Good morning,
Gosar Censure
The U.S. House of Representatives voted to censure Republican Paul Gosar, and to strip him of his committee assignments Wednesday. Gosar had posted an anime video promoting a violent attack on Democracts Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the sword armed character also slashed a character wearing the face of President Joe Biden.
The moment the vote passed, Gosar reposted the video. And what’s sadly notable is most Republicans didn’t vote to censure their colleague but stood by him, even though posting a video by any employee of anime characters killing a colleague, would get you fired in any workplace, let alone promoting an attack on elected officials including the President of the United States.
Gosar’s brother has described him as unhinged suggesting he should be removed from office. Rep. Liz Cheney was one of the few Republicans to vote for censure, telling reporters “This is not an issue about party,” Gosar’s post was “completely unacceptable.” “I think that it’s really important for us to be very clear that violence has no place in our political discourse,” she said.
Violence as the U.S. approaches mid terms in 2022, and elections for the President in 2024 is a serious concern. The call to arms by people at rallies stoked by lies about election fraud are growing.
At a Republican in Idaho last month, a man asked when he could start killing Democrats. “When do we get to use the guns?” the man said. “How many elections are they going to steal before we kill these people?”
On Back Story with Dana Lewis podcast this week, I interview Univ. of Virginia Larry Sabato about the dangers in America’s Democracy. I will post that later today.
Belarus Crisis
Alexander Lukashenko, the dictator who refused to step down after he lost elections last year, is increasing his pressure on Europe despite facing more sanctions this week.
For days disturbing scenes at the Polish border were beamed around the World as Belarus had lured migrants by plane to Belarus, and then pushed them to cross the border into Poland. Polish authorities locked down the border and using pepper spray and water cannons pushed the migrants, mostly from Iraq, back into Belarus.
Now Lukashenko has reduced gas supplies, through a Russian pipeline which crosses Belarus into Poland and Germany. The reduction was announced by the pipeline company and billed as “unscheduled maintenance”. Belarus has also announced it was terminating electricity supplies to neighboring Ukraine starting Thursday.
The blackmail of European nations using energy has always been a concern, and the gas flow reduction comes after Germany’s energy regulator suspended the certification for Russia’s Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline.
Canada-B.C. State of Emergency
The Western Province of British Columbia was swamped over the weekend with massive rain storms that inundated the City’s of Hope and Merritt, and has caused so much flooding in the Fraser Valley where thousands of animals have died.
A phenomenon known as an atmospheric river dumped a month’s worth of rain in two days, a once in a 500 year event said officials.
The Canadian airforce has deployed helicopters to airlift the stranded, but many say the Provinces Premier should have declared an emergency days ago as major roads were shutdown by landslides and thousands of people were stranded.
In Tulameen, a town to the northeast of Vancouver, up to 400 people are trapped, many without power and an airdrop of food was made.
COVID GERMANY
A fourth wave of Covid-19 is slamming Germany, with just under 53,000 cases hitting Germany in one day, and 300 deaths per day and rising. Germany has a low vaccine uptake with only 66% per cent of Germany’s population fully vaccinated, compared with 68% in France, 71% in Italy and 80% in Spain.
Other News…
-The UK is warning another terror attack is highly likely after a man blew up a taxi in Liverpool this weekend. Christmas shoppers are warned to be “vigilant”.
-Two of the men found guilty of the assassination of Malcolm X are expected to have their convictions thrown out on Thursday.
-The Biden administration faces a direct challenge from Florida’s Republican-controlled Legislature which passed a measure that seeks to prevent workers from being required to get vaccinated against COVID-19. (The politics of vaccines).
A busy week of news. This is just some of it. Watch and read mainstream news to understand whats really going on. Ignore the wacky fringe.
And have a good day!
Dana
https://nypost.com/2021/11/17/rep-paul-gosar-awaits-fate-as-house-to-vote-on-censure/
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/11/17/belarus-cuts-polands-oil-supplies-for-unscheduled-maintenance-a75594
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/the-latest-news-on-mudslides-and-flooding-in-british-columbia-for-nov-17-2021
https://www.euronews.com/2021/11/17/fourth-wave-of-covid-19-hitting-germany-with-full-force-merkel-says