Quote:The National Security Council declined to comment on the existence of the Russian plot and the US warning to Germany. But, NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement, “Russia’s intensifying campaign of subversion is something that we are taking extremely seriously and have been intently focused on over the past few months.

“The United States has been discussing this issue with our NATO Allies, and we are actively working together to expose and disrupt these activities,” she said. “We have also been clear that Russia’s actions will not deter Allies from continuing to support Ukraine.”

The Germany Embassy in Washington declined to comment.

CNN has also asked the Russian embassy in Washington for comment.

A spokesman for Rheinmetall, Oliver Hoffman, declined to comment.

“The necessary measures are always taken in regular consultation with the security authorities,” Hoffman said.

NATO members seeking to strengthen intel sharing

Russia’s sabotage campaign has been a major point of discussion among NATO officials gathered in Washington for the bloc’s 75th anniversary summit. NATO has sought to improve intelligence sharing across the alliance so that the nations will be able to connect the dots between what otherwise might appear to be disparate criminal activities unique to their own country.

But the campaign — and in particular Russia’s willingness to take lethal action against European citizens on foreign soil — has raised difficult questions about how the alliance should respond. In theory under Article 5, an armed attack on a NATO member state is an attack on all.

Russia’s sabotage campaign has, at times, smacked of a shotgun approach carried out by amateurs. Some of the crimes linked to the campaign have not had obvious links to the conflict in Ukraine; Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk publicly suggested that a fire at an IKEA in Lithuania could have been the work of Russia, for example. In Poland, CNN has reported, a Ukrainian man was recruited over Telegram by a Russian handler he never met in person and was paid just $7 to spray anti-war graffiti. Later, he was asked to plant surveillance cameras and burn down the fence of a Ukrainian-owned transportation company.

Some analysts have referred to the effort as a “hybrid” campaign, one that uses non-military tools like propaganda, deception and sabotage. But US and European officials are gradually hardening against defining Russia’s sabotage efforts that way.

“I fundamentally reject the idea that what we’re seeing is a hybrid campaign from Russia. There are hybrid elements of it. When I think of ‘hybrid’, I think of … defacing monuments,” the senior NATO official said. “Things that meet that traditional definition of ‘below the threshold of armed conflict.’”

Because Russia is recruiting operatives to carry out arson and plotting assassinations — lethal action — “I’m not as confident that those all fall below this threshold that ‘hybrid’ implies,” the official said.

It was not clear whether the intelligence related to Rheinmetall suggested Russia intended to kill Papperger directly or hire a local proxy.

Other Russian efforts have been far more serious than spraying a little graffiti or vandalizing a diplomat’s car: US military bases across Europe were placed on a heightened state of alert last week for the first time in a decade after the US received intelligence that Russian-backed actors were considering carrying out sabotage attacks against US military personnel and facilities, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

In April, two German-Russian nationals were arrested for allegedly plotting bomb and arson attacks on targets including US military facilities on behalf of Russia.

In London in March, several men were charged with working with Russian intelligence services to set fire to a Ukrainian-linked warehouse. Poland is investigating whether an arson attack that destroyed Warsaw’s largest mall in May was connected to Russia and has arrested nine people in connection with Russia-linked acts of sabotage, the prime minister said in May. And French authorities last month detained a Russian-Ukrainian man who was allegedly building bombs as part of a sabotage campaign orchestrated by Moscow.

“They’re doing it now because they believe that as there are a number of elections happening throughout the west, that this is a prime opportunity to try to undermine public support for Ukraine,” the senior NATO official said.

The official also said that Russia sees a window of opportunity before additional weapons and ammunition promised by the west arrive on the battlefield in Ukraine.

For Russia, this “is a prime time to target the west in these types of operations to try to undermine support and prevent the flow of weapons there.”

Exclusive: US and Germany foiled Russian plot to assassinate CEO of arms manufacturer

Quote:A Rheinmetall spokesperson confirmed to POLITICO that the company had been informed by the authorities about the foiled threat. He stressed that there had been no concrete attempt to murder Papperger but rather a "plot."

Politico Europe

A long article so see link for the rest

https://www.activistpost.com/2024/07/the...-them.html

Quote:By AIER
Since the start of 2024, numerous well-known restaurant chains have announced sizable closures and incrementally more drastic restructuring efforts. TGI Fridays has closed numerous locations across the US and sold eight corporate-owned locations to strengthen their franchise model and close underperforming stores. Denny’s shut down 57 restaurants in 2023 and announced additional closures for 2024 due to inflationary pressures. Boston Market drastically reduced its number of restaurants from around 300 to just 27 by March 2024, driven by landlord evictions, unpaid bills, and state shutdowns due to unpaid sales taxes. Mod Pizza abruptly closed 27 locations across the US, including five in California, just before the new minimum wage law took effect. Also suddenly, Coco’s Bakery and Carrows chains closed 75 locations, leading to a federal lawsuit by former employees due to the lack of notice provided for the layoffs. PDQ, a regional restaurant chain, closed eight restaurants across North and South Carolina in February 2024 due to market conditions. Outback Steakhouse’s parent company, Bloomin’ Brands, announced the shuttering of 41 locations of Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba’s Italian Grill and Bonefish Grill in February 2024 as part of a major financial restructuring. Subway has been undergoing a massive drawdown, closing over 400 underperforming locations since last year alone. And Applebee’s has been selectively closing locations since the start of 2024, focusing on optimizing its restaurant portfolio by shutting down low-revenue stores.
In 2024, Buffalo Wild Wing will eliminate sixty locations in the United States. IHOP (International House of Pancakes) will wind down 100 locations. Other firms eliminating locations include Pizza Hut, Red Lobster, Hooters, and Chili’s. A handful of others may close down entirely.

COVID lockdowns significantly weakened chain restaurants by drastically reducing their customer base and revenue streams. This disruption made it difficult for many restaurants to sustain operations, some of which took on more debt in the face of depleted financial reserves. At the start of 2024, FSR (Full Service Restaurant) Magazine summarized:

Quote:Another after-shock of COVID was the debt pile. Going back to August 2020, the James Beard Foundation released survey data that suggested only 66 percent of independent bars and restaurants expected to survive the fall season without direct aid. Frothing to the top of this fear was the fact that close to 75 percent reported taking on new debt obligations north of $50,000. Moreso, 12 percent tagged the number at $500,000 and above. Growing debt, and the deterioration in operating performance required to service it, forced heightened levels of investor and debt-holder concern and oversight[.] … This increased debt between 2019 and the last 12 months 2020 by 8.1 percent for limited-service units and 15.7 percent for full-serves. The former, by the fall, sat at more than four times as much debt, while full service was at nearly 50 percent more than 2008 levels … [In] the current environment … 68 percent of full-service restaurants reported carrying some amount of debt. On average, it was $51,863.20 — a number that could creep up as interest rates continue to rise.

FSR continues:

Quote:“If debt is a piece of the profit puzzle, food costs are another. In fact, they appear to be an even bigger, more widespread concern … than the year before. This year, 58 percent of operators in the survey said rising inventory costs was their No. 1 source of financial strain, up from 54 percent in 2022.”

The total and annual percentage changes in the index prices of six key ingredients of restaurant and diner menu items, from 2010 to 2020 and then from 2021 to the present, are shown below; in most cases, over the last three years prices have risen at multiples of their annual increases over the prior decade.

Since January 2021, core CPI has risen just over 17 percent, while food-away-from-home prices have risen over 22 percent.
Core CPI (blue) vs. CPI Food Away From Home (black), 2014 – 2024

Quote:By Michael Snyder
We continue to get numbers that indicate that the U.S. economy is steamrolling in the wrong direction as we approach the most chaotic election season in our history.  Needless to say, the performance of the economy is going to play a major role in the outcome of the election, because millions upon millions of Americans are really suffering right now.  Homelessness has been growing at the fastest pace ever recorded, hunger and poverty are exploding, and we are in the midst of a cost of living crisis that doesn’t seem to have any end in sight.  Unfortunately, there are signs that things will soon get even worse.  For example, we experienced a “historic surge” of corporate bankruptcies during the first half of this year that was worse than anything we have witnessed since the first half of 2010…

Quote:There is a “historic surge” of corporate bankruptcies underway in the U.S., as debt-saddled companies struggle to adjust to the new era of high interest rates.
New figures published by S&P Global Intelligence show that 75 companies filed for bankruptcy in June, the highest number recorded in a single month since early 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. That pushed this year’s total number of bankruptcies so far to 346, which is notably higher than comparable levels seen in the past 13 years.
Before this, the highest half-year figure recorded was in 2010, with 437 companies filing for bankruptcy from January through June.

During the first half of 2010, we were just coming out of the Great Recession.

Do you remember how painful things were in those days?
Sadly, I believe that what is ahead of us will be even more painful.
The unprecedented measures that our leaders took to prop up the economy worked for a while, but now cracks are starting to show all over the place.
And a lot more big businesses will go belly up during the months ahead.
Earlier today, I was quite saddened to learn that Big Lots is on the verge of bankruptcy…

Quote:Discount retail chain Big Lots said it will close up to 40 stores this year and may declare bankruptcy.
The Columbus, Ohio-based company wrote in a quarterly Securities and Exchange Commission filing it expected further operating losses and has “substantial doubt” it can continue as a functioning business.
Big Lots last month reported a net loss of $205 million in the quarter ending May 4, 2024.

When I lived in Virginia many years ago, I would shop at Big Lots quite a bit.
And it always seemed to be doing fairly well.
But now times have changed.
Today, most Americans have very little discretionary income.  In fact, surveys have shown that the vast majority of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck at this point…

Quote:A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses.
Similarly, a 2023 Forbes Advisor survey revealed that nearly 70% of respondents either identified as living paycheck to paycheck (40%) or—even more concerning—reported that their income doesn’t even cover their standard expenses (29%).

There is no way to spin those numbers in a positive manner.
Any way that you look at them, they are absolutely horrible.
The middle class is being ripped to shreds, and those that are running the system seem to be all out of answers.

Quote:A young man met a beautiful girl and agreed to spend the night with her for $500.

So they did.

Before he left, he told her that he did not have any cash with him, but that he would have his secretary write a check and mail it to her, calling the payment "RENT FOR APARTMENT."

On the way to his office he regretted what he had promised, deciding that the whole event was not worth the price.

So, he had his secretary send a check for $250 and enclosed the following note:

Dear Madam,

Enclosed find check in the amount of $250 for rent of your apartment.

I am not sending the amount agreed upon because when I rented the apartment I was under the impression that:

• 1) it had never been occupied
  
• 2) that there was plenty of heat
  
• 3) that it was small enough to make me cozy and feel at home.
  

Last night, however, I found it had been previously occupied, that there was no heat, and it was entirely too large.

Upon receipt of the note, the girl immediately returned the check for $250 with the following note:

1. Dear Sir, first of all, I cannot understand how you expect a beautiful apartment to remain unoccupied indefinitely.
   
2. As for the heat, there is heat if you know how to turn it on.
   
3. Regarding the space, the apartment is, indeed, of regular size, but if you don’t have enough furniture to fill it, please don’t blame the landlady!
   

https://lists.theepochtimes.com/links/ZS...wDFCnDR90k

Quote:Colorado Gov. Jared Polis issued an emergency disaster declaration in his state over an outbreak of highly pathogenic bird flu in northeastern Weld County as officials recently reported that 1.8 million chickens were impacted by the virus.
The governor “verbally” declared a disaster after “an avian flu outbreak in a commercial poultry facility in Weld County,” according to a news release from his office issued on Monday. Mr. Polis’s office did not name the facility that was impacted by the outbreak.
The declaration means that Colorado can use its emergency powers to “take all necessary and appropriate state actions to assist with response, recovery, and mitigation efforts.”
In an update issued on July 8, the Colorado Department of Agriculture confirmed that 1.78 million chickens were impacted by highly pathogenic avian influenza.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said in a statement on July 3 that a dairy farm worker in northeastern Colorado was infected with the H5N1 bird flu and had direct exposure to cattle infected with the virus. His only symptom was conjunctivitis, colloquially known as pink eye, which was described by the agency as mild.
“He has recovered. This case is an employee at a dairy farm in northeast Colorado who had direct exposure to dairy cattle infected with avian flu. To protect patient privacy, additional details are not being provided,” the agency said last week in a news release.

Game of Thrones

Stargate SG-1

A few decades ago, when I was a young man, I was told, repeatedly, that I had a "dry" sense of humor, and when pressed it was explained to me as a "British" sense of humor. I didn't know what they meant then, and I don't know quite what it means now, decades later. Webster's Unabridged Dictionary has been no help at all nor has The Encyclopedia Britannica, which one would think would be the most helpful of all, but nada.

Be that as it may, I know what I like, and over time I've come to like "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series by Douglas Adams. Thrashing around through the tall weeds of YouTube, I stumbled across a copy of the audiobook version, read by Mr. Adams himself. The ravages of age have made reading a less pleasurable experience than it had been formerly, so I glommed on to the audio version as if it were manna from heaven - which it may have been, given the current state of my eyesight as compared to former times.

I reasoned that, being read by the author of the series himself, this is what Adams intended the books to be read like, with all the proper inflections and pronunciations as he intended them to be. That's a rare thing in the audiobook world, it being that most of them are read by professional narrators. Those narrators may be very good, and very professional, but they are decidedly NOT the original author, and so must make the odd faux pas here and there during the reading. My assumption is that the original author is less likely to make such tiny misreadings.

So, without further ado or bloviation, I present to you "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" in all of it's original read glory.

The original book in the series:




The second book in the series, "The Restaurant at the end of the Universe":




The third book in the series, which was originally conceived of as a trilogy... so this ought to have been the final book, but was not, "Life, The Universe, and Everything":




Since "trilogy" turned out to be an increasingly inaccurate mislabeling, there is more to come in the next post.

.

Narcissism:


If Jesus taught us to love one another, to have mercy and compassion for each other, and to help one another in times of need; expecting nothing in return, and if Jesus taught us to be humble and meek patient and kind, slow to anger quick to forgive, and if you believe all of this then you know I've described the "spirit" of Jesus. A Holy Spirit.


If you take a look at narcissism what you'll see is the exact opposite of this. You will see the an "anti-chirst spirit."

A spirit that is against all things Christ.

They don't forgive. 
Make false testimonies.
They are selfish and self absorbed.
They are not patient.
They are proud.
They do not care for or about others; unless it's to make themselves look "good."
They are not meek.
They are not kind.

They are the opposite of the Spirit of Christ.

Anything that is the opposite of Jesus is the "antichrist spirit."


I was given some advice to use my sword to cut right through the bullspit.


This is my first swing.

The video is about the OSS, CIA, Operation Paper Clip, the covert war against Russia using NAZI Werewolves, and Operation Gladio. We have all heard about the rumors of drug dealings by the CIA but the Why Files tells us why and even explains what bank was used to hide the vast sums of money... There is much information you can either believe or disregard however if all true we live in a very sick lying deceitful world in way to many ways.

Quote:Operation Gladio | How The Mob Financed The CIA's Secret Army After World War II, the CIA hatched a covert plan to stop Soviet expansion in Europe. They created a secret army, recruiting an unexpected mix of allies. This clandestine operation, known as Gladio, spanned across all NATO countries. What began as a defensive strategy quickly morphed into something far more sinister. Innocent civilians became casualties in a shadow war fought on European streets.

A short deep dive into the fictional Nixon film 'Secret Honor' in which a plausible case is made for the scandalized former president as a puppet, not king, controlled by a shadowy plutocratic 'Council of 100' that converges around the secret society retreat at... none other than the Bohemian Grove.




I had never heard of this "fictional" 1984 film. Spot on with the quote, "...as usual we won the war, but lost our freedoms. The true American way."