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Ruth King

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Common Sense About China By Robert Curry

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://amgreatness.com/2020/07/21/common-sense-about-china/

A review “Communist China’s War Inside America,” by Brian Kennedy (Encounter, 56

China’s goal, Brian Kennedy writes, is “demoralizing the United States to the point where America believes that further resistance is futile.” They can’t succeed without the help of America’s elite.

Something really strange is going on in America today. If you have wondered why political correctness requires you to avoid using the word “Chinese” with regard to a virus that came from China, then I have the book for you. It’s Communist China’s War Inside America by my friend Brian Kennedy. The good news is that the book—the latest in Encounter Books’ “Broadside” series—is very brief (the main text is only 49 pages). It is also written in a beautiful, clear style. Despite its brevity, it provides all you need to understand the nature of the Chinese threat to America, and to understand what can be done and must be done.

Kennedy gets straight to the point, writing that the Chinese 

are confident that America has grown corrupt, and that its political, financial, and cultural elites are in near-complete sympathy with the globalist project of an interdependent world, with the P.R.C. [the People’s Republic of China] at its head.

And make no mistake: the Chinese have ample evidence that their confidence in America’s elites is not misplaced. 

I have a story from my own life that illustrates Kennedy’s point. Recalling what it was like before the pandemic panic took total control of American life will help to set the stage. Back then, the media, the celebrities, and the politicians had not yet mastered the talking points of the COVID-19 narrative. During one of those early days, a local radio news personality announced with great excitement that she had secured an interview with a prominent epidemiologist from the most prestigious university in our region. After thanking the professor profusely for granting the interview, the reporter asked the obvious question, the one that was on my mind at that time: “What is the difference between this flu and the Spanish flu of 1918?” 

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Oregon’s Dem Senators and Portland’s Mob The Left’s romance with destruction and mayhem intensifies. Joseph Klein

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/07/supporters-portlands-mob-joseph-klein/

Oregon Democrat Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley are demanding a full investigation of “the unrequested presence and violent actions of federal forces in Portland.” Law-abiding Oregon citizens are not their primary concern. Neither is the safety of federal personnel trying to protect federal property. These pitiful excuses for public servants, along with other congressional Democrats, are all torn up about the welfare of the rioters who have committed unprovoked assaults on federal enforcement officers standing their ground on federal premises. They pretend not to understand the fundamental difference between constitutionally-protected peaceful assembly and mob violence.

“Oregonians’ demand for answers about this occupying army and its paramilitary assaults in Portland at the direction of Donald Trump and Chad Wolf [Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary] cannot be stonewalled,” Wyden said. “That’s not how it works in a democracy,” Wyden added.

Wrong, Senator Wyden. The real “occupying army” consists of the mobs who have occupied the streets of Portland for more than 50 nights, spreading chaos and destruction. Law-abiding Oregonian citizens are entitled to know why their own state and local police are not protecting their personal security and property.

The United States is a constitutional republic, not a pure democracy. The people rule through their elected representatives, with institutional protections for individuals and minorities from the tyranny of the majority.

The Founding Fathers detested mob rule. “Why has government been instituted at all? Because the passions of men will not conform to the dictates of reason and justice without constraint,” Alexander Hamilton wrote in The Federalist Papers, No. 15. “The very idea of the power and the right of the People to establish Government presupposes the duty of every Individual to obey the established Government,” said George Washington in his presidential farewell address.

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The Big Surge In Coronavirus Deaths Is A Media-Fed Myth

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://issuesinsights.com/2020/07/22/the-big-surge-in-coronavirus-deaths-is-a-media-fed-myth/

Almost daily now we’ve been reading about how daily deaths from COVID-19 have reached record highs. It’s a scary prospect. But the truth is the mainstream press is grossly misleading the public by misreporting the death counts.

Here’s a typical report, from USA Today a few days ago: “As the outbreak continues to surge across the southern states, Florida, Texas and South Carolina set records for new daily deaths, reporting 156, 129 and 69, respectively.”

ABC News reported that “Nineteen states set single-day records for the most cases this week … Three states set a record today.”

According to PBS in Arizona, the state “on Saturday (July 18) set a record for coronavirus-related deaths reported in one day, with 147, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.”

The last story is particularly illuminating because the website the PBS article links to includes a chart of daily deaths in the state. It lists only three deaths on July 19. What’s more, the chart shows that there hasn’t been a single day in the state where deaths exceeded 65.

So where did that scary 147 number come from? The same place all the other “surging” numbers come from. Each day Arizona and other states file reports on how many people died from COVID-19. It’s not a measure of how many died that day. In most cases, the people died days or even weeks earlier.

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Sending in the feds… to Chicago! By Ethel C. Fenig

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/07/sending_in_the_feds_to_chicago.html

After carping and snarking, Chicago’s Mayor Loro Lightfoot reluctantly agrees to receive federal troops that President Trump has offred to send to tame the tidal wave of violence engulfing the Windy City.

On Monday, Chicago’s Mayor, Lori Lightfoot (D–of course) sent a letter to the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, grudgingly agreeing to the president’s offer to send 150 federal agents to the city to help it cope with rising crime, “mostly peaceful” riots and looting, and skyrocketing shootings and murders.

Well, if they must come they can, but, 

“Mayor Lori Lightfoot says Chicago expects influx of federal agents to help city fight violence, ‘but we do not welcome dictatorship’”

Oh, of course not!  Her letter continues 

“What we do not need, and what will certainly make our community less safe is secret, federal agents deployed to Chicago. Any other form of militarized assistance within our borders that would not be within our control or within the direct command of the Chicago Police Department would spell disaster.”

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Michelle Malkin beaten by BLM thugs and prevented from speaking at Denver pro-police rally By Peter Barry Chowka

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/07/michelle_malkin_beaten_by_blm_thugs_and_prevented_from_speaking_at_denver_propolice_rally.html

Conservative author and activist Michelle Malkin was brutally assaulted and prevented from speaking as she made her way to the speaker’s platform at a pro-police public rally in downtown Denver on Sunday.  The patriotic event, the 6th Annual Law Enforcement Appreciation Day billed as “family friendly,” was advertised in advance on social media including at Malkin’s Twitter, where she has 2.2 million followers.

Michelle Malkin @michellemalkin

9:32 AM MDT July 18

There are talkers. There are doers. Which one are you? Coloradans: Join @randycorporon @Casper4Colorado @stevereams me & many other patriots downtown Denver 3pm TOMORROW for 6th annual Law Enforcement Appreciation Day. NOW MORE THAN EVER. (Hi @jaredpolis)
 

Malkin was live-streaming the event from her cell phone on Periscope Sunday afternoon as the situation deteriorated after masked thugs wearing Black Lives Matter t-shirts assaulted two speakers and then set upon Malkin.  A diminutive child of immigrants from the Philippines who legally moved to the U.S. in the late 1960s, Malkin, who was born in Philadelphia in 1970, describes herself as a “little brown woman” with a “big mouth.”  Malkin linked to the entire 35-minute long Periscope video at her Twitter feed.

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The Vindictive Spirit of St. Louis A progressive prosecutor targets a couple defending themselves.

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-vindictive-spirit-of-st-louis-11595373104?mod=opinion_lead_pos2

By now all America knows Mark and Patricia McCloskey from the video showing the St. Louis couple holding legal firearms as they defended themselves and their home from a crowd of protesters trespassing on their property. A politically motivated prosecutor on Monday charged the couple with unlawful use of a weapon.

The felony count is because they pointed their weapons at protesters. Mr. McCloskey said he did so because he was “scared for my life,” and that of his wife. No shots were fired. Yet now prosecutor Kim Gardner is charging them on grounds they made the trespassers fear for their safety.

The good news is that there’s been plenty of official blowback. Missouri Gov. Mike Parson tweeted that “We will not allow law-abiding citizens to be targeted for exercising their constitutional rights.” He has promised a pardon if they’re convicted. Attorney General Eric Schmitt is working to get the case dismissed, noting that, in addition to the U.S. and Missouri constitutions, Missouri law recognizes the “castle doctrine.” This allows residents to use force against intruders, including deadly force, based on self-defense and the notion that your home is your castle.

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The “Maximum Pressure” on Iran’s Regime by Majid Rafizadeh

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16261/iran-maximum-pressure

For almost four decades, Iran’s regime has been squandering the nation’s resources on terror and militia groups… It is estimated that the regime has spent more than $100 billion on its nuclear program.

Many employees of the government, including coal workers and railroad workers, have been protesting unpaid wages and salaries. One protester told Iran News Wire, “I wish I would get COVID-19. Many of us do. Committing suicide is hard but we wish for death every day. What we have is not a life.”

Some of Iran’s authorities have publicly announced that they also do not have money to pay their mercenaries abroad.

Iran’s mullahs have no one to blame but themselves for the country’s drastic economic situation. They simply need to start prioritizing their own people over sponsoring and funding terror and militia groups across the region.

The Iranian regime is facing an unprecedented level of pressure, which, if it continues, can threaten the ruling mullahs’ hold on power. Iran’s currency, the rial, which has been in free fall in the last few weeks, has plunged to a record low. As of July 18, 2020, a US dollar is now worth approximately 250,000 rials. Before the current US administration imposed a “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran, a US dollar had equaled nearly 30,000 rials.

People, as they see the value of their money depreciating by almost ten-fold, have been rushing to get foreign currency. Last month, Iran’s oil exports also sank to a record low. Three years ago, Iran was exporting roughly 2.5 million barrels of oil a day. According to the latest reports, Iran’s oil export is now around 70,000 barrels a day — a reduction of nearly 97%. The country’s budget heavily relies on selling oil.

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The Spreading Scourge of Illusory Superiority by Lawrence Kadish

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16267/illusory-superiority

Illusory Superiority is a quality that now afflicts many in public policy who think they know most things better than the mayor, the governor, or the president.

This is an army of professional “seldom right – but never in doubt” individuals who seem to be singularly unphased by their ability to get so much so wrong.

If the goal of the newspaper is brainwashing and indoctrination, like Russia’s Pravda, its executives, of course, are perfectly right to harness thought; but that is a business decision about profits and market share. It should not be confused with journalism.

Those in politics, whether staff or politicians, possessed of illusory superiority may well bring down the republic. Quite a few seem convinced that by losing the executive branch, the House and the Senate, they are somehow saving the country rather than actually pulling the grenade-pin that will bring about the collapse of the nation’s economy, free-speech, and our very future.

We all know someone whose favorite pastime seems to be knowing something about everything better than anyone.

You know.

The one who lamented to a friend, “I told my husband he should not have sold that stock!”

“Well,” was the response, “Then maybe, you would like to invest some of your own money yourself?”

That was, apparently, not the right answer. Still, that sardonic exchange, labeled, “illusory superiority,” and once confined to inconsequential conversation, has now seeped into our political world, harming the ability to voice opinions, destroying open campus debate, and creating an environment that despite the opinion of the voters, allows government staff to view itself as far smarter than the person elected to office.

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Trump’s Meeting With AMLO Shows Critics Were Wrong About US-Mexico Ties Ana Quintana

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/07/20/trumps-meeting-with-lopez-obrador-shows

President Donald Trump hosted his Mexican counterpart at the White House on July 8 to celebrate the entry into force of the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement trade pact.

The visit was the first time the two leaders met in person and was also the first international trip by Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador, commonly referred to as AMLO, since taking office in December 2018.

AMLO started the day by paying his respects at the Lincoln Memorial. The Mexican delegation then visited the memorial to Mexican hero and former President Benito Juarez.

Trump and AMLO met that afternoon and later that evening, and both leaders were joined by leading private sector executives for a White House dinner.

Two regimes are fighting an ideological war in America today. But what side are you on? And how can you sharpen up on how to defend your position? Learn more now >>

According to both the U.S. and Mexican governments, the visit was a resounding success.

A helpful indicator of a successful Trump meeting is the excessive media coverage predicting the apocalypse and then limited follow-up when it goes well. Over the past three years, analysts repeatedly spun a false narrative that Trump was “destroying three decades of hard work with Mexico.”

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DOJ Indicts Two Chinese Suspects for Hacking U.S. Firms, Stealing Trade Secrets and Coronavirus Research By Zachary Evans

By on July 22nd, 2020

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/doj-indicts-two-chinese-suspects-for-hacking-u-s-firms-stealing-trade-secrets-and-coronavirus-research/

The Justice Department on Tuesday indicted two Chinese nationals who are suspected of hacking numerous U.S. firms to steal trade secrets and coronavirus research.

The Trump administration warned in May that China was attempting to steal or set back American research on a coronavirus vaccine. The new indictment alleges that one of the two suspects began searching for vulnerabilities at a Maryland-based healthcare company on January 27 of this year, days before the company announced it had begun research on a vaccine.

The suspects, Li Xiaoyu and Dong Jiazhi, are believed to reside in China.

“Li and Dong, former classmates at an electrical engineering college in Chengdu, China, used their technical training to hack the computer networks of a wide variety of victims” since at least 2009, the indictment states. The victims include firms focused on “high tech manufacturing; civil, industrial, and medical device engineering; business, educational, and gaming software development; solar energy; and pharmaceuticals.”

The hackers purportedly worked in some cases for their own profit, stealing “hundreds of millions of dollars in trade secrets,” while in others they were employed by China’s Ministry of State Security.

“China has now taken its place, alongside Russia, Iran and North Korea, in that shameful club of nations that provide a safe haven for cyber criminals in exchange for those criminals being ‘on call’ to work for the benefit of the state,” DOJ National Security Division head John Demers said in a statement.

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Following Tuesday’s indictment, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) introduced a bill that would allow the president to impose sanctions on foreign entities involved in hacking of American companies.

“We refuse to allow our innovation to be exploited by China, Russia, or any other hackers,” McCarthy said in a statement. “We are going to protect the cure from falling into the wrong hands so that no one can use it as leverage for their own malicious ends.”

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