Category: Russia

‘Regrettable & unacceptable’: Japan’s Olympic minister blasts South Korean posters showing torch bearer in protective suit

CAP

Japan’s minister for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics Seiko Hashimoto has slammed South Korean posters dedicated to the upcoming Summer Games featuring a torch bearer wearing an anti-radiation suit.

“The use of such a poster is unacceptable,” Hashimoto said at a press conference on Friday adding that the creation of such pictures is “very regrettable.”

READ MORE: ‘I would love to combine figure skating & anime’: Evgenia Medvedeva to portray Sailor Moon in Japanese ice show

A series of posters depicting an Olympic torch runner wearing a hazmat suit were produced by the Voluntary Agency Network of Korea (VANK), a private group in South Korea who said they wanted to raise awareness about ecological issues in Japan.

The runner’s suit and green radioactive flame spewing from the torch apparently referred to the nuclear disaster in Fukushima in 2011 after a devastating 15-meter tsunami hit the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant causing high radioactive releases.

CAP

The prefecture was included in the route of the Olympic Torch Relay with Japanese officials stating there would be no radiation threat to the relay participants.

“We included messages of warning about the safety of radiation, the biggest concern during the Tokyo Olympics,” the VANK said. “Host country Japan said agricultural products from Fukushima Prefecture are safe and announced that it will provide them for Olympic athletes.”

CAP

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the government lodged complaints with South Korea regarding the posters which they found “unacceptable.”

Earlier this week Japanese officials said the deadly coronavirus outbreak would not affect the schedule of the upcoming Summer Games.

0

China Has Ground To A Halt: “On The Ground” Indicators Confirm Worst-Case Scenario

by Tyler Durden

Back on Monday, when analysts and investors were desperately seeking clues whether China has managed to reboot its economy from the 2-week long hiatus following the Lunar New Year/Coronavirus pandemic amid the information blackout unleashed by the communist party in the already opaque country, we pointed out some alternative ways to keep tabs of what is really taking place “on the ground” in China, where Xi Jinping has been urging local businesses and workers to reopen and resume output, while ignoring the risk the viral pandemic poses to them (with potentially catastrophic consequences).

Specifically, Morgan Stanley suggested that real time measurements of Chinese pollution levels would provide a “quick and dirty” (no pun intended) way of observing if any of China’s major metropolises had returned back to normal. What it found was that among some of the top Chinese cities including Guangzhou, Shanghai and Chengdu, a clear pattern was evident – air pollution was only 20-50% of the historical average. As Morgan Stanley concluded, “This could imply that human activities such as traffic and industrial production within/close to those cities are running 50-80% below their potential capacity.”

CAP

As a reminder, all this is (or technically, isn’t) taking place as President Xi Jinping on Wednesday sought to send a message that progress had been made in bringing the coronavirus outbreak under control and, for most parts of the country, the focus should be on getting back to business.

According to state television, Xi chaired a meeting of the Politburo Standing Committee, China’s supreme political body, on the latest developments on the crisis and future policy responses, concluding that there had been “positive changes” with “positive results”.

Xi also reiterated that all levels of local government and Communist Party committees must strive to achieve China’s social and development goals this year, indicating that he did not want the public health crisis to hinder progress.

Most importantly, Xi urged local authorities to refrain from taking excessive measures to curb contagion, and yet clip after clip from China…

… shows that the measures being taken are far beyond merely “excessive” when it comes to limiting the potential spread of the virus, which probably makes sense considering the unexpected surge in infected cases in Wuhan, which have sent the total for China just shy of 60,000.

Add to this the ongoing uncertainty that Beijing is far behind the curve in containing the virus, and one can see why most businesses are reluctant to “get back to normal.”

In the latest confirmation of just that, several other indicators have emerged showing that despite Xi’s stark demands for 1.4 billion Chinese to ignore the global pandemic which may very well have been started by one of China’s own experimental labs…

… virtually all of China – and all those critical supply chains that keep companies across the globe humming and stocked with critical inventory – remain on lockdown.

As confirmation, while we wait for an update from Morgan Stanley on the latest Chinese pollution data (at least until Beijing’s definition of “pollution” is also revised) here is JPMorgan showing that while traditionally daily coal consumption – the primary commodity used to keep China electrified – rebounds in the days following the Lunar New Year collapse when China hibernates for one week, this year there hasn’t been even a modest uptick higher, indicating that so far there hasn’t been even a modest uptick in output.

CAP

Yet electricity is just one core indicator of real-time economic activity. Perhaps an even more critical one is human transit across the 1.4 billion person strong nation. Conveniently there is a way to track rudimentary traffic patterns across some of China’s key metro areas, and they show that – in a confirmation of the worst-case scenario – activity, as measured by travel, across most of China appears to have ground to a halt.

The charts below show TomTom’s traffic congestion data across key Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Wuhan as compared to the average measurement for 2019. What they show is that virtually nobody appears to be driving in China!

Here is Beijing’s congestion level over the past 48 hours (a 7 day average is also available) compared to 2019. The data indicates that travel is about 70% below its 2019 peak.

CAP

Amazingly, the industrial hub of Guanghzhou also appears to have ground to a crawl:

CAP

By comparison, here is what Los Angeles traffic looks like over the past 48 hours vs 2019 average.

CAP

While not perfect, and certainly not a comprehensive view of what is really taking place “on the ground”, the above data is a useful real-time indicator of how the people in China perceive the threat of the coronavirus pandemic, and one thing is abundantly clear: as the pandemic spreads further without containment, and as the charts above flatline, so will China’s economy, which means that while Goldman’s draconian view of what happens to Q1 GDP is spot on, the expectation for a V-shaped recovery in Q2 and onward will vaporize faster than a vial of ultra-biohazardaous viruses in a Wuhan virology lab.

CAP

0

Reporter Claims Authorities ‘Hiding’ 300 Coronavirus Cases & 1 Death In Shanghai

by Tyler Durden

Summary:

  • Japan reports first virus death

  • President Xi says China will minimize impact from virus

  • Chinese leadership scapegoats local officials

  • Death toll and case count soared last night: There are more than 60k cases worldwide, and more than 1300 deaths

  • EIA joins OPEC in warning about upcoming drop in oil use, the first in a decade.

  • HHS Secretary says CDC will announce another confirmed COVID-19 case in US on Thursday

  • 21 people in Spain released from quarantine

  • US admin reportedly questioning China’s reporting

  • White House reportedly “doubts” China’s coronavirus numbers

  • CDC warns more infections possible after first US case confirmed in Texas (15th overall)

  • 2 Russian women attempt escape from quarantine

  • EU could close border if outbreak worsens

  • Kudlow says US “disappointed” in China virus response

  • Shanghai reports 300+ more cases

* * *

Update (1400ET): President Trump just reportedly said during a radio interview that he believes China is handling the outbreak “professionally.”

This after a slew of frustrated messages from his administration and officials including Larry Kudlow.

* * *

Update (1320ET): Following last night’s admission that local officials in Wuhan were undercounting the number of cases, a reporter appears to have found evidence that more than 300 unreported cases are active in Shanghai, as well as 1 previously unreported death.

So China is tightening the lockdown in Shanghai to hide the truth about the outbreak? That’s unconfirmed for now.

* * *

Update(1250ET): Not long after reports claimed the White House is widely skeptical of Chinese numbers, Trump’s top economic advisor Larry Kudlow appeared on television to say the US is “disappointed” in how China has handled the virus response, and that the Trump administration wishes there was more clarity.

Specifically, the US was most hurt by China’s refusal to accept an American team of experts from the CDC, who offered to help.

The US economy would be at 3% growth if not for the virus, he added.

* * *

Update (1230ET): As Beijing insists that it’s safe for foreign nations to soon lift their travel restrictions on China, CNN reports that the European Union is considering closing its borders if the outbreak really escalates.

They cite a Croatian health official, who said the plan is in the works, though he strongly suspects that it won’t be necessary.

The WHO has said that level of restriction isn’t necessary, but that’ hasn’t stopped Russia from closing part of its border and other countries restricting travel by Chinese.

* * *

Update (1215ET): For the second day in a row, the CDC has warned that more confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the US are inevitable, especially as the testing of ~800 evacuees from Wuhan continues.

After confirming the US’s 15th case at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, officials warned that “there may be additional cases” identified during this period.

The 15th patient was a “solo traveler” from China who has been quarantined “since arriving at Lackland Air Force Base from Wuhan.

They remain in isolation at a local hospital.

Officials assured the public that there’s no risk to the local community, according to CNN.

“We are right in the middle of that incubation period so it is not surprising” that the individual developed symptoms, McQuiston said.

“For the most part the people in quarantine are not doing much associating with each other,” McQuiston said.

Across the ocean in Russia, two women being held under quarantine over fears they might have contracted the virus managed to escape, citing the appallingly poor conditions of their medical detention, according to the NY Post.

Both of the women were hospitalized with flu-like symptoms after returning the Hainan region in southern China that is popular with Russian tourists because of its tropical environment.

In honor of US stocks turning green, we’d like to share this memorable clip of hazmat-suit-wearing person spraying an office down with disinfectant as China continues to slow lurch back to work.

Remember, it’s just like the flu – except much, much worse.

If it was really so mild, would authorities be treating anybody even suspected of having the virus like this?

But as the lockdown begins to lift in Beijing, here’s how people are reacting to…well…being around other people.

Update (1150ET): Citing a senior White House official, CNBC reports that the White House doesn’t have “high confidence” in the coronavirus numbers coming out of China.

CAP

The U.S. does “not have high confidence in the information coming out of China” regarding the count of coronavirus cases, a senior administration official told CNBC.

The official also noted that China “continues to rebuff American offers of assistance.”

The current thinking is there must be a reason why they won’t allow the CDC to send over personnel to help with the virus response.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Zeng tweeted out video of migrant workers being forced to sleep outside because of the draconian lockdown.

How much longer until President Trump demands evidence that the virus wasn’t bioengineered?

* * *

Update (1015ET): Following last night’s debacle over China reporting, Fox News’ Edward Lawrence reports that administration sources say they believe China is under reporting the number of coronavirus cases by at least 100,000 in China.

CAP

Additionally, Lawrence notes that administration sources say scientists working on how the coronavirus spread are having difficultly getting to the sight on where the first case happened.

CAP

We suspect Chinese authorities will do their best to keep any “help” from the west at arm’s length for fear of discovering the truth behind this deadly outbreak.

Jennifer Zeng meanwhile tweeted a video of migrant workers in Jiangsu province being reduced to sleeping in the streets or woods thanks to the lockdown.

* * *

Update (0950ET): Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Thursday morning that the CDC is preparing to announce another confirmed coronavirus case in the US later in the day. That would be the 15th case in the US.

The announcement hit US stocks just minutes after the open.

In Europe, CNN reports that 21 Spaniards who returned from Wuhan on an evacuation flight have been released from Gomez Ullah Hospital in Madrid. The Spanish Health Ministry said the individuals had finished their quarantine stretches.

* * *

Update (0915ET): Even China’s state-controlled press is beginning to sound alarmist as it becomes increasingly clear that the epidemic is anything but ‘contained’.

CAP

Meanwhile China’s CDC has reportedly declared ‘War Time Status’ to authorize war-time conditions on quarantine, supplies, management and, of course, control & discipline.

CAP

If you thought the lockdowns were bad, it looks like Beijing is about to get pretty creative as it tries to walk the balance of pushing the public to get back to worked and protecting them from the virus.

In Xiaogan, in Hubei Province, two young men were forced to kneel in the street after violating restrictions of traveling outside.

Reuters adds that Huanggang, another city in Hubei, that it will tighten epidemic controls by “sealing residential complexes and only allowing essential vehicles on roads.”

Patients quarantined in China’s hospital jails are clearly hoping that their patriotic socialist principles of valuing the common good over individual liberty will see China through.

In other news, the EIA warned earlier that the COVID-19 outbreak would cause the first drop in oil use in a decade.

CAP

* * *

Update (0750ET): News out of China is presenting yet another lesson in contrasts.

In his latest remarks, President Xi said his government is striving to hit China’s development targets, and that the government will “definitely be able to minimize impact from the virus,” according to Chinese state media that has been relayed to English-language newswires.

He also pledged to maintain the development momentum of China’s economy.

Meanwhile, over in Macau, the government of the beleaguered casino paradise is planning to hand out vouchers to residents allowing to buy food to try and help boost local consumption once the outbreak starts to subside, Bloomberg reports.

They can only be used at local restaurants and businesses over the next 3 months.The government is also planning to reduce some taxes and fees to help people recover (a rare example of fiscal stimulus directed at main street).

Here’s a video report published on NHK’s site (please excuse the excess text):

 

0

TRUMP HATER MISTAKES RED CAP FOR MAGA HAT, PUNCTURES EX-NYPD COP’S FACE

Trump Hater Mistakes Red Cap For MAGA Hat, Punctures Ex-NYPD Cop's Face

Man celebrating 50th birthday wore a hat saying ‘Make Fifty Great Again’

  – FEBRUARY 12, 2020

A former NYPD detective who was celebrating his 50th birthday in Nashville, Tennessee was sucker-punched by a woman who thought his red cap was a MAGA hat.

Staten Island resident Daniel Sprague was talking with his wife and friends at a bar called The Stage in downtown Nashville when a stranger spun him around and hit him in the face, shouting, “How dare you?”

“I was outside with my friends when some grabbed me from behind, spun me around and punched me in the face,” Sprague said.

On Facebook, Sprague wrote, “A misguided soul possibly not alone, who I’m assuming was not very literate, spun me around, punch (sic) me in the face and grabbing (sic) my hat while she was yelling ‘how dare you’ leading me to think she thought it was a MAGA hat.”

However, the hat actually read, “Make Fifty Great Again,” to commemorate Daniel’s birthday.

He was also wearing a t-shirt that said, “Making America Great Since 1970.”

When the woman hit Sprague, she may have been wearing a ring or holding a key because it left a gash in his cheek that was “pretty deep and goes to the bone.”

“She has issues, I feel bad for her,” he told WSMV.

Sprague and the assailant were escorted out of the bar by bouncers before he could call the police, but he did file a report the following day.

The former NYPD cop did say The Stage is a “great bar with great security and very professional.”

Touching on the political climate that likely led to the attack, Sprague told WSMV, “This is wrong,” and said people can’t just go around assaulting others “because somebody has a political opinion that doesn’t match theirs.”

“I love Trump, but I wouldn’t hit someone who had a Bernie hat on,” he added.

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department confirmed they received Sprague’s report and he’s currently waiting to hear back from detectives.

0

YOUTUBE DELETES VIDEO OF RAND PAUL SAYING NAME OF CIA WHISTLEBLOWER ON SENATE FLOOR

YouTube Deletes Video of Rand Paul Saying Name Of CIA Whistleblower on Senate Floor

Paul called the move ‘A chilling and disturbing day in America’

– FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Google-owned YouTube is proving their allegiance to the Democratic Party by assisting in the censorship of anyone who dares utter the name of alleged CIA “whistleblower” Eric Ciaramella.

Ciaramella is reportedly the individual who filed a complaint about President Trump’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, resulting in the Democrats’ latest impeachment witch-hunt.

After Chief Justice John Roberts refused to read a question from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) containing the name of the alleged “whistleblower” during the Senate impeachment trial in late January, Paul read the name himself during his floor speech.

Paul argued Justice Roberts singled out Ciaramella by refusing to read the question, saying, “By not allowing the question, he’s sort of confirming to the public who it is. I have no idea who it is.”

After footage of Paul’s floor speech was uploaded to YouTube, the video platform deleted the clip.

A YouTube spokesperson announced, “Videos, comments, and other forms of content that mention the leaked whistleblower’s name violate YouTube’s Community Guidelines and will be removed from YouTube.”

Don’t worry though, YouTube isn’t singling out Sen. Paul, spokesperson Ivy Choi also bragged, “We’ve removed hundreds of videos and over ten thousand comments that contained the name. Video uploaders have the option to edit their videos to exclude the name and reupload.”

Paul responded to the YouTube decision, telling Politico, “It is a chilling and disturbing day in America when giant web companies such as YouTube decide to censure speech,” adding, “Now, even protected speech, such as that of a senator on the Senate floor, can be blocked from getting to the American people.”

Continuing, Sen. Paul explained, “This is dangerous and politically biased. Nowhere in my speech did I accuse anyone of being a whistleblower, nor do I know the whistleblower’s identity.”

CAP

The censored question Paul asked was, “Manager Schiff and counsel for the #president, are you aware that House intelligence committee staffer Shawn Misko had a close relationship with Eric Ciaramella when at the National Security Council together, and are you aware and how do you respond to reports that Ciaramella and Misko may have worked together to plot impeaching the President before there were formal House impeachment proceedings?”

Sen. Paul discussed the matter on Fox News:

0

SUSPECT WHO PLOUGHED VEHICLE THROUGH VOTER REGISTRATION TENT ADMITTED ANTI-TRUMP MOTIVE

Suspect Who Ploughed Vehicle Through Voter Registration Tent Admitted Anti-Trump Motive

Told police “someone had to take a stand.”

  – FEBRUARY 11, 2020

The suspect who drove a vehicle through a voter registration tent occupied by Trump supporters in Jacksonville admitted to police that he had an anti-Trump motive and told authorities “someone had to take a stand.”

27-year-old Gregory Timm drove his van into a pro-Trump Republican voter registration drive tent at a Jacksonville Walmart on Saturday and was subsequently arrested and charged with aggravated assault, criminal mischief and driving with a suspended license.

According to an arrest report obtained by Action News Jax, Timm told police he drove his van through the tent because “someone had to take a stand.”

CAP

He also showed police a video he made of himself driving towards the tent as the victims stood in front of it. The video ended before Timm actually drove into the tent, a moment he described to police as “the good part.”

Timm also told police he made a video of himself prior to driving through the tent, but this video has not been made public.

“The suspect advised that he does not like President Trump,” according to the police report. Timm “did not show any emotion, recorded the aftermath of the incident and gave an obscene gesture,” according to Action News Jax.

“What’s clear is, this individual drove up to a tent and was clearly registering voters with Donald Trump’s name and attire around them. And drove a vehicle at volunteers that’s what we know, looks pretty political to me,” said Mayor Lenny Curry.

Nobody was injured during the incident, although victims were left in a state of severe shock.

Will the media now dig through Timm’s social media history to discover who radicalized him into attempting this act of terror?

Or will the story completely disappear by the end of the week?

Don’t hold your breath.

0

President Trump Pulls Nomination of Corrupt Deep State US Attorney Jessie Liu to Treasury Dept.

CAP

by Jim Hoft

Good News!

President Trump pulled his nomination on Tuesday of crooked Deep State US Attorney Jessie Liu to the Treasury Department.

TGP contributor Joe Hoft wrote about this political hack back in September 2019–

Jessie K. Liu should not be practicing law.  She should be disbarred, impeached and indicted.  She is the US Attorney involved  in three Deep State Mueller related cases where the government is withholding or withheld evidence from the defense.  And she is involved in other corrupt cases.

Jessie K. Liu was an up and coming star in the Department of Justice.  However her actions of late prove that she never should have been elevated to her position in the first place.

Ms. Liu is involved in three cases where pertinent documents were withheld from the defense –
Via Rosie Memos.

CAP

Liu was involved in the Maria Butina case where a young woman sat in prison, due to the fact that she was set up by the Deep State FBI.  The information related to the FBI’s set up was never provided to her or her attorneys in spite of numerous requests from the defense for this information which was the government’s duty to provide to her.

Liu also is involved in the Concord Management case.  This case has been a mess since day one.  The government alleged numerous lies about the company in order to tie the Mueller sham to Russia.  Mueller’s team stated Concord and its sister company Concord Catering were involved in spreading news on Facebook that impacted the US election.  The problem is Concord Catering wasn’t even in existence at the time they were indicted by Mueller and the Mueller team was never able to tie Russians to Concord Mangement which spent only $3,000 on Facebook ads that supposedly impacted the 2016 election.

Mueller insinuated that Concord was led by Russians who didn’t want Hillary to win.  But Mueller and Liu have never been able to prove this while making up crimes along the way.  Concord Management’s attorneys are toying with the corrupt Deep State, even saying their logic is similar to Tweety bird saying, “I did, I did, I taw a puddy tat.”

In addition, Liu is involved in the Deep State’s sham indictment of the courageous General Mike Flynn.  Since the 2016 election and before, General Flynn was targeted by Obama’s Deep State.  Flynn committed the crime of disagreeing with Obama’s insane policies in the Middle East.  Since that time, Flynn was a target.

Today Flynn’s case is still ongoing and it is costing Flynn a mint.  This past week his attorney requested documents from the government pertinent to his case.  The Deep State government won’t provide the documents nor will they provide Flynn’s attorney the classified status to see them.  Ms. Liu is involved in this case as well.

Ms. Liu also was involved in the James Wolfe case where he was indicted for leaking a FISA application to the New York Times –

CAP

The Wolfe case was a sham as he was sentenced to only two months for his crimes with the US Senate stepping in to request leniency for Mr. Wolfe.

Now it looks like Liu is involved in the McCabe case and will determine whether to bring charges against former corrupt FBI Director Andy McCabe. 

If Liu is involved it is doubtful that McCabe will be indicted for any of his many crimes!

0

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑