RUTHFULLY YOURS

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/lincolnbrown/2023/01/26/iran-wants-a-presence-in-the-panama-canal-n1665426

Between the demoralization of the military and a drop and its numbers, an economy in disarray, a wide open border, a dire lack of oil and weapons, and an administration that seems hell-bent on starting World War III in Europe, conservatives and independents are not the only ones taking notice of the state of the union. Enemies of the U.S. are smelling the blood in the water that is being hemorrhaged by a weakened America. They are emboldened by what will become known in military textbooks as one of the worst military withdrawals in the history of the world and political leaders who are more concerned with pronouns and white supremacy than anything else. And they are testing their limits.

According to a report in the Washington Free Beacon, Iran wants to establish a presence in the Panama Canal as part of a military presence in the Western Hemisphere. The same State Department that just last week was fretting over the fonts its employees use is “monitoring” the situation.

Lest you think this is just a potential eventuality, this could happen as soon as next month. Two Iranian warships have been granted permission to dock in Brazil. One of them is outfitted with “anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes, and naval cannons.” A department spokesman told the Free Beacon, “We are aware of these claims by Iran’s navy. We continue to monitor Iran’s attempts to have a military presence in the Western Hemisphere.” The spokesman did not elaborate on the administration’s plans.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19342/turkey-elections

To maximize the opportunity for the Turkish public to come to the polls… President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan brought forward the election date from an originally scheduled June 18 to May 14.

Erdoğan’s treatment — through a judiciary totally under his control — of one of his potential rivals, Istanbul’s Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who defeated Erdogan’s party in 2019, is revealing. A court sentenced the popular İmamoğlu to a two-year prison sentence and a ban from politics for calling election officials who had annulled his first election “idiots.” (Imamoğlu won twice.) If his conviction is not annulled or overturned, that verdict may take the Imamoğlu out of the presidential race.

Erdoğan has made it a habit to use the courts in the way he thinks would best suit his political agenda. As of 2020, the number of Kurdish mayors in prison was 21. The Erdoğan administration had appointed its own administrators to 45 of a total of 65 municipalities won by the pro-Kurdish party, Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), in 2019.

Turkey’s Constitutional Court is currently being asked to order the closure of the party, which has 56 deputies in Turkey’s parliament. An indictment against the party seeks to ban 451 politicians and party members from organized political activity or membership of political parties for a period of five years and forfeiture of the party’s assets…. Even the mere freezing of assets [as has occurred] will deprive the HDP of the means to finance its election campaign.

Turkey’s 2023 elections will not only be a race between those Turks who want freedom and despise Islamist rule and those who prefer to starve while dreaming of Ottoman times. It also promises to be maker of Turkey’s global journey for at least the next five years.

Everyone in Turkey, in its region and in countries with interests or concerns about Turkey’s political future, probably agree that presidential and parliamentary elections this spring will be the most important for every nation involved. To maximize the opportunity for the Turkish public to come to the polls, after calculating external factors such as Muslim Hajj pilgrimage, a religious holiday and university entrance exams, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan brought forward the election date from an originally scheduled June 18 to May 14.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19339/iran-newest-commitments

The Arabs are not only anxious about Iran’s efforts to achieve obtain nuclear weapons, but also about its ongoing meddling in the internal affairs of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

In a sign reflecting the Arab concern over the Biden administration’s perceived lenient policy towards the mullahs and their nuclear ambitions, Egypt and Saudi Arabia announced in mid-January that they have “agreed on the need for Iran to fully respect its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in a way that prevents it from acquiring nuclear weapons.”

“[W]e need negotiations on specific issues that allow us to eliminate security risks, support stability and bring an end to Iran’s interference in Arab affairs.” — Tariq Al-Homayed, Saudi journalist, former editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat, January 15, 2023.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will continue supporting the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon and Palestine.” — Iranian Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahain, iranintel.com, January 13, 2023.

The mullahs are telling the Arabs that they can continue barking to their hearts’ content, but Iran will do whatever it wants in their countries.

When the Iranian foreign minister says his country will continue supporting the “resistance” in Lebanon, he means that Tehran will continue to provide weapons and money to Hezbollah, the terrorist organization that effectively controls Lebanon and has turned the country into a state of anarchy and lawlessness.

Like Hezbollah, the Palestinian groups are largely responsible for the misery of the people living under their rule.

“As for foreign policy, ‘Khomeinism’ produced a country that lives in an economic blockade for decades and that no longer knows a language other than weapons for dialogue with its neighbors and countries of the world.” — Baha’ Al-Awwam, Syrian journalist, Al-Ain, December 3, 2022.

“During the era of former US President Barack Obama, the US wanted to unleash the hand of political Islam in the region, so it supported the ‘sons of Khomeini’ and ‘the grandchildren of [Muslim Brotherhood founder] Hassan al-Banna.'” — Baha’ Al-Awwam, Al-Ain, December 3, 2022.

It seems as though the Obama and Biden administrations are ultimately willing to agree to almost anything the mullahs want and throw in a trillion dollars if the mullahs just please do not use their nuclear weapons — as Obama candidly put it in 2015 — “on my watch.”

The Arab countries are still extremely anxious about the possibility that the Biden administration will return to the Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The JCPOA — signed in 2015 between Tehran and several world powers, including the US — promises Iran’s regime, after a short time, the ability to possess as many nuclear weapons as it likes, the missiles to deliver them, and no constraints on its terrorism or “revolutionary” expansionism.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19338/genocide-nigeria-armenia-syria

“These military attacks by Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s regime are part of a wider Turkish policy of annihilation of the Kurdish and Assyrian [Christian] people in northern Syria and Iraq. Turkey has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including bombing, shelling, abduction, torture, and extrajudicial killings. The attacks are part of Turkey’s genocidal policies towards Kurds, Christians, and Ezidis.” — Genocide Watch, December 7, 2022, Turkey.

“As scholars who study the process of genocide, we believe that the actions of the Azerbaijani government constitute a risk of genocide for the Armenians of the region. We urge international agencies and governments to ensure the free access of people and goods to Nagorno-Karabakh.” — genocideprevention.am, December 13, 2022, Azerbaijan.

“Let it be put on record that in the hundreds of attacks [on Christians] that have…killed thousands since 2014, we have not seen anyone arrested and brought to book over these heinous crimes against humanity. Instead, it is southern Kaduna traditional leaders, clergy and human right activists that do get arrested and put in prison over trumped-up allegations of ‘incitement.'” — Luka Biniyat, spokesman for the Southern Kaduna People’s Union, Morning Star News, December 23, 2022, Nigeria.

On Dec. 17, a high-level Muslim official promulgated a new law saying that Christians could not celebrate Christmas without first obtaining a governmental permit. — Morning Star News, December 23, 2022, Indonesia.

Until 2017, when a new government came to power, churches had few problems. Since then, the authorities have capriciously shut down 20 churches, so that only 11 now remain open in the entire nation, with ongoing threats that they too might be shut down. — mnonline.org, December 1, 2022, Algeria.

“The persecution of Egypt’s Christian Copts is the longest ongoing persecution in the history of mankind, from 642, to today, 2022. Through all this time, maybe 70 years under British occupation were peaceful and good—the ‘golden era’ for Copts in all this duration…. I know of no group that has been persecuted for nearly 1400 years—with still no light at the end of the tunnel.” — Magdi Khalil, author who specializes in the situation of minorities in the Middle East, copticsolidarity.org, December 12, 2022, Egypt.

“After converting to Christianity… five days later, I started receiving threatening messages on my phone of risking being killed for leaving Islam. Please pray for us, for God to heal us quickly to enable us look for where to go.” — Abdu Muyinga, Morning Star News, December 18, 2022, Uganda.

The following are among the murders and abuses Muslims inflicted on Christians throughout the month of December 2022:

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19337/ukraine-waiting-for-the-stinger-moment

[W]hen Putin’s invasion of Ukraine came, most analysts still saw war as a short hymn to victory not a long symphony of death in four movements.

Heading for its second year, the Ukraine war seems set to become a long symphony of death rather than short hymn to victory.

No war is won or lost until one side admits defeat or one side totally destroys the other side. Hitler could not admit defeat, a possibility that was urged on him even until 1944, because that would have meant the end of his Reich.

I think that the Biden administration as its principal European allies, Germany and France, lack the vision, or the courage, to provide Ukraine with the hardware needed to threaten Russia’s sense of immunity. Writing fat checks, offering a limited range of recycled weapons, and diplomatic gesticulations such as setting up a tribunal against Putin and his associates, won’t shorten this symphony of death.

The war in Afghanistan was shortened when President Ronald Reagan’s administration supplied the anti-Soviet insurgency with Stinger missiles that ended the Red Army’s control of the skies with helicopter gunships and troop carriers.

The Stinger moment that could shorten this war has not yet arrived.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago, many analysts expected a quick catharsis in line with the prevailing view of war as a short hymn to military power.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19324/iran-eu-double-standard

The European Union’s charter stresses that “Human rights are at the heart of EU relations with other countries and regions. The European Union is based on a strong commitment to promoting and protecting human rights, democracy and the rule of law worldwide”. This is clearly not the case when it comes to the EU’s appeasing relationship with the ruling mullahs of Iran.

Meanwhile, Germany, which preaches about human rights and its “feminist foreign policy”, has actually increased its business with the Iranian regime.

If the EU truly desires to stand with the women of Iran and human rights, it can halt its business dealings and trade with Iran. Other reasons for the EU to cease enriching this toxic regime include its delivery of weapons to Russia and support for militia and terror groups. These include the Houthis fighting a war in Yemen; Hizballah, close to wrecking Lebanon; and Hamas, torturing the people of Gaza and crushing dissent for more than a decade.

By prioritizing its business and trade with Iran over promoting human rights and countering terrorism, the EU is emboldening and empowering the expansionist regime of Iran to suppress and kill more of its citizens, stamp out the women-led revolution for freedom, supply Russia with more weapons, and sponsor more terrorist groups worldwide.

The European Union’s charter stresses that “Human rights are at the heart of EU relations with other countries and regions. The European Union is based on a strong commitment to promoting and protecting human rights, democracy and the rule of law worldwide”. This is clearly not the case when it comes to the EU’s appeasing relationship with the ruling mullahs of Iran.

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19314/turkey-putin-western-interests

For Putin, Erdoğan’s friendship is growing ever more important — and vice versa.

Turkey has refused to join Western sanctions against Russia over Ukraine, thereby throwing a lifeline to Putin. Turkish skies remain open to Russian airlines and its doors open to hundreds of thousands of Russians and their money. Turkish exports to Russia are surging. In July alone, exports to Russia shot up by a dizzying 75% year-on-year.

Russian cash helped plug the growing hole in Turkey’s foreign currency reserves — at a time when Erdoğan needs foreign money for the country’s ailing economy before the presidential and parliamentary elections this June.

In March, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said that Russian oligarchs were welcome in Turkey. In October, the Financial Times reported that between January and August 2021, a record $28 billion from unclear origins had flowed into Turkey.

“Putin’s goal remains anchoring Erdoğan more and more to Russia through a vast mesh of mutually beneficial operations in the fields of defense, energy, trade, and finance… By doing this, Putin is comforting an embattled incumbent president and is openly bolstering Erdoğan’s position in the upcoming elections…. [T]he world is witnessing the Russian president using Turkey for his own benefits.” — Marc Pierini, senior fellow at Carnegie Europe and a former EU Ambassador to Ankara, August 30, 2022.

The Erdoğan-Putin bond has two main pillars. One is pragmatism: They both strategically, politically and economically benefit. The other is ideological: They both hate the West.

Turkish Islamists, especially neo-Ottomans, have historically hated Russia — both Czarist and Soviet. Similarly, Russians and Soviets have never been great fans of the Turks — both Ottoman and republican. Today, however, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, with a big foot in NATO, is exhibiting a pro-Russian tilt never seen before, and at a time when Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen as an existential threat to Western interests. What is the secret behind this sudden marriage?

https://www.frontpagemag.com/how-facebook-stifles-ex-muslims-in-norway/

Thanks to Elon Musk, we’re now beginning to see solid evidence of the remarkable degree to which the social-media giants – in collaboration with Democratic politicians, intelligence agencies, and the corporate media –have striven to stifle their ideological opponents. But even the Twitter Files, at least the ones that have been made public so far, don’t satisfactorily convey the worldwide extent of Silicon Valley’s mischief. One of the most egregious cases that have come to my own attention recently is that of Ex-Muslims of Norway (EX-MN), which describes itself on its website as standing “for universal rights and secularism” and for the right of Muslims to criticize their religion and, if they wish, to leave it. The members of EX-MN emphasize their identity as ex-Muslims “because we will not be done with Islam until the Islamic mentality is modernized or Islam is cast onto the rubbish heap of history.”

Founded in 2016 by three writer/journalists – the Turkish-born Cemal Knudsen Yucel, the Iranian-born Lily Bandehy, and the late Iraqi–born Walid al-Kubaisi – EX-MN opposes forced marriage; polygamy; genital mutilation; child hijab; burkas; sexual segregation; taxpayer financing for religious institutions; religious intimidation and threats; and blasphemy laws. And it supports untrammeled freedom of speech. By way of promoting these worthy stances, EX-MN holds seminars, takes part in international conferences and demonstrations, sends its members to speak in schools and at public events, and posts videos on YouTube (most of them in English) about such topics as Koran burning, the concept of “Islamophobia,” pro-hijab Western feminists, and Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/rick-moran/2023/01/17/demographic-crisis-looms-in-china-with-first-drop-in-population-in-six-decades-n1662449

China’s population fell for the first time in six decades last year as the nation’s population of 1.4 billion declined by about 850,000.

Short term, this is just a blip on the radar. But China also is afflicted with a rapidly aging population, which means that China is very likely to get old before it gets rich.

“China’s demographic and economic outlook is much bleaker than expected. China will have to adjust its social, economic, defense and foreign policies,” said demographer Yi Fuxian.

“Economic growth will have to depend more on productivity growth,” added Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management.

Reuters:

China’s birth rate last year was just 6.77 births per 1,000 people, down from a rate of 7.52 births in 2021 and marking the lowest birth rate on record.

The number of Chinese women of childbearing age, which the government defines as aged 25 to 35, fell by about 4 million, Kang said.

The death rate, the highest since 1974 during the Cultural Revolution, was 7.37 deaths per 1,000 people, which compares with a rate of 7.18 deaths in 2021.

Contrast those numbers with the U.S., where our births per thousand people were 12.01 and deaths per thousand were 6.98. Eventually, with fewer and fewer productive workers to support China’s aging population, a demographic crisis will overwhelm the state’s ability to cope.