On the Eve of the Show Trials

The first trial of a January 6 defendant is set to begin next week. But jury trials should expose the government’s weak case against most of them.

Guy Reffitt has been in jail since he was arrested by the FBI nearly 14 months ago.

Reffitt, like dozens of Americans who protested the unlawful election of Joe Biden, isn’t in jail because he was convicted of a crime. Neither is Reffitt in jail because he has a criminal record—he does not—or a history of threatening his Bonham, Texas neighbors or community.

Instead, Reffitt has languished behind bars for more than a year because Joe Biden’s Justice Department asked a federal judge to keep him detained awaiting trial for his participation in the Capitol protest on January 6, 2021. Since then, more than 100 Americans, including several accused of no violent crimes, have been incarcerated under pre-trial detention orders sought by Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Constitutional rights such as the presumption of innocence, due process, the right to a speedy trial, and protection from cruel and unusual punishment have been stripped from January 6 defendants based on the Biden regime’s false premise that they are all “domestic terrorists” and “insurrectionists.” (None of the January 6 defendants has been charged with terrorism or insurrection.)

Now that the first trials are finally getting underway, the public can assess whether the government prosecutors and federal judges who created America’s first class of political prisoners were justified in doing so, or were shamefully complicit in Joe Biden’s vengeful prosecution of Donald Trump supporters.

Guy Reffitt is one of hundreds of protesters not charged with committing a violent crime on January 6. According to his initial indictment, Reffitt did not assault police officers—to the contrary, he was attacked by law enforcement with rubber bullets and mace—or vandalize any public property. In fact, he never even entered the Capitol building.

But based on the government’s mostly hearsay evidence, a D.C. federal magistrate last year denied Reffitt’s release—and it had little to do with his alleged criminal behavior on January 6.

“[The] gravity of the offense is not captured by the offenses because it was an attack upon the democracy and the lawful administration of that democracy as there was a transition of power,” Judge Zia Faruqui said during an April detention hearing. “My concern is that he still harbors the belief even after the election results were certified, the Electoral College was processed, that he continued to harbor the belief, the false belief that something untoward was happening with the democratic process.”

Judge Dabny Friedrich, a judge appointed to the D.C. District Court by President Trump in 2017, upheld Faruqui’s ruling last May; Reffitt has remained in a fetid D.C. jail specifically set aside for January 6 defendants ever since.

In January, amid new COVID-related lockdowns that forced Reffitt and at least 35 other January 6 defendants to remain in their D.C. cells for 22 hours a day, his defense lawyer once again asked Friedrich to release his client under strict supervision, particularly since the court continued to delay trial dates and close the courthouse needed for jury trials. To keep Reffitt incarcerated, his lawyer argued, violated his...

Visage à trois #73

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

La petite mort bonus video:

Videos That Are:

• Usually Short.
• Usually Timely.
• Usually Scraped, Gleaned And Pilfered From Social Media.

Visage à trois #2

Blinken: We’re Not Halting Gas and Oil Purchases from Russia Because We’re Trying to Minimize ‘Pain to Us’

On Thursday’s broadcast of “CBS Evening News,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken responded to a question on whether the United States will cut off purchases of oil and gas from Russia over its invasion of Ukraine by stating that we’re trying to ensure “that we inflict maximum pain on Russia” while at the same time, “minimizing any of the pain to us.”

Host Norah O’Donnell asked, “Russia’s economy’s fueled by gas, and the U.S. is a consumer. So, would the U.S. consider cutting off oil and gas purchases from Russia?”
Blinken responded, “Well, what we’re doing, Norah, across the board, is making sure that we inflict maximum pain on Russia for what President Putin has done, while minimizing any of the pain to us.”

He also stated, “We’re in full coordination with other countries, both consumers and producers alike, to minimize any impact that this may have on energy prices and...

Visage à trois #72

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

La petite mort bonus video:

Videos That Are:

• Usually Short.
• Usually Timely.
• Usually Scraped, Gleaned And Pilfered From Social Media.

Visage à trois #71

An In-Depth Look at Islam's Achilles Heel

The history of Islam and the West has been one of unwavering antagonism and seismic clashes, often initiated by the followers of Muhammad. By the standards of history, nothing between the two forces is as well documented as this long war. Accordingly, for more than a millennium, both educated and not so educated Europeans knew—the latter perhaps instinctively—that Islam was a militant creed that for centuries attacked and committed atrocities in their homelands, all in the name of "holy war," or jihad. In the words of Konstantin Mihailović, a fifteenth-century Serb who was forced to convert to Islam in his youth and made to fight as a slave-soldier for the Turks until he escaped: "the Persians, the Turks, the Tatars, the Berbers, and the Arabs; and the diverse Moors ... [all] conduct themselves according to the accursed Koran, that is, the scripture of Mohammed."

This long-held perspective has been radically twisted in recent times. According to the dominant narrative — as upheld by mainstream media and Hollywood, pundits and politicians, academics, and "experts" of all stripes — Islam was historically progressive and peaceful, whereas premodern Europe was fanatical and predatory. Or, to quote the BBC, "[t]hroughout the Middle Ages, the Muslim world was more advanced and more civilised than Christian Western Europe, which learned a huge amount from its neighbour."

The reason for these topsy-turvy claims is that "who controls the past controls the future," as George Orwell observed in his 1984 (a dystopian novel that has become increasingly applicable to our times). It is, therefore, unsurprising to discover that the greatest apologia for politically active Islamists and their leftist allies — and the first premise for all subsequent apologias for Islam — is purely historical in nature.

Recall, for instance, the most popular and oft-asked question to arise after the September 11, 2001 terror strikes: "Why do they hate us?" Unbeknownst to most, this question presupposed — indeed, was heavily laden with — a historical point of view that had been forged over decades and largely remains unquestioned, even by critics of modern Islam: because Islam was tolerant and advanced in the past, this entrenched perspective holds, its current problems in the present — authoritarianism, intolerance, violence, radicalization, terrorism, etc. — must be aberrations, products of unfavorable circumstances, politics, economics, "grievances" — anything and everything but Islam itself. Simply put, if they did not "hate us" before — but were rather progressive and tolerant — surely something other than Islam has since "gone wrong."

From here one can see the importance of safeguarding the current narrative of a historically "advanced" and "tolerant" Islam vis-à-vis a historically "backward" and "intolerant" Europe.

I myself experienced firsthand just how important controlling this narrative is for political Islamists. After the U.S. Army War College invited me to lecture on my last history book, Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and its leftist allies launched an "unprecedented" attack on me and the War College. They issued — on two separate occasions — press releases and hysterical petitions (presenting the War College — even me, an ethnic Egyptian — as "white supremacists") and made several direct calls to and met with the heads of the War College — all in an effort to get my talk canceled.

In the end, they failed, in part because the National Association of Scholars sent a petition letter to then-president Donald Trump signed by over five thousand people, mostly university-affiliated academics. Ten congressmen also came to my support. More to the point, and as retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives Allen West, who also came to my support, explained, "not one sentence of his recent literary project [Sword and Scimitar] was mentioned by these Islamo-fascists [as being wrong]."

When CAIR and "woke" allies realized that their attempts at academic censorship had failed and that I would speak anyway, they urged the War College, and it agreed, to allow another historian to present a "counterview" in response to my lecture. This was John Voll, professor emeritus of Islamic history at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. (See here for how this renowned apologist misrepresented and whitewashed Islam's history of terror vis-à-vis the West.) Unfortunately, and despite the fact that the War College videotaped my talk (objectively summarized by a reporter here) and informed me that it would be, like all of their talks, posted online, it never was published.

At any rate, why did CAIR and its allies launch such an attack on me in the first place, especially considering that they did not respond similarly to my other books, which I also lectured about in other prestigious venues — books that dealt with current and hot topics (e.g., Crucified Again: Exposing Islam's New War on Christians and The Al Qaeda Reader)? Why instead did they go after a book that revolved around, of all things, "ancient history" — and with such vehemence, at one point desperately insisting that if I am allowed to lecture on it at the War College, American servicemen would get so riled as to start massacring Muslims on sight?

Because they too know what is at stake; they too know that "who controls the past" — which they are determined to continue doing — "controls the future." So long as the people of the West accept as a first premise that Islam was historically and for centuries an advanced, enlightened, and tolerant force — especially in comparison to...

Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #259

Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #257

 

Laying bare the ‘myth of Benevolent Authoritarianism’ and the ‘Great Reset’

Breitbart conservative writer and commentator John Hayward penned an epic thread on Twitter explaining the illusion of “Benevolent Authoritarianism” in connection to the spread of elitist dictatorial aspirations across the planet.

Last week, Hayward began delving into the politics of control, writing, “Authoritarianism is the hottest political product in the world right now. Western elites believe their governments must become more dictatorial in order to compete with technocratic despotisms like China. Public submission is the most desired commodity.”

He expanded on those musings in regards to “Benevolent Authoritarianism” and what that flawed philosophy actually entails in a thread on Twitter.

“The myth of Benevolent Authoritarianism is second only to the myth of Honest Big Government in terms of dangerous ideological delusions. Authoritarianism cannot be harnessed to ‘fortify’ democracy, any more than wolves can be taught to guard sheep,” he posited on Twitter.

“The ‘Great Reset’ is supposed to make democracy stronger by making it smaller. High walls of authoritarian power will be constructed around the shrinking meadow of liberty. The walls will be policed by wise, compassionate autocrats and their business partners,” he noted alluding to founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum Klaus Schwab and his globalist cohorts.

“Sure, there is a growing list of things you Little People don’t get to vote on, but don’t worry – those are issues you’re not smart enough to understand. The notion of middle-class boobs or trailer-park rubes daring to defy the Consensus of Experts is absurd,” Hayward snarked.

“But you see, only by trusting a morally and intellectually superior elite to manage the population and most of our national wealth carefully can we achieve true, meaningful ‘freedom.’ You will be liberated from the burdens of need, consequence, and responsibility,” he wrote, nailing the intentions of globalist elitists.

“It will never become tyranny – don’t be silly! How could it be, when you Little People get to cast a few votes every couple of years? That’s the only check needed on power. You can just ‘throw the bums out.’ It can’t be a dictatorship if people get to vote against the dictator!” Hayward commented, tongue-in-cheek.

“That’s a key element of the myth of Benevolent Authoritarianism – as long as people get to vote, the only real fail-safe needed against tyranny is in place. Ballots become the only accepted proxy for ‘the consent of the governed’ – which is utterly absurd,” he...

Ukraine strikes back: Kyiv's troops have already shot down five Russian helicopters, destroyed dozens of tanks - and entire battalion 'surrenders because they didn't realise they had been sent to kill'

The body of a soldier, without insignia, who the Ukrainian military claim is a Russian army serviceman killed in fighting, lies on a road outside the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine

• Ukrainian forces have shot down five helicopters, destroyed dozens of tanks and captured dozens of troops
• Kyiv's military is far inferior to its Russian counterpart with an air defence system dating back to the Soviet era
• Nato and U.S. have made it clear that no troops will be sent and left Ukraine military to hold off assault alone

Ukrainian troops have shot down five Russian helicopters, destroyed dozens of tanks and captured dozens of troops in the first hours since Vladimir Putin ordered his forces to invade this morning.

Kyiv's military is far inferior to its Russian counterpart with an air defense system and air force dating back to the Soviet era.

But NATO and the US, despite deploying soldiers to neighbouring Romania in recent months, have made it clear that no troops will be sent and left the Ukrainian military to hold off the assault alone.

By Thursday afternoon, battles were ongoing in Kyiiev, along the northern border with Belarus, in Luhansk and Donetsk in the east and around Kherson, the Dneiper River, and the port cities of Odessa and Mariupol in the south.

Few expect Ukraine to emerge victorious from what is almost certain to be a prolonged, bloody, and vicious war - but so far, Kyiv's forces have managed to inflict heavy losses on Putin's troops.

Here MailOnline takes a look at what losses Ukrainian forces have inflicted on Russia:

Few expect Ukraine to emerge victorious from what is almost certain to be a prolonged, bloody, and vicious war

At least 15 T-72 tanks were destroyed or damaged by the Ukrainian forces using the Javelin PTRK, an American anti-tank missile, nearly Glukhov in the country's east late this afternoon

Ukrainian forces have claimed to have shot out of the air at least four Russian KA-52 Alligator attack helicopters during a battle for Gostomel air base. A fifth helicopter (pictured) was forced to make an emergency landing at the field under heavy fire

An image captured near Kyiv shows what appears to be the wreckage of a downed Russian attack helicopter with a soldier parachuting out of it (to the left of the frame)

The attack has come to Ukraine on all fronts with bombs and missiles dropped on targets across the country in the early hours, followed by troop attacks from Crimea, the Donbass, Belgorod and Belarus as well as helicopter landings in Kyiv and at power plants on the Dnieper River. Chernobyl nuclear power plant has also fallen to Russian forces

Rattled Zelensky ready to talk terms with Putin for 'neutral status'

Helicopters, jets and planes

Earlier on Thursday, Ukrainian forces claimed to have shot out of the air up to four Russian KA-52 Alligator attack helicopters during a battle for Gostomel air base.

A fifth helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing at the field under heavy fire.

Just after midday on Thursday, the skies over Kyiv swarmed with a squadron of 20 Russian helicopters which pounded the air base's runway.

But Ukrainian ground forces launched a fight-back, moving in to retake the air field as jets streaking over the city, shooting down the Russian...

Morning Mistress

The 90 Miles Mystery Video: Nyctophilia Edition #940

Before You Click On The "Read More" Link, 

Please Only Do So If You Are Over 21 Years Old.

If You are Easily Upset, Triggered Or Offended, This Is Not The Place For You.  

Please Leave Silently Into The Night......

The 90 Miles Mystery Box: Episode #1640

You have come across a mystery box. But what is inside? 

It could be literally anything from the serene to the horrific, 

from the beautiful to the repugnant, 

from the mysterious to the familiar.

If you decide to open it, you could be disappointed, 

you could be inspired, you could be appalled. 

This is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended. 

You have been warned.

Hot Pick Of The Late Night