The Divided State of Europe

[nivek]

Europe's lockdown fury: Violence breaks out in Vienna as 10,000 protesters take to the streets and thousands more march in Amsterdam - hours after two people are SHOT in Rotterdam during clashes between activists and Dutch riot police



Violence today broke out in Vienna after 10,000 protesters took to the streets to demonstrate against a new Covid-19 lockdown and mandatory vaccinations. It comes after two people were shot and six others injured in Rotterdam last night after activists clashed with Dutch riot police in a demonstration condemned as an 'orgy of violence' (bottom left). Demonstrations against virus measures are also expected in other European countries including Switzerland, Croatia and Italy - the latest in rising anger at the re-introduction of restrictions amid soaring cases on the continent . Last week, the World Health Organisation warned Europe was the epicentre of the pandemic and said the rise in cases was 'alarming', nudging governments to reimpose measures ahead of the Christmas period. Footage posted online today showed thousands of Austrian protesters, many holding national flags, marching through the streets of Vienna.

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[nivek]

 

[nivek]

Violence breaks out at Brussels anti-vaccine protest in Europe's latest day of rage: Fury over rules banning unjabbed from bars sparks clashes hours after Germany revealed COMPULSORY vaccinations are 'unavoidable'



Nearly 40,000 people took to the streets of Belgium's capital Brussels on Sunday to protest against new anti-Covid measures banning the unvaccinated from entering restaurants and bars (pictured). Some protesters were seen throwing projectiles at police officers and in response, police fired water cannon and tear gas at the group. The protest came just hours after it emerged Germany is set to follow Austria's example in making vaccinations compulsory with ministers admitting that the move is 'unavoidable' amid a fourth wave of the pandemic which is crippling the country's hospitals. Last night also saw similar demonstrations against virus restrictions take place in Austria, Switzerland, Croatia, Italy, Northern Ireland, Austria and North Macedonia on Saturday, a day after Dutch police opened fire on protesters and seven people were injured in rioting that erupted in Rotterdam. Europe has become the epicentre of the pandemic once again, with the World Health Organisation warning that the Continent was the only region in the world where deaths had increased as Covid-related fatalities spiked by five per cent just this week. In Belgium, cases have been surging, with infections reaching 13,836 on Sunday. In response, the government has introduced restrictions including a ban on the unvaccinated from venues such as restaurants and bars. Police said 35,000 protesters marched from the North Station in Brussels on Sunday afternoon against a fresh round of Covid measures announced by the government on Wednesday. The demonstration, called 'Together for Freedom', saw some protestors clash with riot police near the Belgian capital's EU and government district. Many of the protestors caught up in the clash were wearing hoods and carried Flemish nationalist flags.

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[Dejan Corovic]

People are irrational and ignorant.

Its wander they didn't do rain dance and burned effigies.

They are protesting because there is no good soap operas on TV. Just give them free tickets to watch football game and they'll calm down.

 

[nivek]

Global Blackout in Europe: It’s not IF but rather WHEN says Austrian Defense Minister

Klaudia Tanner, the Austrian Defence Minister has already given advance warning. After having supervised military manoeuvres and actions, there is a high possibility of an electrical blackout that will affect services such as computers, mobile phones, and electricity supplies in homes. The blackout would not only take place in Austria but would be widespread throughout Europe.

According to La Razon, Klaudia Tanner asserted that the question was not whether there was going to be a blackout, but rather that “the question is when it will be”. She has also stated that this danger is “underestimated by all” when it could have catastrophic consequences.

In order to raise awareness among the population, the Austrian government has decided to launch an awareness campaign that will run throughout the month. Not only will it run in the media, but thousands of posters have also been distributed to Austrian cities. The minister also wanted to promote it on her social networks.

What to do when everything stops

The slogan of the campaign is “What to do when everything stops”, and it seeks to raise awareness among the population about what measures to take when the blackout occurs. Advice about buying enough food for several days, having fuel, candles, batteries, and plenty of drinking water, is given. Another effective measure would be to agree on a meeting point with family and friends and try to collaborate with the neighbors as much as possible it says.

This blackout can cause traffic lights, ATMs, telephones, and the internet to stop working. It would not be the first time, this has already occurred in 1989, in Quebec, Canada. The authorities never confirmed any specific cause, simply suggesting it may be due to technical failures, system malfunctions, or overloads due to demand peaks.

Austria has already put a plan in motion so that by 2025 all its barracks will be self-sufficient. Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Kugelweis explained to Efe that in the event of a similar incident, the barracks would be a support base for firefighters, health workers, and other organisations.

Kugelweis stated that “from 2025 there should be sufficient barracks in all the federal states to guarantee the Army’s response in the event of a blackout”. He said the military believes that “in the event of a blackout, the main task of the Armed Forces is to supply and support other emergency organizations”.

According to national media, it is not the first time that the Austrian army has got a prediction right. In 2017 they spoke of a possible pandemic that would paralyse the world in the next decade, something that ended up coming true.



Almost already happened in January 2021

As biting cold caused power demand to surge across western Europe on January 8, the continent’s electricity network came close to a massive blackout.

Europe’s grid, which is usually connected from Lisbon to Istanbul, split into two as the northwest and southeast regions struggled to keep the same frequency. The problem originated in Croatia and led to the equivalent of 200,000 households losing power across Europe. Supply to industrial sites was cut in France and Italy.

While this event hasn’t been linked to a surge in renewable power, as Europe replaces big coal and nuclear stations with thousands of smaller wind and solar units – just as sectors electrify to reduce emissions – incidents like this will become more frequent.

(More on the link)

 

[nivek]

The crackdown Putin doesn't want you to see: Masked Kazakh police are pictured rounding up 'protesters' and open fire at journalists amid internet blackout and 'shoot to kill' order



Former National Security Chief Karim Massimov, who was fired this week as protests took hold, was detained alongside several other officials on Saturday, the National Security Committee said in a statement, without providing their names or further details. Dozens have died and public buildings across Kazakhstan have been ransacked and torched in the worst violence experienced by the former Soviet republic in 30 years of independence. The unrest was fuelled by public anger over the country's former ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev and his family amassing a huge fortune, and over a hike in gas prices. Massimov is widely viewed as a close ally of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev. He has twice been prime minister and has also served as head of the presidential administration under Nazarbayev. Security forces appeared to have regained control of the streets of the Central Asian state's main city Almaty on Friday morning and the president said constitutional order had mostly been restored, hours after 2,500 Russian 'peacekeepers' arrived in the city. Paratroopers from the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) were deployed on Thursday to help quell the unrest following an appeal for military aid from Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. It was a move US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken questioned, telling reporters during a State Department briefing on Saturday that it was 'not clear' why Kazakh officials felt 'the need for any outside assistance'.

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[nivek]

Dutch residents vow to hurl EGGS at Jeff Bezos's newly-built $540m Y721 superyacht as it sets sail for first time after Amazon billionaire's shipyard asked to dismantle historic bridge to get vessel out

More than 3,900 people are 'interested' in a Facebook event calling for Rotterdam residents to throw rotten eggs Jeff Bezos's newly built-superyacht, for which a historic Dutch bridge could be dismantled. Report by local media said that the shipyard building the Amazon billionaire's £400million, 17ft yacht Y721 had asked for a historic bridge to be temporarily dismantled to get the boat to sea, with Bezos footing the bill.

Y721 is currently being built at the Oceano shipyard in Alblasserdam in the west of the Netherlands, but in order to get out to sea the iconic Koningshavenbrug bridge in Rotterdam, known to locals as De Hef, will have to be dismantled.

Normally new ships pass under the bridge with a clearance of 130ft before their masts are assembled. But the superstructure of Bezos's vessel is higher than the bridge and the shipyard says it is not practical to sail it out while partially constructed. However this week local politicians said no final decisions had been taken on whether to dismantle the bridge.

A Facebook event to which more than 900 people have clicked 'going' has called for 'all Rotterdammers' to throw eggs at the yacht 'en masse' when it passes through De Hef in the summer. Organised for June 1 by Pablo Strörmann, it reads: 'Take a box of (rotten) eggs with you and let's throw them en masse at Jeff's superyacht when it sails through De Hef in Rotterdam.

'Rotterdam was built from the rubble by the people of Rotterdam, and we don't just take that apart for the phallus symbol of a megalomaniac billionaire. Not without a fight!'

Mr Strörmann has even linked to a video tutorial for making a 'cardboard egg-grenade launcher' on the page 'for the advanced egg throwers'. Comments on the event discussion board have ranged, with one calling for people to bring a 'paper bag filled with poop' and others denouncing the idea.

The Amazon founder's secretive yacht - a glimpse of which was caught in October - will feature three enormous masts and three decks, and it will be unable to fit under the bridge, even with its full clearance of 130ft (40 metres).

When the bridge was renovated in 2017, the local council pledged that it would never be dismantled again.

However, according to Dutch broadcaster Rijnmond, that promise is set to be broken to accommodate Bezos's giant ship, with the Amazon founder promising to cover the costs needed for the work.

 

[Standingstones]

Dutch residents vow to hurl EGGS at Jeff Bezos's newly-built $540m Y721 superyacht as it sets sail for first time after Amazon billionaire's shipyard asked to dismantle historic bridge to get vessel out

More than 3,900 people are 'interested' in a Facebook event calling for Rotterdam residents to throw rotten eggs Jeff Bezos's newly built-superyacht, for which a historic Dutch bridge could be dismantled. Report by local media said that the shipyard building the Amazon billionaire's £400million, 17ft yacht Y721 had asked for a historic bridge to be temporarily dismantled to get the boat to sea, with Bezos footing the bill.

Y721 is currently being built at the Oceano shipyard in Alblasserdam in the west of the Netherlands, but in order to get out to sea the iconic Koningshavenbrug bridge in Rotterdam, known to locals as De Hef, will have to be dismantled.

Normally new ships pass under the bridge with a clearance of 130ft before their masts are assembled. But the superstructure of Bezos's vessel is higher than the bridge and the shipyard says it is not practical to sail it out while partially constructed. However this week local politicians said no final decisions had been taken on whether to dismantle the bridge.

A Facebook event to which more than 900 people have clicked 'going' has called for 'all Rotterdammers' to throw eggs at the yacht 'en masse' when it passes through De Hef in the summer. Organised for June 1 by Pablo Strörmann, it reads: 'Take a box of (rotten) eggs with you and let's throw them en masse at Jeff's superyacht when it sails through De Hef in Rotterdam.

'Rotterdam was built from the rubble by the people of Rotterdam, and we don't just take that apart for the phallus symbol of a megalomaniac billionaire. Not without a fight!'

Mr Strörmann has even linked to a video tutorial for making a 'cardboard egg-grenade launcher' on the page 'for the advanced egg throwers'. Comments on the event discussion board have ranged, with one calling for people to bring a 'paper bag filled with poop' and others denouncing the idea.

The Amazon founder's secretive yacht - a glimpse of which was caught in October - will feature three enormous masts and three decks, and it will be unable to fit under the bridge, even with its full clearance of 130ft (40 metres).

When the bridge was renovated in 2017, the local council pledged that it would never be dismantled again.

However, according to Dutch broadcaster Rijnmond, that promise is set to be broken to accommodate Bezos's giant ship, with the Amazon founder promising to cover the costs needed for the work.

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There’s where my Amazon Prime membership money went….

 

[nivek]

French Freedom Convoy crackdown: Riot police teargas terrified DINERS at pavement cafes in Paris (forcing them to use their mandatory Covid masks while fleeing)

French riot police tear gassed terrified diners at restaurants as protesters clashed during violent demonstrations in Paris against Covid rules and energy price rises. Families with children had to cover their faces with their mandatory Covid masks as they fled from tear gas in cafés on the streets of the French capital.

Paris has been brought to a halt with police also using baton charges on demonstrators making a Canadian-style 'Freedom Convoy' protest, defying a ban by authorities aiming to stop a blockade of the city. Despite the presence of some 7000 officers on the streets and armoured cars, Paris' most famous roundabout - the Étoile (Star) around the Arc de Triomphe - was gridlocked by early afternoon as arrests were made.

An officer at the scene said: 'Unauthorised demonstrators are using their vehicles to block the traffic, and they are being supported by others without vehicles. 'Everything is being done to prevent this unauthorised demonstration from continuing.' Earlier in the day, police intercepted at least five convoys attempting to enter the capital and handed tickets to more than 200 motorists.

Protesters were detained amid a seizure of bladed weapons, slingshots and gas masks in one central Parisian square. There were 54 arrests in Paris alone on Saturday, most for public order offences connected to the Freedom Convoys. Trouble continued well into Saturday night, as protesters continued to confront the police all over the city. By 8pm, police were still using tear gas canisters in areas including the Champs-Elysees.

Gerald Darmanin, France's Interior Minister, said: 'Thank you to the police and gendarmes who mobilised this weekend across France, and in particular in Paris.' He confirmed the latest arrest figure, and said 337 people had also been given verbal warnings. There were five arrests in the southern city of Montpellier, where at least one policeman was injured.

Some 7,000 officers have been mobilised for the weekend protests, creating checkpoints, deploying armored personnel carriers and setting up water cannons this morning to brace the city for the protests.

Inspired by Canadian truckers paralysing border traffic with the United States, the demonstrators are railing against coronavirus restrictions such as France's vaccination pass, but also fast-rising energy prices.

Today's protest follows hundreds of cars, motorhomes and vans from Lille, Strasbourg, Chateaubourg and elsewhere stopped at the gates of Paris last night, but a police source said no convoy had entered the capital.

 

[Standingstones]

Here’s a hypothetical question. If there are any “alien based species” here on Earth, I wonder what they might be thinking with all this strife going on. Would they step in and stop conflict or let us just shoot it out? It might be a good thing for them to just sit back and let us just destroy ourselves.

 

[nivek]

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[wwkirk]

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I don't think they seriously enforced that to begin with.

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

Translation: There is indeed something to ask questions about... How can we go from 14,432,396 to 11,661,111 in the end??? (photo of bikers for proof who take Macron to the Champs de Mars) 2,771,285 votes for the pen that disappears in minutes ????? What about it?

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

 

[nivek]

America doesn't want them back, just saying...


Portuguese angered at influx of Californians who import their problems with them

California residents are fleeing to the country of Portugal and in many cases bringing problems that have made life more difficult for natives, according to the Los Angeles Times report.

A story titled "Welcome to Portugal, the new expat haven. Californians, please go home," reports that the number of Americans living in Portugal has risen by 45% in the past year with many of those Americans moving from California in order to escape high housing costs, pandemic lockdowns, and "Trumpian politics" in the United States.

The article explains that "resentment of newcomers is growing" in Portugal as California expats have become the "root of questions over gentrification, income disparities and immigration."

Portuguese activists have reportedly taken to the streets to protest the gentrification caused by Americans, many of them Californians, who have moved into the neighborhood and caused skyrocketing rent and evictions.

"You cannot deny that places like Lisbon have become much more appealing for young, creative people with money to spend. The effect on the economy and the way the buildings look — no longer empty — is astronomical," Luis Mendes, a geographer at the University of Lisbon, told the Los Angeles Times. "But the average Portuguese person can no longer afford to live in the center of Lisbon. Rents have gone up five times over a few years. Even the basic things, such as buying groceries, take longer trips outside the city center than they used to."

The Portuguese government has responded to the housing crisis by suspending its "golden visa" program in large cities that offered residency to foreigners who purchased homes that cost more than $500,000 euros which was a program "dominated" by Americans.

In Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, evictions have doubled over the last few years with many blaming the influx of foreigners willing to pay more than locals with bank accounts backed by dollars and pounds.

California’s population decreased in both 2020 and 2021 which cost the state a seat in Congress for the first time after the U.S. Census found California's population growth fell behind other states.

"Things were just becoming too much back home, but I didn’t want to leave everything about L.A. behind," California expat Jamie Dixon explained. "With Portugal," Dixon added, "we could keep the parts we liked and leave the rest."

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