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Anonymous Biden Staffers Go Scorched Earth After “Incompetent” Karine Jean-Pierre Defects

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Anonymous Biden Staffers Go Scorched Earth After “Incompetent” Karine Jean-Pierre Defects

It only took one day after former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre left the Democrat party for anonymous Biden staffers to stab her in the back. 

According to Axios‘ Alex Thompson, “Many of her former colleagues think Jean-Pierre — the face of the White House for more than two years — was part of the problem.” 

And while Thompson’s book about the coverup of Biden’s cognitive decline only mentions her twice (great reporting Alex!), many former Biden aides “quietly had fumed for years, believing she was incompetent at her job at the White House podium and more interested in promoting herself than Joe Biden.”

Thompson reports – just not in his book about this exact thing – that Jean-Pierre was a ‘key part of the effort to conceal Biden’s decline, vouching for his fitness and insisting the president, then 81, was “as sharp as ever” even after last June’s disastrous debate against Donald Trump.’

Jean-Pierre announced in her new book, Independent, that she was leaving the Democrat party and switching her affiliation to independent after working in two Democratic administrations. 

“At noon on that day, I became a private citizen who, like all Americans and many of our allies around the world, had to contend with what was to come next for our country. I determined that the danger we face as a country requires freeing ourselves of boxes. We need to be willing to exercise the ability to think creatively and plan strategically.”

And the knives came out immediately… 

One former Biden official who worked closely with Jean-Pierre told Thompson that she “was one of the most ineffectual and unprepared people I’ve ever worked with. … She had meltdowns after any interview that asked about a topic not sent over by producers.”

“She didn’t know how to manage a team, didn’t know how to shape or deliver a message, and often created more problems than she solved,” the person said. 

Another former Biden communications official went further – saying “The hubris of thinking you can position yourself as an outsider when you not only have enjoyed the perks of extreme proximity to power — which … bestows the name recognition needed to sell books off your name — but have actively wielded it from the biggest pulpit there is, is as breathtaking as it is desperate … It’s difficult to see how this is anything but a bizarre cash grab,” referring to Jean-Pierre’s new book. 

And yet another anonymous hater told Axios, “The amount of time that was spent coddling [Jean-Pierre] and appeasing her was astronomical compared to our attention on actual matters of substance.”

What happened?

 

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 10:25

“Let The Games Begin”: Nintendo Switch 2 Launches With Retail Frenzy As Goldman Reaffirms Bullish Outlook

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“Let The Games Begin”: Nintendo Switch 2 Launches With Retail Frenzy As Goldman Reaffirms Bullish Outlook

Footage on X shows gaming fans nationwide lining up outside Best Buy, GameStop, and other electronics retailers overnight, eager to get their hands on the next-generation Nintendo Switch.

“Let the games begin!” Nintendo of America declared in an early Thursday morning post on its X account.

The lines were long.

Our coverage of the Nintendo Switch 2 has primarily relied on the work of Goldman gaming analyst Minami Munakata, whose recent research has taken a notably bullish stance:

On Wednesday, Munakata published a client note raising her earnings estimates for Nintendo. She is now 15% above Bloomberg consensus for FY3/26 operating profit and sees over 20% upside to her revised target price of ¥14,500 (up from ¥13,600).

Why so bullish? Well, the analyst sees revenue per console to be much higher than the first Switch: 

Similar to the PS4/PS5 transition, we expect per-console revenue for the Switch 2 to be higher than for the Switch, which we reflect in upward revisions to our long-term operating profit forecasts. Our FY3/26 operating profit estimate is 15% above the Bloomberg consensus. As seen during the PS4/PS5 transition, we believe Nintendo can maintain and expand user engagement, allowing it to secure higher margins from the first year of the Switch 2 launch compared with the previous Switch launch.

We raise our 12m target price to ¥14,500 from ¥13,600, reflecting changes to GSe, valuation rollover to FY3/28E, from FY3/27, and a change in our target multiple to reflect recent share price movements (to 26.6X FY3E EV/NOPAT, from 28.3X; this represents a 15% premium to most recent one-month average FY3E EV/NOPAT). We maintain our Buy rating.

Recall in March. She said the release of Switch 2 would “unlock dormant hardware and dormant users” and send “the number of active consoles to continue to renew record highs.”

Munakata currently sees robust demand, as she increased shipment volume assumptions for Switch 2 and raised revenue assumptions for Switch 2 software. 

She also focused on a strong software pipeline…

Timeline of upcoming games: 

Retail prices for games.

Munakata is rated “Buy” with a 12-month price target of ¥ 14,500. 

Nintendo shares in Tokyo have been struggling to sustain a price of ¥12,000 for several months. 

Goldman analyst Dani Wojdyla noted that the first Switch 2 sales data should be made available to clients in about a week.  

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 10:05

Dark Irony: 75th Anniversary Edition Of Orwell’s 1984 Comes With Trigger Warnings

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Dark Irony: 75th Anniversary Edition Of Orwell’s 1984 Comes With Trigger Warnings

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

A new 75th anniversary edition of George Orwell’s dystopian classic 1984 includes ‘trigger warnings’ in the introduction written by an American professor.

The College Fix reports that the warning comes:

Courtesy of Dolen Perkins-Valdez, who according to her website has “established herself as a pre-eminent chronicler of American historical life,”and teaches literature at American University.

According to the report, the introduction, authorised by the Orwell estate, makes note that “there are no Black characters at all” in the novel.

What? Why is this relevant to the book?

When Orwell wrote the novel in the late 1940s, black people made up less than 1% of the English population.

The report adds:

For a “contemporary reader” such as herself, Perkins-Valdez says this gives her “pause.” She also says a “sliver of connection” is difficult with a book that “does not speak much to race and ethnicity.”

Yeah, the novel isn’t supposed to be about race and ethnicity.

In your world where you have to make absolutely everything about race, this book isn’t going to connect.

Perkins-Valdez continues, “I’m enjoying the novel on its own terms, not as a classic but as a good story. That is, until Winston [Smith] reveals himself to be a problematic character.”

Yeah. He’s supposed to be. But in what way do you mean?

“For example, we learn of him he dislikes nearly all women. And especially the young and pretty ones,” she further explains.

Faceplam.

“Winston’s views on women are, at first, despicable for the contemporary reader. He is the kind of character that can make me put a book down,” she adds. 

Imagine if Orwell had instead written Winston as a woke liberal policing his own thoughts. The Party wouldn’t even need Big Brother.

Journalist Matt Taibbi, along with his podcast host Walter Kirn pointed out how idiotic this all is, given that the book is a warning about the erosion of language and freedom of thought.

The 1984 part of the discussion begins at 1 hour 36 mins:

The material in 1984 is supposed to be traumatising, that’s the entire point of the book. Putting trigger warnings on it is ludicrous and only proves Orwell was prescient.

Having this drivel as an introduction to one of the most iconic dystopian works of literature is like something out of Idiocracy.

It mirrors the novel’s own warnings about ideological conformity and the rewriting of art to appease dogmatic sensitivities.

It’s insulting.

Who on Earth commissioned it?

Perhaps the same people who agreed to a politically correct modern day re-write of 1984 from a feminist perspective.

*  *  *

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 09:45

Kremlin: No ‘Negotiations With Terrorists’ – We’ll Retaliate At ‘A Time Of Our Choosing’

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Kremlin: No ‘Negotiations With Terrorists’ – We’ll Retaliate At ‘A Time Of Our Choosing’

Russia says that President Putin is preparing to retaliate at ‘a time of our choosing’ for all the latest drone and ‘terror attacks’ – including the targeting of trains and bridges with explosives.

“Russia will respond to Ukraine’s latest attacks as and when its military sees fit,” the Kremlin said Thursday. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed what President Trump revealed of the Putin phone call Wednesday – that the Russian leader made clear that Moscow is obliged to retaliate.

Via Reuters

Peskov, speaking of Putin’s first televised address since the devastating Sunday drone attacks deep inside Russian territory said, “The president described the Kyiv regime as a terrorist regime, because it was the regime’s leadership that consciously gave the order, the command, the order to blow up a passenger train.”

“This is nothing other than terrorism at the state level. This is an important statement by the president,” he added.

Putin had accused Ukraine’s leadership of orchestrating a terrorist attack on trains carrying civilians in Russia’s Bryansk region, which left seven dead and dozens injured in the derailment of the train and collapse of the bridge due to planted explosives on Sunday. The operation appeared in parallel to the ‘Operation Spinder’s Web’ drone attacks.

Putin asserted that Ukrainian political leadership was directly behind the strike.

He also made clear in the address that Ukraine’s offer of a summit with Zelensky and an immediate ceasefire has been rejected. It marked a clear rhetorical escalation when compared to prior comments when he said:

“Who has negotiations with terrorists?” 

As we reported earlier, the US Embassy in Kyiv has issued an updated security alert, warning all Americans who remain in Ukraine to be prepared to seek shelter and take emergency preparedness measures as major aerial attack could be imminent.

A senior NATO official who spoke to The Moscow Times agrees that significant retaliation is coming. “There will certainly be retaliatory actions that Russia will take. And there will be defensive things that Russia will do,” the official said.

“Russia hasn’t seemed to need much excuse for pretty severe strikes so far. But I think Russia will use this to cover and justify additional, heavier strikes and stalling negotiations,” the NATO source added. Mostly likely Russia will go after ‘command HQ centers’ – and important cities like Kiev and Odessa could see shock and awe level of bombings.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 09:25

S&P Futures Spike Above 6,000 After Chinese Media Reports Trump, Xi Held Phone Call

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S&P Futures Spike Above 6,000 After Chinese Media Reports Trump, Xi Held Phone Call

In keeping with China’s now default lying and obfuscation about anything trade war related, just hours after Bloomberg reported that according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry there was no information to share on a US President Trump/Chinese President Xi call, moments ago China’s state media Xinhua reported that the two world leaders had in fact just held a phone call, and engaged in discussions reflecting ongoing diplomatic communication amidst tensions.

Here are all the headlines on BBG and Reuters

  • XI, TRUMP HOLD PHONE TALKS: XINHUA

  • CHINESE STATE MEDIA REPORTS ON A CALL BETWEEN PRESIDENT TRUMP AND XI JINPING  THE LEADERS ENGAGED IN DISCUSSIONS, REFLECTING ONGOING DIPLOMATIC COMMUNICATION AMIDST TENSIONS

Xinhua also said Xi had been invited by Trump to make the phone call.

The call came after Washington and Beijing traded accusations of breaching a deal reached just weeks ago in Geneva, where the world’s two biggest economies had agreed to dramatically cut mutual tariffs for 90 days, an outcome Trump dubbed a “total reset”.

It was their first phone call since the two countries started imposing fresh duties on each other’s goods in February.
The conversation has been widely seen on both sides as the highest political endorsement for de-escalating the trade war, which threatened to reshape global trade flows for the coming decades.

Tensions between the world’s two biggest economies have flared again in recent weeks.

The Trump administration had claimed that China had been slow to ease exports of rare earth elements, which are essential for a broad range of consumer and military technology that China holds a strategic grip over.

Trump said last week that Beijing had “totally violated” the Geneva agreement, while China responded by criticising Washington for implementing “discriminatory restrictions”.

The US issued guidance warning companies not to use Huawei’s Ascend artificial intelligence chips anywhere in the world last month, just one day after the conclusion of the Geneva deal.

Washington has since reportedly ordered several leading semiconductor design software companies to halt the sale of chip design software to China.

The US announced last week that it would “aggressively” revoke visas for Chinese students, a move poised to impact one of the largest international student demographics in the country.

Before the pause in Geneva, tit-for-tat levies saw US tariffs on Chinese imports rise as high as 145 per cent, with China retaliating with tariffs of up to 125 per cent on US goods.

And while we now await Trump to comment on his Truth Social account what all that was about, futures aren’t waiting and spoos quickly spiked above 6,000, rising as high as 6016 and on the verge of pushing the S&P into a bull market.

Safe haven gold (and bonds) were sold…

But Bitcoin was bid…

Along with oil prices…

Developing…

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 09:00

ECB Preview: 8th Rate Cut In A Row

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ECB Preview: 8th Rate Cut In A Row

As UBS economist Paul Donovan writes this morning, a total of 52 out of 52 surveyed economists – not to mention markets – expect a quarter point ECB rate reduction today, the 8th in a row, adding rhetorically “How could so many economists possibly be wrong?” More to the point, he adds that President Trump is likely to become even more irate after criticizing the Federal Reserve for not cutting rates. 

Rhetorical questions aside, here is what to expected, courtesy of Newsquawk

OVERVIEW: Given the uncertainties surrounding the trade outlook and progress on the inflation front, the ECB is expected to cut the  deposit Rate by 25bps to 2.00%. With a rate reduction nailed on, focus will be on any hints over future easing plans. While Lagarde might not make any explicit mention of the future policy direction, any signs of dissent, whether via remarks by the President or sources after the meeting, could provide a guiding star for markets. Currently, markets see a total of 54bps of loosening by year-end (including the expected June cut).

PRIOR MEETING: Aprilʼs meeting saw a 25bps cut as expected and the old language around restrictiveness was removed. This took the ECB to the top end of its 1.75-2.25% neutral rate estimate. Accompanying forward guidance was unsurprisingly non-committal, though the statement did highlight increased uncertainty and an associated confidence impact that is “likely to have a tightening impact on financing conditions”; on this, participants were attentive to any hints around an offsetting policy response (i.e. dovish action). Just after the meeting, sources reported the decision to cut was unanimous. Lagarde didnʼt add too much, aside from stressing no argument was made for 50bps or other stimulus, though she made the point that they are viewing tariffs as a demand shock.

RECENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS : Flash inflation data for May saw Y/Y HICP decline to 1.9% from 2.2% (below target for the first time since September 2024). Core inflation declined to 2.4% from 2.7%, whilst services inflation saw a notable fall to 3.7% from 4.0%. The ECB Consumer Expectations Survey for April saw the 12-month ahead metric rise to 3.1% from 2.9%. In terms of market gauges, the EZ 5y5y inflation forward has ticked higher to 2.06% vs. circa 2.03% at the time of the prior meeting. On the growth front, Q1 GDP is currently estimated at 0.3% Q/Q vs. the Q4 print of 0.2%. More timely survey data from S&P Global showed manufacturing PMI for May climbed to 49.4 from 49.0, services slipped to 48.9 from 50.1, leaving the composite at 49.5 vs. prev. 50.4. The accompanying release noted “the eurozone economy just cannot seem to find its footing”. The unemployment rate remains at the historic low of 6.2%.

RECENT COMMUNICATIONS: Since the prior meeting, President Lagarde has remarked that levies are probably more disinflationary than inflationary. However, the net effect of tariffs is still uncertain. Chief Economist Lane is confident that the Bankʼs task to bring inflation back to 2% is “mostly completed”, however, services inflation is “still too high”. The influential Schnabel of Germany is of the view that tariffs could be disinflationary in the short run but result in upside risk over the medium term. France’s Villeroy has stated that interest rate normalisation within the EZ is probably incomplete. Typically-dovish, Panetta of Italy has remarked that there is reduced room to cut rates further, though the macro outlook is weak and trade tensions could weigh on this. Elsewhere, Cyprus’ Patsalides has noted that a 50bp cut would only be justified if recession risks intensified with stronger disinflation. At the hawkish end of the spectrum, Austriaʼs Holzmann thinks the Bank should not lower rates in June or July.

RATES: Consensus looks for the ECB to cut rates by 25bps with markets assigning a 95% chance of such an outcome. Since the prior meeting, whilst there has been an easing of tensions between the US and China, which led to an improvement in the global trade outlook, a deal between the EU and the US remains elusive. The lack of progress prompted US President Trump to recommend a 50% tariff on the EU as of June 1st. This threat has since been pushed back to July 9th and the EU is increasing efforts to get an agreement. However, large gaps between the two sides remain and the growth outlook remains uncertain. Furthermore, as detailed above, progress on the inflation front means that policymakers have the green light to ease policy (also aided by the stronger EUR and declining oil prices). Assuming the ECB cuts by 25bps this week, the focus will be on any clues as to what comes thereafter, given the apparent split of views on the GC. The accounts of the ECB meeting (albeit when trade tensions were higher) showed that some members would have been comfortable with a 50bps reduction. Some of the more hawkish members on the GC may opt to dissent to the decision with Holzmann of the view that the ECB should not cut rates in June or July. Currently, markets see a total of 54bps of loosening by year-end (including the expected June cut).

MACRO PROJECTIONS: For the accompanying macro projections, Rabobank expects growth to be revised down a touch for both 2025 and 2026 while the inflation view is likely to be trimmed for 2025 to 2.0% (Mar. 2.3%) but increased for 2026 to 2.3% (Mar. 2.0%).

HICP INFLATION:

  • 2025: 2.3%
  • 2026: 1.9%
  • 2027: 2.0%

HICP CORE INFLATION (EX-ENERGY & FOOD):

  • 2025: 2.2%
  • 2026: 2.0%
  • 2027: 1.9%

GDP:

  • 2025: 0.9%
  • 2026: 1.2%
  • 2027: 1.3%

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 07:45

Procter & Gamble To Axe 7,000 Jobs Amid “Challenging Environment” 

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Procter & Gamble To Axe 7,000 Jobs Amid “Challenging Environment” 

The maker of Bounty paper towels, Dawn dish soap, Pampers diapers, Tide detergent, and Gillette razors—Procter & Gamble—announced a restructuring plan at a Paris-based conference earlier today, revealing plans to slash upwards of 7,000 jobs, or about 15% of its global non-manufacturing workforce over the next two years. The move comes amid uneven consumer demand and a challenging macro environment, exacerbated by ongoing tariff uncertainty.

P&G executives, speaking at the Deutsche Bank Consumer Conference in Paris, announced plans to reduce the company’s non-manufacturing workforce by 15% while also unveiling efforts to streamline its product portfolio by exiting certain categories and divesting in smaller brands, according to a Financial Times report.

After the two-year restructuring plan is completed, Bloomberg data show that P&G’s total workforce levels will return to 2018 levels, around 100,000. 

“This is not a new approach, rather an intentional acceleration of the current strategy…to win in the increasingly challenging environment in which we compete,” executives told the audience at the conference. 

CFO Andre Schulten stated that the restructuring will begin in the second half of the year, involving the streamlining of management teams and the adoption of more AI and automation.

The restructuring plan follows P&G’s April earnings report, which showed a decline in quarterly sales and a lowered full-year forecast, as the company cited growing consumer uncertainty and ongoing tariff pressures.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Nik Modi told clients after P&G’s April earnings that “the majority of consumer staples companies to cut their earnings forecasts significantly … investors are looking for visibility and can’t find it in the most visible of sectors like consumer staples.” 

In markets, P&G shares are -1% year-to-date in New York. Zooming out to a five-year timeframe reveals choppy trading, with the stock oscillating between a $160 floor and a $180 ceiling since mid-2024.

If some of P&G’s brands hadn’t alienated their core male customer base with years of toxic woke advertising, the company likely wouldn’t be shedding thousands of jobs.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 07:45

The Next Gold Confiscation: What It Could Look Like… And How To Avoid It

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The Next Gold Confiscation: What It Could Look Like… And How To Avoid It

Authored by Nick Giambruno via InternationalMan.com,

On April 5, 1933, under the pretext of a national emergency, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6102, making it illegal for US citizens to own gold.

The decree forced Americans to sell their gold to the government at an artificially low “official price.” If they refused, they faced harsh penalties: a $10,000 fine (over $200,000 in today’s debased dollars) and/or up to 10 years in prison.

It was blatant theft—a sweeping confiscation of wealth from the American people.

Today, many fear the US government could resort to gold confiscation again if it becomes desperate enough.

And honestly, those fears aren’t misplaced.

The government’s financial situation is rapidly deteriorating.

But would it really attempt another 1933-style gold grab?

I don’t think so.

What’s More Likely Than Outright Confiscation

Here’s the reality: only a tiny fraction of Americans own gold today.

I’d wager most have never even seen a gold coin, let alone understand its value.

Back in 1933, things were different. The US was still operating under a version of the gold standard, and gold was much more widely held. Today, a repeat of that playbook just isn’t worth the effort.

If the government wants to steal wealth, it doesn’t need to knock on your door. It can do it quietly and continuously—by printing money and debasing the currency. It’s the stealthy way to confiscate from savers.

But gold owners shouldn’t feel too comfortable.

I believe the next threat will come in a new form—not outright confiscation, but through a punitive windfall-profits tax on gold. And that could be even more dangerous.

The Coming “Fair Share” Gold Tax

There’s precedent for this. In 1980, Congress passed the Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax Act, which levied up to 70% on so-called “windfall profits” from domestic oil producers.

And what exactly is a “windfall profit”?

As far as I can tell, it’s whatever politicians say it is. There’s no real definition—just a politically convenient excuse for legalized plunder.

In essence, a windfall profit is simply a profit the government doesn’t like.

So imagine this: gold explodes in price due to a currency crisis. Congress rushes in to “protect the people” and passes something like the Fair Share Gold Windfall Profit Tax Act, slapping on a tax of 70% or more on any gold profits.

How to Protect Yourself

The good news? There are practical steps you can take to avoid this kind of expropriation.

Sure, you could renounce your US citizenship. But let’s be honest—that’s a drastic move and not realistic for most people.

Thankfully, there’s a far more practical solution. You can do it right from your living room.

Own gold in a Roth IRA.

A Roth IRA is a tax-free zone. You contribute with after-tax dollars, and any future capital gains or income from your investments grow tax-free. Best of all, withdrawals in retirement are tax-free, too.

And while there are no guarantees when it comes to future legislation, investments held in a Roth IRA are far less likely to be targeted by a windfall-profits tax—especially one aimed at gold.

It’s a simple move that makes you a hard target.

So how do you actually do this—and protect your gold from the threats ahead?

That’s exactly why I just released a brand-new video with legendary gold investor Doug Casey. In it, he reveals his time-tested strategies for safeguarding your gold from inflation, bank failures, capital controls—and even government confiscation. Doug Casey Reveals the Best Way to Store Your Gold Click here to watch it and protect your savings before it’s too late.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 07:20

New Footage Shows Abandoned Cargo Ship Laden With Chinese Cars Burning In Pacific

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New Footage Shows Abandoned Cargo Ship Laden With Chinese Cars Burning In Pacific

The Morning Midas, a RoRo carrier transporting roughly 3,000 vehicles—including electric vehicles (EVs) from Chinese automakers—was abandoned by its 22-member crew following a fire on Wednesday morning. 

Aerial reconnaissance imagery published on X overnight by the U.S. Coast Guard shows white smoke billowing from Morning Midas’ stern section. 

“The status of the fire is currently unknown, but smoke is still emanating from the vessel,” the Coast Guard wrote in a press release. 

The Coast Guard said the Morning Midas had an estimated 350 metric tons of gas fuel and 1,530 metric tons of very low sulfur fuel oil on board. The ship’s cargo consisted of 3,048 vehicles, including 70 fully electric vehicles and 681 hybrid electric vehicles.

“The Morning Midas was shipping around 3,000 cars from a range of manufacturers, including Chery Automobile Co. and Great Wall Motor Co. to Mexico,” Bloomberg wrote in a report. 

The outlet noted, “It’s unclear at this stage which brand’s electric vehicle caught fire, the people said, who asked not to be identified discussing preliminary findings.” 

Insurance giant Allianz has repeatedly warned about the importance of enhanced safety protocols for maritime shipments involving lithium-ion batteries, citing the global surge in green technology—much of it produced by Chinese manufacturers. 

The incident mirrors the 2023 disaster off the Dutch coast, when a RoRo vessel carrying 3,000 vehicles—including 500 EVs—erupted in flames, raising global concerns over the fire risks while transporting EVs at sea. 

 

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 06:55

British Blasphemy Prosecution: London Man Convicted After Burning Qur’an

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British Blasphemy Prosecution: London Man Convicted After Burning Qur’an

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

We recently discussed how the United Kingdom has continued its erosion of free speech by pushing an effective blasphemy law. Now, a London man has been convicted of a “religiously aggravated public order offence.” Hamit Coskun, 50, a Turkish-born Armenian-Kurdish atheist was arrested after burning a Qur’an.

Coskun was protesting the government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara over his embrace of radical Islamic principles. Exclaiming “f**k Islam” and “Islam is religion of terrorism,” he burned the Qur’an and was then slashed by a Muslim man with a knife. Critics were outraged that the man (who later pleaded guilty) was released while police continued to hold Coskun.

Despite arguing that his protest was protected speech, District Judge John McGarva convicted him and declared that his actions were “highly provocative” and that they were “motivated at least in part by a hatred of Muslims.” Judge McGarva made clear that his views of Islam would not be tolerated in the United Kingdom:

“After considering the evidence, I find you have a deep-seated hatred of Islam and its followers. That’s based on your experiences in Turkey and the experiences of your family. It’s not possible to separate your views about the religion to your views about the followers.

I do accept that the choice of location was in part that you wanted to protest what you see as the Islamification of Turkey. But you were also motivated by the hatred of Muslims and knew some would be at the location.”

Coskun later correctly condemned the decision as “an assault on free speech” and added:

“Christian blasphemy laws were repealed in this country more than 15 years ago, and it cannot be right to prosecute someone for blaspheming against Islam. Would I have been prosecuted if I’d set fire to a copy of the bible outside Westminster Abbey? I doubt it.”

For years, I have been writing about the decline of free speech in the United Kingdom and the steady stream of arrests, including in my book, The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.

A man was convicted for sending a tweet while drunk referring to dead soldiers. Another was arrested for an anti-police t-shirt. Another was arrested for calling the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a “leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing “Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested for protesting outside of a Scientology center with a sign calling the religion a “cult.”

Nicholas Brock, 52, was convicted of a thought crime in Maidenhead, Berkshire. The neo-Nazi was given a four-year sentence for what the court called his “toxic ideology” based on the contents of the home he shared with his mother in Maidenhead, Berkshire. Judge Peter Lodder QC dismissed free speech or free thought concerns with a truly Orwellian statement:

“I do not sentence you for your political views, but the extremity of those views informs the assessment of dangerousness.”

Lodder lambasted Brock for holding Nazi and other hateful values:

“[i]t is clear that you are a right-wing extremist, your enthusiasm for this repulsive and toxic ideology is demonstrated by the graphic and racist iconography which you have studied and appeared to share with others…”

The fear is that an expanded hate speech law that includes criticism of Islamophobia will operate like a British blasphemy law. In 2008, the common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel were abolished in England. This new effort could constructively restore such prosecutions as they relate to Islam.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 06/05/2025 – 06:30

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