Biden Admin. Shields Federal Employees from Possible Trump Presidency

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On Thursday, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a new rule, to be added to the Federal Register on April 9 and to go into effect next month, that would shield executive branch federal government employees from being terminated for opposing a president’s policies or agenda. The OPM’s as-yet-unpublished rule change stipulates that certain policy-making federal employees are protected from most forms of employment termination, regardless of who is president.

In comments to The Washington Stand, Family Research Council’s Senior Director of Government Affairs Quena González explained, “The Biden rule undermines the authority of the American people to choose their government by tying the hands of an elected president. The process to repeal the rule should begin on day one of the next administration, and Congress should act to make sure this can never happen again.” He added, “America does not need a permanent ruling class of unelected elites in Washington who are not subject to electoral accountability. We inherited, and should fight to defend, government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

In late 2020, then-President Donald Trump issued an executive order creating a new designation, “Schedule F,” for federal employees, allowing the president and his administration to fire policy-making and policy-influencing federal employees who oppose, resist, or reject the policy initiatives of the duly-elected president. “Faithful execution of the law requires that the President have appropriate management oversight regarding this select cadre of professionals,” the executive order stated. “Except as required by statute, the Civil Service Rules and Regulations shall not apply to removals from positions listed in Schedules A, C, D, E, or F…”

Upon taking office a few months later, President Joe Biden repealed that executive order. The new OPM rule goes even further and specifies that only political appointees are to be classified as policy-making executive branch employees, effectively safeguarding career bureaucrats from termination, despite their policy-making and policy-influencing roles. The new rule also clarifies that “protections” “accrued” by employees cannot be “taken away by an involuntary move” from one employment classification or schedule to another, protecting those that the Biden administration has entrenched in the federal government from a possible Trump presidency.

In a written statement, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said, “This final rule honors our 2.2 million career civil servants, helping ensure that people are hired and fired based on merit and that they can carry out their duties based on their expertise and not political loyalty.” White House Office of Management and Budget Deputy Director for Management Jason Miller added, “The Biden-Harris Administration knows that career civil servants are the backbone of the federal workforce and should be able to provide the expertise and experience necessary for the critical functioning of the federal government.”

“As a former federal agency employee, I was explicitly told that if hired I would serve ultimately at the pleasure of the American people. I carried that charge with me to work every day for three and a half years, and it remains true no matter who the people elect,” González stated. “Federal service is a privilege, not an entitlement. … This rule undermines presidential elections.”

The Biden administration’s rule change comes as numerous polls predict a Trump victory and Biden loss in November. FRC Action Director Matt Carpenter told TWS, “There’s only one way to interpret this move from the Biden White House: They are not confident in the president’s reelection chances.” He added, “In the final months of his first term, President Biden is looking to preempt a possible return of Trump and his Schedule F. This is not the move an administration makes when they’re confident they will get another chance to write rules that apply to federal employees.”

AUTHOR

S.A. McCarthy

S.A. McCarthy serves as a news writer at The Washington Stand.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

The Uni-Party Socialist Congress returns to work April 9th 2024. Conservatives must fire House Speaker Mike Johnson!

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The do nothing socialist Republican Party return to the Washington swamp on Tuesday April 9th, 2024 to continue their symbiotic traitorous relationship with their Communist Democrat pals.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) the poster child for the Democrat Communist Party will once again prepare legislation to print more money and or borrow money from Communist China to fund the corrupt government of Ukraine.

The majority of the House of Representatives ran by fraud republicans will continue to protect the borders of Ukraine while totally ignoring the borders of our constitutional republic allowing Biden to continue his invasion foreign nationals into the United States.

On Friday April 12th, 2024 the fraud republicans will also no doubt reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) before its April 19th 2024 deadline.

This will allow the U.S. government to continue spying on American citizens in gross violation of our 4th Amendment rights using AT&T equipment and assistance in secret data collection buildings all over the USA.

A skyscraper in New York City 500 feet tall, with 29 stories and no windows and no lights located at 33 Thomas Street is one of many NSA listening posts funded by the Republican controlled congress used to spy on Americans.

Thanks to great American patriot Edward Snowden we would never have learned about this. The entry to this building is identified as an AT&T telecommunications building but what it really is an NSA mass surveillance spy hub. It’s code name is Titanpointe.

This unconstitutional spy hub is funded by the uni party communist/socialist congress so they can read your Emails, listen to your phone calls and collect data on Americans internet web surfing without any oversite. At night you can’t even see the building it disappears onto the darkness.

If you have an AT&T cell phone provider don’t bank on any privacy. General Clapper the former director of the NSA lied to congress repeatedly about his surveillance of Americans. Why is he not in jail?

AT&T was given the code name Luthium in all its contact with the National Security Agency. This building is also just a short walk away from the FBI field office in New York City.

If you are a fan of the US constitution and privacy under the 4th amendment you won’t like what goes on inside this building. The NSA has collected over 150 million phone records in the past on American citizens. There are over 59 NSA spy hubs all over our republic all funded by the Republican led Congress.

This illegal and unconstitutional FISA Act will no doubt be reauthorized by the uniparty socialist / communist congress and Americans will continue to be spied on at the building located at 33 Thomas Street in New York City and at 58 other buildings all over the republic.

Facebook, Google, AT&T all work closely with the NSA and if you still have AT&T and Facebook accounts you have surrendered your freedom as you freely give the US government access to your privacy.

The conservative members of congress in the Republican Party who must suffer the indignity of having an “R” after their name must take action to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) from his leadership position when they return to their 4 hour tax payer funded work weeks and replace him with a real leader and conservative constitutionalist.

Then in November we must return president Trump back to the White House so he can get to work restoring constitutional law. Trump must also grant a full pardon to Mr. Edward Snowden on day one as our president in January 2025.

©2024. Geoff Ross. All rights reserved.

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Russian Military Magazine: Moscow Attack Resulted From Migration Policy

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Russia | Special Dispatch No. 11257

In the Russian magazine “Military Review,” columnist Victor Biryukov recently discussed the main preconditions that made possible the March 22, 2024 attack on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Moscow, in which approximately 144 people were killed. The author argues against the migration policies of the Russian government and highlights radicalism among migrants. Citing several experts’ opinions, the article calls for radical changes of migration legislation, the introduction of visa controls, and a tougher migrant policy.[1]

The March 22 attack on the Crocus City Hall venue in Moscow.

Following is a translation of the article:

“Islamic radicalism, in a broad sense, can be perceived as an ideological doctrine and political practice based on it, that constitutes an ideological basis for the activities of radical Islamist organizations, the latter taken together form a radical Islamic movement. According to a number of researchers, only Islamist groups have fully developed political extremist ideology in modern Russia.

“In recent years, the propaganda of radical Islam has often been carried out rather freely on social networks, and there is virtually no fight against it since Moscow pursues a rather aggressive policy of ‘peoples’ friendship’ constantly emphasizing the country’s multinational character and cultural diversity. On the contrary, [Russian] officials and law enforcers simply turn a blind eye to many things [violations]. This is ascribed to, among other things, the fact that there is a powerful [pro-]migrant lobby in the government, which supports the mass influx of migrants from Central Asia to Russia.

“In the article ‘World Jihad – A Threat Not Only To Israel And Europe, But Also To Russia,’[2] the author of this text wrote the following, ‘if tomorrow the radical Islamists will target Russia, and not Israel, then Muslims who have acquired Russian citizenship, but treat our culture with contempt and arrogance, may follow the path of terror. This prediction, unfortunately, came true in the end [the ‘Crocus City Hall’ attack].

“The terrorist attack in the Moscow Oblast’s ‘Crocus City Hall’ became possible, apparently, for two reasons:

“First, it is the aforementioned free propaganda of radical Islam, against which, as mentioned above, almost no one is fighting. The [detained] Tajiks were persuaded to conduct a terrorist attack by a some ‘preacher,’ who was an authority figure for them. We are talking about religious lessons provided by the Islamic State – Walayat Khorosan (ISIS–K), an organization banned in Russia, as at least one of the terrorists was member of a chat room called ‘Rahnamo ba Khuroson,’ which is directly associated with the organization.

“Second, it is the migration policy, thanks to which hundreds of thousands of ‘Guest workers’ from Central Asia enter Russia (and many subsequently obtain citizenship under a simplified procedure); they, practically, do not know the Russian language, are completely alien to Russian culture, and are often adherents of radical Islam. The Tajiks who committed the terrorist attack had virtually no command of Russian, were religious fanatics, and had no problem agreeing to shoot people in Russia for money.

“I Learn Lesson – I Listened To Sermons[3]

“The debates about who is the true mastermind behind the terrorist attack in ‘Crocus City Hall,’ which took the lives of 137 people, according to official data, as of the evening of March 24 (however, according to unofficial data there are 150 victims), are in fact, in the author’s opinion, of secondary importance, because the key role, as has already been said, was played by two factors: radical Islam and uncontrolled migration policy.

“At the moment, there are several versions regarding the mastermind of the attack.

“The Western press and the U.S. authorities name ISIS terrorists as the main culprit of what had happened. This version confirmed by the fact that the ‘Amaq’ news agency associated with ISIS published a video of shooting of people in ‘Crocus City Hall’ venue, filmed by Tajik-terrorists. The footage is frightening, among other [atrocities] it depicts as one of the wounded [attendees of the venue] has his throat cut with a knife.

“Some Russian media and the majority of bloggers and war correspondents claim that the real masterminds behind the terrorist attack are the Ukrainian political leadership, which was assisted by Western security services. The fact that the terrorists were fleeing towards the Ukrainian border, apparently expecting to hide there, and the fact that many Ukrainian officials openly gloated over the tragedy, indirectly point to Kyiv’s involvement.

“As of now, there is no direct evidence of this [version] (Belarusian ambassador Dmitry Krutoy stated that Belarusian security forces assisted in protecting the border to prevent the terrorists from fleeing, which indirectly evidences that the terrorists could have tried to hide in Belarus). Be that as it may, some domestic political analysts rushed to claim that somehow putting the blame on Ukraine is a political necessity, regardless of how events actually occurred.

“‘Russia’s task is to facilitate a political isolation of the Ukrainian terrorist regime by pointing out as much as possible to the connection of the terrorist attack with the Ukrainian authorities, and not with ISIS. To this end, it’s necessary not only to demonstrate the terrorists’ connection with Ukraine, but also to destroy the American version of the terrorist attack,’ writes, for example, political analyst Sergey Markov. He also urged ‘not to sow interethnic discord,’ assuring that ‘there will be no purge of migrants’ and the migration policy will remain intact.

“The author [of this article] will not contemplate the problem of the terrorist attack from a politicized point of view, will not search for some secret signs and make some conclusions about the mastermind behind the terrorist attack. However, the fact remains: the terrorist attack was committed by citizens of Tajikistan, who had no command of Russian, were adherents of radical Islam and listened to radical sermons (wherein, some public figures continue to assure that terrorism supposedly ‘has no nationality and religion’).

“‘I listened lessons there… on Telegram, learn lesson. Listened to sermons. The assistant to the preacher texted me,’ said Fariduni Shamsuddin (one of the terrorists) during an interrogation. He gladly accepted the offer to earn money from killing ‘infidels,’ because he ‘was high’ from killing people.

“The Tajiks who killed more than a hundred people were not professionals, judging by the published videos [of the attack], they do not handle arms well, do not control sectors [of the premises] and do not cover each other; they simply shoot left and right. True, they agreed to kill for money, but it is obvious that they enjoyed the ‘process’ per se. And there are several millions of such ‘foreign specialists’ in Russia.

“There are those who will argue, ‘But what point for Islamists to blow up something and kill someone [in Russia]? After all Moscow maintains good relations with the Islamic world: Iran, the UAE, and even with radical Islamist organizations: Hezbollah, Hamas, the Taliban, etc., and [the Kremlin] does not prevent encroaching Islamization [of Russia].’ Wherein, such people forget that the Islamic world is extremely diverse, and radical Islamists, supporters of armed jihad (and not of ‘peaceful Islamization’), have not gone anywhere.

“And ‘flirting’ with radical Islamists like the Taliban and Hamas is extremely dangerous, as today they might be smiling in your face, while grasping a dagger behind their backs, but tomorrow they may change their stance. The well-known Russian researcher of Islam, Igor Dobaev in his book ‘Islamic Radicalism: Genesis, Evolution, Practice’ rightly pointed out the following: ‘As a rule, stopping terrorist activities is a forced step dictated by the fear of repressions from the authorities. The Islamists’ compliance with generally accepted in modern conditions rules of the political game, is perceived by them only as a temporary truce with the ‘infidels’ represented by the official authorities. The prerequisite for such a truce, according to the traditional Islamic interpretation of law, is the temporary (military or political) weakness of ‘the faithful.’ Once strength is restored, the fight against the ‘infidels’ should be continued.’

“Uncontrolled Migration Facilitates An Ideal Recruiting Base For Terrorists

“Mass migration from Central Asian states, uncontrolled granting of [the Russian] citizenship, unregistered mosques, propaganda of radical Islam (which no one, actually, fights against) – this is the ‘soil,’ in which the ‘mushrooms’ of terrorism and Islamic extremism grow.

“An entire network of Islamist groups operates in Russia, wherein not only in [Russia’s] republics with predominantly Muslim population, but also in ‘Islamic enclaves’ of non-Muslim regions of the country, clustered around mosques (sometimes unregistered) which pop up in these territories. These Islamist network structures prepare the ground for devising more ambitious plans to reformat the country’s political field.

“Leaders of some Muslim organizations openly engage in heavy criticism of the activities of law enforcement agencies and publicly support the today’s migration policy, advocating the mass importation of their fellow believers from Central Asia. According to some experts, a sustainable and influential ‘Islamist lobby’ has developed in Russia. Taking advantage of this, the Salafist wing of Muslims has tried out in different regions a new format for them: authorized rallies, mobilizing their supporters there.

“Enjoying such network organizations, the terrorists face no problems in recruiting supporters. Public activist Roman Yuneman, rightly points out: ‘No matter who was behind the organization of the terrorist attack, whether it was HUR [Ukrainian intelligence][4] or not, it is important to remember: mass uncontrolled migration facilitates an ideal recruiting base for terrorists, criminals, or any intelligence services. Diasporas and illegal employment services, hostels and ‘rubber apartments,’[5] markets, ethnic MMA clubs and gyms, hidden prayer rooms and clandestine mosques – all this grey infrastructure with its closed economy and corrupt connections will endlessly generate recruits for organized crime and terrorist structures. And then such people can be recruited by HUR, banned ISIS, you name it… [It is necessary] to destroy the recruitment base via institutional measures: radical restriction of the inflow of migrants, visa regime for the rest [who wishes to enter the country], employer must be responsible [for his migrant employees], tougher penalties for fictitious residence permits and ‘rubber apartments,’ zero tolerance regime [toward migrants].’

“In turn, political analyst Nikolai Sevostyanov notes that there are hundreds of thousands of people who have obtained Russian citizenship circumventing the law by ‘negotiating [the price of such venture]’ at closed migrant chat rooms, where any issue can be dealt with. Migration, according to the analyst, ‘has turned into a pernicious mold eating away at the state.’

“‘Migration has become a threat to the state per se. There is a full-fledged army stationed in our cities, living by its own rules, in its own parallel world, beyond the reach of Russian laws, which is overflown with Wahhabi dogma and hatred of the indigenous population…

“The first thing to do: to conduct a comprehensive audit of passports issued over the recent years (at least over eight last years), and revoke citizenship from those who obtained it with violations. The second thing – is to declare a temporary moratorium on granting citizenship to those Central Asians, who do not belong to the indigenous peoples of Russia. The third – is to implement a ‘zero-tolerance’ regime in relation to any criminals among naturalized citizens. And the fourth thing to do is to eliminate organizing structures that contribute to the formation of judicial, security and economic mechanisms parallel to the state [ones],’ said Sevostyanov.

“As a matter of fact, labor migration to Russia is difficult to analyze logically, since, as political scientist Yuri Baranchik noted, it looks less like labor migration and more like barbarian invasions.[6]

“Wherein, it does not seem that officials are planning to change anything. Migration policy lobbyists, who immediately after the terrorist attack began propagated narratives via some media outlets (in particular, via ‘Kommersant’ newspaper) that the terrorists were not natives of Central Asia, but ‘Slavs with false beards,’ are now dispersing other narratives. [The latter claim] that those who advocate changes in migration policy are ‘agents of enemy intelligence services,’ ‘racists,’ ‘inciters of ethnic hatred,’ etc.

“Naturally, there are those who actively advocate for an immediate toughening of migration policy, for example, State Duma deputies Mikhail Matveev and Mikhail Sheremet. The latter proposed to limit the entry of migrants into Russia, at least for the duration of the special military operation [the war in Ukraine]. Alas, in essence, this is a lone voice in the wilderness.

“Be that as it may, without changes in migration policy, the threat of new terrorist attacks will continue to remain high, because Islamic radicalism in Russia enjoys ‘fertile soil.’

“If now the ‘preachers’ can easily find, among their supporters, those who are ready to kill people in the ‘Crocus City Hall’ venue in Krasnogorsk, then what will happen if they call for even more atrocious actions?”

[1] Topwar.ru/239011-propovednika-slushal-terakt-v-krokus-siti-holl-kak-rezultat-provalnoj-migracionnoj-politiki.html, March 27, 2024.

[2] Topwar.ru/index.php?do=go&url=aHR0cHM6Ly90b3B3YXIucnUvMjI4MjMxLXZzZW1pcm55ai1kemhpaGFkLXVncm96YS1uZS10b2xrby1ldnJvcGUtaS1penJhaWxqdS1uby1pLXJvc3NpaS5odG1s)

[3] The syntax of the sentences is broken due to the detainees’ poor knowledge of the Russian language.

[4] Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine (HUR)

[5] “Rubber apartments” is a colloquial term for a residence used to register migrants en masse. A single such apartment building can “host” thousands of migrant workers.

[6] The author refers to the so-called migration period, or barbarian invasion of the Roman Empire 100-500 CE.

EDITORS NOTE: This MEMRI column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

VIDEO: Texas Steps in, Arrests 214 Migrant Rioters Scheduled for Release by DHS

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Last week, the State of Texas arrested and took custody of 214 migrants who staged a riot at the border near El Paso on March 21. They have now been charged with rioting and are in state custody, where they will be picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and put into court proceedings.

The riot, which ironically unfolded while a Congressional committee held a hearing on the Biden Administration’s abuse of our immigration laws, indeed appeared to be a literal invasion of illegal aliens. In a matter of minutes, the illegal migrants tore down fencing and stormed past Texas National Guard troops deployed to back up U.S. Border Patrol. Video of riot was captured by a crew from the New York Post, and the following day, it blanketed the airwaves. It captivated audiences, showing the reality of what law enforcement officers face on a daily basis and proving that the chaos and crisis along the nation’s border has not waded.

According to the New York Post, the migrants were initially taken into Border Patrol custody, but then were swiftly processed and scheduled for release, despite the violence, property damage, and assaults perpetrated on National Guard troops. Still, officials were able to gather information about how the riot unfolded. According to the Post:

“While in federal custody, a “cooperating migrant” identified Venezuelan national Gabriel Enrique Angarita Carrasquero, 22, to border agents as an “instigator” among the group that stormed the border…The informant said “he witnessed Angarita Carrasquero use [a] rope to pull the gate down which subsequently led to the migrant rush into the United States bypassing National Guard. The mole also pointed to Venezuelan migrant Juan Jose Colorado Gutierrez, 35, as another “one of the instigators” who used “wire cutters or bolt cutters to cut the barbed wire” on the US side of the border.”

In response, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) stepped in and arrested 214 of the aliens, who were still in federal custody at the El Paso jail, and charged them with rioting. Texas Governor Greg Abbott also reinstalled razor wire and deployed 200 additional National Guard soldiers from the Texas Tactical Border Force along the U.S.-Mexico border to intercept illegal aliens attempting to enter in the El Paso area.

Because the state court set the aliens’ bond hearing for Easter Sunday (March 31), the El Paso District Attorney requested that the hearings be postponed for several days.  However, the local magistrate judge denied the request and ordered 150 of the migrants to be released.

Still, none of the aliens have actually been released from custody.  At the same time, however, not all of the aliens remain in state custody. It appears by the time the magistrate judge ordered the migrants’ release, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had lodged detainers against all of them and assumed custody of the 150 released. In a statement issued to Houston Public Media regarding the migrant rioters, ICE said, it “will lodge an immigration detainer, and once the individual has gone through the judicial process and completed a sentence, or is otherwise released from state or local custody, that individual will be returned to the custody of [Enforcement and Removal Operations] to await a final immigration status determination. Custody status will continue to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis as the individuals go through the immigration process.”

Last Wednesday, Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) confirmed that all the migrants involved in the March 21 riot were being held until ICE could assume custody of them. It also announced that the state had charged nine of the aliens with felony rioting charges (and of those, seven were in state custody). The migrants hailed from various countries, including Venezuela, Guatemala, Ecuador, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador.

President Biden and the Secretary of Homeland Security did not provide comment after the rioting. However, White House press secretary Karine Jean Pierre blamed Republicans and Governor Abbott for the chaos, stating, “The razor wire, that’s [Abbott]. The National Guard, that’s him. The Border Patrol agents still did their job. They got in the way, like the governor’s plans got in the way.” She said the House of Representatives has failed to pass the Senate proposal and blamed the Governor for politicizing the issue.

El Paso has been a major crossing point for illegal migrants. In fact, the city’s mayor has issued several disaster declarations in the wake of the current border crisis. The most recent declaration from March 25 stated that “the City is faced with the imminent threat of widespread injury or loss of life resulting from a surge in transient migrants traveling to the region.” In Fiscal Year 2023, the El Paso sector had 482,095 land border encounters and over 174,000 community releases.

These disaster declarations undermine the so-called progress Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas claims to have made in the region. In January 2023, Secretary Mayorkas said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had surged resources in El Paso by deploying 100 additional Border Patrol agents and additional officers to process illegal aliens for entry. He also touted the use of taxpayer dollars to surge emergency food and shelter funding for the area. In fiscal year 2023, several organizations in El Paso received FEMA funding to support the illegal alien population in the area.

Funding provided by Department of Homeland Security to El Paso organizations via the Shelter and Services Program for Fiscal Year 2023. Congress just provided $650 million more for the program in the Fiscal Year 2024 spending bill.

It remains to be seen what will ultimately happen with the El Paso rioters.  ICE has said it will assume custody of all of the illegal aliens involved, but ICE may not deport them. Indeed, it could still release them on bond. Unfortunately, the entire incident sends the message to migrants around the world is that stepping foot on U.S. soil is almost certain to lead to freedom under the Biden Administration. Meanwhile, El Paso and other border communities will continue to bear the brunt of the crisis.

AUTHOR

FAIR Staff

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At Houston, Texas Al-Quds Day Rally Speakers Praise October 7 Hamas Attack, Martyrdom, And Jihad; Add: Hizbullah Leader Nasrallah Highlighted That Martyrdom Is Good, A Goal; Our Leader Khamenei Said That The Cancerous Tumor Of Zionism Will Be Destroyed

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EDITORS NOTE: This FAIR report is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

A Warning to Ali Khamenei

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Netanyahu put Iran on his 4-point list of challenges in his inaugural speech. A list of the mullahs’ deeds is a moral call to action.

It is worse than appeasement to negotiate a “deal” with the Islamic theocrats in occupied Iran because any deal struck with these mullahs is only another ruse for them to further their plans. The UN resolutions are nothing more than pieces of paper good for lighting fires. They can pass them all they want, the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, proclaims belligerently.

These Islamists go by their 1400-year-old charter of Allah, the Qur’an, the same charter that they hold in one hand while slashing the throat of an innocent infidel and yelling joyously “Allah is the greatest” throughout.

To the misguided “Supreme Guide,” mullah, Ali Khamenei of Iran, a few words are in order.

The civilized Iranians, descendants of Cyrus the Great, find you, Mullah Ali Khamenei, and your cabal of Islamists guilty of heinous crimes. A partial list of charges is given below.

Domestically

You do not represent the Iranian people.

You are an Islamist terrorist.

You are a usurper of power.

You are guilty of transforming a noble nation into a world pariah.• You are denying and violating a long-suffering people all its human rights.

You are guilty of beating, imprisoning, torturing and murdering women who braved participating in a peaceful demonstration and pleading for equal family rights, and removing a compulsory Hijab.

You systematically beat, rape, imprison, and torture all manner of citizens, from school teachers to students to union workers, for daring to raise their voices against the plight to which you have subjected them.

You savagely beat and haul to your dungeons of torture and death over tens of thousands of teachers who had gathered in front of the parliament requesting nothing more than their back pay and living wages.

In late 2009 and 2022, you ordered the Basij forces, revolutionary guards, plain-clothed and government forces to massacre thousands of innocent people in a mass popular uprising.

You direct systematic genocidal measures against all non-Shi’a religious minorities in Kurdistan and the Baha’is as a prime target, and genocidal actions against political groups; support of international terrorism; demolition of religious sites and cemeteries; for rape, torture, and summary execution of prisoners of conscience; forgery of documents, acts of blackmail and fraud, and much more.

You arrest some Christians; who even your Quran calls “People of the Book,” for observing Christmas.

You implement barbaric practices of stoning, hanging and amputations for those who are convicted of crimes in your kangaroo courts without due process. You even imprison those few lawyers who rise in the defense of the innocent.

You plunder, mismanage and dole out Iran’s national wealth with the result that the great majority of the people are living in poverty. Iranian women are forced into prostitution to survive or simply sold as sex slaves in Persian Gulf states.

Your fascist misrule of nearly three decades has driven millions of Iran’s best children to the four corners of the world. Hundreds of thousands of educated Iranians are compelled to continue the exodus, depriving Iran of sorely needed talents at home.

You spend a fortune on the nuclear program that you claim is only aimed for peaceful purposes, while turning Iran into little more than a gas station nation, with its precious oil wealth squandered and its facilities on the verge of collapse through neglect.

You have created a suffocating social atmosphere that has driven masses of people to the use of hard drugs as a way of numbing their pain.

Internationally

You look far and wide to support any and all terrorists. Your delusional theology mandates the creation of horrific conditions in the world so that your Hidden Imam is compelled to appear and establish his rule.

You spare no efforts at sabotaging any settlement between the Palestinian Arabs and Israelis.

You arm and train all Palestinian Arab terror factions such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and any and all that come.

You direct similar criminal schemes on your eastern flank, in Afghanistan. You consider any democratic system as the enemy of Islamofascism, and rightfully so.

You work ceaselessly, expand Iran’s stolen funds, and do all you can in support of your Shi’a co-fascists Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Your hands are dripping with the blood of thousands of Iraqis, victims of your bloodthirsty kin mercenaries aiming to kill a budding democracy in Iraq next door.

You supplied your mercenaries with armor-piercing projectiles for killing and maiming the coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Your cowardly killing by proxy, using these roadside-planted bombs, has taken the lives of hundreds of Americans.

You interpreted the highly-subdued reactions of the coalition to your savage actions as indications of weakness. So, you found it in yourself to venture into direct confrontation by capturing lightly armed British sailors and marines in Iraqi waters.

You are responsible for helping Syrian forces slaughter seekers of freedom.

You directly orchestrated an attack on the British embassy in Tehran last month and called the action of your “thugs,” “student protests.”

You plotted to assassinate the Saudi ambassador, Adel al-Jubeir, on US soil.

Time is of the essence; the clock is ticking and the window is closing on the Iranian people. Diplomacy cannot be open-ended.

To misguided advocates of negotiation with the devil (mullahs), beware:

The mullahs are on an Allah-mandated mission. They are intoxicated with petrodollars and aim to settle for nothing less than complete domination of the world under the Islamic Ummah. The pressures against them, led by the vanguard of freedom, university students and notable women are gathering more force.

The rule of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) is crumbling. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei must be held accountable and tried in the international court for crimes against humanity.

Reposted with permission from Granite Grok.

©2024. Amil Imani. All rights reserved.

Americans Skipping Meals To Afford Housing Under Biden: POLL

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A major real estate company released a survey on Friday which found that renters and homeowners are significantly reducing their quality of life to afford housing under President Joe Biden.

Nearly one in five homeowners and renters reported skipping meals to afford housing in Biden’s economy, according to a new survey conducted by Redfin. The median asking rental price increased from less than $1,700 when Biden took office in January 2021 to nearly $2,000 as of February, according to Redfin’s data.

Americans made other sacrifices to stay in their homes, with 20.7% reporting working more hours, 20.6% saying they have sold their belongings, more than one in six having dipped into retirement savings and 15.6% reporting that they’re putting off medical care to afford housing payments.

As of February, the median household earned $30,000 less than it would need to afford the median home in the United States, according to Redfin. When Biden took office in 2021, the median household earned thousands more than would be required to afford the median home.

The median home in the United States cost $417,700 as of the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Some states, like California, are even more expensive, with the median costing $675,667 as of January, according to Zillow.

In May 2022, the Biden administration announced an action plan intended to increase the supply of housing and reduce the burden of rent on Americans.

As interest rates remain high and the nation faces a shortage of construction workers, however, the number of new homes being built declined between 2022 and 2023, according to Census Bureau data.

Thousands of construction workers are tied up in green transportation projects pushed by the Biden administration.

Experts are concerned that Biden’s spending, particularly his recent proposed budget, may increase inflation, further increasing the cost of living for Americans.

As of April 6, an average of 57.8% of Americans disapproved of Biden’s handling of the economy, according to ReaClear’s aggregation of survey data. By contrast, 68% of Americans recall the economy being better under former President Donald Trump, according to a poll released by CBS News in March.

The White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

AUTHOR

ROBERT SCHMAD

Contributor.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

REPORT: Apple Initiates First Major Post-Pandemic Layoffs

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Apple is laying off over 600 employees in California, ABC News reported Friday.

Apple is initiating its first significant job reduction since the pandemic, letting go of over 600 employees in California, according to ABC News. This move is part of a wider trend of downsizing within the tech sector. The tech giant reportedly informed 614 workers across several locations March 28 that they would be laid off by May 27, as disclosed in documents filed with regional authorities, ABC News stated.

These layoffs impact eight offices in Santa Clara Valley, although specific departments or projects affected remain unspecified. Apple’s headquarters is located in California, and had previously avoided the workforce reductions seen by its competitors over the last two years, the outlet reported. Despite a hiring boom during the COVID-19 pandemic driven by increased online activity, the slowdown in growth has led many in the tech industry, including Apple, to reassess and trim their operational costs. 

A report shows Apple has about 161,000 employees, even with the job cuts, according to ABC News. This move by Apple follows a trend of layoffs at other big tech firms. Amazon announced more layoffs in its AWS cloud division. Companies like Electronic Arts, Sony’s PlayStation, Cisco Systems, and Snapchat’s parent company, Snap, also reported significant job reductions, ABC News reported.

AUTHOR

MARIANE ANGELA

Contributor.

RELATED ARTICLE: Jon Stewart Claims Apple Censored His Show Over Interview With Biden Official Cracking Down On Big Tech

Biden’s Electric Vehicle ‘Mandate’ Might Just Be A Surprise Gift To China

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The Biden administration has put in place regulations that would require many Americans to adopt electric vehicles (EV) in the coming years despite U.S. companies struggling to produce the products, leading some experts to wonder if vehicles from China will be needed to meet current goals.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized emission standards in late March for light-duty vehicles that would effectively require 67% of new models sold to be electric or hybrid by the end of 2032 in hopes of speeding up an EV transition to reduce carbon emissions. The regulations are in spite of sluggish American EV demand that has led to both concerning losses and slowdowns in production for automakers, with both Tesla and Rivian missing production expectations for the first quarter of 2024.

China’s EV industry could fill the gap left by the lagging U.S. market, experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

“China’s EV production would pose no risk to American consumers or U.S. geopolitical security if we had a free market allowing U.S. companies to concentrate on their comparative advantage in pickups, SUVs, and minivans, and allowing consumers to decide which types of vehicles best meet their needs,” Marlo Lewis, senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, told the DCNF. “EV mandates, however, create a captive market for EV producers, and China is today the world’s top EV producer.”

BYD, China’s top EV maker, has experienced a meteoric rise in recent years, with yearly profits growing 80.72% year-over-year in 2023 amid global expansion, but has so far been priced out of the American market due to current restrictions. EVs and hybrids made up 30% of all Chinese car sales during the first 11 months of 2023.

China also has broad command over the current EV supply chain due to its control over minerals needed to build batteries required for electric vehicles. The country currently controls 87% of the world’s mineral refining capacity, with U.S. attempts to increase its own capacity not yet yielding sufficient results.

The Biden administration has sought to incentivize the purchase and manufacturing of certain American EV models with a $7,500 tax credit in an effort to drive down costs for consumers, conditioning the subsidy on manufacturers not using a certain level of components from foreign entities of concern, like China. Despite incentives and mandates, sales for new EVs in the U.S. grew only 2.7% in the first quarter, below the 5% that sales for all new vehicles grew, leading to a drop in auto market share to 7.1% for EVs.

Automakers, including Bentley, GM, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Honda, have scaled back their previous EV goals as consumers decline to buy the product.

“So, if U.S. manufacturers are forced to keep making high-priced EVs, their market share could contract while BYD’s increases,” Lewis told the DCNF. “Global auto industry leadership would shift from the United States to China. California and EPA’s EV campaign could end up helping fulfill China’s ambition to be the world’s leading superpower.”

The Biden administration has also put forward restrictions on heavy-duty vehicles, like trucks, that effectively require at least 25% of new long-haul trucks and 40% of all new medium-sized trucks to be electric or zero-emission by 2032.

Several American auto manufacturers have posted huge losses due to EV development and sales, including Ford, which lost $4.7 billion on EVs in 2023, losing nearly $65,000 on each EV that it sold. General Motors lost $1.7 billion in just the fourth quarter of 2023, despite strong profits overall.

“Americans rely on too many critical goods and raw materials from China, which is why we need to ‘strategically decouple’ from CCP supply chains as soon as practicable,” Adam Savit, director of the China Policy Initiative at the American First Policy Institute, told the DCNF. “That goes most especially for critical high-tech and defense needs, such as semiconductors, AI, quantum computing, and rare earth elements. U.S. policymakers have made us increasingly dependent on EVs for transportation, so as long as such policies are in place, we must decouple from CCP EV supply chains as well.”

Savit pointed to the current tariffs on EVs as the reason Chinese EV makers have been unable to break into the U.S. market and are unlikely to if current trade restrictions were to remain the same. The Trump administration put in place a 25% import tax on EVs, which Biden has so far kept in place.

BYD has sought to infiltrate the American market through possibly building EV plants in Mexico, which, under current restrictions, could skirt around tariffs, delivering EVs that could compete with even gas-powered vehicles in terms of price to American buyers. Chinese EVs are also often of lesser quality, have access to cheaper materials and can utilize less expensive labor.

“Even American-made EVs are produced with a lot of Chinese inputs, including critical minerals,” Savit told the DCNF. “Many EV-related CCP supply chains are tied to human rights abuses and forced labor in Xinjiang.”

Former President Trump, in a campaign speech in mid-March, called for putting a 100% tariff on every single car manufactured outside the U.S., which would severely hamper China’s ability to sell in the country, while also reducing competition for domestic manufacturers, according to CNN.

Chinese EVs have already made large headwinds in the European market, with around 19.4% of EVs sold on the continent in 2023 being made in China, which is expected to rise to 25% by the end of 2024, according to an analysis from the European Federation for Transportation and Environment. The European Union announced in September 2023 that it had launched an investigation over whether to impose punitive tariffs on Chinese EVs due to artificially cheap prices from state subsidies, according to Reuters.

The White House did not respond to a request to comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

AUTHOR

WILL KESSLER

Contributor.

RELATED ARTICLE:

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

QUEERS FOR PALESTINE UPDATE: Hamas Executed Senior Member on Accusations that He was Homosexual

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Queers For Palestine hardest hit.

Actually, they’ll take no notice, and carry on with their deluded nonsense.

Hamas Files Found by Israel in Gaza Detail Execution of Senior Member Accused of Being Gay

by Jack Khoury and Yaniv Kubovich, Haaretz, April 3, 2024 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Mahmoud Ishtiwi was executed in 2016, and Hamas has tried to keep the affair quiet ever since. The Israeli military has found documents in a Gaza tunnel recording his ordeal and showing that Hamas continued to torture members believed to be gay

Hamas documents that Israel recently found in Gaza reveal the details behind the execution of a senior official in the organization because he was believed to be gay….

Continue reading.

AUTHOR

ROBERT SPENCER

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Dearborn: Al-Quds Day rallygoers scream ‘Death to America,’ speaker says U.S. one of world’s ‘rottenest countries’

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Why are they here? “Fight them until persecution is no more and religion is all for Allah.” (Qur’an 8:39) That is, to conquer and Islamize. And no one dares say a thing about it, because to do so would be “Islamophobic.”

At International Al-Quds Day Rally in Dearborn, Michigan Protesters Chant ‘Death to America!’; Speakers at the Rally: America Is One of the ‘Rottenest Countries’ on Earth; Israel Is ISIS, Nazis, a Cancer

MEMRI, April 5, 2024:

At an International Al-Quds Day rally in Dearborn, Michigan, held on April 5, 2024 and streamed live on Dearborn.org on Facebook, protesters chanted: “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!” Michigan activist, who is affiliated with the Hadi Institute, Tarek Bazzi said that it is not “Genocide Joe” that has to go, referring to President Biden, but it is the entire system of the United States “that has to go.” He Quoted Malcolm X, saying: “We live in one of the rottenest countries that has ever existed on this earth.”

Bazzi added that “death to Israel” has become the “most logical chant shouted across the world today.” Michigan Imam Usama Abdulghani, who is also affiliated with the Hadi Institute, said that the founder of the Islamic Revolution Imam Khomeini established the International Al-Quds Day because he realized that Israel was a “cancer” and an “evil settler colonialist project.”

He said that the “people of conscience” recognize that Israel is ISIS, Nazis, and fascists.

At the end of the rally, Tarek Bazzi encouraged a young child to lead the chant: “Free Palestine! From the River to the Sea Palestine will be free!”

AUTHOR

ROBERT SPENCER

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Biden’s Open Border Policy Is Compromising our National Security

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Texas shares approximately half of the 1,954-mile U.S.-Mexican border, making it a primary entry point for illegal immigrants. In 2011, the U.S. border patrol apprehended 125,821 illegal immigrants in Texas alone. This high volume of illegal immigration presents significant challenges to Texas and the entire U.S., including economic, social, and security concerns.

Economic Impact: The influx of undocumented immigrants can strain public resources and social services, leading to potential economic challenges. It is essential to find a balance between humanitarian concerns and fiscal responsibility. Economically, illegal immigrants impose a significant burden on the state’s resources. They account for about 14% of the students in Texas public schools when U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants are included, costing the state around $3.75 billion annually. Furthermore, illegal immigrants are more likely to live in poverty, with about 58% taking advantage of welfare programs, which cost the state an additional $803.3 million annually.

National Security Threat: Open borders can be exploited by criminal organizations, smugglers, and potential terrorists. Ensuring national security becomes a formidable task in such a scenario. From a security perspective, the long Texas-Mexico border requires significant resources to secure, including workforce, equipment, technology, and infrastructure. The overall budget for all agencies and operating costs in 2011 was $56.3 billion. Despite these efforts, illegal immigration continues to be a significant issue.

Rule of Law: The rule of law is fundamental to the stability and functioning of any society. Ignoring illegal immigration can undermine the integrity of legal immigration processes and overall societal trust. The open border policy rewards those who break the law by entering the country illegally, undermining the efforts of those who seek to immigrate legally. Moreover, it threatens national security, as it may allow criminals and potentially dangerous individuals to enter the country undetected.

Public Health: Health concerns, especially during pandemics, are exacerbated by unchecked immigration. It is vital to have measures to ensure the health and safety of the incoming immigrants and the resident population.

Social Cohesion: Large-scale, unregulated immigration can strain social cohesion, as it may lead to cultural clashes and increased polarization within society. Socially, the rapid growth of the Latino population in Texas, primarily due to illegal immigration, threatens to influence state politics and immigration policies. This demographic shift could lead to policies enabling unlawful immigration, exacerbating its associated issues.

Addressing illegals

Immigration and open border issues require a multifaceted approach. It involves ensuring border security, reforming immigration laws, and creating stricter laws for immigrants to enter the country. Maintaining border security is essential to prevent criminal activities and ensure national security. Investment in advanced technology and personnel can be part of the solution.

It should be different from what the Biden administration has done. For instance, it has expanded the Title 42 policy that allows for increased expulsion of migrants while also granting humanitarian parole to 30,000 people from each country monthly, as long as they apply for asylum legally. Under President Trump, the plan required adult asylum seekers to use an app to book a meeting with U.S. officials or first claim asylum in another country before reaching the U.S. Failure to comply would make migrants ineligible if they subsequently go the border.

The issue of illegal immigration and open borders in Texas and the United States has become challenging. Under President Trump, there was a simple solution: Close the Borders!

The circumstances of their arrival are intriguing in that unlike other illegal aliens, most OTMs  (other than Mexicans) promptly turned themselves in. Why is it not known for sure? There can be no doubt, however, that the scheme has given Mexican drug cartels and—potentially—terrorists a promising opportunity to simply step over the invisible line that is our border undetected by border tax adjustments or BTAs because the agents processing the new arrivals could not handle their posts.

To most Americans, the perception has long been that most of those illegally crossing our southern border are Mexicans, people coming here in search of work, looking to join family or a gang. While that may have been the case, it is no longer supported by the latest immigration numbers today. According to a study done by Pew Research, detention of illegal Mexican aliens is at an all-time low. The primary reasons cited for the reversal are current mixed economic conditions, fewer job opportunities in the U.S., increases in deportations, and better border enforcement.  However, the number of illegal aliens has not diminished. As Mexicans have opted to stay home, children from Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras have quickly filled the vacuum. Numerous sources indicate that President Obama’s and President Biden’s executive actions have helped spur these children to make the dangerous journey through Mexico and ultimately up to our border.

The question should be asked is if their parents are poor, how can they come up with as much as $10,000 to have coyotes (people paid by cartels to smuggle drugs and humans across borders) or others bring their child up to the Rio Grande, the natural boundary flowing between Mexico from the U.S. No sources could be found to suggest that terror groups are funding the trips, but one must wonder who is.

That would be understandable if they were arriving in a group of five. But they are coming in droves and in the same timeframe. There is no question that the children are diverting BPAs from covering their guard posts so illegal border crossers, in particular members of the Mexican drug cartels, their “mules” (people hired to smuggle drugs into the U.S.), as well as gang members and Special Interest Aliens (SIA) can cross the border far more quickly. SIAs are of considerable concern to our intelligence and law enforcement agencies for obvious reasons. Stories are appearing with greater frequency on various news websites and blogs about how radical Islamists are being stopped as they try to enter the country.

In short:  active cells could attack critical electric-grid substations, the failure of which could compromise or cripple our entire electric infrastructure. Other obvious threats are car bombs, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) placed on busy highways or train tracks, and other devastating attacks. We must close our borders now.

©2024. Amil Imani. All rights reserved.

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For Elon Musk and His Disciples, Mars Is Heaven

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Auguste Meyrat: The Tesla founder is one of the richest and most celebrated men in the world, yet he also has to be one of the loneliest and saddest, bereft of community, meaning, and love.

In terms of revolutionizing the world and pushing humanity forward, Elon Musk has easily been one of the most consequential figures in the last decade. Not only did he make electric vehicles profitable, but he somehow also did the same with rocket science. At the moment, Musk is busy developing self-driving cars, neural transmitters, and high-functioning androids.

Thus, it is right and just that an acclaimed biographer like Walter Isaacson tells the Musk story. The example of a self-made visionary overcoming obstacles is nothing short of inspiring. More importantly, his experience as a member of Generation X (those between 45 and 60) is representative of many in his age group.

Naturally, the biography emphasizes Musk’s technical genius and indomitable will. At so many junctures in his life, Musk drives both himself and his employees to do amazing things, like produce thousands of Teslas in an impossibly short timeframe or design a reusable rocket that can safely transport astronauts to the international space station.

These great feats, however, often come at great human cost, with Musk and his crew often hitting the breaking points of sanity and emotional stability. In such moments, Musk goes into “demon mode,” brutally criticizing and firing employees, denouncing and mocking the competition, and desperately looking to distract himself from a deep internal darkness (usually through work).

Although Musk and his biographer will attribute these manic episodes to his undiagnosed Aspergers Syndrome or his commitment to greatness, a Christian would rightly conclude that almost all of his personal turmoil stems from the absence of a spiritual life.

Musk is one of the richest and most celebrated men in the world, yet he also has to be one of the loneliest and saddest, bereft of community, meaning, and love. At one point, he told admirers: “I’d be careful what you wish for. I’m not sure how many people would actually like to be me. The amount I torture myself is next level, frankly.”

Like many of his generation, Musk, 52, grew up in a broken household. He had a callous, emotionally abusive father and a vain, passive mother. Inevitably, they divorced as their children reached adolescence. Musk technically attended a Christian school in South Africa, but his family never went to church. Instead of learning how to pray and cultivate virtue, he learned how to fight and write programs. Upon experiencing “existential depression” as a teenager, he found solace in reading The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and playing video games.

This background made him tough, resourceful, and well-positioned to thrive in America in the 90s and 00s, but it also made him temperamental and restless. Again, like many in his generation, he filled the hole in his heart with an addiction to work and video games. This led him to make his first fortune with Zip2, then another with PayPal, then another with SpaceX, and then another with Tesla. Each time, he would launch a project “surge,” mandating long hours, maximizing efficiency, berating employees, and constantly taking risks.

Rather than being motivated by fame or fortune, Musk was driven by something much greater: faith. Except that the faith he embraced was the nebulous idea of human “progress,” not organized religion. Judging from his comments, his idea of heaven includes cyborg humans, friendly non-woke robots, spaceships going to Mars, and gloriously high birthrates. It’s a vision somewhat like Ray Bradbury’s short story, “Mars Is Heaven!,” but without the tragic ending.

Despite his uncompromising disposition, Musk has disciples who look up to him as a kind of messiah. As one might imagine, those close to Musk have the same outlook on life as he does. They go “hardcore” with their duties, dispense with personal attachments, and attempt to do the impossible. In a revealing exchange between Musk’s longtime employees, one of them admitted, “I was burned out [working at Tesla]. But after nine months [elsewhere], I was bored, so I called my boss and begged him to let me come back. I decided I’d rather be burned out than bored.”

Somewhere up in heaven, Blaise Pascal, who once wrote that “All man’s troubles come from not knowing how to sit still in one room,” is likely shaking his head and sighing at these poor souls. While they have applied their remarkable brainpower to things that Musk proudly declares are “far cooler than whatever is the second coolest,” they have sacrificed the very thing that makes them human in the first place: relationships, contentment, and purpose.

At what point can people finally settle down and rest in their accomplishments? When does the constant striving end? What would have to happen to Elon Musk or his disciples for people to realize that this is not a good model for a rich and fulfilling life? If constant work is the way to heaven, does that mean retirement is the way to hell? Was Ayn Rand right after all that our world is lifted by atlases and fountainheads simply being their brilliant selves?

Put simply, the hustle never stops. Of course, it could be worse. One of Musk’s many envious opponents in business or government could take him down and impose on all of us a drab, regressive police state that opposes human achievement and independence. This possibility has made most conservatives generally supportive of Musk who at least believes in free speech, industry, free markets, and humanity.

It’s important to realize, however, that human life could be made better, yet Musk will not be the world’s savior. The real progress to be made by society does not reside in rockets and robots, but in community and contemplation. True, these goods can coincide and complement one another, but the former should not overtake the latter. Before man was made for work, he was made for love.

Let’s hope that Elon Musk and the many who share his post-Christian faith in technology and themselves will come to realize this before they burn out for good.

You may also enjoy:

Michael Pakaluk The World and Its Lockdowns

Brad Miner Godless Space

AUTHOR

Auguste Meyrat

Auguste Meyrat is an English teacher in the Dallas area. He holds an MA in Humanities and an MEd in Educational Leadership. He is the senior editor of The Everyman and has written essays for The Federalist, The American Thinker, and The American Conservative as well as the Dallas Institute of Humanities and Culture.

EDITORS NOTE: This Catholic Thing column is republished with permission, © 2024 The Catholic Thing. All rights reserved. For reprint rights, write to: info@frinstitute.org. The Catholic Thing is a forum for intelligent Catholic commentary. Opinions expressed by writers are solely their own.

What Do You Know Of the World’s Smallest Bible?

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The Jerusalem Nano Bible is an extraordinary creation that has etched its name into the annals of record-breaking achievements.

Here are the fascinating details:

What Is It?
The Jerusalem Nano Bible is the world’s smallest Bible. It’s a remarkable fusion of faith and cutting-edge technology. This minuscule Bible contains every single dot, comma, chapter, and verse from either the New Testament or the Old Hebrew Bible. The entire text is printed on a 5mm by 5mm silicon chip—a feat that defies the limits of size.

How Was It Made?
The Israeli company behind this marvel collaborated with TowerJazz Semiconductor to develop the nanotechnology. They managed to copy the entire Bible onto these tiny chips, which can then be mounted onto precious metals and jewelry. Imagine wearing a pendant, watch, bracelet, or locket that carries the complete New Testament or the Hebrew Bible!

Guinness World Record Nomination:
The Nano New Testament has been nominated for the Guinness Book of Records as the World’s Smallest Bible. Its founder, Ami Bentov, envisioned a product that would offer comfort across faiths, bridging the gap between prayers for peace and the harsh realities of war and conflict. Each chip comes with a certificate of verification, ensuring its authenticity.

Technical Marvel:
Electron microscopes have verified the presence of the Hebrew and Greek texts on these chips. To put the scale in perspective, one nanometer is equivalent to one billionth of a meter—a size so minute it’s hard to fathom. However, despite its microscopic dimensions, the Jerusalem Nano Bible cannot be connected to the internet or read using electronic devices.

In summary, this nano-sized Bible is a testament to human ingenuity, faith, and the convergence of ancient wisdom with modern technology.

EDITORS NOTE: This NEWSRAEL Editor column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

IDF Withdraws All Troops from Southern Gaza

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Only one brigade remains in the Strip; terrorists in Khan Yunis fire rocket barrage at Israeli towns.

The Israel Defense Forces has withdrawn all ground troops from the southern Gaza Strip, with only one brigade remaining in the coastal enclave, according to reports on Sunday.

This comes after four months of fighting in the former Hamas stronghold of Khan Yunis and six months since the start of the war.

According to IDF sources on Sunday, the IDF’s 98th Division has concluded its mission in Khan Yunis. The division left the Gaza Strip to recuperate and prepare for future operations. A significant force led by the 162nd Division and the division’s Nahal Brigade continues to operate in the Gaza Strip, and will preserve the IDF’s freedom of action and its ability to conduct precise intelligence-based operations, the sources said.

The move also comes after last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once again reiterated that the IDF would defeat Hamas by entering the last terrorist stronghold of Rafah, south of Khan Yunis.

“There is no victory without entering Rafah; there is no victory without destroying the Hamas battalions there,” said Netanyahu in a primetime address, adding that the operation “will take time, but it will happen.”

The premier once again said that only a combination of military pressure and tough negotiations would bring about the release of the remaining 133 hostages taken to Gaza by Palestinian terrorists on Oct. 7.

Meanwhile, early on Sunday afternoon, red alert warning sirens sounded across parts of southern Israel as Hamas fired a rocket barrage at Israeli towns east of Khan Yunis.

Color Red alerts were activated in the “Gaza Envelope” moshavim of Ami’oz, Mivtahim, Ohad, Sde Nitzan, Talmei Eliyahu and Yesha, and the community settlement of Tzohar.

Terrorists in Khan Yunis fired four rockets towards towns in Israel’s Eshkol region, hours after the IDF withdrew from the Gazan city. The Iron Dome aerial defense system intercepted two of the rockets.

According to the reports on Sunday, the last brigade remaining in the Strip is the Nahal infantry unit, which is there to secure the Netzarim Corridor that splits the Gazan north and south, enabling the IDF to control movements in the Strip. It crosses the Strip from the Be’eri area in southern Israel to the Mediterranean coast.

The Netzarim Corridor prevents Gazans from returning to the north of the Strip and allows for humanitarian aid to enter directly into northern Gaza.

Four Israel Defense Forces commandoes were killed in action in southern Gaza on Saturday, the IDF announced on Sunday. Terrorists emerged from a tunnel in Khan Yunis and ambushed the soldiers at close range, the army said.

The attack raised the military’s death toll to 604 on all fronts since the war started. Their deaths bring the number of soldiers slain since the start of Israeli ground operations in Gaza on Oct. 27 to 260.

The IDF said on Saturday that it had destroyed three Hamas attack tunnels in the Khan Yunis area, some of which reached into Israeli territory. The tunnels had been under intelligence and technological surveillance for several years, according to the military.

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EDITORS NOTE: This JNS – Jewish News Syndicate column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

VIDEO: April 8th Eclipse — Shofar of Warning

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“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a Word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me.”  — Ezekiel 3:17.

“If the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes someone’s life, I will hold the watchman accountable for their blood” — Ezekiel 33:6.

Mentioned below is both a teaching and warning from the Lord carried by Julie Green and Larry Ballard. The eclipse which will occur on Monday, April 8th is a direct message from the Lord to the people of America. As you will learn the Lord is sending a message to America, a nation He personally ordained. It is God’s will to have America turn from our ways and what we have accepted as the new normal, and come into submission (cooperation) with His will. You will hear and actually see what is ruling our nation’s capitol – a shadow government comprised of the demonic; Washington, D.C. has been turned over to Baal.

I am strongly asking you to take some time, step away from your phone and all other possible disruptions listen and learn the message just sent to you.

The Shofar of Warning is sounding!

The Shofar of Warning is sounding!

I am blowing the Shofar of Warning for you to stop and listen to the warning you were just sent.

A Bondservant to the Lord Yeshua.

©2024. Lyle J. Rapacki, Ph.D. All rights reserved.