USA - What in the world has happened to the United States? We are rapidly getting to the point where political correctness is in danger of becoming our national religion. Of course most people would not even call it a “religion”, but for most Americans this unwritten set of rules shapes everything that they think, do and say.
USA - The United States launched more airstrikes in Yemen this month than during all of last year. In Syria, it has airlifted local forces to front-line positions and has been accused of killing civilians in airstrikes. In Iraq, American troops and aircraft are central in supporting an urban offensive in Mosul, where airstrikes killed scores of people on March 17.
JAPAN - Japan is considering a further step away from its long-held pacifist stance with a proposal which would allow it, for the first time since World War II, to strike overseas targets. The proposal from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) advocates adopting new measures to address missile threats from North Korea, including ramping up Japan's missile defense capabilities and, in a departure from its postwar constitution, developing the "capacity to counterattack enemy bases" in the event of a missile attack on the country.
EUROPE - European Union boss Jean-Claude Juncker this afternoon issued a jaw-dropping threat to the United States, saying he could campaign to break up the country in revenge for Donald Trump’s supportive comments about Brexit. In an extraordinary speech the EU Commission president said he would push for Ohio and Texas to split from the rest of America if the Republican president does not change his tune and become more supportive of the EU. The remarks are diplomatic dynamite at a time when relations between Washington and Brussels are already strained over Europe’s meagre contributions to NATO and the US leader’s open preference for dealing with national governments.
ISRAEL - Although an upcoming UNESCO resolution will not directly refer to the Temple Mount and Western Wall, Israel will continue to fight back against resolutions undermining the Jewish People’s historic ties to Jerusalem and the Land of Israel.
UK - Britain’s historic Article 50 letter was today [Wednesday] delivered to Brussels, with the six-page document outlining Theresa May’s tough stance on divorce talks. The Prime Minister yesterday signed the momentous letter in Downing Street just after 4.30pm. It was then handed to European Council president Donald Tusk in Brussels this afternoon by the UK’s ambassador to the EU, Sir Tim Barrow. At 12.28pm, Mr Tusk confirmed he had received the notification of the UK’s withdrawal, posting on Twitter: "After nine months the UK has delivered. #Brexit" But, with no country having ever before triggered Article 50 or sought to leave the EU via the legal mechanism set out in the Lisbon Treaty, how will Mrs May’s letter shape the next two years of exit negotiations?
ISRAEL - When Rabbi Yehuda Glick received an invitation to attend the inauguration of President Donald Trump, he was shocked. He had never attended such a historic event. It wasn’t just a first for Glick. Trump’s inauguration marked the first time an American president invited a member of Israel’s parliament or a resident of an Israeli settlement to his swearing-in. Glick is both.
CANADA - Following Belgium and the Netherlands, Canadian MDs have conjoined euthanasia and organ harvesting before it was specifically allowed in Canadian law. From the National Post story:
USA - About ten years ago Dove released a short film with the slogan “talk to your daughter before the beauty industry does”. It warned of the detrimental effects of unrealistic body image expectations communicated to young girls through advertisements.
USA - We live in a society where human traffickers and sexual perverts seem to be multiplying. It has been reported that there are 747,408 registered sex offenders in the United States, but the latest figure we have is now about five years old, so that total is almost certainly significantly higher today.
USA - The US Department of Education has developed an Islamic indoctrination program for public schools. It’s called ‘ACCESS ISLAM’ for Grades 5–12. Find out if your children are being indoctrinated with this disgusting Islamic propaganda in school. If they are, gather as many parents as you can and demand that the school board ends this religious proselytizing program immediately or you will take legal action. I believe this Islam program is part of Common Core and it is illegal under the US Constitution.
UK - Liberals claim that moderates make up the majority of Muslims only because most aren’t stabbing, bombing, or beheading unbelievers. Unfortunately, that supposedly peaceful majority is still reading from the same Quran and following the same prophet as the most savage jihadists. When Jayda Fransen, head of anti-Islamization group Britain First, spotted a booth set up by Muslims peddling their religion, she boldly approached them to find out exactly what they were handing out.
USA/UK - As US President Donald Trump proclaims “America First” and Britain hums along to the words of “Rule Britannia,” can a special relationship still exist between two states that seem to have decided to draw back within themselves? In both of these countries, a repositioning of global roles is being undertaken by a suddenly dominant political group of populists. And they are locked in what promises to be a long war with the previously dominant political and intellectual groups that are liberal and globalist. Because of this dynamic, Britain and the United States are bound – one might say doomed – to remain in a special relationship for one of the best of reasons: They will need each other.
USA - As US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warned Washington’s “strategic patience” with North Korea has ended and “all options are on the table” to slow its nuclear ambitions, US and South Korean forces were preparing for a range of military scenarios.
USA - Earlier this month, New York Times Magazine contributor Robert Draper spoke to President Donald Trump by phone. He has reported for the magazine on the conversation. Here's the key insight: