Mussel survey reveals alarming degradation of River Thames ecosystem since the 1960s

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

 

IMAGE: ONE OF THE MUSSELS GATHERED IN THE RIVER THAMES SURVEY view more 

CREDIT: UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

Scientists replicated a 1964 River Thames survey and found that mussel numbers have declined by almost 95%, with one species – the depressed river mussel – completely gone.

The detailed study measured the change in size and number of all species of mussel in a stretch of the River Thames near Reading between 1964 and 2020.

The results were striking: not only had native populations severely declined, but the mussels that remained were much smaller for their age – reflecting slower growth.

Mussels are important in freshwater ecosystems because they filter the water and remove algae. As filter feeders they’re exposed to everything in the water, and this makes them a valuable indicator of ecosystem health. Mussel shells also provide places for other aquatic species to live.

“Mussels are a great indicator of the health of the river ecosystem. Such a massive decline in mussel biomass in the river is also likely to have a knock-on effect for other species, reducing the overall biodiversity,” said Isobel Ollard, a PhD student in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Zoology and first author of the report.

She added: “The depressed river mussel used to be quite widespread in the Thames, but this survey didn’t find a single one - which also raises concerns for the survival of this species.”

The study also recorded new arrivals: the invasive, non-native zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, and Asian clam, Corbicula fluminea - both absent from the original 1964 survey - were present in high numbers. The scientists say invasive species probably hitched a ride on boats as they sailed up the Thames, and established themselves in the river.

The results are published today in the Journal of Animal Ecology.

“This dramatic decline in native mussel populations is very worrying, and we’re not sure what’s driving it,” said Professor David Aldridge in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Zoology, and senior author of the report.

He added: “While this might seem like a rather parochial little study of a single site in a single river in the UK, it actually provides an important warning signal about the world’s freshwaters.”

The invasive species could be behind the decline in the native mussel populations: zebra mussels are known to smother native species to death. But the scientists say more work is needed to be sure. Other causes could be changes in land use along the river, or changes in the fish populations that mussels depend on as part of their life cycle.

Many empty shells of the depressed river mussel, Pseudanodonta complanata, were found in the survey, indicating that the species had been living at this site in the past. The depressed river mussel is one of the most endangered mussel species in the UK.

The survey found that the population of duck mussels, Anodonta anatina, had decreased to just 1.1% of 1964 levels, and the painter’s mussel, Unio pictorum, decreased to 3.2%.

The scientists think the mussels’ reduced growth rate may reflect the river’s return to a more ‘natural’ state. Since 1964, levels of nitrate and phosphate in the river water have fallen due to tighter regulation of sewage treatment. A reduction in these nutrients would reduce the growth of algae, limiting the food available to the mussels.

Mussel species are threatened globally. The scientists say that regular population surveys of key species, like this one, are essential to tracking the health of rivers and guiding their management.

To ensure the survey was an exact replica of the original, Ollard contacted Christina Negus – who had done her survey while a researcher at the University of Reading in the sixties. Negus, who is no longer a scientist, shared details of the methods and equipment she had used. Her report, published in 1966, continues to be cited extensively as evidence of the major contribution mussels make to ecosystem functioning in rivers.

These mussels were gathered in the River Thames survey

CREDIT

University of Cambridge

Isobel Ollard

Ollard conducted the survey of River Thames mussels

CREDIT

University of Cambridge

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JOURNAL

Journal of Animal Ecology

DOI

10.17863/CAM.80071 

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Declines in freshwater mussel density, size and productivity in the River Thames over the past half century

Seagrass crucial to stemming the tide of coastal erosion

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF GOTHENBURG

 

IMAGE: SEAGRASS´ ROOT MATS CAN REDUCE COASTAL EROSION UP TO 70 %. RESEARCHERS AT UNIVERSITY OF GOTHENBURG HAVE MADE TEST IN WAVE TANK THAT SHOWS THAT THE ROOTS MAKES BINDS THE SAND DUNES. view more 

CREDIT: PHOTO: PEKKA TUURI

The sea devours large tracts of land when storms wash sand out to sea from the coast. In a new study involving a researcher from the University of Gothenburg has shown that seagrass can reduce cliff erosion by up to 70% thanks to its root mats binding the sand.

Coastal erosion is a global problem that is often combated by replenishing the coast and beaches with new sand in locations where storms wreak the greatest havoc. According to a 2016 survey conducted by the Geological Survey of Sweden, 12 per cent of Skåne’s coastline in southern Sweden is vulnerable to increasing rates of coastal erosion. It is an even bigger issue in other countries. In the Netherlands, the coastline is protected through the construction of dikes made from stone and mud. Another solution is to utilise nature’s own defences against coastal erosion. In this new study, researchers examined the importance of seagrass for preserving the coastline.

“We have seen that seagrass meadows in the coast are valuable assets in mitigating erosion. We already know that their long canopies serve as breakwaters, but now we can show that their root mats also bind together the underwater sand dunes, effectively reinforcing them,” says Eduardo Infantes, a Marine Biologist at the University of Gothenburg and the lead author of the study which has been published in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series.

More powerful storms in the future

Common eelgrass is a seagrass species that grows along Sweden’s coasts, and there are areas with large seagrass meadows growing on the bottom sediments, such as in Skåne. In other places, the seagrass has disappeared altogether. This not only represents an ecological loss, it can also mean that the coast becomes more vulnerable to erosion. As the climate changes, storms risk becoming more powerful, which in turn can lead to an increase in coastal erosion. Approximately 8% of the world’s population live in areas at an elevation of fewer than 10 metres above sea level. Rising sea levels may see many people affected by coastal erosion.

“This is why it is even more important to preserve those seagrass meadows that still exist today and to replant seagrass in those places where it has disappeared. In our research, we have made successful attempts to restore common eelgrass meadows on the Swedish west coast, but if such replanting efforts are to succeed, there is a need for detailed studies of the current status seabed environment,” says Eduardo Infantes.

In this study, the researchers took samples of sandy sediments with and without common eelgrass from a number of sites and placed them in a large tank capable of simulating waves. The experiments demonstrated that the sand is eroded far less by waves when seagrass is growing in it. The researchers also took samples from muddy seabeds but found that the effect of the seagrass there was less. However, this matters less since muddy seabeds are most commonly found in fjords and other areas that are less exposed to waves.

More factors in field tests

The next step will be to move out of the laboratory environment and take measurements of sand erosion on an exposed shoreline along the coast. Other factors such as currents, traffic on the water, inflows from rivers etc. can then affect the erosion.

“It’s more complicated in the field, but we have created realistic storm waves in our experiments and the seagrass has clearly shown a protective effect against erosion. I think we will be able to demonstrate the similar effects in field tests,” says Eduardo Infantes.

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JOURNAL

Marine Ecology Progress Series

DOI

10.3354/meps14196 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

ARTICLE TITLE

Seagrass roots strongly reduce cliff erosion rates in sandy sediments

Indonesia raises volcano warning to highest after Semeru erupts - media

Published: 04 Dec 2022 -

Mount Semeru spews smoke and ash in Lumajang on December 4, 2022. 

(Photo by Agus Harianto / AFP)


JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities raised the warning on Semeru volcano to the highest level on Sunday, Kompas TV reported, after an eruption spewed a column of ash high into the air.

The evacuation of people living near the volcano in East Java province had begun, a top regional administrator, Thoriqul Haq, told the broadcaster.

The plume from the volcano reached a height of 50,000 feet (15 km), said Japan's Meteorology Agency, which was monitoring for the possibility of a tsunami there.

Indonesia's Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, PVMBG, raised the level of volcanic activity to IV from III, Kompas TV reported. The centre could not immediately be reached for comment.

The eruption on the eastern part of Java island, some 640 km (400 miles) east of the capital Jakarta, follows a series of earthquakes on the west of the island, including one last month that killed more than 300 people.

"Most of the road accesses have been closed since this morning. Now its raining volcanic ash and it has covered the view of the mountain," Bayu Deny Alfianto, a local volunteer told Reuters by phone.

Small eruptions were continuing and it was raining in the area, he said.

With the higher alert level, authorities warned residents not to conduct any activities within 8 km (5 miles) of Semeru's eruption centre, Kompas TV said.

The volcano began erupting at 2:46 a.m. (1946 GMT on Saturday), Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency, BNPB, said in a statement. Videos posted on social media showed grey ash clouds in nearby areas.

With 142 volcanoes, Indonesia has the largest population globally living in close range to a volcano, including 8.6 million within 10 km (6 miles).

The deadly late-November quake that hit West Java's Cianjur was a shallow temblor of 5.6 magnitude. A much deeper quake on Saturday in Gurat of 6.1 m

 

Brown University takes firm stand on caste-based harassment

Ivy League institution of US makes provisions for stringent punishment, including expulsion or termination of employment, for violations

Brown University

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Basant Kumar Mohanty   |   New Delhi   |   Published 04.12.22, 03:33 AM

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Brown University, an Ivy League institution based in Rhode Island in the US, has added caste-based harassment to its non-discrimination policy and made provisions for stringent punishment, including expulsion or termination of employment, for violations. 

Earlier, Harvard, California State University and Brandeis University in the US had acted similarly against caste-based discrimination, said to be prevalent among South Asians in American institutions.

According to a statement, the Corporation of Brown University, the varsity’s governing body, voted in Fall 2022 to adopt a change to the University’s Corporation Policy Statement on Equal Opportunity, Non-discrimination and Affirmative Action to insulate the varsity community from caste oppression and to “call attention to a subtle, often misunderstood form of structural inequality”.

The policy seeks to prevent discrimination, harassment or retaliation based on a person’s race, colour, religion, sex, age, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or caste.

“Failure to comply with this and related policies is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including suspension without pay, expulsion, or termination of employment or association with the University, in accordance with applicable (eg, staff, faculty, student) disciplinary procedures,” the policy said.

The statement quoted the vice-president for institutional equity and diversity, Sylvia Carey-Butler, as saying that as the  South Asian population in the US increases, caste discrimination is becoming a growing issue on college and university campuses across the country.

“University students who are members of the castes classified as lower often report facing discrimination at educational institutions in the diaspora,” it added.

The Equity Lab, a South Asian-American human rights forum in the US, conducted a survey on caste in the country in 2016 and found that one in three Dalit students reported discrimination during their education in the US while two out of three Dalits reported being treated unfairly at their workplaces.

Sixty per cent said they had experienced caste-based derogatory jokes or comments while 40 per cent of Dalits said they felt unwelcome at places of worship because of their caste. Sukhadeo Thorat, former chairman of the University Grants Commission, said it was unfortunate that people from dominant castes continued to exercise their caste status even on foreign soil despite obtaining higher education. He said the societal norms in India were the main source of the bias, which stayed with people throughout their lives.

Effective measures are required at various levels to sensitise caste Hindus on the subject, he said. “Social norms that are discriminatory should be changed. People from the forward castes have to take the initiative.

It can happen if there is sustained action by government and non-government organisations, political parties and the media. Such actions are very negligible,” Thorat said.

Harvard and California State University included caste in their non-discrimination policy last year while Brandeis University did so in 2019.

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for HINDUISM IS FASCISM 

The Amount of Climate Change Denial on Twitter is Increasing

It's prompting climate scientists to leave the platform

Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, California, on Tuesday, Nov, 29, 2022.
David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images

BY TOBIAS CARROLL @TOBIASCARROLL

What happens when a social media app’s new ownership fires a significant portion of its content moderation? Unfortunately, we’re watching that very scenario play out in real time right now with Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter. Things that would have previously been flagged immediately are no longer being processed as such, and it’s leading to a much more fraught experience for many of the app’s users.

The latest example of this comes via a new report at The Guardian, which focuses on an increase in climate change denial on the site. The article quotes University of Pennsylvania climate scientist Michael Mann, who spoke of seeing “climate deniers who had been deactivated making a reappearance, and climate denial getting somewhat more traction.”

This phenomenon also includes the hashtag #ClimateScam coming up more prominently in searches for some users. According to The Guardian‘s reporting, this predates Elon Musk’s takeover of the company — the article cites research done by Climate Action Against Disinformation noting that phrases like the aforementioned hashtag and both “climate scam” and “climate is a scam” have been on the rise since July of this year.

As it’s described here, the issue is twofold: part of what’s historically made Twitter appealing is the presence of experts in certain fields who are willing to chime in on certain issues. If those experts would prefer to head elsewhere, as s their prerogative, that part of the discourse on Twitter would be lost.

Unfortunately, denial of climate change isn’t the only thing that’s been increasing on Twitter lately. This, too, doesn’t bode well for the platform’s future or health.

‘Religious intolerance’ US targets Pakistan, ignores India

NNI 



WASHINGTON: The United States has designated Pakistan as a country of particular concern under the Religious Freedom Act over violations during 2022, but India was let off despite its serious violations.

“Around the world, governments and non-state actors harass, threaten, jail, and even kill individuals on account of their beliefs,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken while announcing the designations.

“In some instances, they stifle individuals’ freedom of religion or belief to exploit opportunities for political gain. The United States will not stand by in the face of these abuses,” he said.

Therefore, “today, I am announcing designations against Burma (Myanmar), the People’s Republic of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, the DPRK (North Korea), Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern …for having engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom”.

The US also placed Cuba, Nicaragua and Russia’s Wagner mercenary group to a blacklist on international religious freedom, opening the path to potential sanctions. The designation of Cuba is the latest sign of pressure on the island by the administration of President Joe Biden, which has largely shunned previous Democratic president Barack Obama’s policy of seeking an opening with the long-time US nemesis.

Pakistan was first place on the list in Dec 2018 during the Trump’s tenure and retained it in 2020, as well. The Biden administration also kept Pakistan on the list.

US congresswoman seeks $600m aid for Pak flood victims

INP 

WASHINGTON: US Congresswoman Sheila Jackson has written a letter to the House Foreign Affairs Committee to increase aid to Pakistan’s flood victims, it has been learnt on Saturday.

In her letter to the Foreign Affairs Committee, Sheila Jackson wrote that aid to Pakistan should be increased to deal with the floods’ aftermath.

In the letter, the Congresswoman asked for $600 million to be given to Pakistan to help flood victims. Sheila Jackson wrote that $500 million was given to earthquake victims in 2005, and more aid should be sent this time. In her letter, Sheila Jackson, a member of the US Congress, wrote that this aid will not only improve Pakistan-US relations but will save many lives.

U.S. healthcare system same as Afghanistan, Sudan: Hillary Clinton

Mrs Clinton blames the rising mortality rates in the U.S. on states that have “draconian” measures with “reproductive healthcare”.

TOSIN AJUWON • DECEMBER 3, 2022

Hillary Clinton [Photo credit: Tele Trader]


Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has expressed concern at the rising mortality rate for pregnant women in America, comparing the country to Sudan and Afghanistan.

“It’s so shocking to think that in any way we’re related to poor Afghanistan and Sudan but as an advanced economy as we allegedly are, on this measure, we, unfortunately, are rightly put with them,” Mrs Clinton said.

The former first lady was speaking at the Women’s Voices Summit at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Mrs Clinton apportioned the blame for the rising mortality rates in the U.S. on states that have “draconian” measures with “reproductive healthcare”.

There has been a rise in the number of women dying due to pregnancy or childbirth each year in the U.S., with the maternal death rate among Black women still three times the rate for White women.

According to the National Centre for Health Statistics report, the overall number of women identified as having died of maternal causes in the U.S. climbed from 658 in 2018 to 754 in 2019 and 861 in 2020.

The report further posited that the maternal mortality rate in the U.S. are unacceptably high (17.4 deaths per 100,000 births) and exceeds those in other developed countries.

Unfortunately, the global maternal mortality rates are declining in most countries but are unchanged in the U.S. and even increasing for some groups.

At the event, Mrs Clinton added that “Some of the most harsh, draconian measures against reproductive healthcare are in states that don’t provide healthcare to pregnant women.”

She recalled how tennis superstar Serena Williams had a close shave with death during childbirth, stressing that attention be drawn to life-threatening issues.

“One of the stories ingrained in my mind is that often black women, even women of education and affluence like Serena Williams, come close to dying when she gives birth because people are not paying attention to her,” Mrs Clinton said.

Several states enacted stricter restrictions on abortions after the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade in the decision Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

Both Afghanistan and Sudan have strict restrictions on abortions, with both countries allowing it when the mother’s life is in danger. Sudan also allows abortions to be performed when a woman is raped.

But specifically in Afghanistan, multiple factors which range from war and poverty to illiteracy and lack of infrastructure, contribute to the high maternal mortality rate in the country.

Aside from these, the war on terror and political instability in the country has made healthcare resources inaccessible to over 41 million population.

FASCISM U$A

White House to Trump: ‘You cannot only love America when you win’

The former president had earlier called for the “termination” of constitutional laws, while citing conspiracy theories about the presidential election he lost.


By CRAIG HOWIE
12/03/2022 

The White House on Saturday responded to Donald Trump calling for the suspension of the Constitution to overturn the 2020 election, saying in a statement, “You cannot only love America when you win.”

“The Constitution brings the American people together – regardless of party – and elected leaders swear to uphold it,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said. “Attacking the Constitution and all it stands for is anathema to the soul of our nation, and should be universally condemned.”


Earlier, in a post on his Truth Social network, the former president had called for the “termination” of constitutional laws, while citing conspiracy theories about the presidential election he lost.

“A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,” Trump wrote. “Our great ‘Founders’ did not want, and would not condone, False & Fraudulent Elections!”

Trump’s post came hours after Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk revealed sensitive deliberations at the social media company around Hunter Biden’s personal computer files in the fall of 2020.

The internal company discussions offered insight on the internal confusion at Twitter as it responded to the New York Post’s reporting on then-presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son in the closing weeks of the last presidential campaign.

POLITICO has not independently verified the communications, which were given to Substack writer Matt Taibbi and posted Friday night. Musk late Friday suggested that another batch of revelations would land Saturday. As of this writing, another batch has not been released.

Musk on Saturday afternoon defended his release of the files, though admitted there may be a “legal risk” in the action.

“We’re just going to put all the information out there try to get a clean slate,” Musk said in a Twitter Spaces live chat. Any legal risk is “less of a concern than just clearing the air and making sure that people know what really happened,” Musk said.

On the promised release of another batch of files, Musk said he was “somewhat leaving this up to Matt Taibbi and Bari Weiss.” He indicated it would focus on events after the election, including “government influence” on the platform.

Candidly, he admitted he’d “read hardly any” of the files.”

Asked whether any DNC or Biden campaign requests to take down content related to Hunter Biden would be released, Musk replied, “The intent is to release all the files.”

In response to Trump’s call to suspend Constitutional laws, the DNC said in a statement: “Donald Trump lost by 7 million votes in 2020 and his calls to undermine our democracy cost his party key races in 2022. The continued silence by Republican leaders, including his potential primary competitors, shows a MAGA party that is beholden to Trumpism, his divisive rhetoric, and his extreme positions.”

Trump, who has declared his candidacy for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, preceded his Truth Social post with several posts focused on Big Tech’s role in policing misinformation in the runup to the 2020 election.

He followed up with a post later Saturday saying, “UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!”

'Wrong, crazy, dangerous': CNN legal analyst aghast by Trump call to 'terminate' Constitution

Brad Reed
December 03, 2022

Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig appears on CNN (Screen cap).

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday said it was necessary to "terminate" the United States Constitution to restore him back in power, and he left CNN legal analyst Elie Honig aghast.

During a discussion with Honig on CNN, host Jim Acosta described Trump's Truth Social post as "just more desperation," as he noted that there is no mechanism in the Constitution to "reinstate" Trump to the White House.

Honig, however, said that Trump's ravings were dangerous even if they had no chance of becoming a reality.

"I guess I will just summarize, in response to Donald Trump's statement, to say that virtually every word of that statement is wrong, crazy and dangerous," he said. "I mean the only accurate thing Donald Trump says is that to do what he is recommending would require termination of the constitution which, of course, would leave us without a democracy."

Acosta then editorialized to say that the Trump statement demonstrated his "hostility to the American way of life and democracy in this country."

"It is a reminder of what the country was going through around January 6th," the CNN host added.

Trump Calls For 'Termination' Of Constitution Over Elon Musk's 'Twitter Files' Leak

The social media platform's new CEO appears to have allowed messages sent between the company's past executives to be released.

By Sara Boboltz
Dec 3, 2022, 

Former President Donald Trump called Saturday for the “termination” of articles of the Constitution following the “Twitter files” leak of a series of messages between the social media platform’s leaders in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.

Trump suggested that the contents of the leak warranted a complete election re-do or simply a coup in which he would be installed as president.

“A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, the platform he started after being kicked off Twitter early 2021.

In a follow-up post, he added: “UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!”

On Friday evening, author Matt Taibbi posted a thread of dozens of tweets that he titled “THE TWITTER FILES,” alleging that his story offered bombshell revelations about free speech on Twitter. Some conservatives claim Taibbi’s tweets prove that Twitter improperly influenced the result of the last presidential election, although the story has been panned as overhyped and misleading.

The purportedly leaked messages discussed content moderation decisions ― specifically, how Twitter would handle the New York Post story about the sordid contents of a laptop reportedly belonging to Hunter Biden. The laptop’s contents ranged from explicit photographs of Joe Biden’s son and his romantic partners to emails about his work advising Burisma, the Ukrainian energy company.

At the time, many intelligence experts thought the story’s provenance was highly suspect, given the threat of foreign disinformation in the weeks leading up to a monumental election. A group of more than 50 former intelligence officials signed an open letter stating that the laptop story “has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.” Tech companies that were excoriated for allowing disinformation to flow freely on major social platforms during the 2016 presidential campaign were not keen to make the same mistakes.

Since then, at least some of the information from the laptop has been authenticated by news outlets that are not owned by right-wing billionaire Rupert Murdoch.

But in all the uncertainty of late 2020, Twitter went to relatively extreme lengths to deal with the laptop story: The platform blocked it. Sharing a link to the New York Post story meant your account could be locked until you deleted it, which is what happened to then-White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany.

This brings us back to the “Twitter Files” leak.

Twitter’s new overlord, the billionaire Elon Musk, had teased and hyped the thread with popcorn emojis in the hours before, writing, “This will be awesome.”

Taibbi claimed he had been given access to “thousands of internal documents obtained by sources at Twitter.” In what he promised would be the first in a series of installments to “The Twitter Files,” Taibbi shared screenshots of conversations that high-level Twitter executives supposedly had.

The company’s leaders settled on saying that the New York Post story violated its rules against hacked materials, although later, they reversed this decision. One email purportedly showed how Twitter executives heard from Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who said suppressing the Post story had angered lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and was not in line with First Amendment principles.

Some conservatives reacted with particular outrage at another point in Taibbi’s thread, where he shared what appeared to be a request from someone on Joe Biden’s team. At the time, Biden was still just a presidential candidate, and someone had asked Twitter to remove several tweets. While some reacted as if this amounted to collusion, the tweets in question contained nude photos of the president’s son taken from his laptop.

The entire “Twitter Files” saga does seem to make one point clear: The complicated necessity of content moderation on major internet platforms.eport.

Trump doubles down on calls to 'terminate' Constitution in furious all-caps Truth Social post
Brad Reed
December 03, 2022

Donald Trump at the Elysee Palace. (Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com)


Former President Donald Trump on Saturday evening doubled down on his calls to "terminate" the United States Constitution and restore him to power.

Writing on his Truth Social website, Trump again expressed rage at his loss in the 2020 election, which he still falsely maintains was "stolen" from him,

"The world is laughing at the United States of America and its corrupt and rigged Presidential Election of 2020!" Trump wrote.

In an all-caps follow-up post, Trump wrote that "UNPRECEDENTED FRAUD REQUIRES UNPRECEDENTED CURE!"

Earlier on Saturday, Trump elaborated on what this "unprecedented cure" would look like when he said that it would require "the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution."

In a final post, Trump attacked Republicans who voted to certify President Joe Biden's win in the 2020 election.

"I wonder what Mitch McConnell, the RINOS, and all of the weak Republicans who couldn’t get the Presidential Election of 2020 approved and out of the way fast enough, are thinking now?" he raged. "They are a disgrace to our great Party, and to our Nation, which has become a laughing stock all over the World!"

Trump demands 'termination' of Constitution so he can return to power

Brad Reed
December 03, 2022

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday flat-out called for the "termination" of the United States Constitution so that he could be returned to the presidency.

Reacting to the news that Twitter in the runup to the 2020 election removed tweets that featured pornographic photos of Hunter Biden, Trump declared that the entire election had been stolen from him and demanded to be returned to the presidency.

"So, with the revelation of MASSIVE & WIDESPREAD FRAUD & DECEPTION in working closely with Big Tech Companies, the DNC, & the Democrat Party, do you throw the Presidential Election Results of 2020 OUT and declare the RIGHTFUL WINNER, or do you have a NEW ELECTION?" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution. Our great 'Founders' did not want, and would not condone, False & Fraudulent Elections!"

This is not the first time Trump has called for his reinstatement as president, although this is the first time he has acknowledged that doing so would require the United States to shred its own Constitution on his behalf.

New York Times reporter Peter Baker wrote on Twitter that this seems like a dangerous new milestone for Trump.

"Needless to say, can't think of a time in the United States when a former president (and would-be future president) has called for suspending the Constitution to let him seize power," he wrote. "Even after all the shocks of the last few years, this one is remarkable."

'Heart of darkness': Pastors demand churches condemn Trump for coddling Nazis

Brad Reed
December 03, 2022

Donald Trump (Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr)

Two pastors are putting their feet down and saying it's long past time for churches for condemn former President Donald Trump for his continuous coddling of Nazis and white supremacists.

Roman Catholic priest Matt Malone and Episcopal priest and former Republican Sen. John Danforth have written an editorial for the St. Louis Post Dispatch in which they excoriate Trump for his decision to host Hitler-praising rapper Kanye West and neo-Nazi podcaster Nick Fuentes for dinner at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

The two men accuse Trump of being "today’s spreader of the disease" of anti-Semitism, and they lament that the Republican Party is apparently too weak to forcefully condemn him.

However, they do see roles for religious institutions to play in combatting Trump's dangerous actions.

RELATED: Trump demands 'termination' of Constitution so he can return to power

"We propose that our churches and their clergy take the lead," they argued. "We can never make up for the churches’ 20th century omissions, but we should not repeat them in 21st century America. This is our chance to put in practice what our faith professes that antisemitism is opposed to what Christians believe... Our faith tells us to shine Christ’s light in a world of darkness. Antisemitism is the heart of darkness."

The two men then drew a direct parallel to the decision of many Christians to overlook the evils being done by Nazi Germany even as they were occurring.

"This is what we failed to do in Germany 90 years ago," they concluded. "It’s what we must do in America today. The time has come for our churches to denounce Donald Trump from the pulpit."

LIKE EVERY WAR BEFORE IT...

The Pentagon can’t balance it’s own budget, but it’s okay, it’s a ‘teachable moment’

The audit found issues with almost two thirds of the Department of Defense's assets.

BY NICHOLAS SLAYTON | PUBLISHED DEC 3, 2022

Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord discussing the findings of the latest Department of Defense audit on Nov. 15. (Photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Brittany A. Chase/DoD).

The Pentagon can’t account for more than 60 percent of its assets. That’s the news from the latest of the Department of Defense’s audits, the results of which were released last month. Despite not knowing where trillions of dollars are, the chief comptroller for the Pentagon says the department can learn from the audit’s findings. Specifically, American aid to Ukraine provides a chance for the department to see why it matters that every item and dollar are accounted for

TOYS FOR BOYS

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This is the fifth year in a row that the Pentagon has failed to balance its budget. The Department of Defense has $3.5 trillion in assets, as well as another $3.7 trillion in liabilities. Auditors looked at 27 different military agencies, finding the majority had issues in unaccounted or lost funds and new weaknesses in the department’s books. Despite the overall poor news from the findings, Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord declined to say that the Pentagon “flunked” the audit.

“The process is important for us to do and it is making us get better. It is not making us get better as fast as we want,” he told reporters in November.

The results, with 61 percent of the audits reflecting issues, weaknesses or discrepancies, are “basically the same picture as last year,” McCord said. Although the Pentagon did not expect to fully pass the audit, the expectation has been that there would be progress year over year.

The mandatory department-wide audits started in 2017, to see how the Department of Defense handles its funds and assets, which include everything from medical benefits to the military’s real estate holdings and utilities worldwide. This year’s report was done by 1,600 outside auditors, comprising 27 different smaller audits. Of those, only seven were considered “clean,” including the Military Retirement Fund, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Civil Works and the Defense Health Agency — Contract Resource Management. One element, the Medicare-eligible retiree healthcare fund, was given a qualified opinion, meaning it will be judged as “clean” after it resolves an identified weakness or issue. Last year, McCord said that a previously established goal of a completely clean audit by 2027 might not be attainable.

However, this year the Russian war with Ukraine is stressing the need for better accounting within the Pentagon. The United States has sent billions of dollars in weapons and equipment to Ukraine to help its fight against Russia. McCord added Although the U.S. has not been in a “kinetic conflict” with a rival power, it can learn and better track weapons and assets from this war, McCord said. He added that “to me the Ukraine thing is actually a very teachable moment for us on the audit.”

“And, so we’ve not been in a position where we’ve got only a few days of some critical munition left. Right?” McCord said. “But we are now supporting a partner who is and so when they appeal to us for help and say, I’ve got a weeks worth left of something, this is hypothetical. I don’t want to use an exact example but when we’ve got a weeks worth left of something, when can you get me more? I mean that’s a, to me, a really great example of why it matters to get this sort of thing right, of counting inventory, knowing where it is and knowing when it is.”

The United States has sent so much ammunition to Kyiv, including 155mm shells for American howitzers, that it’s put a drain on stockpiles, but the comptroller said there has not been an instance where promised supplies couldn’t be found.

“I’m not saying that insight is going to flip everything to a clean audit overnight, but I think it is an important thing for us to message across DoD and I’ve tried to do that in my — in my talks with people who work here,” McCord added.

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