green, cannot compete with gas cars without enormous government support, and are probably a crucial piece of the emerging high-tech control grid.
The solution is simple: eliminate all government subsidies and support and let EVs compete on their own merits in a totally free market.
But that’s unlikely to happen.
Instead, it’s only prudent to expect them to push EVs harder and harder.
If EVs were simply government-subsidized status symbols for wealthy liberals who want to virtue signal how they think they’re saving the planet, that would be bad enough.
But chances are, the big push for EVs represents something much worse.
Along with 15-minute cities, carbon credits, CBDCs, digital IDs, phasing out hydrocarbons and meat, vaccine passports, an ESG social credit system, and the war on farmers, EVs are likely an integral part of the Great Reset—the dystopian future the global elite has envisioned for mankind.
In reality, the so-called Great Reset is a high-tech form of feudalism.
Sadly, most of humanity has no idea what is coming.
Worse, many have become unwitting foot soldiers for this agenda because they have been gaslighted into believing they are saving the planet or acting for the greater good.
This trend is already in motion… and the coming weeks will be pivotal.
That’s precisely why I just released an urgent report on where this is all headed and what you can do about it… including three strategies everyone needs today. Click here to download the PDF now.
Murder & Drug Chaos Forces Lockdown Of Entire Texas Prison System
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) declared a statewide lockdown of all its correctional facilities on Wednesday morning, citing increased contraband-related incidents and drug-related inmate homicides.
TDCJ said most inmate-on-inmate homicides “are tied back to illegal drugs … and over the last five years, the volume of illegal narcotics entering the system has substantially increased.”
In response to the drug and murder epidemic in Texas jails, TDCJ is implementing the following strategies to restore order:
Systemwide Lockdown: Each facility will limit the movement of inmates and their contact with those outside the prison. Inmates and staff will undergo intensified searches to intercept and confiscate contraband.
Digital Mail: TDCJ is completing the rollout of the digital mail program. Over the last few years, there has been a significant increase in paper soaked in K2 or methamphetamines coming into our facilities. The digital mail program will halt this contraband being sent through traditional mail. Effective September 6, 2023, all inmate mail should be addressed and sent to the Digital Mail Center. All mail received this week will be delivered to the digital mail processing center. More information about this program can be found here: TDCJ News – TDCJ Digital Mail Rollout.
Increased K9 Searches and Other Technology: To assist in contraband detection and outside funding related to contraband, TDCJ will be deploying additional resources. Specialized search teams and narcotic dogs will be deployed to units and staff will be subject to enhanced search procedures.
Comprehensive Searches: All persons entering our facilities at all locations will undergo comprehensive searches.
“Due to the fact staff will be concentrating on these search efforts, visitation will be canceled until further notice. Inmates will still have access to the phone system and tablets,” TDCJ said.
#TDCJ is taking swift & immediate action to address a rise in dangerous contraband & drug-related inmate homicides. The agency is implementing an immediate lockdown & comprehensive search of all correctional facilities within TDCJ. For more info, visit: https://t.co/E4ufaah3s2pic.twitter.com/3YPwo1aRBH
A California school district that was sued over allegations teachers and staff at Buena Vista Middle School in Salinas, Calif., coached an 11-year-old girl to socially transition to a male gender identity settled with the girl and her mother for $100,000.
The lawsuit, filed on June 14 last year, named Spreckels Union School District, the principal at the school, and two teachers as defendants.
Jessica Konen, the child’s mother, came forward after a leaked audio recording revealed the two teachers telling other educators about how they secretly recruited students into the school’s LGBT club at a California Teachers Association weekend conference in Palm Springs in October 2021. The CTA event was billed as the “2021 LGBTQ+ Issues Conference, Beyond the Binary: Identity & Imagining Possibilities.” The two teachers were later suspended and no longer work in the district.
Ms. Konen told The Epoch Times she’s relieved that a settlement has finally been reached.
“It’s a massive victory across America for myself, for my daughter, and for other parents experiencing similar situations,” she said. “Our voices made a difference.”
While she is grateful to the Center for American Liberty for taking on the pro-bono case, she said the battle for parental rights has only begun.
“I just feel social transitioning done in secrecy is the real evil. We need to get rid of it, period. So, the fight must continue,” she said.
Her daughter, Alicia Konen, who is now 16, echoed her mom’s sentiments, saying she’s ready to put the experience, which she described as “evil” and “horrible,” behind her.
According to the Center for American Liberty and allegations in the lawsuit, Alicia was recruited to join an “Equality Club,” where she was taught about bisexuality, transgender identities, and other LGBT concepts when she was in the sixth grade.
Alicia began to use a male name and pronouns and wore a chest binder under boy’s clothes.
School staff finally called a meeting the last day before winter break during Alicia’s seventh grade year and demanded that Ms. Konen refer to her daughter by a male name and male pronouns, she said.
“I was definitely intimidated,” she said.
Ms. Konen recalls feeling awkward and stressed when she was tagging Alicia’s Christmas gifts.
She wanted to be supportive to her daughter but wasn’t ready to call her by a male name and pronouns, so she wrote “Baby” and “Sweetheart” instead.
“I was an emotional wreck trying to process everything. I was scared to mess up or to use the wrong pronouns,” she said. “I never used the male pronouns, and I never used the name.”
Ms. Konen warned parents to “be vigilant,” talk to teachers, and pay attention to what’s happening at local school board meetings.
“Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to show your values and your opinions,” she said.
She also urged parents to get more engaged in their children’s lives.
“We need to fight for our kids, because if we don’t fight for our kids, they’ll fight for our kids,” she said. “Be close to your child, because somebody wants to get closer.”
‘I Wanted to Tell My Mom’
Alicia’s social gender transition began when she went to see a school counselor because she was feeling depressed, she told The Epoch Times.
“I was told by the counselor—it was brought up that I was sad because I wasn’t who I was supposed to be, and that’s kind of where it all started,” she said.
Alicia was “pulled away” from her schoolwork, and the counselor who she said was working with the school to “socially transition kids,” put her on a Gender Support Plan, known as a GSP, which required school staff to use a male name and pronouns when referring to her, and to allow her to use the unisex teachers’ restroom instead of the girl’s facilities.
“I was advised by the school not to tell my mom, and I was given articles on how to hide a social transition from my mom,” she said. “I was extremely confused, and honestly very scared. I wanted to tell my mom, and continually said I wanted to tell her, but I was encouraged to keep it a secret. … The school said that my mother wouldn’t support me.”
But, throughout the ordeal which lasted for more than a year, Alicia believed her mom would support her no matter what.
Alicia said she has felt better about herself since she left middle school and entered high school where she is “actually able to focus on my academics.”
And she is comfortable with her gender.
“I am 1,000 percent a girl. I am Alicia. That is who I am, and no one can ever change that,” she said. “I feel free finally. I feel like I’m not under control by anybody. I can finally move forward with my life and be happy.”
The Konens hope their high-profile case will draw attention and encourage other families to challenge state and local school board policies that exclude parents from their children’s lives.
“I think that throughout the country there will be a lot more coming forward, realizing that they were never alone,” Ms. Konen said. “There are people out there who are hurt.”
The settlement means they’re both able to talk more freely about their experience and have considered writing a book.
“It is a complete passion of mine to continue to spread awareness,” she said.
Alicia said she feels “extremely bad,” for other children who were socially transitioned at school.
“That’s one of the main reasons I wanted to come out and speak about this case, because I want to be a voice for the people who feel like they don’t have a voice.”
Ms. Konen said the school staff took advantage of her daughter’s young mind and vulnerable state, which she called “a form of brainwashing,” and didn’t tell her that Alicia was having suicidal thoughts.
If parents are kept in the dark about their children’s problems, they won’t be able to help support them or get them the therapy they need, she said.
“It’s extremely dangerous,” Ms. Konen said, “What if something happens that is irreversible? … If a child only has the support of schools, what happens when they go home? What happens when they have those bad days? What happens when they’re confused at home?”
The best way to prevent youth suicides is for school staff and parents to work together, Ms. Konen said.
“If everyone’s included, then that is in the best interest of the child—not hiding it,” she said. “The secret stuff has to go.”
A spokesperson for the Spreckels Union School District was not immediately available for comment.
Eric Sell, a civil rights attorney at the Center for American Liberty who represented the Konens, told The Epoch Times the school district settled the case based on the underlying allegations in the lawsuit but hasn’t admitted any fault or liability.
“What happened to Alicia, Jessica is hard to quantify. It’s hard to put a dollar value on it,” he said.
But the $100,000 settlement will serve as a deterrent for other school districts that continue “to propagate these policies and keep parents in the dark,” Mr. Sell said. “As far as we are aware, this is the first time a school district has had to pay a family money for secretly transitioning their kid behind their backs.”
The Center for American liberty is interested in such cases because it has seen a systematic erosion of parental rights, “particularly by government actors and schools,” he said.
The problem is “really apparent” in California in public schools where gender ideology is “infecting schools” and “pushing kids towards dangerous decisions and dangerous life paths,” he said.
Children, who may or may not fully weigh all the consequences of their actions, are making decisions that can potentially lead to medicalization or surgery and irreversible damage to their own bodies, he said.
“We’re seeing so much of this that … the Center for American Liberty has decided to focus some of its time and resources on combating this specific problem,” Mr. Sell said.
He said “it’s absurd” that California Attorney General Rob Bonta has sued Chino Valley Unified School District over its parental notification policy requiring school staff to inform parents within a few days if their child changes his or her gender identity at school.
“The Supreme Court has consistently held that parents have the right to direct the upbringing and education of their children,” states the Center for American Liberty on its website.
“This includes the right to have a say in whether their children’s school socially transitions them to a different gender. Parents are denied that right when schools think they know better than parents how to raise their children and intentionally hide information from moms and dads.”
Germany To More Than Triple Ammunition Purchases After Stockpile Depleted Through Ukraine ‘Gifts’
Amid the broader problem of Ukrainian frontlines not advancing against superior Russian artillery and vast mine fields, Europe has been scrambling to boost its military support to Kiev. But now the problem of Europe’s own diminishing defense supplies is being felt more than ever, as many predicted.
On Wednesday German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said his country plans to drastically ramp up purchases of ammunition in 2024, in an effort to replenish Germany’s own stocks which were depleted by donations to Ukraine.
“We aim to more than triple our spending on ammunition purchases in 2024,” he said in a speech before parliament, but without revealing further details.
Ukrainian forces have been burning through shells at a much higher rate than Western countries can produce them. While Washington makes a nice show of pledging new billions to the Zelensky government, it only does limited good on the actual battlefield given more artillery and weapons cannot magically appear in only days.
NATO countries starting months ago sounded the alarm over their own dwindling inventories, also at a moment the risk ever-remains that the Western alliance and Russia could enter a direct shooting war.
But Germany and its European allies are working on a plan, as Reuters explains:
Germany is in negotiations with the Netherlands and Denmark on the joint procurement of ammunition, a defence source told Reuters on Wednesday, as Western countries are scrambling to replenish stocks depleted by donations to Ukraine. Germany is in negotiations with the Netherlands and Denmark on the joint procurement of ammunition, a defence source told Reuters on Wednesday, as Western countries are scrambling to replenish stocks depleted by donations to Ukraine.
“Germany is ready to open its framework contracts (for the procurement of ammunition) to our partners as Defence Minister Boris Pistorius pledged earlier this year,” the source said, without giving details on the kind of ammunition affected.
Meanwhile, Michael Maloof, a former senior security policy analyst in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, has said in an interview given to Russian media that Ukraine is blowing through an estimated $100 million per day on the conflict.
“There’s no accountability for the expenditures going on right now in Ukraine, […] but $100 million a day of spending is a lot in the minds of the American people, especially when they’re confronted with inflation. That’s real money to them,” Maloof said.
Ukraine Money Train: Kyiv Spending $100 Million Per Day on War, Says Ousted Defence Ministerhttps://t.co/geuzseBTiR
He said that now former Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov recently publicized the figure. “When he [Reznikov] comes up and starts making comments like that and we’re seeing the disasters that we are in, the question then arises, why are we continuing to fund this thing? We’re not seeing results. The West is not seeing results. Europe is saying the same thing,” Maloof added.
Today, federal district Judge David Alan Ezra issued a preliminary injunction against the state of Texas in United States v. Abbott, a case where the federal government is suing the state of Texas for installing floating buoy barriers in the Rio Grande River, thereby creating a safety hazard and potentially impeding navigation. The Biden Administration claims this violates the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. Texas claims it does not, but but also cites one of the “invasion” provisions of the Constitution as justification for the state’s actions. Texas relies on Article I, Section 10, Clause 3 of the Constitution, which provides, “[n]o state shall, without the Consent of Congress, . . . engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.” Texas contends that illegal migration and drug smuggling qualify as “invasion,” and therefore the Constitution gives the state the power to take military action in response, even if doing so might violate a federal statute, and even if there is no congressional authorization for war. On this view, the use of the buoys is just a modest war measure!
In today’s ruling, Judge Ezra concludes that Texas violated the statute. He also rejects the state’s invasion theory, primarily on the ground that the issue of invasion is a “political question”:
[T]he political question doctrine bars consideration of Texas’s “invasion” defense. Texas argues that it constructed the floating barrier pursuant to the Self-Defense Clause, U.S. Const. art. I, § 10, cl. 3,27 because it is being “invaded” by “[t]housands of aliens . . . including members of cartels,” and thus asks the Court to exempt Texas’s conduct from the RHA…. To credit Texas’s allegation of invasion would be to make a policy decision on a topic the Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit have identified as a nonjusticiable political question….
Several constitutional provisions assign the federal government—not states—the authority to recognize and respond to invasions. See U.S. Const. art. I., § 8, cl. 15 (power to call forth militia); art. I, § 9, cl. 2 (power to suspend habeas corpus); art. IV, § 4 (power to protect against invasion). The Constitution’s commitment of the question of an “invasion” is especially strong when it involves “the immigration and the status of aliens,” which the Constitution assigns exclusively to Congress. Arizona v. United States, 567 U.S. 387, 394-95 (2012)….
Thus, courts of appeals have uniformly declined to consider whether and when an “invasion” occurs because of illegal immigration, as it “involves matters of foreign policy and defense,” which the Constitution specifically commits to the federal government. Padavan v. United States, 82 F.3d 23, 28 (2d Cir. 1996) (finding nonjusticiable plaintiffs’ claim that “the federal government violated the Invasion Clause because the influx of legal and illegal aliens into New York State represents an ‘invasion,'”); New Jersey, 91 F.3d at 470 (finding nonjusticiable New Jersey’s claim of invasion by illegal aliens); Chiles v. United States, 69 F.3d 1094, 1097 (11th Cir. 1995) (“[W]hether the level of illegal immigration is an ‘invasion’ of Florida and whether this level violates the guarantee of a republican form of government present nonjusticiable political questions.”); California v. United States, 104 F.3d 1086, 1091 (9th Cir. 1997) (“There are no manageable standards to ascertain whether or when an influx of illegal immigrants should be said to constitute an invasion.”). Likewise, the Fifth Circuit has dismissed as nonjusticiable Texas’s previous claim that the United States’ alleged “fail[ure] to control illegal immigration” violated the Naturalization Clause…..
If the issue is a political question, that means Texas cannot unilaterally decide for itself when an “invasion” has occurred and thereby seize the power to “engage in war” with Mexico:
Texas hopes to distinguish its case from the resounding rejection of similar “invasion” arguments in the cases cited above by centering the argument on the State’s right to “engage in War” when “actually invaded.” U.S. Const., art. I, § 10, cl. 3….
[A]ll Texas’s new argument does is ask the Court to take the additional step—beyond the nonjusticiable question of whether the federal government has failed to protect Texas from invasion—of sanctioning Texas’s assertion of plenary power to declare and respond to “all types of invasions, including invasions from non-state or quasi-state actors.” (Dkt. # 26 at 24.) Under this logic, once Texas decides, in its sole discretion, that it has been invaded, it is subject to no oversight of its “chosen means of waging war.” (Dkt. # 33 at 7-8.) Such a claim is breathtaking.
While Judge Ezra relies mainly on political questions reasoning, he also emphasizes the structural danger of giving states’ unilateral authority to decide when an “invasion” has occurred and thereby claim the power to “engage in war.”
I have doubts about the entire “political questions” doctrine, and would have preferred for the court to simply rule that illegal immigration and drug smuggling do not qualify as “invasion.” Two of the circuit court decisions cited by Judge Ezra (Padavan v. United States and New Jersey v. United States) did exactly that (in addition to ruling against the states on political questions grounds). But, obviously, I understand that a district judge cannot simply ignore the political questions issue. And if the invasion issue in this case had to be decided on that basis, Judge Ezra’s approach is the right way to do it.
This is just a ruling on a preliminary injunction, and not a final ruling on the merits. But the former likely prefigures the judge’s ruling on the latter. First, however, Texas is probably going to appeal today’s decision to the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
I am guardedly optimistic that Texas will lose there, as well. But we’ll have to see what happens.
