Tag Archives: Civil Unrest

DANGER, Food supply

Global Food Crisis: IMF Warns of Unrest Amid Food Supply Shortages

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PETER CADDLE
20 Apr 2022

The IMF has become the most recent global body to release a warning regarding potentially forthcoming global food shortages, saying that vulnerable nations are at risk of civil unrest amid supply issues.

Civil unrest linked to sky-high food prices is on the cards for poorer countries, the IMF has warned amid fears that the world could be heading into a global food crisis as a result of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Amid past warnings of starvation and “Hell on Earth” migrant crises over a lack of food, the international finance body has predicted that growth across the world will be negatively affected, with poorer nations in particular to feel the brunt of the ongoing crisis.

According to a post on the organisation’s website, a mix of high inflation and supply problems are to greatly slow economic growth across the world, with vulnerable economies, in particular, to be hit with the brunt of the hardship.

“This crisis unfolds even as the global economy has not yet fully recovered from the pandemic,” the post penned by the group’s research department director, Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas.

“Even before the war, inflation in many countries had been rising due to supply-demand imbalances and policy support during the pandemic, prompting a tightening of monetary policy,” the piece continues. “In this context, beyond its immediate and tragic humanitarian impact, the war will slow economic growth and increase inflation.”

“Furthermore, increases in food and fuel prices may also significantly increase the prospect of social unrest in poorer countries,” it goes on to read. “Central banks will need to adjust their policies decisively to ensure that medium- and long-term inflation expectations remain anchored.”

What’s more, while the IMF report went into detail as to the near future effect of the current crisis for this year and the next, the globalist organisation appears to fear that issues surrounding food shortages could persist longer still.

Sky News reports the organisation as warning that food hoarding on the national level in Ukraine could further worsen the crisis and result in a longer-term humanitarian impact.

The IMF is far from the first international organisation warning about the rising price of food as a result of global supply shortages, with one UN group head even going so far as saying last month that a “Hell on Earth” migrant crisis could emerge out of the third world if more funds are not provided to aid agencies.

“Failure to provide this year a few extra billion dollars means you’re going to have famine, destabilization, and mass migration,” said ex-Republican Governor David Beasley, who now serves as the head of the World Food Bank.

“If you think we’ve got Hell on earth now, you just get ready,” the senior official continued. “If we neglect northern Africa, northern Africa’s coming to Europe. If we neglect the Middle East, [the] Middle East is coming to Europe.”

However, it is not just the global south that is likely to see problems with its food supply, with a lack of fertilisers sourced from Ukraine and Russia meaning that crop yields in the West could theoretically collapse by up to one half.

As a result, a number of national authorities in the West have taken notice of the issue, with Ireland for example pushing for more farmers to plant at least some grain crops over the coming year.

Other national officials have not been so enthusiastic, with one political leader in Scotland denying efforts to dampen supply problems in favour of her government’s green agenda.

Commentary, Food supply, Independent Media

The Earth Only Has A 3-Month Supply Of Food – If Production Stops Humanity Has Nothing To Eat “In 90 Days”

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EDITORS NOTE: The inclusion of this article on UNW isn’t meant to cause panic, just because people make these warnings doesn’t mean that these things will come to pass. That being said, everyone from Klaus Schwab and the World Economic Forum to our own White House Press Secretary has recently warned about an impending food crisis, it might not be the worst time to stock up and even start a garden.

-Ryan

By Michael Snyder

We are far closer to a potential global cataclysm than most people would dare to imagine.  Right now, leaders from all across the political spectrum are openly warning us that a worldwide food crisis is coming.  But when people in the Western world hear of such warnings, most of them assume that it will just be something that affects poor people in Africa or Asia.  Unfortunately, that will not be the case this time around.  We truly are in unprecedented territory, and we are going to see things happen in the months ahead that once would have been absolutely unthinkable.

Global hunger had already been steadily rising for the past couple of years due to the COVID pandemic, and now a confluence of events here in 2022 threatens to create a true global nightmare.

At this moment, we are still eating food that was previously grown, but it is the food that will not be grown in the months ahead that will be the real problem.

Because the truth is that we do not have much of a buffer to work with at all.

David Friedberg is an “early Google executive who started the farming insurance company Climate Corporation,” and he just told the All-In podcast that the Earth operates on “a 90-day food supply”…

“The whole planet Earth operates a 90-day food supply, that means that once we stop making food, humans run out of food in 90 days.”

It is estimated that approximately 7.9 billion people currently live on the planet, and feeding everyone is a real challenge even if everything goes perfectly.

Unfortunately, global conditions have been much less than perfect for the past couple of years, and Friedberg says that the new global energy crisis has pushed the cost of key fertilizer components to levels that are absolutely insane…

“The price of nitrogen has gone from $200 to $1,000, the price in potassium has gone from $200 to $700, and the price of phosphorus has gone from $250 to $700. So now it is so expensive to grow a crop, that a lot of farmers around the world are pulling acres out of production. So they’re going to grow less this year than they would have otherwise because it is so expensive and they can not access fertilizer,” he explained. “Food supplies are going to go down and it is going to be catastrophic.”

Many farmers all over the world will try to grow food without fertilizer this year, but that will result in a whole lot less food being grown.

In one of his latest videos, Chris Martenson compared rice plants that were grown with phosphorus to rice plants that were not given any phosphorus.

I was absolutely blown away by the difference.

As global food production drops precipitously, there simply will not be enough food for everyone in the months ahead.

How To Grow Half Of Your Own Food (Ad)

Of course the wealthy nations will buy up what is available, driving up prices in the process, and the poorer nations will be left out in the cold.

In fact, this is already starting to happen.  In March, the global price of food rose at the fastest monthly pace ever recorded…

March’s food price index from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) printed 159.3 points in March, up 19.15 points from February, when it had already reached record highs. The index was up 33.6% from the same time last year.

The March rise in food prices is a stunning 12.64% MoM – almost double the previous record monthly surge…

If you are looking for “red flags”, you just found one.

Food riots have already begun in some parts of the globe.  For example, you can see a clip from the rioting in Peru right here.

In the months ahead, it is only going to get worse.

Thanks to the war in Ukraine, the price of wheat was up almost 20 percent last month alone…

The war has helped push cereal prices up 17% over the past month with the closure of ports throttling wheat and maize exports from Ukraine. Russian exports have also been slowed by financial and shipping problems.

World wheat prices soared by 19.7% during March, while maize prices posted a 19.1% month-on-month increase, hitting a record high along with those of barley and sorghum.

As I have discussed perviously, Russia and Ukraine normally export enormous amounts of food to the rest of the planet.

But that won’t be the case this year.

Sadly, it is being projected that corn production in Ukraine will be cut by more than half in 2022…

Ukraine is one of the world’s top exporters of corn, sunflower oil, and wheat. Disruptions stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have stoked fears the war-torn country could experience a 50% decline in crop output this year, according to Bloomberg.

Forecast data from ag expert UkrAgroConsult show Ukraine’s corn output could be as low as 19 million tons, about half of last year’s 41 million tons.

And the Ukrainians have already announced that they won’t be exporting any of their production at all this year because they need it to feed their own population during the war.

Here in the United States, the bird flu pandemic continues to escalate, and as a result the price of eggs has more than doubled in recent weeks…

A deadly and highly infectious avian flu is forcing US farmers to kill millions of egg-laying hens, reducing the country’s egg supply and driving up prices.

On Thursday, retailers paid between $2.80 and $2.89 for a dozen large grade A white eggs in the Midwest, according to the USDA’s daily Midwest regional egg report. That’s more than double the roughly $1.25 they cost in March, according to data compiled by Brian Earnest, lead protein industry analyst at Cobank, which provides financial services to agribusiness.

That is extremely alarming.

So what is going to happen if this pandemic continues to wipe out millions of chickens every month?

Meanwhile, certain shortages that have been simmering for a long time are now reaching critical levels.  For example, Walgreens has announced that it is going to start rationing baby formula…

A national shortage of baby formula brought on by pandemic-related supply-chain issues has forced US retailers such as Walgreens to ration the all-important product.

The company – the second-largest pharmacy store chain in the United States behind CVS – said Friday that amid the supply-chain crunch, it is limiting customers to three infant and toddler formula product purchases at a time, at its 9,021 US locations.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

According to the optimists, things were supposed to be getting back to normal by this point.

But instead things are getting even worse.

According to the Daily Mail, “29 percent of all top-selling formulas are out of stock at stores across the nation” right now.

Unfortunately, this is just the beginning.

Everyone agrees that the global food crisis is going to intensify in the months ahead, and David Friedberg is trying to warn us about what could happen if widespread panic sets in…

“I don’t know about death, there will be famine. Famine is to be short of calories. There will be strategic reserves released, but it won’t be enough. We won’t have enough. The way supply chains are set up, there will not be enough,” he said. “As you know with any market, when there is scarcity, people come in and buy at a faster pace. So this is a market dynamic. It is not like people are physically hoarding loaves of bread, but commodity traders, countries, strategic reserves start buying up what they can get to prepare for the famine… prices go even higher and it kicks other people out of the market. The whole thing gets ugly fast.”

We have been warned over and over again that this was coming, and now it is here.

You may have noticed that my articles have been longer than usual lately, and that is because there is so much more information that I need to share with you each day.

We truly are entering a full-blown planetary emergency, and I am trying to do my best to sound the alarm.

Unfortunately, most of the population is still not taking this crisis seriously.

So many people out there are fully convinced that they will always be able to rely on the system, and a lot of them will continue to believe that even as the system literally collapses all around them.

Civil Unrest, Notable Occurrence, Uncategorized

Three Federal Officers Face Permanent Blindness After Rioters Shine Lasers In Their Eyes

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Ryan Saavedra
July 24th, 2020

Three federal law enforcement officials in Portland face permanent severe eye damage after rioters shined powerful lasers in their eyes during the continued attacks on a federal courthouse.

Federal Protective Service (FPS) Deputy Director of Operations Richard Cline said during a press conference this week that his department was the one that requested additional assistance from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to protect federal facilities in Portland from violent extremists.

In describing one of the recent attacks, Cline told reporters Tuesday, “Protesters were kicking the main doors of the courthouse and shining lasers at officers. … A  short while later the group had grown increasingly violent and aggressive, the plywood protecting the courthouse was taken down and a window was broken while protesters were attempting to breach the courthouse. Several hard objects, including canned food and glass bottles were thrown at our officers who were out to move them.”

Cline said that the rioters continued to throw hard objects and commercial grade fireworks at the officers and shined lasers at the eyes of officers.

“When officers responded to put out these fires, glass bottles were thrown and lasers – which can cause permanent blindness – were shined in their eyes,” Cline said.

“You’ve seen the green lasers that are being used out there, we have three officers who currently have eye injuries and they may not recover sight in those eyes from those laser attacks,” he said. “We have purchased anti-laser glasses that the officers are wearing now to prevent those eye injuries.”

Cline also dampened a talking point that has been used by Democrats and the media that the officers are “unidentified,” thus making them “secret police,” something that democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has claimed.

Cline noted that the uniforms that the officers are wearing have only a name linked to their badge number. The reason that they are protecting the officer’s identities is because “about 38 of our officers that are out there have been doxxed and their personal information has been put online,” he explained.

Mark Morgan, Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, that his agents that are being deployed have a “unique identifier” on them because agents are being doxxed, which he said jeopardizes the lives of the agents’ families because the rioters are “putting out their home information and they’re suggesting that individuals go to their homes.”

“So, yes, I as the acting commissioner have authorized and supported removing their names from their uniform,” Morgan said. “Instead, what we have though is a personal identifier, so we can identify and we have each identifier associated with a specific name so we have all that information internally and we’ll share that with the appropriate entities when it’s necessary.”

Morgan added, “So, I hope that puts to rest the lies and false rumors about they’re not properly marked.”

In the weeks following the death of George Floyd, hundreds of police officers have been injured by rioters, according to Attorney General William Barr.

Civil Unrest, Independent Media, Notable Occurrence, Opinion, politics, Uncategorized

Black Portland Cop Details Experience with BLM Protesters: ‘Same Tactics that were Used against My People’

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Hannah Bleau
July 18th, 2020

Jackson said that he has watched as clueless demonstrators have dominated the protests — demonstrators who “have no idea what racism is all about.”

Jackson said in partial audio shared by the Portland Police Department:

I got to see folks that really do want change like the rest of us, that have been impacted by racism. And then I got to see those people get faded out by people who have no idea what racism is all about, that don’t even know that the tactics they’re using are the same tactics that were used against my people.

“And they don‘t even know the history. They don’t know what they’re saying. As someone who graduated from PSU with a history degree, it’s actually frightening,” he continued, adding:

I’m cool with people who feel like they want to help a movement, but then when you go to a gentrified community, and one of the first pictures I saw of one of the businesses that was looted was a black-owned business, they’re not even from here, they don’t even know what they’re doing.

He called it “divisive,” stressing that it is “hurting the community.”

Jackson detailed how he has been treated by white Black Lives Matter protesters, some of whom have told him to quit his job and mocked his physical appearance.

“It says something when you’re at a Black Lives Matter protest, and you have more minorities on the police side than you have in a violent crowd, and you have white people screaming at black officers, ‘You have the biggest nose I’ve ever seen,’” he recalled.

“Once again, you have a privileged white person telling a person of color what to do with their life and you don’t even know what I’ve dealt with. These white officers you’re screaming at, you don’t know them. You don’t know anything about them,” he continued:

I’ve been called on calls the n-word I can’t even count the times since I’ve been a police officer and have white officers jump in to defend me, and me telling them to ignore it, and them being absolutely shocked. And they get to see it, so when you’re standing on the line and they’re getting called those names and they’re getting accused of being racist — when you’ve seen those officers helping people of color – getting blood on them, trying to save someone’s life who’s been shot, gang violence, domestic violence – and you see them and they’re truly trying to help save someone’s life, and then they’re turned around and called a racist by people who’ve never seen anything like that. I have had great conversations. I met two young brothers literally after I’d take explosive, been hit with a full beer can, taken a rock in my chest, a frozen water bottle had hit me, I met two young brothers cleaning up the street. They had garbage bags, and they were just running and cleaning up. A few of us from my team went over, and, I had to shake their hands, I was so moved by that, so impressed. They said, ‘We’re from here, this is our city. I don’t understand why people are coming here and destroying it.’

Jackson’s full remarks below:

Black Portland cop details experience with BLM protesters: ‘Same tactics that were used against my people’

Saturday, July 18, 2020 by: News Editors
Tags: anarchy, anti-police, Black Lives Matter, BLM, civil war, cops, crime, left cult, lies, looting, Police, politics, protests, riots, violence, woke mob
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Image: Black Portland cop details experience with BLM protesters: ‘Same tactics that were used against my people’

(Natural News) Jakhary Jackson, a black Portland police officer, detailed his experience in responding to the violent protests that have rocked the city over the last several weeks, explaining that many of the protesters “don’t know what they’re saying” and are actively using “the same tactics that were used against my people.”

(Article by Hannah Bleau republished from Breitbart.com)

Jackson said that he has watched as clueless demonstrators have dominated the protests — demonstrators who “have no idea what racism is all about.”

Jackson said in partial audio shared by the Portland Police Department:

I got to see folks that really do want change like the rest of us, that have been impacted by racism. And then I got to see those people get faded out by people who have no idea what racism is all about, that don’t even know that the tactics they’re using are the same tactics that were used against my people.

“And they don‘t even know the history. They don’t know what they’re saying. As someone who graduated from PSU with a history degree, it’s actually frightening,” he continued, adding:

I’m cool with people who feel like they want to help a movement, but then when you go to a gentrified community, and one of the first pictures I saw of one of the businesses that was looted was a black-owned business, they’re not even from here, they don’t even know what they’re doing.

He called it “divisive,” stressing that it is “hurting the community.”https://platform.twitter.com/embed/index.html?creatorScreenName=healthranger&dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1283498679265968128&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.naturalnews.com%2F2020-07-18-black-portland-cop-experience-with-blm-protesters.html&siteScreenName=healthranger&theme=light&widgetsVersion=9066bb2%3A1593540614199&width=500px

Jackson detailed how he has been treated by white Black Lives Matter protesters, some of whom have told him to quit his job and mocked his physical appearance.

“It says something when you’re at a Black Lives Matter protest, and you have more minorities on the police side than you have in a violent crowd, and you have white people screaming at black officers, ‘You have the biggest nose I’ve ever seen,’” he recalled.

“Once again, you have a privileged white person telling a person of color what to do with their life and you don’t even know what I’ve dealt with. These white officers you’re screaming at, you don’t know them. You don’t know anything about them,” he continued:

I’ve been called on calls the n-word I can’t even count the times since I’ve been a police officer and have white officers jump in to defend me, and me telling them to ignore it, and them being absolutely shocked. And they get to see it, so when you’re standing on the line and they’re getting called those names and they’re getting accused of being racist — when you’ve seen those officers helping people of color – getting blood on them, trying to save someone’s life who’s been shot, gang violence, domestic violence – and you see them and they’re truly trying to help save someone’s life, and then they’re turned around and called a racist by people who’ve never seen anything like that. I have had great conversations. I met two young brothers literally after I’d take explosive, been hit with a full beer can, taken a rock in my chest, a frozen water bottle had hit me, I met two young brothers cleaning up the street. They had garbage bags, and they were just running and cleaning up. A few of us from my team went over, and, I had to shake their hands, I was so moved by that, so impressed. They said, ‘We’re from here, this is our city. I don’t understand why people are coming here and destroying it.’

Jackson’s full remarks below:

His remarks follow weeks of violent protests rocking the city of Portland, dominated by vandalism, looting, and acts of aggression against police officers.

Protesters have vandalized federal buildings, attempted to light police precincts on fire, and targeted officers specifically, launching commercial-grade fireworks at them, in one instance.

President Trump this week teased a forthcoming announcement in response to the ongoing violence in these cities run by “liberal, left-wing Democrats.”

“They’re like war zones. And if the city isn’t to straighten out, if local politicians — or, in this case — I don’t say this for political reasons — they’re all Democrats. They’re liberal, left-wing Democrats,” the president said.

“And it’s almost like they think this is going to be this way forever. Where in Chicago 68 people were shot and 18 died last week. We’re not going to put up with that,” he continued. “We’re not going to put up with that.”

The news coincides with reports of federal law enforcement officers responding to the violence in Portland, detaining protesters in unmarked police vehicles.

Independent Media, Notable Occurrence, Quiet War

Soros Foundation Announces It Is ‘Doubling Down’ On Funding “Black-led Justice Organizations”

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Steve Watson,
July 14th, 2020

In an interview with the The New York Times, Open Society Foundations President Patrick Gaspard announced that the organisation, headed by billionaire George Soros, is to “double down” on funding “black-led justice organizations”.

The interview was accompanied by a press release from the Open Society declaring that “The largest share of this support—$150 million—will be through a set of five-year grants to Black-led justice organizations that helped to create and now sustain the momentum towards racial equality.”

“Open Society’s response reflects our conviction that real progress requires sustained support over many years and letting leaders accountable to impacted communities shape the path forward.” the release adds.

It also notes that another $70 million will be allocated to “more immediate efforts to advance racial justice,” which include efforts  to “reimagine” policing.

Gaspard noted that the recent uprising in the US and across the world is “the moment we’ve been investing in for the last 25 years.”

“There is this call for justice in Black and brown communities, an explosion of not just sympathy but solidarity across the board,” he claimed, adding that “it’s time to double down.”

“And we understood we can place a bet on these activists — Black and white — who see this as a moment of not just incrementalism, but whole-scale reform,” Gaspard asserted.

Gaspard directly referenced the Black Lives Matter movement, staying that “we need these moments to be sustained. If we’re going to say ‘Black lives matter,’ we need to say ‘Black organizations and structures matter.’”

The Open Society’s bold admission will raise eyebrows given that just weeks ago anyone suggesting Soros’ foundations were providing financial assistance to BLM agitators was labelled a ‘conspiracy theorist’:

Indeed, Soros himself denied that his organisation was providing any funding to protests where violence occurred.

Bad Cops, Civil Unrest, Independent Media, law, Uncategorized

Judge Orders The Dakota Access Pipeline To Be Shut Down

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Arjun Walia
July 7th, 2020

  • The Facts: On Monday, A U.S. District Court ordered Energy Transfer LP to shut down and empty their pipeline, known as the Dakota Access Pipeline.
  • Reflect On: Why do we continue to use outdated and unnecessary means for energy production. Why is our economy an oil based economy when it doesn’t have to be? Why do we have solutions that never see the light of day?

What Happened: On Monday, A U.S. District Court ordered Energy Transfer LP to shut down and empty their pipeline, known as the Dakota Access Pipeline.  It just so happens to be their largest one, and it also represents a big win for Native American’s and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, as well as citizens from all over the world who have fought the line’s route access through a critical water supply.

It’s amazing how many years have already passed since there was a mass gathering in North Dakota to stop this pipeline. Corporate America brought in the police to try and disperse the gathering. One night, a small plane spraying unknown substances flew over the gathering at night, I know this because I was there, along with CE founder Joe Martino.  There were SWAT teams everywhere. All of this for a peaceful gathering? We spent days covering the story, and all we saw was intimidation, violence, and psychological warfare tactics in order to disperse the crowd so that the company could continue building their pipeline.

This always seems to happen to peaceful protestors.

Corporate America eventually got what they wanted. Many people were thrown in jail, people were injured, all resulting from a peaceful protest. The gathering was shut down and the fight to stop the pipeline went to court, during which time the pipeline was in full operation.

Bloomberg is reporting that the pipeline must be shut down by August 5th.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said a crucial federal permit for Dakota Access fell too far short of National Environmental Policy Act requirements to allow the pipeline to continue operating while regulators conduct a broader analysis the court ordered in a previous decision. The ruling scraps a critical permit from the Army Corps of Engineers, and requires the pipeline to end its three-year run of delivering oil from North Dakota shale fields to an Illinois oil hub. Judge James E. Boasberg said Dakota Access must shut down the pipeline and empty it of oil by Aug. 5.(source)

We will have to wait and see if The Army Corps and Justice Department intends to appeal the decision.

Why This Matters

This goes to show what we can do when we come together. Despite the fact that it’s taken years, and damage has been done, look what’s happened, it’s been halted once again. That being said, at the time the pipeline was being built and during the period it was moving oil, it was quite clear that citizens around the entire planet were against this. So I ask you, do we live in a democracy? Do citizens really have any influence at all on decision making, or is our consciousness manipulated to accept certain measures, like pipelines, as necessary? Why doesn’t planet Earth come first? Why does it take cutting through so much red ape, and so much time to try and stop such measures? What kind of system have we created for ourselves? One that protects the corporations and punishes the citizenry and mother Earth?

We don’t have to accept this.

The coronavirus is another great example of what we are capable of. Despite the fact that we were forced into lockdown by governments, billions of people, together, still collectively did it. The point is, we can accomplish great things together, as one. Imagine if billions of people around the world decided the world should shut down for one week in order to, clean up our oceans for example.

Why don’t our governments do that?

We can do anything, we have unlimited potential. We are in a time where we are being asked to wake up, come together, re-imagine our reality, discuss it, explore it, build it and use our potential to create a human experience where everybody can thrive, including mother Earth. And yes, it’s possible, we have the solutions and they’ve been available for years. The only issue is human consciousness, and the barriers we’ve built that prevent these solutions from manifesting.

Civil Unrest, Independent Media, Notable Occurrence, Opinion, politics, Uncategorized

Venezuelan Immigrant Warns America About Destroying Statues, History: ‘I Am Seeing The Same Pattern Repeat’

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Venezuelan immigrant Elizabeth Rogliani warned Americans in a video to be on guard against destroying statues and history because Venezuelans did not take those issues seriously when they started to happen in their country a couple of decades ago, before the nation was under the grip of a dictatorship.

Rogliani has gained popularity in recent days after a different video of her talking about the issue went viral on social media last week and she ended up making an appearance on Fox News’s “The Ingraham Angle” with host Laura Ingraham.

“I remember, that statues of Christopher Columbus being knocked down. After that, the street names changed, not all of them, but quite a few of them,” Rogliani said. “They changed the name of the national park in Caracas … to something more indigenous. They changed the flag of our country; they also changed the name. They dismantled our police in 2001 and put in place a new one. They changed our voting system, so the way we voted changed.”

“Why am I worried about statues coming down in the United States?” Rogliani continued. “It’s because I am seeing the same pattern repeat. And I’m not speaking to this as an expert at U.S. politics and U.S. history, but I can recognize the signs, and these are not isolated incidents. I’ve been hearing from people from Cuba, people that left Soviet countries, that they feel the same thing is repeating. … And the attack on history, by first going after those symbols was the first way to do it.”

Video and transcript below:

I just want to talk to you a little bit about why I’m worried about what’s going on in the United States today. For a long time, I stayed away from politics. It was at the forefront of my life, ever since I was a kid, seeing how things changed so rapidly back home.

I remember, that statues of Christopher Columbus being knocked down. After that, the street names changed, not all of them, but quite a few of them. They changed the name of the national park in Caracas … to something more indigenous. They changed the flag of our country; they also changed the name. They dismantled our police in 2001 and put in place a new one. They changed our voting system so the way we voted changed … before the second election of [Hugo Chavez].

Why am I worried about statues coming down in the United States? It’s because I am seeing the same pattern repeat and I’m not speaking to this as an expert at U.S. politics and U.S. history. But I can recognize the signs and these are not isolated incidents. I’ve been hearing from people from Cuba, people that left Soviet countries, that they feel the same thing is repeating. And these countries are not the same, Cuba is not the same as Soviet countries. Venezuela is not the same as Cuba. But yet, the intention was there to topple the current structure and take over. And the attack on history, by first going after those symbols was the first way to do it.

These groups are not hiding their intentions, they’re making it quite clear. Someone, the founder of one of the groups that started this whole attack symbols and statues, already said openly that she’s a trained Marxist. They’ve already shown friendships to the Venezuelan regime. So yes, this is all hitting a little bit too close to home and I’m not a politician. I’ve worked to get away from politics since I moved to the U.S. in 2010. But all this is just bringing me back.

There’s a clear attack to certain symbols and it’s not just Confederate statues. So, let’s get away from this idea that the attack is on Confederate statues and therefore on slavery. The attack is on most statues that are important for U.S. history, Founding Fathers, also strangely enough, Spanish missionaries. … What they all have in common to me is that they are all Western symbols. So the attack is on Western culture and Western history. And is it a perfect history? No. But no history is perfect.

They’ve already made it clear that their intent is to get into political power. For us it was different, for us they were already in place. Here, that’s their intention. Do I believe that the U.S. politics and the U.S. government is stronger? Yes, absolutely yes. But for me the problem is that democracy needs to be defended and guarded and nurtured all the time. Venezuelan democracy wasn’t the strongest in the last few years in 90s, it was taken for granted. It was assumed it was always going to be there and therefore corruption grew. We had that blind spot. We believed it would never happen to us. We believed we were in the right path.

But, here, what I hear from many Americans and many of my American peers and friends is that it would never happen here. It’s impossible. And that to me is worrisome. Democracy has to be protected and nurtured, always. Don’t ever take it for granted. It didn’t work out for us and I really do hope that this is just a passing phase, but I had to say my opinion. This is all just bringing me back a little bit too much.

Civil Unrest, Independent Research, Notable Occurrence, Uncategorized

Independent Journalist Attacked By The Mob and Then Arrested For “Disturbing The Peace”

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 Dan Dicks
June 7th, 2020

On Friday June 5th 2020 while covering a Black Lives Matter rally in Vancouver, independent journalist Dan Dicks of Press For Truth was attacked by a mob of hundreds of people while being physically assaulted then subsequently arrested and charged with disturbing the peace and assault!

In this video Dan Dicks breaks down in chronological order the events that led up to his arrest and how mob mentality and group think can be steered so easily by bad actors into very dangerous directions.

Please contribute to Dan’s GoFundMe Campaign: https://www.gofundme.com/f/d46py

Visit Dan Dicks at PressForTruth.ca. Subscribe to his channel on YouTube and Bitchute. Support him on Patreon or GoFundMe, and follow him on Twitter.

censorship, Geopolitics, Investigative Journalism, Notable Occurrence, Uncategorized

1000s Descend On “Illegal Vigil” In Hong Kong’s Victoria Park Honoring Victims Of Tiananmen Square Massacre

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By Tyler Durden,
JUNE 4th, 2020

Authorities may have banned an official peaceful demonstration honoring the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre and passed a new law making “shows of disrespect” toward the Chinese National Anthem, but thousands of Hong Kongers are still finding ways to honor the 31st anniversary of a massacre where hundreds, or more likely thousands, of peaceful protesters were murdered by the Chinese military.

Beijing banned the peaceful vigil – an annual tradition – for the first time this year amid a crackdown on Hong Kong’s freedoms spurred by the pro-democracy movement that brought chaos and disorder to the streets of HK.

Twice, pro-democracy lawmakers disrupted proceedings as the new national anthem law was being passed.

Despite the declaration, crowds poured into Victoria Park to light candles and observe a minute of silence at 2009PA (0809ET). Many chanted “Democracy now” and “Stand for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.” Police stood by, playing recordings warning attendees not to engage in the vigil. Police also cited the need for social distancing to be maintained.

Police cited the need for social distancing during the coronavirus outbreak in barricading the sprawling park, but activists saw that as a convenient excuse.

“We all know the Hong Kong government and the Chinese government really don’t want to see the candle lights in Victoria Park,” said Wu’er Kaixi, a former student leader who was No. 2 on the government’s most-wanted list following the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

Hundreds and possibly thousands of people were killed when tanks and troops moved in on the night of June 3-4, 1989, to break up weeks of student-led protests that had spread to other cities and were seen as a threat to Communist Party rule.

“The Chinese Communists want us all to forget about what happened 31 years ago,” Wu’er told the AP in Taiwan, where he lives. “But it is the Chinese government themselves reminding the whole world that they are the same government…doing the same in Hong Kong.”

Tiananmen Square itself was empty on Thursday, as Chinese police once again engaged in the practice of placing known dissidents under house arrest for the day.

Meanwhile, police arrested protesters in other parts of the city.

Civil Unrest, Notable Occurrence, Uncategorized

Minnesota Riots: Trump Vows Military Support as National Guard Deploys

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ZACHARY STIEBER,
May 29th, 2020

President Donald Trump promised military support to Minnesota as rioters broke windows and destroyed property in its largest city, culminating with the burning of a police station after officers abandoned it.

Trump said in a statement that he cannot “stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis.”

Accusing Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey of failing to show leadership, Trump said officials must “bring the City under control, or I will send in the National Guard & get the job done right.”

Told of Trump’s tweet, Frey said early Friday: “Weakness is refusing to take responsibility for your own actions. Weakness is pointing your finger at somebody else during a time of crisis.”

“Donald Trump knows nothing about the strength of Minneapolis. We are strong as hell. Is this a difficult time period? Yes. But you better be damn sure that we’re going to get through this,” he added.

The president in a second missive described rioters and protesters as “THUGS,” alleging they were “dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen.”

Trump spoke to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz “and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” he added.

Around the same time, the Minnesota National Guard began sending more than 500 soldiers to Minneapolis, nearby St. Paul, and surrounding communities.

Epoch Times Photo
A National Guardsmen stand near the Lake St. Midtown metro station after a night of protests and violence following the death of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 29, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)
Epoch Times Photo
A National Guardsman stands near the Lake St. Midtown metro station after a night of protests and violence following the death of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 29, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

“Our mission is to protect life, preserve property and the right to peacefully demonstrate. A key objective is to ensure fire departments are able to respond to calls,” it said in a statement.

Members joined police officers Friday in facing off again protesters.

Walz, a Democrat, signed an executive order activating the guard at 4 p.m.

“Our troops are trained to protect life, preserve property and ensure people’s right to peacefully demonstrate,” Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen, Minnesota National Guard adjutant general, said in a statement.

Floyd died earlier this month while in police custody. A viral video showed a police officer, Derek Chauvin, with a knee on Floyd’s neck as the man complained he couldn’t breathe.

Four officers involved in the situation were fired and are under investigation by local and federal officials. Frey is among those calling for the arrest of Chauvin, but prosecutors said Thursday night that the case will be done “right.”

“Those folks who know me in the African community know I will do my very level best. But I will not rush justice, because justice cannot be rushed,” Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman told reporters.

Democratic Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told CNN Friday he expects charges against all four officers.

“I hope they’re soon. But that is the prerogative of another prosecuting authority. They are trying to be careful. They are trying to make sure their case is strong and airtight,” Ellison said.

Rioters turned to violence this week in the wake of Floyd’s death, smashing windows, confronting officers, and trashing and looting businesses, many of which are small and locally owned. Video footage showed groups of armed men protecting various businesses from the mayhem.

Epoch Times Photo
Protesters destroy the Lake Street bus stop outside the Minneapolis Police third precinct during the third day of demonstrations in response to the death of African-American man George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 28, 2020. (Nicholas Pfosi/Reuters)
Epoch Times Photo
A man steals from a liquor store in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 28, 2020. (John Minchillo/AP Photo)

In a shocking video captured by reporters and others at the scene, Minneapolis police officers abandoned the 3rd Precinct station late Thursday. Rioters soon entered the building, setting fires and destroying equipment.

Just minutes later, the Minnesota National Guard said it was deploying soldiers.

Frey said in a statement that city officials were working with the Minneapolis Fire Department, which was blocked from responding to some fires, including the one at the precinct.

“We all need to work together to ensure the safety of our friends, family, and Minneapolis residents. And right now working together means clearing the area,” he said.

Walz said that Floyd’s death “should lead to justice and systemic change, not more death and destruction.”

“As Governor, I will always defend the right to protest,” he added. “It is how we express pain, process tragedy, and create change. That is why I am answering our local leaders’ request for Minnesota National Guard assistance to protect peaceful demonstrators, neighbors, and small businesses in Minnesota.”

Follow Zachary on Twitter: @zackstieber

SOURCE: https://www.theepochtimes.com/minnesota-riots-trump-vows-military-support-as-national-guard-deploys_3369329.html