NOVEMBER 13, 2018


NEWS AND VIEWS


THIS IS A SAD STORY. IF THESE DOGS DON’T RACE ANYMORE, THEY BECOME WORTHLESS, I GUESS. THEY’RE REALLY BEAUTIFUL ANIMALS, AND THEY LOOK GENTLE.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46145276
Has a new racing ban in Florida doomed these dogs?
By Georgina Rannard
BBC News
13 November 2018

PHOTOGRAPH -- Organisations that re-home greyhounds warn a racing ban will have unintended consequences

Sometimes trying to making things better actually makes them worse.

When an amendment passed on 6 November to ban dog-racing in Florida, animal-lovers and rights activists celebrated.

But greyhound adoption groups have told the BBC they now fear the ban could lead to thousands of dogs being killed as it comes into force.

Animal rights groups fiercely contest the claim, calling it "fear-mongering" by groups close to the racing industry.

Carol Becker, a musician who volunteers as president of Florida-based greyhound adoption group God's Greyts, supports greyhound racing.

She says the dogs, whose dual love of running and sleeping earns them the nickname "speeding couch potatoes", are made for the sport.

Once they retire from their life of chasing mechanical rabbits around a race course, 98% of Florida greyhounds go on to lead happy lives with adopted families, she claims.

But now the racetracks are closing, too many dogs coupled with too few adoptions could lead to trainers euthanising the animals when their upkeep becomes unaffordable, Mrs Becker suggests.

Media captionFlorida has voted to ban greyhound racing and close 11 tracks
Florida's 11 race tracks must close by 2021, after Amendment 13 passed with 69% of the vote following a campaign led by greyhound protection non-profit Grey2K USA.

Those dogs who don't continue their careers in America's remaining six tracks will need to be found homes.

"It's a historical moment for Florida. I'm so excited about this change and happy that dogs will now be allowed to just be dogs," Christine Dorchak, President of Grey2K and author of the amendment ballot, told the BBC.

Greyhound racing remains legal in eight countries and in the UK, 29 greyhound race tracks are still operational.

US mid-terms: Drugs, abortion, voting rights and chickens on the ballot
Mrs Dorchak dismisses warnings by adoption organisations, claiming that pro-industry groups use "scare tactics" every time tracks close.

Animal rights activists have long maintained the sport is cruel and can cause devastating injuries.

Greyhounds usually begin their career at around 15 months old and retire aged three when adoption agencies try to find them homes.

Conditions inside the UK's puppy farms
Undercover reporter finds UK greyhounds 'drugged to rig bets'
Protect Dogs Yes on 13, who campaigned for the ban, published claims on their website that racing dogs are "kept in cages for up to 23 hours a day" and that a greyhound dies at a Florida track every three days on average.

According to a report by The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, who support racing bans, dogs are routinely fed meat from diseased animals and 16 cases have been documented of greyhounds testing positive for cocaine.

But claims of abuse in Florida racetracks are dismissed as misleading by adoption groups, the National Greyhound Association and The Committee to Support Greyhounds, which opposed Amendment 13.

Mrs Becker, of God's Greyts, says that in 16 years of visiting tracks, she has never seen dogs abused or unhappy.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption
Eleven of America's 17 dog racing tracks are in Florida
"I visit kennels two to three times a week without restriction. I know first-hand how racing greyhounds eat, breathe and live.

"They are there to run competitively, [so] why would a trainer mistreat them? They eat better than what I feed my dogs, because I can't afford the expensive food they get. They live in spacious crates."

She says the challenge of re-housing greyhounds is huge because supply will outstrip demand.

Estimates of the number of racing greyhounds in Florida range from 3,700 by anti-racing Grey2K to more than 8,000 by the pro-racing Florida Greyhound Association.

The decline of greyhound racing around the world

Media captionThe 600 greyhounds in Macau that have been left behind
Last greyhound races in Wimbledon, UK (VIDEO)
Is the end nigh for dog racing?
Mrs Becker's organisation has found new homes for just 1,600 dogs since 2007 and says the number of dogs in Florida is overwhelming.

"We are working at capacity, taking as many dogs as we can afford to feed and move around. I don't see how we can increase that," Mrs Becker says, adding that it costs $100-$200 (£77-£154) a month to keep a greyhound, depending on the quality of food and size of vet bills.

Most racing dogs are owned by individuals who live out of state and hire trainers to care for and race the greyhounds.

Mrs Becker says most dogs will be left with their trainers, who will be looking for new jobs and will be unable to afford the dogs' upkeep.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption
Greyhounds speed and laziness earned them the name "fastest couch potatoes"

In Washington DC, another adoption group Greyhound Welfare, agrees there are significant difficulties ahead.

"We've been taking dogs from Florida since 2002, but are limited by the number of people willing to house them. They are wonderful pets to adopt, but it's going to be a tremendous amount of work," says the group's volunteer president Barbara Hansen.

However, Grey2K point to five cases of large track closures in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Arizona and Connecticut when the "overwhelming majority" of dogs were found new homes or safely returned to their owners.

"We are confident that the dogs will be re-homed, and the end of dog racing permanently is a happy, far-reaching result for this breed," Mrs Dorchak concedes.

Small steps have already been taken in Florida to find the dogs new homes.

Rescue and Freedom, a national group that finds homes for rescue dogs, put out a call on Facebook for new owners and has so far received around 15 expressions of interest.

The organisation's vice-president April Arrington says that although some dogs may end up being euthanised, it's important to "think about the future generations of dogs who, thanks to this ballot, will no longer live in caged exploitation".


THE ANSWER TO THIS PUZZLE WAS SIMPLE, BUT NOT SATISFYING. A PHOTOGRAPHER ENLISTS KIDS TO GIVE THE NAZI SALUTE, AND A LARGE CROWD OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WENT ALONG WITH IT. THE PHOTOGRAPHER IS ALMOST CERTAINLY MENTALLY DISTURBED, BUT TO WHAT DEGREE HASN'T BEEN MADE CLEAR YET. SKIM ALL OF THE RELATED ARTICLES FOR THE INFORMATION. IT IS CLEARLY ONE MORE NAZI LINK POPPING UP IN A NICE MIDWESTERN TOWN. SO WHAT ELSE IS NEW, RIGHT?

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/baraboo-high-school-nazi-salute-photo-student-refused-to-participate/
CBS NEWS November 13, 2018, 7:39 AM
Wisconsin student who refused to participate in apparent Nazi salute speaks out

BARABOO, Wis. – Police in Wisconsin are investigating a prom photo that's led to growing international outrage. The photo, posted to Twitter Sunday, appears to show more than 30 male students from Baraboo High School's class of 2019 making a Nazi salute.

"As soon as I heard the photographer say, 'Raise your hand,' I knew what was going to happen," senior Jordan Blue told CBS News correspondent Adriana Diaz. Blue, who is in the photo, refused to participate.

"Did he say anything to make it clear that it was raise your hand in this way as in this Nazi symbol?" Diaz asked.

"He did not say raise your hand in a Nazi symbol way. And I'm pretty sure my classmates just interpreted as raise your hand, let's do this as a joke," Blue said, adding that he thinks the others knew what the symbol represented.

"It did not represent my morals, and I could not do something that I didn't believe in," Blue said.

drx-4qpvyaeigdp.jpg
Dozens of students at Baraboo High School are seen making an apparent Nazi salute.

The photo surfaced in a now-deleted tweet on Sunday with the caption: "We even got the black kid to throw it up." At least one student is seen making the OK gesture, which some associate with white supremacists.

The photographer, Peter Gust*, defended the students in an interview with a local TV station, saying the gestures are being taken out of context.

"I said, 'OK boys, you're going to say goodbye to your parents. So wave,'" Gust said. "For society to now turn it around and now blame these kids is absolutely wrong."

Baraboo school board members demanded action Monday night.

"They seriously need to do some major apologizing when this is settled, and they need to be educated," one school board member said.

The Anti-Defamation League, which tracks anti-Semitic behavior, found the number of anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. rose from 1,267 in 2016 to 1,986 in 2017 – a 57 percent increase and the largest single-year increase on record.

Asked whether the students are regretful, Blue said, "I think so."

"Some of these people have bright futures ahead of them. ... So why did they do it?" Blue said.

Blue said at least one parent yelled for the students to stop while the photo was being taken. The Baraboo school district condemned the gestures and said it's investigating.

The Auschwitz Memorial in Poland responded to the photo on Twitter warning of the "danger of hateful ideology."

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


THIS LOOKS TO ME TO BE TYPICAL TEENAGED BEHAVIOR, BUT AS SUCH IT SHOWS GROUP AND POSSIBLY COMMUNITY IGNORANCE. MEMORIZING A FEW NAMES AND DATES ISN’T “LEARNING HISTORY,” AND THAT MAY BE THE LEVEL OF THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT A NAZI ACTUALLY IS. ONE BOY HAD ENOUGH WIT ABOUT HIM TO THINK OF THE APPEARANCE, PLUS HE DISAPPROVED OF THE GESTURE. HIS NAME IS BLUE, WHICH MAY BE JEWISH, BUT EVEN WITHOUT THAT, SOME KIDS ARE MORE MATURE AND INTELLIGENT THAN OTHERS.

AS FOR THIS PHOTOGRAPHER, HE SAYS HE TOLD THE BOYS TO “WAVE.” BLUE SAID HE JUST TOLD THEM TO “RAISE YOUR HAND.” THOSE TWO DESCRIPTIONS ARE NOT THE SAME THING, AND BETWEEN THE TWO I TEND TO BELIEVE THE BOY. I THINK IF GUST HAD ACTUALLY TOLD THEM TO “WAVE” AT LEAST ONE OR TWO OUT OF 60 WOULD HAVE WAVED, AND WHILE HALF OF THEM MIGHT HAVE SPONTANEOUSLY GIVEN THE NAZI SALUTE, BOYS BEING BOYS, I DON’T THINK NEARLY ALL OF THEM WOULD HAVE.

ALSO, THIS PHOTOGRAPHER WHO IS A MATURE MAN AND FORMER TEACHER, SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER THAN TO TAKE THAT PHOTOGRAPH. WHETHER HE SAID FOR THEM TO “WAVE” OR JUST “RAISE THEIR ARMS,” HE COULD SEE WHAT THEY WERE DOING. AND THEN WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THIS PICTURE ANYWAY? WHO INITIATED IT, IF THE SCHOOL DIDN’T? AND WHOSE WEBSITE IS/WAS “BARABOO PROUD?” I’M SURE THE POLICE WILL INVESTIGATE HIM, THOUGH, AND THEY CERTAINLY SHOULD. I ALSO DON’T LIKE THE WEBSITE NAME, “BARABOO PROUD,” AS THE RIGHTIST FIGHT CLUB “PROUD BOYS” IS A SIMILAR HANDLE. AS FOR LYNCHING THIS PHOTOGRAPHER ON THE SPOT, NO. WAIT UNTIL THE POLICE INVESTIGATE.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6386477/Photographer-took-Nazi-salute-picture-says-hes-ready-change-identity.html
EXCLUSIVE: Photographer who took now infamous ‘Nazi salute’ picture of Baraboo High School students says he's ready to change his identity to get away from the furor his shot has provoked
By MARTIN GOULD IN BARABOO, WISCONSIN FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 17:51 EST, 13 November 2018 | UPDATED: 22:38 EST, 13 November 2018

-- Dozens of boys from Baraboo High School in Wisconsin gave the Nazi salute while posing for their prom photo
-- But photographer Peter Gust insists that the virtually all-white group of boys were merely waving goodbye to their parents at his suggestion
-- ‘I am very frustrated and find it reprehensible that people all over the world can snap to a judgment without knowing any facts and go ape,' he told DailyMail.com
-- Photo emerged on Twitter on Sunday and shows the group of teens dressed in suits with their arms raised
-- At least one student was also pictured making the white power hand signal
-- The teenagers, the school's Class of 2019, can be seen laughing in the photo
-- The photo, posted on Twitter by an account called 'Welcome to Baraboo', has been condemned by the Baraboo School District


https://www.cbsnews.com/news/baraboo-high-school-nazi-salute-prom-photo-wisconsin-students/
By CHRISTOPHER BRITO CBS NEWS November 12, 2018, 11:56 PM
Wisconsin high school students appear to make Nazi salute in prom photo

PHOTOGRAPH – Students giving Nazi salutes
VIDEO –

A Wisconsin school district is investigating a photo showing a group of high school boys apparently making the Nazi salute. A school official denounced the image on Twitter – and said it would pursue legal actions if necessary.

Baraboo Superintendent Dr. Lori Mueller said she became aware of the photo, which shows over 60 male students dressed in suits with their right arms extended upward, on Monday after it was posted on social media and received immediate backlash.

Wisconsin student who refused to participate in apparent Nazi salute speaks out
"The photo of students posted to #BarabooProud is not reflective of the educational values and beliefs of the School District of Baraboo," she said in a statement. "The District will pursue any and all available and appropriate actions, including legal, to address." She added, "the Baraboo School District a hate-free school environment where all people ... are celebrated and respected."

Mueller said the photo appears to have been taken last spring and wasn't on school grounds. Baraboo police are also investigating.


Baraboo Schools
@barabooSD
The photo of students posted to #BarabooProud is not reflective of the educational values and beliefs of the School District of Baraboo. We are investigating and will pursue any and all available and appropriate actions, including legal, to address.

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A photographer with Wheel Memories* took responsibility for taking the controversial snapshot at a prom event and offered an apology.

"It is too bad that there are those in society who can and do take the time to be jerks; knowingly and willingly to be jerks!" the post on the the company's website read. "To anyone that was hurt I sincerely apologize."

CBS News has reached out for further comment.

One of the students, however, did not take part in the apparent salute. Jordan Blue, an 18-year-old seen pictured in the top right corner, said in a text message to CBS News: "The photographer took the photos telling us to make the sign, I knew what my morals were and it was not to salute something I firmly didn't believe in."

The Auschwitz Memorial tweeted about the photo, "This is why every single day we work hard to educate. We need to explain what is the danger of hateful ideology rising. Auschwitz with its gas chambers was at the very end of the long process of normalizing and accommodating hatred."


Auschwitz Memorial
✔
@AuschwitzMuseum
It is so hard to find words...

This is why every single day we work hard to educate. We need to explain what is the danger of hateful ideology rising. Auschwitz with its gas chambers was at the very end of the long process of normalizing and accommodating hatred.

Jules Suzdaltsev
✔
@jules_su
If anybody from Baraboo High School in Wisconsin can clue me in on why it appears the entire male class of 2018 is throwing up a Sig Heil during their prom photos - that would be great.

h/t @CarlySidey

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Late Monday, a group of students had gathered in the same place where the picture was taken, but this time the message was to promote love.

Baraboo is a town of about 12,000 residents, about 115 miles northwest of Milwaukee.

Jericka Duncan contributed to this report.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


FINALLY, WHAT IS WHEEL MEMORIES AND WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT PETER GUST?

https://heavy.com/news/2018/11/peter-gust/
Peter Gust: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
By Ellyn Santiago
Updated Nov 12, 2018 at 11:36pm
Published Nov 12, 2018 at 8:23pm

PHOTOGRAPH – PETER GUST

It’s alleged that the photograph of some 40 white male students at Baraboo (Wisconsin) High School, taken during the junior prom in May of 2018, making the teens around 17, where the vast majority are throwing up the Nazi salute was perhaps an idea suggested by the photographer.

Make no mistake, nearly all the boys had their arms extended in the salute, an allegiance to Adolf Hitler. But some question the photographer’s motives, and allegiances, if in fact he did ask them to perform the ‘sieg heil.’

Peter Gust is a longtime former educator and has a son who attends Baraboo High School and who appears in the photo with his arm raised in a Nazi salute. Gust is now a photographer and was commissioned to be the official prom photographer for the junior class prom last spring.

The Nazi salute is illegal in a number of European counties, and upon conviction people saluting allegiance to Hitler can be charged with a hate crime and serve jail time. It’s that serious.

What would motivate Gust to suggest having the entire class of 11th grade teens pose as Nazis is not clear.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Gust Took the Photograph & Allegedly Encouraged the All White Class, Save One, to do the Nazi Salute


Students have said that Gust encouraged the pose and dozens of white male students went along and then, shared and posted the photograph with the hashtag #BarabooProud,

2. Gust Removed the Photos From His Website & Added an Inexplicable Note

Gust’s Wheel Memories photography website had the images online for months and for sale. Gust, whose son Matthew attends Baraboo, added a note to his website that reads in part, “…Due malevolent behavior on the part of some in society, this page has been modified. It is too bad that there are those in society who can and do take the time to be jerks; knowingly and willingly be jerks!”

ℳaryAnn 🌼 I Ꮙote
@cinemaven
· Nov 12, 2018
Replying to @monndad @DebraMessing
The worst part is..

The official prom photographer took it!!!http://wheelmemories.com/bhs-prom-pics/

It's still available for purchase on their website

This wasn't an accident, it was an official photo shoot with adults around, including the photographer
#BarabooHighWS#BarabooProud?

View image on Twitter

Lori Witham 🇺🇸
@yayee36
They’ve ironically updated their page with a blurb blaming those who have called out their racist behavior, calling everyone jerks, and then closing with—wait for it— “Be kind, Be gentle, Be civil. You can’t make this up! pic.twitter.com/fqCBnLCB7p

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The message continues ruminating on the power of the internet and ends with and apology, to whom is not clear, and “…to those who have harmed them, we as a society often ignore them I have chosen not to do that. You are jerks! Grow up!”

As the internet has a long memory, those pictures can still be located in web archives.

3. Gust’s Resume Says he Was a Decades-Long Educator & Educational Consultant, With Non-Profit Experience & ‘Coaching’ as Well as Public Speaking
View image on Twitter
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let Polly do the printing
✔
@ajaromano
Just FYI, Peter Gust, the photographer who reportedly arranged the @barabooSD high school Nazi salute photo, has "removed" it from the website, but he didn't actually delete the photo. http://wheelmemories.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC_8605-2.jpg …

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According to his LinkedIn, Gust is a former Wisconsin teacher, curriculum consultant and teachers association director.

“Retired experienced Director with a demonstrated history of working in the education management industry. Skilled in Nonprofit Organizations, Coaching, Educational Technology, Volunteer Management, and Public Speaking. Strong professional with a Ed. D. focused in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Sarasota,” his LinkedIn description reads.

Gust was director of the Wisconsin Education Association Council according to his LinkedIn, since 2001. From 1986 until 1999, he notes he taught in Wisconsin public schools.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Wisconsin, a master’s from UW and his doctorate in education from online college Argosy of Sarasota. a 36-credit hour program to “become effective leaders as school principals or administrators within the State of Florida.” Graduates are required to take the Florida Educational Leadership Exam, a requirement for the Master of Arts in Education in Educational Administration, which he says he has. The college is closing its doors according to its website.


4. Gust Retired & Opened a Motorcycle Photography Business. Pictures From the Baraboo High School Prom Are the Only Non-Motorcycle Photos

Gust is currently owner of WheelMemories, a photography business for “the motorcycle community. Everything from portraits of motorcycles and their riders to coverage of rallies, events and conferences.”

He says he’s vice president Of business development, president and creative director of the photo business he started in May of 2017, according to his CV.

“It was time, in April 2017, to say that is a wrap on the career in public education and move into my lifelong passions. Riding ‘Cruisers’ and shooting pictures. So, along came WheelMemories. I travel from bike show, rally and ride providing photographic services to the gathered enthusiast,” his ‘about’ reads.

The website’s portfolio and photo gallery is sparse. The blog on the site does include pictures of his trip to Bike Week and other motorcycle rallies. A cursory study of the images does not appear to reveal much about Gust’s politics or motorcycle clubs that may have white supremacist connections.

The only photos besides a handful of motorcycles and his own travels on a bike is the BHS prom, which he had featured prominently on his website until he scrubbed the images off the site.

What is not clear is who hired the former teacher, parent of a BHS student and motorcycle enthusiast to take the prom photos.

5. Many Question Why Gust, as a Former Teacher & Parent, Would Suggest a High School Class Salute Adolph Hitler in a Nazi Salute

Addressing the school district’s response, mostly telling parents they don;t have to speak to the media and, as an afterthought at the end of a long letter, says the school does not condone nor tolerate “hate,”people were stunned by the lack of awareness or responsibility, many said, or supported others who said it, on Twitter.

Baraboo Schools
@barabooSD
· Nov 12, 2018
The Baraboo School District sent the following letter to parents this afternoon in response to a photo circulating on social media.

View image on Twitter

Rebecca Murray
@becmur
This photo isn't new. Why didn't you act on it prior to it being splashed across Twitter? It seems you had to be shamed into actually labeling it as troubling.

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“This photo isn’t new. Why didn’t you act on it prior to it being splashed across Twitter? It seems you had to be shamed into actually labeling it as troubling,” one Twitter user commented with more than 140 other users agreeing. Which led to a call-out of Gust.

Rebecca Murray
@becmur
· Nov 12, 2018
Replying to @barabooSD
This photo isn't new. Why didn't you act on it prior to it being splashed across Twitter? It seems you had to be shamed into actually labeling it as troubling.

Andra 🚺
@AndraRichelle
They are complicit. From the top down. Husband of the photographer works in the local education system. Kids from that school have many, many reports of being told to just ignore things...

Unacceptable.

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People begin to question Gust.

Baraboo Schools
@barabooSD
· Nov 12, 2018
The Baraboo School District sent the following letter to parents this afternoon in response to a photo circulating on social media.

View image on Twitter

Mamaria
@mamaria33
HOW: With a camera, by the guy Baraboo SD hired to take prom pics.

WHY: Photographer Pete Gust suggested a group photo with the Nazi salute. Apparently 95% of the boys in this pic were totes cool with that, probably b/c they get away with racist bullying every day in school.

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READ NEXT: Baraboo-WI-High-School-Class-Pose-Doing-Nazi-Salute
Published Nov 12, 2018 at 8:23pm


"THE UNITED STATES IS OUR HISTORIC ALLY, IT WILL CONTINUE TO BE," MR MACRON SAID. "BUT TO BE ALLIED IS NOT TO BE A VASSAL."

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46212727
Trump's attack on Macron lacked 'common decency', France says
November 14, 2018 48 pm

Photograph -- Mr Macron and Mr Trump had appeared to smooth over their differences at the weekend

US President Donald Trump's tweets mocking his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron were inappropriate and showed a lack of "common decency", France says.

On Tuesday, Mr Trump attacked Mr Macron over nationalism, plans for a European army and the French leader's ratings.

"We were marking the murder of 130 of our people," French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said, referring to the 2015 Paris attacks.

It follows Mr Trump's awkward Armistice Day visit to Paris over the weekend.

Mr Griveaux said 13 November was a date for France to mark the tragic incidents of three years ago in Paris and Saint-Denis, when co-ordinated suicide bombings and mass shootings killed 130 people and wounded hundreds more.

"So I will reply in English: 'common decency' would have been the appropriate thing," he told reporters on Wednesday.

Did the French army mock Donald Trump?

Trump-Macron smooth over defence spat
White House defends Trump WW1 no-show

In a series of earlier tweets, Mr Trump launched an attack on Mr Macron over his "very low approval rating" and issued a gibe at France's defeat and occupation by Nazi Germany in World War Two.

Image Copyright @realDonaldTrump@REALDONALDTRUMP
Report

Mr Trump also attacked his counterpart over nationalism and took exception to Mr Macron's vision for a "true European military", which the French president said would enable Europe to defend itself against any possible future threats from China, Russia and the US.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to a French warship after Mr Trump's comments, Mr Macron said what matters is "what we do with the US army".

"We are going to carry out very concrete operations with the Americans," he said, citing the "perfect co-ordination and excellent execution" of a joint operation with the US and UK in Syria last April.

Later, during a television interview, the French president added that the country could not wholly rely on the US for its security.

"The United States is our historic ally, it will continue to be," Mr Macron said. "But to be allied is not to be a vassal."

Image copyrightAFP/GETTY
Image caption
President Trump recently met with President Macron on a visit to France

The pair's comments come after a meeting in Paris on Saturday in which the two appeared to smooth over their differences and agreed that Europe needed to pay more towards its defence costs.

Mr Trump was in France as part of Armistice Day commemorations marking 100 years since the end of World War One.

During his visit, the US president was widely criticised for failing to visit the Aisne-Marne American cemetery, which the White House later said was down to visibility being too poor for his helicopter and Mr Trump not wanting to disrupt the Paris traffic with his motorcade.

The French army appeared to poke fun at Mr Trump over the decision, tweeting an image of an officer crawling under barbed wire in wet weather with the words: "There's rain, but it's no problem."

Image Copyright @armeedeterre@ARMEEDETERRE
Report
The French army later claimed the tweet was only meant to be about training.


HERE IS TODAY’S BERNIE BASHING ARTICLE, ONLY THIS IS BASHING HIM FOR EVER SO DELICATELY SAYING THAT IN THOSE CONSERVATIVE AREAS THERE ARE WHITE PEOPLE WHO FEEL “UNCOMFORTABLE,” VOTING FOR A BLACK PERSON. SANDERS SAID THE SIMPLE TRUTH, BUT WITHOUT THE ANIMUS. BAD MOVE, BERNIE!! YESTERDAY’S BLACK COMMENTERS SAID HE SHOULD BE VIGOROUSLY ACCUSING SUCH “CONSERVATIVES” OF (FULL-SCALE AND OVERT) RACISM SO, TO MANY PEOPLE OF COLOR, HE WAS BEING TOO TIMID ABOUT CALLING CONSERVATIVE SOUTHERN WHITES BY THEIR TRUE NAME. NOW TODAY’S WRITER SAYS BERNIE SHOULDN’T HAVE DARED TO SUGGEST THAT, JUST POSSIBLY, THEY DIDN’T VOTE FOR HIM FOR THAT REASON.

I JUST LOOK AT IT ON THE SURFACE, FROM THE TOP LOOKING DOWN AT THE WHOLE THING. I SEE BERNIE DIPLOMATICALLY SAYING THAT MOST OF THOSE SOUTHERNERS HAVE NOT BEEN ACCUSTOMED TO HAVING BLACK CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT FOR HIGH OFFICE, AND THEN CONSIDERING THE POSSIBILITY OF VOTING FOR THEM WAS A LITTLE SCARY. BARACK OBAMA WAS THE FIRST BLACK PERSON I HAVE EVER VOTED FOR, BUT I WAS ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT HIM, SO I WAS ACTUALLY PROUD RATHER THAN NERVOUS. HAVING COME FROM THE SOUTH, I KNOW THAT THAT IS AN ACCURATE STATEMENT ABOUT HOW THE AVERAGE TRULY KIND-HEARTED SOUTHERNER FEELS. THE PRESSURE TO STAY AWAY FROM BLACK PEOPLE IS STRONG IN THE SOUTH, AT LEAST WHERE I GREW UP.

THIS ITEM TODAY BY “SIC WILLIE,” IS THE ESSENCE OF BERNIE BASHING – IT ISN’T SINCERE OR HONEST. THE MAN EVEN ADMITS THAT HE IS A PROVOCATEUR, WHICH TO ME MEANS THAT HE DOESN’T HAVE PERSONAL BELIEFS ABOUT POLITICS. HE’S A GAME-PLAYER AT BEST AND MAYBE A POLITICAL ATTACK DOG FOR SOMEONE LIKE DONALD TRUMP, AND VERY LIKELY FOR PAYMENT PER HATEFUL WORD. THIS ARTICLE LOOKS LIKE THE STUFF THAT RUSSIAN BOTS USED CONSTANTLY TO ATTACK HILLARY CLINTON. LIKE THOSE HIRED RUSSIAN KILLERS, I THINK “SIC” IS PROBABLY VICIOUS IN GENERAL. MOST PEOPLE WHO GO OUT OF THEIR WAY TO HURT LIKE THAT, DO SO BECAUSE THEY ENJOY INFLICTING PAIN.

SAME PEOPLE, SAME GOAL – TO BOLSTER THE MAINSTREAM CORPORATE DEMOCRATS, OR TO STRENGTHEN THE POSITION OF THE TRUMP GROUP. IF THEY WERE BEING SINCERE, THEY WOULD CRITICIZE HIM FOR BEING A DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST INSTEAD, OR MAYBE FOR BEING A JEW? IT IS ABSOLUTELY FALSE TO CALL WHAT SANDERS SAID “RACIST IDENTITY POLITICS,” THOUGH. IT’S THE OPPOSITE. WHAT HE GOT INTO TROUBLE OVER WAS NOT COMING RIGHT OUT WITH IT AND SAYING THEY ARE RACIST. HE KNOWS THAT THERE IS A HALFWAY MARK IN AMERICA, AND CHOSE TO WALK ON IT. SANDERS IS STILL OUR MOST SINCERE POLITICIAN WHO IS CONCERNED ABOUT PEOPLE, AND I DO WANT HIM FOR OUR NEXT PRESIDENT. ALL THOSE SELF-SATISFIED RIGHTISTS ARE UNACCEPTABLE AS STATESMEN AND POLITICAL LEADERS.

https://www.fitsnews.com/2018/11/13/bernie-sanders-blame-game-racist-identity-politics/
Bernie Sanders’ Blame Game: Racist Identity Politics
We can’t keep letting comments like this go unchallenged …
Published 1 day ago on November 13, 2018 By FITSNew*

It remains to be seen whether über-liberals Andrew Gillum and Stacey Abrams will prevail in their respective gubernatorial races in Florida and Georgia.

Both contests have gone down to the wire, and could wind up going either way …

Not living in either state, we have no compelling interest in the outcome of those races (unlike the U.S. Senate race in Florida). If Gillum and Abrams wind up losing, though, one national liberal leader believes he knows the reason why: Racism.

According to socialist U.S. senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, white voters are “uncomfortable” voting for black candidates.

“There are a lot of white folks out there who are not necessarily racist who felt uncomfortable for the first time in their lives about whether or not they wanted to vote for an African-American,” Sanders told The Daily Beast last week.

Really?

“Uncomfortable?”

We were fully prepared to let that comment go … but then we decided that letting comments like that go is part of the problem.

Letting comments like that go enables racist identity politics – and allows people with legitimate policy disagreements to be unfairly demonized over views they do not hold.

“Not necessarily racist?”

Seriously … where does this guy get off?

Identity politics is a growing cancer on this nation … and we say that as a news outlet in the deep south that has supported gay marriage and endorsed the removal of the Confederate flag from state government offices.

We are not hick racists in other words …

We have said this before, but it bears repeating in light of ongoing efforts by politicians and the media to frame debates around what people look like/ where they are from/ who they love/ who they worship and a host of other totally irrelevant attributes … as opposed to who they are and what they will do if we entrust them with our votes.

Ready?

In choosing a candidate for any office, be it a seat on your local school board or the president of the United States, there are three questions educated voters should ask – and insist upon having answered – before pushing a button next to their name.

How much money are you going to spend?
Where are you going to collect that money from?
What are you going to spend it on?
Included within the answers to these three questions is all you really need to know about a candidate …

Don’t get us wrong: It is certainly worth noting when individuals of diverse backgrounds achieve milestones in our society. And we have no problem celebrating these accomplishments, just as supporters of U.S. senator-elect Kyrsten Sinema (below) are celebrating her election as the first openly bisexual member of the U.S. Senate.

But celebrating Sinema’s accomplishment is one thing. Voting for or against a candidate because of a choice they make in their personal lives?

That is quite another …

Certainly it is within one’s right to vote for a candidate based on their sexual orientation – just as it is within one’s right to vote for a candidate based on their race. You can do it … it’s just stupid.

But demonizing people by the hundreds of thousands (as Sanders did) with absolutely no basis in fact? That is beyond the pale.

And it is the sort of thing we will never let slide …

We cannot peer into the heart of every voter in Georgia and Florida (or Arizona, for that matter). We will never know what ultimately prompted them to vote for or against a particular candidate (or slate of candidates). Maybe some of them were motivated by race. Who knows.

Maybe some of them were motivated by this …

Or this …

One thing we do know, though, is that ignorantly and unfairly painting broad swaths of people with the same brush is the sort of thing we thought Sanders and others on the far left were against … not for.

Sadly, such is life among the “New Tolerants.”

***
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RELATED TOPICS:ANDREW GILLUMBERNIE SANDERSFEATUREDIDENTITY POLITICSKYRSTEN SINEMARACISMSTACEY ABRAMS

FROM A PROVOCATEUR, “SIC WILLIE,” WHOSE HOPEFULLY CORRECT NAME IS WILL FOLKS. HE’S CLEVER, BUT NOT “DEEP.” HE’S CUTE, BUT CONCEITED. WELL, I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF HIM. MOVING ON NOW TO MY FAVORITE PROVOCATEUR, RACHEL MADDOW. SHE’S ON THE SIDE OF GOOD OVER EVIL. THAT’S HOW I SEE IT ANYWAY.

https://www.fitsnews.com/sic-willie-2/
FITSNews, LLC
Easy ladies … that disarmingly attractive, diabolically brilliant man pictured above is none other than Will Folks (a.k.a. Sic Willie), our beloved founding editor ...


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TO READ THIS WHOLE ARTICLE, GO TO THE WEBSITE.

Will Folks
https://archives.cjr.org/campaign_desk/a_day_in_the_life_of_south_car.php
A Day in the Life of South Carolina’s ‘Sic Willie’
How the Palmetto State's most read, most ribald politics blogger goes about his work
By Erika Fry
JANUARY 20, 2012
2014 WORDS

SOUTH CAROLINA — On most days, you will find Will Folks, aka “Sic Willie”—South Carolina’s blogger provacateur, the prolific force behind FITSNews.com and that Nikki Haley story—where you’d least expect him: in a nice home on a quiet, well-kept street in Columbia, the state capital. He works out of a tidy office lined with vintage baseball cards and his kids’ art projects; the sign on his office door features a construction paper giraffe and reads, with complete innocence, “Jo’s Zoo.”

The cheekiest thing you’ll find in Folks’s office—not counting what lurks in his computer files—is a framed photograph of him standing between South Carolina’s former governor, Mark Sanford, and Haley, the current governor. A pre-lapsarian scandal sandwich; all smiles before the storms.

Political junkies may remember Folks from May 2010, when, two weeks before South Carolina’s gubernatorial primary, he announced on his blog that in 2007 he had had an “inappropriate physical relationship” with Haley, the Tea Party favorite for whom he had once done communications work (and whom he supported in the governor’s race).

Haley promptly denied the claim, calling it “categorically and totally false,” and Folks was accused of setting a new low in dirty politicking—breaking news of a scandal and starring in it—in the state best known for dirty politics. His web traffic spiked, but few people, particularly in the press, believed him—a fact Folks chalks up to a smear campaign unleashed against him


I REALLY DON’T CARE FOR PAUL RYAN AS A PERSON, NOR AS A POLITICAL LEADER. HOWEVER, THIS IS A VERY INTERESTING ARTICLE. IT BRINGS OUT THE REAL NATURE OF THE “CONSCIENCE OF A CONSERVATIVE,” AND AS A RESULT, THE REAL PROBLEM WITH MOST MODERN REPUBLICANS. THEY CHECK THEIR HEARTS IN AT THE DOOR WHEN THEY GET TO THE OFFICE, OR HOUSE, SENATE.

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/paul-ryan-remains-reluctant-hold-trump-responsible-his-rhetoric
Paul Ryan remains reluctant to hold Trump responsible for his rhetoric
10/29/18 10:44 AM
By Steve Benen

PHOTOGRAPH -- U.S. President Donald Trump (C) listens to House Speaker Paul Ryan (L) as he gathers with Congressional Republicans in the Rose Garden of the White House... CARLOS BARRIA

In an interview that aired yesterday on “Face the Nation,” CBS News’ John Dickerson asked House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) about Donald Trump’s efforts to “sow division” within the nation. The retiring Wisconsin congressman was willing to concede he “sometimes” sees the president engage in such behavior at his rallies. It led to an interesting exchange:

RYAN: Well, not always but sometimes. I worry about tribal identity politics becoming the new norm of how politics is waged. As conservatives we always thought this was sort of a left wing, Alinsky thing. Unfortunately, the right practices identity politics now as well. It’s the day and age, it’s technology and everything else – identity politics, which is now being practiced on both sides of the aisle, is, unfortunately, working. And I think we, as leaders, we’ve got to figure out how do we make inclusive aspirational politics strategically valuable again?

DICKERSON: You’ve talked about inclusive politics which tries to unify. Does President Trump practice those kind of politics?

RYAN: Sometimes he does and sometimes he doesn’t.

The retiring House Speaker may not want to invest too much time in writing an acceptance speech for his “Profile in Courage” Award.

Part of the problem, of course, is that Paul Ryan is well aware of reality, but he’s reluctant to say out loud what’s plainly true. The GOP leader’s congressional career is coming to an end in a few months, which theoretically suggests Ryan could feel more freedom to speak his mind, but he still can’t bring himself to encourage the president to follow a more responsible course.

But just as unsettling is how poor a messenger Ryan is for a message that’s critical of “tribal identity politics.”

Ryan seems eager to position himself as a bookend to Donald Trump: the president at one end of Pennsylvania Avenue may rely on a strategy of fear and division, but the House leader wants to rise above the nonsense and the ugliness.

It’s be easier to take this seriously if Ryan’s record didn’t get in the way. As we discussed several weeks ago, this isn’t necessarily new. The Wisconsin congressman, whose career on Capitol Hill has spanned nearly two decades, has long been one of the House’s most bitter partisans. Indeed, Ryan’s rise to power has been fueled by the same “invective” he’s now denouncing: he’s not only condemned Social Security as “a collectivist system,” he blasted Social Security’s Democratic champions as “collectivist, class warfare-breathing demagogues.”

Ryan also famously divided the public into what he saw as two camps: “makers” and “takers.”

But we don’t necessarily have to look to the past to appreciate the hypocrisy of Ryan’s message. We need only to turn on our televisions in swing districts. As Politico recently reported:

Democratic House candidate Jason Crow received a Bronze Star for heroism in Iraq and a “lawyer of the year” award for his veterans advocacy. But according to his GOP adversaries, he has “neglected” Colorado veterans.

Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger spent nearly a decade fighting terrorists as an undercover CIA officer. But to hear Republicans tell it, she harbors terrorist sympathies.

Attacks ads have always been a staple of campaign season. But Republicans have twisted facts in some ads to an extraordinary degree as they fight to save their House majority, weaving narratives about Democratic candidates that are misleading at best — or blatantly false at worst.

In several ads, military vets – who count as some of Democrats’ best recruits to defeat sitting Republicans this year – have had their patriotism called into question. One spot insinuates that Spanberger, who is challenging Rep. Dave Brat’s (R-Va.), has ties to extremists because she taught at a Saudi Arabian-funded Muslim school where two infamous terrorists once attended. The CIA not only knew about the job, but later hired Spanberger and employed her for eight years.

Much of the ugly attack ads have been created by a Republican super PAC called the Congressional Leadership Fund, which – you guessed it – is closely affiliated with Paul Ryan’s House Republican leadership.

The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank, taking stock of the Congressional Leadership Fund’s messaging, wrote a column last month asking, “So this is how retiring House Speaker Paul D. Ryan wishes to leave public service: with lies, name-calling and racism?”

The answer, it turns out, is maybe. Ryan may prefer to leave public service while pretending to be disappointed by tribalism and hysterical demagoguery, but the Congressional Leadership Fund’s ads tell us a great deal about what the House Speaker is prepared to tolerate in the name of victory.

It’s something he and Donald Trump apparently have in common.


WILL DONALD TRUMP’S LATEST SLIPPERY MOVE SUCCEED, OR BE KILLED BY THIS JUDGE?

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/state-maryland-asks-judge-declare-rosenstein-acting-attorney-general-n935446
State of Maryland asks judge to declare Rosenstein acting attorney general
Trump bypassed Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general who is overseeing the special counsel investigation, in favor of Matt Whitaker for acting AG.
NOVEMBER 13, 2018 00:33
Nov. 12, 2018 / 5:18 PM EST / Updated Nov. 13, 2018 / 7:23 AM EST
By Pete Williams

WASHINGTON — The state of Maryland asked a federal judge on Tuesday for an order declaring that Rod Rosenstein is the acting attorney general — not Matt Whitaker, who was appointed to that position last week after the forced resignation of Jeff Sessions.

If the judge does as Maryland asks, ruling that Whitaker cannot serve as attorney general, it would be a blow to President Donald Trump, who bypassed Rosenstein in favor of someone who has repeatedly criticized Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian election meddling.

The Justice Department would immediately appeal any such ruling, and the case could be on a fast track to the Supreme Court.

Whitaker likely to be quickly replaced as Attorney General
NOV. 11, 201812:16

Whitaker's appointment has been widely criticized because he now oversees the special counsel's investigation into Russian election meddling and the president. While serving as a conservative commentator, he questioned the scope of the investigation and said there was no Trump campaign collusion with the Russians. For that reason, several congressional Democrats have urged him to recuse himself from overseeing Mueller's investigation.

Maryland's attorney general, Brian Frosh, a Democrat, argues in court documents filed Tuesday that if Trump had the kind of authority the White House claims, he could fire the attorney general "then appoint a carefully selected senior employee who he was confident would terminate or otherwise severely limit the investigation."

Maryland says that Whitaker's selection by Trump violated federal law and exceeded the appointment authority in the Constitution.

Trump named Whitaker acting attorney general under a law known as the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. It allows a president to fill a vacant Cabinet position with a senior employee of the affected agency. Whitaker fits in that category, because he had been the chief of staff to Sessions.

But Maryland urges the judge to rule that a separate federal law actually governs what happens when the office of attorney general is vacant. It provides that the deputy attorney general takes over, which would be Rosenstein. As the state sees it, the Vacancies Reform Act is more general law, which must give way whenever a specific law provides for filling a Cabinet-level vacancy.

White lecturer calls police on black student for putting feet up
Could this cosmic interloper be an alien spacecraft? Neil deGrasse Tyson isn’t so sure

The state also argues that the appointment of Whitaker violates a provision of the Constitution that specifies top positions in the government can be filled only through presidential nomination and confirmation by the Senate. Because Whitaker's nomination bypassed that process, the state says, he cannot serve as acting attorney general.

"It is troubling, to say the least, that the president is attempting to fill a 'vacancy' he created himself with a 'temporary' appointment that might last for many months or years," says Frosh, "especially when, as there, the temporary appointee has not been confirmed by the Senate."

Maryland's legal papers say Whitaker's appointment marks the first time since 1868, when Congress passed a succession law for the Justice Department, that someone named to be acting attorney general was not already serving in a Senate-confirmed position.

The state's motion comes in a lawsuit over the future of Obamacare, seeking a ruling that the Affordable Care Act remains enforceable despite attempts by the Trump administration to shut it down. The case is the mirror image of a lawsuit filed by Texas and 17 other states. It asks a different federal judge to declare that the health care law is no longer enforceable.

Maryland's Obamacare lawsuit named several defendants, including Sessions, who was attorney general when the case was filed in September. With Sessions gone, Maryland says, the judge overseeing the lawsuit should declare that the attorney general defendant is Rod Rosenstein, not Matt Whitaker.

Pete Williams
Pete Williams is an NBC News correspondent who covers the Justice Department and the Supreme Court, based in Washington.


AVENATTI HAS ALWAYS STRUCK ME AS BEING VERY MUCH “ON EDGE.” THAT COULD MAKE HIM A GOOD LAWYER, BUT A BAD HUSBAND OR FATHER.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/14/politics/michael-avenatti-arrest/index.html
Michael Avenatti arrested on suspicion of domestic violence
By Eli Watkins and Cheri Mossburg, CNN
Updated 8:56 PM ET, Wed November 14, 2018

(CNN)Attorney Michael Avenatti has been placed under arrest on suspicion of felony domestic violence and was booked early Wednesday evening.

Los Angeles Police Department officer Jeff Lee said the domestic violence report was taken on Tuesday in West Los Angeles and the arrest was made Wednesday.

"We can confirm that today LAPD Detectives arrested Michael Avenatti on suspicion of domestic violence. This is an ongoing investigation and we will provide more details as they become available," the LAPD Twitter account posted Wednesday.

In a statement, Avenatti called the allegations "completely bogus."

"I wish to thank the hard working men and woman of the LAPD for their professionalism they were only doing their jobs in light of the completely bogus allegations against me," he said. "I have never been physically abusive in my life nor was I last night. Any accusations to the contrary are fabricated and meant to do harm to my reputation. I look forward to being fully exonerated."

Avenatti posted $50,000 bail and left police custody Wednesday evening. He told reporters waiting outside the station, "I have never struck a woman. I never will strike a woman."

"I am confident I will be fully exonerated," he added.

The alleged domestic assault incident was first reported by TMZ.

Avenatti emerged this year as a regular antagonist of President Donald Trump, beginning with his legal representation of Stormy Daniels and his frequent media appearances. For months, he has publicly flirted with a potential bid for the Democratic presidential nomination to challenge Trump in 2020.

The alleged domestic violence incident could dash Avenatti's prospects as a potential insurgent Democratic candidate and clash with the image he has presented of himself as an advocate for women, including Daniels in her clash with Trump and an accuser against recently confirmed Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

The Vermont Democratic Party canceled Avenatti's appearances for Friday and Saturday following his arrest, and it will refund all ticket sales, said Christopher Di Mezzo, the party's communications director.

The decision to cancel the events was made "almost immediately after the news broke," he said.

The allegation would also mark another legal issue for the California attorney, whose firm settled a case with the IRS in July and was ordered last month to pay a multimillion-dollar judgment over debt to a former law partner.

Following his representation of Julie Swetnick for her allegations against Kavanaugh, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley said in October that he was referring Avenatti and Swetnick to the Justice Department. Avenatti said at the time that the referral was "baseless." Several Democrats said in the wake of Kavanaugh's confirmation that Avenatti and Swetnick's involvement damaged their efforts to prevent Kavanaugh's confirmation -- a charge Avenatti denied.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.

CNN's Bonney Kapp contributed to this report.


https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-46150569
BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY PHOTOS 1960S