Kamala Harris is likely to become the first female president of the US. She will also be the first woman “of color.” Perhaps more significantly, she will be the first person of Indian descent, her mother’s family having moved here from India two generations ago.
Of equal interest is that the next prime minister of the United Kingdom is expected to be ethnic Indian Rishi Sunak, currently the man in charge of the nation’s finances, the second most important governmental job in the UK. Another Indian holds the third most important post, Priti Patel, the first female Home Secretary. Leo Varadkar, the last prime minister of Ireland, was also of Indian descent. Additionally, the CEOs of numerous multinationals are Indian, including Google, Microsoft, Citigroup, Nokia and Pepsi-Cola.
Indians have been amongst the most successful of all immigrant groups, here in the US, in the UK and other countries. There are currently 2.7 million Indians in the US, making them the second biggest number of immigrants, after Mexicans. Interestingly, although India does allow people to enter the country on work visas, they cannot become citizens. “Indian law follows jus sanguinis (citizenship by blood) as opposed to jus soli (citizenship by birth).” (vakilsearch.com). In other words, you have to be an ethnic Indian to become a citizen.
Our “progressive” immigration policies have brought about these significant changes. God certainly had a different perspective when He warned us that “aliens” (foreigners with different gods) would take over. In Deuteronomy 28:43 He said that: “The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower.”
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WEST LOSING OUT IN MED
The Western powers, including Germany and the EU, are in danger of losing their pre-eminence in the Mediterranean, Admiral Luigi Binelli Mantelli, former Chief of the Defense Staff of Italy declared. According to Binelli Mantelii, Russia has become “the pre-eminent naval power in the Mediterranean,” and Turkey, in particular, is rapidly gaining influence. Together, Moscow and Ankara are in the process of superseding the “traditional” Western peacekeeping powers. The statement is being published at a time when Turkey has snubbed the navy of a leading EU power, for the second time. During the night from Sunday to Monday, a German boarding team seeking to inspect a Turkish cargo vessel en route to Libya, suspecting a possible breach of the UN arms embargo, had to abandon its inspection due to Ankara’s intervention. Already in June, Turkey had averted a similar French naval operation. Unaccustomed to defiance, the EU finds itself powerless to halt the rise of its Turkish rival. (German Foreign Policy, 11/24/2020)
The German government is pushing for a quick return to the nuclear deal with Iran once designated US President Joe Biden takes office. Already months ago, Biden had declared his willingness to do so. German companies are hoping for lucrative business opportunities, which would also help them to weather the Corona crisis. However, obstacles persist in Washington, such as the presumed continued Republican majority in the US Senate and a new wave of sanctions initiated by outgoing President Donald Trump. Thus, supplementary, coercive measures, independent of the nuclear deal, would, in fact, be imposed on Iran’s entire oil sector. Biden is raising the demand – supported also by Berlin – that Iran refrain from seeking regional influence and limit its missile program massively. Teheran is unwilling to comply and – given its experience in dealings with the West – prefers a “look east” policy. (German Foreign Policy, 11/26/2020)
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IRAN’S TOP NUCLEAR SCIENTIST SHOT DEAD NEAR TEHRAN
Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, identified by Israel as director of nuclear weapons programme, ambushed in street – The Guardian UK, 27 Nov 2020
An Iranian nuclear scientist described as the guru of Iran’s nuclear programme has been gunned down in the street in a town near Tehran. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was ambushed in the town of Absard, 70km east of Tehran. Four assailants opened fire after witnesses heard an explosion. Efforts to resuscitate Fakhrizadeh failed, and his bodyguard was also wounded. An adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, vowed that the country would retaliate against the perpetrators. “We will strike as thunder at the killers of this oppressed martyr and will make them regret their action,” tweeted Hossein Dehghan, a military commander. The Iranian ministry of defence confirmed Fakhrizadeh’s death in a statement. “During the clash between his security team and the terrorists, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was seriously injured and taken to hospital,” it said. “Unfortunately, the medical team did not succeed in reviving him, and a few minutes ago, this manager and scientist, after years of effort and struggle, achieved a high degree of martyrdom.” Fakhrizadeh, on a US sanctions list, was regarded as the main keeper of Iranian knowledge of its nuclear programme. A brigadier general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), and a professor of physics at the Guard’s Imam Hussein University, Fakhrizadeh was a man cloaked in mystery.
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CHINESE ANTI-AUSSIE PROPAGANDA
On November 18, 2020, the Chinese Embassy in Australia leaked an extraordinarily blunt dossier enumerating 14 grievances that purportedly implicate Australia in “poisoning the atmosphere of bilateral relations.” In addition to protestations against Australia’s decision to block specific Chinese investment projects and to ban Chinese telecoms from building Australia’s 5G network, the dossier scorned Australia’s current stance on issues relating to Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the South China Sea, deriding it as “incessant wanton interference.” Shortly after the list became public, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded by reaffirming that “Australia can never compromise on our national interests.” (MEMRI 11/25/2020)
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison demanded an apology from the Chinese government on Monday after the country’s foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian tweeted a digitally altered image of an Australian soldier cutting the throat of an Afghan child and cited alleged war crimes, highlighting the latest escalation in deteriorating diplomatic ties between both nations. (Forbes, 11/30/2020)
Chinese International Relations Professor: Australia is a small, boring country whose economy is in Decline; It is inconsequential when they talk about China, 5G. Australian wine becomes latest casualty in China’s trade war against Australia.” (MEMRI, 12/2)
Chinese Sociologist Dr. Li Yi: We Are Driving America To Its Death; COVID-19 Has Been Beneficial For China, North Korea; There Will Be No U.S.-China War, But We Will Take Over Taiwan (MEMRI,12/1/2020)
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SOLUTION TO DISAPPEARING CASH
With disappearing ATMs: How some Britons are getting cash by Kevin Peachey, Personal finance correspondent, BBC 24 Nov 2020
Purchase-free cashback at local convenience stores is being touted as one solution to the problem of disappearing access to notes and coins.
Millions of people – including the elderly, those without internet access, and some of the poorest in society – face being left behind in an increasingly cashless UK. The Covid crisis has accelerated the closure of bank branches and ATMs, especially in small, more rural or isolated communities where access to cash is getting harder.
Cashback trials are being run in Britain. One of those areas is Denny, a small town west of Falkirk. “Denny is a town where we used to have a TSB, a Royal Bank of Scotland, a Bank of Scotland, a Clydesdale Bank. They’ve all shut,” says Imran Hamid, whose family has run a convenience store in the town for 50 years. His is one of a small group of shops around the country trialling the no-purchase cashback scheme. Residents can come in, put their card in a PayPoint machine and request a balance or cash from Mr. Hamid’s till, without paying any charge. The advantage to the business is that people coming into the shop to withdraw cash may also “pick up a juice, or a pack of cigarettes.” Mr. Hamid gets a small fee from the banks per withdrawal and it makes cashing up easier at the end of the day. “We’ve also got people who are on benefits here. They want access to their cash. That’s another good thing about this – they can withdraw anything from a penny to £100.(https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55027393)
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“Watch your thoughts, for they will become actions. Watch your actions, for they’ll become . . . habits. Watch your habits for they will forge your character. Watch your character, for it will make your destiny.” – Margaret Thatcher
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POINTERS
- The 120,000 votes that mysteriously turned up – ALL for Biden. The chances of this are 1 in 2 to the power of 120,000. This is like tossing a coin 120,000 times and expecting heads each time. Only going to happen with a loaded coin. The number is the equivalent of 10 to the power of 36,000 . . . (Politico, 11/23/2020)
- King of Spain in quarantine after Covid-19 contact
Spain’s King Felipe VI has entered 10 days of quarantine after coming into contact with a person who tested positive for Covid-19. The monarch’s wife and the couple’s two daughters are expected to continue their activities as normal. Spain has been hard hit by the pandemic, recording nearly 1.6 million Covid-19 cases and 43,131 deaths. (The Week, 11/24/2020) - Joe Biden names John Kerry as his climate envoy
John Kerry will act as climate envoy when US president-elect Joe Biden takes office. The former secretary of state joins long-term Biden aide Antony Blinken, who will be the new secretary of state, and former Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen, who is expected to be chosen as treasury secretary. Biden said: “I need a team ready on day one to help me reclaim America’s seat at the head of the table.” (The Week, 11/24/2020) - Domestic violence victims told to take civil action in UK
Victims of domestic abuse have been encouraged by the police to take civil action, rather than pursuing a criminal prosecution, because the system is clogged up, a new report claims. Victim Support’s study found that some victims had tried to kill themselves because of court delays, adding: “Many victims with delayed cases have already waited a long time for the court date, which has been cancelled.” (The Week, 11/24/2020) - UK Cabinet plans for risk of ‘systemic economic crisis’
The UK faces an increased likelihood of “systemic economic crisis” this winter as Brexit coincides with the second wave of Covid-19, according to a secret briefing paper prepared for the cabinet. In a reasonable worse-case scenario, it says, we could see “a combination of severe flooding, pandemic influenza, a novel emerging infectious disease and coordinated industrial action, against a backdrop of the end of the transition period.” A Brexit agreement would neutralise “much of the calamitous economic fallout,” says the Daily Mail. (The Week, 11/25/2020) - Brutal attack leaves 110 civilians dead in Nigeria
The UN says at least 110 civilians have been killed and many others wounded in an attack on farmers in northeast Nigeria. Armed men on motorcycles led a brutal attack on farmers harvesting rice in Koshobe, Borno state. Nobody has taken responsibility for the killings but the Islamist groups Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa are both active in the region. (The Week, 11/30/2020) - Labour asks regulator to investigate Sunak shares
The ethics watchdog has been asked to assess whether Rishi Sunak broke the ministerial code by not declaring in the register of ministerial interests a multimillion-pound portfolio of shares held by his wife and her family. Labour has written to the chair of the committee on standards in public life, to ask him to look into the “serious questions” they say the report raises “as a matter of urgency.” (The Week, 11/30/2020) - Murdoch gets go-ahead for new TV channel in UK
Rupert Murdoch has got the green light from media regulator Ofcom for his television news channel. News UK TV is locked in a battle with the rival Andrew Neil-backed channel GB News to be first on air. Both outlets believe there is a gap in the market for a right-leaning television news channel. (The Week, 12/2/2020) - METRO headline: “Biggest UK slump in 300 years,” since “The Great Frost of 1709.” (11/26/2020)
- It is never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot
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