As mighty Hercules battled the three-headed Cerberus that guarded the gates of Hades, so must Kamala Harris combat the triple-headed threat of Donald J. Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for the next 100 days until 5 November. The former prosecutor is dealing with three criminals who have all been indicted or convicted of crimes and each of them are desperate for a GOP victory this November.
The convicted former US 45th POTUS has the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head in the form of damaging criminal and civil litigation and he thinks winning the White House can offer him presidential immunity from his legal woes. His supporters have called for a “civil war” if Donald J. Trump loses, and the world witnessed the rabidity of his base when white supremacists stormed Capitol Hill on 6 January 2021 in an attempt to overturn the US election. An estimated 500 of these American Fedayeen Saddam (FS) deadenders have been sentenced in federal courts.
Although the Russian economy is facing 16,000 economic sanctions and surviving, the Russian Army is facing acute manpower shortages, imperiling Vladimir Putin’s dreams of establishing a Pan-Slavic Union. His plan on defeating Ukraine seems to be relying heavily on a fractured NATO, Western “Ukraine fatigue”, and a withdrawal of US support to Kiev with a Trump victory. Last year the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin’s for war crimes.
Benjamin Netanyahu has also been similarly indicted by the ICC. Moreover, he is being tried on felony corruption and bribery charges in Jerusalem, but the trial was suspended because of the war in the Gaza Strip. So, the Likud PM extends military operations against the population in Gaza while goading and provoking Iran with assassinations and rocket strikes, knowing full well the US will sacrifice her soldiers and American taxpayer dollars to defend Israel. And war with Iran or Lebanese Hezbollah will further delay Netanyahu’s nettlesome trial. During his recent trip to the US, he belittled American protestors of his Punic Gaza policy as “useful idiots of Iran.” Insulting hardworking American taxpayers who send money to Israel every year and who may have relatives in harm’s way in the Middle East thanks to him is particularly galling.
As President Biden and his national security team focus on two of the vicious heads of Cerberus, the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz ticket will concentrate their efforts on the remaining bloviating orange-hued head for the next 100 days. And somehow behind this ferocious three-headed demon lurks Elon Musk in the shadows.
ICC statement on arrest warrants of Israeli and Hamas leaders (bbc.com)
Trial of Benjamin Netanyahu – Wikipedia
Elon Musk Visits Congress As Guest Of Netanyahu (forbes.com)
Elon Musk spoke with Vladimir Putin directly, Pentagon official says | The Independent
Elon Musk is going all-in on Donald Trump | CNN Business
Mexico Rejects Ukraine’s Request to Arrest Russia’s Putin During October 2024 Visit
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has rejected a request from Ukraine to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin if he attends the 1 October 2024 inauguration of President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, her country’s first elected female leader. “We can’t do that. It’s not up to us,” Lopez Obrador said at a news conference on 8 August 2024.
As noted above, an arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the Hague on 17 March 2023 and the beginning reads as follows: “Mr. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, born on 7 October 1952, President of the Russian Federation, is allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of population (children) and that of unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation (under articles 8(2)(a)(vii) and 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute)”.
Mexico trades in two days with the US what it trades in a whole year with Russia, so ideology seems to be paramount in this decision not to arrest Mr. Putin. The traditional left in Mexico, and throughout Latin America in general, tend to support policies that push back against “Western imperialism.” Kremlin propaganda about “NATO aggression” and “de-nazifying Ukraine” sounds credible to the ear of Mexicans who in the mid-19th century had lost California and Texas to the Yanquis.
Whether Mr. Putin attends the inauguration in Mexico City in October remains to be seen; however, if he does go there will certainly be an awkward diplomatic moment.
Notably, during the Second World War, Mexican Air Force pilots proudly served with the US against Japanese forces in the Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO). The 201st Fighter Squadron was known by the nickname Águilas Aztecas or “Aztec Eagles” and they suffered eight casualties during their brief participation in the war as American allies.
Lastly, should Kamala Harris win this November, North America will have two female presidents at the same time, a first for both countries and the continent.
Sources:
Mexico Rejects Ukraine’s Request To Arrest Russia’s Putin During Visit (rferl.org)
López Obrador’s flirtation with Russia risks worsening US-Mexican relations | Brookings201st Fighter Squadron – Wikipedia
201st Fighter Squadron – Wikipedia
Russia Spying on Ireland
Russia is one of a small group of hostile foreign states carrying out spying operations with a malign intent in Ireland, the assistant commissioner of her national police force disclosed in a recent radio interview. The Irish Garda is closely monitoring certain individuals suspected of espionage activities and cooperating closely with foreign partners.
The Irish security services are well-seasoned and capable of dealing with HOIS (Hostile Intelligence Services) and Known or Suspected Terrorists (KSTs) and are no doubt monitoring far-right extremist groups that might be linked to the Kremlin. But Ireland’s overall military defensive capabilities are questionable. Ireland has a policy of neutrality, is not a member of NATO, and has one of the lowest rates of defense spending across the EU (approx. 0.2% GDP). Although the experienced and hearty Irish soldier has served successfully and honorably in UN Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) for decades, the Global Firepower Index (GFI) ranks Ireland 94 out of 145 countries surveyed.
In January 2024 the Russian Navy announced that it would conduct war games approximately 155 miles off the coast of Cork, concerning Dublin (and NATO) that the operation could be cover for an attack on transatlantic fiber-optic oceanic cables that serve as essential infrastructure for communications between North America and Europe. But it was Irish fishermen that dissuaded the Russian Fleet from conducting the drills in those waters, arguing that they might endanger their livelihoods.
Ireland has generously taken in approximately 100,000 Ukrainian refugees since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion and has recognized Russia’s war against Ukraine as genocide.
Sources:
Russia involved in spying in Ireland, Irish official says (kyivindependent.com)
How a group of Irish fishermen forced the Russian Navy into a U-turn | CNN
Irish Far-right Hate and Extremist Groups identified in report (irishcentral.com)
2024 Ireland Military Strength (globalfirepower.com)
Ireland | United Nations Peacekeeping
Nashville Man Arrested in Alleged North Korea Weapons Scheme
Matthew Isaac Knoot (38) of Nashville, TN, was arrested for his efforts to generate revenue for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK or North Korea) illicit weapons program, which includes weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The defendant used a “Laptop Farm” to deceive companies into thinking they had hired a US-located worker.
Knoot participated in a scheme to obtain remote employment with US and UK companies for foreign information technology (IT) workers, who were actually North Korean actors. Knoot allegedly assisted them in using a stolen identity to pose as a US citizen; hosted company laptops at his residences; downloaded and installed software without authorization on such laptops to facilitate access and perpetuate the deception; and conspired to launder payments for the remote IT work, including to accounts tied to North Korean and Chinese actors.
Such IT workers can bring in as much as $300,000 a year while generating hundreds of millions of dollars annually for the North Korean Defense Ministry and others involved in illicit weapons development schemes. If convicted, Knoot faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, including a mandatory minimum of two years in prison on the aggravated identity theft count.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source:
Four Wisconsin Hotel Workers Charged with Murder After Pinning Man Down who Pleaded or his Life
Warning: Some viewers may find the video disturbing.
In a case eerily similar to when former police officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd on 25 May 2020, four men have been charged with killing D’Vontaye Mitchell, an unarmed black man, who pleaded for his life before dying. Four employees working at a Hyatt Regency Hotel in Milwaukee, WI are facing felony murder after pinning a man down to the floor as he repeatedly pleaded for help. Arrest warrants were issued for the hotel security guard Todd Erickson, front desk worker Devin Johnson-Carson, bellhop Herbert Williamson and security guard Brandon Turner. Surveillance footage from 30 Jun 2024 shows D’Vontaye Mitchell desperately running into the lobby’s hotel and then into a gift shop before entering the women’s restroom.
Turner, who was off duty at the time, pulls Mitchell into the lobby by his shirt, and the two begin to scuffle when Turner punches him six times, knocking him to the floor. Mitchell can be seen on video as he’s dragged and held down on his stomach for eight or nine minutes before police and emergency responders arrived, according to the Associated Press. One employee told investigators that Mitchell was struggling to breathe and was repeatedly pleading for help.
These four individuals allegedly took away someone’s life and most likely threw away their own lives, and for what? Protecting the Hyatt Regency Hotel? Each face a maximum of 15 years and 9 months in prison if convicted. Black men already have a 2.5x more chance of being killed by a police officer in the US, now men of color must worry about uncontrollably angry white hotel workers.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Sources:
d41586-020-01846-z.pdf (nature.com)
First cases of Oropouche detected in Europe after two deaths in Brazil
The first cases of the Oropouche Virus have been detected in Europe, days after two women died in Brazil after contracting the virus that is spreading rapidly in Latin America. Two people who had recently travelled to Cuba reported to hospitals with symptoms of Oropouche disease on their return to Italy, the Lancet reported. The first patient, a 26-year-old woman, suffered fever and diarrhea after returning to Verona on 26 May from a two-week trip to Cuba’s Ciego de Ávila province. The second traveler, believed to be a 45-year-old man, who travelled to Havana and Santiago de Cuba in early June, quickly developed symptoms before seeking medical help in Fori, northern Italy, on 7 June.
Both travelers made a full recovery.
This incident is the first time an Oropouche infection has been diagnosed outside of Latin America. The virus, which is spread by infected midges and mosquitoes, has already been linked with stillbirths and birth defects, raising fears of a repeat of the Zika virus outbreak that swept the continent beginning in 2015. Brazil has recorded 7,284 cases of Oropouche this year, up from 832 in 2023. Researchers report that climate change and the increase in the movement of human populations risk making viruses once confined to the tropical belt endemic in higher latitudes. To date, there is no evidence of human-to-human OROV transmission and there are no vaccines to prevent or medicines to treat Oropouche. The best way for humans to protect themselves from Oropouche is to prevent bug bites when traveling to Cuba or other tropical areas.
Sources:
First cases of Oropouche detected in Europe after two deaths in Brazil (msn.com)
Coriolanus 
