Today's News: October 02, 2018

World News

French police raid Muslim association in ‘counter-terror’ probe
Al Jazeera – Around 200 French police officers have raided the headquarters of a Muslim association as well as the homes of members of the club, in a swoop that authorities said was part of a “counterterrorism” operation.

Afghanistan: Suicide bomber targets election rally in Nangarhar
Al Jazeera – At least 13 people have been killed and 25 others wounded in a suicide attack at an election campaign rally in the eastern Nangarhar province in Afghanistan.
The assailant detonated his explosives on Tuesday at a rally by parliamentary candidate Abdul Nasir Mohmmand in the Kama district outside the provincial capital of Jalalabad, provincial governor spokesman Ataullah Khogyani said.
The attack, claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also know as ISIS), came as campaigning began for parliamentary elections due on October 20.

US ends diplomatic visas for UN same-sex partners
BBC – The US has announced it will deny diplomatic visas to same-sex partners of foreign diplomats and United Nations employees.
The change went into effect on Monday, giving partners currently in the US until 31 December to leave, get married or otherwise change their visa.
It is a reversal of rules introduced in 2009.
Currently, 25 countries have recognised same-sex marriage. Homosexuality remains illegal in 71 countries.
The new Trump administration policy update was circulated in a United Nations (UN) memo.
The memo states: “As of 1 October 2018, same-sex domestic partners accompanying or seeking to join newly arrived United Nations officials must provide proof of marriage to be eligible for a G-4 visa or to seek a change into such status.”
G-4 visas are granted to employees of international organisations and their immediate families.

Germany to ease immigration rules to tackle worker shortage
Yahoo – Worker-starved Germany will ease immigration rules to attract foreign jobseekers, including giving well-integrated, irregular migrants who are employed a shot at staying in the country, ministers said Tuesday.
In a deal hammered out after marathon talks deep into the night, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-right CDU party, their Bavarian allies CSU and the centre-left SPD agreed on a new strategy to combat fast-ageing Germany’s worker shortage.
Migrants without residency permits who are awaiting decisions on their asylum applications or their deportation may get to stay if they are gainfully employed and can show they have joined the fabric of German society.
Jobseekers from outside the European Union — including, for example, cooks, metallurgy workers or IT technicians — can also come to Germany for six months to try to find employment, provided they speak German.
They would however have no access to Germany’s social security system and must prove they are able to finance their stay.

France moves against Iran over bomb plot near Paris
AFP – France accused Iran’s intelligence ministry on Tuesday of being behind a foiled plot to bomb an exiled opposition group near the French capital in a move that risks straining already complicated ties between Paris and Tehran.
The French government announced it was freezing assets belonging to two suspected Iranian intelligence operatives, as well as others belonging to Iran’s ministry of intelligence and security.
The decision to take retaliatory measures and go public with the accusations was taken three months after the alleged plot to bomb a meeting of the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran (MEK) in a suburb of Paris.

U.S. News, Politics & Government

Ellison referred for further investigation
Star Tribune – The Minnesota DFL on Monday referred an internal report on a domestic abuse claim against Keith Ellison to local authorities for further investigation, after an attorney hired by the party found the claim could not be substantiated.
The decision promises to keep alive lingering allegations against the DFL candidate for attorney general, who has denied that he tried to drag a former girlfriend, Karen Monahan, off a bed during a fight in 2016.
“For the purpose of objectivity and getting all of the facts regarding these allegations, we have decided to forward the information in the investigation to local authorities in order to let them review the contents and determine whether further investigation is warranted,” read a statement released Monday afternoon by Ken Martin, the chairman of the DFL.

Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford ran mass “hypnotic inductions” of psychiatric subjects as part of mind control research funded by foundation linked to “computational psychosomatics” neuro-hijacking (UPDATE 1)
NaturalNews – (h/t to The Gateway Pundit for the initial lead). In another stunning bombshell about the hoax accusations against Brett Kavanaugh, we’ve now learned and confirmed that Christine Blasey Ford co-authored a science paper that involves her carrying out mass “hypnotic inductions” of psychiatric subjects as part of a mind control program that cites methods to “create artificial situations.”
Internet sleuths are turning up an extraordinary collection of evidence that increasingly points to Christine Blasey Ford being involved in mind control programs at Stanford, which some claim are run by the CIA. We have confirmed that Stanford University, where Ford works, runs a “CIA undergraduate internship program” which is described in full at this Stanford.edu recruitment page for the CIA. The Stanford recruitment page for the CIA explains, “You will be given the opportunity to work with highly-skilled professionals and see first-hand the role the CIA plays in supporting US officials who make our country’s foreign policy.”
We can also now confirm that Ford is listed as a co-author of a study that carried out mass hypnosis and mind control on psychiatric subjects under the banner of “psychoeducation,” covered in more detail below.
Christine Blasey Ford confirmed to be a co-author of the mind control study
The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. The study title, abstract and authors can be confirmed at this link.
Interestingly, the study was funded by the Mental Insight Foundation (see detailed financial records, below) and was overseen by Dr. Lisa Butler of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine. You can confirm these facts at this link.
The full text of the research paper describes methods to “create artificial situations.” Here’s some of the actual language from the paper, which can be viewed in full at this link from Academia.edu.
From this published paper, co-authored by Christine Blasey Ford, we know she is intimately familiar with mass hypnosis, self-hypnosis and mind alteration processes, all of which are being deployed in this staged “false flag” assault on Brett Kavanaugh. Through carefully crafted leaks, cover-ups and media narratives, almost half the nation has already been mass hypnotized into believing that an innocent man is a deranged serial rapist. Such is the power of CIA mind control, deployed on a nationwide scale. (It also underscores the realization that the entire purpose of the establishment media is not to inform people but to influence minds.)

Clapping banned at university to avoid ‘triggering anxiety’
Mirror – The students’ union at the University of Manchester have taken the unusual step of banning the common sign of appreciation
Clapping as been banned at a leading universty’s students’ union “to avoid triggering anxiety”.
The University of Manchester Students’ Union passed the resolution to ban clapping at student union events at the first Senate session of the academic year on September 27, according to student newspaper the Mancunion.
“It was argued that the loud noise of traditional clapping and whooping pose an issue to students with anxiety or sensory issues. BSL clapping – or, jazz hands – would be a more inclusive form of expression,” the paper said.
Jazz hands is the British Sign Language for clapping.

TRUMP: ‘Very scary time for young men in America’…
The Hill – President Trump said Tuesday the controversy surrounding Brett Kavaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court shows it is a “scary time for young men.”
“It is a very scary time for young men in America, when you can be guilty of something you’re not guilty of,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn before leaving the White House.
Trump said Kavanaugh has been treated unfairly as multiple women have come forward to accuse the federal judge of sexual misconduct. The FBI is investigation the allegations, delaying a Senate confirmation vote.

Increased Crime By Homeless Worries San Fran Residents
CBS -Residents of San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood packed a community meeting on Monday night to voice their concerns about the concurrent increases of both homelessness and crime in the area.
Over the weekend, San Francisco police said a mentally ill homeless man viciously attacked a man walking in Washington Square Park with his young son.
This attack was just one example in an uptick of violent incidents that have occurred in North Beach over the last six months.
“A huge uptick in crime and quality of life issues that have become frightening for a lot of people,” said Erica Sandberg, a San Francisco resident.
Reports of mentally ill homeless people committing a variety of crimes in San Francisco have increased in recent months. Some of these crimes include the homicide of a store clerk and the random stabbing of two people with scissors just down from the crooked section of Lombard Street

Ricin detected in mail sent to Pentagon
CNN – Two pieces of mail delivered to the Pentagon mail facility on Monday have initially tested positive for ricin, according to a US defense official.
The two suspicious envelopes were addressed to Secretary of Defense James Mattis and to Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral John Richardson, the official told CNN.
The mail facility is in a separate building on the grounds of the Pentagon and the piece of mail which tested positive never entered the Pentagon building.
All US Postal Service mail received at the Pentagon mail screening facility on Monday is currently under quarantine and poses no threat to Pentagon personnel, according to Pentagon spokesperson Col. Rob Manning.
“On Monday, the Pentagon Force Protection Agency detected a suspicious substance during mail screening at the Pentagon’s remote screening facility,” Manning said in a statement.
“The envelopes were taken by the FBI this morning for further analysis,” Manning added.
The FBI issued a statement saying it has taken possession of two suspicious envelopes screened at the Pentagon mail facility and they are undergoing more testing.

Economy & Business

Facing criticism, Amazon boosts minimum wage
Watertown Daily News – Amazon.com announced Tuesday that it would raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour for all employees, a move that comes after the tech giant faced harsh criticism for paying its workers too little.
The pay hike will affect 250,000 Amazon employees and 100,000 seasonal employees hired at Amazon sites during the holiday season. It will affect both full-time and part-time workers, as well as Whole Foods Market employees, and take effect Nov. 1.
“We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do and decided we want to lead,” said Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos in a statement. “We’re excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us.”

America Is Committing Suicide: Over The Past 12 Months, The U.S. National Debt Has Increased By 1.271 Trillion Dollars
Economic Collapse – If we do not change course, our once great nation will be destroyed by a debt that has grown wildly out of control. We are facing an unprecedented debt crisis that literally threatens to bring our country to an end, and yet our politicians are almost entirely silent on this issue in 2018. In fact, Republicans and Democrats just worked together to pass another big, fat spending bill through Congress that is actually going to increase the pace at which we are going into debt. What the Republicrats are doing is not just wrong. To be honest, the truth is that they are committing crimes against humanity, and they are completely wiping out the very bright future that our children and our grandchildren were supposed to have. How in the world is America supposed to be “great again” when we are buried in so much debt that future generations can never have any possible hope of getting free from it?
The fiscal year of the federal government goes from October 1st to September 30th. During the fiscal year that just ended, the U.S. national debt increased by 1.271 trillion dollars…

Do They Know Something We Don’t? Corporate Insiders Are Selling Stocks At The Fastest Pace In 10 Years
Economic Collapse – A lot of things are starting to happen that we haven’t seen since the last recession. A few days ago, I wrote about the fact that home sellers in the United States are cutting their prices at the fastest pace in at least eight years, and now we have learned that corporate insiders are selling stocks at the most rapid pace in ten years. So why are they dumping their shares so quickly? Do they know something that the rest of us do not? Certainly nobody can blame them for taking advantage of the ridiculously high stock prices that we are seeing in the marketplace right now. But stock prices have been very high for a while. Why is there such a mad rush for the exits all of a sudden? According to CNN, corporate insiders have sold 5.7 billion dollars worth of stock so far in September…
CEOs are using the market boom to quietly cash in their own chips.
Insiders at US companies have dumped $5.7 billion of stock this month, the highest in any September over the past decade, according to an analysis of regulatory filings by TrimTabs Investment Research.
It’s not a new trend. Insiders, which include corporate officers and directors, sold shares in August at the fastest pace in 10 years as well, TrimTabs said.

PEPSI joins COKE in exploring cannabis drinks
Yahoo – PepsiCo on Tuesday joined the growing list of big companies to confirm potential interest in making drinks with cannabis.
Hugh Johnston, chief financial officer of the soda and snacks giant, acknowledged the company’s interest in an interview with CNBC.
“We will look at it very critically,” Johnston said of cannabis on an interview with CNBC.

Energy & Environment

Indonesia quake, tsunami toll jumps to 1,234: Disaster agency
Al Jazeera – At least 1,234 people killed in the quake and tsunami disaster as people in parts of Palu city struggle to receive aid.

EPA says a little radiation may be healthy.
AP – The Trump administration is quietly moving to weaken U.S. radiation regulations, turning to scientific outliers who argue that a bit of radiation damage is actually good for you — like a little bit of sunlight.
The government’s current, decades-old guidance says that any exposure to harmful radiation is a cancer risk. And critics say the proposed change could lead to higher levels of exposure for workers at nuclear installations and oil and gas drilling sites, medical workers doing X-rays and CT scans, people living next to Superfund sites and any members of the public who one day might find themselves exposed to a radiation release.
The Trump administration already has targeted a range of other regulations on toxins and pollutants, including coal power plant emissions and car exhaust, that it sees as costly and burdensome for businesses. Supporters of the EPA’s new proposal argue the government’s current no-tolerance rule for radiation damage forces unnecessary spending for handling exposure in accidents, at nuclear plants, in medical centers and at other sites.
“This would have a positive effect on human health as well as save billions and billions and billions of dollars,” said Edward Calabrese, a toxicologist at the University of Massachusetts who is to be the lead witness at a congressional hearing Wednesday on EPA’s proposal.
Calabrese, who made those remarks in a 2016 interview with a California nonprofit, was quoted by EPA in its announcement of the proposed rule in April. He declined repeated requests for an interview with The Associated Press. The EPA declined to make an official with its radiation-protection program available.
The regulation change is now out for public comment, with no specific date for adoption.
Radiation is everywhere, from potassium in bananas to the microwaves popping our popcorn. Most of it is benign. But what’s of concern is the higher-energy, shorter-wave radiation, like X-rays, that can penetrate and disrupt living cells, sometimes causing cancer.
As recently as this March, the EPA’s online guidelines for radiation effects advised: “Current science suggests there is some cancer risk from any exposure to radiation.”
“Even exposures below 100 millisieverts” — an amount roughly equivalent to 25 chest X-rays or about 14 CT chest scans — “slightly increase the risk of getting cancer in the future,” the agency’s guidance said.

Science & Technology

The Rise Of Facial Recognition Technology Is Now Inevitable
Activist Post – The rise of facial recognition technology is inevitable and, as a result, the death of one’s privacy is sure to come with it.
For the past few months, this writer has focused on facial recognition technology. From Amazon helping law enforcement with its Facial Rekogntion software, DHS wanting to use it for border control, to the Olympics wanting to use the tech for security.
Even retail is pushing for the technology as an anti-theft mechanism to be introduced in a number of stores using biometric facial recognition software FaceFirst to build a database of shoplifters, as Activist Post reported.
As previously written “we are entering the Minority Report; there is no going back after this technology is public and citizens are indoctrinated that it’s ‘for their safety.’”
At that point, we are officially trading liberty and privacy for security. As Benjamin Franklin said, “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

New hummingbird species spotted
BBC – A new species of hummingbird has been spotted and identified in Ecuador by a multinational team of ornithologists.
The bird has been named Oreotrochilus cyanolaemus, or blue-throated hillstar, for its deep blue neck and is about 11cm (4in) long.
Ecuador, which is rich in biodiversity, is home to 132 hummingbird species out of the more than 300 in the world.
Ornithologists say there are only about 300 blue-throated hillstars and that the species is in danger of extinction.
Francisco Sornoza is the ornithologist who led the team of researchers from Ecuador, Venezuela, Denmark and Sweden which made the discovery.
He told Agence France Press news agency that he had a hunch it could be a hitherto unknown species as soon as he spotted it through binoculars in the barren south-western highlands of Ecuador.

NEW ZEALAND ‘DIGITAL STRIP-SEARCHES’ FOR TRAVELERS
RNZ – Travellers who refuse to hand over their phone or laptop passwords to Customs officials can now be slapped with a $5000 fine.
The Customs and Excise Act 2018 – which comes into effect today – sets guidelines around how Customs can carry out “digital strip-searches”.
Previously, Customs could stop anyone at the border and demand to see their electronic devices. However, the law did not specify that people had to also provide a password.
The updated law makes clear that travellers must provide access – whether that be a password, pin-code or fingerprint – but officials would need to have a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing.
“It is a file-by-file [search] on your phone. We’re not going into ‘the cloud’. We’ll examine your phone while it’s on flight mode,” Customs spokesperson Terry Brown said.
If people refused to comply, they could be fined up to $5000 and their device would be seized and forensically searched.

Health

Leeks Are Good For Your Heart and Much More
Care2 – Leeks belong to the Allium vegetable family along with onions and garlic, and share many of the same benefits.
Health Benefits of Leeks:
Defend Against Cancer
Leeks have a number of elements helpful in preventing and in the treatment of cancer.

Research on Allium vegetables have found a decreased risk of cancers, especially of the gastrointestinal tract.
Allium vegetables have been found to decrease the risk of prostate cancer.
Leeks have an element called kaempferol, which has been found to lower the risk of gastric cancer and even colorectal cancer.

Good for Heart Health
They contain organosulfur compounds that have been linked to lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Promotes Good Digestion
There is a prebiotic fiber called oligofructose in leeks that helps prevent and treat types of diarrhea according to a 2005 study published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Good for a Happy Mood
Leeks contain inulin, and when participants in a study consumed inulin they were happier than when they consumed the placebo.
Helps with Weight Loss
For a start, they have only 61 calories per serving. Also, leeks are a high fiber food which makes you feel full and takes a long time to digest so you won’t be hungry soon after eating them.
Good for Healthy Eyes
Leeks are high in vitamin A which is necessary for healthy eyes. Also, they have an abundance of antioxidants which prevent damage to the eyes. Vitamin A helps your eyes to see better when the light is low.
Please Note: Leeks are in the same plant family that contains substances called oxalates which are not a big health concern if eaten in sensible amounts; there are cases eating high levels of oxalates can be unhealthy. To learn more read Oxalic Acid Controversy.

7 Health Benefits of Rose
Care2 – Shakespeare wrote: “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” The fragrant and floral scent of rose transcends words. But, roses, or the resulting rose water (also sometimes called a rose hydrosol) or rose essential oil, derived from the stunningly beautiful flowers, offer more than a momentary blissful inhalation. Rose offers many health benefits too.

Skincare Sensation
Hormone Healer
Memory
Anti-Depression
Migraine
Sexual Dysfunction
Infection Treatment

Obesity, Autism, Share Common Cause – Study
Infowars – Exposure to environmental toxins in early development contribute to crisis
Almost two decades into the twenty-first century, the state of children’s health in the U.S. could scarcely be more distressing.
With many seemingly disparate health trends converging, over half of all children have at least one chronic condition. Obesity and autism are two of the conditions that have witnessed the most dramatic increases. The prevalence of obesity in infancy and childhood has more than tripled since the late 1970s, and a major national survey estimated the 2016 prevalence of diagnosed autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in 3- to 17-year-olds at one in 36, up from about one in 10,000 in the 1980s.
For most people, obesity and ASD appear to have little or nothing to do with one another, but research points to an intriguing crossover between the two. Specifically, children with ASD are more likely to be obese than children without autism, and obese children are disproportionately likely to have a neurodevelopmental disorder such as autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This pattern, displayed consistently across a growing number of studies, begs the question of whether the two childhood epidemics share underlying risk factors and underlying mechanisms of dysfunction. The biologically plausible answer is yes—and developmental exposures to chemicals and environmental toxins may hold a large portion of the blame.

Pet News

Bone Broth for Dogs & Other Pets: Top 5 Benefits & How to Make Your Own
Dr. Axe – If you’re concerned about your pet’s nutrition, consider that one of the most popular “superfoods” for humans right now — bone broth — can also make a great addition to your dog’s or pet’s diet. That’s right, bone broth for dogs and other pets can provide many of the same benefits to your four-legged friends as it can for humans.
Why is bone broth healthy for dogs and other pets? Just like with humans, pets need to obtain certain nutrients from their diets in order to live long, vibrant lives. There are dozens of different nutrients found within bone broth — for example, amino acids like glycine, collagen, gelatin, and trace minerals like calcium, potassium and magnesium. Many of these nutrients can’t be obtained easily from other foods, especially highly processed dog and pet formulas that are made with hardly any real “food” at all.
Bone broth can be used to fill in gaps in your pet’s diet and help them deal with common health challenges, like joint aches, dehydration, diarrhea, an upset stomach and allergies.
Top 5 Benefits of Bone Broth for Dogs and Other Pets

Great Source of Essential Minerals
Can Help Heal Joints
Supports Digestion and Gut Health
Beneficial for the Immune System
Free of Common Allergens (Like Dairy and Grains)

Action Item

Online Petition Requests Changes to FCC Guidelines for Cell Phone and Wi-Fi Radiation
Activist Post – An online petition was created by ElectromagneticHealth.org, a non-profit organization requesting that the U.S. government and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set exposure biologically based standards for electromagnetic radiation. Their reasonable requests include

Updating FCC outdated “safety standards“
Repealing Section 704 of the The Telecommunications Act of 1996
Declaring a moratorium on further wireless expansion
Establishing wireless Wi-Fi radiation free zones

Activist Post has already reported MANY TIMES about research proving there is biological and environmental harm caused by exposure to cell phone and Wi-Fi radiation. It’s not just about increased cancer risk.
Unfortunately many U.S. elected officials and FCC employees don’t seem to be interested in protecting the public interest – financially, biologically or environmentally in regard to technology. They continue steamrolling legislation for the risky “Race for 5G” which severely limits municipal control to allow for the installation of millions of small cell towers and their related infrastructure pretty much everywhere including in front of homes. This is despite ongoing widespread protest from municipalities. There have been lawsuits already filed and the threat of additional lawsuits.