Pols react to AG Barr’s Letter on Mueller Report celeste.li 2019-03-252 views After over 2,800 subpoenas and 500 search warrants and about 60 professionals working over two years, special counsel Robert Mueller has finished his investigation. Now comes the question of presidential pardons for those convicted, whether democrats will accept the findings, and how much of the report will be made public.
Dunford Considers China Major U.S. Threat celeste.li 2019-03-210 views General Joseph Dunford, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the United States is no longer underestimating China and its intentions. “In the case of China, establish pre-eminence, if not hegemony in the Pacific, and have global influence, and more importantly, attempt to modify the world order as we know it.” Dunford said he was planning to meet with Google, which he has accused of working with China while turning down contracts with the US military. This, he says, is playing into China’s military strategy. [Joseph Dunford, Chair, Joint Chiefs of Staff] “Typically, if a company does business in China, they’re automatically going to be required to have a cell of the Communist Party in that company. And that is going to lead to that IP from that company finding its way to the Chinese military.” American tech innovation has traditionally been a source of US military advantage. While this is still the case he says, it could also become an Achilles heel. Specifically 5G internet “The issue of 5G addresses both vulnerabilities in our systems both due to of how reliant we will be on 5G for the internet of things, our combat systems, but also exchanging info with our allies and partners.” Chinese state-run telecom provider Huawei and its 5G infrastructure has become a US target. The US has told allies that use Huawei, and other Chinese technology, that the US may not be able to share classified information with them. [Mike Pompeo, U.S. Secretary of State] “Huawei and Chinese telecommunications equipment in one’s network, in a nation’s network, presents a real risk that the Chinese government will have access to data that no American wants them to have.” Dunford says he hopes U.S. companies will become dominant in 5G as a matter of U.S. national security. Holly Kellum, NTD News.
Rescue efforts were going on, authorities in the city of Yancheng, in Jiangsu Province, said in a statement. State media said authorities were investigating the cause of the blast.
Video footage and images on state media showed a fire and shattered windows in nearby buildings.
Among the injured were children at a kindergarten near the industrial park, state media said.
Public anger over safety standards has grown in China over industrial accidents ranging from mining disasters to factory fires that have marred three decades of swift economic growth.
The Chinese regime has pledged to improve safety in factories, though explosions and other incidents are still commonplace.
In November, two people were killed and 24 others injured in an explosion at a machinery plant in the northern Chinese province of Jilin. And in the city of Ningbo, two people were killed in a factory explosion.
In August, five people were killed in an explosion at an aluminum plant in the eastern city of Jiangsu.
In July, 19 people died in a blast at a chemical plant in the southwestern province of Sichuan.
New Zealand bans ‘military-style’ guns after mosque attacks celeste.li 2019-03-21340 views father and son who fled the civil war in Syria for “the safest country in the world” were buried before hundreds of mourners Wednesday, March 20, the first funerals for victims of shootings at two mosques in New Zealand that horrified a nation known for being welcoming and diverse.
The funerals of Khalid Mustafa, 44, and Hamza Mustafa, 15, came five days after a white supremacist methodically gunned down 50 worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch—a massacre that he broadcast live on Facebook. Police said Wednesday they believe he was on his way to a third attack when officers ran him off the road and arrested him. They declined to release any more details, citing the active investigation.
During the funerals, Hamza’s high school principal described the student as compassionate and hardworking, and said he was an excellent horse rider who aspired to be a veterinarian.
Those present included Hamza’s younger brother, 13-year-old Zaed, who was wounded in an arm and a leg during the attack. The boy tried to stand during the ceremony but had to sit back in his wheelchair, one mourner said.
NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Feb. 25) celeste.li 2019-03-010 views Pence announces new sanctions on Maduro and his allies, Trump departs for talks with North Korea's Kim Jong Un, and Cowboys for Trump ride to Washington to Support the president and border security.
NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Feb. 27) celeste.li 2019-02-2826 views President Trump meets North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in second historic summit, Michael Cohen’s credibility is questioned in Congress, and thousands of people ordered to leave as California river rises.
Michael Cohen’s Credibility Questioned in Congressional Testimony celeste.li 2019-02-2796 views President Trump’s former lawyer testified before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday—this after being convicted of lying to Congress. Anger from some, who said that him being the chief witness at the hearing made it a waste of time and taxpayer dollars.
NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Feb. 26, 2019) celeste.li 2019-02-274 views President Trump arrives in Vietnam to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the second summit, 30-ft border wall construction underway to replace secondary barrier in San Diego, and Cowboys for Trump invited to White House by the president.
RUSSIAN TV LISTS NUCLEAR TARGETS IN US AFTER PUTIN’S ‘MISSILE CRISIS’ THREAT celeste.li 2019-02-2674 views During the broadcast, Dmitry Kiselyov, presenter of TV news show “Vesti Nedeli,” showed a map of the United States and identified targets, including the Pentagon, Fort Ritchie--a military training center closed in 1998, McClellan--an Air Force base closed in 2001, and Jim Creek--a naval communications base.
Kiselyov said: “For now, we’re not threatening anyone, but if such a deployment takes place, our response will be instant.”
Kiselyov is a main conduit of the state television’s anti-American tone, who once said Moscow could turn the United States into radioactive ash.
When asked to comment, the Kremlin said it did not interfere in the state TV’s editorial policy.
TRUMP ARRIVES IN VIETNAM FOR SECOND SUMMIT WITH KIM celeste.li 2019-02-266 views President Donald Trump arrived in Vietnam on Feb. 26 ahead of his second historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. After some 20-hours flight, Trump arrived to a red carpet welcome at 8:55 pm local time at Hanoi’s International Airport.
Following the summit in Singapore last year, Trump and Kim will meet for the second time on Feb. 27 and 28 in the capital Hanoi.
The United States expects significant movement by the Korean leader in implementing last year's agreement. Ahead of the summit, a White House senior official said that the President’s “overriding goal” with this summit would be the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.
The upcoming summit will also seek to form “a shared understanding of what denuclearization is,” according to the White House.
After a two-and-a-half-day journey by train, Kim arrived on Feb. 26 at 8:15 a.m. local time in the Vietnamese town of Dong Dang after crossing over the border from China. He later continued by a Mercedes Benz vehicle for the 105 miles trip to Hanoi.
The meeting in Singapore in June 2018 produced a joint statement that was signed by both Trump and Kim. As part of the agreement, Kim pledged to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Other pillars of the agreement were: transforming relations between the United States and North Korea, establishing a permanent peace regime on the Korean peninsula, and the return of POW/MIA remains from the Korean War.
At the two-day summit, Trump also looks to talk with Kim about the economic future that North Koreans could enjoy if he follows through on his pledges about denuclearization.
“I think we’ll have a very tremendous summit,” Trump said on Feb. 25 in an address to nation’s governors in the White House. “We want denuclearization, and I think he’ll have a country that will set a lot of records for speed in terms of an economy.”
Trump took to Twitter on Monday morning to share his thoughts.
"Be nice if Spike Lee could read his notes, or better yet not have to use notes at all, when doing his racist hit on your President, who has done more for African Americans (Criminal Justice Reform, Lowest Unemployment numbers in History, Tax Cuts, etc.) than almost any other Pres!" Trump wrote.
Trump signed the criminal justice reform bill into law in December 2018. The legislation was championed by a number of black leaders, including many people who oppose Trump. The president and his son-in-law Jared Kushner helped push the bill through Congress.
'COWBOYS FOR TRUMP' RIDE TO WASHINGTON TO SUPPORT THE PRESIDENT AND BORDER SECURITY celeste.li 2019-02-252 views Twelve Americans loyal to their country and their president set off on horseback from Cumberland, Maryland on Feb. 15, through the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal along the Potomac River on a ride to Washington. The purpose of the journey was to show their support for the president and his announcement of a declaration of a national emergency to secure funds for border wall construction and address border security in the Southwest.
With the help from Kina Davis of Spring Gap Farms, who donated the use of the horses, trucks, and trailers for the ride, cowboys from across the country set off in the snow on the 173-mile ride.
"I don't know if you believe in God, and higher powers, but I truly believe the cause of this was bigger than all of us," said Kina. "And if they didn't get these horse from me, they would have somehow been provided for."
Kina said she gets hundreds of calls a year to rent horses to ride in the canal, and that she usually says no, because no matter what kind of experiences customers say they have, it might not be accurate.
However, there were key points that resonated with her when organizers Couy Griffin and Josh Davis of Cowboys For Trump contacted her by phone.
Consequently, even though she was thinking there was no way she was going to give out horses to ride to Washington, and that most people wouldn't even do that with bicycles, those key words changed her mind.
"Everyone that has something to protect, or something they love, you put a wall around it, whether it be a house or a fence," said Kina recalling the conversation with the organizers. "We really need this wall."
Sophie Tanniou, PhD, is a consultant and strategic development manager for the teaching of English to professionals and individuals at ANNAM Services in Nantes. She said the dancers and colors created a sort of harmony in the performance.
“I have no words to describe it, it is very delicate and at the same time very harmonious … It is done with great elegance and great lightness.”
Bruno Le Floc’h, a permanent deacon, very involved in his parish of Saint-Yves-de-la-Côte-Sauvage (Le Pouliguen), shared his impressions after having discovered traditional Chinese culture and noticed its profound spirituality.
“It is not every day that you can see a show of such quality in Brittany,” he said. “I came with my wife and some members of my family and I am very happy with this discovery which is both cultural and spiritual.”
According to its program book, the different scenes of the performance recall the mythological foundations of Chinese civilization, which has always maintained its link with the heavens.
“I really like this way of affirming without imposing, but by proposing and disclosing so that more and more people also learn about its cultural background,” he said.
“The company conveys a message and means something strong. A message of peace, a message of spiritual life, a message also from the hereafter. A hereafter that is essential and unfortunately missing for many of us,” he said.
Aware that the Shen Yun show is performed all over the world but not in China, since the communist regime does not accept the freedom of expression in the show, he said: “It is a courageous position, I imagine that Shen Yun will go [to China], one day it will probably be possible, or at least I hope so.”
Shen Yun's Opening Night: 'Into a Dream' in St. Paul, Minnesota celeste.li 2019-02-210 views At Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in St. Paul, Minn., Shen Yun's opening night on Feb. 14, performed to a nearly sold-out audience. With six performances in total from Feb. 14 to 17, an extra performance had to be added to meet popular demand.
"It's visually dazzling," said Paul Harstad, Real Estate Developer. "It's a pretty comprehensive performance in terms of the music, and the visual experience."
Shen Yun’s live orchestra incorporates ancient Chinese instruments with classical western instruments in a blend where East meets West.
"I think it blends it quite well, and it's appealing to the western ear," said Harstad. "A blending of the two cultures and I certainly appreciate that."
Soheila Rahimi, a neuroscientist and part-time teacher at the University of Minnesota thought very highly of the performance.
"I enjoyed the peace, it was very peaceful," said Rahimi. "The music was so peaceful."
"I loved the choreography, it was very alive, I loved it," she said.
"Very colorful, very meaningful, and I think every piece of it explained a different aspect of tradition."
The revival of China’s traditional culture is Shen Yun’s ambitious mission.
"It covers a lot of different aspects of just China, and I think that was the best way Shen Yun could represent her country," said Rahimi.
"I like that. Very festive and interesting."
"If you get to know about different culture," she said. "We get to be nicer people, closer together and bring more peace all together."
Clifton Moschnik, a senior vice president at Wells Fargo, said it was his first time seeing a Shen Yun performance. He was excited to see a familiar Chinese classic.
"The Journey of the West and some of history, that was absolutely, just a beautiful performance, and actually, one of the key cultures that, you know, if you go back and read about China, that is one of the key stories and timelines," said Moschnik.
He attended the performance with his fiance, Stacy Fornara, retired co-founder of Bible.com.
"It is amazing. The details and the way that the performance is laid out is amazing. It's very true to life," said Fornara. "I've learned that a lot of what is presented is not a lot of what we see in the American history. So this is a nice view from the Chinese perspective of what has really gone on in the past 5,000 years."
Lance Renfrow, president of Clear Solutions USA LLC, was a professional water skier. In 2012, he was the recipient of an Award of Distinction at the Water Ski Hall of Fame. As an athlete who competed for many years, he saw the dancers as very good athletes. This is is second year seeing Shen Yun.
"The best I’ve ever seen, I’ve seen a lot of shows, a lot of shows, this was very good. I would come back," said Renfrow. "We used to perform on water much like they do there but I think the big thing again were special effects that really were out of this world."
"The moon was absolutely amazing," said Moschnik. "That was the best performance by far. It was so incredible. And it's so, you know, just like a dream. It was so beautiful. And when they got to the moon, it looked beautiful. I loved it.
GIOVANI BATISTA MORONI EXHIBITION celeste.li 2019-02-210 views After the Dark Ages, new light was given to Europe, and though many Renaissance artists are now household names, there were some, such as Giovanni Battista Moroni, who did not play a major role then but have now given New York City a window into the traditional and sacred arts.
Moroni's paintings now cover the walls of The Frick Collection: an art collection settled in what used to be the home of Henry Clay Frick—one of America's most successful industrialists and art connoisseurs, according to the collection's about page. The new exhibition, Moroni: The Riches of Renaissance Portraiture, presents the works of a Renaissance painter that have preserved their grandeur and nobility through a traditional technique.
JIHADI BRIDE HAS HER BRITISH CITIZENSHIP REVOKED celeste.li 2019-02-208K views A woman who ran away from her London home to join the ISIS terror group and recently asked to be allowed back into the United Kingdom has been stripped of her citizenship.
Shamima Begum ran away from home in 2015 at the age of 15. She gave birth to a baby boy in a refugee camp in Syria, where a number of women are living after American and other forces decimated the Islamist terror group's presence in the region.
Begum claimed in a recent interview that people should sympathize with her plight and said her family should work on getting authorities to let her back into the United Kingdom. Describing herself as "just a housewife," she said she would not pose a security threat. She also said she was okay with beheadings and that she didn't regret joining the radical Islamic group and marrying an ISIS terrorist.
