Illegal immigration and the enablers.

Charity ship carrying migrants forces way into Italy, captain arrested

By Post Wire Services

June 29, 2019 | 8:20pm | Updated 

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A video grab shows the captain of the Sea Watch rescue ship Carola Rackete (back) while being arrested.MATTEO GUIDELLI/EPA-EFE/REX

The Sea-Watch 3 charity ship carrying dozens of migrants rescued off Libya forced its way into the Italian port of Lampedusa on Friday night after a lengthy standoff, the charity said.

Sea-Watch spokesman Ruben Neugebauer told AFP the boat’s German captain Carola Rackete, 31, was arrested and that the 40 migrants were still on board after the vessel docked.

Rackete was arrested by police for refusing to obey a military vessel, after maneuvering the ship into port without permission. She offered no resistance and was escorted off the vessel without handcuffs.

The ship docked despite the best efforts of a coastguard boat to prevent her from doing so by sailing back and forth between the vessel and the pier, according to the Repubblica daily.

While five European countries on Friday agreed to take in the migrants, permission for the Dutch-flagged Sea-Watch 3 to enter the port and disembark the migrants did not come.

Sources at the interior ministry, headed by Italy’s far-right Matteo Salvini, said he was waiting for precise guarantees on “numbers, timelines and means” of the migrant redistribution before allowing them off.

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The Sea-Watch 3 charity ship forced its way into Italy after a long standoff.AP

“Even though in the afternoon the prosecution has opened an investigation against me, at the same time they notified us that they will not help to bring the rescued off the ship,” Rackete said in a video statement on Twitter.

“I have decided to enter the harbor, which is free at night, on my own,” she added.

Rackete had previously warned she was worried about the psychological condition of those rescued off crisis-hit Libya.

The ship and its captain were met by applause from a group of supporters standing on the pier on Lampedusa.

“It’s been almost 60h since we declared a state of emergency. No one listened. No one took responsibility. Once more it’s up to us, to Cpt. #CarolaRackete and her crew, to [bring] the 40 people to safety,” the charity said on Twitter.

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Sea-Watch 3 captain Carola RacketeAP

With Italy restricting port entry, the Dutch-flagged Sea-Watch 3 has been stuck in the Mediterranean, during a heatwave, since rescuing 53 migrants drifting in an inflatable raft off the coast of Libya on June 12.

The most vulnerable people onboard were evacuated, but Salvini insisted the rest were unwelcome.

On Wednesday, after over two weeks at sea, and as tempers on the small boat frayed, Rackete decided she had no choice but to enter Italian waters illegally to bring the remaining migrants to safety.

For political wonks

Some Never Trump Figures Suddenly Discover What Other Republicans Did Years Ago

Posted at 1:00 pm on June 29, 2019 by Bonchie

NYPD officers serve as pallbearers for funeral of discarded fetus

NEW YORK — A group of New York Police Department officers made sure a fetus discarded on a Brooklyn street months ago got a proper funeral - to the mournful sound of an NYPD bagpipe.

For Saturday’s service, six officers carried the tiny casket into the Basilica of our Lady of Perpetual Help in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood.

The funeral was organized by the Life Center of New York anti-abortion group, with Roman Catholic parishioners attending.

Life Center members gave the fetus a name: Monica. It was found last February in a bag by a tree in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood, surrounded by bloodied clothing.

The medical examiner said the fetus was about 20 weeks old. Burial was at Resurrection Cemetery on Staten Island, in a section for abandoned remains.

Piles of poop, litter on trails, trampled wildflowers. In the social-media era, Washington’s public lands are being destroyed. What can be done? 

June 29, 2019 at 6:00 am Updated June 29, 2019 at 11:39 am

By 

Terry Wood

Special to The Seattle Times

Here’s a “wow” statistic from the U.S. Forest Service: In 2018, wilderness rangers buried more than 400 piles of human waste found scattered throughout the Enchantments near Leavenworth, which, minus the poo, is one of the loveliest wilderness destinations in all of Washington.

A bonus “wow”: The Enchantments camping zone, because of its immense popularity, is equipped with nine privies, all intended to make improper plopping avoidable. Nevertheless, on more than 400 occasions last year, according to a Forest Service spokesperson, visitors decided to plop with impunity and just walk away.

What is going on?

“It’s unbelievable how much surface pooping is going on out there,” said Craig Romano, a year-round hiker and author of 20 hiking guides for The Mountaineers Books. “I’m coming across it in places I never expected, even remote areas. I find it in the middle of a trail. And toilet paper. Streams of it! What I’m seeing is incredible. It’s absolutely disgusting.”

The Middle Fork area provides year-round recreation opportunities for the public, but without appropriate law enforcement and education presence, trailheads, day-use areas and the side of the road become... (Courtesy of Monty Vanderbilt) More 

Romano believes outdoors etiquette violations have increased substantially over the last five years as, perhaps not coincidentally, social-media use has exploded.

Social media’s ability to attract swarms of visitors to picturesque meadows and alpine lakes has presented a new challenge to keeping natural spaces looking even quasi-pristine.

“I don’t think anybody anticipated social media — a year ago, or five or 10 years ago — to be what it is today,” said Dana Watts, executive director of the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics. “There’s no question it’s having an impact. It is something we’re very much paying attention to.

With more people venturing into the outdoors — many in pursuit of the perfect Instagram snap — Romano can reel off a list of etiquette violations he’s witnessed: Litter, off-leash, free-range dogs, keep-out signs ignored, switchbacks cut, social trails splitting meadows and noise.

“The first time I heard music on speakers in the backcountry, I thought, ‘This can’t possibly be.’ Now it’s very frequent, and people are blasting it,’ ” Romano said.

“I’ve heard people say people who do these things are just ‘hiking their own hike.’ That doesn’t mean you do what you damn well please. Trails are on public property and come with rules and regulations. Roads are public property, too, and we share them with a lot of people. I can’t just drive my own drive. … That mentality astounds me. Trails are being inundated with a lot of new, clueless people right now, and we need a massive public-education campaign.”

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Gas taxes to rise in these states in July

By Brittany De LeaPublished June 29, 2019

Will gas prices rise at the pump this summer? 

Oil prices surge amid surge amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran. OPIS Energy Analysis global head Tom Kloza with more.

While gas prices in the U.S. have generally been declining throughout recent weeks, drivers in some states will feel a little bit of extra pain starting Monday, when a number of states raise their gas taxes. 

The national average for fuel prices as of Friday was $2.70 per gallon, down from $2.82 one month ago and $2.85 at this time last year, according to AAA.

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Here’s a look at some states where taxes are rising beginning next month:
California
The gas tax in California will rise 5.6 cents per gallon, to 47.3 cents per gallon from 41.7 cents.
As of Friday, the average price of a gallon of gasoline in California was $3.74.
The increase is part of legislation that was passed in April 2017. There was an attempt to repeal the hike last year, but it failed.
Ohio
The gas tax in Ohio is set to increase by 10.5 cents as of Monday.
The hike was approved in April.
The average price of gasoline in Ohio is $2.67 per gallon.
Illinois
The fuel tax in Illinois is set to double, increasing to 38 cents from 19 cents per gallon.
As of Friday, the average gas price in Illinois was $2.89 per gallon.
South Carolina
A much more modest gas tax increase will affect drivers in South Carolina, a two-cent per gallon hike.
The average price of gasoline in South Carolina is about $2.35 per gallon.
Tennessee
In Tennessee, a modest 1 cent per gallon increase will take effect soon.
As of 2017, the state’s gas tax was 21.4 cents per gallon. The budget plan will, overall, increase that tax by 6 cents per gallon.
As of Friday, the price of gasoline was $2.40 per gallon.

WATCH: ANTIFA MOB BRUTALLY ASSAULTS AND ROBS JOURNALIST ANDY NGO IN PORTLAND.

Antifa targets, attacks, sends independent journalist to hospital for filming their 'protest' - and they robbed him too

WATCH: The violent clashes and Antifa attacks were caught on video by others who they didn't rob.

These are Mao's children. A legacy of authoritarianism and control. Could China be supporting?

WATCH: ANTIFA MOB BRUTALLY ASSAULTS AND ROBS JOURNALIST ANDY NGO IN PORTLAND

Posted by -NO AUTHOR- | Jun 29, 2019 | Daily Wire | 0  |     

A journalist who regularly covers demonstrations by the left-wing group Antifa has been assaulted and robbed.

Andy Ngo, who has written previously about his experiences covering the violent group for The Daily Wire, tweeted shortly before 1 p.m. local time that he had been attacked.

“Attacked by antifa. Bleeding. They stole my camera equipment. No police until after. waiting for ambulance. If you have evidence Of attack please help,” wrote Ngo, who is an editor for Quillette.

Attacked by antifa. Bleeding. They stole my camera equipment. No police until after. waiting for ambulance . If you have evidence Of attack please help

— Andy Ngo (@MrAndyNgo) June 29, 2019

One opponent of Ngo’s presence and reporting told him he “wanted” to get attacked and had gone to the protest “to antagonize” the members of Antifa. Others cheered the attack.

Ian Miles Cheong wrote at Human Events that the attack happened while the Rose City Antifa group protested against a group of right-wing provocateurs known as the Proud Boys (who have also become violent at their protests). Cheong reported that police “responded to the demonstrations by cordoning off various intersections and preventing the groups from clashing.”

Earlier in the day, Ngo had been hit by a milkshake, which has become some kind of protest symbol in recent months. Video from the attack, uploaded by Oregonian reporter Jim Ryan, showed milkshakes were thrown at Ngo as he was assaulted by a group of men, some of whom wore masks and filmed their attack.

“First skirmish I’ve seen,” Ryan tweeted. “Didn’t see how this started, but @MrAndyNgo got roughed up.”

The video shows members of Antifa punching and kicking Ngo, while others throw milkshakes and shoot him with silly string. Ngo does not fight back, but another man does try to defend him. Ngo then walks away from the group but is followed. Another member of Antifa – which ironically stands for “anti-fascist” – pelts him with a milkshake while others film and taunt the journalist. One woman in the crowd can be heard yelling, “F*** you, Andy!”

Earlier, Ryan posted footage of Antifa members dancing in the back of a truck and pouring milkshakes for participants to throw.

After the attack, Ngo posted a video to Periscope that showed him covered in milkshake with cuts and bruises on his face and around his eyes. He reiterated that no police officers helped defend him during the attack, but paramedics tended to his wounds after.

Ngo has been previously attacked for covering Antifa demonstrations. The Daily Caller’s Chuck Ross reported that Ngo claimed to have been attacked while at the gym on May 7 by a man he recognized from the Antifa rallies. A week earlier, he was attacked with mace while covering on of the rallies.

In mid-November 2018, Ngo was assaulted by members of Antifa at a #HimToo rally, which was designed to raise awareness of male victims of sexual assault and men who are falsely accused of sexual assault. Antifa showed up and became violent. Ngo was “verbally berated and physically accosted,” reported The Daily Wire’s Amanda Prestigiacomo. Ngo’s camera equipment was also covered in silly string. Ngo said police did nothing during that assault.

In early December, Ngo wrote at the Wire that he received death threats while attending another rally. He said he was also pushed and verbally berated there as well. In each instance, other members filmed the attack.

California is set to become the first state to ban discrimination against black people's natural hair styles

California is set to become the first state to ban discrimination against black people's natural hair styles

• Bill protecting natural hair passed California's state legislature on Thursday 
• Would ban workplace discrimination against black people for natural hair
• Natural hair styles include afros, braids, twists and dreadlocks  

California is poised to become the first state to pass a law banning workplace discrimination against black people for wearing natural hair styles. 

The bill dubbed the CROWN Act (Create a Respectful and Open Workplace for Natural Hair) passed California's Assembly on Thursday with a vote of 69-0.

The bill previously passed California's state Senate in April, and now awaits signature from Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat.

The new law would prohibit employers from firing or punishing employees for wearing 'protective hairstyles' such as 'braids, locks, and twists.' 

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California is poised to become the first state to pass a law banning workplace discrimination against black people for wearing natural hair styles

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ALERT: Former Obama Officials Caught Working With Iran To Defeat U.S. Foreign Policy

Posted on June 27, 2019 by DCWhispers

Read more at http://dcwhispers.com/alert-former-obama-officials-caught-working-with-iran-to-defeat-u-s-foreign-policy/#ZCIMkwpE0e3ilLb2.99

Yet another HUGE story that has been largely ignored by the mainstream media. Thankfully, OAN has been following the ongoing developments that outline how former Obama officials in conjunction with multiple contacts in Congress, have recently been caught working with Iranian officials to defeat the remarkably successful Trump administration’s actions in isolating and possibly hastening the collapse of the #1 sponsor of state terrorism that is the Iranian regime. 

Let that sink in. Former Obama officials and current members of Congress are working to support and maintain one of the worst human rights violators in the entire world. The Iranian government has a long history of brutalizing women, homosexuals, and other religious and/or racial minorities. The regime is also directly responsible for the deaths of thousands of U.S. military men and women. And on a no-doubt related note, the #1 geopolitical supporter of the terrorist-loving Iranian government (besides the former Obama administration) is Russia, which sells hundreds of millions of dollars worth of military goods to the regime every year. That’s right, the very same Russian government that Democrats here in America say is a threat to our own democracy is working hand-in-hand with former Obama officials to help prop up the radical mullahs who have forced the wonderful Iranian people to live under the boot of their oppressive regime for far too long.

Appalling.

Watch the news video coverage below:

Read more at http://dcwhispers.com/alert-former-obama-officials-caught-working-with-iran-to-defeat-u-s-foreign-policy/#ZCIMkwpE0e3ilLb2.99

Joe Biden creates a conspiracy theory. It's his version of the 100 MPG carburetor the oil companies were keeping off the market/

Living in La-La Land: Joe Biden’s Alternative Reality

FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2019

Anti-gun folks typically characterize their gun control restrictions as “common sense” and “responsible,” regardless of how poorly grounded in reality these “solutions” tend to be, or how little their proponents understand what these measures will do (like the gun control supporters at one event who, when asked, were unable to explain what an AR-15 or a bumpstock is).

A related, recurring theme is their claim that the gun community opposes these incredible “gun safety” measures due to blind, reflexive obstructionism, rather than because of any actual concerns about the merits.

Last week, former vice president and current presidential candidate Joe Biden provided a stunning example of this kind of irresponsible rhetoric. According to a newspaper source, Biden outlined his proposals for gun control – should he be elected as president of the United States – to a select group of donors at a posh Upper East Side penthouse in New York City. “[I]f that happens,” he said, “guns, we have the capacity now in a James Bond-style to make sure no one can pull a trigger unless their DNA and fingerprint is on it…We have that capacity to do it now. You know it.” He added, further, that “the gun manufacturers” had pulled the plug on this technology as soon as “two folks started to sell some of those guns to two dealerships,” apparently because of some misplaced apprehension over the Second Amendment.

During Thursday’s debate between the Democratic Party presidential candidates, Biden went even further, claiming that he would impose a ban on the sale of any firearm that wasn’t a so-called smart gun: “No gun should be able to be sold unless your biometric measure could pull that trigger. It’s within our right to do that.” 

As we’ve pointed out many times before, the “James Bond-style” technology that Biden enthuses over does not actually exist.

There is no gun that incorporates both DNA and fingerprint verification technology. No firearm technology requires a “DNA match” before the gun can fire, and this isn’t a feasible option in any event. DNA extraction and analysis is currently a complex and time-consuming process involving specialized equipment, which means it is completely unworkable as the basis of any design intended to allow immediate access to and use of a gun. A handgun using a biometric fingerprint sensor is reportedly in development, but has some significant flaws (it depends on a rechargeable battery, the sensor can’t recognize a dirty fingerprint or someone wearing gloves, and the prototype only works for right-handed shooters). Like the teleportation transporter in Star Trek, the magic wands in Harry Potter, or the Iron Man’s bodysuit, we do not “have the capacity now.”

It’s no wonder that America’s gun owners continue to reject Biden’s make-believe ideas on gun control. 

So, while Joe Biden may be raking in donations from the elites of Tinseltown, it doesn’t mean he should likewise accept whatever “James Bond-style” fantasies Hollywood puts on the big screen as the gospel truth.

The LBGTQ community has sold a myth that there are more of them than there really are.....

Americans Still Greatly Overestimate U.S. Gay Population

BY JUSTIN MCCARTHY

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• U.S. adults estimate that 23.6% of Americans are gay or lesbian
• Women, young adults have the highest estimations of gay population

This article is the fourth in a monthlong series on Americans' views about LGBT issues. Gallup has released new findings every Thursday in June. Gallup's trends, including some extending back four decades, can be found here.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. adults estimate that nearly one in four Americans (23.6%) are gay or lesbian. Gallup has previously found that Americans have greatly overestimated the U.S. gay population, recording similar average estimates of 24.6% in 2011 and 23.2% in 2015. In each of the three polls in which Gallup has asked this question, a majority of Americans estimated this population to be 20% or greater.

Americans' Estimations of the Percentage of Gay People in the U.S.

Just your best guess, what percent of Americans today would you say are gay or lesbian?

	May 2011	May 2015	May 2019
	%	%	%
Mean	24.6	23.2	23.6
Less than 5%	4	9	8
5% to less than 10%	9	11	9
10% to less than 15%	17	14	14
15% to less than 20%	9	7	10
20% to 25%	17	20	19
More than 25%	35	33	35
GALLUP

Americans' estimate of the proportion of gay people in the U.S. is more than five times Gallup's more encompassing 2017 estimate that 4.5% of Americans are LGBT, based on respondents' self-identification as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

In 2002, Gallup asked Americans to estimate the proportion of men and women who are gay or lesbian, respectively. The results were nearly identical, with an average estimate that 21% of men and 22% of women were gay.

As Gallup pointed out in its initial estimate of the entire LGBT population in 2012, "Exactly who makes up the LGBT community and how this group should be measured is a subject of some debate," and "there are a number of ways to measure lesbian, gay, and bisexual orientation, and transgender status. Sexual orientation can be assessed by measuring identity as well as sexual behaviors and attractions." Thus, Gallup's methodology is not the only way to estimate the percentage of the population that is gay or lesbian. Still, all available estimates of the actual gay and lesbian population in the U.S. are far lower than what the public estimates, and no measurement procedure has produced any figures suggesting that more than one out of five Americans are gay or lesbian.

Overestimations of the nation's gay population may in part be due to the group's outsized visibility. An annual report by GLAAD, an LGBT advocacy group, found that representation of LGBT people as television series regulars on broadcast primetime scripted programming reached an all-time high of 8.8% in the 2018-2019 television season, which is nearly twice Gallup's estimate of the actual population.

But Americans have overestimated the sizes of other minority groups in the past as well, including U.S. blacks and Hispanics.

Women, Young Adults Have Highest Estimations of U.S. Gay Population

U.S. women estimate that about three in 10 Americans (29.7%) are gay or lesbian -- the highest of any key subgroup, and much higher than men's perceptions (17.4%).

Meanwhile, average estimates of the U.S. gay population vary by age. Adults aged 18 to 29 offer the highest estimate (28.5%), and adults aged 65 and older, the lowest (17.5%).

Among political partisans, Democrats and independents estimate that about a quarter of Americans are gay or lesbian, while the average approximation among Republicans is a bit lower (18.3%).

Even the groups offering the lowest average estimates of gays and lesbians in the U.S. exceed Gallup's figure on all LGBT identification by about four times.

Americans' Estimate of the Gay Population in the U.S., by Key Subgroup

	Mean estimate
	%
Men	17.4
Women	29.7
18-29	28.5
30-49	24.4
50-64	23.1
65+	17.5
Republicans	18.3
Independents	25.2
Democrats	26.3
GALLUP, MAY 15-30, 2019

Bottom Line

Gallup has seen the percentage of self-identifying LGBT people grow among millennials, who are making up an increasing share of the U.S. adult population. It is, therefore, possible that Americans' perceptions of the gay population may be influenced by the greater representation they see among young people. This also likely explains why younger adults produce higher estimations, as LGBT self-identifiers make up a larger share of their peers than is the case for older Americans.

There are numerous ways to calculate the size of the LGBT population, which Gallup and other academics continue to study and test. It's quite possible that LGBT self-identifiers will increase as a result of changes in societal norms and acceptance.

Still, no available estimate is as high as what Americans perceive the size of the U.S. gay and lesbian population to be.

Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works.