Sunday, April 30, 2023

Austria: Iran-Supported Mosque in Vienna Faces Controversy

It seems that the brutality of the mullah-led regime in Iran extends to parts of Europe as well. The below article in today's Heute (Austria) describes a young man identified under the pseudonym of Mido. This man (who I believe is of Iranian background) was so disturbed by what is happening in Iran that he twice went to a local mosque in Vienna to ask hard questions about the situation and what they thought about it. Both times, he went to the Imam Ali mosque in the 21st District of Vienna (Floridsdorf) in October 2022, and April 2023, he was beaten. This is a Shia mosque and is reportedly owned by the government of Iran. 

The article in Heute is translated by Fousesquawk. There is a video showing the latest confrontation, but it appears that whatever narrative could be translated is in Farsi. 

 https://www.heute.at/s/mann-wird-bei-wiener-moschee-zwei-mal-wuest-verpruegelt-100268435

April 29, 2023, 13:55

Man badly beaten two times at Vienna mosque

A man went into a Vienna mosque to ask about the situation in Iran. The response was repeatedly "quick on the trigger."

"Heute" (Today) reader, Mido* (name altered by editorial staff) went into an Islamic center in Vienna last October to ask questions about the worrisome situation in Iran. At that time, his concerns were brutally smashed-and him as well. In the middle of April, the man tried again at the faith center-about 20 people chased after the activist. 

Man in hospital after mosque visit

The death of the 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in her hometown of Saghes in NW Iran caused shock and indignation worldwide, Heute reported. Since then in Iran, it has been one stone on top of another. All over the country, there have been regular demonstrations-some brutally broken up. For Mido, an unbearable situation, which is why he went to the "Imam Ali" Islamic Center in the 21st district of Vienna. There he sought answers to his critical questions.

The 43-year-old received a solid beating- and on two occasions. In October, several men beat the activist out of the premises. In mid-April, it happened again. Mido was beaten a second time.

A colleague was with him, who, however, was able to escape from the charging thugs at the last second. From an opposite building, the witness filmed the unsettling tumult in Floridsdorf. 

"I would like to be the voice for all Iranians who are suffering under the mullah-regime" 

"For me, it is incomprehensible that faithful (people) support the situation in Iran. I would like to be the voice for all Iranians who are suffering under the mullah-regime," says the man to "Heute". For his solidarity, the man has had to deal with a lot of setbacks. However, Mido doesn't want to give up," until justice is restored in Iran". He has filed several reports to the Vienna police for bodily injury. The investigations are on-going.

Heute asked the Islamic Religious Community in Austria what the tumult was all about. To date, there has been no response.









Friday, April 28, 2023

The Muslim Brotherhood in France (8)

A French researcher named Florence Bergeaud-Blackler has been placed under police protection after receiving numerous death threats in response to her recently published book on the Muslim Brotherhood. The below article is translated from the French satirical weekly, Charlie Hebdo, themselves already the victims of an Islamic terrorist attack in 2015 due to their cartoons mocking Islamic extremism. Translation is by Fousesquawk. This represents the latest in our series of translations from original European articles on the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe and the 8th such translation on France.

*Note: Due to a subscriber restriction, the last couple of paragraphs are not available. 

https://charliehebdo.fr/2023/04/societe/florence-bergeaud-blackler-une-chercheuse-ciblee-par-les-barbus/

Florence Bergeaud-Blackler, a researcher targeted by bearded men.

Jean-Loup Adenor, Posted online 20 April 2023- Appeared in edition 1604 on 19 April 

Thursday, April 27, 2023

Fl. Governor DeSantis Signs HB 269 Into Law



 Governor Ron DeSantis has signed into law Florida bill HB 269, which deals with religious or ethnicity-based intimidation or threats directed at any person, including on college campuses. The signing has been welcomed by the Louis D Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law. Their statement can be read here

HB 269 can be read here.



Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Sweden: Justice for 12-Year-Old Murder Victim

In August 2020, a 12-year-old Swedish girl named Adriana was shot to death at a gas station in the municipality of Botkyrka. She was the inadvertent victim of a gang attack against a rival gang. Now, three members of an immigrant gang, including the leader, Maykill Yokhanna, have been sentenced to life in prison. Aftonbladet identifies the other two men as Hassan Mohammad (32) and Benjamin Mahdi (24). A fourth suspect, 25-year-old Serkan Demirkiran, is believed to have fled to Turkey.

*Note: In the video, there is an error on the part of SVT as to the date of the verdict. Both the voice in the video and the Swedish subtitles give the date as April 28, 2023. This posting is dated April 26, 2023, but the English subtitles follow what is in the audio and Swedish subtitles. 

(l-r) Mohammad, Yokhanna, Mahdi

The below article from SvT (Swedish State TV) is translated by Fousesquawk. One of the two videos in the article is also translated by Fousesquawk. Hat tip to Vlad Tepes and Gates of Vienna for assistance in subtitling.

 https://www.svt.se/nyheter/lokalt/stockholm/i-dag-faller-domen-efter-mordet-pa-adriana

Caption: SVT broadcasts the verdict directly: Gang leader Maykill Yokhanna is one of three men sentenced for the murder of 12-year-old Adriana. Photo: Police investigation/TT.

Three men were sentenced to life in prison for murder of 12- year-old Adriana

Updated today 11;28. Published yesterday 20:30

Three men are sentenced to life in prison for the murder of 12-year-old Adriana, who was shot to death at a gas station in Botkyrka in the summer of 2020. Södertörn district court announced it. 

One of the convicted men is the 31-year-old gang leader, Maykill Yokhanna, who also has links to Västerås.

The three convicted men had planned to shoot several persons from a rival criminal gang, but instead, Adriana was hit with two shots and died. Three weapons, including one automatic weapon, were used in the shooting.

The evidence in the case consisted of a large number of different circumstances, which each pointed to there being three men who shot Adriana. There were connections to the weapons and the car used, as well as motive and chats. In addition, the men's so-called sky telephones, (encrypted phones) were connected (to the crime). The men's subsequent actions are also important for the verdict since they made sure the weapons and car were gotten rid of.  

"This was a matter of an indiscriminate firing of automatic weapons in a location where several people were present, and one of them died. The punishment, therefore, cannot be anything other than life in prison," says the president of the court, Chief Counselor Tore Gissen, in a press release.

Caption: The shooting death of Adriana in Borkyrka-in 60 seconds. Photo: SVT/Police

Was shot at in Kungens Kurva 2020

Maykill Yokhanna is identified as the leader of a criminal network in south Stockholm. He was earlier convicted for an aggravated weapons offense, among others.

In January 2020, he was shot at as he sat in a car together with his wife and a friend in Kungens Kurva (King's Curve). The friend died and Maykill Yokhanna's wife was wounded. The gang leader was the one the shooter was actually after.

The other two men who are now sentenced to life did not have the same power position and criminal records as the gang leader.

The three men are convicted of murder and seven counts of attempted murder, among other things.

Defense: Will appeal

The verdict will be appealed to the appeals court, says Maykill Yokhanna's defense council, Hampus Wikerstål. The prosecutor did not prove that Yokhanna was at the scene of the crime, and the verdict is based on a weak chain of circumstances, the lawyer says.

"I am greatly surprised there was a conviction and we are going to appeal."









Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Italy: Police Shooting in Vicenza (Cont)

Hat tip He Ha for translation, Gates of Vienna, Vlad Tepes and RAIR USA for subtitling.

This week, we posted an article on a police shooting of a Moroccan man shouting Allahu akhbar as he took a gun from a policeman and wounded him before being shot to death by another cop. The incident happened on Monday in the small Italian town of Fara Vicentino in the province of Vicenza.

Below is a news video of the incident from Titolo Servizio



Anti-Semitism in Germany Today: Who is Mostly Responsible?

 This article first appeared in Times of Israel Blogs.

Pro-Palestinian protest in Berlin
Times of Israel


This past week, I translated an article from the German newspaper, Berliner Morgenpost, on a recent study on anti-Semitism in Germany, the results of which were reported in the wake of this month’s ugly pro-Palestinian demonstration in the German capital. During the march, which consisted of about 300 people, chants of, “Death to Israel” were heard as well as that of at last one person who yelled, “Death to Jews” from a loudspeaker van. Such scenes are disgusting enough, but when they occur in Germany, the shock is magnified given that country’s history with National Socialism and the Holocaust. As a gentile American who served in the US Army in Germany in the 1960s (just outside of Nuremberg, no less) I am one who wants to believe that Germany today has become a decent country that is trying to atone (if that is possible) for the Holocaust. Recent events in the country call that into question. That is what I am trying to come to grips with.

My initial reaction to the above-mentioned Palestinian march in Berlin as well as the anti-Semitic incidents that have accelerated in the country with the flood of Muslim “asylum-seekers” into the country since 2015 has been to dismiss it all as the result of the insane asylum policy of Angela Merkel and her successor government in bringing in millions of people with a built-in hatred of Jews. I still hold to that belief, but the recent study I mentioned reminds me that it is a bit more complicated.

If we accept the notion (which I do) that history shows us that Jews are on the receiving end of hate from many directions and historically, for many reasons, then we can understand that some ethnic Germans are anti-Semites. Depending on what age group they fall into, it may be pro-Nazi thinking, resentment over Holocaust guilt, and plain old skin-head, neo-Nazi sentiment, apparently more widespread in the former East German (DDR) regions of the country.

 

My initial reaction to the above-mentioned Palestinian march in Berlin as well as the anti-Semitic incidents that have accelerated in the country with the flood of Muslim “asylum-seekers” into the country since 2015 has been to dismiss it all as the result of the insane asylum policy of Angela Merkel and her successor government in bringing in millions of people with a built-in hatred of Jews. I still hold to that belief, but the recent study I mentioned reminds me that it is a bit more complicated.

If we accept the notion (which I do) that history shows us that Jews are on the receiving end of hate from many directions and historically, for many reasons, then we can understand that some ethnic Germans are anti-Semites. Depending on what age group they fall into, it may be pro-Nazi thinking, resentment over Holocaust guilt, and plain old skin-head, neo-Nazi sentiment, apparently more widespread in the former East German (DDR) regions of the country.

In my view, the article in Berliner Morgenpost, if not the study itself, is carefully crafted, but what stands out is that it mostly concerns the Muslim community. Differentiations are made as to the degree of assimilation and other factors, as well as which Muslim segments are most affected by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as opposed to other anti-Jewish motivations.

There is also the requisite input from a local Muslim leader who talks about the need for “education” to fight against prejudices. But what the Muslim gentleman, as well as the Morgenpost article fails to address is the fact that anti-Jewish (and anti-Christian) sentiment is deeply embedded in Islamic Scripture and teaching. That is not to suggest that all Muslims hold hatred against Jews, but the references to Jews in the Koran and the hadith cannot be ignored. Still many prefer to do so. This appears nowhere in the report.

Having spent three years of my youth in Germany, I fully recognize that German society has its share of lowlifes. I condemn anti-Semites no matter where they come from or whatever their beef is. I still firmly believe that Germany has damaged itself in many ways by admitting millions of mostly young, male, Muslim men from places like Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, etc, who bring with them a thread of Jews which they learned at an early age in their home countries. It has set back Germany’s efforts to remake itself as a place of safety for Jews.

Germany is not alone in this respect. Far too many Western European countries have brought in so-called refugees, asylum-seekers, and flat out migrants who are making the lives of Jewish natives miserable. Why are so many Jews fleeing places like France, Sweden, and other countries? It is because they feel they have no future there and that the governments will not protect them from masses of newcomers who hate them.

Given its history, Germany cannot tolerate-even in the name of free speech- people who scream, “Death to Jews” on their city streets.



Monday, April 24, 2023

Italy: Moroccan Killed After Firing on Police (Last Words: "Allahu Akhbar")

Hat tip He Ha


This morning, a man identified as a Moroccan citizen went into a rampage on a street in the community of Fara Vicentino, located in the province of Vicenza, halfway between Milan and Venice. (Vicenza is the site of a US Army base.). The man was reportedly yelling, Allahu akhbar (God is greater) and when the police arrived, he disarmed one of the officers and shot another, wounding him in the foot and side. At this point, another officer shot the suspect to death.

The below article from today's Il Tempo is translated by Fousesquawk.

 https://www.iltempo.it/attualita/2023/04/24/news/vicenza-sparatoria-oggi-marocchino-vigilie-carabinieri-pistola-gridava-allah-akbar-35602206/

Vicenza, Moroccan shoots and wounds an officer. Killed. "He was shouting, 'Allahu Akhbar"

Weapon taken from a Carabiniero. Wounded officer operated on lung

24 April 2023

Fear in Fara Vicentino, in the province of Vicenza. A Moroccan citizen was killed in a firefight with the Carabinieri after having fired on a local police officer, wounding him with the pistol taken from one of the two (Carabinieri) who arrived at the scene. It happened this morning. According to an initial reconstruction, the man, out of his mind, reportedly went into a rage in the street and reportedly managed to take the weapon from one of the two Carabinieri who intervened, firing at a police officer who arrived to help (his) colleagues: Reportedly, the other Carabiniero shot him to death at this point. 

The non-EU citizen was walking barefoot in a confused state then reportedly went into a rage, shouting in the street. A Moroccan immigrant who was passing by reportedly heard him shouting insults in Arabic. According to what Corriere della Sera is reporting, the man reportedly also pronounced the phrase, "Allahu akhbar", God is great. When the police intervened, the man reportedly took the service pistol from a Carabiniero, firing several rounds, two of which hit one of the local police. The (Carabiniero) still in possession of his weapon then shot and killed him.

The 40-year-old local police officer involved in the shootout this morning was hit by two projectiles, one in the right foot and one in the left side which caused a lung to collapse. He was operated on at the Alto Vicentino Hospital of Santorso, a lung drainage was applied, and at this moment, a second lung CT scan is in progress. The prognosis is guarded, but should not be life-threatening.


Sunday, April 23, 2023

Sweden: Singing Star Tells Swedes to Wake up

Hap tip Fredrik




Carola Häggkvist is a famous Swedish singer (she goes by the stage name of Carola). Initially, she was a prominent supporter of welcoming immigrants and refugees into Sweden. Now she has reconsidered her position. Recently, she gave an interview to Svenska Dagbladet (SvD) in which she expressed her sadness at how it has all turned out with the shootings, assaults on police, and refusal of (Muslim) immigrants to adopt Swedish values.

The below article from Fria Tider, a conservative Swedish site, describes her interview with SvD (whose original article has a subscriber block.) The Fria Tider article is translated by Fousesquawk. It also has an older video of Carola performing. She is quite talented.  

 https://www.friatider.se/carola-svenskarna-maste-vakna

Carola: Swedes must "wake up"

Posted April 7, 2023 at 16:52

Domestic. The artist, Carola, stated in an interview with Svenska Dagbladet that she was "despondent" about the multi-cultural developments in Sweden.

Carola says to SvD that it is time now for Swedes to "wake up".

"I don't think you can say come and live like you want in our land. It is not cowardly to protect Sweden's traditions and sing the Blomstertid at school graduations. Sometimes I get completely despondent over the developments.

For example, she cites the shootings and police who "only call for help".

"We let in and must be nice to people who have a totally different ideology, where it even states in their Scriptures that it is ok to lie to infidels," Carola continues.

SvD's journalist points out that there are "some" who would still call this reasoning "xenophobic".

To this, Carola answers that there "is a reason why there are nations and borders-we have different cultures and different ways of seeing things."

She further says that few are as open to others as she is, but one has to be "wise to it all."

Carola broke through in 1983 when as a 16-year-old, she won the Melody Festival with a song called  Främling (Stranger). The song came in third place in the European Song Contest.

In 1991, Carola again won the Melody Festival, this time with the song,  Fångad av en stormvind (Captured by a whirlwind). With this song, she also won the European Song Contest the same year.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This interview caused a media frenzy in Sweden, and Carola subsequently issued an apology. So I guess everybody can go back to sleep.




Ruben Ornedo-9-11 Victim


Ruben S. Ornedo
October 15, 1961-September 11, 2001


Yesterday, as we often do, my wife and I drove up to Los Angeles to visit her parents' final resting places. It was her mother's 99th birthday. At the Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery near LAX, we met up with some other members of the family to spend a few minutes with my parents-in-law, whose crypts are located in the main chapel area.

Since I grew up in the area, I often wander around looking to see if, by chance, I might find the crypt of someone I knew in my youth. (As I have previously written, I have a good friend from my high school days who was killed in Vietnam and who is buried at Holy Cross.) 

Just by chance, found a crypt just a few feet away from those of my mother and father-in-law that caught my attention:

Ruben S Ornedo

Demetrio Ornedo (Ruben's father)

What was so special about this crypt? Ruben died on September 11, 2001 aboard the flight which crashed into the Pentagon. His father, Demetrio, died in 2002.

This morning, I did a bit of research on Ruben. Below is what I found.

 https://pentagonmemorial.org/biographies/ruben-s-ornedo/

https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2021-09-07/children-not-born-yet-dads-died-sept-11-tuesdays-children-2804590.html

It seems that Ruben was a really good guy. I noted that his daughter, Robin, born after 9-11, (she is one of about 100 or so survivors) is attending UC Irvine, where I taught part-time for 18 years, and of which I have written so much about. I  wish her and her entire family the very best.

Saturday, April 22, 2023

Italy: Girl Raped on Train

Milan, Italy's second-largest city, is getting out of hand when it comes to crime. This morning, a 21-year-old woman found herself alone in the same carriage in the middle of the morning with an Egyptian man who suddenly sexually attacked her. The suspect, who is 36 years old, has been arrested.

The below article from today's Il Messaggero, is translated by Fousesquawk.

 https://www.ilmessaggero.it/italia/milano_ragazza_violentata_treno_regionale_milano_treviglio_arrestato_egiziano_ultime_notizie-7359437.html

Student raped on regional train to Milan, 36-year-old commuter arrested: "He pinned me between the seat and window"

In custody an Egyptian in Italy legally

Saturday, 22 April 2023 9:14-Last update at 19:16

Yet another attack on trains in Lombardy, where a student, 21 years old, suffered sexual violence at the hands of an unknown person encountered at a station on a regional train in transit to Milan via Treviglio in the province of Bergamo The young girl, however, managed to find the strength to resist, hitting the man and fleeing. After her report on the day of the incident, on April 5, the police today have arrested  the alleged rapist, a 36-year-old Egyptian.

 The man, according to the charges, first reportedly politely gave information (to the girl), gaining her trust, and then suddenly attacked her. The 36-year-old was a commuter on the Treviglia line. He has no record, has legal residence, (and) is a pizza chef in Pioltello in the province of Milan but lives in the Lombardy capital (Milan). He was arrested at his home on the northern periphery of the city, after being located, identified, and recognized by the victim thanks to video surveillance images. According to the charges, when the student boarded the train, in the mid-morning, he, who was seated on the platform with her, reportedly gave her some information, advising her to take the same train as him, which would take her on the right route to her home. The violence occurred later as she was looking for a train conductor to ask for confirmation on her travel with the train already in motion, and she met the same man in a train carriage, who invited her to sit near him on the upper level of the two-level carriage. According to what was told to the Mobile Squad (police) who conducted the investigation along with the railway police, the man attacked her on the stretch between Porta Garibaldi and Porta Vittoria. After her resistance, in which she managed to free herself and escape, looking for help, he disappeared, getting off at the Forlanini stop. But his face was one that frequently (appeared) and was recorded in the surveillance cameras several times. 

After the technical identification, thanks to facial recognition software in use by the police, a name and address came up. Telephone records then confirmed his presence that day at that time. Also a garment seized, apparently a sweatshirt, is reportedly like the girl had described. Now the 36-year-old, arrested upon an order of preventative custody issued by an investigating judge in Milan, is in jail awaiting validation of the arrest. "Once again, technology, using the video camera, has shown itself to be a great assistance in investigations," commented Romano La Russa, regional counselor for security. "The Lombardy region is committed to the Safe Stations project to strengthen safety thanks to the use of local police. After Lecco and Varese, we hope that the positive example of these territories will push other provinces to join." Security on trains is an important topic," said Franco Lucente, regional counselor for Transport and Sustainable Mobility. "Without doubt, the available personnel is not sufficient to satisfy and cover all the routes. For this (reason), in concert with Trenord, I am evaluating the fixed presence of the military on the convoys, which certainly will work as a deterrent."  







Germany: Study on Anti-Semitism in Germany

This week, the Berlin Morgenpost ran an article on anti-Semitism in Germany, which dealt largely with anti-Jewish attitudes among the Muslim immigrant community. The article comes in the wake of the recent demonstration in Berlin by pro-Palestinian protesters. The march was accompanied by chants of "Death to Israel!" and "Death to Jews!".I will probably address this article in a subsequent posting, but in the meantime, I am cross-posting it here without comment. Translation by Fousesquawk. 

 https://www.dw.com/de/untersuchung-antisemitismus-unter-muslimen-in-deutschland/a-65373638

Anti-Semitism

Investigation: Anti-Semitism among Muslims in Germany

Are prejudices or hate against Jews among Muslims or people with a migration background more widespread? The research is often contradictory.

Caption: In Germany, Jewish institutions, like the synagogue in Hagen, are protected by police. 

Holy Saturday in the middle of Berlin, a Palestinian demonstration with several hundred people. Members of the association, Democ, which monitors anti-democratic movements, observed the demonstration march and later posted a video. According to Democ, "Death, death, death to Israel!" was chanted several times by participants. In addition, one man shouted, "Death to Jews!" from a loudspeaker van.

Twitter insert:

"Death to Jews! Death to Israel!" About 300 people demonstrated on April 8, 2023 in Berlin from Neukoelln to Kreuzberg. The participants shouted anti-Semitic words and glorified terrorist violence.

Investigated by State Security, two planned pro-Palestinian demonstrations were banned shortly thereafter, and the Israeli ambassador in Germany, Ron Prosor, saw in the demonstrations, "every possible red line" being crossed. On Twitter, he wrote that the participants had abused freedoms in Germany and had called for the "destruction of Israel and Jews". For Justice Minister Marco Buschmann, there is the initial suspicion of incitement to hate.

Twitter insert (Buschmann)

When groups chant, "Death to Jews" on German streets, then there is an initial suspicion of incitement to hate under section 130, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. I am assuming that the responsible security authorities are accordingly taking action against this.

Research relatively thin

Such demonstrations are water (grist) on the mill for those who believe that anti-Semitism is much more pronounced among Muslims than people without a migration background and non-Muslims. But Sina Arnold of the Center for Anti-Semitism Research at the Technical University (TU) of Berlin says, "Depending on what kind of anti-Semitism you are looking at, people with a migration background and Muslims show a higher or lower anti-Semitic attitude than people without a migration background or non-Muslims". Sweeping statements about anti-Semitism in the investigated groups cannot be made. She looked at and summarized the most important investigations on the topic for  TU Berlin on behalf of the Media Integration Services.

Caption: "Anti-Semitism is not just expressed in an attitude, but also as an action."-Sina Arnold

Arnold is also project manager of the Research Insititute of Social Cohesion and for years, has been investigating attitudes toward Judaism, the Holocaust, and the Middle East conflict. In that (endeavor), she investigates the causes of anti-Semitisc attitudes of refugees and other newcomers. An almost new field because the research on this highly explosive topic is up to now still relatively thin. On the other hand, there are countless scientific studies that show that anti-Semitism is a widely-spread phenomenon in the general German society.

Israel-related anti-Semitism depends on length (of residence)

Anti-Semitic incidents such as that shortly before Easter in Berlin belong to the category of Israel-related anti-Semitism. For example, when the Israeli policies are equated with National Socialism, Jews worldwide being held responsible for Israel's policies, or the right of Israel to exist is not recognized. According to Arnold's summation of the study, this is more widespread among people with a migration background than people without a migration background.

"The studies see a connection with the length of residence with people with a migration background. The higher agreement with anti-Semitic statements decreases the longer the migrants live in Germany," explains Arnold, the so-called assimilation effect, thus, an alignment with the official taboo on anti-Semitism in German society.

Secondary anti-Semitism less pronounced among Muslims

In some countries of origin, anti-Semitism is more widespread than in Germany and often as part of state propaganda. Israel-related anti-Semitism is also more strongly pronounced among Muslims. "The explanatory patterns are religious orientation, authoritarian, conservative attitude, and regional and national origin.  Thus, an institutional anti-Semitism, which occurs in many of these regions," says the anti-Semitism expert.

A completely different picture emerges as regards secondary anti-Semitism. That is when the Holocaust is relativized or denied, a final line in the past is demanded, or there is a rhetorical reversal of victim and perpetrator. "This tends to be less widespread among people with a migration background, also among Muslims because this form of anti-Semitism entails dealing with one's own family history, which for people with a migration background may be less relevant," says Arnold.

Study of classical anti-Semitism contradictory

The third category is classical anti-Semitism. A prejudice or a worldview, in which Jews are attributed certain biological, "racial", or cultural characteristics. This stereotype is often connected to conspiracy theories. "Here the research is actually contradictory. There are studies that find people with a migration background with higher results in comparison with people without a migration background, others (studies) with similar (results), and still others with lower (results)," says Arnold. "Anti-Semitism is at its highest, however, with people with a migration background who have no German citizenship." 

Anti-Semitism here becomes a generational issue as much as an issue of origin. For example, immigrants agree with anti-Semitic statements more often than their naturalized children. There is also a big difference in terms of the home countries.  "The results in agreement with anti-Semitic statements are lesser for people with a migration background from EU member states in comparison with people with Turkish or Arabic migration background."

Education about the Middle East Conflict needed

Aiman Mazyek, chairman of the Central Council of Muslims in Germany, welcomes the study. "Everything that differentiates and enlightens helps us further in the debate," he tells Deutsche Welle (DW). The study questions the label that Muslims generally have an affinity for anti-Semitism. This presentation, according to Mazyek, makes enlightened structures within the Muslim community more difficult. In this, faith and religion "are virtually a vehicle to explain and do away with stereotypes, with prejudices, with racism, and anti-Semitism."

Caption:  Visit to Holocaust memorials also helps in the fight against anti-Semitism, says Aiman Mazyek

In the fight against anti-Semitism, in addition to dealing with the Holocaust, education about the Middle East conflict is also important. "We now have people with a Muslim background who are directly affected by this conflict. I have to deal with this too." That could mean that people "could fall into anti-Semitism or anti-Jew (feeling), not out of the current political situation."

Parallels to attitudes of Alternative for Germany voters

According to Arnold's investigations, the agreement with classical anti-Semitism is generally higher than with non-Muslims. In addition to dogmatic, fundamentalist, or traditional-conservative interpretation of religion, as well as Arab nationalism, personal concern over the Middle East conflict also applies as an explanation.

Incidentally, in 2019, the Berlin Monitor came to the interesting conclusion that Muslims with anti-Semitic resentments "do not differ in terms of their canonic values and potential attitudes from (non-Muslim) conservative and authoritarian circles"- for example, some AfD voters, since anti-Semitism is less an effect of religion than from conservative-authoritarian attitudes.  
















Friday, April 21, 2023

Significant Developments in the Hunter Biden Case

 It's been an embarrassing week for Hunter Biden, his father, and the entire Biden administration. It is becoming increasingly difficult for Democrats and the mainstream media to dismiss the Hunter Biden issue as a Republican conspiracy theory. Consider this:

An IRS whistleblower has come forth (we as yet do not know his/her name) and claimed that the Hunter Biden investigation is being interfered with at higher levels. The whistleblower is requesting formal whistleblower protections and, according to his attorney, wants to testify before Congress and take questions and scrutiny from Republicans and Democrats alike. 

We now also have sworn testimony from former acting CIA director Mike Morell that Secretary of State Anthony Blinken was the driving force in getting 51 former intelligence officials to sign a letter to the effect that the Hunter Biden laptop and emails were "Russian disinformation".

Till now, the FBI has been sitting on the Hunter Biden laptop (it is in their possession) for 5 years. Similar inaction has come out of the US Attorney's Office in Delaware, supposedly investigating the President's son's financial activities and alleged influence peddling.

But now with people coming forward from high places, that may be changing. Today, Fox News reported that Hunter Biden's attorneys, at their own request, will meet with DOJ officials next week, including Delaware US Attorney David Weiss. It has also been reported by CNN (who would prefer to ignore it altogether). In addition, the aforementioned IRS agent reportedly will call into question Attorney General Merrick Garland's previous sworn testimony that there would be no interference from DOJ in the Hunter Biden investigation. The IRS agent involved is reportedly a higher-ranking supervisory agent in evolved in the case.

Already, one of Hunter Biden's attorneys is claiming that the IRS agent in question has broken the law governing the confidentiality of citizens' tax records within the IRS. While it is true that IRS  officials are prohibited from sharing tax information-even between law enforcement agencies (with certain exceptions), I disagree with the attorney's claim. The IRS official could simply testify that there has been interference at higher levels with the investigation without giving any details whatsoever about Hunter Biden's financial information.

It is very difficult to dismiss sworn testimony from a former acting CIA director that directly implicates the sitting secretary of State (Blinken). If and when the aforementioned IRS agent testifies-depending on what he/she says, that likely will be hard to dismiss or ignore as well. At this point, the heat is on Blinken and Garland. Their jobs may be on the line. If these allegations are true, they should both resign.

As for Hunter Biden, a week ago, I would have predicted that the Justice Department will just let the case die on the vine. Now, it looks like they may have to charge Hunter Biden with something. I predict he will get a sweetheart plea deal, something like what was given to the disgraced former vice president, Spiro Agnew. I would still be surprised if Hunter Biden winds up in jail.

What is vastly more important than any tax or gun registration violations, he may have committed, is the business dealing he had with foreign governments that involved his father. It would be a miscarriage of justice if the government lets him off with a plea deal as to taxes or guns and walks away from the dealings with China, Russia, Ukraine, and other countries. Dealings that were based on who his father is. Unfortunately, that is what I fear will happen.

Thursday, April 20, 2023

Austria: Man Hacked to Death with Machetes in Vienna

Last night in Vienna, an unidentified man was attacked by several suspects, at least one of whom was armed with a machete. The victim died of his injuries in the hospital. A subsequent search of the area resulted in one arrest, an Algerian chap who jumped into the Danube Canal when he saw the officers approaching.

Chalk up one more victim to Europe's insane immigration policies.

The below article from the Austrian outlet, Heute, is translated by Fousesquawk.

https://www.heute.at/s/mord-alarm-mann-stirbt-nach-macheten-angriff-in-wien-100267075

April 20, 2023 13:53

Murder alarm! Man dies after machete attack in Vienna

A man was attacked with a machete by several persons on Thursday night in Vienna-Brigittenau- the victim did not survive.

After a machete attack on Thursday night, there is now the sad certainty. The victim died of his serious injuries in the hospital.

As "Heute" reported, witnesses alerted the police emergency number around 00:50 (12:50 am) that a man on Jaegerstrasse (street) was attacked by several persons with blows and machetes. Officers from the city police teams in Brigittenau were on the scene within minutes and found the bleeding victim in the area of the U-Bahn (subway) exit. The police immediately provided first aid measures before the injured man was taken to a hospital by Vienna emergency personnel. 

Jumped into the Danube Canal

The city police command (Brigittenau), the police service dog unit, the WEGA, and the reserve unit participated in the immediately-initiated large scale search for the perpetrators. The police were able to locate one suspect in the area of the Danube Canal. When the man saw the officers, he immediately jumped into the Danube Canal. 

The suspect was rescued and arrested by the reserve unit near the Peace Bridge. He is a 24-year-old man from Algeria. The identity of the victim could as yet not be established. Also, the background of the bloody act is at this point, the object of police investigation.

"Must be deported"

The Vienna chief of the Freedom Party Austria, City Counselor Dominik Nepp, once again demanded a strong signal in the direction of violent perpetrators and foreign criminals. "The regular acts of violence by non-Austrians are traced back to the lax treatment of foreign criminals. Instead of setting clear signals, in which such criminals are immediately deported, too often, unfortunately, they are treated with a slap on the wrist." Only when we finally reform our legal system and show zero tolerance, can the ever-increasing spiral of violence be stopped."

And further: "Thanks to the never-ending, overly-friendly immigration policy of Social Democrat Party Austria mayor Ludwig, Vienna is becoming more and more an Eldorado for criminal immigrants from all over the world.  This must finally be stopped." Nepp demands an "immediate immigration stop and once against the immediate deportation of criminals. 





For TPUSA, the Struggle Continue at SFSU

The woes continue at San Francisco State University. Following the disruption to Riley Gaines's recent appearance there, Turning Point USA activist Jon Root was scheduled to speak last night at the campus. In the runup to the event, the campus newspaper, Golden Gate Express described the confusion as to whether the school would actually allow the event to go forward. As it was, the school withdrew permission for the event to take place citing too many people being expected to attend. In the end, the event was held at a facility across the street from the campus.

On April 18, SFSU President Lynn Mahoney sent a message to the university community regarding the event. While she acknowledged the right of free speech and urged the community to be peaceful, she basically characterized the group, TPUSA, in a negative light and called the Gaines protest "peaceful". (Gaines was assaulted.)

Here is how TPUSA describes it.

The statement by Lynn Mahoney below is taken verbatim from the university website.


President's Messages

Free Speech and Activism

April 18, 2023

Dear campus community: 

The intense political polarization of the last decade and its amplification on social media pose new challenges for universities. In particular, college campuses have become sites for politicized conflicts over free speech. I write today to help all understand better why the University must defend the right of all speakers to speak but, just as importantly, to implore that we, as an academic community, not be drawn into conflicts over speech but rally instead to the causes we embrace. 

As a recent article in the Golden Gate Express details, some organizations and speakers encourage this conflict, hoping to elicit negative responses on college campuses and looking to draw more media attention to their message. Let’s not inadvertently amplify the divisive messages of others but instead draw attention to speakers and events that support our individual and collective values.

I have received numerous emails asking why I or the University allow certain speakers on campus. First and foremost, we are legally obligated to support freedom of expression. Denying any speaker the right to speak based on the content of their speech would quickly ensure a period of long and expensive litigation. But, more importantly, I support freedom of expression because far more often opponents of this basic right have used it against causes I hold dear like educational equity and civil rights or to stifle accurate depictions of history in textbooks. I support freedom of expression to protect us all.

But there are speakers who will use this right to share messages of division and exclusion, and some as I note above hope to elicit negative responses on college campuses wanting to draw media attention to themselves. We became one of these campus sites of conflict two weeks ago, and, while the discussion with the speaker was peaceful, her departure from campus was unnecessarily delayed by protestors until University Police and SFPD could escort her off campus. This left many on campus very upset while also providing a platform for the speaker and organization to gain media attention and support. This is not an outcome any here desired.

We face our next test tomorrow, Wednesday, April 19. Turning Point USA is hosting a speaker whose message many here will find abhorrent. There is the potential for a large number of participants, and it is likely that the event will occur spontaneously on the Quad, as we have informed the student organization that we have no available venue large enough to host the number of RSVPs they have received.  Please note that there will be heightened University Police presence on campus tomorrow to keep all safe.

I urge us all to defy the expectations of media and others who want to see us react negatively and instead use this moment to amplify values of inclusion and not values or speakers we find objectionable. Just as we are an exemplar for social justice, I urge us to become an exemplar for allowing freedom of expression and avoiding the conflicts that some who politicize free speech would like to see occur here. There is no ultimate gain to shouting down or threatening speakers with whom we disagree. I applaud the many faculty, staff and students who have and are actively designing alternative events, hosting teach-ins, and promoting silent and nonviolent means of protest. 

While I encourage those who want to hear the speaker or engage with him constructively to attend, I write today to implore all not to disrupt the event or attempt to shout down the speaker, or engage negatively with other participants. Doing any of these will amplify divisive speech and messages and empower speakers with whom you disagree. Engage in protest that does not amplify the message. Boycott the event, protest peacefully, attend the teach-in being held that day, promote your own values and support one another. 

There is great support for activism at SF State, but we cannot support behaviors that disrupt events and threaten speakers or anyone on campus. The safety concerns are obvious, but I want to draw attention to the other costs of behaviors that stifle freedom of expression. First, as said above, conflict creates powerful platforms for divisive speakers and actually amplifies their messages. Second, I urge all to consider the impact threatening behaviors have on the staff who manage these events. These are our colleagues from Student Life, Human Resources, Administration & Finance, and Academic Affairs. 

I know that having speakers that disagree with our core values can be frustrating, but it is unjust to then redirect it at our own SF State community members. Third, depriving others of their rights – including the right to free speech – is unlawful and cannot be tolerated on our campus. As set out in the CSU Code of Student Conduct and the laws of our State, such action can have serious consequences. 

Again, let’s defy expectations, let’s show that we can support our values and disagree with others without providing platforms for polarization and misinformation. There are so many ways to engage in positive, transformative change and promote social justice at SF State. In that spirit, I urge you to participate in Earth Week events to promote important discussions about climate change—the existential crisis of our time. Attend a hip hop celebration or the teach-in being held for SF State students and employees in Humanities 587 tomorrow from 11-3. Faculty and staff will also be available throughout the day to engage in discussion with you and to offer support. 

We have defied expectations for decades, let’s do it again.

Best,

Lynn Mahoney signature first name only

Lynn Mahoney, Ph.D.

President

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


What can you expect from SFSU and a president who is obviously a left-wing activist? The campus is hostile to any speech deemed conservative. Of course, they are bound to respect the right of free speech, and they cannot simply ban all conservative speakers (SFSU is a public university).  What they can do, however, is put up roadblocks and complications when a conservative student group wants to invite a speaker to campus. In this case, it appears that the school withdrew permission to use any room on camp[us because the number of people expected to attend became so large. Another tactic is to require that a group put up an outrageously high security bond.


I recall when speakers like David Horowitz and Milo Yiannopoulos came to UC Irvine to speak and were assigned rooms that were smaller, or hard to find. In the case of Horowitz, his venue was changed from a major meeting room to a smaller room on a remote corner of the campus. In addition, all the whiteboard markers were bone dry, which brought a humorous element into the event.

As for SFSU, I am sure the hip-hop celebration was a big success.



Elon Musk's Excellent Adventure

 https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/spacex-launches-starship-biggest-rocket-ever-built

  "rapid unscheduled disassembly." 

                                      

 A previous "rapid unscheduled disassembly"
                                               

"Everything after clearing the tower is icing on the cake"

-TV announcer

"Congrats @SpaceX team on an exciting test launch of Starship! Learned a lot for next test launch in a few months," SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted a short time later.

Monday, April 17, 2023

Sunday, April 16, 2023

Jailbreak Swedish Style

Don Meredith
"Turn out the lights, the party's over...."


If Dandy Don Meredith of Monday Night Football fame were alive, he would be singing, "Turn out the lights, the party's over." As our regular readers know, we have posted hundreds of articles on the sad state of affairs in Sweden. (Not that we don't have our own problems in places like Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and many other once-great cities now plagued by out-of-control crime and leftist prosecutors who don't want to prosecute anyone whose name isn't Donald Trump.)

But this latest escapade outside Stockholm takes the cake. Let me set the stage:

Last year, a 17-year-old Armenian guy named Frunze Saghatelyan walked into a gym and started shooting. When the smoke had cleared, a Swedish man was dead, and the shooter was on the lam. While on the lam, the young Armenian guy qualified for and received Swedish citizenship.



It gets better.

Once captured, he was given a light sentence because he was under 18. The sentence? 2 years and 11 months. Apparently, however, this was too long for Saghatelyan, so one fine day (last Thursday), he complained of a toothache. So, accompanied by correctional officers, he was escorted out of the prison to a local dentist's office. At this point, Saghatelyan was freed by armed accomplices. 

Wait. It gets even better.

Unfortunately, the correctional officers were armed only with some sort of mace or pepper spray, so they were helpless to stop it.

When interviewed that evening by Swedish media, the head of the correctional transport unit explained that had the officers been armed, the incident would have risked escalation. 

The article in the conservative Swedish newspaper, Nyheter Idag, is translated by Fousesquawk. The only positive note here is that at least one Swedish paper is now publishing the photo and name of the escaped killer. Initially, the mainstream papers weren't even giving the name or description of the killer. Privacy, you know.

 https://nyheteridag.se/kriminalvardens-transportchef-om-bevapnad-eskort-stor-risk-for-eskalering/

Correctional officer transport chief on armed escorts: "Great risk of escalation"

Joacim Trybom, head of the prison transport unit, says in SVT's Aktuellt that police escort or armed personnel to prevent armed releases of prisoners would risk an "escalation" between the justice system and criminal gangs.

On Thursday, the 17-year-old murderer, Frunze Saghatelyan, was freed by armed persons when he was being transported by correctional guards to a dentist in Södertälje.

Saghatelyan, who is an Armenian citizen and received Swedish citizenship while he was on the run abroad from Swedish police, was sentenced to juvenile custody for 2 years and 11 months for the murder of MED politician Fredrik Andersson at the Delat Gym in Stockholm in March of last year, as well as aggravated weapons offense and for bombing a restaurant. 

The freeing of Saghatelyan is the second armed freeing in a short time, and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) called the freeing "scandalous" in the Parliament on Thursday.

"I think it is scandalous that a person who could take another person's life can simply walk away with the help of armed friends," said  Kristersson, who asked himself what the correctional officers did and did not do.

On Thursday evening, Joacim Trybom, head of the correctional transport unit, participated (in an interview) with Aktuellt on SVT (Swedish State TV) regarding the freeing (of the prisoner) and said, among other things, that correctional personnel are only armed with OC spray, and therefore, can do nothing against armed liberators.

"We have OC spray as our weapon, but when someone shows up with firearms, we don't stand much of a chance of doing anything. As we stated earlier in the feature, our procedure for issuing firearms is considerably tougher than for our OC spray."

Trybom also says that they did not request a police escort for Saghatelyan's transport because they had no indications that a freeing operation was planned. The program Aktuellt moderator then asked if the freeing would have happened had there been a police escort.

"That is a good question. They might have been scared off or it could have gotten even worse. When both sides have weapons, there is a great risk of escalation," says Trybom and continues:

"In today's situation, there was no escalation and nobody was injured. But if we had had reinforcements with weapons, there would be escalation on both sides, and we don't know how it would go."

When Aktuellt asked about a suggestion from Richard Jomshof (Sweden Democrats) to arm correctional transport officers, Trybom said that would be "a very sharp escalation." 

"There are other countries that have armed personnel when they conduct transports, so that is not an impossibility, but it is also a sharp escalation. I don't know if society is ready that we have personnel in a hospital or other facilities when we conduct armed transports."

*Update: Saghatelyan was arrested a few days later by Swedish police. He was discovered by chance when police conducted a drug raid. His accomplices are apparently still running free. No update on Saghatelyan's toothache.