US Warship Faces Aggressive Moves by Russia Ship in Mideast

Newsmax – January 10, 2020

An American warship was “aggressively approached” by a Russian Navy ship in the North Arabian Sea, the U.S. Navy said Friday.

Navy Cmdr. Josh Frey, spokesman for U.S. 5th Fleet, said that the USS Farragut was conducting routine operations Thursday and sounded five short blasts to warn the Russian ship of a possible collision. He said the USS Farragut, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, asked the Russian ship to change course and the ship initially refused but ultimately moved away.

Even though the Russian ship moved away, Frey said the delay in shifting course “increased the risk of collision.”

https://www.newsmax.com

Retail Apocalypse Surges Into 2020: No End In Sight

Mac Slavo – January 9, 2020

The retail apocalypse was particularly bad in 2019, and only days into 2020, Macy’s has announced it’ll begin closing stores, following a trend in the industry.  Macy’s will close a minimum of 28 stores, and one Bloomingdale’s as problems in retail continue.

With consumer spending so high, it’s hard to imagine a reason for store closures.  “We regularly review our store portfolio and will provide an update at our Investor Day on February 5th,” the company said in a statement sent to USA TODAY.

Clearance sales will begin this month and run for eight to 12 weeks, Macy’s Media Relations Manager Julianne Bartosz said in an email to TCPalm.com, which is part of the USA TODAY Network, about the Macy’s in the Indian River Mall in Vero Beach, Florida.  Most other locations to be shuttered have not yet been disclosed.  Officials also steered clear of an exact number of closings, say there would be a “minimum of 28 stores” permanently closed.

Among the government and Federal Reserve’s insistence that consumers are spending money, Macy’s reported a drop in holiday sales. Macy’s November and December sales results Wednesday, which showed holiday sales did not meet the expectations. “Macy’s, Inc.’s performance during the holiday season reflected a strong trend improvement from the third quarter,” CEO Jeff Gennette said in a news release. “Additionally, customers responded to our gifting assortment and marketing strategy, particularly in the 10 days before Christmas.”

https://www.shtfplan.com

Over 1000 Earthquakes Have Hit Puerto Rico, And Authorities Say It Is Being “Squeezed” Between Two Tectonic Plates

– January 8, 2020

The nightmarish earthquake swarm that has been rattling Puerto Rico since last month continues to make headlines all over the world.  Homes, businesses, schools, hospitals and historic structures all over the main island of Puerto Rico have crumbled, and many residents are deeply afraid of using many of the buildings that remain standing because they are afraid that they could literally collapse at any moment.  We haven’t seen this sort of shaking in the region in more than a century, and as you will see below, experts are telling us that more quakes are coming.

Traditionally, Puerto Rico has not been known for heavy seismic activity.  But now that could be changing.  According to CNN, there have been more than 500 quakes “of magnitude 2 or greater” since December 28th…

Since December 28, more than 500 earthquakes of magnitude 2 or greater have rattled the area, according to the US Geological Survey. Many of them were relatively shallow, which means they were likely felt on land.

Of the hundreds of earthquakes, 32 were magnitude 4 and above, including the ones Monday and Tuesday.

And overall, there have been “more than a thousand quakes” of all sizes since this earthquake swarm first started in December…

Since the tremors began last month, Puerto Rico has experienced more than a thousand quakes, most of them too small to feel.

The mainstream media really began to take notice when the main island of Puerto Rico was hit by a magnitude 4.7 earthquake on December 28th, and that was quickly followed by a magnitude 5.0 quake.

Then just a few days ago we witnessed a magnitude 5.8 quake, a magnitude 6.4 quake and a magnitude 6.0 quake in rapid succession.

http://endoftheamericandream.com

US on track for one of the worst flu seasons in decades

Elizabeth Cohen and John Bonifield – January 6, 2020

(CNN)This flu season is shaping up to be one of the worst in decades, according to the United States’ top infectious disease doctor.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said while it’s impossible to predict how the flu will play out, the season so far is on track to be as severe as the 2017-2018 flu season, which was the deadliest in more than four decades, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The initial indicators indicate this is not going to be a good season — this is going to be a bad season,” Fauci said.

So far this flu season, at least 2,900 people in the US are estimated to have died of the flu, according to data released Friday by the CDC. That’s 800 more deaths than estimated the previous week.

Flu cases and hospitalizations because of the flu have also risen sharply since the season began in October. CDC estimates there have been at least 6.4 million flu illnesses and 55,000 hospitalizations.

https://www.cnn.com

Rutgers student told not to quote Bible in essay because of ‘separation of church and state’

Joshua Aminov – January 2, 2010

After quoting a popular Bible verse to back up his assertion about the tenets of Christianity in his college essay, a student at Rutgers University-New Brunswick says he was told to avoid quoting Bible verses in academic papers because of the “separation of church and state” and the potential to offend non-Christians.

Political science student and Campus Reform correspondent Peter Cordi was assigned an autobiographical paper in his “Intro to Gender, Race, and Sexuality” class last semester. In his paper, Cordi referenced a personal friend of his who struggles with his own homosexual identity, especially given the views of the individual’s mother. Cordi wrote about how his friend’s mother cites her Christain religion and beliefs to justify her opinion of people who identify as gay.

Cordi is a Christain who disagrees with his friends’ mother’s views toward members of the LGBT community and quoted scripture from the Bible to support his position. Cordi quoted the popular verse John 3:16 from the Bible: “For God so loved the WORLD that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

In grading Cordi’s paper, Professor Kathe Sandler included her remarks next to Cordi’s use of the quote, telling the student that his use of a quote from the Bible was inappropriate.

https://campusreform.org

Planned Parenthood Murdered Record Number of Unborn Babies in 2018-2019 While Receiving $616 Million in Taxpayer Funds

– January 7, 2020

WASHINGTON — The abortion and contraception giant Planned Parenthood has released its annual report, which shows that the organization performed a record number of abortions during the 2018-2019 fiscal year, as 345,672 babies were murdered in their mother’s womb, up 12,915 from the year prior and up 24,288 from two years ago. Government funding was also at a record high, as Planned Parenthood received over $616 million in reimbursements and grants.

“Patients come to Planned Parenthood to make decisions over their own bodies and lives so they can actualize their dreams, and our health centers give them the tools to do it,” the organization wrote in its report. “As we step forward to meet new [legislative] challenges, we will continue to care — no matter what — so that every person can dream beyond what they are told is possible.”

The number of abortions equates to 947 a day, as the deaths of unborn children continue to climb with each passing year — an estimated 60 million children and counting since the 1973 Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade.

According to online data, Planned Parenthood performed 4,988 abortions in 1973, 85,207 in 1983, 134,251 in 1993, 236,500 in 2003, and 327,166 in 2013.

https://christiannews.net

Massachusetts Bill Would Give Doctors ‘Birth or Death’ Decision, Allowing Abortion up Till Moment of Birth

Steve Warren – January 3, 2020

A new measure introduced to the Massachusetts state legislature would permit a woman to get an abortion after 24 weeks if a doctor determines that “the abortion is necessary to protect the patient’s life or physical or mental health.”

The National Review reports that abortion is legal in The Bay State for any reason before fetal viability, which is generally somewhere between 22 and 24 weeks of pregnancy.

The bill known as the “Roe Act” defines “mental health” in the exact language that the Supreme Court used in the Roe v. Wade companion case Doe v. Bolton: “all factors—physical, emotional, psychological, familial, and the person’s age-relevant to the well-being of the patient.”

This essentially allows for abortion on demand up until the moment of birth, according to the National Review.

The Roe Act would also allow abortion if a doctor surmises the unborn child would be “incompatible with sustained life outside the uterus.” While the right to abortion is already in the Massachusetts state constitution, the measure would effectively guarantee the doctor’s right as well.

State law currently requires minors to get permission from parents before trying to get an abortion, but the new bill would change the requirement. It would allow any woman or “pregnant person” to obtain an abortion as long as she has given informed consent.

https://www1.cbn.com

Fears of new conflict rise after US kills Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian general, in strike on Baghdad airport

, , and – January 2, 2020

One of Iran’s most revered and powerful military commanders has been killed in a U.S. strike near the Baghdad International Airport, the Pentagon confirmed Thursday.

The strike will intensify tensions between the U.S. and Iran and many experts say it escalates the risk of a new conflict spreading across the region.

“At the direction of the President, the U.S. military has taken decisive defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad by killing Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization,” the Department of Defense said in an emailed statement.

Also killed in the strike was a top Iraqi leader, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of the Popular Mobilization Forces, which is known as the PMF and is part of a larger umbrella group that includes a number of Shia militant groups supported by Iran..

An Iraqi official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Associated Press that al-Muhandis had arrived to the airport in a convoy to receive Soleimani whose plane had arrived from either Lebanon or Syria. The airstrike occurred as soon as he descended from the plane to be greeted by al-Muhandis and his companions, killing them all.

The DoD said Soleimani was “actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region. General Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members and the wounding of thousands more.”

https://www.militarytimes.com

Pope Francis Unveils Globalist New World Religion at Summit with United Nations Leader

– December 26, 2019

Pope Francis’ war on traditional Catholicism has been ramping up recently, and he castigated Catholics who believe in tradition and refuse to warp Biblical scripture to appease a godless world for creating a “minefield of misunderstanding and hatred.”

“Rigidity and imbalance fuel one another in a vicious circle,” he said. “And these days, the temptation to rigidity has become so apparent.”

“Tradition is not static, it’s dynamic,” Francis added.

Francis revealed the dogma that he intends to replace belief in Christ as savior with last week. He is advocating for Catholics to unite behind a one world government, and surrender their freedom and sovereignty to international interests.

“Your clear moral voice shines through – whether you are speaking out on the plight of the most vulnerable, including refugees and migrants … confronting poverty and inequalities … appealing for disarmament… building bridges between communities … and, of course, highlighting the climate emergency through your historic encyclical, ‘Laudato Si’, and so many other vital efforts,” U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said during his meeting with the pontiff.The “Laudato Si” was a blasphemous encyclical letter issued by Francis in 2015 calling for world government to solve the supposed global warming crisis.

https://bigleaguepolitics.com

Death toll rises as Australian bushfires rage out of control, produce dangerous air quality

Eric Leister – January 2, 2020

Thousands of residents and vacationers in Australia were forced to quickly take refuge on a beach in Mallacoota, Victoria, on Tuesday as a large fire threatened the seaside town located about 500 km (310 miles) east of Melbourne.

Fire crews flanked the beach as the flames grew closer, and some people were able to flee the beach using local boats. Others hunkered down on their boats away from land, with little choice but to wait out the disastrous flames until additional help arrived.

Some of that help arrived on Wednesday, when the Australian Defense Force was mobilized to rescue those still stranded on the beach, according to the Herald News. The country’s military sent naval ships and aircraft to the area to supply water, food and fuel to towns that have been cut off by the fires, the Associated Press reported.

From the more than 200 fires that have continued to burn out of the control across New South Wales and Victoria, at least 17 people have died, more than 175 homes have been destroyed and around 4,000 people were forced from the coastal town of Mallacoota were forced to flee to the beach shore when the blazes cornered their town.

https://www.accuweather.com