swordfish

Given the events of the weekend where the US took out an ISIS bigwig SF was reminded of a story I remember from back in 2017...... https://newspunch.com/declassified-documents-obama-ordered-cia-to-train-isis/?fbclid=IwAR3FZ9PbMav1_i3QDH7R3YfW31RUckzRMonVkurnEEJN8Jad65t6Ob0SgCI https://www.newsweek.com/how-isis-got-weapons-us-used-them-take-iraq-syria-748468 The Islamic State militant group (ISIS) got its hands on vast supplies of weapons by taking advantage of U.S. weapons transfers that may have violated international agreements between Washington and its allies, according to a new report. As much as 90 percent of ISIS's arms and ammunition were found to have originated in Russia, China and Eastern European states. The jihadis were able to obtain much of this arsenal as a result of former President Barack Obama's support for rebels in Syria, U.K.-based Conflict Armament Research reported after analyzing 40,000 items recovered by its investigators along ISIS front lines between July 2014 and November 2017. By purchasing "large numbers" of European arms and ammunition and then diverting them to nonstate actors in Syria without notifying the sellers, the U.S. reportedly "violated the terms of sale and export agreed between weapon exporters...and recipients." "The United States and Saudi Arabia supplied most of this materiel without authorization, apparently to Syrian opposition forces. This diverted materiel, recovered from IS forces, comprises exclusively Warsaw Pact–caliber weapons and ammunition, purchased by the United States and Saudi Arabia from European Union (EU) member states in Eastern Europe," the report found, using an alternative acronym for ISIS. "Supplies of materiel into the Syrian conflict from foreign parties—notably the United States and Saudi Arabia—have indirectly allowed IS to obtain substantial quantities of anti-armor ammunition," it later added. ISIS emerged out of Al-Qaeda in Iraq and other jihadi groups in the wake of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq and overthrow of its leader, President Saddam Hussein. After announcing its establishment in 2013, ISIS spread into Syria to take advantage of the ongoing war between the Syrian military and the rebel and jihadi groups trying to overthrow it since 2011. In Syria's conflict, the U.S. had been supplying arms to insurgents opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since at least 2012 and, when ISIS began rapidly seizing territory in 2013 and 2014, many U.S.-armed rebel groups were either defeated by the incoming militants or joined them. ISIS reportedly received most of its initial supplies by overtaking Russia-backed Syrian and U.S.-backed Iraqi military positions, but later vastly received a massive boost from the U.S.'s effort to overthrow Assad. As ISIS began to take nearly half the country, the U.S. continued to train and equip Syrian rebels, using local allies like Jordan and Turkey as intermediaries. In its report, Conflict Armaments Group included dozens of photographs of EU-manufactured weapons believed to have been procured by the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, shipped to Syrian rebels and later obtained by ISIS, which moved them between Iraq and Syria. These included a powerful anti-tank missile launcher bought from a Bulgarian manufacturer by the U.S. Army and wielded by ISIS only weeks later. Somehow SF remembers a slight reference to moving weapons through Libya and something about an ambassador getting killed.....or something.....IDK.....

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fbi-agents-manipulated-flynn-file-as-clapper-urged-kill-shot-court-filing https://trumptrainnews.com/articles/shock-report-fbi-altered-flynn-docs-clapper-called-for-kill-shot And so it begins.....

Sorry - on a meme charge today.

https://nypost.com/2019/10/24/katie-hill-admits-her-throuple-relationship-was-a-bad-idea/ Rep. Katie Hill admitted this week that the relationship she had with a staffer was “inappropriate,” amid allegations she was involved in a “throuple” with her husband and the subordinate. The California Democrat said Wednesday that she became involved with the campaign worker during the “final tumultuous years” of her abusive marriage to Kenny Heslep, the National Review reported. “I know that even a consensual relationship with a subordinate is inappropriate, but I still allowed it to happen despite my better judgment,” Hill said in a statement. “For that, I apologize. I wish nothing but the best for her and hope everyone respects her privacy in this difficult time.” Hill, who is openly bisexual, had previously slammed reports that she was involved in a three-way relationship as a “smear campaign” after intimate photos were exposed by the conservative outlet RedState. “The fact is I am going through a divorce from an abusive husband who seems determined to try to humiliate me,” she told The Post in a statement. “I am disgusted that my opponents would seek to exploit such a private matter for political gain.” She also said claims that she had a solo affair with her legislative director, Graham Kelly, were “absolutely false.” “I am saddened that the deeply personal matter of my divorce has been brought into public view and the vindictive claims of my ex have now involved the lives and reputations of unrelated parties,” she said. The House Ethics Committee announced Wednesday it launched an investigation into Hill’s romantic life. “The Committee is aware of public allegations that Representative Katie Hill may have engaged in a sexual relationship with an individual on her congressional staff,” the committee said in a statement. “The Committee… has begun an investigation and will gather additional information regarding the allegations.” Probably shouldn't have lied about it, then admitted to it later.........

On the bright side - SF learned a new word......throuple.....Yay me......👍

Heerre we go again....

https://www.theindychannel.com/news/politics/curtis-hill-disciplinary-commission-hearing-day-3-woman-says-hill-propositioned-her-for-sex-in-2016 INDIANAPOLIS — A former employee of Attorney General Curtis Hill said Wednesday that Hill used a vulgarity to proposition her for sex shortly after he was elected in 2016. The testimony was given by Kathleen Bowers, who worked for Hill when he was the Elkhart County prosecutor, on the third day of the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission hearing on Hill. Hill's defense attorneys tried to block her from testifying, but they were overruled by Hearing Officer Myra C. Selby. The hearing, expected to last all week, is to determine if Hill faces any legal discipline for accusations of sexual misconduct. The Indiana Supreme Court will decide whether to impose a penalty, ranging from a reprimand to removal of Hill's law license. Hill has denied the allegations of inappropriate touching. Bowers testified that she was a dancer at an Elkhart event that Hill attended. She said she enjoys ballroom, tap and jazz dancing. After seeing her at the event, she said Hill would make comments about her dancing in September 2016. She said he told her about how he enjoyed her dancing and asked if he could get a dance lesson. Bowers said the comments made her uncomfortable, but said if he was serious, they could discuss a possible lesson. She said he then asked if he could get one for free, and that the dance would “need to be hot.” Bowers testified that Hill crossed a line a few months later. She said on Dec. 23, 2016, Hill visited her office and started discussing the dance lessons. At the time, Hill was less than a month away from being sworn in as Indiana attorney general. “I recall saying something that he would be leaving soon, and I didn't know if we'd be able to,” Bowers said. She said they kept bantering about the dancing lesson. She told him he would have to pay, but they could make the arrangement. But he said, again, that he wanted it for free. At some point in the conversation, Bowers said she told him, “I don’t think we’re talking about dancing anymore.” She said Hill responded by saying, “I don't think we were ever talking about dance.” Bowers said from that point in the conversation, they were talking more clearly about sex. At the end of their conversation, she said Hill leaned over the desk and said, “We should f---, because it would be hot.” Bowers said she told him she was married, and if it got out, it would not go well for her. She said she never explicitly told him no because she was uncomfortable and felt like she needed to joke her way out of it. Bowers also said Hill also called her office in January 2017, less than a month later. She said he asked if she had thought anymore about what he asked. She said she had, and her position hadn't changed. She then said Hill called her office on March 16, 2018, the day after the Sine Die party at AJ’s Lounge and left a voicemail. The attorneys from the Indiana Disciplinary Commission played the voicemail, after the defense’s objections were overruled. In the voicemail, Hill asks her to call him and leaves a number. Bowers testified that she returned the call because she was afraid he was going to come to her office. She said he asked if she had reconsidered what they discussed. She said her position had not changed and joked, "Don't call me, I'll call you." Bowers said she didn't hear from him after that. The defense attorney asked Bowers if she reported what Hill said to her to any of her supervisors or any federal agency, such as the EEOC. She said no, later telling the Disciplinary Commission attorney she was afraid of the consequences if she reported the comments. Other notes from Day 3 of the hearing: Hill took the stand, called by the Disciplinary Commission. He was asked many questions about the organization and duties of the attorney general’s office. The commission attorney began asking Hill about a piece of evidence, but the court broke for lunch. Hill did not return to the stand on Wednesday. The defense also called multiple witnesses throughout the morning and afternoon. Gwen Robinson, the owner of AJ’s Lounge. Robinson said nobody approached her to say Hill was overserved. She also said the maximum occupancy of the bar was 60 people, and there may have been a few more than that on the night of the party. The defense called Michael Conway, a legislative assistant for Indiana Senate Republicans to be questioned. Conway said he saw Rep. Mara Candelaria Reardon, one of Hill’s accusers, dancing in front of the bar with a legislative intern for a lobbying firm. He called it a “flirtatious” dance. To that point, none of the other witnesses called had reported seeing Candelaria Reardon dancing that night. Conway also said he saw Hill at the party, but Hill was too intoxicated to respond. The defense also called Reps. Ryan Hatfield, D-Evansville; Ryan Morrison, R-Brazil; and Jim Lucas, R-Seymour. Hatfield said he saw Candelaria Reardon at the party. He said she approached him and said something to the effect of, “Curtis Hill is a creep.” Morrison and Lucas both gave similar statements – that they didn’t specifically see Hill interacting with any of the four accusers. Lastly, the defense called Tony Samuel, a local lobbyist. Samuel said he spent part of the evening with Hill, and they went to the party together. When asked if he saw Hill acting inappropriately, Samuel said, “Absolutely not.” Samuel said Hill was slightly intoxicated but wouldn’t classify him as “drunk.” He said he didn’t see Hill interact with any of the accusers, and said “there would've been a buzz in the room” if it had happened. Maybe the Attorney General isn't the model of morality I thought he was in his inner circle of attorney friends......While propositioning a lady while married isn't illegal, it certainly isn't moral.....

https://www.redstate.com/jenvanlaar/2019/10/22/metoo-concerns-arise-katie-hills-throuple-partner-describes-toxic-relationship-boss/ Since the story about freshman Rep. Katie Hill’s “throuple” relationship with a young female staffer broke last week, the common response from progressives in the media and Hill apologists has sounded something like this: “It was a consensual relationship between two adults, and she wasn’t part of Hill’s Congressional staff, so it’s none of our business.” But was the relationship really consensual? In the age of #MeToo, activists contend that when a large power imbalance exists, such as between a CEO and an employee, the employee is incapable of giving consent. Even assuming that true consent existed at the beginning of the relationship, the power imbalance could keep an employee in a bad relationship for fear that they will lose their job or suffer other negative consequences. In the case of the Hill throuple, text messages between Kenny Heslep and Hill’s staffer from June 2019 depict an unhealthy, toxic relationship – Heslep even characterizes the way in which he and Hill treated the staffer as “abusive” as he apologizes for hurting her. What will the Democrat Party do with this one?

"Factory Workers" is a very broad range......and normally what a factory produces is worth more than french fires and hamburgers.....

https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/pete-buttigieg-not-fair-that-its-a-crime-to-knowingly-give-someone-hiv?utm_content=buffere071f&utm_medium=LSN%2Bbuffer&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=LSN&fbclid=IwAR14qjCi1Q-5kcZaO1d_jzKxMqqszje_lgOAVTRN2kCFHasoB3ulr1qussw October 15, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) – During the recent LGBTQ Democratic Presidential Town Hall hosted by CNN, homosexual candidate Pete Buttigieg said he wants to do away with laws throughout the country which criminalize HIV transmission via nondisclosure to sexual partners. The South Bend, Indiana mayor said, “It’s not fair and it needs to change.” His questioner, CNN’s Anderson Cooper – who is also gay – called the laws “antiquated” and based on “old science.” The event, which brought nine Democrat White House contenders to Los Angeles, focused on gay and transgender issues. Buttigieg was not the only one guilty of extreme pandering to the Democrat’s gay consituency by urging for the softening of HIV transmission laws. Senators Cory Booker and Elizabeth Warren also want to see the knowing transmission of HIV decriminalized. This is a rising issue among liberals who believe that such laws stigmatize gays infected with HIV, and they see that stigmatization as more dangerous than passing HIV to other human beings. “Let’s be frank: This is just completely insane,” said The Washington Examiner’s Brad Polumbo. “[T]o knowingly conceal that you have the virus is to put another person at risk.” He continued: So what happened to consent ? Am I homophobic if I support the current laws?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/10/22/least-house-democrats-called-bill-clintons-impeachment-lynching/ Criticism came fast from Democrats, Trump critics and some Republicans on Tuesday after President Trump compared the current impeachment inquiry to a “lynching.” But by the afternoon, Trump allies were pointing out that variations of that word were invoked several times by House Democrats to describe the impeachment proceedings against President Bill Clinton in 1998. 30 people are talking about this At least five House Democrats talked about a “lynching” or “lynch mob” as pertaining to Clinton, according to a Fix review. “The highest officeholder should think about these words. The rural south where I was born has a tarnished and painful history,” Rep. Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) tweeted Tuesday. “I don’t expect Trump to be sensitive to the weight of that word, or see how insulting and hurtful it is to invoke it here,” Rep. Gregory W. Meeks (D-N.Y.) tweeted Tuesday. In 1998, however, both Davis and Meeks called the Clinton impeachment proceedings a “lynching” on the House floor the day before the president was impeached. Then-Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) described what he called a “lynch mob mentality, that says this man has to go” during a floor speech the same day. Democratic criticisms of the Republican-led impeachment proceedings against Clinton were not limited to the House floor. Then-Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) called the impeachment proceedings against Clinton a “partisan lynching” during an October 1998 appearance on CNN. On Tuesday, Biden called Trump’s tweet “abhorrent.” “Our country has a dark, shameful history with lynching, and to even think about making this comparison is abhorrent. It’s despicable,” Biden tweeted. On three occasions in 1998, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), who now chairs the committee that would consider articles of impeachment against Trump, called the impeachment process against Clinton a “lynch mob.” “We shouldn’t participate in a lynch mob against the president,” Nadler told Newsday on Sept. 13, 1998. Five days later, Nadler said he saw “no evidence that the Republicans want to do anything other than organize a lynch mob,” according to the South China Morning Post. And on Oct. 4, 1998, Nadler told the Associated Press that Republicans were “running a lynch mob” against Clinton. Then-Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), who served nearly 20 years in the House, slammed the impeachment proceedings against Clinton during an interview with the Baltimore Sun on Sept. 12, 1998. “This feels today like we’re taking a step down the road to becoming a political lynch mob,” McDermott said at the time. “Find the rope, find the tree and ask a bunch of questions later.” Meeks acknowledged his 1998 remarks in a statement to The Fix. “Yes, I said those words, but context matters. There is a difference when that word is used by someone of my experience and perspective, whose relatives were the targets of lynch mobs, compared to a president who has dog-whistled to white nationalists and peddled racism,” Meeks said. “This is the birther president, who called African nations s---holes and urban cities infested. Those he called ‘very fine people’ in Charlottesville were the kind of people who lynched those who looked like me. So, yes — there are certain words I am more at liberty to invoke than Donald J. Trump.” Several Republicans criticized Trump for his characterization Tuesday. “That’s not the language I would use,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said at a weekly news briefing. “Given the history in our country, I would not compare this to a lynching,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said at a weekly Senate news briefing. “That was an unfortunate choice of words.” So the same guys that collectively lost their minds this week over DJT's use of the L-word (Lynch) actually used that exact same word back in 1998 when Bill Clinton was the impeachment target........I guess it was probably accurate, though since WJBC was actually considered the first black President....... So now I am to realize the use of the word "Lynch or Lynching" can only be invoked by a black man........

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/pete-buttigieg-focus-group-finds-his-sexuality-problematic-among-black-voters-in-south-carolina Pete Buttigieg’s sexuality could prevent him from earning support among black Americans in South Carolina. According to a report from a focus group conducted by the mayor’s campaign, black voters found his sexuality to be “a barrier” stopping them from supporting Buttigieg as their candidate of choice. Buttigieg, 37, married his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, in 2018. Benenson Strategy Group, who provided Buttigieg’s campaign with a 21-page report and summary from the focus group, revealed that “being gay was a barrier” for many of the individuals who participated in the group, especially the male participants “who seemed deeply uncomfortable even discussing it.” The summary stated that most participants would still vote for Buttigieg if he earns the nomination, but would prefer that his sexuality “not be front and center.” A male participant said, “I don’t like the fact that he threw out there that he lives with his husband.” Another participant, a woman under the age of 40, claimed details of Buttigieg’s relationship was “too much information.” So in a "all-inclusive world without groups" who is in the wrong here? Mayor Pete for assembling a racial focus group to be able to adjust his message so he can become more marketable to that group......or the racial group for being homophobic? Or me for pointing it out?

They spelled "rum" backwards......

Hello - Howe, Indiana. Not exactly near a huge population center.....Large facility, but needs major updates and improvements.....

https://www.businessinsider.com/target-walmart-increase-automation-2018-7 As labor costs continue to rise, both Target and Walmart are adding new automation initiatives, The Wall Street Journal reports. Here's how these retail giants are automating jobs that used to be done by staff to decrease labor costs: Target is adding automated cash-counting machines. These devices, known as cash recyclers, count bills and coins, allowing Target to digitally manage its cash and removing the need for employees to perform these tasks by hand. The retailer will add the machines to 500 stores in August before rolling them out to all US locations. Walmart plans to expand its use of autonomous robots to manage inventory. It's worked with startup Bossa Nova to bring robots, which can detect out-of-stocks and guide staff and customers to products, to 50 Walmart locations, freeing up store associates who previously had to do these jobs. Walmart plans to increase the number of stores featuring the technology by next year. Walmart will also be adding automatic conveyor belts to backrooms. This technology will automatically sort products and reduce the amount of labor necessary to unload the trucks that arrive at Walmart stores each week. These new innovations are part of an ongoing trend toward using automation to free up staff and enhance the customer experience. Kroger has been planning to use its partnership with Ocado to build automated distribution centers, Macy’s has been using virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technology to display furniture and minimize the need to build physical showrooms, and the race to create the ideal cashierless retail model is still hotly contested, with Amazon Go stores in the lead. All of these initiatives focus on streamlining and reducing labor costs for different parts of the retail process. In addition to cutting labor costs, this new technology will allow Target and Walmart to reallocate and further train staff for other functions. While retailers could just use the new technology to trim jobs completely, they can also choose to repurpose employees whose jobs are now carried out automatically. At Target, for example, workers who used to count cash will now be assigned to “spend even more time helping our shoppers,” a Target spokeswoman told WSJ. Additionally, Walmart has said that the money saved on labor in the backroom can be rededicated to “pickers,” the employees who put together online orders for customers to pick up in the parking lot. If retailers can continue to find new ways of making staff available — by creating a chatbot to help with customer service or a system customers can use to scan items and put them into layaway without help from associates, for example — they may be able to refine a more highly trained workforce that's dedicated to helping customers with more specific, complex problems. Meanwhile at McDonalds......

https://www.theblaze.com/news/transgender-model-outraged-after-porn-offer-retracted-due-to-models-penis-and-uk-police-are-investigating-report-of-a-hate-incident?fbclid=IwAR0sWZ7xsYa1IaiYU_Zo8HRg6AQgG8NlHYDKmnO_Bi1ArUpXZ3PujuqplP0 A United Kingdom transgender model is outraged after a porn offer was retracted due to the transgender model's penis, Hull Live reported. Transgender woman Ria Cooper, 25 — who became Britain's youngest transgender female at 15, the outlet said — said a photographer promised to help promote her career then suddenly stopped all contact after discovering Cooper is a transgender, Hull Live reported. 'It's like calling someone who is black the N-word' Cooper told the outlet the man "messaged me saying he wanted to take my picture, have sex with me, and film it to make money, and then once he found out I was trans, he stopped all contact with me. I am reporting this as a hate crime. It's like calling someone who is black the N-word." Cooper added to Hull Live that the man made contact after Cooper began sending links to fans on social media showing the model's new glamour portfolio. Then Cooper noted to the outlet that the photographer said he couldn't work with Cooper because the model has "a c***." "This is absolutely f****** disgusting behavior," Cooper said, according to Hull Live. "No one should be treated like this — this is discriminating and appalling behavior ... [it] doesn't matter if I have c*** or not. The pictures should be judged as they are. It says on my social media profile that I am a ladyboy, I didn't ever say that I wasn't, and I thought he knew. I want to be a glamour model and a porn star — that's what I want to do. I don't think I should be treated like this." Police investigating 'report of a hate incident' The man's actions angered Cooper so much that the model contacted police and declared that the hate crime and transphobia must be taken more seriously, the outlet reported. "I just think those comments could easily make someone commit suicide," Cooper told Hull Live, which also said Humberside Police confirmed officers are investigating the allegation. "We received a report of a hate incident yesterday, on Wednesday, October 16," a police spokeswoman noted to the outlet. "The report has been logged and will be investigated." "It's like calling someone who is black the "N" word......" ROFL

I'll have to get back to you on that..........