Syria says two civilians hurt in Israeli strikes on Damascus outskirts

Syria says two civilians hurt in Israeli strikes on Damascus outskirts

REUTERS

An "Israeli attack" was carried out in the Damascus area, activating Syrian air defense systems on Sunday night, according to Israeli news sources, citing Syrian media.

Two civilians have been injured in Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus on Sunday, the Syrian defense ministry said, in the second such attack on the country in a few days.

Israel targeted several locations in the vicinity of Damascus with missiles launched from the occupied Golan Heights, the ministry said in a statement.

"The aggression resulted in the injury of two civilians and some material losses," it added.

On Friday, Israel carried out strikes in months on northern Syria's Aleppo province as it stepped up its campaign against Iran's proxies in parallel with the war in Gaza.

Three security sources told Reuters that 33 Syrians and six fighters from the Iran-backed group Hezbollah had been killed in those strikes. It was the single highest death toll in Israeli strikes on Syria since October 7.

Heavens Sending Monumental Message

Heavens Sending Monumental Message

Terry James

Right at the top I’ll admit that I’m overwhelmed with trying to understand the signs in the heavens that are apparently firing at this present time. Reports of things going on in the dark regions of space certainly seem to correspond to things going on down here on this planet in terms of impending Bible prophecy fulfillment scheduled as the time of Christ’s Second Coming comes into view.

The prophecy in view here, scheduled for ultimate fulfillment during the seven-year Tribulation—like all other end-times prophecies—seems to be casting a foreshadow in this present hour.

“And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26).

Things are moving so fast in all of this that by the time this article is posted, some dates will already be past, possibly revealing some of whatever it all means.

My hope is to try to lay before us these things that are scrolling in some sort of eschatological presentation for those who are Mark 13:37 spiritually attuned. It seems as if all is coming together at hyper-collision speed, portending a world-rending cataclysm that cannot be averted.

In order to briefly examine the things in the heavens that are moving and shaking, let’s scan through the following article excerpt.

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Russia claims France is readying deployment of 2,000 troops to Ukraine

Russia claims France is readying deployment of 2,000 troops to Ukraine

Richard Brown

Sergey Naryshkin, director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, has revealed that the Kremlin has intelligence indicating that France is preparing to deploy a military contingent of 2,000 troops to Ukraine.

"The current leadership of the country appears indifferent to the welfare of ordinary French citizens and the concerns of military leaders," Naryshkin remarked. "Our information suggests that preparations are underway for sending a contingent to Ukraine. Initially, this group will consist of approximately 2,000 troops." (Related: Macron doubles down on possibility of deploying NATO troops to Ukraine.)

Expressing concerns, the Russian intelligence chief noted that the French military's main concern isn't that it may be interfering in a conflict, but that it is finding it difficult to discreetly transfer and position such a sizable foreign force in Ukraine.

"This sizable deployment will inevitably become a prominent target for Russian armed forces, inviting the same fate suffered by previous French incursions into the Russian sphere," he stressed, referencing previous French invasions of Russia in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Following a conference on Ukraine in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron refrained from outright dismissing the possibility of Western ground troops being dispatched to the area of the ongoing military operation in Ukraine despite a lack of support from Kyiv's other Western allies. Macron further pledged that Western nations would take necessary actions to thwart Russia's success in the conflict.

In a separate article published by TASS, Naryshkin commented on earlier reports suggesting that French members of Ukraine's international legion were killed in a missile strike in Kharkiv on Jan. 23.

"Sooner or later, Macron will have to disclose the unpleasant truth, but he will likely endeavor to postpone this 'admission' for as long as possible. As purported from the Elysee Palace, the tally of French casualties has already crossed a psychologically significant threshold," he said.

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The Empty Tomb Is A Historical Fact, Most Scholars Agree

The Empty Tomb Is A Historical Fact, Most Scholars Agree

James Bishop

By James Bishop| Was Jesus’ tomb really found empty, or is this just a myth?  The empty tomb is absolutely central to the Christian faith because the entire truth of Christianity rests upon Jesus having been raised from the dead.  This makes inquiry into this historical question all the more important.As it turns out, the empty tomb is widely considered to be an established fact of the ancient world.  Not all scholars agree as to what caused the tomb to become empty, but as far as the tomb itself actually being left without the body of Jesus, this is pretty well-established even among critical scholars. 

According to a comprehensive survey of New Testament scholars, it is large consensus (roughly 75%) that Jesus’ tomb somehow became empty (1).  A study by New Testament scholar Gary Habermas published in the peer-reviewed Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus found that:

APPROXIMATELY 75% FAVOR ONE OR MORE OF THESE ARGUMENTS FOR THE EMPTY TOMB, WHILE APPROXIMATELY 25% THINK THAT ONE OR MORE ARGUMENTS OPPOSE IT. THUS, WHILE FAR FROM BEING UNANIMOUSLY HELD BY CRITICAL SCHOLARS, IT MAY SURPRISE SOME THAT THOSE WHO EMBRACE THE EMPTY TOMB AS A HISTORICAL FACT STILL COMPRISE A FAIRLY STRONG MAJORITY.

Just because most scholars believe this is true does not make it true, but the reason why so many believe the tomb as found empty is because of historical evidence (which we are about to look at).  The point being, one needs to explain how Jesus’ tomb became empty, and then why the disciples, and the skeptics James and the enemy Paul, claimed that Jesus had appeared to them in his resurrected body.

Paul informs us in his early creed that Jesus also appeared to 500 others. This is a belief that several early followers were martyred for and never, as far as our historical data tells us, recanted their faith that Jesus’ had in fact appeared to them. Whatever the case, they certainly believed it.

The Austrian scholar Jacob Kremer informs us that “By far most exegetes hold firmly to the reliability of the biblical statements concerning the empty tomb” (2). Likewise, scholar Van Daalen argues that:

“IT IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO OBJECT TO THE EMPTY TOMB ON HISTORICAL GROUNDS; THOSE WHO DENY IT DO SO ON THE BASIS OF THEOLOGICAL OR PHILOSOPHICAL ASSUMPTIONS” (3).

Exegete, apologist, and professional philosopher William Craig concludes that there is “powerful evidence that the tomb of Jesus was actually found empty on Sunday morning by a small group of his women followers. As a plain historical fact this seems to be amply attested” (4)

All our canonical gospels (Mark 16, Matthew 28, Luke 24, John 20) mention the empty tomb, Paul implies it in an early creed (1 Cor. 15:1-11), and it is further implied by Peter’s sermon in Acts. There are as many as three, or even four independent traditions within the Gospels that attest to the empty tomb.  This certainly heightens the probability of the tomb being found empty.

Scholar Gary Habermas captures this well saying that Jesus’ “empty tomb is reported in at least three, if not four, of these Gospel sources. This helps to understand why these items are taken so seriously by contemporary critical scholars” (5). One tradition can be found within Mark, known as the pre-Markan Passion Narrative, “The idea of a pre-Markan passion narrative continues to seem probable to a majority of scholars” (6)

According to William Craig this source is likely dependent on eyewitness testimony, “The burial account is part of Mark’s source material for the story of Jesus’ Passion. This is a very early source which is probably based on eyewitness testimony and dates to within several years of Jesus’ crucifixion.” (7).

It likewise attests to the empty tomb, “Mark’s Passion source didn’t end with Jesus’ burial, but with the story of the empty tomb, which is tied to the burial account verbally and grammatically.”

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Israel to ‘expand campaign’ in the north, Gallant vows as IDF eliminates senior Hezbollah commander

Israel to ‘expand campaign’ in the north, Gallant vows as IDF eliminates senior Hezbollah commander

All Israel News Staff

Israel Defense Forces will “expand the campaign” against Hezbollah on its northern border, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Friday, as the IDF carried out several targeted eliminations of enemy commanders over the past few days.

“Israel is turning from defending to pursuing Hezbollah, we will reach wherever the organization operates, in Beirut, Damascus, and in more distant places,” Gallant said after an assessment at the IDF’s Northern Command.

Following alleged Israeli strikes in Syria that reportedly killed dozens, including a senior Hezbollah commander on Friday morning, the IDF later announced it had eliminated the group’s deputy commander of its rocket and missile unit.

Gallant said he observed the strike against Ali Naim, who was killed in an airstrike while driving his car near al-Bazouriye.

Naim was considered a “significant center of knowledge in the organization, a leader in the field of rockets, and among the pioneers of the strategy of launching heavy rockets,” the IDF said.

“As part of his role he worked to plan and carry out attacks against Israel’s home front,” the army added.

“The one responsible for the serious damage in Lebanon is Hezbollah and the one responsible for the many casualties in the Hezbollah group is [Hassan] Nasrallah personally,” Gallant said on Friday.

“They have over 320 killed terrorists, and we will exact a price for any action coming out of Lebanon. Wherever we need to act, we will act,” he vowed.

“Israeli intelligence has been conducting successful operations targeting Hezbollah’s command structures in Lebanon since the beginning of the war,” said Joe Truzman, senior research analyst at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), regarding the strike.

“The strike on Ali Naim not only dealt a blow to the group but also sent a clear message that Israel will retaliate decisively against those who threaten its security,” Truzman added.

Hezbollah and the IDF continued exchanging fire over the weekend, with the Lebanese group claiming responsibility for several attacks, including the launch of a heavy Burkan rocket at an IDF post.

The IDF also announced that fighter jets had struck multiple Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon on Friday and Saturday.

Following rocket launches from Lebanon in the area of Biranit, the IDF struck the responsible rocket launcher quickly with assistance from the 146th Division and the Israeli Air Force.

IDF eliminates Hezbollah’s deputy commander of rocket, missile unit

IDF eliminates Hezbollah’s deputy commander of rocket, missile unit

YAAKOV LAPPIN

The strike represents one of the highest-ranking commanders killed since the Iranian-backed terrorist organization began lobbing northern Israel with rockets, UAVs and anti-tank missiles after Oct. 7.

The Israeli Air Force struck and killed Hezbollah’s Deputy commander of its Rocket and Missile Unit on Friday in an airstrike in Southern Lebanon, the Israeli military announced.

The strike targeted Ali Abed Akhsan Naim, in the area of Bazouriye in Lebanon, which is in the Tyre District.

“Ali was considered to be a significant source of knowledge in the terrorist organization and leader in the field of rockets. He was also one of the leaders for heavy-warhead rocket fire and responsible for conducting and planning attacks against Israeli civilians,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.

“We will reach every place Hezbollah operates—in Beirut, Damascus and even more distant places.”

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant

In addition, five Hezbollah members were reportedly killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike on a target in Aleppo, in northwest Syria, which according to Reuters, killed tens of people, mainly Syrian soldiers and Hezbollah members.

Hezbollah said later on Friday that the casualties it sustained in Syria were killed “on the road to Jerusalem.”

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, during a visit to the IDF’s Northern Command Headquarters in Safed on Friday, said Israel would reach every location that Hezbollah is active in, naming Beirut, Damascus and further afield.

Insanity Prevails In Crumbling Society

Happy Easter Amid The Squatters And Lunatics

Donald Jeffries

Spring is in the air, to quote a time honored expression. The atheists must really struggle at this time of year. Observing the plants and the flowers magically blossoming forth, the birds and crickets chirping. The renewal of life. It must be very hard to attribute all that beauty and loveliness to sterile randomness.

I feel sorry for those who don’t live in climates where the change of seasons is so visible. Who don’t get to watch the leaves turning golden and red and yellow in the fall. Or watch the birds flying south for the winter. But spring is truly special. It symbolizes the Resurrection which we celebrate on Easter Sunday. The coming back to life. Jesus rising from the dead was instantly recognized for the danger to the established order that it represented. You can read in the Bible where Matthew notes that “the Jews” were spreading the lie that his disciples had stolen his body from the tomb. This would probably be a popular view among secularists today, if they even acknowledged that Jesus Christ ever existed.

Looking at the title of my little missive, you may be asking just what squatters have to do with Easter. Well, nothing directly perhaps, but they are suddenly in the news, and it is Easter time. I’m still trying to wrap my head around how someone can just break into an empty home, and then be considered the legal occupants. Even for our monstrously corrupt society, with its open borders and misgendered pronouns, this is incomprehensible. We are told that “the law” sometimes protects the squatters, and not the homeowners, or renters whose names are on the lease. I suppose that makes as much sense as men giving birth, or “White Supremacy” being responsible for the epidemic of Blacks physically attacking Asians.

When your entire civilization has gone mad, your laws will reflect that. So a classless, uneducated public official like Fani Willis is protected by the law. But a guy selling pillows, like Mike Lindell, is driven into bankruptcy and may well be prosecuted for expressing the view held by millions, that the 2020 election was fraudulent. One of the career criminals going around and sucker punching women in New York is released without bail every time. But the January 6 political prisoners are denied bail, and some still sit behind bars, over three years later, denied all due process. If that doesn’t sound like lunacy, I don’t know what would. We are dealing with something far beyond mere corruption. It is not even simple insanity. It is as if the Joker, the Riddler, and other comic book villains were placed in power, and all had a tyrannical political agenda.

As I mull over what will be in my Easter basket tomorrow (and yes, at sixty seven, I still get one), I think of all the homeless American citizens, forced to live a prehistoric existence on the streets. Sure, it’s often because of drug abuse or alcoholism, and more often from mental illness that goes untreated because the mental health facilities have largely shut down. But they are still human beings, who’ve probably paid a lot of taxes over the years. How must they feel as they watch the illegal immigrants- some of them undoubtedly alcoholics, drug addicts, and mentally ill- be given shelter in school gyms or even five star hotels? Depending on the source, the illegals are apparently getting as much as $2200 a month from our government as well. Even the craziest of the homeless must be irked by the fact these policies are being promoted by real lunatics.

Opening the border irrationally to unvetted migrants is about as insane as it gets. Or is it? Wouldn’t allowing squatters to take over someone’s legal property be even more insane? I suppose if you’re demented enough to allow all these people to enter the country illegally, many of them suspiciously enough young males of prime military age, then permitting squatters to possess the homes of those who bought or rented them is the next illogical step. What next? If a squatter or migrant wants your child, can they just snatch it? And if you can’t catch them running away, do they now have “possession” of your child? Every carjacker should be complaining about this. Don’t they essentially “squat” in someone else’s car? If they’re able to drive off with it, doesn’t it become their possession? What’s the difference?

This whole squatting thing opens up a lot of possibilities. Many, if not most men have coveted their neighbor’s wife at some point. That’s probably the one Commandment that has been broken more than any other. So, would “coveter” rights be any more ridiculous than squatter rights? If you can snatch his wife, and get her inside your own house, does that now make her your wife? True, if you had a wife of your own there already, that would certainly complicate things. But the absurd premise is the same. You could expand upon the whole squatter concept to include any property. If a squatter can take your home, they certainly have a right to your large flat screen TV. Or your high-end computer. Or your top of the line cell phone. Based on the squatter defense, all thieves should be released from prison.

We appear to have gone way beyond “adverse possession,” which permits squatters to take over a property if they haven’t been evicted for a long period of time, in some of these recent cases. A woman in Queens, New York recently was placed in handcuffs and arrested, for changing the locks on her property. She did this to keep out the squatter who’d been occupying her property, which she inherited from her recently deceased parents. Because he was there for over thirty days, he has a legal right to occupy under New York City law. Just another reason not to live in New York I guess. Squatters have taken over 1,200 homes in Atlanta alone. Someone really ought to tell the homeless crapping in the streets. Squatting certainly beats living in a tent.

exceedingly difficult to get squatters out once they have settled in.  In some cases, squatters are able to live rent free in beautiful homes for months or even years.” Does that make any sense? What kind of “law” would allow something like that? Would sane leaders permit something like this? Say what you want about Ron DeSantis, but the guy does produce some reasonable legislation once in a while. He recently signed a bill that protects the rights of homeowners against squatters. Multiple squatters had caused some $40,000 in damages to just one Florida property.  "If we don't have private property rights, we will not have a free society,” DeSantis said.

Squatters really fit perfectly into a crumbling society where deranged transgenders and antagonistic illegal invaders are coddled by the authorities. Leonel Moreno, an illegal from Venezuela, recently made the news when he angrily urged his fellow invaders to start taking possession of American properties. Moreno claimed to have received $350 a week in government handouts since entering the U.S. illegally and bragged about earning $1,000 a day as a TikTok influencer. He has ties to a violent gang. So how could he not have tons of followers on social media? Maybe he can get the “Woke” lunatics in Congress to pass legislation to make it a “hate crime” to oppose squatters. Perhaps they can give squatters the sweet deal some migrants are getting. Free healthcare. Free housing. More money every month than the average Social Security recipient gets. If you oppose that, you’re a “threat to democracy.”

Risen

Happy Easter 2024 – He Is Risen, Alleluia

He is Risen!

Matthew 28: 1-7

1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

Death to New Life: An Easter Meditation

Death to New Life: An Easter Meditation

Max Lucado

According to some folks, we bury the soul when we bury the body like a wrapping with a hot dog, never expecting to see either again. Other people propose that the spirit abandons the body as a butterfly escapes the cocoon.

Christianity, on the other hand, posits a startling, surprising idea. What you had before death, you’ll have after death, only better, much, much better. You will go to paradise: heaven, but not home. Then, upon the return of Christ, you will receive a spiritual body and inhabit a restored universe.

This is the promise of God. This promise hinges on the resurrection of Christ. The Christian hope depends entirely upon the assumption that Jesus Christ died a physical death, vacated an actual grave and ascended into heaven where he, at this moment, reigns as head of the church.

The Easter miracle, in other words, changed everything

It was Sunday morning after the Friday execution. The sky was dark. The disciples had scattered. And the Roman executioner was wondering about breakfast, or work, or his next day off. But he was not wondering about the fellow he had nailed to a cross and pierced with a spear. Jesus was dead and buried. Yesterday’s news, right?

Wrong. God shook things up.

“There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

“The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.’” (Matt. 28:2–6)

Had such words never been spoken, had the body of Jesus decayed into dust within the borrowed tomb, you would not be reading this essay and we would not be discussing this promise. But the words were spoken and the promise was made more than once.

Jesus appeared to the women near the tomb and to the followers in the upper room. He appeared to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and his friends on the shore of Galilee. He spoke with them. He ate with them. They touched his body, they heard his words. They were convinced that Jesus had risen from the dead.

And they drew this conclusion. His resurrection is the proof and promise of ours. What God did for him, he will do with us. When he rose from the dead, Jesus was the “first fruits” (1 Cor. 15:20–23).

“First fruits” is the first taste of the harvest. The farmer can anticipate the nature of the crop by sampling the first crop. We can anticipate our own resurrection by trusting the empty tomb of Christ.

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Thousands gather for London anti-Israel rally; police arrest four for hate crimes, public disorder

Thousands gather for London anti-Israel rally; police arrest four for hate crimes, public disorder

AFP and TOI STAFF

Thousands of pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protesters rallied in London today, in the latest demonstration in the British capital demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and more aid for the war-ravaged territory.

The event, organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, began at Russell Square in the city center before attendees marched to Trafalgar Square for a mid-afternoon rally.

A smaller number of demonstrators also turned out for a counter-protest in support of Israel, with lines of police separating the two gatherings.

London has seen numerous large-scale anti-Israel protests since Israel mounted its military response to Hamas’s unprecedented attack on October 7, as well as smaller pro-Israel counter-demonstrations.

The rallies for Palestinians have proved contentious, attracting criticism for fueling a hostile environment towards Jewish people. Some ruling Conservative lawmakers have branded them “hate marches.”

Police have made dozens of arrests over those months for antisemitic chanting and banners, promoting a proscribed organization, and assaulting emergency workers.

That included on Saturday, with officers making four arrests for hate crime, public disorder and terrorism offences.

A man was detained for the terror-related offence related to “inviting support for a proscribed organization,” London’s Metropolitan Police say.

Organizers have insisted throughout they are exercising their democratic rights and that law-breakers make up a tiny minority of the sometimes tens of thousands of people who have turned out.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak earlier this month called for officers to take tougher action against protesters at such events, saying they “had descended into intimidation, threats and planned acts of violence”.

Globalism Thrives on Crisis

Globalism Thrives on Crisis

 J.B. Shurk 

Globalists know that nothing drives public policy so much as the fear of impending death.  Nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles may have scared the snot out of anyone living through the Cold War, but they were (and still are) the gifts that keep on giving for the military-industrial complex and national security surveillance State.  The more catastrophic the consequences of any perceived threat, the more likely that otherwise skeptical human beings will hand over their freedoms in exchange for the elusive promise of personal security.  Political systems specialize in exploiting this “Save Me!” impulse for maximum leverage.  “Looming apocalypse” is Big Government’s best salesman every year.

Ghost stories about “global warming” work the same way.  If voters can be convinced that their economic freedom is leading to humanity’s extinction, then they will accept costly regulations and “green energy”-induced inflation.  

If they can be brainwashed into believing that hydrocarbon energy is evil, then they will actively protest for a future with intermittent yet expensive electric power.  If they can be deluded into thinking that only politicians and central bankers can save the planet, then they will embrace communism in order to fight “climate change.”  Given the fact that Earth’s climate is always naturally changing — whether humans are alive to notice or not — governments’ success in conditioning gullible people to fear every change in the weather has been remarkably effective in creating voluntary slaves.

It’s also no surprise that UN Secretary-General António Guterres and other doomsayer charlatans are now hyperventilating about “global boiling.” 

Generations who were told they would die decades ago have learned to discount apocalyptic warnings.

Conversely, totalitarianism succeeds only when society’s level of anxiety can be ratcheted up well above eleventy!  That’s why every iteration of the so-called “climate emergency” must sound more scary than the last.  It’s also why each new season of “Climate Change: the Coming Armageddon” targets children who have never seen old episodes of the boring series.

It may be the longest running television program of all time, but ignorant youths — who cannot imagine that their governments would ever lie to them — fall for the dying planet horror show every time.

This is the kind of madness that “green” false prophets perpetrate upon unsuspecting peoples — stoking irrational fears in a misanthropic and Machiavellian quest for raw power.

 Twentieth-century totalitarians also came to power by spreading madness and inflaming irrational fears.  Whereas Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, and Mao obsessed over foreign ideas, capitalist leanings, religious beliefs, and racial impurities, today’s globalists obsess over hydrocarbons, “white supremacy,” and “hate” speech. 

Future generations will see no distinction.  Just like the monsters of the past, today’s Deep State agents seize power by manufacturing emergencies.  Dictators always arrive on triumphal chariots that run on lies.

The German Deep State is similar to the American Deep State — in that both love to lecture the world about “democracy” and “freedom” while censoring conservatives’ speech, criminalizing political dissent, spewing propaganda, and manipulating elections. 

Both also have a penchant for creating committees and agencies that engage in behaviors they pretend to police — disinformation boards that spread lies, humanitarian aid groups that foment war, pro-democracy coalitions that seek to ban political groups and public debate.  For the German and American Deep States, language is a weapon for deceiving the people.

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Poland’s Tusk Says Europe in a ‘Pre-War Era’

Poland’s Tusk Says Europe in a ‘Pre-War Era’

Paul Serran

Globalist and Euro-fanatic Donald Tusk is proudly taking Poland down the war path.

On his first interview with European media since becoming Polish prime minister for the second time, Tusk urged leaders around the continent to bolster their defenses – which is a good thing.

But he did much more than that, banging the war drums as hard as he could.

BBC reported:

“Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned Europe is in a ‘pre-war era’ and Ukraine must not be defeated by Russia for the good of the whole continent.

[…] Appealing for urgent military aid for Ukraine, Mr. Tusk warned the next two years of the war would decide everything, adding: ‘We are living in the most critical moment since the end of the Second World War’.”

He says that Europe will be a more attractive partner to the US if it became more self-sufficient militarily.

Poland now is spending 4% of its GDP on defense, doubling the Nato target of 2%.

“I know it sounds devastating, especially to people of the younger generation, but we have to mentally get used to the arrival of a new era. The pre-war era.”

And we know this is not all talk, because it turns out that Poland suspended its participation the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, allowing it to expand the scope of its troops and military equipment.

 ‘I know it sounds devastating, especially for the younger generation, but we have to get used to the fact that a new era has begun: the pre-war era. I’m not exaggerating; it’s becoming clearer every day’.”

Tusk advanced the rather absurd idea that ‘no one in Europe would feel safe if Kiev lost the war’.

“‘The European Union as a whole, as a powerful organization, must be mentally prepared to fight for the security of our borders and our territory’, he said.”

End of the Line for Ukraine? UK Paper The Times: ‘It’s Time We Talked About the Fall of Kiev’ – Zelensky: ‘We Are Trying To Find a Way Not to Retreat’

End of the Line for Ukraine? UK Paper The Times: ‘It’s Time We Talked About the Fall of Kiev’ – Zelensky: ‘We Are Trying To Find a Way Not to Retreat’

Paul Serran

Ever since the conquest of the heavily fortified key Donbas city of Avdeevka, the real dimension of the Russian combat superiority became suddenly clear to just about everyone.

While Ukraine still finds some success in missile strikes behind the Russian lines, and asymmetrical attacks of a terror nature, everyone now can see just how outmanned, outgunned and outmaneuvered Kiev’s forces have become.

Now, even in the MSM, there are daily reports of just how dire the situation on the ground is right now.

The UK paper The Times [behind a paywall] went as far as publishing an op-ed talking about how the West is bracing for an imminent Ukrainian army’s collapse.

TASS reported:

“Western leaders are bracing for the Ukrainian army’s collapse as it has only been able to slow the advance of Russian forces amid weapons and ammunition shortages, the Times writes.

In its editorial, titled ‘It’s time we talked about the fall of Kiev’, the paper points out that ‘contrary to the predominant view that this is a perpetual frozen conflict, with neither side able to win a decisive advantage, the front line is bitterly contested and there is a real risk of Ukrainian forces being pushed back’. 

‘This is the nightmare scenario now being contemplated by western policymakers’, the Times notes.

Russia’s advance ‘would obviously be disastrous for the Ukrainians’. ‘It would also confront the West with all manner of tough challenges’, the newspaper says. ‘The consequences of a partial or complete defeat would be calamitous in ways western populations have barely begun to understand. But we have a lazy habit in the comfortable West – away from Europe’s front line in east and south Ukraine – of wishful thinking and being unprepared for bad surprises’, the Times emphasizes.”

It also shows a poll by the European Council on Foreign Relations conducted in 12 countries in January.

In the poll, only 10% of those surveyed believe that Ukraine can win.

And the gravity of the situation is talked about by the upper echelons of Ukrainian society, as is the case of the recent article by President Volodymyr Zelensky, where he candidly says that ‘We are trying to find a way not to retreat’.

As Russian missiles were pounding southern Ukraine, he said: ‘Give us the weapons to stop the Russian attacks, or Ukraine will escalate its counterattacks on Russia’s airfields, energy facilities and other strategic targets’.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Flu Detected in Dairy Cows in Michigan, Idaho, New Mexico, Kansas and Texas

Highly Pathogenic Avian Flu Detected in Dairy Cows in Michigan, Idaho, New Mexico, Kansas and Texas

Jim Hᴏft

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), along with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has reported that a Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), initially detected in dairy cows in Texas and Kansas, has now spread to additional herds in Michigan, Idaho, and New Mexico.

Federal health officials announced on Friday that Michigan had confirmed cases of the virus marking an unprecedented event in the state’s agricultural history, while Idaho and New Mexico have reported presumptive positive tests.

Tim Boring, the Director of MDARD, described the situation as “rapidly evolving,” highlighting the unusual nature of this flu’s transmission.

The source of the infection has been traced back to a herd of cattle from Texas, which was relocated to a commercial farm in Michigan on March 7, according to MLive.

Despite passing all health inspections upon arrival, the first signs of illness were observed on March 20, with the state lab confirming the presence of the highly pathogenic avian flu by March 26

The infection’s confirmation comes amidst reports by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) of similar outbreaks in dairy cows in Texas and Kansas, attributed to transmission via wild birds. However, health officials have reassured the public that the risk remains low, with no indication of the virus mutating to become transmissible to humans.

While MDARD has not disclosed the number of affected cows, measures are in place to ensure there is no impact on the commercial milk supply. According to Tim Slawinski, director of Michigan’s Bureau of Food Safety and Animal Health, strict protocols at both the farm and processing levels effectively prevent milk from infected animals from entering the supply chain.

This outbreak is part of the broader impact of the deadliest bird flu in U.S. history, which has led to the deaths of over 82 million birds since January 2022 and a significant spike in egg prices.

The flu’s ease of spread among poultry through direct contact or contaminated materials poses ongoing challenges to containment efforts.

In Michigan alone, nearly 118,000 birds across commercial and backyard flocks have been affected, according to MLive.

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Asymmetric Response and the Perp Walk to World War III

Asymmetric Response and the Perp Walk to World War III

Tom Luongo

Have you ever tried to break out of the orbit of a narcissist? It’s damn difficult. Their pattern of emotional abuse is designed to make you feel like the abuser, demoralizing you, sapping you of your vitality and agency.

They weaponize your humanity and feed off your guilt. When you finally summon the courage to divorce yourself from them that’s when the fangs really come out. That’s when their true face is revealed. And it’s nothing but scorn, derision and unfettered hatred.

Narcissists don’t love you. They love themselves.

I’m opening this article with that quick reminder of human psychology to set the stage for this week’s discussion of all things geopolitical. There ain’t no art in this piece folks, I’m too damn exhausted to craft the language.

Why am I exhausted? Running behind narcissists as they perp walk us towards World War III saps the energy of even the most resilient personality. The truly malignant narcissists that think they operate the levers of power over the world have realized that we are walking away from them.

Since the firing of VicToria “Cookies” Nuland from the State Department on March 5th (and make zero mistake she was fired) events surrounding Russia are accelerating. 

Last weekend’s attack on the Crocus Concert Hall in Moscow was supposed to originally happen on March 9th, apparently. It was to be timed with Joah BIi-Den’s! State of the Union address and meant as a severe warning to Russians to ‘make the right decision’ and vote against Vladimir Putin a week later.

It literally makes no sense. When Nuland is fired from the State Department, our first reaction was to see it as a shift in US foreign policy away from Russia and towards China. Toria lost a power play. See you at the auto show.

That sounds neat and compact… but is it the whole story?

Because then the attack actually happens two weeks later. A bunch of Tajiks go in, like the professional soldiers they are, shoot the place up and make their escape. Acting not at all in character for the ISIS head-choppers who were immediately blamed for this.

So, now here’s what I think the real story is surrounding Crocus. Nuland, MI6, and likely the Turks put this thing together using ISIS-K Tajik mercenaries to kill a bunch of Russians. The operational goal was to keep the US from turning its back on the malignant narcissistic colonialist assholes in Europe who need this war but cannot fight it. That’s the Yanks’ job.

US leadership, already deep in plans to extricate themselves from Europe and pivot to China, warn the Russians on March 7th which scrubs the March 9th operation after sending the major signal that things in Ukraine will calm down by firing Nuland on March 5th.

This is what real statecraft looks like.

After that, the operation is still going forward but under someone else’s guidance (or just on auto-pilot). Nuland’s fingerprints are all over it. The US looks guilty as hell. What does evil do? It doesn’t sleep, it waits. And then we get the actual attack last weekend, after Putin wins a massive re-election. It still serves it’s primary purpose, force Putin’s hand.

Now, the kicker. Who issues notes of condolences to Russia for the attack? Shockingly, the US and NATO. In the past three years there hasn’t been one conciliatory utterance from Sec. of State Antony Blinken’s pie hole when it comes to Russia. He’s been the epitome of the anti-diplomat.

And yet, here he is issuing condolences to Russia. Then the US abstains from the UNSC council vote against Israel, another British project going completely haywire.

None of this tracks with the US and Russia are implacable enemies narrative folks. Not. One. Single. Bit. Of. It.

Now, guess who refused to even acknowledge the Russian loss of life? Yup … the UK.

The US was led into the trap in Ukraine by Nuland and her co-collaborators in MI6 and Europe over the past decade. All three players, the US, UK and Europe had reasons for Ukraine, but all were ultimately different.

And that brings me to the Francis Scott Key bridge. As an event it deserves its own article, but I think you know where I’m going with this. There is a vanishingly small probability that this was an accident caused by an old ship with a spotty maintenance record, a Ukrainian captain, and an Indian crew.

All of those things are, in movie terms, “set dressing,” to create a plausibly deniable narrative.  I have to hand it to whoever put this one together, it looks better thought out than the last half-dozen of these things. I guess the Writer’s Strike in Hollywood is actually over.

This was an attack on US soil by a foreign power. And the first group of people we’re supposed to think who did it was the Russians. Why? Revenge for Moscow, after we were set up to look like the ones who did that, to the people who matter… the ones making the decisions.

The fact that the US and Russia both have tried to deflect blame for both of these incidents away from the other is a very big tell. It says clearly that both sides are aware of the dangers these attacks on their sovereignty represent and are unwilling to use them as a casus belli. It’s the most encouraging part of all of this. Rational people are still trying to slow the climb up the escalatory ladder.

The problem is they aren’t in control of the situation. If the US wanted war with Russia, we’d already be there. That means someone else does.

Note the lack of “Russia did it!” coming from the US. Note now the FBI came out immediately, with no investigation, and said this was an accident, not an act of war, which it most likely was.

The question then is, “who committed the act?” We will never find out the truth to this but our prime suspect has to be the one who has the motive to get the US to go “on tilt” and move into position to defend Ukraine openly.

I’m not saying that Russia didn’t do it. Far from it. As a piece of 4th generational warfare, taking out this bridge at this moment in time is absolutely one of Russia’s best moves on the board, especially if Putin really is getting ready to up the ante on Kiev in the coming weeks. And I expect him to do just that.

No, I think this again is one of those “orgies of evidence” to frame Russia for something someone else did for very different reasons. And that reason is pure, unfettered, narcissistic revenge for the US having the temerity to walk away from its responsibilities (as they have defined them) in Europe.

These people have been very clear now for years, either the US goes along with their plans for the future or it will be destroyed from within. This attack on the Key bridge in Baltimore is a nightmare event, meant to be a catalyst for a breakdown of the US economy, creating chaos during an election year.

It could easily ripple through our property, debt and equity markets in the coming weeks. Attacking the US puts pressure there while lifting some of the focus away from the deterioration of Europe’s economy.

This is an event that the more I think about it the more it turns into an Agatha Christie novel, with everyone having motive to attack the US for entirely different reasons. So, I won’t come to any definitive conclusion here, even though you know who my prime suspects are.

But, suffice it to say that in the rage of narcissists, we will be spared nothing while being blamed for their slow, painful perp walk towards WWIII.

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