US Military Aircraft Crashes In Eastern Mediterranean
A US military aorcraft crashed in the eastern Mediterranean Friday night, the US European Command (EUCOM) announced on Saturday. The military aircraft was conducting a ‘training operation’ in the region at the time of the incident.
EUCOM said the military aircraft “suffered a mishap and went down.” There was no additional information regarding how many souls were on board, aircraft type, or what caused the “mishap.”
“However, we can definitively say that the aircraft sortie was purely related to training, and there are no indications of hostile activity,” EUCOM said, adding, “Out of respect for the families affected, we will not release further information on the personnel involved at this time.”
Multiple X users cited the flight tracking website Flightradar24, which shows the possible location of the crash landing of the aircraft as military search and rescue planes have been circling the skies.
Nov. 12, 2023#Eastern Mediterranean #US military aircraft crash #details not disclosed
Egyptian AW-139 (presumably the SAR Helicopter) is flying over Eastern Mediterranean. Could be related with the crash of USAF aircraft! #Israel#Gazapic.twitter.com/sc5FdPSJ28
According to the geopolitical intelligence website Stratfor, the US military has the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group in the eastern Mediterranean.
The European Parliament has voted to lift the immunity of four of Poland’s governing party’s MEPs who have been accused of violating hate crime laws for endorsing an election advert that warned of the dangers of mass immigration.
Beata Kempa, Beata Mazurek, Patryk Jaki, and Tomasz Poreba could now face charges in their homeland for racially aggravated offenses after they retweeted and liked a Law and Justice (PiS) election video on social media ahead of local elections in 2018.
Patryk Jaki speaking during the local government election in 2018. (EPA-EFE/Pawel Supernak POLAND OUT)
The video warned of the threats that an influx of illegal immigrants to Europe could cause and linked “enclaves of Muslim refugees” with sexual assaults and violent attacks.
It also suggested that a government formed by the Civic Coalition (KO), the largest opposition grouping, would lead to an influx of illegal immigration that would make residents “afraid to go out on the streets after dark.”
Accusations against the quartet were filed by Rafal Gawel, a left-wing Polish activist, who filed a subsidiary indictment in November 2021 after the prosecutor’s office twice dismissed his original claims as unfounded.
Rafał Gaweł is said to be the first Pole to be given political asylum since the fall of communism. Photograph: Czarek Sokołowski/AP
Gawel, who was convicted of embezzlement in Poland in 2019 and is wanted by the Polish police, subsequently obtained asylum in Norway, claiming that he was the victim of a politicized justice system.
“I am the first Pole who managed to win asylum since communist times,” Gawel told the Associated Press over the phone from Norway.
“I am sure I have saved my life, because if I had gone to prison in Poland, I couldn’t have expected any good future,” he said. “I was hated by the government.”
Thereafter, Edyta Snastin-Jurkun, a Warsaw court judge, submitted a request to the European Parliament to waive the immunities of the four MEPs.
Gilles Lebreton, an MEP and rapporteur in the European Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, whose task is to give opinions on such applications, stated that it was politically motivated and recommended its rejection.
On Tuesday, however, the Legal Affairs Committee voted in favor of the proposal to waive their immunity, and the European Parliament backed its stance on removing immunity for the four MEPs so they could stand trial in Poland.
Beata Mazurek, commenting on the ruling, said later on Thursday:
“We are neither surprised nor shocked by this decision – we predicted that this would happen, taking into account what is occurring in this parliament.
“We are moving on, continuing our work, we are not limited in any way,” she added. “We will certainly not succumb to such pressure and become intimidated or limited in our political activities.”
Patryk Jaki exclaimed on X that “The EP has just joyfully stripped me of my immunity for liking a spot on Twitter that showed real scenes of violence by illegal migrants in Europe.”
“They call it ‘hate speech’…This is what the Brave New World of the “Democratic Camp” is supposed to look like. We would like to thank everyone who supported this ‘democracy’…”
‘The Uncancellable Billionaire’ Prepares For Starship Rocket Launch As Soon As Next Week
On Friday evening, SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, announced that its Starship rocket, the most powerful ever constructed and currently under the scrutiny of the US Fish & Wildlife Service, is preparing for a possible launch next Thursday.
“Starship preparing to launch as early as November 17, pending final regulatory approval,” SpaceX wrote in a post on social media platform X.
Musk quoted the post, saying, “Assuming regulatory approval.”
This comes after the Federal Aviation Administration recently concluded a safety review focused on potential public health and property impacts. The FAA’s report is part of a more comprehensive assessment required before the next launch. Currently, the Fish & Wildlife Service is still conducting an Endangered Species Act of 1973 review of the launch.
There have been mounting concerns that the US government has weaponized federal agencies against the billionaire under the Biden administration.
The upcoming launch is scheduled to occur at SpaceX’s Starbase facility located in Boca Chica, Texas. It would be the second launch, following Startship’s maiden flight on April 20 that failed to reach orbit.
Musk has been more optimistic about the second flight. In a recent interview, he said, “We think it will work, but we aren’t sure if it will work.”
As a general rule I find that whenever the public scrutinizes any particular agenda being promoted by governments and globalists their first response is to act indignant, much like a narcissist would do when they are up to no good and they get caught.
“How dare you” question their intentions and suggest they might be nefarious.
How dare you suggest they are anything other than loving and benevolent.
Our “leaders” have only ever wanted the best for us, right?
They only want our lives to become safer, more comfortable and more convenient – This is what truly motivates your average elitist, right?
Obviously history tells us a far different story, and it boggles my mind when anyone tries to argue that things are different today compared to 100 years ago, 300 years ago, or 1000 years ago. There is nothing new under the sun. There will always be tyrants attempting to gain more and more power and those tyrants will always lie to the public, claiming they are good people with our best interests at heart.
When that doesn’t work and the citizenry remains skeptical, the tyrants go on the attack, accusing the public of “conspiracy theory.” This is meant to mock and shame free thinkers into silence – You don’t want to stand out, right? Why risk being ostracized from society? Why risk becoming a meme?
This tactic is rooted in the notion that the corporate media and government officials represent the mainstream, and therefore they represent the majority, and the majority represents reality. None of this is true or relevant, of course. Only facts matter. Sophistry is meaningless. Opinions are meaningless. The truth should be the goal, and if it’s not someone’s goal then they must be a purveyor of lies and should not be taken seriously. There are only two paths to take, there is no in-between.
I will admit there is some value to the “conspiracy theory” accusation because whenever the establishment uses it, it’s a sure sign that you are too close to the target and they are getting nervous. They could simply try to outline any evidence they might have to prove that your position is wrong, but they don’t really do that. Instead of debating your arguments and evidence, they try to undermine you as a valid critic and inoculate the public against your ideas before people ever get a chance to hear them. This is the behavior of villains, not benevolent and caring leaders.
I mention this dynamic because there is one agenda above all others that is aggressively defended by the establishment media, and anyone who remotely questions it is automatically persecuted as a “conspiracy nut” or “denier.” I am of course talking about the climate change agenda.
Instead, I want to examine the end goal of climate change policies – The ultimate solution, which is NOT to save the planet, but to dominate the populace.
The names used for the climate change “reset” vary, but it is often referred to by globalists and the UN as Agenda 2030 or Sustainable Development Goals. These programs wear a facade of environmentalism but they are ALL rooted in economics. That is to say, all climate change efforts exist to destroy industry and trade and establish a government/corporate partnership to dominate production. Climate change is a Trojan Horse to introduce authoritarianism.
I believe one of the most important aspects of Agenda 2030 for globalists is something called the “15 Minute City”; a project which involves hundreds of city mayors from across the US, Europe and Asia working closely with groups like the World Economic Forum. Any mention of this idea in a negative light and the media erupts with anger as well as mockery as if it’s not a real issue worthy of debate.
The establishment paints an interesting picture of 15 Minute Cities – A Utopian future in which everything you need is only a short walk away and private transportation is superfluous (or banned). You might even live in mega-complex, much like a giant mall where you also work. You could spend months within one square mile of space, never having to leave for anything.
It’s no mistake that this idea was pushed hard during the pandemic lockdowns. The public was awash in fear propaganda over a virus with a 99.8% survival rate and that fear made the unthinkable idea of staying at home all the time suddenly thinkable. Media pundits continue to call the connection between covid lockdowns and climate lockdowns a conspiracy theory, but the idea is openly admitted in UN and WEF white papers.
Some people argue that most cities are already “15 Minute Cities” with necessities all within walking distance of their homes. These folks don’t understand what a 15 Minute City really is. As numerous establishment descriptions of the project note, it’s not just about convenience or close access, it’s about changing every aspect of our current philosophy of living. It’s not about gaining amenities, it’s about making an array of sacrifices in order to appease the gods of carbon emissions.
The 15 Minute City is more like a recipe, containing every single ingredient of the climate change and covid lockdown agendas in a single comprehensive Orwellian vision. It includes removing motor vehicles, removing private transportation and roads, smart city and AI monitoring of each person’s electricity usage, monitoring of product consumption and “carbon footprint”, biometric surveillance within a compact and stacked urban landscape, the cashless society concept, equity and inclusion cultism, population control, etc.
It is the culmination, the end game; a massive prison with no bars. A place where you are conditioned to grow accustomed to artificial limitations on privacy, no civil liberties, no private property, and no work options or mobility. You are tied to the land and the land is owned by the state (or corporation). If you want a historic comparison, the closest I can find is the feudal system of Medieval Europe.
Within these cities you are a labor mechanism, nothing more. You will never be allowed to own your own property and thus own your own labor. Everything you have is given to you by the state and can be taken away by the state if you defy them. You might be able to leave the village or community you are tied to for a time, but this will change with increasing restrictions on the public’s movement according to the dictates of climate ideology.
As long as you are productive and submissive you will be give the things you need to survive, but never to thrive. In the case of a technocratic feudal system you would not have any guarantees that the state would need your services. At least in feudal Europe a peasant was seen as valuable resource because of limited population. In a world where many people are considered “population excess”, you could easily be replaced and booted out of the city to starve and die.
In 2016 the World Economic Forum published a document titled ‘Welcome To 2030. I Own Nothing, Have No Privacy, And Life Has Never Been Better.’ The article was meant to promote a concept called the “sharing economy” which was first publicly fielded to the press at Davos. The article describes a “hypothetical” future in which a communistic system has ended all private property in the name of saving the planet from climate change. The benefits? Well, like all communistic systems, the big lie is that you will get to work less and most things will be free. This is how collectivist ideals have been sold to the populace for generations and it NEVER works the way the establishment claims.
The WEF has been promoting the sharing economy for years, but when it went mainstream and was widely criticized as dystopian, the media once again flipped the “conspiracy theory” switch and attacked anyone exposing the implications.
Multiple platforms published the article in 2016 but many have since taken it down (Forbes appears to have erased their published copy, for example). They are pretending as if the agenda never existed, probably because the article contains some revealing admissions, including a hint at the 15 Minute City concept. From the article:
“My biggest concern is all the people who do not live in our city. Those we lost on the way. Those who decided that it became too much, all this technology. Those who felt obsolete and useless when robots and AI took over big parts of our jobs. Those who got upset with the political system and turned against it. They live different kind of lives outside of the city. Some have formed little self-supplying communities. Others just stayed in the empty and abandoned houses in small 19th century villages.
Once in awhile I get annoyed about the fact that I have no real privacy. Nowhere I can go and not be registered. I know that, somewhere, everything I do, think and dream of is recorded. I just hope that nobody will use it against me”
In other words, the globalists imagine a future were the malcontent free thinkers and people replaced by AI are outcasts, scratching and scraping out a meaningless existence in the wastelands of the old world. To stay in the bosom of the new world you will be required to give up all freedom, even freedom of thought. Keep in mind, this article is supposed to be a “positive” promotion of the shared economy and 15 Minute-related cities. Yet, this excerpt sounds more like a threat.
It’s important to understand that these compact cities will not be designed for your comfort. They will not be designed so that you can have all the amenities you have today closer to your fingertips while also providing “sustainability.” That’s how the globalists try to sell it, but that’s not what it will be. Rather, these cities will be designed to better CONTROL you, so that you can be forced to make the sacrifices they say are necessary for sustainability to be possible.
They are erroneously billed as “decentralized communities,” but they are the exact opposite – They are utterly centralized, like a hamster cage where you are the pet. The core philosophy behind them is dependency. If you live in a place which is specifically constructed to eliminate your ability to provide for yourself, then you are a slave. Though, to be sure, even slavery can be made to look noble if people are convinced that their chains are necessary for the good of the planet.
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Republicans should restrict abortion wherever and whenever it is prudent to do so…
How many times do voters have to send the message before Republicans get the picture?
America loves abortion. Is that cavalier? Unfortunately, it’s the truth. Decades of “me, me, me” culture have taken their toll. We are in the end stages of democracy, here, and there may be no putting the genie back in the bottle.
Nothing is ever free. Because of Dobbs, abortions are much harder to get in a number of states. The right made a bargain to save lives, and the cost is pain at the polls.
Tuesday’s election was a wipeout for conservatives. Everyone is quick to blame Donald Trump, but the real loser was Ron DeSantis – although it’s hard to say what he had left to lose.
DeSantis, and the pro-life movement in general, hammered Trump weeks ago for urging Republicans to moderate on abortion. They called Trump a sell-out. But Trump is unfortunately correct. No serious political junkie thinks Trump is going to lose Ohio next year. And guess what? Ohio just voted to enshrine abortion into law, and it wasn’t particularly close. In a time when the smell of pot pervades every public space imaginable, Ohio also legalized recreational marijuana. It was twofer for “Fetterman nation.”
Trump is the only Republican with the sense and the courage to say what many conservatives do not want to hear: their moral agenda is unpopular. This is especially true in the Rust Belt states that Trump flipped in 2016, like Pennsylvania. Democrats won a Supreme Court seat there on Tuesday night by, once again, championing “choice,” much as they did successfully in Wisconsin months ago.
Trump’s Republican critics are already trying to blame him for the election’s disappointing results. In reality, Trump has never been more electable.The New York Times just released a poll that has Trump dominating Biden in swing states, despite the unprecedented and unscrupulous lawfare campaign unleashed on Trump by the Democrats. The “blue wall” that Trump toppled in 2016, since patched up by Biden (with a little help from ballot shenanigans), is vulnerable once more.
Democrats are actually scared for the first time in three years that they will lose the White House. They’re not confident in Biden, at all. Nothing would calm their nerves so much as Republicans nominating an uptight socially conservative ideologue in 2024.
Biden wants to run on abortion. It’s his party’s saving grace – the perverse absolution for all the destruction they have wrought.
Republicans have a winning agenda on every other issue – the economy, crime, and especially immigration, Trump’s signature issue. Everyone can see now that Trump was right about the border, especially those taking advantage of Biden’s abdication by pouring across. An unprecedented invasion is swelling at the gates, and even blue state voters have had enough.
In Suffolk County, New York, Ed Romaine won the race for county executive in a landslide – solidifying the GOP’s gains from last year in the Empire State. Romaine is the first Republican to hold the office in 20 years. Of course, in New York, crime and immigration are much more salient issues than abortion.
Immigration is the reason we are in this quandary with abortion to begin with. Decades of demographic replacement have rigged democracy in the favor of one party. Democrats now have a built-in advantage in every single election, and pretty soon they will win them all. This is the biggest issue facing the country, not abortion. America cannot survive another four years of the invasion. The Republican party certainly can’t.
Republicans should restrict abortion wherever and whenever it is prudent to do so. But, as the saying goes, “politics is the art of the possible.” This reasoning strikes many conservatives as devilish, but we live in a fallen world. Republicans can either continue on their self-destructive course, or they can compromise with reality, take Trump’s advice, and fight to live another day.
As the vaccination rate continues to rise, an increasing number of side effects are being reported.Research indicates that COVID-19 viral vector-based vaccines increase the risk of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) by three to four times compared to mRNA-based vaccines.
The Link Between Vaccines and Guillain-Barré Syndrome Risk
Increasing evidence suggests an association between COVID-19 vaccines and Guillain-Barré Syndrome. One study revealed an increase in GBS cases within 42 days of receiving the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The researchers suggest a potential link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and the increased risk of GBS.
In March, a prospective surveillance study published in Scientific Reports indicated that out of 38,828,691 doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, between February 2021 and March 2022, 105,409 adverse events were reported, including 55 cases of GBS.
After assessing the risk factors for GBS following COVID-19 vaccination, it was found that viral vector-based vaccines were linked to a three-to-fourfold higher risk of GBS compared to mRNA-based vaccines.
In terms of age and gender, the incidence of GBS was higher in individuals aged 60 and older compared to younger age groups, and it was more common in men than women.
Based on a vaccine mechanism evaluation, the incidence rate of GBS for viral vector-based vaccines was 4.49 cases per million doses, higher than mRNA-based vaccines (Pfizer and Moderna) which had an incidence rate of 0.80 cases per million doses.
The researchers are urging health care providers to closely monitor individuals following COVID-19 vaccination, especially men who received their first dose of viral vector-based vaccines.
Onset of GBS Following COVID-19 Vaccination
In 2021, the British Medical Journal published a case study in which a 48-year-old man from Malta experienced facial paralysis on the left side of his face 10 days after receiving the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. He was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy grade III and received treatment with prednisolone, an oral corticosteroid, as well as eye drops and eye care.
The patient had pre-existing blood lipid abnormalities before vaccination, but no other relevant medical history or history of infections.
The patient also experienced intense and excruciating pain in the central area of the back, with conventional pain relievers proving ineffective. Over the next 24 hours, the patient’s facial paralysis symptoms progressively worsened, and similar symptoms appeared on the right side of the face.
Three days later, the patient developed grade V facial nerve paralysis on both sides of the face, and the severe back pain persisted. However, neurological examinations did not reveal any defects. The patient underwent a lumbar puncture, which revealed elevated protein levels (1,264 milligrams per liter) and an excess of lymphocytes beyond normal values, leading to a diagnosis of GBS. Subsequently, the patient was discharged after an improvement in facial paralysis symptoms.
However, in less than 24 hours, the patient returned to the emergency department with symptoms including lower limb weakness, absent reflexes, foot drop, moderate weakness in the hands, and pain sensations when wearing gloves or long socks. The doctor administered intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) at a dosage of 2 grams per kilogram of body weight, which continued for five days, along with oral prednisolone.
Subsequently, the patient’s condition rapidly improved, with significant recovery in muscle strength and limb paralysis, and complete disappearance of the facial paralysis symptom. After undergoing intensive physical rehabilitation therapy, the patient regained the ability to function independently. A follow-up examination two months later revealed only mild weakness in both hand muscles.
Researchers believe that among the various side effects of different vaccines, neurological complications may be one of the most severe, thus causing the greatest concern.
GBS affects multiple peripheral nerves in the body (polyneuropathy). Peripheral neuropathy can also affect the nerves controlling functions of the heart and circulation system (cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy).
Symptoms of Guillain-Barré Syndrome
According to National Health Service in the UK, Guillain-Barré Syndrome is a rare and severe neurological disorder caused by an immune system dysfunction, with an extremely low incidence rate.
Under normal circumstances, the immune system attacks any pathogens that make their way into the body. When the immune system malfunctions, it can mistakenly attack and damage the nerves.
The symptoms of GBS typically begin in the hands and feet before spreading to the arms and legs. Common symptoms include numbness, pins and needles, muscle weakness, pain, as well as balance and coordination problems. These symptoms may worsen over the next few days or weeks and then gradually improve. In severe cases, GBS can lead to difficulties in walking, breathing, or swallowing. Occasionally, it can be life-threatening, and some individuals may experience long-term complications. If you experience any symptoms of GBS, it is crucial to seek immediate medical attention.
According to the latest recordsreleased by the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program of the Taiwan Ministry of Health and Welfare on Aug. 10, a total of 150 GBS cases related to adverse events following COVID-19 vaccination have been reviewed. Among them, a 56-year-old Mr. Tsai from Taipei experienced numbness in all four limbs, breathing difficulties, and unsteady walking after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine. Additionally, two individuals who received the Moderna vaccine reported symptoms, including numbness and weakness in their upper and lower limbs, thigh pain, and more. All of them sought medical attention, and neurological tests confirmed Guillain-Barré Syndrome in all three cases. The Ministry of Health and Welfare offered compensation of TWD 450,000 (nearly $14 million), TWD 70,000 ($2,166), and TWD 250,000 (nearly $8000), respectively.
Treatment of GBS
According to the National Institutes of Health, there are currently two commonly used treatment methods to interrupt immune-related nerve damage: plasma exchange and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy. Both treatment options show no significant difference in effectiveness if started within two weeks of GBS symptoms onset.
1. Plasma exchange: This procedure involves extracting some of the patient’s blood through a catheter, treating it to remove blood cells, and then reintroducing it into the body. Plasma contains antibodies, and plasma exchange helps remove harmful antibodies that damage the nerves.
2. Intravenous immunoglobulin therapy: Immunoglobulins are proteins naturally produced by the immune system to target invading organisms. This therapy can lessen the immune system’s attack on the nervous system and shorten recovery time.
According to Taiwan’s Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, it is recommended to closely monitor fluctuations in heart rate and blood pressure, as well as regularly assess the degree of respiratory muscle weakness. This is crucial because the condition can progress to respiratory failure or lead to life-threatening arrhythmias, necessitating intubation or pacemaker implantation to maintain cardiopulmonary function. Additionally, pain management and early rehabilitation exercises can help alleviate symptoms and restore muscle strength.
The largest polluters are also the biggest in terms of population, which means, in terms of CO₂ emissions per capita (metric tons), the U.S. is relatively high at 15.32, while China and India rank lower at 7.44 and 1.89, respectively.
Historically, the U.S. has been the largest carbon emitter, releasing 422 billion metric tons of CO₂ into the atmosphere since the Industrial Revolution. This is equivalent to almost a quarter of all CO₂ produced from fossil fuels and industrial activities.
Given their massive populations and the fact that countries typically increase their emissions as they become more developed, China and India may continue to grow their shares even further.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts that India’s share of global emissions could rise to 10% by 2030.
All of these major contributors of carbon to the atmosphere have set goals to reduce emissions over the next decades.
While the U.S. targets net-zero emissions by 2050, China aims for carbon neutrality by 2060 and India recently set a target of 2070.
Pro-life activist Mark Houck and his wife are suing the Department of Justice (DOJ) over its treatment of their family during his harrowing arrest at gunpoint.
The Houcks filed their lawsuits on Nov. 6, seeking damages for assault, false arrest, abuse of process, malicious and retaliatory prosecution, and “intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
Mr. Houck, a Catholic and a father of seven, was arrested at his home in East Greenville, Pennsylvania, early on Sept. 23, 2022, when his family awoke to find a group of heavily armed FBI agents at their front door.
The arrest stemmed from an October 2021 altercation between Mr. Houck and an elderly Planned Parenthood clinic escort—an incident in which local authorities chose not to bring charges.
More than a year later, however, the DOJ charged Mr. Houck with twice violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, a law that prohibits violent and threatening conduct intended to interfere with an individual’s right to “seek, obtain, or provide reproductive health services.”
A jury acquitted Mr. Houck of those charges in January. But according to the complaints—filed by the Graves Garrett law firm—he and his family members continue to suffer “severe emotional distress” brought on by his arrest and the fight for his freedom.
“These government agents intentionally sought to assault Mr. Houck and deprive him of his Fourth Amendment rights by using excessive force to arrest him on non-violent charges when he had not threatened law enforcement, did not own a gun, and had offered to turn himself in to authorities if indicted,” one of the complaints notes.
During the raid, agents reportedly pointed their weapons at the activist’s wife, Ryan-Marie Houck, and their children—an act that the lawsuits allege was meant to inflict emotional distress.
Mr. Houck’s complaint also charged that the indictment against him was riddled with factual errors and false statements that could only have been adopted by a grand jury if the DOJ had presented the facts in a malicious way or concealed critical and material information.
Restitution
According to the lawsuits, the emotional trauma of the raid took such a toll on the Houck children that they all suffer from anxiety and sleep problems. Some of them have also developed deep-seated fears of police, unannounced visitors, and losing their parents.
“Mr. Houck finds it important to be strong for them,” one complaint states. “But carrying his own emotional burden alongside the grief and fear of his wife and seven children has taken an enormous toll on Mr. Houck.”
For Mrs. Houck, the lawsuits claim that the toll of the ordeal hasn’t only manifested in mental and emotional distress but also resulted in three miscarriages.
“Doctors attribute the loss of the babies to the stress of these events and have told the Houcks that they are now infertile as a result. Mr. and Mrs. Houck suffer immense grief and pain from these losses of life and this diagnosis,” the suit states.
Other injuries that the lawsuits list include loss of income and business opportunities following Mr. Houck’s high-profile arrest.
In total, the Houcks are seeking $4.35 million in collective damages.
“This is more than just a lawsuit; it’s a resounding declaration that the era of targeting individuals for their pro-life stance is over,” said Shawn Carney, president and CEO of 40 Days for Life, which is also representing the Houcks.
Mr. Carney said that his organization—for which Mr. Houck has volunteered—has always cooperated with federal law enforcement, but in the wake of the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, that dynamic “shifted dramatically.”
“Mark Houck’s home was besieged at gunpoint—an appalling show of force that was completely unwarranted,” he said. “The local authorities saw no crime, yet the DOJ sought to make an example of him.
“We stand up now to safeguard the rights of all Americans who advocate for life. This is a fight for our most essential freedoms, and we are fully equipped and ready to see it through to victory.”
The lawsuits follow Mr. Houck’s announcement in August that he’s running for Congress.
“I know firsthand what it’s like to be attacked by the federal government. I know firsthand how the enemy of the state can be created by virtue of your faith. And I want to protect the 1st District of Pennsylvania and all families in the 1st District from that ever happening to them,” Mr. Houck told Catholic News Agency at the time.
John Strand, who received a 32-month federal prison sentence for serving as the security detail for the founder of America’s Frontline Doctors at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, is being held in long-term solitary confinement for doing a media interview, Dr. Simone Gold says.
Mr. Strand, 40, of Naples, Florida, testified on June 13 at a U.S. House field hearing on Jan. 6 issues shortly after being sentenced for convictions on five criminal counts, including felony obstruction of an official proceeding and four misdemeanors. He has appealed the convictions to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
“He was in two weeks, let out for five or six days, and then today will be nine more weeks,” Dr. Gold said in a Nov. 9 interview with The Epoch Times. “It’s unbelievable. Absolute torture.”
Mr. Strand apparently violated prison rules for doing a broadcast interview with Real America’s Voice host Grant Stinchfield. Dr. Gold said Mr. Strand did not realize he needed permission before speaking with the media from behind bars.
“They also are not giving him his mail. They are not allowing legal [counsel] visits,” Dr. Gold said. “This is just what they do.”
Another Jan. 6 inmate, InfoWars host Jonathon Owen Shroyer, is also in solitary confinement after his recent activity on social media.
Dr. Gold—an emergency medicine specialist from Los Angeles who founded America’s Frontline Doctors during the COVID-19 pandemic—was sentenced in June 2022 to 60 days in jail under a plea deal on one Jan. 6 count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, a misdemeanor.
She and Mr. Strand were indicted together in February 2021. She was at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 to speak at a permit-approved event on medical freedom and COVID-19.
Her case was unusual because, according to Dr. Gold, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper had asked her on a date when they were students at Stanford Law School in the early 1990s. She turned him down—something she said influenced the judge’s sentencing decision in her case. Judge Cooper denied Dr. Gold’s assertion—and also denied motions from her and Mr. Strand demanding he recuse himself from their cases.
Retaliation?
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) questioned U.S. Bureau of Prisons Director Colette Peters about Mr. Strand and Mr. Shroyer during a Nov. 7 hearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance.
“Does the Bureau of Prisons retaliate against people for constitutionally protected speech?” Mr. Gaetz asked Ms. Peters.
“I have been very clear that retaliation will not be stood for on my watch,” Ms. Peters replied. “I’m confident that message has been delivered, and if anyone has engaged in retaliation, we will hold them accountable.”
In a message posted on Nov. 7 to his social media account on X, Mr. Strand said he has been a victim of “abusive retaliation.”
“I took an interview while incarcerated to explain the inhumane conditions of J6 prisoners like myself, and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons retaliated by putting me in solitary confinement,” Mr. Strand was quoted as saying.
Social media use is also believed to be the reason that InfoWars host Shroyer, 34, of Austin, Texas, was put into solitary confinement twice at the Federal Correctional Institution Oakdale in Louisiana.
Mr. Shroyer is serving a 60-day sentence under a plea agreement on one misdemeanor charge of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds.
The Strand and Shroyer cases have again thrown the spotlight on the alleged use of solitary confinement to further target Jan. 6 pretrial detainees and those serving sentences.
According to U.S. Bureau of Prisons data, 10,842 of the 144,084 inmates in BOP custody are kept in special housing units, which can be protective custody or for misconduct, criminal behavior, or if they are transferring in or out of the prison. Thirty-one inmates have been held in protective custody for more than 30 days.
Defense attorney Joseph D. McBride, who has represented more than a dozen Jan. 6 defendants, condemned the use of solitary confinement.
“Solitary confinement is an inherently evil practice that should be banned absent a limited set of circumstances,” Mr. McBride told The Epoch Times. “It is being used to degrade, abuse, torture, and psychologically break January 6 prisoners.”
Mr. McBride accused the Biden administration of actively encouraging the abuse of Jan. 6 defendants to send a message that political dissent won’t be tolerated. Affluent Republicans who are in a position to help, Mr. McBride said, “do not care at all about the suffering of these men.”
In August 2021, Mr. McBride issued a report (pdf) that documented abuses against Jan. 6 pretrial detainees held at the District of Columbia jail.
“January Sixers are routinely denied the right to confer with their counsel, as well as obtain and maintain their legal paperwork,” McBride wrote in the report, which was addressed to Amnesty International and the American Civil Liberties Union.
“They are also being beaten, sleep deprived, denied medical care, regular shower access, haircuts, shaves, and held in solitary confinement for long periods of time,” Mr. McBride wrote. “This is unprecedented, unconstitutional, un-American, offensive to all standards of common decency, illegal, and wrong.”
Four months after Mr. McBride issued his document, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) issued a report, “Unusually Cruel,” (pdf) based largely on a site visit to the D.C. jail complex.
Ms. Greene and Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) were given a more than three-hour tour of the facility on Nov. 4, 2021. This was after Ms. Greene, Mr. Gaetz, Mr. Gohmert, and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) were twice denied access to the buildings to visit Jan. 6 detainees.
“The walls of the rooms had residue of human feces, bodily fluids, blood, dirt, and mold,” the report said. “The community showers were recently scrubbed of black mold—some of which remained.
“The interior walls of the common area were also freshly painted,” the report said. “According to the inmates, the U.S. Marshals had recently visited the area just days before, which caused a flurry of activity by guards to clean up the January 6 area while the U.S. Marshals were inspecting another area.”
Mr. Gaetz said he plans to take up Ms. Peters’s offer to arrange site visits at FCI Miami and FCI Oakdale.
“I would like to go with you,” Ms. Greene posted Nov. 7 on X. “There are many reports coming out about human rights abuses against J6 defendants.”
Dems Suffer Flashbacks As 2016 ‘Spoiler’ Jill Stein Announces White House Run
Democrats across the country are pacing their living rooms with clenched jaws and fists, as the woman they hold responsible for tipping the 2016 presidential election to Donald Trump has announced she’s jumping into the 2024 race.
Jill Stein, who previously ran for president on the Green Party ticket in 2016 and 2012, announced her bid on Thursday. “With the war machine swallowing trillions of dollars as working people struggle to survive and the climate crisis accelerates, it’s time to offer voters a viable alternative to the bought-off politicians who have thrown them under the bus,” said Stein. “The ruling parties that got us into this mess aren’t getting us out.”
In a video promoting her latest Green Party candidacy, Stein took shots at both major parties, but many of her most pointed barbs were illustrated with headlines about the Democratic Party’s actions — including references to “throwing competitors off the ballot, suppressing the base” and “rigging their primaries.”
The political system is broken. Over 60% of us now say the two-party establishment has failed us and we need a party that serves the people.
Stein is reviled by Democrats who think she took enough votes from Hillary Clinton in 2016 to allow Trump to win key battleground states and thus the election. Stein’s vote-counts in both Michigan and Wisconsin were larger than Trump’s margins of victory.
In 2019, when the Russia Collusion hoax still had legs, Clinton went so far as to accuse Stein of working directly for Moscow. Discussing the 2020 field, Clinton first said the Russians were grooming Tulsi Gabbard. She continued, “That’s assuming Jill Stein will give it up, which she might not, because she’s also a Russian asset. Yes, she’s a Russian asset, I mean, totally. They know they can’t win without a third-party candidate.”
Hillary Clinton accused Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate in both the 2012 and 2016 elections, of being a “Russian asset.”
In that same wacky spirit, following Stein’s announcement, many are rushing to social media to post a photo that’s supposed to be some sort of gasp-inducing, smoking-gun evidence of Stein’s status as a Russian agent.
Jill Stein is a Russian asset. What part of what happened in 2016 don’t you all understand? pic.twitter.com/B4fCcUaAvy
“Jill Stein was invited to a 2015 media conference in Russia, which she attended at her own expense to spread a message of peace and diplomacy. At the Moscow conference, Dr. Stein gave a speech in which she criticized the excessive militarism of both Vladimir Putin and U.S. leaders.
At the dinner, she was seated with diplomats and office holders from various countries, including Michael Flynn, who had most recently served as the Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency under Obama. Putin sat at the table for a few minutes, during which he spoke only with his Russian-speaking companions. Dr. Stein publicized her experiences at the time via a press release and social media posts. The Senate Intelligence Committee later investigated the trip and found no wrongdoing whatsoever.”
Against the backdrop of the proxy war in Ukraine and blank-check backing of Israel’s ruthless destruction of Gaza, Stein is certain to capture at least some progressive voters outraged with the Biden administration. However, as with 2016, the debate about Stein’s potential spoiler status rests on the extent to which those voters might simply stay home if Stein weren’t in the race — as opposed to making the effort to vote for the warmongering Biden.
Stein’s announcement coincided with another blow to Democrats: On Thursday, centrist West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin announced he wouldn’t seek re-election in 2024, virtually guaranteeing the seat will flip to the Republican Party. Manchin also dropped strong hints that he’ll pursue a third-party White House run via the No Labels organization.
Manchin and Stein are the latest in a wave of late-to-the-2024-party, wild-card entrants:
This summer, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.announced that he was abandoning the rigged Democratic Party nomination process — which includes refusing to host debates — to run as an independent. A recent Quinnipiac poll found Kennedy leading among independents. His candidacy briefly had high appeal for many libertarians and progressives, before Kennedy startled them with a series of intensely pro-Israel statements that shattered his anti-war credentials.
