In an effort to increase economic pressure on Iran, US announces it is ending waivers for countries importing Iran oil.

The Trump administration on Monday told five countries - Japan, South Korea, Turkey, China and India - that they would no longer be exempt from US sanctions if they continued to import oil from Iran after their waivers ended on May 2.

"We're going to zero. We're going to zero across the board," US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters after the White House made the announcement in a statement. "There are no (oil) waivers that extend beyond that period, full stop," he said, adding that there would be no grace period for those economies to comply.

The United States which has engaged in a maximum pressure campaign against Tehran since Donald Trump came to office, had been giving the countries time to wean themselves off Iranian oil, but has decided that waivers would no longer be issued.

>>>

(*doubling down on being the biggest d**k the world has to deal with , after Netanyahu)

Mueller's redacted report said Trump asked McGahn to tell then-acting attorney general that Mueller had to be removed.

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed former White House Counsel Don McGahn for testimony in the United States following the release of the redacted report from Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

In a statement, Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat, said the committee had asked for documents from McGahn by May 7 and for him to testify on May 21.

"Mr McGahn is a critical witness to many of the alleged instances of obstruction of justice and other misconduct described in the Mueller report," Nadler said.

A lawyer for McGahn was not immediately available for comment.

>>>

The history books list Miriam Amanda Ferguson, or Ma as she was known, as the first female governor of Texas and one of the first women to hold the position of governor in the United States. She took office in 1925, just five years after the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920 that granted women the right to vote. While on paper, Ma Ferguson looks like a trailblazer in the women’s equality movement, in reality, she was a puppet governor for her corrupt husband. Let’s look at the political career of Ma Ferguson.

Earlier this week, the eye of the world watched in horror at the televised footage of the devasting fire that swept through the historic Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. The artifacts and architecture lost in the blaze are unfathomable, but thanks to the heroic efforts of French firefighters and Father Jean-Marc Fournier, chaplain of the Paris Fire Brigade, one precious, priceless relic was saved…the Crown of Thorns. Just how this crown, which was placed on the head of Jesus during the Crucifixion, survived since Biblical times and made its way to France is an incredible saga.

Baseball, America’s favorite pastime, has endured some scandals in its long history, from player’s strikes to steroid use. But the most shocking and disheartening baseball scandal of all time was undoubtedly the Black Sox Scandal of 1919, in which gamblers and organized crime mobsters recruited White Sox players to throw the World Series of 1919. Although many details remain murky, let’s see how the “Big Fix” went down…and how the plot was uncovered.

A Georgia woman says she was fired from her job after a restaurant's server branded her a "dine and dasher" in a Facebook post after she didn’t pay a $23 bill.
But Wendy Wiles says her unpaid check was a misunderstanding.

Elementary school teacher Sariah McCall was in her classroom every morning at 6:45 a.m., taught bell-to-bell classes, attended meetings during her planning period and worked assigned lunch and recess duties with little time to eat or go to the restroom. When the bell rang for the 2:15 p.m. student dismissal, she worked an assigned bus or hall duty, followed by lesson and classroom prep. Sometimes, she left school by 5 p.m. At home, McCall would work on more grading and paper work until 11 p.m. or midnight, then finally sleep — and repeat.

The aftermath of two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jets shortly after takeoff has led to the global grounding of the airplane. Boeing has been forced to cut production, and even so, undelivered planes are piling up. Big buyers like Southwest American Airlines have been forced to cancel flights during their peak time of year as a result of taking their 737s off line. American lengthened its 737 grounding to June 5 and Southwest, to August 5.

Even though Boeing is scrambling to fix the software meant to counter the 737 Max’s increased propensity to stall as a result of the placement of larger, more fuel=efficient engines in a way that reduced the stability of the plane in flight, it’s not clear that this will be adequate in terms of flight safety or the public perception of the plane>>>

Very interesting remarks from Pompeo that you probably won't see anywhere else...

---

The idea that Trump voters were former Democrats driven by economic anxiety, seems finally to have died. As was clear immediately after the election, most Trump voters had previously voted for Romney, and most of the rest were classic swinging voters who had voted for Republicans as well as Democrats in the past. The remnant of the remnant reflected the drift from Democrats to Republicans of less educated whites that long predated Trump (though it may have helped him win the Republican nomination).

Solving that puzzle, though raises another one. Why were so few traditional Republicans repelled by Trump to the extent that they would vote for Clinton, or else abstain. And why does Trump continue to attract such strong Republican support.

One answer is what might be called “transactional Trumpism“. This is the idea that a large group of Republicans dislike Trump’s racism and misogyny, but support him because of his success in delivering a traditional Republican agenda. The problem I have with this explanation is: what success?

>>>

Very interesting.Anybody arrested for felon in possession of a firearm would get 15 months prison time by the feds. No federal charges until this little stunt. This fellow is working for somebody IMHO. Even if this article is from the SPLC.

Horton’s fundraising attempts were documented in November in a Hatewatch article about how caravan paranoia was sowing division among militia diehards. The article revealed that Horton’s real name is Larry Hopkins, a fact he fails to make clear in his group’s fundraising pitches on PayPal and GoFundMe. Since then, Hopkins, 69, has increased the amount of money he’s asking for to more than $12,000, having already surpassed his previous goal of $2,500.

Now, Hatewatch has obtained records that show there’s more to Hopkins’ history than just his fictitious name and elaborate claims.

https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2018/11/15/caravan-paranoia-tearin...

Is it just my imagination or does this whole thing smell kinda putrid!
Agent Provocateur?

The FBI has arrested Larry Mitchell Hopkins, the head of a militia group that has been detaining would-be migrants at the US-Mexico border. The FBI announced that Hopkins, 69, had been arrested on April 20 in Sunland Park, New Mexico on charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

The militia members say they are fighting to defend their flag and their country, but human rights groups, like the American Civil Liberties Union, have denounced the group as a “fascist militia organization.”

Feel good story of the day - Not going to give away the surprise...

---

Comedian Jimmy Dore does the honors - This is excellent...

---

Luckily no one was inside - Here's the video...

---

The blue-violet dye Gentian Violet was used for skin diseases in the 19th century. Today it’s re-emerging as a cheap and easy-to-use alternative for thrush, fighting bacterial skin infections, parasites, and fungal infections. Read on to learn more about gentian violet, its uses, benefits, and side effects.

What Is Gentian Violet?
Gentian violet, also known as crystal violet and methyl violet 10B, is a blue-violet dye. It’s derived from coal tar and is traditionally used as a remedy for skin conditions [R, R].

Gentian violet was first produced in the 19th century and has been used ever since as an antibiotic for various diseases.

A 27-year-old former student of The College of St. Rose in Albany, New York, has pleaded guilty to intentionally destroying dozens of the school's computers, monitors, and related equipment worth more than $58,000 by using a "USB Killer" gadget.

Just weeks after a New York man was arrested for allegedly making death threats against Representative Ilhan Omar, another Trump supporter was arrested for leveling threats at prominent Democrats in voicemails rife with racist, homophobic, and misogynistic slurs. Federal prosecutors say that Florida’s John Kless left threatening phone messages for the offices of 2020 presidential candidates Representative Eric Swalwell and Senator Cory Booker, as well as Representative Rashida Tlaib. In all of the messages, Kless reportedly made Islamophobic references or threats to Representative Ilhan Omar.

Comments at: https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1120326904760823808

Poll of Democrat activists says they support Kamala Harris
Poll of the public shows Biden at 30%, Harris 8.5%
Who will win the Dem nomination, activists or the public?
Iran deal cancelled a long time ago…no known repercussions
John Stossel’s support for SAFE Gen IV nuclear power
Whether or not climate change is real, SAFE Gen IV needed
“Peak Oil” concept from the 1970s created the green community
Peak oil worries went away because of new oil technology
Green community pivoted to continue justifying their existence
Now…green energy needed because of climate change
Audience call, topic: Tell me something you think we disagree on
Transgender athletes dominating on women’s teams
“Easter Worshippers” reference by Obama, Hillary and others
Who should make a life/death decision, mother, doctor, government?

Whiteboard: A persuasion lesson, explaining the concepts in play
Example: A linguistic kill shot for religious extremism

Comments at: https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1120051763044728832

Specifically, technology-rich Silicon Valley, led by San Jose and San Francisco, dominates the list of the most-expensive metros, while the Midwest and the South occupy the other end of the affordability spectrum.

Authorities say a Florida man impersonating an officer flipped the red and blue lights on his SUV while unknowingly trying to stop a car with a real officer.
WFLA reports 26-year-old Matthew Erris was arrested on a charge of impersonating a public officer.

(*even if counsel is correct , torture is something his client approves of)

With SpaceX and NASA still mute on details of what they dubbed an ‘anomaly’ during the latest Crew Dragon capsule safety test – a video has leaked online apparently showing a ‘rapid unscheduled disassembly’ event, aka a big boom.

A huge plume of smoke could be seen rising from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Saturday, after the Crew Dragon capsule being developed by SpaceX to ferry NASA astronauts to space reportedly exploded on the test stand. While the company confirmed suffering an “anomaly” during the test of the emergency response system’s abort engines, it has not shared any details about the accident.

A video of an Ohio associate pastor inviting physical abuse upon himself by youth "with no repercussions" as part of an after-school Easter message has drawn some ire from parents.
In the video, Jaddeus Dempsey, as associate pastor at Impact City Church in Pataskala, Ohio, is seen being spat upon and slapped. He was also reportedly cut with a steak knife that was given to one male youth.

The 5-year-old boy who suffered severe injuries after he was allegedly thrown from a third-floor balcony at the Mall of America is showing signs of recovery, according to a family friend.

***
Decade after decade, Soviet propaganda held to one theme, that the United States used its military and economic might to rule the world on behalf of criminal elites. With the fall of the Soviet Union, a new era of world peace and prosperity was to emerge.

Instead, something else happened, war upon war, hot war, cold war, economic war, and a resurgence of colonialism and bullying.

How does this apply to “Russiagate?”

The story isn’t simple, nothing is today. Here is what we know. The Russia investigation was always fake, a cheap ploy to kill time while the Deep State consolidated power inside the US under a puppet president>>>

(*But the main thing , in case you hadn't heard , is that Trump Won !)
***
With the release of the redacted Mueller Report in late April 2018, a number of things should be clear. They aren’t. In fact, nothing is clear except that US Attorney General Barr lied when he claimed Trump was exonerated by the report, far from it.

>>>