thewashingtonstandard--2020-02-22--Time To Put Americans Back In Charge Of America

Members of the “ right ” and “ alt-right ” love to use terms such as “ the establishment , ” “ Deep State , ” “ globalists , ” etc.
, in describing freedom ’ s political enemies .
And , yes , I often use those terms too .
For the sake of brevity , I will refer to the above as simply “ the ruling class.
” Seldom , however , do conservatives identify who actually comprises the ruling class .
Typically when using those terms , conservatives are attacking Barack Obama , Hillary Clinton and liberal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doubtlessly true that many liberal Democrats are pawns of the ruling class , so are many conservative Republicans .
The ruling class monopolizes the philosophies , priorities and policies of both major parties in Washington , D.C .
The ruling class has mastered the phony left-right paradigm to perfection .
The entire political debate in America centers on the left-right paradigm .
If you are a Republican , Democrats are the enemy ; if you are a Democrat , Republicans are the enemy .
The entire political world revolves around this notion .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ When the ruling class wants to focus on building a socialist Welfare state , dismantling traditional cultural and religious norms and enacting gun control , it puts liberal Democrats in power .
And when it wants to focus on building the Warfare State and creating foreign enemies for the purpose of expanding the “ war on terror ” and a global surveillance state , it puts conservative Republicans in charge .
And when it comes to accommodating the international bankers ( translated : creating and increasing a debt-based economy ) , both Republicans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only difference in the economic policies of conservatives and liberals in D.C. is that liberals want to tax and spend , while conservatives want to borrow and spend .
But both groups want to SPEND .
Neither party cares a tinker ’ s dam about sound money principles or fiscal responsibility .
That ’ s why no matter who the president is ( including Donald Trump ) or which party controls Congress ( including Republicans ) , America ’ s national debt and deficit spending continue to spiral upward .
This also explains @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is ( including Donald Trump ) , the same miscreants wind up in the president ’ s cabinet and administration .
Donald Trump ’ s administration looks like Barack Obama ’ s .
Obama ’ s administration looked like G.W .
Bush ’ s .
Bush ’ s looked like Bill Clinton ’ s , ad infinitum , ad nauseam .
The president doesn ’ t pick his cabinet and administration officials ; the ruling class picks them .
Members , former members and fellow travelers of the Local 12 of the Villains @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Council on Foreign Relations ( CFR ) , Trilateral Commission ( TC ) and Bilderberg group—litter every presidential administration regardless of political party .
Donald Trump is on a pace to surpass both G.W .
Bush and Barack Obama in the number of CFR appointments , a mark he will undoubtedly surpass during his second term in office .
But the 800-pound gorilla in every backroom in Washington , D.C. , is the Israeli lobby .
For all intents and purposes , Israel and the ruling class are one and the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Congress itself , which is precisely the institution that has been most corrupted by Israel and Jewish money .
Almost thirty years ago , American politician Pat Buchanan described Congress as “ Israeli occupied territory.
” As a result , he was viciously attacked by the mainstream media and the political leadership of both parties , demonstrating beyond all doubt that he was correct in his observation .
Today the Israel Lobby in the United States is far more powerful than it was in 1990 , so much so that Israeli Prime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voters that he directs U.S. policy .
Everyone in Washington knows very clearly but will never admit that Israel has seriously corrupted the United States government and its elected officials at all levels .
But [ Congressman Adam ] Schiff did not mention Israel , nor did he express concern that Israel ’ s clearly unsavory involvement with Trump transition team members General Michael Flynn and Jared Kushner was never thoroughly investigated or included in the final Mueller report .
One might assume that a deliberate decision was made by some parties in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parties almost certainly included Schiff .
Schiff , who is Jewish , frequently tells audiences about his love for Israel , sometimes complaining that it is treated unfairly .
It might be suggested that if anyone in the government is partial to a foreign power it is Schiff , and that foreign power is Israel , not Russia .
Unfortunately , Schiff is far from unique .
Perhaps he and a number of other Congressmen should register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 , as required by law .
Congressmen are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a foreign nation , though they frequently believe themselves to be not subject to the very laws that they pass .
In May , a letter was sent to the White House with the signatures of 400 [ out of 435 ] congressmen , purely to express America ’ s legislature ’ s solidarity with Israel and to give it a green light to do whatever it wishes vis-à-vis its neighbors .
The letter cites some questionable American interests relating to Syria , but it also mentions Israel no less than 13 times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that there are over 100 high-ranking members of the U.S. government ( that we know about ) who are foreign citizens .
And guess which country ?
Right : Israel .
The U.S. government is awash with dual U.S./Israeli citizens .
Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has recounted several times her experience in Washington .
Here is a portion of her testimony as recorded in The Atlantic : Press TV : Let us talk about their many reports that talks about the influence of the Israeli lobby , AIPAC on the United States politics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in that realm as far as one would call the interference in American policy by AIPAC ?
McKinney : Well , every candidate for Congress at that time had a pledge .
They were given a pledge to sign and I was new on the scene and the pledge had Jerusalem as the capital city , the military superiority of Israel… Press TV : American Congress people have to sign this pledge ?
McKinney : Yes , you sign the pledge .
If you do not sign the pledge , you do not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want to get into this pledge a little bit more .
So this is basically something that is mandatory , that every Congressperson has to sign saying that what Jerusalem as you said is the capital of Israel , and what else ?
McKinney : You make a commitment that you would vote to support the military superiority of Israel that the economic assistant that Israel wants that you would vote to provide that .
Press TV : …they are supposed to be representing the people of the United States not a foreign @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allegiance to a foreign state ?
No one questions this ?
McKinney : That is what I was asked to do and I made it public .
Cynthia told me in person all of the above and much more .
Suffice it to say that the vast majority of the congressmen on Capitol Hill in both parties have sold their congressional votes and their loyalties to the State of Israel .
For years , Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ( corrupt politician and mass murderer ) has bragged privately and publicly that Israel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a privately recorded video of Netanyahu bragging about Israel ’ s influence over the U.S. Notice how he mocks the American people for being so gullible .
Just a few days ago , Netanyahu again boasted of Israel ’ s control not only of Washington , D.C. , but of many U.S. states .
Israeli caretaker prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu , who has been indicted for corruption and is facing an election soon , just boasted that his ministry of strategic affairs has managed to undermine first amendment protections for free speech in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pass laws forbidding the boycott of Israel .
Gilad Erdan is the head of the ministry of strategic affairs , which has spearheaded the attempt to undermine the US constitution and make criticizing Israeli policy illegal in the United States .
This effort is allegedly being aided by Mossad , Israeli intelligence .
Mossad intensively spies on Washington , D.C. , and may have compromising information on US politicians .
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee or AIPAC is the main instrument of such Israeli policy pushes in the United States , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the agent of a foreign state , as US law requires .
It was also not for nothing that the American administration has taken this step together with us .
In recent years , we have promoted laws in most US states , which determine that strong action is to be taken against whoever tries to boycott Israel .
Confirming Israel ’ s intimidation of U.S. State governments , Journalist Abby Martin is suing the State of Georgia for requiring her to sign an anti-BDS manifesto before allowing her to speak at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Imagine , a State of the United States requiring an American journalist to , in essence , swear loyalty to a foreign country as a condition to speak at an American university .
Just recently , the State of South Dakota became the 28th State to pass an anti-BDS law .
In Texas , Governor Greg Abbott was recently invited to Israel to receive the Friends of Zion Award ( the same award was also given to Donald Trump and G.W .
Bush ) .
In his acceptance speech Abbott said , “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is an enemy of Texas.
” I thought the governor ’ s oath included fidelity to the United States , NOT a foreign country .
When did Greg Abbott take an oath to Israel ?
And what does he have in mind for the citizens of Texas ( “ enemies ” ) who engage in their constitutional right to participate in the BDS movement against Israel ?
Fines ?
Imprisonment ?
Torture ?
Death ?
Speaking of Texas , in 2017 , the Houston suburban city of Dickinson refused to provide emergency relief @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who would not sign an anti-BDS declaration : The form includes a clause headlined “ verification not to boycott Israel ” .
It states : “ By executing this Agreement below , the Applicant verifies that the Applicant : ( 1 ) does not boycott Israel ; and ( 2 ) will not boycott Israel during the term of this Agreement.
” Please tell me what pledging loyalty to a foreign country has to do with an American citizen receiving emergency assistance from an American city ?
How is this not treason ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ bought-and-paid-for American politicians are doing not treason ?
I bet most Americans are completely unaware ( because the Zionist-controlled media in America doesn ’ t tell them ) of the way our U.S. Embassy in Israel turns a blind eye to Israeli atrocities committed against Americans abroad .
One of the principal functions of a United States Embassy overseas is to provide citizen services , which includes coming to the assistance of Americans who are treated badly by the local government .
It is a responsibility that most embassies take seriously , with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Jerusalem .
One has to understand that that is so because the United States Embassy in Israel is like no other .
In other countries , the American Embassy exists to support American travelers , businesses and a broad range of national interests .
In Jerusalem the Embassy exists to support Israeli interests and to serve as an apologist every time the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes on a killing spree or does something else that is similarly outrageous , to include bombing neighboring Syria every other day .
America @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman , has funded Israel ’ s illegal settlements , which did not in any way complicate his confirmation as nearly everyone in Congress and the White House does not believe that the Palestinians actually are human beings .
Since taking up his position , Friedman has defended Israel when its army sharpshooters have shot down scores of unarmed Gazans , including children , and has both praised and endorsed out-and-out theft by the Israeli government in Jerusalem , on the West Bank and the Golan Heights .
What the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is put any real pressure on the Israeli government if its security forces or rampaging settlers kill , beat , maim or torture an American citizen , especially if said citizen happens to be of Palestinian descent .
Indeed , Friedman is only the latest manifestation of Israel-first-itis among U.S .
Ambassadors , the rot having started inevitably with Bill Clinton , who appointed Australian citizen Martin Indyk as the first Jewish ambassador to Tel Aviv .
The two most recent ambassadors , Friedman and Daniel Shapiro , both political appointees , have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being an Israeli that he decided to remain in the country after his appointment as ambassador was completed .
He now works for an Israeli government funded think tank .
The Israeli army and police have in fact killed a number of American citizens without any real pushback from the Department of State or White House .
The unwillingness to confront Israel on any level stems from the formidable Jewish power in the United States , which uses money and media control to corrupt the political system at national , state and local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ never heard of these American citizens who were either murdered by Israel or who were shot in the head by Israeli troops but miraculously survived : Rebhi Barakat Kaid , 67 , Columbus , Ohio ( killed August 1988 ) Rachel Corrie , Washington State ( killed March 2003 ) Brian Avery , 24 , Albuquerque , New Mexico ( shot April 2003 ) Tristan Anderson , 37 , Oakland , California ( shot March 2009 ) Furkan Doğan , 18 , Troy , New York , ( killed May 2010 ) Emily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ May 2010 ) Orwa Hammad , 14 , Louisiana ( killed October 2014 ) Mahmoud Shaalan , 16 , Florida ( killed February 26 , 2016 ) Of course , these are only a few of the ones whose stories have leaked out .
Oh !
And let ’ s not forget the 34 American sailors and Marines who were murdered by the State of Israel on June 8 , 1967 , when Israel attacked the USS Liberty .
All of these Americans were murdered by the State of Israel and their deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. State Department and the White House—regardless of whether a Democrat or Republican sat in the Oval Office .
And this does not include the thousands of people of all faiths who are routinely tortured by the State of Israel .
Inside Israel , torture of Palestinians is routine on the grounds of “ necessity ” and absurd “ ticking-bomb ” scenarios .
The courts and the medical profession aid and abet the practice .
Over 1200 complaints regarding the torture of Palestinians in Israeli prisons have not resulted in even a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , killing Americans as well as many others and torturing prisoners are all in a day ’ s work for the Jewish state .
What is disgraceful , of course , is the fact that the United States government , which has the power to do something about it , instead chooses to do nothing to stop the bleeding or even to demand inquiries to find out who is to blame .
Instead , Washington lavishes money and praise on Israel , reportedly America ’ s best friend and closest ally , while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that are evident to most of the rest of the world .
The John Birch Society deserves credit for having identified the CFR as part of the ruling class , but few have dared to name the State of Israel .
Here is a relevant message that I delivered over a year ago that includes pertinent information on both the CFR and Zionist Israel .
If Benjamin Netanyahu knows he controls America , why don ’ t evangelical Christians know ?
It ’ s because they are bewitched and deceived by the false @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s time to put Americans back in charge of America .

Members of the “right” and “alt-right” love to use terms such as “the establishment,” “Deep State,” “globalists,” etc., in describing freedom’s political enemies. And, yes, I often use those terms too. For the sake of brevity, I will refer to the above as simply “the ruling class.”
Seldom, however, do conservatives identify who actually comprises the ruling class. Typically when using those terms, conservatives are attacking Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and liberal Democrats in general.
While it is doubtlessly true that many liberal Democrats are pawns of the ruling class, so are many conservative Republicans. The ruling class monopolizes the philosophies, priorities and policies of both major parties in Washington, D.C.
The ruling class has mastered the phony left-right paradigm to perfection. The entire political debate in America centers on the left-right paradigm. If you are a Republican, Democrats are the enemy; if you are a Democrat, Republicans are the enemy. The entire political world revolves around this notion.
It’s all a game, a façade, a hoax.
Here’s how it works: When the ruling class wants to focus on building a socialist Welfare state, dismantling traditional cultural and religious norms and enacting gun control, it puts liberal Democrats in power. And when it wants to focus on building the Warfare State and creating foreign enemies for the purpose of expanding the “war on terror” and a global surveillance state, it puts conservative Republicans in charge.
And when it comes to accommodating the international bankers (translated: creating and increasing a debt-based economy), both Republicans and Democrats happily play along. The only difference in the economic policies of conservatives and liberals in D.C. is that liberals want to tax and spend, while conservatives want to borrow and spend. But both groups want to SPEND. Neither party cares a tinker’s dam about sound money principles or fiscal responsibility. That’s why no matter who the president is (including Donald Trump) or which party controls Congress (including Republicans), America’s national debt and deficit spending continue to spiral upward.
This also explains why, no matter who the president is (including Donald Trump), the same miscreants wind up in the president’s cabinet and administration. Donald Trump’s administration looks like Barack Obama’s. Obama’s administration looked like G.W. Bush’s. Bush’s looked like Bill Clinton’s, ad infinitum, ad nauseam.
The president doesn’t pick his cabinet and administration officials; the ruling class picks them.
Members, former members and fellow travelers of the Local 12 of the Villains, Thieves and Scoundrels Union—otherwise known as the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Trilateral Commission (TC) and Bilderberg group—litter every presidential administration regardless of political party. Donald Trump is on a pace to surpass both G.W. Bush and Barack Obama in the number of CFR appointments, a mark he will undoubtedly surpass during his second term in office.
But the 800-pound gorilla in every backroom in Washington, D.C., is the Israeli lobby. For all intents and purposes, Israel and the ruling class are one and the same.
Philip Giraldi astutely writes:
And then there is the problem of Congress itself, which is precisely the institution that has been most corrupted by Israel and Jewish money. Almost thirty years ago, American politician Pat Buchanan described Congress as “Israeli occupied territory.” As a result, he was viciously attacked by the mainstream media and the political leadership of both parties, demonstrating beyond all doubt that he was correct in his observation. Today the Israel Lobby in the United States is far more powerful than it was in 1990, so much so that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actually boasts to his voters that he directs U.S. policy.
Everyone in Washington knows very clearly but will never admit that Israel has seriously corrupted the United States government and its elected officials at all levels. But [Congressman Adam] Schiff did not mention Israel, nor did he express concern that Israel’s clearly unsavory involvement with Trump transition team members General Michael Flynn and Jared Kushner was never thoroughly investigated or included in the final Mueller report. One might assume that a deliberate decision was made by some parties in power to avoid embarrassing Israel. Those parties almost certainly included Schiff.
Schiff, who is Jewish, frequently tells audiences about his love for Israel, sometimes complaining that it is treated unfairly. It might be suggested that if anyone in the government is partial to a foreign power it is Schiff, and that foreign power is Israel, not Russia.
Unfortunately, Schiff is far from unique. Perhaps he and a number of other Congressmen should register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as required by law. Congressmen are not exempt when they work to benefit a foreign nation, though they frequently believe themselves to be not subject to the very laws that they pass. In May, a letter was sent to the White House with the signatures of 400 [out of 435] congressmen, purely to express America’s legislature’s solidarity with Israel and to give it a green light to do whatever it wishes vis-à-vis its neighbors. The letter cites some questionable American interests relating to Syria, but it also mentions Israel no less than 13 times.
And let’s not forget that there are over 100 high-ranking members of the U.S. government (that we know about) who are foreign citizens. And guess which country? Right: Israel. The U.S. government is awash with dual U.S./Israeli citizens.
Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has recounted several times her experience in Washington. Here is a portion of her testimony as recorded in The Atlantic:
Press TV: Let us talk about their many reports that talks about the influence of the Israeli lobby, AIPAC on the United States politics in general. Did you experience anything in that realm as far as one would call the interference in American policy by AIPAC?
McKinney: Well, every candidate for Congress at that time had a pledge. They were given a pledge to sign and I was new on the scene and the pledge had Jerusalem as the capital city, the military superiority of Israel…
Press TV: American Congress people have to sign this pledge?
McKinney: Yes, you sign the pledge. If you do not sign the pledge, you do not get money…..
Press TV: I just want to get into this pledge a little bit more. So this is basically something that is mandatory, that every Congressperson has to sign saying that what Jerusalem as you said is the capital of Israel, and what else?
McKinney: You make a commitment that you would vote to support the military superiority of Israel that the economic assistant that Israel wants that you would vote to provide that.
Press TV: …they are supposed to be representing the people of the United States not a foreign country and yet they have to pledge allegiance to a foreign state? No one questions this?
McKinney: That is what I was asked to do and I made it public.
Cynthia told me in person all of the above and much more. Suffice it to say that the vast majority of the congressmen on Capitol Hill in both parties have sold their congressional votes and their loyalties to the State of Israel.
For years, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (corrupt politician and mass murderer) has bragged privately and publicly that Israel controls the United States. Here is a privately recorded video of Netanyahu bragging about Israel’s influence over the U.S. Notice how he mocks the American people for being so gullible.
Just a few days ago, Netanyahu again boasted of Israel’s control not only of Washington, D.C., but of many U.S. states.
Israeli caretaker prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who has been indicted for corruption and is facing an election soon, just boasted that his ministry of strategic affairs has managed to undermine first amendment protections for free speech in the United States by lobbying state legislatures to pass laws forbidding the boycott of Israel.
Gilad Erdan is the head of the ministry of strategic affairs, which has spearheaded the attempt to undermine the US constitution and make criticizing Israeli policy illegal in the United States. This effort is allegedly being aided by Mossad, Israeli intelligence. Mossad intensively spies on Washington, D.C., and may have compromising information on US politicians.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee or AIPAC is the main instrument of such Israeli policy pushes in the United States, and has never been forced to register as the agent of a foreign state, as US law requires.
On February 12, 2020, Bibi bragged:
It was also not for nothing that the American administration has taken this step together with us. In recent years, we have promoted laws in most US states, which determine that strong action is to be taken against whoever tries to boycott Israel.
Confirming Israel’s intimidation of U.S. State governments, Journalist Abby Martin is suing the State of Georgia for requiring her to sign an anti-BDS manifesto before allowing her to speak at a college assembly in that State. Imagine, a State of the United States requiring an American journalist to, in essence, swear loyalty to a foreign country as a condition to speak at an American university.
Just recently, the State of South Dakota became the 28th State to pass an anti-BDS law.
In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott was recently invited to Israel to receive the Friends of Zion Award (the same award was also given to Donald Trump and G.W. Bush). In his acceptance speech Abbott said, “Anybody who is an enemy of Israel is an enemy of Texas.”
I thought the governor’s oath included fidelity to the United States, NOT a foreign country. When did Greg Abbott take an oath to Israel? And what does he have in mind for the citizens of Texas (“enemies”) who engage in their constitutional right to participate in the BDS movement against Israel? Fines? Imprisonment? Torture? Death?
Speaking of Texas, in 2017, the Houston suburban city of Dickinson refused to provide emergency relief assistance due to Hurricane Harvey to townspeople who would not sign an anti-BDS declaration:
The form includes a clause headlined “verification not to boycott Israel”. It states: “By executing this Agreement below, the Applicant verifies that the Applicant: (1) does not boycott Israel; and (2) will not boycott Israel during the term of this Agreement.”
Please tell me what pledging loyalty to a foreign country has to do with an American citizen receiving emergency assistance from an American city?
How is this not treason? How is what all of these Israel bought-and-paid-for American politicians are doing not treason?
I bet most Americans are completely unaware (because the Zionist-controlled media in America doesn’t tell them) of the way our U.S. Embassy in Israel turns a blind eye to Israeli atrocities committed against Americans abroad.
One of the principal functions of a United States Embassy overseas is to provide citizen services, which includes coming to the assistance of Americans who are treated badly by the local government. It is a responsibility that most embassies take seriously, with the exception of the facility currently located in Jerusalem. One has to understand that that is so because the United States Embassy in Israel is like no other. In other countries, the American Embassy exists to support American travelers, businesses and a broad range of national interests. In Jerusalem the Embassy exists to support Israeli interests and to serve as an apologist every time the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes on a killing spree or does something else that is similarly outrageous, to include bombing neighboring Syria every other day.
America’s current ambassador, former Trump bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman, has funded Israel’s illegal settlements, which did not in any way complicate his confirmation as nearly everyone in Congress and the White House does not believe that the Palestinians actually are human beings. Since taking up his position, Friedman has defended Israel when its army sharpshooters have shot down scores of unarmed Gazans, including children, and has both praised and endorsed out-and-out theft by the Israeli government in Jerusalem, on the West Bank and the Golan Heights.
What the U.S. Embassy under Friedman will not do is put any real pressure on the Israeli government if its security forces or rampaging settlers kill, beat, maim or torture an American citizen, especially if said citizen happens to be of Palestinian descent. Indeed, Friedman is only the latest manifestation of Israel-first-itis among U.S. Ambassadors, the rot having started inevitably with Bill Clinton, who appointed Australian citizen Martin Indyk as the first Jewish ambassador to Tel Aviv. The two most recent ambassadors, Friedman and Daniel Shapiro, both political appointees, have also been Jewish. Shapiro so enjoyed being an Israeli that he decided to remain in the country after his appointment as ambassador was completed. He now works for an Israeli government funded think tank.
The Israeli army and police have in fact killed a number of American citizens without any real pushback from the Department of State or White House. The unwillingness to confront Israel on any level stems from the formidable Jewish power in the United States, which uses money and media control to corrupt the political system at national, state and local levels.
Ask yourself why you have never heard of these American citizens who were either murdered by Israel or who were shot in the head by Israeli troops but miraculously survived:
Rebhi Barakat Kaid, 67, Columbus, Ohio (killed August 1988)
Rachel Corrie, Washington State (killed March 2003)
Brian Avery, 24, Albuquerque, New Mexico (shot April 2003)
Tristan Anderson, 37, Oakland, California (shot March 2009)
Furkan Doğan, 18, Troy, New York, (killed May 2010)
Emily Henochowicz, Potomac, Maryland (shot May 2010)
Orwa Hammad, 14, Louisiana (killed October 2014)
Mahmoud Shaalan, 16, Florida (killed February 26, 2016)
Of course, these are only a few of the ones whose stories have leaked out.
Oh! And let’s not forget the 34 American sailors and Marines who were murdered by the State of Israel on June 8, 1967, when Israel attacked the USS Liberty.
All of these Americans were murdered by the State of Israel and their deaths covered up by the U.S. Embassy, the U.S. State Department and the White House—regardless of whether a Democrat or Republican sat in the Oval Office. And this does not include the thousands of people of all faiths who are routinely tortured by the State of Israel.
The above-referenced article continues:
Inside Israel, torture of Palestinians is routine on the grounds of “necessity” and absurd “ticking-bomb” scenarios. The courts and the medical profession aid and abet the practice. Over 1200 complaints regarding the torture of Palestinians in Israeli prisons have not resulted in even a single indictment of the torturers.
So, killing Americans as well as many others and torturing prisoners are all in a day’s work for the Jewish state. What is disgraceful, of course, is the fact that the United States government, which has the power to do something about it, instead chooses to do nothing to stop the bleeding or even to demand inquiries to find out who is to blame. Instead, Washington lavishes money and praise on Israel, reportedly America’s best friend and closest ally, while it also avoids looking at the horrors that are evident to most of the rest of the world.
The John Birch Society deserves credit for having identified the CFR as part of the ruling class, but few have dared to name the State of Israel.
Here is a relevant message that I delivered over a year ago that includes pertinent information on both the CFR and Zionist Israel.
If Benjamin Netanyahu knows he controls America, why don’t evangelical Christians know? It’s because they are bewitched and deceived by the false doctrines of Christian Zionism.
It’s time to put Americans back in charge of America.
Article posted with permission from Chuck Baldwin


thewashingtonstandard--2020-02-22--Millions Quietly Revolting in Colombia As Media Amplifies Unrest in Venezuela & Beyond

any of the massive anti-neoliberal protest movements that exploded across the globe last year have pressed on into 2020 , especially those that rose up throughout Latin America .
Many of those demonstrations — clearly newsworthy due to their enormous size , composition , and motives — were and continue to be ignored by prominent English language news outlets , essentially creating a media blackout of these movements .
This trend has been particularly magnified in Latin American countries whose current governments are closely allied with the United States , with Colombia , in particular , standing out .
Despite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thousands of people fueled by anger over state corruption , proposed neoliberal reforms and a spike in murders of social leaders , the unrest in Colombia has garnered remarkably little international media attention .
In contrast , U.S.-supported right-wing movements attempting to topple socialist governments like those in Venezuela and Bolivia have received a great deal of coverage and open support from both the media and the political class .
It is certainly telling that international media outlets largely ignored the protests of Colombia ’ s teachers , who were motivated to act @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violence targeting them incited by the government itself , leading to several murders and hundreds of death threats in the span of just a few months .
Colombia ’ s President Iván Duque ’ s political mentor Álvaro Uribe , himself president between 2002 and 2010 , accused the country ’ s teachers of brainwashing the youth : “ Teachers only teach them to yell and to insult , not how to debate , warping their minds , ” he said .
That story was overlooked in the media , likely due to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s conservative government and the United States .
Colombia remains the continent ’ s top recipient of American military aid , despite the fact that the U.S. government itself has disclosed ties between Colombia ’ s military , former President Uribe and the illegal drug trade .
Of the recent protests that have taken place in Colombia , the strikes led by Colombian teachers and one of the main teachers ’ unions in the country — the Colombian Federation of Education Workers ( Fecode ) — have received almost no coverage in English-language @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around demands for better wages or increased funding for public education but around the slew of death threats and recent murders that have targeted Colombia ’ s education workers .
“ Our teachers continue to be threatened and attacked , ” said Fecode head Nelson Alcaron , “ This government is indolent .
It isn ’ t taking measures to protect their lives , ” he added , noting that 240 have been threatened this year alone .
“ We live in a country that kills children , that kills social leaders , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is why we have to change something .
We can not continue to live like this , ” another protester said .
Though the fact that Colombian teachers are protesting in defense of their very lives is clearly newsworthy , adding to the importance of the demonstrations is the fact that these murders and death threats are closely tied to Colombia ’ s current government led by President Iván Duque .
Duque and his political allies have incited violence against the country ’ s teachers , and those affiliated with Fecode in particular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Democratic Center , have stepped up their rhetoric towards education workers , asserting that teachers ’ unions , namely Fecode , “ must disappear ” while some Democratic Center politicians have moved to criminalize teacher protests and strikes and fire any teachers who make political statements deemed non-essential to the subject they teach .
As these verbal attacks have grown , teachers in Colombia have been increasingly targeted , especially after Fecode-led strikes and demonstrations took place during the latter half of last year denouncing a new wave of threats towards @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Duque ’ s political base .
One demonstration in August was partially spurred by the brutal murder of school principal Orlando Gómez , who was abducted from the school where he worked and then murdered after having received numerous death threats for his educational work in the violence-plagued Cauca region .
As noted by Fecode during a 24-hour teacher strike “ in defense of the lives of teachers ” that took place last September , 10 teachers were murdered and another 700 received death threats during Duque ’ s first year in office @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threats were directly related to “ a systematic social media campaign of harassment and outright lies against educators and their students ” led by Democratic Center activists and leaders .
Yet , since 2020 began , the wave in violence against teachers has continued to grow .
In the first two weeks of February alone , one teacher was murdered , a regional coordinator of Fecode survived an assassination attempt , an entire school was forced to close down due to death threats made against teachers , and 15 Fecode-linked teachers were forced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and worked .
Last week , death threats were sent to an additional 25 teachers ahead of their school ’ s plan to commemorate a massacre committed by a paramilitary group 25 years ago .
In response to the wave of violence and threats , Fecode announced another strike to take place in coming weeks to both highlight and denounce the dangerous situation faced by Colombian teachers .
One reason for the jump in violence targeting Fecode and Colombian teachers may be due to the fact that their demonstrations helped to spur much @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and groups in Colombian society in their opposition to various right-wing policies of the Colombian government .
Following the Fecode-led demonstrations in August and September of last year , a massive national strike and anti-government protests saw hundreds of thousands take to the streets last November amid a backdrop of anti-government demonstrations in several other Latin American countries , including Chile and Ecuador .
Today , seven million Colombian students have been left without teachers amid a massive strike .
The national strike was joined , not just by Fecode , but by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ student groups , indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities and farmers , among others .
It was the largest national strike to take place in Colombia since the late 1970s and was met by the Duque government with curfews , border closures , rubber bullets and teargas , with at least one person killed by a police projectile .
Since November , however , the national strikes and general anti-government sentiment have continued , with national strikes and related demonstrations taking place in December and January .
Another strike is planned for Friday and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in March .
Protest organizers asserted last month that these actions will continue “ until something changes , ” with the high rate of murders targeting social leaders remaining one of the main complaints of those demonstrating .
While the protests have gripped Colombia , they have barely been reported in the Western press , with coverage of the monthslong rebellion garnering barely a few , disinterested mentions .
CNN , for example , appears not to have discussed the events for over two months .
When mentioned at all , the idea @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of “ foreign meddling ” ( CNN ) from Venezuela or “ Russian trolls ” ( New York Times ) is often floated .
In comparison , there was widespread coverage of and immediate support for the right-wing protests and coup attempt that brought down Bolivia ’ s socialist president Evo Morales in November , with media falsely claiming he had resigned ( CBS News ) due to election fraud ( New York Times ) .
Collectively , corporate media welcomed the fall of a supposed “ full-blown dictatorship ” ( Miami Herald @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” ( The Economist ) .
One reason for the lack of media coverage likely owes to the decades-long U.S.-Colombia alliance .
In order to cover the popular movements against Duque ’ s government , the media would have to acknowledge the gravity of Colombia ’ s current situation , which would then increase international pressure on Duque and his administration to address the issues that motivate the protests , something the U.S. government does not support .
Duque was elected president in May 2018 to much fanfare from the Western press .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ state of terror , his leftist challenger Gustavo Petro narrowly escaping an assassination attempt , while many of his supporters were less lucky .
This was the first election in which the left felt they had a chance of gaining power since the assassination of President Jorge Gaitan in 1947 , an event that sparked decades of civil war .
Right-wing paramilitary death squads linked to the government issued public death threats , promising to kill those who voted for Petro .
In addition to the intimidation tactics , there was also widespread @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Daniel Kovalik , an election observer , was mistaken for a voter and offered money to vote for Duque .
There were over 1,000 official electoral fraud complaints .
Despite this , corporate media heralded the flawed election as a victory for democracy , downplaying or flatly ignoring its failings .
For example , CNN stressed that “ though there have been isolated incidents of violence related to the election , they have been minimal , ” suggesting that the only fear voters had was that Petro would swing the country “ dangerously @ @ @ @ @ @ @ creatively told its readers that there was a “ taboo ” against voting for leftists in Colombia .
After his victory , Donald Trump invited Duque to the White House where he said that it was “ a great honor ” to be “ working very closely ” with him , especially on regime change in Venezuela .
In comparison , the Venezuelan election taking place at the same time , overseen and praised by 150 international observers was written off as a “ heavily rigged ” ( New York Times ) “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) and the “ coronation of a dictator ” ( The Independent ) , despite the lack of evidence of fraud .
Duque , as previously mentioned , is the protege of Álvaro Uribe , a man once ranked by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency “ on a list of 104 important narco-traffickers contracted by the Colombian narcotics cartels ” and who was alleged to have served as the “ head of Colombia ’ s paramilitary groups ” by former paramilitary members prior to and during his time as president .
Under Uribe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ series of extrajudicial murders and massacres that resulted in over 10,000 deaths .
Dubbed the “ False Positives Scandal , ” Colombian forces would murder anyone they wished , later claiming their victims were members of the leftist revolutionary army the FARC .
Through this practice , the military could impose its rule across the country through terror and by disappearing those who opposed it .
One member of Duque ’ s Democratic Center party , Senator Carlos Meisel , recently called for this Uribe-era program to be reinstated .
This policy was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United States to control the country through force .
Thousands of soldiers and other security forces have been trained at the notorious School of the Americas in Fort Benning , GA ( now rebranded as the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security ) .
There , recruits are taught that communist subversion is a cancer that must be immediately eradicated through force to ensure freedom across the Americas .
They are instructed on torture techniques based off Gestapo manuals .
Signs of communism , leaked instruction books show , include criticizing the judiciary or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groups , striking , questioning the government , circulating petitions and refusing to pay rents and taxes .
Indeed , as historian Doug Stokes found , one manual entitled Revolutionary War , Guerrillas and Communist Ideology noted that participation in the democratic process was a dangerous sign of subversion , as communists can “ resort to subverting the government by means of elections in which the insurgents cause the replacement of an unfriendly government ofﬁcial to one favourable to their cause.
” The forces trained by the School of the Americas took the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ far and away the most dangerous country in the world to be an activist .
According to the United Nations , a minimum of 107 human rights defenders were killed in 2019 , with the number of those killed in 2020 already hitting double digits , something the U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights describes as a “ staggering , ” “ vicious and endemic cycle of violence and impunity.
” More trade unionists are killed in Colombia than all other countries combined , with over 2,000 killed between 1991 and 2006 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 52 journalists have been killed since 1992 , compared to just five in Venezuela ( none of whom were killed by the government ) .
Uribe and other presidents partnered closely with the U.S. in its “ Plan Colombia ” program , a campaign ostensibly aimed at reducing drug production but whose real target was the local population and leftist militias such as FARC .
Colombia has some of the most fertile , unspoiled land on the planet , and underneath lies a mountain of oil and valuable minerals .
Under the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. and its local partners have forced millions of people off their ancestral land , impoverishing them in the process .
And if they refuse to leave , they are often killed and labeled as FARC terrorists afterward .
As a consequence of near-constant violence , Colombia has the largest internally displaced population in the world .
16 percent of the country — some 7.7 million people — have been forced from their homes in a massively underreported genocide , a disproportionate amount of them from black or indigenous backgrounds .
For context @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 6.2 million .
Yet because Colombia has for decades been a close ally of the United States and Europe , the country continues to be referred to as a “ democracy.
” This has led to academics coming up with new phrases to explain the apparent paradox , including “ low-intensity democracies , ” “ undemocratic democracies ” and even “ genocidal democracies.
” The fact that so many groups — students , unionists , victims of violence , farmers and teachers — are on the streets in such numbers protesting today is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the long history of violence meted out by the government and its death squads .
But like in Chile , young and the disadvantaged are beginning to break the spell and lose their fear .
While the outcome is far from certain , the conviction of those protesting is not in doubt .
Feature photo | Police detain a protester in Bogota , Colombia , Jan. 21 , 2020 .
Student and labor groups called for new protests as they hope to reignite demonstrations against President Ivan Duque that brought thousands to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ range of grievances with his conservative government .
Ivan Valencia | AP Whitney Webb is a MintPress News journalist based in Chile .
She has contributed to several independent media outlets including Global Research , EcoWatch , the Ron Paul Institute and 21st Century Wire , among others .
She has made several radio and television appearances and is the 2019 winner of the Serena Shim Award for Uncompromised Integrity in Journalism .
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

any of the massive anti-neoliberal protest movements that exploded across the globe last year have pressed on into 2020, especially those that rose up throughout Latin America. Many of those demonstrations — clearly newsworthy due to their enormous size, composition, and motives — were and continue to be ignored by prominent English language news outlets, essentially creating a media blackout of these movements.
This trend has been particularly magnified in Latin American countries whose current governments are closely allied with the United States, with Colombia, in particular, standing out. Despite being faced with protests from hundreds of thousands of people fueled by anger over state corruption, proposed neoliberal reforms and a spike in murders of social leaders, the unrest in Colombia has garnered remarkably little international media attention.
In contrast, U.S.-supported right-wing movements attempting to topple socialist governments like those in Venezuela and Bolivia have received a great deal of coverage and open support from both the media and the political class.
It is certainly telling that international media outlets largely ignored the protests of Colombia’s teachers, who were motivated to act largely due to a dangerous wave of violence targeting them incited by the government itself, leading to several murders and hundreds of death threats in the span of just a few months. Colombia’s President Iván Duque’s political mentor Álvaro Uribe, himself president between 2002 and 2010, accused the country’s teachers of brainwashing the youth: “Teachers only teach them to yell and to insult, not how to debate, warping their minds,” he said.
That story was overlooked in the media, likely due to the close ties between the country’s conservative government and the United States. Colombia remains the continent’s top recipient of American military aid, despite the fact that the U.S. government itself has disclosed ties between Colombia’s military, former President Uribe and the illegal drug trade.
Colombian teachers protest to defend their lives
Of the recent protests that have taken place in Colombia, the strikes led by Colombian teachers and one of the main teachers’ unions in the country — the Colombian Federation of Education Workers (Fecode) — have received almost no coverage in English-language media. The Fecode-led strikes revolve not around demands for better wages or increased funding for public education but around the slew of death threats and recent murders that have targeted Colombia’s education workers.
“Our teachers continue to be threatened and attacked,” said Fecode head Nelson Alcaron, “This government is indolent. It isn’t taking measures to protect their lives,” he added, noting that 240 have been threatened this year alone. “We live in a country that kills children, that kills social leaders, with a government that is against peace…That is why we have to change something. We cannot continue to live like this,” another protester said.
Though the fact that Colombian teachers are protesting in defense of their very lives is clearly newsworthy, adding to the importance of the demonstrations is the fact that these murders and death threats are closely tied to Colombia’s current government led by President Iván Duque. Duque and his political allies have incited violence against the country’s teachers, and those affiliated with Fecode in particular. The president’s political party, the Democratic Center, have stepped up their rhetoric towards education workers, asserting that teachers’ unions, namely Fecode, “must disappear” while some Democratic Center politicians have moved to criminalize teacher protests and strikes and fire any teachers who make political statements deemed non-essential to the subject they teach.
As these verbal attacks have grown, teachers in Colombia have been increasingly targeted, especially after Fecode-led strikes and demonstrations took place during the latter half of last year denouncing a new wave of threats towards teachers which they assert are linked to Duque’s political base. One demonstration in August was partially spurred by the brutal murder of school principal Orlando Gómez, who was abducted from the school where he worked and then murdered after having received numerous death threats for his educational work in the violence-plagued Cauca region.
As noted by Fecode during a 24-hour teacher strike “in defense of the lives of teachers” that took place last September, 10 teachers were murdered and another 700 received death threats during Duque’s first year in office. Fecode claimed the murders and death threats were directly related to “a systematic social media campaign of harassment and outright lies against educators and their students” led by Democratic Center activists and leaders.
Yet, since 2020 began, the wave in violence against teachers has continued to grow. In the first two weeks of February alone, one teacher was murdered, a regional coordinator of Fecode survived an assassination attempt, an entire school was forced to close down due to death threats made against teachers, and 15 Fecode-linked teachers were forced to flee the town where they lived and worked. Last week, death threats were sent to an additional 25 teachers ahead of their school’s plan to commemorate a massacre committed by a paramilitary group 25 years ago. In response to the wave of violence and threats, Fecode announced another strike to take place in coming weeks to both highlight and denounce the dangerous situation faced by Colombian teachers.
Western media ignore largest strike in over 40 years
One reason for the jump in violence targeting Fecode and Colombian teachers may be due to the fact that their demonstrations helped to spur much larger protests that have united diverse factions and groups in Colombian society in their opposition to various right-wing policies of the Colombian government. Following the Fecode-led demonstrations in August and September of last year, a massive national strike and anti-government protests saw hundreds of thousands take to the streets last November amid a backdrop of anti-government demonstrations in several other Latin American countries, including Chile and Ecuador. Today, seven million Colombian students have been left without teachers amid a massive strike.
The national strike was joined, not just by Fecode, but by the country’s labor unions, student groups, indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities and farmers, among others. It was the largest national strike to take place in Colombia since the late 1970s and was met by the Duque government with curfews, border closures, rubber bullets and teargas, with at least one person killed by a police projectile.
Since November, however, the national strikes and general anti-government sentiment have continued, with national strikes and related demonstrations taking place in December and January. Another strike is planned for Friday and a separate strike is scheduled to take place in March. Protest organizers asserted last month that these actions will continue “until something changes,” with the high rate of murders targeting social leaders remaining one of the main complaints of those demonstrating.
While the protests have gripped Colombia, they have barely been reported in the Western press, with coverage of the monthslong rebellion garnering barely a few, disinterested mentions. CNN, for example, appears not to have discussed the events for over two months. When mentioned at all, the idea that the protests are largely the result of “foreign meddling” (CNN) from Venezuela or “Russian trolls” (New York Times) is often floated.
In comparison, there was widespread coverage of and immediate support for the right-wing protests and coup attempt that brought down Bolivia’s socialist president Evo Morales in November, with media falsely claiming he had resigned (CBS News) due to election fraud (New York Times). Collectively, corporate media welcomed the fall of a supposed “full-blown dictatorship” (Miami Herald) and the “restoration of democracy” (The Economist).
State-backed terror and “low-intensity democracy” in Colombia
One reason for the lack of media coverage likely owes to the decades-long U.S.-Colombia alliance. In order to cover the popular movements against Duque’s government, the media would have to acknowledge the gravity of Colombia’s current situation, which would then increase international pressure on Duque and his administration to address the issues that motivate the protests, something the U.S. government does not support.
Duque was elected president in May 2018 to much fanfare from the Western press. The election took place under a generalized state of terror, his leftist challenger Gustavo Petro narrowly escaping an assassination attempt, while many of his supporters were less lucky. This was the first election in which the left felt they had a chance of gaining power since the assassination of President Jorge Gaitan in 1947, an event that sparked decades of civil war. Right-wing paramilitary death squads linked to the government issued public death threats, promising to kill those who voted for Petro. In addition to the intimidation tactics, there was also widespread vote buying; American human rights lawyer Daniel Kovalik, an election observer, was mistaken for a voter and offered money to vote for Duque. There were over 1,000 official electoral fraud complaints.
Despite this, corporate media heralded the flawed election as a victory for democracy, downplaying or flatly ignoring its failings. For example, CNN stressed that “though there have been isolated incidents of violence related to the election, they have been minimal,” suggesting that the only fear voters had was that Petro would swing the country “dangerously to the left.” Meanwhile, Al-Jazeera creatively told its readers that there was a “taboo” against voting for leftists in Colombia. After his victory, Donald Trump invited Duque to the White House where he said that it was “a great honor” to be “working very closely” with him, especially on regime change in Venezuela. In comparison, the Venezuelan election taking place at the same time, overseen and praised by 150 international observers was written off as a “heavily rigged” (New York Times) “farce cementing autocracy” (Huffington Post) and the “coronation of a dictator” (The Independent), despite the lack of evidence of fraud.
Duque, as previously mentioned, is the protege of Álvaro Uribe, a man once ranked by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency “on a list of 104 important narco-traffickers contracted by the Colombian narcotics cartels” and who was alleged to have served as the “head of Colombia’s paramilitary groups” by former paramilitary members prior to and during his time as president.
Under Uribe, the government carried out a years-long series of extrajudicial murders and massacres that resulted in over 10,000 deaths. Dubbed the “False Positives Scandal,” Colombian forces would murder anyone they wished, later claiming their victims were members of the leftist revolutionary army the FARC. Through this practice, the military could impose its rule across the country through terror and by disappearing those who opposed it. One member of Duque’s Democratic Center party, Senator Carlos Meisel, recently called for this Uribe-era program to be reinstated.
This policy was part of a longstanding partnership with the United States to control the country through force. Thousands of soldiers and other security forces have been trained at the notorious School of the Americas in Fort Benning, GA (now rebranded as the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security). There, recruits are taught that communist subversion is a cancer that must be immediately eradicated through force to ensure freedom across the Americas. They are instructed on torture techniques based off Gestapo manuals. Signs of communism, leaked instruction books show, include criticizing the judiciary or police, unrest among labor or student groups, striking, questioning the government, circulating petitions and refusing to pay rents and taxes. Indeed, as historian Doug Stokes found, one manual entitled Revolutionary War, Guerrillas and Communist Ideology noted that participation in the democratic process was a dangerous sign of subversion, as communists can “resort to subverting the government by means of elections in which the insurgents cause the replacement of an unfriendly government ofﬁcial to one favourable to their cause.”
The forces trained by the School of the Americas took the message to heart and made Colombia by far and away the most dangerous country in the world to be an activist. According to the United Nations, a minimum of 107 human rights defenders were killed in 2019, with the number of those killed in 2020 already hitting double digits, something the U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights describes as a “staggering,” “vicious and endemic cycle of violence and impunity.” More trade unionists are killed in Colombia than all other countries combined, with over 2,000 killed between 1991 and 2006, alone according to Amnesty International. Meanwhile, 52 journalists have been killed since 1992, compared to just five in Venezuela (none of whom were killed by the government).
Uribe and other presidents partnered closely with the U.S. in its “Plan Colombia” program, a campaign ostensibly aimed at reducing drug production but whose real target was the local population and leftist militias such as FARC. Colombia has some of the most fertile, unspoiled land on the planet, and underneath lies a mountain of oil and valuable minerals. Under the guise of eradicating coca production, the U.S. and its local partners have forced millions of people off their ancestral land, impoverishing them in the process. And if they refuse to leave, they are often killed and labeled as FARC terrorists afterward.
As a consequence of near-constant violence, Colombia has the largest internally displaced population in the world. 16 percent of the country — some 7.7 million people — have been forced from their homes in a massively underreported genocide, a disproportionate amount of them from black or indigenous backgrounds. For context, Syria’s displaced population numbers 6.2 million.
Yet because Colombia has for decades been a close ally of the United States and Europe, the country continues to be referred to as a “democracy.” This has led to academics coming up with new phrases to explain the apparent paradox, including “low-intensity democracies,” “undemocratic democracies” and even “genocidal democracies.”
The fact that so many groups — students, unionists, victims of violence, farmers and teachers — are on the streets in such numbers protesting today is a testament to their fortitude, given the long history of violence meted out by the government and its death squads. But like in Chile, young and the disadvantaged are beginning to break the spell and lose their fear. While the outcome is far from certain, the conviction of those protesting is not in doubt.
Feature photo | Police detain a protester in Bogota, Colombia, Jan. 21, 2020. Student and labor groups called for new protests as they hope to reignite demonstrations against President Ivan Duque that brought thousands to the streets late last year with a wide range of grievances with his conservative government. Ivan Valencia | AP
Whitney Webb is a MintPress News journalist based in Chile. She has contributed to several independent media outlets including Global Research, EcoWatch, the Ron Paul Institute and 21st Century Wire, among others. She has made several radio and television appearances and is the 2019 winner of the Serena Shim Award for Uncompromised Integrity in Journalism.
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.
Article posted with permission MintPress News


thewashingtonstandard--2020-02-22--Potentially Very Dangerous:  Most Americans Are Not Taking Coronavirus Outbreak Seriously

We still don ’ t know if this coronavirus outbreak will become a horrific worldwide pandemic or not , but what we have seen so far is definitely very alarming .
People have literally been dropping dead in the streets , the Chinese government has locked down major city after major city , and the virus kept spreading very rapidly on a cruise ship off the coast of Japan even though a strict quarantine was instituted .
Scientists that have studied the virus are telling us that it “ could be 20 times more lethal than the flu ” , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much more easily than the SARS virus did .
Unfortunately , because the epicenter of this crisis is on the other side of the globe , most Americans are simply not paying much attention to it .
In fact , most of the people that my wife and I have been talking to and hearing from don ’ t think that the coronavirus is much of a threat to the United States at all .
And if the coronavirus does start to become a problem in this country , a new survey has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the government can handle it… More than three in four Americans say they are very confident or somewhat confident in the US federal government ’ s ability to handle a coronavirus outbreak , a Gallup poll has found , a higher level of confidence than in previous health scares .
Gallup said the results were from a February 3 to February 16 poll that began just days after the Trump administration announced it would suspend entry of foreign nationals who had been to China in the previous two weeks .
Hopefully , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ North America and our normal lives will not be disrupted .
But considering what is happening over in Asia , it would definitely be prudent to take some precautions .
Unfortunately , most Americans are not really doing much of anything to prepare for a potential pandemic at this point .
If a pandemic does not materialize , that won ’ t be a problem .
But if this virus starts spreading like wildfire in the U.S. , we are going to have a massive crisis on our hands .
The time to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the very beginning , and the lack of urgency about this virus that we are witnessing from local health officials around the country is absolutely stunning .
According to NBC News , there are thousands of Americans that are currently “ under voluntary self-quarantine ” .
These individuals have either recently traveled to China or they have recently had contact with someone that was infected .
As you might assume , a “ voluntary self-quarantine ” is not mandatory .
Instead , NBC News says that it is “ strongly encouraged ” … @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to participate can feel free to mix with the general public as much as they want .
And since it is “ up to the state and local health departments to decide how to manage residents under self-quarantine ” , there is no single set of standards that is being followed .
In other words , state and local health officials are free to make things up as they go along .
We aren ’ t talking about a small number of people either .
In fact , more than 5,000 people are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ takes is a couple of “ super spreaders ” to get a real good outbreak going , and to see such a lack of concern about preventing the spread of this disease is quite disheartening .
And this lackadaisical attitude has even extended to actual victims that have been confirmed to have the virus .
The CDC specifically warned against putting infected people on the same flight with non-infected people , but the U.S. government did it anyway… Reading this sort of thing makes you want to tear your hair out .
Despite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be okay .
But it should be noted that the CDC is telling hospitals that now “ is the time to open up your pandemic plans and see that things are in order ” … Anyone that assumed that this crisis would be largely confined to China has been proven wrong .
At this point , we have already seen significant outbreaks erupt in several other countries in Asia .
In fact , there are now six other nations where “ community spread ” is taking place… Perhaps the most notable outbreak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
According to the Guardian , 31 brand new cases were announced on Thursday… If we don ’ t want the same thing to happen here , we need to take this virus very seriously .
Unfortunately , that is simply not happening , and all of us could end up paying a great price as a result .

We still don’t know if this coronavirus outbreak will become a horrific worldwide pandemic or not, but what we have seen so far is definitely very alarming. People have literally been dropping dead in the streets, the Chinese government has locked down major city after major city, and the virus kept spreading very rapidly on a cruise ship off the coast of Japan even though a strict quarantine was instituted. Scientists that have studied the virus are telling us that it “could be 20 times more lethal than the flu”, and it binds to human cell receptors much more easily than the SARS virus did. Unfortunately, because the epicenter of this crisis is on the other side of the globe, most Americans are simply not paying much attention to it. In fact, most of the people that my wife and I have been talking to and hearing from don’t think that the coronavirus is much of a threat to the United States at all.
And if the coronavirus does start to become a problem in this country, a new survey has found that most Americans are quite confident that the government can handle it…
More than three in four Americans say they are very confident or somewhat confident in the US federal government’s ability to handle a coronavirus outbreak, a Gallup poll has found, a higher level of confidence than in previous health scares. Gallup said the results were from a February 3 to February 16 poll that began just days after the Trump administration announced it would suspend entry of foreign nationals who had been to China in the previous two weeks.
Hopefully, this coronavirus outbreak will not explode in North America and our normal lives will not be disrupted.
But considering what is happening over in Asia, it would definitely be prudent to take some precautions. Unfortunately, most Americans are not really doing much of anything to prepare for a potential pandemic at this point.
If a pandemic does not materialize, that won’t be a problem. But if this virus starts spreading like wildfire in the U.S., we are going to have a massive crisis on our hands.
The time to stop an outbreak from happening is at the very beginning, and the lack of urgency about this virus that we are witnessing from local health officials around the country is absolutely stunning.
According to NBC News, there are thousands of Americans that are currently “under voluntary self-quarantine”. These individuals have either recently traveled to China or they have recently had contact with someone that was infected.
As you might assume, a “voluntary self-quarantine” is not mandatory. Instead, NBC News says that it is “strongly encouraged”…
Self-quarantining isn’t mandatory, but it is strongly encouraged. It’s up to the state and local health departments to decide how to manage residents under self-quarantine.
So anyone that doesn’t want to participate can feel free to mix with the general public as much as they want.
Isn’t that great?
And since it is “up to the state and local health departments to decide how to manage residents under self-quarantine”, there is no single set of standards that is being followed.
In other words, state and local health officials are free to make things up as they go along.
We aren’t talking about a small number of people either. In fact, more than 5,000 people are under self-quarantine in California alone…
The California Public Health Department said there are more than 5,400 such people in the state. In Washington state, 745 people have been asked to self-quarantine. Georgia health officials identified about 200 travelers. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said more than 300 people were referred for monitoring.
All it takes is a couple of “super spreaders” to get a real good outbreak going, and to see such a lack of concern about preventing the spread of this disease is quite disheartening.
And this lackadaisical attitude has even extended to actual victims that have been confirmed to have the virus. The CDC specifically warned against putting infected people on the same flight with non-infected people, but the U.S. government did it anyway…
Fourteen Americans who tested positive for the Coronavirus were flown back to the US on a flight with over 300 people who were not infected, despite objections from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The flight was filled with people who were evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan, which had been quarantined due to an outbreak of the virus.
Reading this sort of thing makes you want to tear your hair out.
Despite such extreme negligence, hopefully, everything will be okay. But it should be noted that the CDC is telling hospitals that now “is the time to open up your pandemic plans and see that things are in order”…
“This is the time to open up your pandemic plans and see that things are in order,” Dr. Anne Schuchat, a top official of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, urged hospitals last week as an outbreak of a deadly new coronavirus ravaged much of China. “For instance,” she continued, health-care providers need to plan for a “surge at a hospital, the ability to provide personal protective equipment for your workforce, the administrative controls and so forth that you might put place in a health care setting.”
Anyone that assumed that this crisis would be largely confined to China has been proven wrong. At this point, we have already seen significant outbreaks erupt in several other countries in Asia. In fact, there are now six other nations where “community spread” is taking place…
Japan
Singapore
South Korea
Taiwan
Thailand
Vietnam
Perhaps the most notable outbreak on that list is in South Korea. According to the Guardian, 31 brand new cases were announced on Thursday…
The South Korean city of Daegu was facing an “unprecedented crisis” after coronavirus infections that centred on a controversial “cult” church surged to 38 cases, accounting for nearly half of the country’s total. The city of 2.5 million people, which is two hours south of the capital Seoul, was turned into a ghost town after health officials said the bulk of country’s 31 new cases announced on Thursday were linked to a branch of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus.
If we don’t want the same thing to happen here, we need to take this virus very seriously.
Unfortunately, that is simply not happening, and all of us could end up paying a great price as a result.
Article posted with permission from Michael Snyder


thewashingtonstandard--2020-02-22--Gun & Gadgets YouTube Channel Provides Up To Date Info On Tyrannical Gun Prohibition For All States

Gun & Gadgets YouTube Channel Provides Up To Date Info On Tyrannical Gun Prohibition For All States Virginians , what is going on ?
Your State general assembly has gone irreversibly insane !
If you aren ’ t keeping up with what is happening with these legislative bills for unconstitutional ex post facto gun/prohibition and gun confiscation , you need to tune in to the YouTube channel Guns & Gadgets .
This guy has made it his mission to gather every piece of information on every single State government and Congress regarding gun prohibition and gun confiscation in order to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A new bill has been introduced , leaked by a follower on the Guns & Gadgets Facebook page , that the elite , tyrannical , authoritarian , dictatorial despots in the Virginia General Assembly , courtesy of Michael Bloomberg , are targeting the State ’ s Sheriffs and city police officers who have refused to enforce pretend law against the Second Amendment .
According to the bill , any law enforcement officer ( Sheriff , deputy , officer in a city , town or municipality ) who publicly states they will not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the State Assembly will be subject to penalties .
This legislation gives the State Attorney General the power to investigate , indict and prosecute all matters of this provision .
Moreover , if found guilty ( in politician terms everyone is guilty ) , law enforcement officers will forfeit their benefits appropriate to their station , which could mean pension for some .
At the discretion of the State Attorney General , guilty officers can take an oath to the Commonwealth of Virginia and receive remedial retraining to enforce unconstitutional laws .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the Constitution by enacting ex post facto laws , are now legislating punishment against law enforcement officers who are upholding their oath of office , standing on the Constitution by protecting the God-given individual unalienable right to keep and bear arms of the people , and engaging in peaceful civil disobedience against pseudo- ex post facto unconstitutional gun prohibition and gun confiscation laws .
It ’ s difficult to wrap one ’ s head around this total insanity ; however , quick recovery and action are urgently needed in Virginia .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unconstitutional Democratic Virginia General Assembly defeated a bill that would provide law enforcement officers with a raise .
According to Guns & Gadgets , a post by Assemblyman Bill Stanley reported Assemblyman Dick Sasslaw indicated the bill was defeated because law enforcement officers refused to enforce their legislation on gun prohibition and gun confiscation .
Remember the boy-king Hussein Soetoro with his pen and phone unconstitutional , illegitimate , illegal usurpations of the Constitution to basically become a dictator ?
Well , the Virginia General Assembly has followed in that glorious tradition but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ right ” as a crime .
And , if that isn ’ t bad enough for you , which it should be way past bad enough , an armed law-abiding Virginia citizen peacefully protested outside the home of Virginia Assemblyman Mark Levine to show his resistance to Levine ’ s support of tyrannical gun prohibition and gun confiscation laws .
Levine ’ s response to citizen Brandon Howard is typical of tyrants – call law enforcement to infringe upon the people and move to make what is a “ right ” into @ @ @ @ @ @ @ objected to an individual protesting outside his home with a firearm , yet this man has sponsored and supported laws that would allow militarized law enforcement officers to unconstitutionally engage in “ legalized ” theft of citizens ’ property , firearms specifically , using the same type of firearms law enforcement are raiding the home to steal .
Political tyrants in Virginia are tripling down on their resolve to disarm residents of the State of Virginia .
are citizens going to do ?
Information is key and this guy is taking his time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what is happening in each State regarding gun prohibition and gun confiscation legislation moving through the ranks of the tyrannical government machine to strip Americans of our God-given rights .
can ’ t say you weren ’ t warned about the exponential rise of tyranny .
The question is at what point are Americans going to act ?
These tyrants think they “ have our number ” .
Article posted with permission from Sons Of Liberty Media

Gun & Gadgets YouTube Channel Provides Up To Date Info On Tyrannical Gun Prohibition For All States
Virginians, what is going on? Your State general assembly has gone irreversibly insane! If you aren’t keeping up with what is happening with these legislative bills for unconstitutional ex post facto gun/prohibition and gun confiscation, you need to tune in to the YouTube channel Guns & Gadgets. This guy has made it his mission to gather every piece of information on every single State government and Congress regarding gun prohibition and gun confiscation in order to bring it to the public for action.
A new bill has been introduced, leaked by a follower on the Guns & Gadgets Facebook page, that the elite, tyrannical, authoritarian, dictatorial despots in the Virginia General Assembly, courtesy of Michael Bloomberg, are targeting the State’s Sheriffs and city police officers who have refused to enforce pretend law against the Second Amendment.
According to the bill, any law enforcement officer (Sheriff, deputy, officer in a city, town or municipality) who publicly states they will not follow or enforce any measure passed by the State Assembly will be subject to penalties.
This legislation gives the State Attorney General the power to investigate, indict and prosecute all matters of this provision.
Moreover, if found guilty (in politician terms everyone is guilty), law enforcement officers will forfeit their benefits appropriate to their station, which could mean pension for some.
At the discretion of the State Attorney General, guilty officers can take an oath to the Commonwealth of Virginia and receive remedial retraining to enforce unconstitutional laws.
Watch the entire video.
These anti-constitutionalists, violating their oath of office and the Constitution by enacting ex post facto laws, are now legislating punishment against law enforcement officers who are upholding their oath of office, standing on the Constitution by protecting the God-given individual unalienable right to keep and bear arms of the people, and engaging in peaceful civil disobedience against pseudo- ex post facto unconstitutional gun prohibition and gun confiscation laws.
It’s difficult to wrap one’s head around this total insanity; however, quick recovery and action are urgently needed in Virginia.
This is not a joke.
The majority unconstitutional Democratic Virginia General Assembly defeated a bill that would provide law enforcement officers with a raise.
According to Guns & Gadgets, a post by Assemblyman Bill Stanley reported Assemblyman Dick Sasslaw indicated the bill was defeated because law enforcement officers refused to enforce their legislation on gun prohibition and gun confiscation.
Remember the boy-king Hussein Soetoro with his pen and phone unconstitutional, illegitimate, illegal usurpations of the Constitution to basically become a dictator?
Well, the Virginia General Assembly has followed in that glorious tradition but worse. These nutballs have legislated a “right” as a crime.
And, if that isn’t bad enough for you, which it should be way past bad enough, an armed law-abiding Virginia citizen peacefully protested outside the home of Virginia Assemblyman Mark Levine to show his resistance to Levine’s support of tyrannical gun prohibition and gun confiscation laws.
Levine’s response to citizen Brandon Howard is typical of tyrants – call law enforcement to infringe upon the people and move to make what is a “right” into a crime.
Moreover, Assemblyman Levine objected to an individual protesting outside his home with a firearm, yet this man has sponsored and supported laws that would allow militarized law enforcement officers to unconstitutionally engage in “legalized” theft of citizens’ property, firearms specifically, using the same type of firearms law enforcement are raiding the home to steal.
Political tyrants in Virginia are tripling down on their resolve to disarm residents of the State of Virginia.
are citizens going to do?
Information is key and this guy is taking his time to inform the citizens of the USA what is happening in each State regarding gun prohibition and gun confiscation legislation moving through the ranks of the tyrannical government machine to strip Americans of our God-given rights.
can’t say you weren’t warned about the exponential rise of tyranny.
The question is at what point are Americans going to act?
These tyrants think they “have our number”.
Do they?
Article posted with permission from Sons Of Liberty Media


thewashingtonstandard--2020-02-23--Kansas City: Former Armed Forces Trainee Converts To Islam, Plots Jihad Massacre At Military Base

Yet another convert to Islam somehow gets the crazy idea that his new , peaceful religion requires him to commit treason and mass murder .
Authorities remain completely uninterested in this recurring phenomenon .
If numerous converts to Christianity plotted to kill people in the name of their new religion , would law enforcement and intelligence officials be so blasé ?
“ Man faces 20 years for terrorist plot in Kansas City in support of ISIS , ” by Pat Pratt , Columbia Daily Tribune , February 19 , 2020 : A 20-year sentence and lifetime supervision will deter Robert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him from the “ clarion call ” of the Islamic State , federal prosecutors wrote in a memorandum seeking the maximum penalty for a Columbia man who pleaded guilty to aiding terrorists .
In opposition to the long sentence , defense attorneys for the 28-year-old who plotted to attack transportation services in Kansas City and other acts over the course of several months argue mental health issues combined with a mockery of his race and intellect by fellow soldiers led him to extremists ideologies .
Hester pleaded guilty in September before U.S. District @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March 4 in Kansas City .
Discharged from the U.S. Army shortly after basic training in 2013 , Hester over the next several years turned to Islamic extremism , eventually preparing to wage war against the United States .
Assistant U.S. attorneys Brian Casey and David Raskin wrote in a sentencing memorandum filed Tuesday that the risk of violence Hester created should not be underestimated .
“ Hester repeatedly glorified violence , and proclaimed his excitement to help ISIS carry out a terrorist attack , ” prosecutors wrote .
“ Hester thought he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ widespread deaths , doing everything he could to help .
Hester did not act in a vacuum .
His conduct was part of a larger movement of growing support for ISIS in the United States and abroad.
” Federal public defender Troy Stabenow is seeking a 15-year sentence for Hester .
He writes in his motion for sentencing that a combination of societal factors drew Hester to ISIS… .
Following an abusive childhood and drug use at an early age , he wanted to feel accepted and do something to make others proud @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Stabenow writes… .
When “ several young men who suggested that Islam was a religion that valued men like him , ” Hester began to listen , Stabenow wrote .
“ As a new father himself , he was heartbroken and infuriated when he watched carefully edited footage of Western forces engaging in violence that resulted in the deaths of women and children in Iraq , Afghanistan , and elsewhere , ” Stabenow writes .
“ In the videos , he was consistently told that the American military had been corrupted and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a policy of actively trying to hurt young Muslim families .
“ Robert expressed his anger about the violence he saw online , and began to parrot some of what he saw.
” His social media posts drew the attention of the FBI .
Undercover agents reached out to him to establish if he was a threat , but before they could establish a rapport , he was arrested in Columbia for throwing a knife through a window at a Hy-Vee and threatening management with a firearm… .
The sentencing memorandum filed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to make contact with Hester , he told them the government should be overthrown and he sought others who felt the same .
He touched on his knowledge of military tactics and firearms and even suggested an attack on an undisclosed military base because he knew how to enter it .
“ Hester wanted to hurt the economy ‘ by hitting oil pipelines ’ or ‘ computer systems , ’ ” the memorandum states .
“ Throughout their conversations , the undercover employee provided Hester a number of opportunities to dissociate with no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his commitment to their plot.
” … The staged plot came to a head in the spring of 2017 , culminating in a plan to attack buses , trains and a train station on President ’ s Day 2017 in Kansas City .
Weeks before the planned attack Hester purchased nine-volt batteries , duct tape and roofing nails .
On Feb. 17 , 2017 , three days before the planned attack the undercover agents picked Hester up under the guise of seeking out storage sheds to store weaponry… .
“ During one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ employee showed Hester a number of firearms and purported bombs that the undercover employee stated would be used for an attack , ” federal prosecutors wrote , “ This excited Hester , who adamantly approved .
Hester understood that the plan was to cause mass casualties , and he was excited to assist .
”

Yet another convert to Islam somehow gets the crazy idea that his new, peaceful religion requires him to commit treason and mass murder.
Authorities remain completely uninterested in this recurring phenomenon. If numerous converts to Christianity plotted to kill people in the name of their new religion, would law enforcement and intelligence officials be so blasé?
“Man faces 20 years for terrorist plot in Kansas City in support of ISIS,” by Pat Pratt, Columbia Daily Tribune, February 19, 2020:
A 20-year sentence and lifetime supervision will deter Robert Lorenzo Hester, Jr. and others like him from the “clarion call” of the Islamic State, federal prosecutors wrote in a memorandum seeking the maximum penalty for a Columbia man who pleaded guilty to aiding terrorists.
In opposition to the long sentence, defense attorneys for the 28-year-old who plotted to attack transportation services in Kansas City and other acts over the course of several months argue mental health issues combined with a mockery of his race and intellect by fellow soldiers led him to extremists ideologies.
Hester pleaded guilty in September before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays and will be sentenced March 4 in Kansas City. Discharged from the U.S. Army shortly after basic training in 2013, Hester over the next several years turned to Islamic extremism, eventually preparing to wage war against the United States.
Assistant U.S. attorneys Brian Casey and David Raskin wrote in a sentencing memorandum filed Tuesday that the risk of violence Hester created should not be underestimated.
“Hester repeatedly glorified violence, and proclaimed his excitement to help ISIS carry out a terrorist attack,” prosecutors wrote. “Hester thought he was assisting in a plan to cause widespread deaths, doing everything he could to help. Hester did not act in a vacuum. His conduct was part of a larger movement of growing support for ISIS in the United States and abroad.”
Federal public defender Troy Stabenow is seeking a 15-year sentence for Hester. He writes in his motion for sentencing that a combination of societal factors drew Hester to ISIS….
Following an abusive childhood and drug use at an early age, he wanted to feel accepted and do something to make others proud, so he joined the Armed Forces, Stabenow writes….
When “several young men who suggested that Islam was a religion that valued men like him,” Hester began to listen, Stabenow wrote.
“As a new father himself, he was heartbroken and infuriated when he watched carefully edited footage of Western forces engaging in violence that resulted in the deaths of women and children in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere,” Stabenow writes. “In the videos, he was consistently told that the American military had been corrupted and that the United States government had adopted a policy of actively trying to hurt young Muslim families.
“Robert expressed his anger about the violence he saw online, and began to parrot some of what he saw.”
His social media posts drew the attention of the FBI. Undercover agents reached out to him to establish if he was a threat, but before they could establish a rapport, he was arrested in Columbia for throwing a knife through a window at a Hy-Vee and threatening management with a firearm….
The sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors states that after agents were able to make contact with Hester, he told them the government should be overthrown and he sought others who felt the same. He touched on his knowledge of military tactics and firearms and even suggested an attack on an undisclosed military base because he knew how to enter it.
“Hester wanted to hurt the economy ‘by hitting oil pipelines’ or ‘computer systems,’” the memorandum states. “Throughout their conversations, the undercover employee provided Hester a number of opportunities to dissociate with no questions asked, but Hester repeatedly reaffirmed his commitment to their plot.”…
The staged plot came to a head in the spring of 2017, culminating in a plan to attack buses, trains and a train station on President’s Day 2017 in Kansas City. Weeks before the planned attack Hester purchased nine-volt batteries, duct tape and roofing nails. On Feb. 17, 2017, three days before the planned attack the undercover agents picked Hester up under the guise of seeking out storage sheds to store weaponry….
“During one of their final in-person meetings, the undercover employee showed Hester a number of firearms and purported bombs that the undercover employee stated would be used for an attack,” federal prosecutors wrote, “This excited Hester, who adamantly approved. Hester understood that the plan was to cause mass casualties, and he was excited to assist.”
Article posted with permission from Robert Spencer