The European Union Times |
- Western nations want to chain the Russian bear – Putin
- US, Russia will deploy unmanned submarine drones
- Students Sign Petition To Deport American Citizens In Order to Make Room for Illegals
- Heavy snow claims 3 lives in Japan
- ‘Eye of Sauron’ finally appears in Moscow sky
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Posted: 18 Dec 2014 02:37 PM PST
 Putin used the vivid metaphor of a “chained bear” during his annual Q&A session with the media in Moscow in response to a question about whether he believed that the troubles of the Russian economy were payback for the reunification with Crimea. “It’s not payback for Crimea. It’s the cost of our natural desire to preserve Russia as a nation, a civilization and a state,” Putin said. The president said that even if “the Russian bear” started “sitting tight… and eating berries and honey,” this would not stop pressure being applied against the country. “They won’t leave us alone. They will always seek to chain us. And once we are chain, they’ll rip out our teeth and claws. Our nuclear deterrence, speaking in present-day terms,” Putin said. “As soon as this [chaining the bear] happens, nobody will need it anymore. They’ll stuff it. And start to put their hands on his Taiga [Siberian forest belt] after it. We’ve heard statements from Western officials that Russia’s owning Siberia was not fair,” he exclaimed. “Stealing Texas from Mexico – was that fair? And us having control over our own land is not fair. We should hand it out!” The West had an anti-Russian stance long before the current crisis started, Putin said. The evidence is there, he said, ranging from“direct support of terrorism in the North Caucasus,” to the expansion of NATO and the creation of its anti-ballistic missile system in Eastern Europe, and the way the western media covered the Olympic Games in Sochi, Putin said. Source           |
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Posted: 18 Dec 2014 02:11 PM PST
 The US Navy’s Pacific Command announced recently that it has successfully completed tests on its GhostSwimmer drones, the Washington Times reported. GhostSwimmer is a five-foot long robot resembles a shark, weighs 100 pounds and can operate in various water depths. The robot could be used for surveillance, mine countermeasures, and port security. Michael Rufo, director of Boston Engineering’s Advanced Systems Group, said the drones would allow the US to have success during more types of missions while keeping divers and sailors safe. Russia also announced that its fifth generation nuclear submarines would be armed with robots and underwater drones, Russia Today reported. Russian engineer Nikolay Novoselov said the submarines would be equipped with “contemporary weapons and those currently being developed.” “We’re talking about battle robots which can be released by the submarine, and a type of underwater drone,” Novoselov said. The military race between the two superpowers comes while Washington has imposed several rounds of economic sanctions against Moscow over the crisis in Ukraine. In an interview with Press TV on Tuesday, former Senior Foreign Policy Analyst James Jatras said that imposing further sanctions against Russia could turn a Cold War situation between the two countries into a hot war. “This really runs the risk that what is increasingly a Cold War situation between the United States and Russia could turn into a hot war,” he said. Source      |
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Posted: 18 Dec 2014 02:01 PM PST
 An absurd petition recently made its rounds at a prestigious college campus and actually garnered signatures despite it supporting the deportation of American citizens in exchange for illegal immigrants. Campus Reform, a website dedicated to highlighting bias and hypocrisy at colleges across the nation, devised a mock petition which asked students from George Washington University, located in Washington D.C., whether they would support President Obama’s plan to ship Americans out of the country in order to make room for incoming “undocumented immigrants.” “This is a petition for President Obama to deport one American citizen in exchange for one undocumented immigrant,” the Campus Reform reporter informs students before asking if they would pledge their support for the notion. “Everyone must be allowed a shot at the ‘American Dream,’” the petition read. “Americans should not be greedy. Let us right the wrongs of our past and make another’s dreams come true.” Apparently just those few catchy tag lines were all the encouragement some students needed. “Alright, let’s go for it,” one male student says, before proceeding to sign. “No, it makes sense,” a female student agrees. “I think that’s definitely a good idea,” says another student. While some students seemed to understand the gist of what they were signing – one student, for instance, followed up his signature by asking, “Who is going to be selected to be deported?” – it’s possible others appearing in the video may have been confused. Campus Reform reports they spent about an hour gathering signatures, and that about two-thirds of the people they approached signed their support. “George Washington University has a long history of supporting immigrants,” reports Biz Pac Review. “According to the university’s website, law students at the school’s Immigrant Clinic have offered legal help to immigrants since 1979. The students legally aid undocumented immigrants in avoiding deportation and seeking asylum in the U.S.” The video comes on the heels of an executive order signed by the president last month which supposedly grants millions of immigrants living in the country illegally “deferred action.” However, the legitimacy of the president’s action has drawn criticism. For example, WND investigative journalist Jerome Corsi revealed that Obama hadn’t actually signed an “executive order,” but rather issued a “memoranda,” bringing into question the legality of the order. And earlier this week, a federal judge said several sections of Obama’s immigration plan were actually unconstitutional, as they appeared to defy the separation of powers. “President Obama’s unilateral legislative action violates the separation of powers provided for in the United States Constitution as well as the Take Care Clause, and therefore is unconstitutional,” District Court Judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Arthur J. Schwab wrote in a memo. The judge’s ruling, however, did not not overturn the president’s policy, which some experts predict could worsen the country’s economic, political and societal uncertainty. Source      |
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Posted: 18 Dec 2014 01:52 PM PST
 Two elderly women died on the northernmost island of Hokkaido and a man was killed in a traffic accident on snow-bound roads in Hiroshima, Japanese officials said on Thursday. There was also widespread disruption to travel, with around 100 domestic flights canceled. Reports say the famous bullet train network was also struggling to stick to its schedules. The snow, accompanied by strong gusting winds of up to 140 kilometers, has been causing tidal surges. It also sparked warnings to keep people away from the water’s edge in coastal areas. Japan’s meteorological agency said that the mountain town of Tsunan, near the Sea of Japan (East Sea) coast, has witnessed 185 centimeters of snowfall in 24 hours. It predicted that parts of northern Honshu could see up to 80 centimeters of snowfall by Friday morning. Source      |
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Posted: 18 Dec 2014 05:50 AM PST
 The Tolkien-inspired ‘Eye of Sauron’ eventually lit up Moscow’s sky, following public controversy and opposition from the Orthodox Church. Having taken a virtual form, the image can be seen through the lens of a smartphone or tablet. The evil eye appeared exactly where it was first planned to be installed, on top of a skyscraper in the Moscow City business area, a stone’s throw away from the country’s government office. The symbol, which has sparked controversy among Muscovites, is hidden from bare eyes; to see it, one needs a smartphone or tablet. The Russian company GiveAR, which creates augmented reality projects by using real-world objects supplemented with computer generated input, created a special code which can be used by those curious to see the Eye of Sauron.   The Eye of Sauron, ‘Oko Saurona’ in Russian, sparked a debate in Moscow and beyond, on whether it would bring real trouble to the Russian capital. It was among the trending worldwide topics on Twitter this week.  An installation of the Eye of Sauron was first planned to appear in the city to celebrate the premiere of the latest Hobbit movie, but was labeled a “demonic symbol” by the Russian Orthodox Church. Over 1,500 people signed a petition to Moscow authorities, asking for it to be banned. “Pictures of it will spread around the world, linking Putin to Sauron, Russia to Mordor, and Russians to orks,” activists said, adding that all Tolkien fans could install as many eyes as they wanted, wherever they wanted. “In their dachas, for example.”  “It took the Fellowship of the Ring three books and three films to take down the Eye of Sauron. The Russian Church needed just a couple of days,” some people joked on Twitter, reacting to the controversy.  In the end, the virtual eye became more friendly than originally planned. With just one click, it can be transformed into a Christmas tree. “We’ve satisfied interests of both Hobbit fans, who yearned to see a piece of their favorite fairytale in the real world and haven’t hurt the feelings of believers…” GiveAR said on social media. Source |
