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Wednesday, April 27, 2022

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Moscow Warns: West Bringing on WWIII

From the story: The United States pressed allies to further ramp up military support for Ukraine on Tuesday, with the clash between the West and the Kremlin once again in the spotlight after Russia warned of the “real” danger of World War III. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin pledged to “move heaven and earth” to help Kyiv win the war as he opened a meeting of NATO defense officials at a U.S. Air Force base in Germany (NBC News). Wall Street Journal: “The risk is serious, real. It should not be underestimated,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in a Russian state-television interview broadcast Monday night. “Under no circumstances should a third world war be allowed to happen,” he said, adding that “there can be no winners in a nuclear war.” Mr. Lavrov said the West was increasing the risk of a bigger conflict by providing arms to Ukraine: “NATO is, in essence, going to war with Russia through a proxy and arming that proxy” (Wall Street Journal). Lloyd Austin: Lloyd Austin: Russian foreign minister WWIII rhetoric is ‘dangerous’ and ‘unhelpful’ (Fox News).

Russian Separatists Launch Attacks in Moldova; Concerns as Another Nation Drawn Into Conflict

Romania — Moldova’s neighbor to the West — is watching with angst. Wall Street Journal: Moldova said it was placing its security forces on alert Tuesday following a series of explosions in Transnistria, a breakaway pro-Russian enclave that has stirred concern over the role that some 1,500 Russian troops stationed there could play in shoring up Moscow’s military campaign in neighboring Ukraine. Authorities in the separatist region alleged that three separate terrorist attacks on Monday and Tuesday had targeted a military base, two Soviet-era radio towers broadcasting Russian-language stations and the headquarters of the state security service in Tiraspol. No casualties were reported (Wall Street Journal). Fox News: They come a day after several explosions believed to be caused by rocket-propelled grenades were reported to have hit the Ministry of State Security in the city of Tiraspol, the region’s capital (Fox News).

FBI Director Christopher Wray on Violence Directed at Police: “Unlike anything I’ve seen in my 36 years of law enforcement”

From the story: FBI Director Christopher Wray addressed the skyrocketing rate of murders against police officers Sunday, saying the surge is far outpacing general violent crime. Wray made the comments during a “60 Minutes” interview on Sunday, saying murders of police officers rose 59% in 2021. The total murder rate rose 29% last year, and the U.S. lost 73 police officers to such attacks in 2021. “Violence against law enforcement in this country is one of the biggest phenomena that I think doesn’t get enough attention,” Wray said, adding that officers are being murdered at a rate of nearly “one every five days” (Fox News).

Elon Musk’s Twitter: What to Expect?

From the story: Nowhere has Musk said that Twitter will be entirely devoid of moderation. What he seems to be saying instead — what Twitter’s critics have demanded — is an end to the caprice. It is, of course, entirely possible for Twitter to construct a set of neutrally applicable rules that require people of all political viewpoints to engage with each other in a civil way. The problem has been that, in practice at least, Twitter’s rules were achieving no such thing and that, over time, users had noticed (National Review). From MSN: Academics have increasingly echoed the call for such censorship. Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith and University of Arizona law professor Andrew Keane Woods have called for Chinese-style censorship of the internet, stating in The Atlantic that “in the great debate of the past two decades about freedom versus control of the network, China was largely right and the United States was largely wrong.” A glimpse of that future was made clear by Twitter last week, when the company declared that it would ban any ads disagreeing with its view of climate change. Previously, Democratic senators demanded that Twitter expand censorship to include blocking disinformation on climate change as well as an array of other areas (MSN).

EPA Secretary Jennifer Granholm Wants to Eradicate Fossil Fuels

Following the bleak example of California. From the story: President Biden’s Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm — known for laughing when asked what the Biden administration would do to lower gas prices — is now talking about how the whole country should look to California as an example for its plan to eradicate fossil fuels and go fully electric, something that hasn’t gone well in Golden State and few Americans elsewhere want. Asked about Los Angeles’ plan to have zero emissions by 2028 and Governor Newsom’s plan for California to only sell electric vehicles by 2035, Secretary Granholm said the state’s goals are “real” and declared “California is on the leading edge of this, clearly” (Townhall). RNC Research: Democrats want to force you to buy an expensive electric vehicle… and if you can’t afford it, too bad (Twitter)!

Harvard Joins Other Ivy League Universities in Looking Into Their Own History of Slavery

Looking to set up memorials and pay reparations. New York Times: Harvard University is committing $100 million to study and redress its ties to slavery, the university’s president announced Tuesday, and with that money will create an endowed “Legacy of Slavery Fund,” which will continue researching and memorializing that history, working with descendants of Black and Native American people enslaved at Harvard, as well as their broader communities. With the announcement, Harvard joins many other universities — including Brown, Georgetown and Princeton Theological Seminary — that are not just grappling with their complicity in the institution of slavery but also putting financial resources behind efforts to make amends (New York Times). National Review: Other ideas include honoring enslaved people through memorials, research and curriculum and creating partnerships with historically black colleges and universities and tribal colleges. The committee also recommends the funds go toward identifying and building relationships with the direct descendants of enslaved people who worked on the Harvard campus or who were enslaved by the university’s leadership, faculty of staff (National Review).

Hunter Biden’s China Deal: The President’s Not So Transparent Transparency Report

From the story: The revelation ties the president even closer to Hunter’s overseas business dealings – and makes his previous claims that he never discussed them with his son, even less plausible. Joe was able to pay the bills after earning millions of dollars through his and his wife’s companies after he left office as vice president (Newsday). The Daily Mail: Th e ‘missing millions’ – combined with emails on Hunter’s abandoned laptop suggesting Joe would have a 10% share in Hunter’s blockbuster deal with the Chinese – raise a troubling question: did Joe Biden receive money from the foreign venture (Daily Mail)? Daily Wire: Earlier this month the White House stated that Biden’s 2021 tax return disclosure was “once again demonstrating his commitment to being transparent with the American people about the finances of the commander in chief” (Daily Wire).

World Beginning to Realize: Ukraine Can Pull Off a Victory

U.S. and Germany are putting more resources behind it. From the story: America has provided more military and civilian aid to Ukraine than all other countries combined. Messrs Blinken and Austin announced an additional $713m in financing to pay for weapons for Ukraine and allied countries. Perhaps more striking still is America’s changing attitude. To judge from the secretaries’ comments, America is embracing the idea that Ukraine might not only survive, but emerge victorious against Russia. “They have the mindset that they want to win; we have the mindset that we want to help them win, and we are going to do that,” declared Mr. Austin (Economist). Ukraine’s efforts have been noticed globally and they are changing minds — even beyond America. Germany is beginning to rise up against Russia and deliver military aid to Ukraine (Financial Times).

Beijing Residents Begin Panic Buying Amid Lockdown Rumors

From the story: Basic supplies started to fly off supermarket shelves over the weekend as the authorities warned of a “grim” situation and schools and gyms began to close down, amid reports that the coronavirus had been spreading “stealthily” in the city for almost a week. Shoppers flocked into stores to stock up on vegetables, toilet paper and instant noodles, anticipating the imminent announcement of harsh restrictions to curtail their movements. Social media was flooded with photos of empty shelves and some online grocery apps ran out of supplies (Telegraph). NBC: The city of more than 20 million people has reported almost 100 cases since Friday. The local government rushed to seal off residential areas with confirmed cases and ordered three rounds of mass testing this week in 11 out of 16 districts. Activities involving large crowds will be halted and residents are urged to avoid unnecessary travel out of Beijing ahead of a five-day national holiday. Local officials warned there would be a further increase in cases but called for calm and assured residents there were sufficient food supplies (NBC).

10.

Director James Gunn Defends Chris Pratt’s Role in Marvel After Backlash Over His Christianity

From the story: Director James Gunn on Monday defended superstar actor Chris Pratt, after some left-wing fans called for Marvel to recast Pratt over his public Christianity, which was equated with homophobia (Daily Wire). Director James Gunn: Chris Pratt would never be replaced as Star-Lord but, if he ever was, we would all be going with him (Twitter). This is not the first time the left has targeted Pratt and back in 2020, his colleagues came to his defense. Zoe Saldana: You got this @prattprattpratt. Your family, friends, colleagues & everyone who’s ever crossed paths with you knows your heart and your worth (Twitter)! James Gunn: Just finding out about this nonsense. @prattprattpratt is the best dude in the world. I’ve spent hours & hours sharing my deepest truths with this man, as he has with me. Please stop assuming what he believes, politically or in any other way, because he’s a Christian (Twitter).

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