Two Irelands

   My blog has become unwieldy  Caths, Prots,& two Irelands  

 ONeill (Sinn Fein) and Foster(DUP) have blown it with their Covid rules that  ban separate households from meeting indoors while pubs will be allowed to open soon in the Belfast , NI region. Of course, there are exceptions and loopholes which breed more confusion. Meanwhile the thugs in the IRA(Catholics) and the Red Hand(Protestants) flourish.

Sept 13

 Boris Johnson claims the EU is threatening to impose a customs border in the Irish Sea, separating NI from the rest of the UK.

 Coveney, the R of I Foreign Affairs Minister called this a "completely bogus argument" but didn't explain why. 

Sept 18 

Meabh McGrotty, who is 34 weeks' pregnant,  claims it would be better to give birth in a pub so she can be supported by her husband throughout her labor. She launched an online petition to lift Covid-19 maternity restrictions in hospitals in Northern Ireland.

Sept 22

Van, the Man, Morrison's release of anti-lockdown songs spurred NI Health Minister Swann to pen an editorial in Rolling Stone calling the tunes unhelpful and appealing to the tin foil hats crowd. Perhaps Swann is angry over Van's line, "No more fascist bullies".

Oct 5

 Wait in rain, MOT centers tell drivers while NI officials inspect your vehicles. Standing in the rain and cold is definitely good for one's health, right?

Nov 4

Republic of Ireland Deputy PM Leo Varadkar  apologized  after passing a confidential agreement with one medical organization to a rival one. Here's his bullsh^t rationalization :he couriered the document to his friend to get wider backing from doctors for the new contract."There was nothing selfish, corrupt, dishonest or illegal in what I did,"

Nov 11

 The DUP has accused #MichelleO'Neill of performing a massive U-turn on easing Covid-19 restrictions in NI under the orders of the Sinn Fein in  the Republic of Ireland. Brexit nears and things are getting uglier.

Dec 12, 2020

Brexit trade talks are in final 48 hours as UK threatens to deploy no-deal gun boats. Four UK Royal Navy patrol vessels have been put on standby to guard British fishing waters if there is no agreement with the EU in the final 48 hours. Merkel and Macron have rebuffed  Boris Johnson three times this week after he attempted to speak to them directly about the stalled trade discussions.

Jan 3, 2021

The UVU invited #kevin Boyle, a Democrat member of the PA House of representatives, to meet with victims of the Provisional IRA after he praised late, IRA man  #BobbyStorey yesterday. I  doubt if Biden  has this high on his list of concerns, particularly since  Boyle is not of a member of the US Congress.

Jan 27, 2021

#GeorgeOsborne ,the former Chancellor of the Exchequer,  believes a majority of the English public “will not care” if Northern Ireland leaves the UK to unite with the Republic of Ireland. I'll ponder that one.

Feb 1

Polling shows the NI Prots are moving  toward  Traditional Unionist Voice(TUV) leader #JimAllister and away from the DUP and UUP.  Will Foster heed  his  warning and trim cooperation with R of I ? 

March 1

While you're used to hearing about violence in the North, this occurred in the South in the Republic of Ireland. The RoC  government extended the coronavirus lockdown by a month and hundreds of people joined a protest in Dublin that escalated into violence. Cops were injured and 23 people were arrested.

March 17, 2021

Nice to see someone  slow down the power grab going on during the pandemic: Belfast City Council's request for new legislative powers from Stormont to help deal with anti-social behavior in areas like the Holyland was rejected

March 26,2021

Dublin, Rof I  is going to erect a plaque to honor Violet Gibson, who shot Mussolini in the nose in assassination attempt on  April 7,1926.  I guess her status as a debutante in the court of Queen Victoria. was a factor in getting her returned to England where she spent the rest of her life in St Andrew's Hospital, a mental asylum in Northampton, until her death in 1956. This has a very, odd feel about it.

June 2

A little late getting to this anniversary: On May 14, 1945  the German navy surrendered on Northern Ireland soil. The Londonderry area  was  chosen because in the campaign to defeat the U-boats there was no base more important than the Royal Navy's Londonderry base.

June 10

#Biden ordered , Yael Lempert, senior USA diplomat to the UK to rebuke UK's Brexit Minister, Lord Frost, for "inflaming" tensions in Ireland and Europe by not implementing some terms of the Brexit deal involving Northern Ireland. Good Ol  Joe is kissing the EU's a^s again.

June 13, 2021

Are we getting to the crux of the Brexit issues? UK Foreign Secretary Dominic #Raab said Macron's comment that Northern Ireland is not part of the UK, is "offensive", and added that for years some EU leaders have characterized Northern Ireland as a separate country.

JUNE 27, 2021

 Mathew O’Hare,  a Lurgan(NI)-based US software developer  and convicted online sex offender, was sent to jail for three months for assaulting  his probation officer. Judge Lynch replaced probation with just three months of jail time and the rest under license(home detention).  O’Hare claims he left Oregon for Northern Ireland to escape intolerance in the USA, and it appears  he found a softer landing spot.

July 9, 2021

Funny stuff and as usual, the typer apologized later. 

Bernard O’Byrne's, the CEO of Basketball Ireland, reply “BLACK DIVES MATTER” to a BBC Facebook post about the penalty won by Raheem Sterling in England’s Euro 2020 semi-final  soccer victory over Denmark. .

August 15, 2021

 The rare 35mm reels of the film, On The Night Of The Fire (1939), will be screened today at the Strand Arts Centre as part of the Belfast EastSide Arts Festival. Brian Desmond Hurst( February12, 1895- September 26, 1986), the film's director who was born in east Belfast, remains relatively unknown.

Aug 25, 2021

#DeclanButcher , who was pursued by the Limavady, NI police for disturbing the police and  found with cocaine between his buttocks, claimed someone else must have put it there.

Oct 29, 2021

Senior Orange Order(Prots) member Rev Mervyn Gibson  said he has no interest in any bribe offered by Mary Lou McDonald,  the Sinn Fein(Caths) leader from R  of I who supports  making the Twelfth of July a public holiday in a united Ireland. Gibson, a resident of Northern Ireland, wants it to be a UK holiday. The "12th" is celebrated mostly in NI to celebrate Protestant Ascendancy acquired after key military victories in the late 17th century.

Dec 9, 2021

Sinn Fein wants to ban fox hunting in the south(Republic of Ireland) but not in Northern Ireland. NI remains the only part of the UK where hunting wild mammals with dogs is still permitted. And Sinn Fein wants to unite the north and south into one Ireland. The laughs continue!

Feb 4, 2022

NI First Minister, Paul Givan(DUP), resigned on Thursday in protest against post-Brexit trade rules. His resignation means NI Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill,(Sinn Fein), automatically loses her position: under Stormont's power sharing rules, one cannot hold office without the other. 

Other ministers of the NI Assembly can stay in place, but they cannot make any major decisions, including on the budget. A lot different than USA politics.

June 11, 2022

Great Britain will present legislation to parliament on Monday to unilaterally revise the post-Brexit trade arrangements for Northern Ireland, raising the risk of a trade war and a new clash with Brussels and also with Nancy Pelosi who warned there could be no U.S.-UK trade deal if the plan passes. Hey Nancy, hire a driver for your husband.

July 9, 2022

UVF, a Protestant terror group, dismissed rumors mentioned during an Irvine bail hearing that it's going to announce its disbandment. Too bad, cuz it would be nice to see one less gang in Northern Ireland.

July 30, 2022

A Republic of Ireland police vehicle was seen travelling into Northern Ireland on the Lurganboy Road near Castlederg in recent days. Just imagine if a Michigan cop car drove for a while along roads in Canada.

August 27, 2022

Neil Gibson, a senior official at the Department of Finance, took control of Stormont's finances because of the failure to pass a budget before the collapse of power sharing in NI.

Departments can continue to operate but Gibson cannot start funding new policies.

Unelected officials running the show is scary.

Oct 24, 2022

 Sinn Fein president Mary-Lou McDonald suggested there will be no return to direct rule from London if Stormont collapses, but it will be replaced by a joint arrangement between the northern Irish and the British state. He!! London can't find a PM. 

Oct 29, 2022

Northern Ireland will hold an election within 12 weeks because the DUP feels there should be no restrictions on trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, something the EU will not accept. For now, more decisions will be made in London. Hello Mary Lou(Sinn Fein), goodbye to Michelle O'Neill's gig as First Minister. And folks in the USA think our major parties can't work together.

Dec 17, 2022

Biden appoints Joe Kennedy III, a grandson of RFK, to be the Special Envoy to Northern Ireland. The Catholic Kennedy should go over well with the Prots. 😉

Jan 3, 2022

Sinn Fein’s Gerry Kelly, former Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) member who played a role in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, told the New IRA to stop reckless threats after the it vowed to end British rule in NI.

April 15, 2023

Biden's DOJ snoops on USA Catholics while he does photo-ops with Gerry Adams(IRA)

May 1, 2023

After an acquaintance told me Northern Ireland was a safe tourist spot, I searched the news: Two cars were set on fire in County Down, one with a petrol bomb.

May 23, 2023

R of I is going alone on alcohol labels when harmonized labels are being planned across the EU. Irish attacking booze industry- kinda funny.

June 22, 2023

R of I may remain neutral and not join NATO. They were neutral at the outbreak of WW2. Hitler bombed Dublin in May 1941

July 13, 2023

Some things don't change in NI: The Derry arm of the New IRA(Catholics) are looking for an informer in its ranks after three of its guys were charged for the attempted murder of DCI John Caldwell.

Sept 30, 2023

"NI and RoI are at the dating stage".  Too much Vegas neon for Bono!

Nov 24, 2023

Caio Benicio, an immigrant from Brazil, used his motorcycle helmet to stop the knife attacker on Dublin's Parnell Square in the Republic of Ireland  

Riot broke out later over the knife attacks. Name of knifer was not released.

Nov 25, 2023

Hey Varadkar(RoI): EU-like hate speech laws are not an answer to the Dublin Riots. Clampdown on speech is rubbish.

All the United Ireland(RoI/NI) dreamers should go back to sleep. Remember Brexit in NI was to get it away from the EU crap. 

Dec 6, 2023

The Irish(Rof I) national anthem, Amhrán na bhFiann, was played for the first time at a Belfast (NI) venue, Windsor Park just before kick-off in the Women’s Nations League clash between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Jan 19, 2024

Wyck painted the battle and rearing grey horse, and Constantijn Netscher painted the head of King William III.

   Bloomfield Auctions will be putting the portrait showing William of Orange on horseback during the Battle of the Boyne, up for sale next week. 

Feb 2, 2024

 A deal that plays down the role of the Rof I in Northern Ireland's economy allows government to re-open in Belfast.

It eliminates physical checks when goods move within the UK internal market system and that more than 80% of all goods from Britain to Northern Ireland will not face checks.

Feb 7, 2024

Sunak waved off speculation that O'Neill's election could signal the possibility of a united Ireland. Can you see NI citizens tolerating stringent R of I speaking laws?

Feb 12, 2024

Many Republic of Ireland politicians want to restrict free speech at home, and its women's basketball team refused to shake hands with Israel after a FIBA game in Riga.

March 11, 2024

Finally, a dose of common sense in R of I. Irish voters rejected amendments redefining family: replacing marriage with "marriage and other durable relationships.

March 21, 2024

Leo, the Leak, Varadkar is stepping down as R of I prime minister, as soon as his successor is chosen. I bet this has something to do with his move to restrict speech.

BTW, he was caught leaking a confidential general-practitioner document to a doctor friend of his a few years ago. 

March 25, 2024

Some folks who've lived in big cities in Europe and North America view Dublin, R of I, as the place most likely to get physically assaulted and choose different travel paths daily.

April 30, 2024

 "Bring back our borders" slogan bugs R of I Social Protection Minister, Heather Humphreys, who views it as wrong and dangerous language.

She tries to cover herself a bit here. “The only open border we have is with Northern Ireland, and we want to keep that in place."

June 20, 2024

U.K. Labor Party may consider supporting the reunification of Ireland due to Sinn Féin’s  recent electoral success. Hey Sunak, pay attention.

July 25, 2024

Sue Gray, Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, accused of subverting cabinet ministers in relation to negotiating a  bailout for the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast,NI. Honeymoon over!

Gray used to work Stormont's Department of Finance (DoF) .

 Resentment brewing among Labor ministers who have been told there is no money for their new spending commitments.

Sept 22, 2024

Northern Ireland Executive will not release internal records relating to Sinn Féin's U-turn on puberty blockers for children seeking gender care. Now SF wants to ban access.

Looking back to 1980: Bobby Seale , John B. Anderson, and more

A buddy and I went to see #BobbySeale, the co-founder with Huey Newton of the Black Panther Party in 1966, speak in a small lecture hall on the UMBC campus in 1980. We may have been the only white kids there.  Seale focused on his latest campaign to promote buying products from local merchants and being active in your community, but talked about #HueyNewton and rich white liberals, too.

Huey  studied California gun laws in the mid 1960s and discovered that you could ride around in a car with certain guns legally as long as they weren't concealed.

Bobby chuckled about going to Berkley to recruit young, white rich kids with $$$ and rebellious zeal. He did not want to answer questions about Huey's current problems(1980).

There was a brief greet and meet afterwards and my buddy and I were quiet until Bobby pressed us for our opinions so I  posed the question about  how could local merchants avoid dealing with big corporations, and I've forgotten Bobby's answer but he was a he!! of a salesman and probably would have become a rich dude had he chosen a different path.

That same year I attended an on campus Marxist club meeting and learned quickly that this group was more worried about beer,  dating, and raising cash so that was my last visit there because  I had cooler friends for those pursuits.

I was a registered Democrat who was feeling the party's drift away from blue collar "values" and voted for John B Anderson, a Republican Congressman from Illinois, who ran as an Independent.

I wrote brief news summaries for the UMBC radio station and caught a ton of grief from the boss for  stating in an on air OP-ED that Jews and Arabs used common tactics in the Mideast.

It's a big world out there. My views have changed some in forty years. Screaming STFU isn't the answer.

June 9, 1980

Here's some interesting Presidential debate history. John B. Anderson and Reagan debated  in Baltimore, MD on September 21, 1980 in Baltimore, MD. The next debate was between  Reagan and President Carter on October 28, 1980 in Cleveland, OH.

June 20, 2020

Anderson was briefly considered as possible candidate for the Reform Party nomination in the 2000 U.S. presidential election, but instead endorsed Ralph Nader. In January 2008, Anderson supported Obama, a fellow Illinoisan.

July 14, 2020

I wonder if folks in Oakland who want to rename Jack London Square to Bobby Seale Square are aware that Seale renounced violence in the early 1970s and  wrote Barbeque’n with Bobby , a cookbook., in 1988.

July 28, 2020

Forty years later and there's another Presidential debate  in Cleveland, Ohio. First 2020 U.S. presidential debate will move to Cleveland after Notre Dame withdraws. 

Aug 13, 2020

All of the hoopla over Kamala Harris as the Dem VP sent me scurrying to the history books.  In 1972 Shirley Chisholm, a congresswoman from Brooklyn , NY,  was the first black woman to run for President. McGovern won the Democratic nomination that year. Also, in May 1972 she visited George Wallace in the hospital after Arthur Bremer shot him at point-blank range during a campaign appearance in Laurel, Maryland. 

Sept, 8, 2020

I was thinking about Bill Walton's friendships with Jack Scott and SLA sympathizers, and while searching the net, was reminded that Jimmy Carter commuted Patty Hearst's jail sentence in 1979.

Oct 10, 2020

 Carter and Reagan squared off only once due to a number of disagreements which left no room for a Mondale/Bush VP debate. I bet they didn't consider John B. Anderson's running mate, former Wisconsin Governor Patrick Lucey.

Jan 30, 2021

I  was not familiar with this comment from Fabian Socialist, George Barnard Shaw(1856-1950), “ I had no other feeling for the working classes than an intense desire to abolish them and replace them by sensible people,” but felt it coming when I began my flight from Democrat party in 1980.

And recently #PaulEmbery , a British firefighter, union official, and lifelong Labor activist,  wrote an article ,“Despised: Why the Modern Left Loathes the Working Class,” which comments on how Shaw's condescension  has  become the dominant ideology of the progressive intelligentsia, which embraces every subcategory of identity politics except class identity.

April 20, 2021

RIP #WalterMondale. I'm not sure what a Mondale/Bush 1 VP debate would've been like had it not been skipped in October 1980.

April 24, 2021

I doubt if this came up in the 1980 debates but found it in a review of The Marble Man by Thomas L. Connelly (1977).

In August 1975, President Ford signed a bill restoring the rights of citizenship to Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The legislation had been approved unanimously in the Senate and was passed by a vote of 407 to 10 in the House of Representatives.

June 17, 2021

As a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which would preside over the 1977 CIA Director confirmation hearings, Joe Biden assured #tedSorensen that he would help guide him through the process, but later turned on him. Sorensen had some baggage, but this is a lesson  to not trust our current President.

 Sorensen later said Biden should be awarded the “prize for political hypocrisy in a town noted for political hypocrisy.”

July 18, 2021

 Biden nominated Tom Udall, a former US senator and the nephew of the late Mo Udall, as ambassador to New Zealand. Mo ran against Carter in the 1976 Presidential primary and supported Teddy Kennedy against Carter in the 1980 Democratic primary. The old boy network lives on in the Democrat party.

August, 19, 2021

Biden’s approval rating hit the lowest point in his presidency, and his total failure in Afghanistan ranks right up there with Jimmy Carter's mishandling of Iran hostage situation which lasted 444 days from November 4, 1979, to January 20, 1981.

Dec 7, 2021

RIP #BobDole. Dole's caption for a photo of Presidents Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon “see no evil, hear no evil—and evil.”

Sept 27, 2022

In 1979, Sen. Howard Baker, R-Tenn., was able to get Congress to pass an unrelated spending bill that exempted the Tellico dam construction from the Endangered Species Act. Is this similar to what Manchin is trying to do with the Mountain Valley Pipeline?

Nov 5, 2022

Since I voted for this Presidential ticket in 1980:  John Anderson/Patrick Lucey ticket received 5,719,437 votes for 6.6 percent of the total vote in the 1980 presidential election.

Dec 31, 2022

In hindsight, Billy Carter, Jimmy's brother, was an amusing clown compared to Hunter Biden. Lunden Roberts, a former exotic dancer and mother of Hunter Biden's child, requested their child have Biden as its last name through her lawyer Tuesday in a case where Hunter asked to lower his child support payments. 

Feb 20, 2023

The news of Jimmy Carter nearing the end remind me that he acknowledged in 2020 that his son Chip smoked a joint with Willie Nelson on the White House roof on September 13,1980.

Definitely not surprised ______

 On October 14th Spain’s Supreme Court sentenced nine politicians and activists to up to 13 years in jail over their role in Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid.  You knew this was coming:
 Hundreds of thousands of pro-independence supporters from across Spain’s northeastern region of #Catalonia are expected to pour into #Barcelona today October 18th.
Will Spain's answer again be to seize control of the Catalan administration?

Oct 20: 

#BillMaher plea for Trump to go : "Just take my check for $1 million,"..... "Mr. President, it is really very simple. You love money. We hate you."  Hey Bill, Trump is having too much fun.

Oct 25

 #SnoopDogg  will promote Seedo’s small refrigerator-like machine that grows plants with the help of artificial intelligence.

oct 27

Fundraising slows down so Biden softens opposition to super PAC money

Nov 11

I'm not surprised #evomorales described a civic coup as the reason for his resignation as the President of #Bolivia . Don't forget that a few years ago he had the courts  overturn a two-term Presidential limit by arguing that it was a violation of his human rights

 November 12

 #Vox , which advocates tough stances against immigration and for the independence drive in the Catalonia region, increased its seats from 24 to 52. That's a mild surprise, but it's worth noting that Vox only received 0.2% of the vote in Spain  three years ago.

nov 28

  "The Dreadful Eight" , a report issued by Bellingcat and its' partners  Der Spiegel and The Insider, made the claim that eight Russian intelligence agents traveled to Bulgaria in 2015 and poisoned arms dealer #EmilianGebrev .

Dec 4

I'm not surprised that Iran's rulers are blaming us for it's internal problems, but am surprised  Iran’s President Rouhani called for the release of any unarmed and innocent people who were detained during protests.

dec 7

 #JohnKerry , the former US secretary of state and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, is endorsing  Biden in 2020.  This should warms the hearts of the AOC wing of the Democrat party.

dec 13

 Former Bolivian Pres #EvoMorales  was granted political asylum by Argentina. Mexico was just too far away from Bolivia.

dec17

 Results of President #Obrador of Mexico "give peace a chance"  plan for dealing with cartels : 12 cops killed in one week in #Guanajuato

dec 19

  EU court ruled #Junqueras,  a jailed Catalan secessionist leader, has political immunity which is a huge victory for secessionist movement.

dec 30

  Traditional rivals,Greece and Turkey, are using Libya as diplomatic front in a battle over  Mediterranean maritime rights and energy exploration.

jan 2, 2020

Spain continues to step into messes.  Bolivia  expelled Mexico's ambassador and two Spanish diplomats, alleging they were part of a plot to aid the escape of former Interior Minister Juan Ramón Quintana, the most-wanted man in the country.

jan 4

While Ergodan has Turkey pursuing Libya's oil,  the top court in Turkey ruled that #wikipedia  be made available to Turkish users again. We'll see if Ergodan obeys the Constitutional Court. I doubt it.

jan 7

 35 mourners killed and 48 other others injured in stampede in Kerman, Iran,during #Soleimani 's burial ceremonies.

jan 12

I'm surprised Iran admitted to shooting down the Ukranian passenger  plane, but not surprised at how they've exacerbated the situation.  Iranian police used tear gas to disperse vigil attendees who were chanting against Khameini and arrested the British ambassador to Iran, #RobMacaire , who claims he went to honor the British victims and left when the chanting started.

Jan 13

I wonder if Argentina is glad they gave #evomorales political asylum. He confirmed his was the voice in a recording played on Bolivian radio calling for creation of armed militias “as in Venezuela”.

Jan 28

Is this quid pro quo?  #Cyprus is blocking EU sanctions against several officials from Russia-annexed Crimea in a bid to secure EU backing for tougher action against Turkey in a separate issue over drilling for hydrocarbons in or near Cyprus territorial waters.

Jan 30

I'm not surprised  that the Turkish Foreign Ministry  criticized a court decision in Belgium, which has blocked the prosecution of 36 suspects linked to the Kurdish #PKK , and doesn't want to understand that the Belgium Judiciary is independent of the Belgian Executive Branch which still lists PKK as a terrorist group.

Feb 3

Is Ergodan on a Crusade? Greece has boosted its troop level at the Greek/Turkish border, and the Turks shelled Syrian troops in Idlib, Syria, yesterday.

feb 11

 Baghdad woke up to snow for first time since 2008 but will it chill the protests.

feb 14

 #JoeManchin, who voted to oust Trump,  may endorse his re-election

feb 25

News that makes me feel old:  The Brazilian Football Confederation unveiled a statue of #Pele at its headquarters  to commemorate June’s 50th anniversary of the team’s third World Cup triumph in 1970. The 79 year-old Pele has difficulty walking  and did not attend  the ceremony.

feb 26

  Professional baseball teams in Japan will hold games without spectators until March 15 due to concerns over #coronavirus.

march 2

 I'm not surprised at the Left's growing intolerance for free speech. #AmyKlobuchar canceled a rally in her home state yesterday after protesters took over the stage shouting for her to drop out of the presidential race over the Myon Burrell case she prosecuted in 2002.

march 8

Will #ergodan's errors in Libya, Syria, and now the Greek border catch up with him domestically. Yesterday, he shut down social media access again. The EU is telling him we gave you $$$ to deal with the migrant problem so deal with it.

March 10

Meanwhile armed Greek civilians have begun patrolling the Greek-Turkish border region and claim they are keeping villages safe.

March 11

 'My kids exhaust me more than COVID-19,' #JonathanPeterschmitt, a French doctor in  self-imposed quarantine with his family.

March 30

I'm not surprised missiles are still flying in the Middle East . Saudi forces intercepted ballistic missiles  over the capital Riyadh and the southern city of Jazan. The Iran-backed  Houthi rebels of Yemen are the likely suspect.

April 5

I'm not surprised that Peru has a lockdown by gender. Men can go out: MWF, Women: Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. No one on Sunday. I guess they missed the memo about the other 100 genders

April 7

Twists and turns: The Sindh government in Pakistan used the Maintenance of Public Order law to keep Omar Saeed Sheikh and three others behind bars for another 90 days while prosecutors appeal the court ruling to release those involved in Daniel Pearl's death on 2002.

april 12, 2020

Documents from the Iran Nuclear Archive that were seized by Israel two years ago state that Iran created the Shahid Mahallati Uranium Metals Workshop, near Tehran, to research and develop uranium metallurgy related to building nuclear weapons. Meanwhile Congresswoman #Omar thinks the USA shouldn't block an IMF plan to give Iran Coronavirus aid. Here's a novel idea: Iran shifts money from its nuclear arms plan to fighting the virus. 

april 23

Haircuts  are all the rage among younger folks in Denmark as lockdown eases. Old folks aren't so enthused.

May 5

This is not a multi gender story:  "trans-Tasman bubble", quarantine free travel between Australia and New Zealand freely, is a hot topic of discussion

May 18

I guess there was enough social distancing.  Stolt Apal, a UK flagged tanker, repulsed  an attack by six armed pirates  in two speedboats 75 nautical miles off Yemen’s coast in the Gulf of Aden.

May 19

  FC Seoul, a South Korean soccer team, apologized Sunday after fans watching a televised game noticed the "mannequins" in the stands.  It appears to be  harmless even amusing, but some have alleged these  are sex dolls.

May 26

Michigan Gov. #Whitmer acknowledged  that her husband dropped her name while requesting to get their boat in the water ahead of the Memorial Day weekend, but claimed her husband’s comments were a “failed attempt at humor.” The acknowledgement arrives after she got Michigan GOP state Sen. Tom Barrett  to take down  an FB post about her hubby by insisting the story was untrue.  Now for something sadder. Red Wings didn't quality for the 24 team NHL playoffs.

May 29, 2020

No surprise that folks in Hong Kong are lining up to exit. An agency that facilitates emigration from Hong Kong to Taiwan received over 200 requests last weekend. Canada and Australia are other destinations drawing interest.

June 3, 2020

Some well preserved cannabis, including its psychoactive compound THC was found in a 2,700-year-old temple in Tel Arad , about 59 miles south of Tel Aviv. The remains of burnt offerings were preserved on top of  altars.

June 10, 2020

Judge #Cavedo temporarily blocked a plan by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's administration to remove a Confederate statue of General Robert E Lee from a local monument for 10 days. Unless this has changed in VA code section 15.2: Confederate or Union monuments or memorials of the War Between the States (1861-1865) are protected.  Maybe Northam needs new legislation , maybe not.

June 12, 2020

 Peru claims exports of ginger have nearly tripled during the  pandemic because the root is seen as a natural immune system booster. Spain, the Netherlands, and the United States were the biggest recipients of the exports.

June 15, 2020

Pastors dressed as waiters and carried Bibles on trays to bar tables set up inside the Comunidad Redentor church in San Lorenzo, Argentina protesting Gov.Perotti's ban on church gatherings of 10 people or more. Whatever it takes!

June 16, 2020

 #ergodan will be whining shortly. Greek PM Mitsotakis said the Greek-Israeli-Cypriot energy explorations arrangement “is not directed against nor exclusive of anyone”, but accused Turkey of  being a bully in the region. France claimed Turkey's violation of an arms embargo was thwarting efforts to secure a ceasefire in Libya.

June 19, 2020

 Judge #Cavedo extends injunction preventing removal of Lee statue, and Virginia has put up concrete barriers around it. It appears Northam's pen isn't as strong as he thinks, for now.

June 20, 2020

More statue news: MLPD(Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany) chairwoman Gabi Fechtner on the unveiling of a statue of Lenin in the western German city of Gelsenkirchen.

"Lenin was an ahead-of-his-time thinker of world-historical importance, an early fighter for freedom and democracy"

June 23, 2020

#Bolton wrote in his book that he relayed Trump’s request to a senior Japanese government official for more money to host USA troops. Japan's Defense Minister Taro Kono said he hasn't received that request. The current troop agreement expires in March , 2021.

July 4

Mildly surprised that Macron replaced Philippe with #Castex , a right-leaning politician, as Prime Minister of France, but he may have calculated that there would be little to gain from trying to appease his leftist detractors. Who knows, maybe this is a lesson for some GOP members of the USA Senate. etc?

July 10

It's about the number of guests : "Big fat British Asian weddings' forced to slim down"

July 20 , 2020

I ain't surprised that Iran launched missiles at a mock-up of a US aircraft carrier in the strategic Strait of Hormuz. And you'll love the name for the drills, Prophet Mohammed 14th.

Aug, 8, 2020

Not surprised Macron is offering French assistance to Lebanon since France's ties with Lebanon go back to a League of Nations mandate to administer the infrastructure of Lebanon. My first reaction was to ponder a line from John Cale's song 'Russian Roulette': "The French are dizzy from turning their back on everyone."

Aug 15, 2020

A history lesson on politicians: Since it was losing two-thirds of its territory with more than 3 million Hungarians , Hungary sent politicians with no future ambitions to sign the treaty that ended WW1.

Sept 9, 2020

Ain't surprised: Red hats outnumbered masks 100-to-1 at Trump rally in Winston-Salem, NC.

oct 17

Sadly, I'm not surprised that some folks don't appreciate freedom. An 18-year-old of Chechen origin was shot dead by the French police after he murdered 47-year-old history teacher Samuel Paty, who earlier this month shown his pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in a civics class on freedom of expression.

oct 27

Iranian FM #Zarif tweeted that insulting Muslims is an “opportunistic abuse of freedom of speech. It only fuels extremism.” Typical BS response to images being displayed in France of prophet Mohammad, which some Muslims consider blasphemous.

Nov 13, 2020

 I ain't surprised that #Duerte, the Philippines President, has decided to postpone the termination the VFA with the USA, since tensions with mainland China remain unresolved in the South China Sea.

Nov 25, 2020

Hunter Thompson would've loved this story.  Eastern European authorities have arrested two New Zealanders in Romania accused for involvement in a global Hells Angels cocaine and methamphetamine drug trafficking ring. They also arrested the  leader of the Hells Angels Bucharest motorcycle club after raids on eight properties last week.

Nov 27

Same old Cuba: The headquarters of  San Isidro Movement , a group comprised of artists, musicians, journalists and academics who oppose the oppressive measures used by Cuba's communist government, was raided yesterday by Cuban officials under the pretext of Covid violations. The Cuban government  temporarily shut down social media to stop images of the raid being shared online.

dec 4

I'm no longer surprised at how much Macron is going after the Muslims. Man has he shifted gears . 76 of about 2,600 Muslim places of worship in France will be inspected for links to Islamist extremism.

Jan 1, 2021

Yep, not surprised by this: Banned from setting off fireworks in much of their city, some Berliners launched them from their homes on New Year’s Eve which led to dozens of fires across the German capital.

Jan 2, 2021

More than 2,500 break virus restrictions at illegal rave in #Lieuron near Rennes in Brittany. I ain't surprised and sense the level of frustration across the political spectrum against clampdowns will grow.

Jan 10, 2021

 No surprise here: WHO team probing pandemic's origins blocked from entering China

Feb 4, 2021

I knew the Burma military would find a sketchy reason for putting #SuuKyi under house arrest. Here's what the coup boys found: Illegally Imported Walkie Talkies

Feb 12, 2020

It's going to get uglier in Myanmar: Protesters returned to the streets  Despite Gunshots and Water Cannons. The coup, military chief Min Aung Hlaing, made hollow promises to build a “genuine and disciplined democratic system.” 

Feb 21, 2020

It took a few years, but I'm not surprised that Pope Francis removed Robert Sarah, a conservative African Cardinal, from his Vatican post. You can safely bet Sarah's 2015 statement was one of many reasons.

“What Nazi-fascism and communism were in the 20th century, Western homosexual and abortion ideologies and Islamic fanaticism are today,” 

Feb 28, 2021

While I'm not surprised that military junta in Burma is getting nastier in its crackdown of the pro-Kyi protesters, I'm surprised at the protesters staying power. Will government workers  continue to not work? That remains an interesting factor in this brutal power play.

March 7, 2021

I'm not surprised that #FaniWillis , the Fulton County DA, is preparing subpoenas for evidence on whether Trump and his allies broke the law in their campaign to pressure state officials to reverse his Georgia election loss, but she may be surprised  if it starts appearing that voter fraud occurred in Georgia against Trump.  This could be like dancing on hot coals.

March 16, 2021

 Myanmar’s first satellite was built by Japan’s Hokkaido University in a joint project with Myanmar’s government-funded(MAEU),  and it's being held on board the International Space Station following the Myanmar coup, while Japan’s space agency and a Japanese university decide what to do with it. I don't know if Japan will use its influence to keep the Junta from using satellite data for military goals.

May 7, 2021

Aung Zay Ya, a sergeant who left the military to joint the opposition Civil Disobedience Movement in Myanmar, said about 80 air force officers have defected in protest since the military coup Feb. 1,  Is the a sign the Junta is getting weaker?

June 16, 2021

I'm not surprised that Israel carried through on its promise to hit Hamas whenever they  launch incendiary balloons, which ignited 20 wildfires in southern Israel yesterday.  It's an early test for new Israeli PM Naftali Bennett .

July 21, 2021

I'm definitely not surprised that the Biden administration is telling the Ukraine to not criticize the Russian pipeline publicly.

Sept 7, 2021

I'm not surprised that the Czech Republic has become the first EU member state to contribute funds for Lithuania to build a barrier along its border with Belarus because of  a migration surge. 

Nov 28, 2022

I ain't surprised Ghislaine Maxwell's ex-husband refuses to help her pay $1 Million in legal fees for her conviction appeal.

Jan 19, 2023

I'm not surprised that Ardern is stepping down as PM in New Zealand. The Covid clampdown queen was facing tough re-election prospects. 

March 16, 2023

"Nobody can ignore us any longer," BBB leader Caroline van der Plas on her party's scoring a big election win and shaking up the Dutch Senate which may slow down drastic cuts to nitrogen "pollution" on farms.

Aug 30, 2023

I guess Pelosi is advising Pope Francis, who calls the US Catholic Church reactionary, backward, etc.

 

 

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