Ghana warns against alarmist New Year prophecies
GHANA - For many Ghanaian Christians, listening to their pastors make predictions during the New Year's services has become an annual ritual. Ghana's police want to stop proclamations that create fear and panic among the public. To prevent the barrage of prophecies across these watch night services, the Ghana Police Service last year launched the "Prophecy Communication Compliance Day”.
It was a day the police set aside days before the year ends to caution churches against doomsday prophecies that border on the death of people and those that create fear and panic.
In a statement, the police once again reminded people to "practice our faith within the confines of the law to ensure a safe, secure environment, free of anxiety generated from predictions of impending harm, danger, or death."
Italy urges EU to push back against US
ITALY - PM Giorgia Meloni says the bloc must protect key industries as Washington undermines economic competitiveness. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has called for the European Union to become more economically independent in the wake of a new US law that puts the bloc’s manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.
Speaking at her year-end press briefing in Rome, Meloni urged the EU to build its own supply chains for key industries in response to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a $360 billion spending bill that President Joe Biden signed into law in August, according to the media outlet. The bloc also must revise its rules on state aid to manufacturers and strengthen oversight of supply chains for such industries as computer chips, carmakers and alternative energy, Meloni reportedly said.
The US legislation provided for a spending binge on alternative energy infrastructure, including tax breaks for manufacturers in the sector. It weighted subsidies for electric vehicles to domestically produced models and batteries. EU leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have criticized the law, warning that it may “fragment the West.”
The World is at a Dangerous Crossroads
USA - Nuclear war threatens the future of humanity. We are no longer dealing with a hypothetical scenario. The threat of World War III is real: While one can conceptualize the loss of life and destruction resulting from present-day wars including Ukraine, Iraq, Syria and Yemen, it is impossible to fully comprehend the devastation which might result from a Third World War, using “new technologies” and advanced weapons, until it occurs and becomes a reality.
The US administration has endorsed pre-emptive nuclear war in the name of world peace. “Making the world safer” is the justification for launching a military operation which could potentially result in a nuclear holocaust. Mini-nukes are said to be “harmless to the surrounding civilian population”. Since the George W Bush administration, pre-emptive nuclear war has been portrayed as a “humanitarian undertaking”.
President Joe Biden does not have the foggiest idea as to the consequences of nuclear war: “Biden’s announcement that the US will use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear threats, and the knowledge that US nuclear weapons are deployed close to Russia are forcing Putin to abandon his no first use of nuclear weapons pledge. In other words, unlike the 20th century Cold War, today there is a hair-trigger on nuclear war.
Now Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General says: “I fear that the war in Ukraine will spiral out of control and become a major war between NATO and Russia. If things go wrong, they can go horribly wrong.”
World could reach ‘critical mass’ at any moment
POLAND - Aleksander Kwasniewski has said the very fact that World War III is being discussed is terrifying. The world is in chaos and could reach “critical mass” anytime, former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski has warned, citing the turbulence created by the Ukraine crisis. The conflict has put an end to the old world order, the former head of state said in a TV interview on Thursday.
“In short, we are in a time of dangerous chaos,” he concluded. “If we add further unrest, such as on the Serbian border, the critical mass may be easily exceeded.” The very fact that the possibility of a new world war is now being discussed is terrifying, he said.
Disney: Going Woke Means Going Broke
USA - For years, we’ve been warning parents to get their children away from Disney. Now, it’s also prudent for investors to get their money away from the woke “entertainment” company as well. The company lost 44% of their market value in 2022 and are showing no signs of changing their corporate direction despite recent changes in management.
Unfortunately for millions of Americans, there isn’t much they can do with their investment or retirement accounts to escape the rampant wokeness if they are relying on financial advisors or portfolio managers. The Biden-Harris regime has incentivized these money managers to keep their clients’ money tied up in ESG companies even if doing so loses the clients’ money.
Going into 2023, it behooves Americans to take more control over their portfolios. I’m a big fan of self-directed IRAs managed by America First companies, but that’s mostly because I have zero faith in Washington DC turning things around soon, plus I love this nation so I can’t support woke companies. Disney appears to be following the playbook of the Biden-Harris regime and the globalist elites at the World Economic Forum. They believe losing tons of money and harming average Americans is okay as long as they can keep being woke.
End of an Era as US Retail Giant Shutters Doors
USA - Sears is permanently closing the spin-off chain Sears Hometown, signaling a further downturn for what was once one of America’s biggest retailers. Amid its filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Sears is shutting down all 115 of its remaining Hometown locations, Footwear News reported. The outlet had shuttered 600 other locations in only a few years in an effort to cut costs. Clearly, it was not enough.
Sears Hometown focused on appliances, tools and outdoor equipment in locations that maintained only about 10,000 square feet, a fraction of the average 160,000 square feet of a regular Sears location, CNN Business reported. Sears had tried closing another 100 stores earlier in 2018 to staunch the bleeding, but it just wasn’t enough.
Sears is not alone. Kmart, also at one time one of America’s biggest department store chains, may be on its last legs, having closed several hundred locations over the last few years. Bookseller Barnes & Noble also recently closed locations in an effort to stay afloat. The chain also sold out to a hedge fund to try to get ahead of market woes.
Not all retailers have been suffering, though. The country’s largest, Walmart, is still thriving.
Scotland’s Woke Police Call Paedophiles ‘Minor-Attracted People’
SCOTLAND - The Chief Constable of Police Scotland is under fire for referring to paedophiles by their preferred term “minor-attracted people” (MAPs) in a European Union-linked report. In his Year End Report for 2021/22, Chief Constable Iain Livingstone said his Specialist Crime Division for Public Protection had “engaged in the Horizon Europe Project” and that the project’s “main agenda is to develop understanding and approach to avoid the victimisation of children by engaging Minor-Attracted People (MAPs) and providing them with the necessary support, treatment and guidance to help prevent criminal activities.”
While it was some time before the incendiary language in the report registered with the public, its use of the extremely controversial ‘MAP’ term has provoked a predictable backlash after coming to wider attention. “Most Scots will find any attempt to soften the language around paedophilia in official guidance to be deeply disturbing and wrong,” said a spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives in comments quoted by The Telegraph.
Independent social work consultant Maggie Mellon further warned that adopting the ‘MAPs’ language ran the risk of “normalising and therefore perhaps decriminalising” paedophilia.
Earthquake: Magnitude 5.4 quake hits Northern California
USA - A magnitude 5.4 earthquake hit Humboldt County on New Year’s Day, rattling an area that was hit hard by a deadly temblor just before Christmas. The epicenter of the Sunday morning earthquake was about nine miles from Rio Dell and 26 miles from Eureka. Residents in the area reported strong shaking starting at 10:35 am, according to preliminary information from the US Geological Survey. More aftershocks are expected over the next few days, the US Geological Survey said.
The temblor came 12 days after a magnitude 6.4 quake killed two people, left a dozen injured, and caused widespread damage in Rio Dell, a lumber town about 25 miles south of Eureka. Dozens of buildings were red-tagged in the December 20 earthquake, leaving families homeless just before Christmas. Residents were under a boil-water order until last Wednesday.
Germany takes the lead for NATO’s high readiness force
GERMANY - On Sunday (1 January 2023), Germany takes the lead of NATO's highest-readiness military force, placing thousands of troops on standby and ready to deploy within days. NATO’s Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) was created in 2014 at the core of a strengthened NATO Response Force, following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and crises in the Middle East. Germany takes over from France, which led the force in 2022. In response to Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine in February this year, NATO deployed elements of the VJTF to Romania on the unit's first ever collective-defence mission.
“Germany is an important Ally and we thank Germany for leading the VJTF in 2023”, said NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu. “As Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine continues to threaten peace and security in Europe, there must be no doubt about NATO’s resolve to protect and defend every inch of Allied territory. The VJTF is NATO’s first responder and a key part of our collective defence. Germany’s leadership is a strong display of its commitment and capabilities,” Ms Lungescu said.
Protecting Your Privacy Should be a High Priority in 2023
USA - The MIT Technology Review recently published an article about how an iRobot’s Roomba J7 series robot vacuum took pictures of people inside their homes, in one case a woman sitting on a toilet, and those images ended up on the Internet on Facebook. iRobot is the world’s largest vendor of robotic vacuums, and Amazon.com recently bought them for $1.7 billion.
The captured images making their way to Facebook was a mistake, as the article clearly explains, and this allegedly didn’t happen with their commercially available iRobots, but from “special development robots with hardware and software modifications” given to users who agreed to allow data streams to be collected for the purpose of training their AI (artificial intelligence).
Welcome to the Brave New World of AI. The public has been brainwashed by the Technocrats into thinking that AI is “smart,” and that one day its intelligence will exceed that of humans. But in reality AI is STUPID, because in spite of using the word “intelligence” with this kind of software, it is only as good as the data supplied and programmed by those who develop it, and therefore will NEVER exceed the intelligence of human beings.
Beware of Substack
USA - I have tried subscribing to a few Substack authors, and when their newsletter is delivered to you via email, all the links in the email are appended with Google tracking codes. So I know, at the very least, that Substack is making data available to Google. One of the biggest dangers to potential online tracking that I have seen develop this past year is in the sheer amount of content providers in the Alternative Media who have moved their content over to the Substack.com platform.
Like Twitter, which is trying to lure Conservatives and Alternative Health publishers back onto its platform, probably with the goal of monitoring and tracking everyone who follows them, so too could the Technocrats who run Substack be doing in the same thing.
Here is a list of personal data that Substack admits to collecting:
“We collect and process Personal Information about you when you interact with us and our services, as well as when you subscribe to any of our paid or unpaid services. This may include:
- your first and last name;
- your email address;
- your phone number;
- your payment details (including billing address, credit card details, - where you make a purchase from us);
- your location and/or mailing address;
- your photograph;
- your marketing preferences, including any consents you have given us;
- information related to the browser or device you use to access our website (including your IP address);
- any information we collect online from you and maintain in association with your account, such as your username and password;
- your subscription status with Substack newsletters;
- any other information you provide us when communicating with us.
We also collect information on the use of our website via Cookies.”
The EPA’s Latest Regulation Could Devastate The Trucking Industry
USA - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule Tuesday that will impose stricter nitrogen dioxide emissions standards on new heavy-duty trucks, a move that will substantially hike operating costs for truckers, experts and industry representatives told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“It’s an overreach that is indicative of this administration’s tendency to set aside balance to achieve the goals of activists that they are politically aligned with,” Mandy Gunasekara, a senior policy analyst for the Independent Women’s Forum and former EPA Chief of Staff during the Trump administration, told the DCNF. “It’s going to squeeze out the mid-sized and smaller trucking companies because they’re not going to be able to afford to purchase the new, extremely expensive equipment required to continue to do what they do.”
The new rules are intended to phase out older trucks that emit more nitrogen dioxide and will push drivers to purchase electric trucks or newer models of diesel trucks that do not produce as much nitrogen dioxide when they burn fuel, according to the EPA.
“If small business truckers can’t afford the new, compliant trucks, they’re going to stay with older, less efficient trucks or leave the industry entirely,” Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer told trade publication Freight Waves. Once again, EPA has largely ignored the warnings and concerns raised by truckers in this latest rule.”
Families' growing mountain of debt
UK - Millions of families are struggling with a growing mountain of personal debt as unsecured borrowing hits record levels. Startling research shows the spiralling cost of living has forced many to borrow simply to pay for essentials such as food and energy. The average household now has £16,200 in unsecured debt such as loans, overdrafts and credit card borrowing – up £1,000 on a year ago. Experts have warned that nearly nine million adults are 'financially fragile'. And many fear things will only get worse – with a poll showing 60 per cent expect the next year to deliver a further hit to their finances.
‘Largest Satanic Gathering in History’ to Take Place in Boston
USA - The Satanic Temple is promoting an upcoming convention as the “largest Satanic gathering in history.” The gathering, called SatanCon, will be taking place in Boston from April 28–30th, 2023. The convention will be celebrating the Satanic Temple’s tenth anniversary. The Satanic Temple promises on its website that the convention will be “a weekend of blasphemy and remembrance in Boston.” Though tickets are already on sale, the organization has not announced the location, vendors, or presenters. However, when you click to book a hotel reservation, you are directed to book a room at the Boston Marriott Copley Place.
Tickets for the convention start at $95.00 and go up to $160. Those who purchase the “Demon Circle” $160 tickets will receive access to the “Satanic Marketplace,” access to “on-site programming tracks,” an official TST SatanCon 2023 t-shirt, TST SatanCon 2023 stickers, and a SatanCon 2023 button. The Satanic Temple made headlines last year for seeking a court declaration to allow abortions for their Texas members, claiming that the laws violate their “religious freedom” to perform “abortion rituals.”
Türkiye warns Greece against expansion in Aegean Sea
TURKEY - Türkiye will not give Greece a single mile of territorial waters in the Aegean Sea, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday, warning that Ankara will use all means at its disposal to protect its interests. “We will not allow the expansion of [Greek] territorial waters by even one mile in the Aegean, let alone 12,” Cavusoglu was quoted as saying by the state-run Anadolu Agency.
His comments came in response to reports that Athens plans to extend its territorial waters around the island of Crete to 12 nautical miles. Cavusoglu recalled a 1995 Turkish parliamentary decision that states that if Greece increases its territorial waters in the Aegean beyond six miles, the parliament would provide the government with “all powers,” including military ones, in order to defend Türkiye’s national interests.
Although the two nations are NATO partners, they have a long history of rivalry and are entwined in a number of ongoing disputes, including over control of several Aegean islands, as well as about drilling rights in the Mediterranean, and the status of Cyprus.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in this section are not our own, unless specifically stated, but are provided to highlight what may prove to be prophetically relevant material appearing in the media.