Denmark has joined several other European countries in banning garments that cover the face, including Islamic veils such as the niqab and burqa, in a move condemned by human rights campaigners as “neither necessary nor proportionate”. In a 75-30 vote with 74 absentees on Thursday, Danish lawmakers approved the law presented by the centre-right governing coalition. The government said it is not aimed at any religions and does not ban headscarves, turbans or the traditional Jewish skull cap.
But the law is popularly known as the “burqa ban” and is mostly seen as being directed at the dress worn by some Muslim women. Few Muslim women in Denmark wear full-face veils.The justice minister, Søren Pape Poulsen, said it would be up to police officers to use their common sense when they see people violating the law, which comes into force on 1 August.The legislation allows people to cover their face when there is a “recognisable purpose” such as cold weather or complying with other legal requirements, for example using motorcycle helmets under Danish traffic rules.
Those violating the law risk a fine of 1,000 kroner (£118). Repeat offenders could be fined up to 10,000 kroner or jailed for up to six months. Austria, France and Belgium have similar laws.
Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty International’s Europe director, said of the Danish decision: “All women should be free to dress as they please and to wear clothing that expresses their identity or beliefs. This ban will have a particularly negative impact on Muslim women who choose to wear the niqab or burqa. “While some specific restrictions on the wearing of full-face veils for the purposes of public safety may be legitimate, this blanket ban is neither necessary nor proportionate and violates the rights to freedom of expression and religion. Full Story
Hence, when you factor this into the equation what’s taking place now is occurring at a very fast rate. The statement we boldfaced is very telling. On a scale of 1-10, we are between 3 and 4, so this trend has plenty of room to run before it tops out. In other words, what’s taking place will appear mild in the future?
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden’s top three parties are running almost level four months ahead of a general election, with the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats polling a record 20 percent, according to poll in daily Dagens Nyheter. Support for the Sweden Democrats has surged since they first won seats in parliament in 2010, with the party on track to record its best ever election result after getting 13 percent in 2014. A surge in asylum numbers in 2015, when Sweden took in 160,000 refugees, has heightened worries about a creaking welfare state and that crime is increasing, boosting the party, which wants to close Sweden’s doors and crack down on gangs. The ISPOS poll put the Sweden Democrats hot on the heels of the governing Social Democrats, who got 24 percent, and the biggest opposition party, the center-right Moderates, who scored 22 percent.
At the last election the center-left Social Democrats got 31 percent and the Moderates 23.3 percent. The current government is a minority coalition of the Social Democrats and Greens. They are supported in parliament by the Left Party. Together, the parties polled 37 percent. The Moderates, Centre, Christian Democrats and Liberals cooperate and will fight the election as a group. They polled 39 percent Full Story
The Viking blood still runs strong in many of the Scandinavian nations and while time has cultured the fierce Vikings, the current state of affairs is starting to stir things up and as this trend gathers momentum we fear that these once quite people will reveal a side of them that the world has not seen for a long time. The Vikings were extremely ruthless and note that the Russians also have Viking blood. We mention this because it takes a lot to provoke the Russian bear, but once provoked the bear will not rest until it has destroyed its enemy. Vikings were twice as volatile; they were not afraid to fight; they actually relished a good and bloody fight. Given the strength of this trend there is a fairly high probability that some leader will emerge in this area with strong Viking roots and start talking about days gone by; if this comes to pass, all hell could break loose. The main target of this rage will be Muslim immigrants as they are being labelled as invaders with increasing frequency and the attacks are gradually becoming more violent.
If someone comes to power and starts talking about how strong the Vikings were and how the Norwegians, Danes, etc. need to stand up to the invaders (this is the term that is often used today), it will be an indication that the above outlook is coming to fruition. The rhetoric at first will be rather mild, but don’t confuse this mild rhetoric for inaction. Focus on whether the Viking factor is mentioned, if it is, then the odds of it turning violent are quite high.
We are not rooting for the above outcome, nor do we favour such an outcome but we would be doing our subscribers a disservice if we did not talk about a potential trend that appears to be gaining momentum.
The Journal, citing unnamed sources, reported that job cuts were likely to extend into 2019.Separately, Bloomberg News reported the bank was planning to withdraw from a number of equities markets across the globe.
The Bloomberg report, which also cited unidentified people, said that Deutsche would sharply scale back its presence in the United States, and had started cutting activities in Central Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.Deutsche Bank, which holds its annual shareholder meeting on Thursday, declined to comment. The loss-making bank said last month that it was planning to scale back its global investment bank and that equities was one of the areas it was looking at for possible cuts.A person familiar with the matter told Reuters last month Deutsche Bank was expected to cut around 1,000 jobs or 10 percent of its workforce in the United States.
It has also said that it would cut back U.S. bonds trading and the business that services hedge funds.The bank has been expected to announce further details of its reorganisation plans ahead of its AGM on Thursday. hareholders, fed up with a languishing share price and dwindling revenue, will call on the bank’s management to speed up the recovery process at the AGM.
Hans-Christoph Hirt, head of shareholder adviser Hermes EOS at Hermes Investment Management, told Reuters on Wednesday he wanted to see a “credible strategy with achievable targets.” Full story
Now they are firing to balance the books, in the near future they will be firing to get rid of the “expensive human element”. Sadly most of today’s high paid individuals get way too much for doing way too little, and AI is going to dramatically alter the landscape. Remember the equation must always balance, and the more skewed things become the stronger the blowback as the market moves back to the point of equilibrium.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Trump administration moved on Friday to end a program that aimed to attract foreign entrepreneurs to the United States, saying the Obama-era effort did not adequately protect American workers and was an inappropriate use of government authority.
The Department of Homeland Security’s formal proposal to rescind the international entrepreneur rule, which is set to be published in the Federal Register next week, was widely expected given the administration had stated its intent to do so last year. The program would have allowed foreign entrepreneurs to stay in the United States for up to five years to manage and grow start-up businesses.
DHS said in a filing on Friday that the program represented an “extraordinary use” of the agency’s discretionary authority, that it “does not adequately protect U.S. investors and U.S. workers,” and that Congress was better placed to create a special visa for entrepreneurs.
The Obama administration established the international entrepreneur rule in January 2017, shortly before former President Barack Obama left office, with an effective date of July 2017. But last year the administration of President Donald Trump, which has moved to sharply curtail both legal and illegal immigration, delayed the program’s effective date to March 2018, while also indicating it would later rescind it entirely. Pro-immigrant groups criticized the decision. Full Story
The news follows the trend; we spoke of this when it was in its infancy (the anti-immigrant trend) and stated at the time that it had barely begun. Now it’s just warming up, so all these developments will look mild 12-24 months from now.
Donald Trump Blames Chuck Schumer, Plugs ‘Fox & Friends’ In Morning Tweets On NYC Terror Attack
President Donald Trump watched Fox & Friends Wednesday morning to get his early briefing on the latest about the previous night’s terror attack in lower Manhattan that left eight dead.
Then he tweeted.
Trump blamed the Senate’s top Democrat Chuck Schumer for the attack. Trump also pushed his immigration agenda. And he twice plugged his pals at Fox News Channel’s morning show.
Pointing his finger at Schumer, the president tweeted that the terrorist came into our country through what is called the ‘Diversity Visa Lottery Program’” which he called “a Chuck Schumer beauty,” adding, “I want merit based.”
“We are fighting hard for Merit Based immigration, no more Democrat Lottery Systems. We must get MUCH tougher (and smarter),” Trump continued.
“‘Senator Chuck Schumer helping to import Europes problems’ said Col. Tony Schaffer. We will stop this craziness!” Trump concluded. Two of those tweets plugged Fox News Channel’s morning show. Full Story
Political correctness is over; we now enter the “rage stage” where people let emotion dictate the rules. Immigrants are going to be targeted in a ruthlessness manner; systematically programs that were designed to help them will be gutted or eliminated.
Austrian Vote Paves Way for Nationalist Party to Enter Government
Austrian voters paved the way for the nationalist Freedom Party to enter government, heralding a shift to the political right that’s likely to make the country a more prickly ally for its European partners.
Projections after Sunday’s election put the populists within reach of second place behind the People’s Party of Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, 31, who claimed victory after a campaign built on outflanking the Freedom Party with a hard-line stance on migration. He now has a mandate to form a coalition, replace Social Democrat Christian Kern as chancellor and become the world’s youngest government leader. Full Story
Kurz is not only the youngest leader in Europe but one that is set to give new life to the Alt-right movement. The fact that he is a millennial illustrates that his stance resonates with the young and that this trend has a lot of staying power.
The Great Saudi Cleanse (just another word for the great Culling)
Some senior figures detained in last Saturday’s purge in Saudi Arabia were beaten and tortured so badly during their arrest or subsequent interrogations that they required hospital treatment, Middle East Eye can reveal. People inside the royal court also told MEE that the scale of the crackdown, which has brought new arrests each day, is much bigger than Saudi authorities have admitted, with more than 500 people detained and double that number questioned Full Story
One of the most famous is Prince Bandar bin Sultan, a former Saudi ambassador to Washington and confidant of former US President George W Bush. There is no word on his fate, but Saudi authorities said that one of the corruption cases they are looking at is the al-Yamamah arms deal, in which Bandar was involved. Full Story
We stated that we were in the midst of a culling period, we failed to mention that it would be a phenomenon that would be experienced worldwide and not localised just to the US. Now we know why the Saudi’s went to Russia. Prince Bandar Bin Sultan had the audacity to threaten Putin for supporting Syria. He stated he would open the floodgates for terrorists to flock into Russia. Then they supplied the rebels with weapons to fight Russia and Assad’ forces. We stated that the Russian Bear would not rest till blood was drawn and it has drawn a lot of blood with this strike. The Saudi’s understand Russia is there to stay in the Middle East as do the Israeli’s. More and more nations will turn to Russia for help as they proved how effective they were at destroying ISIS in Syria.
Beijing (AFP) – Thousands of spectators filled a stadium in China to watch 10 suspects be sentenced to death for crimes ranging from drug-dealing to homicide before they were taken away to be executed at the weekend. An online video of the rare public trial, held in southern Guangdong province on Saturday, showed the handcuffed suspects paraded around a track by uniformed police officers as onlookers watched from the sidelines.
The convicts also stood on a podium as their sentences were read over loudspeakers, while officials sat on a stage flanked by military guards. Rights groups say China executes more people than any other country, but Beijing does not give figures on the death penalty, regarding the statistics as state secrets.
A public announcement last week from Lufeng City People’s Court had invited citizens to sit in on the “open-air stadium trial”, as it was dubbed by the state-run Global Times. Beijing News, which circulated the trial video along. Full Story
Political correctness is going away, and this trend as we stated recently is set to last at least 15 years. Violence levels, for now, will continue to soar, but the response from governments especially in Asia and Eastern Europe is going to be just as brutal. The West will eventually join the pack. A leader is set to emerge that is going to make Trump look like a very polite gentleman.
McDonald’s has cold brew now, and what is coffee anymore?
In fairness, it was only a matter of time before the cold brew craze found its way to the massive fast-food chain. McDonald’s debuted its own cold brew beverage in two varieties: frozen coffee and frappe. This is the part where you swear you’ll never try it, and then give in four dayslater because you’re “curious.” Full Story
A politician is warning her fellow Russians not to do sex with foreigners during the World Cup
Tamara Pletnyova, the head of the Russian Duma’s Family, Women, and Children Committee, says to be especially careful if a potential father is “of a different race.” Her comments come as Russia is desperately trying to convince the world that it’s ready to tackle the racism that many are predicting will come along with the World Cup. Incidentally: Happy World Cup day to you! Full Story
There’s going to be a Fortnite World Cup with $100 million in prize money
If you’re familiar with the fandom of the video game, you might say, “Of course, this was inevitable.” For the uninitiated, Fortnite is a multiplatform game where 100 players vie for resources and compete against one another to be the last person standing. It’s also the reason you haven’t seen some of your loved ones in weeks. The Fortnite tournament will be open to all players, with qualifying tournaments starting in fall 2018. Full Story
Japanese banks may have too many employees and branches, and the overcapacity is contributing to a drop in earnings power that may hurt the financial system, according to the nation’s central bank. “The low profitability of Japanese financial institutions is striking from an international perspective,” the Bank of Japan said in its twice-yearly financial system report. The number of employees and branches “may be in excess relative to demand,” it said.
While banks in most advanced economies are struggling to cope with low-interest rates, the problem is particularly acute in Japan, where the central bank’s monetary easing has squeezed lending margins to among the lowest in the world. Japanese banks are also having to contend with a shrinking population which has prompted some smaller lenders to merge and larger ones to diversify operations and expand abroad. Full Story
Just another way of saying we need to replace humans with AI; the AI automation trend is gathering momentum at a frightening pace.
The Italian prime minister’s new EU adviser compared the EU to Nazi Germany
In a blog post from 2014, Luciano Barra Caracciolo, Italy’s new undersecretary for EU affairs, posted an image of an EU flag being peeled back to reveal a Nazi flag underneath. He has authored books on the incompatibility between EU treaties and Italy’s constitution, and has argued for the country to exit the euro. Full Story
Hawaii just became the first state to ban a pesticide linked to developmental delays in kids
The bill Gov. David Ige signed into law bans all chemicals containing the insecticide chlorpyrifos, starting in 2019. It also prohibits spraying pesticides within 100 feet of schools while they’re in session. Chlorpyrifos is sprayed on crops across the US to kill a variety of pests. People who apply it have to wear chemical-resistant gloves, coveralls, and respirators, and avoid treated areas for one to five days. Full Story
Austria went to polls on Oct 15 to choose its next leader. After a decisive victory for Sebastian Kurz, nationalist politics seems to be coming into the picture again. With the counting almost completed, excluding those who voted out of their home districts, People’s Party took away 31.6% of the votes. Social Democrats secured the second place with 26.9% votes, while far-right Freedom managed 26%.
Far right politics seems to be gaining steam in Europe. Despite Geert Wilders of Netherlands and Marine Le Pen of France failing to emerge victorious in their respective elections, the support they received shows that Europeans are divided when it comes to political orientation in their respective countries.
Moreover, last month in Germany, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) secured 12.6% votes as Germans opposed Merkel’s friendly refugee policy and her handling of the 2015 migrant crisis. Full Story
The Alt right is adjusting and adapting very fast; they will move towards the centre to gain control, once in they will implement their agenda with frightening speed, but what will be even more shocking is that the majority of the people will support this stance. The trend of polarisation continues to gather momentum.. A new powerful and very charismatic person will suddenly appear in Europe.
Polish president sharply condemns weekend nationalist march
The Polish president has sharply condemned expressions of xenophobia and racism at a weekend march by nationalists, saying there is no place in the country for anti-Semitism and “sick nationalism.”
It was the strongest and first unequivocal condemnation by a representative of the country’s conservative leadership of the white supremacist and racist views expressed by some of the 60,000 people who took part in a march on the Independence Day holiday Saturday in Warsaw.
Government members over the past two days had mostly described participants as patriots and played down the nature of the xenophobic messages. Though many families took part in the march, the event was organized by far-right groups and some carried banners with slogans like “White Europe of brotherly nations” or had flags with Celtic crosses, a white supremacist symbol.
There were also anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim slogans and chants. One large banner read “Deus Vult” in Gothic lettering. Latin for “God wills it,” it was a cry used during the First Crusade in the 11th century, when a Christian army from Europe slaughtered Jews and Muslims in the Holy Land. In recent years, it has been used by the radical right to show hostility to Islam. Full Story
The outlook will worsen before things get better; we are at stage 3, and this cycle has 7-10 levels.
Sweden will ‘never go back’ to the days of mass immigration
The Prime Minister of Sweden has vowed his country will ‘never go back’ to recent levels of mass immigration after it emerged the terrorist who killed four people in a truck attack was a failed asylum seeker.
Stefan Löfven pledged to change his country’s liberal attitude, insisting the massive influx allowed during the 2015 migrant crisis would never happen again.
Rakhmat Akilov, from Uzbekistan, hijacked the lorry and deliberately drove into pedestrians on central Stockholm’s main shopping street on Friday afternoon. Full Story
This story and the one below confirm the trend that we first spoke of in 2015.
Norway deported record number in 2016
Through the end of November, Norwegian police deported a total of 7,312 people who were living illegally in Norway, according to figures released on Friday by the National Police Immigration Service Norway (Politiets Utlendingsenhet).
That’s the highest number ever, at around five percent more than last year.
“This is a figure that shows that there have been many who do not have a legitimate claim to asylum who have stayed here and failed to leave the country, and that’s why it is necessary for the police to do the work they have done throughout the year,” State Secretary Fabian Stang told broadcaster NRK.
“It’s always brutal when one is forced to use the police to get people to do what they are required to,” added Stang, who is secretary for Immigration Minister Sylvi Listhaug.
More than a fourth of those who were forced to leave the country were also slapped with criminal charges. Most of those were from Romania, Poland and Lithuania. Nationals from those three countries accounted for 43 percent of the 2,041 convicted criminals who were deported. Full Story
It’s not only Muslims that are being targeted; all immigrants are paying the price now.
EU migrant crisis: Austria can deport asylum seekers, court says
The case, brought by Austria and Slovenia, could affect the future of several hundred people who arrived during the migrant crisis of 2015-16. The ruling concerns two Afghan families and a Syrian who applied for asylum after leaving Croatia.
The court says it is Croatia’s responsibility to decide their cases. The crisis unfolded during the summer of 2015, as one million migrants and refugees travelled through the Western Balkans. Under the so-called Dublin regulation, refugees typically have to seek asylum in the first EU state they reach. But Germany suspended the Dublin regulation for Syrian refugees, halting deportations to the countries they arrived in.
From August 2015, hundreds – and sometimes thousands – arrived in Austria every day, initially via Hungary and later through Slovenia.
Many wanted to travel on to Germany, but around 90,000 applied for asylum in Austria, equivalent to about 1% of its population. Full Story
We stated that this would come to pass; in fact, we stated that the open hand would turn into a massive raise fist. The law of balancing states that the equation must balance; no matter how long it takes, the equation will always balance. We expect the outlook to darken a lot more before it stabilises.
South china sea dispute: Beijing is looking for foreign contractors to help find oil and gas under the South China Sea but expects to meet resistance because other governments contest its claims and any discoveries may bring low returns.
China’s state-run China National Offshore Oil Corp. issued a tender last week for foreign companies to join it in exploring for fossil fuels in 22 tracts south of the country’s coastline. The blocks spanning a combined 47,270 square kilometers cover waters contested by Taiwan and Vietnam. Vietnam has been particularly outspoken since the 1970s about its claims.
Complicated matter
Foreign oil companies eyeing the bids, which close in September, probably worry that their ties to the Chinese maritime claim could spoil their reputation among rival South China Sea claimants or that any oil found would be a disputed asset, analysts say.
South China Sea Territorial Claims
“Given the area in question, there are risks around the sovereignty issue,” said Thomas Pugh, commodities economist with Capital Economics in London. “If they enter a deal with China and Chinese firms, they could risk not being allowed to work with other countries in the region who are disputing ownership of the area.”
Disputes over ownership continue
Discoveries themselves could also be contested by other countries, said Raymond Wu, managing director of Taipei-based political risk consultancy e-telligence. Full Story
The Chinese government is looking to foreign businesses to help find oil and natural gas under the South China Sea.
Yet China expects to meet resistance because other countries dispute Chinese territorial claims to much of the sea. In addition, observers say any oil and gas discoveries might not be very profitable.
Last week, China’s state-operated China National Offshore Oil Corporation made an appeal for foreign help. The company said it wants to work with foreign businesses in exploring for fossil fuels in 22 areas south of the country’s coast.
When combined, that represents more than 47,000 square kilometers of territory. The governments in Taiwan and Vietnam also claim those waters. Vietnam has been outspoken about its claims since the 1970s.
Foreign oil companies are now studying the Chinese offer, which closes in September. Experts say the companies may be worried that any work they do for China could hurt their ability to work for other countries. And they say the companies may also be worried that any oil or gas they find could be claimed by China’s neighbors.
Thomas Pugh works for the Capital Economics research service in London. He says if foreign companies start working with “China and Chinese firms, they could risk not being allowed to work with other countries…who are disputing ownership of the area.”
Raymond Wu is the managing director of e-telligence, a Taipei-based service that specializes in political risk. He also notes that any oil and gas discoveries could be claimed by other countries. Full Story
