Paris Burning
Recent days have seen combative demonstrations and large fires blocking some of Paris’ most fashionable and historic boulevards. President Macron introduced new fuel taxes to fund some of the world’s most generous benefit and social programs. It seems France may be running out of other people’s money and is about to dig even deeper into the pockets of citizens who’ve had about enough.
The French already pay double what we do in the United States for fuel, so what’s another eight percent? It may be the straw that drives Macron from power. He already has some of the lowest approval ratings of any national leader in a democracy and this just might do him in.
It seems odd that a nation so intent on saving the environment would have overturned trucks, trailers and bicycles, burning them in the middle of the Champs Elysée, but there it is. We suspect somehow that this wasn’t addressed in the Paris Climate Accords. It may be that in France, social programs trump even the environment
Trouble in Orthodoxy
Events in Ukraine threaten the unity of the Orthodox church and highlight the country’s ongoing struggle with Russia. Roughly 12% of Christians worldwide are Orthodox, including over 63% of the total population of Ukraine. Though the country gained independence in 1991, the vast majority of Orthodox churches remained under the control of the Moscow patriarchate. This has become a particularly raw point in light of recent Russian aggression and the annexation of Crimea.
The Kremlin is accused of exploiting this relationship, using the churches to propagandize and having the clergy assist separatist forces. Bartholomew the patriarch of Constantinople, who is considered “the first among equals” in Orthodoxy, has granted independence to the Ukrainian church, hoping to lessen the potential for catastrophe leading up to the country’s 2019 elections. The Russian church, which actually contains the majority of Orthodox believers, has responded by severing ties with Constantinople. It’s patriarch, Kirill, is a close supporter of Vladimir Putin, who he has even purportedly referred to as “a miracle of God.”
Changes Ahead
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has long been considered the leader of the European Union. She has been chairperson of the CDU since the year 2000 and Chancellor of Germany since 2005, the first female to hold either position. In 2017 she was elected to her fourth term as Chancellor. While narrowly retaining power, the polls have illustrated the anger and frustration of Germans with Merkel, the CDU, and coalition partners over their handling of the migrant crisis. Consequently, Merkel has announced retirement plans, saying she will not seek re-election as Chancellor, whether in 2021 or if snap elections are called sooner, and is stepping down as CDU chairperson. Gains by anti-immigration parties, such as AFD, in addition to leadership changes in the CDU create a great deal of uncertainty about the future of Germany, the largest economy and de-facto leader of the European Union.
Drought in Israel
The Sea of Galilee is approaching “the lowest level ever recorded” warns the Israeli Water Authority. Galilee, the most important freshwater reserve in the country, is currently suffering from one of the worst droughts in recent history. The lake exceeded 700 feet below sea level during the month of October. Many fear increasing salinity and algae blooms will result. Comparatively, the Dead Sea is about 1,400 feet below sea level and nearly ten times as salty as the ocean. Galilee reached similarly low levels in 2001 and 2008 however, Israel is no longer pumping 79 billion gallons of water for domestic use from the reservoir. Considered a pioneer in desalination, five new plants have become operational in the last couple of years and have replaced what was being drained from Galilee. The situation is dire enough that plans are being considered to pump desalinated water directly into the lake.
Polio-like Virus Paralyzes Mostly Children
Since 2014 a “polio type” disease has shown up in 31 states. Over 90% of the illnesses have been found in children under the age of four years. The disease is known as acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. They reportedly experience symptoms including a cough and fever for three to ten days before the onset of paralysis. The CDC is on it quelling fears with statistics like this. “Less than one to two in a million children in the United States will get AFM every year.” Don’t you feel better already?
#Resist
It seems nearly every agency of government is aligned against the President’s agenda. We’ve seen the plot to frame candidate Trump from the FBI (James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Peter Strok, Lisa Page) the Department of Justice (Rod Rosenstein, Bruce Ohr et al) the CIA, (John Brennan et al) and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. We mustn’t forget the role played by the Department of State under Hillary Clinton and later, John Kerry. Their participation in spreading the infamous and false “dossier” to numerous agencies with secret collaboration between many of the parties involved is largely already on the record, though ALL mainstream media outlets still pretend to know nothing about it.
All of them (including Obama himself, it appears) had their hopes pinned on the (Russian Collusion) investigation by Robert Mueller, and still regard him and his prosecutors as sacred cows. The pro-Mueller crowd still populate the evening network panels to speculate darkly as to “what he might find” after the 30 million dollars they’ve run up in government expenses and year and a half of “investigating.”
Now another shoe has dropped, and it portends ongoing battles going forward. The State Department just hired a notorious anti-Trump voice (Mary Kissel) to be a senior advisor to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. And that’s just one of many examples of anti-Trump actors populating what has become known as the Deep State. The President apparently still has many enemies working inside government agencies within his administration, and according to a new book (by David Bossie and Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s Enemies: How the Deep State is Undermining the Trump Presidency) even within the White House.
It appeared that the FISA warrant, FBI notes and all manner of documentation proving the ruse would be declassified without redaction and made public by Presidential order, but sadly, that still hasn’t happened. Meanwhile, reporting of news continues to be a total farce as we watch mainstream outlets salivate over the potential demise of the Trump presidency while completely ignoring the reality of what most of us have known for at least a year.
Some of the most compelling evidence that segments of the Trump administration are still working against him and his agenda is the recent release of a “government mandated” global warming paper. You guessed it. The projected increase in temperature due to man-made interference with the environment will devastate the United States. It will shrink our economy drastically and result in all manner of death and destruction. Media types love calling it “the Trump administration’s own report,” knowing that the President himself and at least half the country’s population regard it as hogwash designed to usher in socialist mandates. It’s just one in a litany of examples of nearly every government agency working against Trump and every aspect of his agenda.
