20th Busload Of Illegal Immigrants Arrives In Downtown Los Angeles

 Via The Epoch Times,

Yet another bus carrying illegal immigrants arrived in downtown Los Angeles Sept. 30, marking the 20th such arrival since June.

"One bus with migrants on board from Texas arrived around 1:45 p.m. today at Union Station," read a statement from Mayor Karen Bass's office.

"This is the 20th bus that has arrived. The city has continued to work with city departments, the county, and a coalition of nonprofit organizations, in addition to our faith partners, to execute a plan set in place earlier this year. As we have before, when we became aware of the bus yesterday, we activated our plan."

When three busloads with 109 illegal immigrants arrived Friday, Ms. Bass noted that "Governor [Greg] Abbott continues to put vulnerable lives in jeopardy with limited food and water on multi-day bus journeys to Los Angeles."

On X, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) confirmed the arrival of 27 asylum-seekers Saturday with no children. It did not specify from which nations they had come.

While the collective expected 109 illegal immigrants to arrive Friday, it only assisted 65, citing that some of them may have been picked up by family members or sponsors, or some left immediately upon their arrival at Union Station.

Of the 65 illegal immigrants, 16 were children and there were 35 family-units, meaning migrants who traveled with a spouse, partner, a child or children. Additionally, 36 were female and 29 were male.

According to the CHIRLA, which is a member of the L.A. Welcomes Collective, a network of nonprofit, faith groups, and city and county services that respond to the arrival of migrant buses, a third of all illegal immigrants arriving in Los Angeles by bus have been children.

"When migrants arrive in California—more than 434,000 have arrived in California since 2019—we receive them, integrate them into society, and they in turn contribute positively to our way of life. The Golden State is an immigrant state and that will not change," CHIRLA wrote on X.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass speaks onstage during EMILYs List's 2023 Pre-Oscars Breakfast at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif., on March 7, 2023. (Araya Doheny/Getty Images for EMILYs List)

The Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice, another member of the collective, wrote on X they learned of two of Friday's buses early Friday morning. The lack of information resulted in "stretching our resources for greeting people with dignity and respect, helping them reunite with family and connect with sponsors," according to CLUE Justice.

"It is abhorrent and cruel of Gov. Abbott to send human beings who are tired, hungry and yearning for a safe haven on a 30-hour bus ride without regard for their care, journey or destination," CHIRLA wrote on X.

"It is clear he is trying to disrupt our efforts, but we will persevere."

Jorge-Mario Cabrera, director of communications for CHIRLA, told City News Service since June a third, 35 percent of illegal immigrants arriving on buses from Texas are children, which is one of many reasons the collective condemns Mr. Abbot's actions.

Mr. Cabrera also noted some "folks [illegal immigrants] told us that L.A. was not their destination. They were just told to get on that bus." Many had not eaten in three days, he added.

The collective usually gets tips hours ahead from volunteers, organizations or from good Samaritans about the arrival of a bus. The route of buses from Brownsville are easier to predict, Mr. Cabrera said, but when they are sent from different cities like Del Rio, it's "difficult to guess when they'll arrive."

Migrants who have crossed into the U.S. from Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Aug. 25, 2023, enter a Border Patrol vehicle to be taken to a processing facility. (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images)

Illegal immigrants received a medical check up, and no one was in need of serious medical attention. Mr. Cabrera reiterated the collective will support them with basic needs as they are met by their family or sponsors.

Mr. Cabrera said he hopes the buses will slow down and stop altogether because Gov. Abbott is using illegal immigrants as "political pawns" without regard to their health. But he knows that is less than likely as the political season takes shape.

Texas Gov. Abbott has been arranging the trips under Operation Lone Star (OLS), saying Texas's border region is "overwhelmed" by immigrants crossing the Mexican border. OLS is a joint operation between the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Military Department along the southern border between Texas and Mexico.

In a recent interview with Fox News, Mr. Abbott said "What we've seen is when Democrats have to face up to the reality of what Texas has to deal with every single day, they adopt the same approach that Texas has."

"We need the president to start enforcing the immigration laws of the United States of America, period," he added.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a news conference in Beaumont, Texas, on Oct. 17, 2022. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Ms. Bass has complained that Mr. Abbott's office does not share enough information with Los Angeles about the shipments. She told KNX that if Mr. Abbott's concerns and actions were legitimate and sincere, then "someone in the government and Texas would notify us and coordinate with us."

"We hear about the buses headed our way when they're on the way. We have no idea who's going to be on the bus, how many people it is or what condition they're going to be in when they get here," she said.

"Sometimes they haven't had any food, barely had enough water."

The Los Angeles City Council approved a motion on June 9 seeking to formally establish the city as a sanctuary city.

Last month, the council approved a motion calling for the City Attorney's Office to investigate whether crimes were committed on or before June 14, when Mr. Abbott sent 42 illegal immigrants to Los Angeles in the first of the shipments.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/20th-busload-illegal-immigrants-arrives-downtown-los-angeles

Erectile dysfunction ruining your love life? There’s one easy fix, scientists say — and it’s free

 Struggling between the sheets? Experts say sleep quality could be where the blame lies.

A recent Stanford University study uncovered a possible link between erectile dysfunction and insomnia — saying that 58% of men suffering from lack of shuteye were also struggling with repeated failure to launch.

The research was published this month in the journal European Urology Focus. The study worked with 539,109 men who were diagnosed with insomnia, 356,575 of which were treated medically.

“Men diagnosed with insomnia only were found to have a higher risk of developing ED,” the authors wrote.

Even worse, those who were treated for insomnia were also more often treated for erectile dysfunction — suggesting that insomnia treatments may exacerbate ED.

ED affects 30 million American men. The buzz-killing condition is typically associated with age, certain medications, diseases, psychological issues or being overweight or smoking.

Meanwhile, one in three adults worldwide experience insomnia, often caused by stress, medications, medical conditions or intake of caffeine, alcohol or nicotine.

Insomnia can have countless detrimental effects, including a higher risk of accidents due to slow reaction time, mental health disorders, high blood pressure or heart disease.

Experts have touted various sleep methods and foods to catch some z’s, warning against junk food, chocolate, cheese, curry and ice cream.

Meanwhile, bananas, cherries, tomatoes, walnuts and oats have been boasted by sleep gurus as slumber-promoting bites.

This month, one snooze-savvy TikToker shared his secret to shut-eye: A WWII-era military sleep tactic.

The content creator encouraged viewers to “imagine a scanner going down your entire body, starting at the very top.”

3

Getting quality shut-eye provides other health benefits as well.

Shutterstock

“Relax every muscle in your face first, including your cheeks and your tongue,” he advised. “Unclench your jaw and take slow, deep breaths.” 

https://nypost.com/2023/09/30/erectile-dysfunction-and-insomnia-could-be-connected-new-study/

A COVID Tyrant For President?

 When recently asked if he was going to run for president next year, California Gov. Gavin Newsom wouldn’t rule it out. This is no big news, since we’ve been hearing for some time that he will rescue the faltering Biden-Harris regime. But it is distressing. In addition to driving people from his state with policies that become more deranged with every passing year, Newsom was a malevolent pandemic warrior who should have been punished for his offenses. Voters deserve to know just how vicious he was – and that he remains unrepentant.

It would be hard to argue that any another state mistreated its citizens more than California. Given the opportunity of the novel coronavirus outbreak, Newsom smoothly tapped into his just-below-the-surface authoritarianism (the same urge to dictate that afflicts nearly every Democrat in the nation).

When he issued his stay-at-home command in March 2020, which the Los Angeles Times called “unprecedented” in “modern California history,” it was the first stomp of the heavy boot that Newsom would keep on Californians until February of this year. Only then did he surrender his self-granted emergency powers – five months after he vetoed a bill that would have limited the authority governors can wield during a declared crisis.

During his reign of petty tyranny, Newsom:

• “Brawled with Orange County, where residents had been enjoying their beaches in the Southern California spring weather,” even though police said beachgoers were “mostly keeping social distance” practices.
• Routinely condescended toward Californians who didn’t behave as he demanded.
• Was fittingly called an “out-of-touch elite,” a “narcissist,” “Big Daddy #thugboy,” and “The King of Sacramento.”
• Held more political prisoners during the pandemic than any other governor.
• Signed the bill that penalizes doctors who spread “misinformation or disinformation related” to COVID. It was such poor legislation that it was repealed after first being derailed in the courts.
• Considered himself a savior. He claimed his 2021 recall election was ”​​a matter of life and death” because the favorite to replace him, had he been recalled, was radio talk show host Larry Elder, who promised that if he was elected governor, he would repeal “right away” any “facemask mandates and vaccine mandates.”
• Was complicit in California students’ historic learning loss. His four children were protected, however, because they were sent to a private school that returned to in-person instruction while many public schools remained closed.
• Issued “39 executive orders, unilaterally changing 200 laws spanning most sections of the California code” – all before the end of May 2020.
• Went maskless, as did his rich friends, at a party in a three-Michelin-star Napa Valley restaurant while expecting everyone else to comply with mask rules.
• Hectored and disparaged anyone who didn’t agree with his oppressive pandemic response, which turned out to be fatally wrong.
• When confronted a few weeks ago about the harshness of his COVID restrictions while on “Meet the Press,” Newsom said that had he known then what he knows now, “I think we would’ve done everything differently.”

This has been characterized as an admission of guilt. But it sounds more like someone who’s sorry he was caught stealing, not a man repentant of his transgression – and would do the same thing again if he had the chance. Fox’s Greg Gutfeld has called Newsom “the slickest, sneakiest man on Earth,” and the governor’s “admission” only bolsters Gutfeld’s point.

Rather than be rewarded with the presidency, Newsom, like all the other COVID-itarians in the country, should be held to account for the damage he unleashed. And it should be so severe that no government official will ever again consider closing society, shutting down the economy or compelling people to wear masks.

https://issuesinsights.com/2023/09/29/a-covid-tyrant-for-president/

UK Report: Over One-Third of Children on Puberty Blockers Experienced Worsened Mental Health

 New research from the United Kingdom is showing that over a third of children placed on puberty blockers and hormone drugs suffered severe mental health deterioration afterward.

A 2011 study conducted at the Tavistock Gender Identity Development Service clinic for children reported that children who were put on puberty blockers suffered no adverse mental health effects. However, new analysis conducted by Susan McPherson, a professor of psychology and sociology at the University of Essex, and retired social scientist David Freedman found that the majority of children put on puberty blockers and hormone drugs experienced erratic and fluctuating mental health, including over a third whose mental health “reliably deteriorated.”

The original study, conducted on 44 children between the ages of 12 and 15, was reportedly based on group averages, while the new analysis relied on individual results, which McPherson and Freedman explained “allows us to look at how a treatment is performing in terms of the percentage of patients improving, deteriorating, and showing clinically significant change. … It is possible, using this approach, to look at patterns, such as who is benefitting and who is not.”

Last year, Britain’s National Health Service opted to close down the Tavistock Gender Identity Develop clinic after a government report found that the staff rushed and even pressured minors into taking puberty blockers and hormone drugs with almost no psychological or medical oversight.

A reported 96% of child patients were placed on puberty blockers by Tavistock staffers, and concerns were raised over a tendentious focus on “gender dysphoria,” instead of considering other psychological factors in recommending drugs or surgeries for minors, which were summarily dismissed.

In fact, the situation was so concerning that Dr. Hilary Cass, the pediatrician tasked by the government with investigating the claims against Tavistock, offered her recommendation to shut down the clinic several months early, saying she had enough information already to justify closing Tavistock.

Cass particularly stressed concerns she had over the use of puberty blockers and other hormone drugs, which the Tavistock clinic had been prescribing to children as young as 10 years old, many of whom were already on the autism spectrum or suffering various mental health issues like depression or eating disorders.

In her interim report to the NHS, Cass noted, “There is lack of consensus and open discussion about the nature of gender dysphoria and therefore about the appropriate clinical response.” She added, “There has not been routine and consistent data collection, which means it is not possible to accurately track the outcomes and pathways that children and young people take through the service.”

Over the years, numerous whistleblowers—former staff governor Dr. David Bell, consultants and nurses like Marcus and Sue Evans, child safeguarding officer Sonia Appleby, and countless former patients who now, as adults, regret being put on puberty blockers and hormone drugs—have sounded the alarm over the Tavistock clinic’s practices. Most have pointed out that children and their parents were often denied informed consent as staffers rushed children onto puberty blockers after only three or four meetings.

Some whistleblowers even explained that topics like “sexual orientation” were effectively off-limits and that a transgender identity and a battery of hormone drugs were the only options explored by clinicians. Others pointed out that the drastic rise in children going through Tavistock (from about 250 “patients” in 2011 to over 5,000 in 2021) and linked it to the growing puberty blocker and hormone drug industry.

The findings of the new analysis of the Tavistock study are in line with research conducted and published by Family Research Council. Jennifer Bauwens, director of Family Research Council’s Center for Family Studies, explained earlier this year:

At one time, gender dysphoria was considered a mental disorder, but now, due to the increasing prevalence of a worldview shaped by gender identity ideology, it has morphed into a human rights issue. The ideology borrows from the mental health aspects of gender dysphoria in order to justify medical ‘intervention.’

She continued, “Advocates of gender-affirming care insist it is both lifesaving and evidence-based health care for those who identify as transgender. But the research used to make such a claim is full of methodological errors and can be easily disputed as a research body that is incomplete.” Notably, the original Tavistock study from 2011 focused on group studies instead of on individual situations and results.

Bauwens added, “Not only are the currently published studies problematic, but there is a lack of ongoing and long-term follow-up reports that address the impact of cross-sex hormones and surgeries.”

In June, the NHS banned the use of puberty blockers and hormone drugs on minors, following a growing swath of European medical experts who have backed off gender-transition procedures for children. France, Sweden, Finland, and Norway have also put restrictions on the use of puberty blockers and hormone drugs on children. The U.S. still hasn’t.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/09/25/uk-report-over-one-third-of-children-on-puberty-blockers-experienced-worsened-mental-health/

Ukraine Ready to Load Five Grain Ships Despite Russian Threats

 Ukraine said five ships are heading to its Black Sea ports for loading, while three others have sailed with cargoes, as Kyiv seeks to overcome Russia’s blockade of its commodity exports that started two months ago when Moscow pulled out of a key grain deal.

US lawmakers omitted further aid to Ukraine in a measure passed Saturday in a successful last-ditch effort to avoid a federal government shutdown, signaling that US support for funding Kyiv’s fight against the Russian invasion is getting harder. In Slovakia, Robert Fico, a former prime minister who’s called for an end to military funding for Ukraine and derided EU sanctions against Russia, won Saturday’s election in a potential blow to Western unity. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell was in Kyiv Sunday for a meeting with Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s recently-appointed defense minister, after spending Saturday in Odesa.

Explosions were heard around the southern Russian city of Sochi and flights disrupted in the area, according to media reports, after a possible drone strike. Russia launched about 30 Shahed drones at Ukraine overnight, with 16 intercepted, Kyiv’s air force said. Kremlin drones struck industrial facilities, including grain storage, in Uman in the central Cherkasy region. Civilian infrastructure was also hit in Kryvyi Rih.

https://news.yahoo.com/ukraine-recap-us-aid-kyiv-073851999.html

Sunak Backtracks After UK Defense Chief Wants To Send British Troops To Ukraine

 British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was forced to clarify the UK's stance on sending troops to Ukraine, after newly appointed Defense Secretary Grant Shapps unveiled ongoing discussions about expanding the UK-led training program for Ukrainian troops, and potentially sending British instructors back into the country, while offering Kiev unspecified naval support in the Black Sea.

After a visit to the Salisbury Plain training ground on Friday, Shapps told The Telegraph that “I was talking today about eventually getting the training brought closer and actually into Ukraine as well.”

During his trip to Kiev earlier this week, the new defense chief, who took his post after a government reshuffle a month ago, apparently saw an “opportunity” to bring more things “in country.” Shapps explained he meant “not just training,” but also weapons manufacturing, and he praised the British arms giant BAE Systems for its plans to localize in Ukraine.

“I’m keen to see other British companies do their bit as well by doing the same thing. So I think there will be a move to get more training and production in the country,” he added.

In his discussions with the Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, Shapps also reportedly said that Britain’s Navy could play a role in “defending commercial vessels” in the Black Sea, according to The Telegraph.

“Britain is a naval nation so we can help and we can advise, particularly since the water is international water,” he said, without elaborating what kind of help he offered Zelensky.

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky meets UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, September 28, 2023

It didn't take long for two things to happen: i) Russia condemning the proposal and warning it would accelerate WW3, and ii) the UK backtracking.

On Sunday, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev who currently serves as the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, suggested that British soldiers training Ukrainian troops in Ukraine would be legitimate targets for Russian forces, as would German factories producing Taurus missiles should they supply Kyiv. Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, and has become one of the most hawkish and anti-Western figures in Russian politics, said such steps by the West were bringing World War Three closer.

In a post on Telegram, Medvedev first slammed Shapps's proposal to deploy military instructors to Ukraine, in addition to training Ukrainian armed forces in Britain or other Western countries as at present.

"(This will) turn their instructors into a legitimate target for our armed forces," Medvedev wrote on Telegram. "Understanding perfectly well that they will be ruthlessly destroyed. And not as mercenaries, but namely as British NATO specialists."

Medvedev then turned his focus to Germany, vilifying those who want Berlin to supply Ukraine with Taurus cruise missiles that could strike Russian territory and try to limit Moscow's supply to its army.

"They say this is in accordance with international law. Well, in that case, strikes on German factories where these missiles are made would also be in full compliance with international law," Medvedev said.

"These morons are actively pushing us towards World War Three," Medvedev said.

Realizing that he probably does not want his government to end in a mushroom cloud, British PM Rishi Sunak quickly backtracked and during a visit to Burnley on Sunday, said he wanted to make the situation “absolutely clear,” explaining that Shapps did not mean British soldiers would be deployed in Ukraine during the conflict with Russia, claiming there was “some misreporting” of comments by Defense Secretary Shapps, who floated the idea; he did however say that the UK has been training Ukrainian soldiers on British soil for “for a long time."

According to the PM, the defense secretary actually meant that “it might well be possible one day in the future for us to do some of that training in Ukraine.”

“But that’s something for the long term, not the here and now, there are no British soldiers that will be sent to fight in the current conflict. That’s not what’s happening,” he insisted.

London continues to provide military training to the Ukrainians, but it’s “doing that here in the UK,” Sunak assured.

US Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also voiced alarm over Britain’s apparent plans to send troops to Ukraine, writing on X (formerly Twitter): “They’re going to start World War III” and that “the US cannot participate” in such a deployment, stressing: “No American troops” in Ukraine.

Since the start of its military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, Moscow has repeatedly argued that the provision of arms, intelligence-sharing and training of Kiev’s troops already means that Western nations have de facto become parties to the conflict.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/these-morons-are-pushing-us-towards-ww3-sunak-backtracks-after-uk-defense-chief-wants-send

Over 277,000 'Vaccinated' COVID-19 Cases Hidden By CDC In 2021: Newly Obtained Files Show

  by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,

More than 277,000 COVID-19 cases among people who received COVID-19 vaccines were reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2021 but not disclosed to the public, newly obtained files show.

Some 144,349 cases among partially vaccinated people were reported by 32 jurisdictions to the CDC across three months in 2021, according to some of the files, which were acquired by The Epoch Times through the Freedom of Information Act.

Partially vaccinated has been defined by the CDC as a person who received at least one dose of a vaccine. People were described as fully vaccinated if at least 14 days had elapsed since they completed a primary series.

The Moderna and Pfizer primary series consisted of two doses while Johnson & Johnson's consisted of one dose.

The cases were recorded in California, Maryland, New York, Texas, and 28 other jurisdictions in April, May, and June 2021 and reported to the CDC.

The CDC never disclosed the numbers to the public.

"These data on partially vaccinated persons were not reported publicly but rather, were collected to ensure that that they were being appropriately excluded from the numbers of vaccine breakthrough cases as described as a best practice on the CDC website," staffers at the CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases told The Epoch Times in a letter.

On a webpage advising state and local officials on how to analyze patterns of COVID-19 by vaccination status, the CDC recommends excluding people who only received one Moderna or Pfizer dose or analyzing them separately.

The exclusion is recommended "because only people that have received all of the recommended primary series doses and have had the required duration of time to form a protective immunological response after vaccination (14 days, per the definition) would be expected to receive the full benefit of the COVID-19 vaccination," the CDC said. "In general, the immunological response to a primary vaccination series usually takes 2–4 weeks. Only partial protection is provided to partially vaccinated persons."

Stopped Reporting

The CDC stopped reporting post-vaccination infections among the fully vaccinated, or breakthrough cases, in May 2021, after disclosing that 10,262 breakthrough infections were reported to the agency by 46 jurisdictions through April 30, 2021.

The CDC said that 995 of the cases resulted in hospitalization and 160 resulted in death.

The CDC said it shifted to only reporting breakthrough cases that resulted in hospitalization or death "to help maximize the quality of the data collected on cases of greatest clinical and public health importance."

It's not clear how many infections in the partially vaccinated that the CDC did not disclose before led to hospitalization or death.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta, Ga., on Aug. 25, 2023. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)

Changed Definition

The CDC initially defined a breakthrough case as people who tested positive seven or more days after completing a primary series but changed the definition to testing positive at least 14 days after completion of a primary series after emailing about "vaccine failure," documents obtained by The Epoch Times showed.

"CDC made the change to the definition of a breakthrough infection time period due to the most current data that showed that the 14-day period was required for an effective antibody response to the vaccines," a CDC spokesman told The Epoch Times recently via email.

The CDC's National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases falsely said in the new letter that it never changed the definition.

"Since COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough surveillance began (January 2021), the definition of a breakthrough infection has been the same," the center claimed.

The CDC has not sent a correction as of yet. It has made other false claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, some of which remain uncorrected.

The CDC also said that some of the partially vaccinated numbers were reported on one of its webpages, but a review of archived versions of that page did not show that to be the case. The page, which has been taken down, said that cases among the partially vaccinated were excluded.

Hid Other Cases

Another 133,000 post-vaccination cases occurred among Medicare beneficiaries through September 2021, according to Humetrix, a contractor that analyzed the data. The case count excluded partially vaccinated people.

Humetrix provided the data to the CDC in August 2021, according to other documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.

The CDC spoke in meetings with the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the CDC's panel of vaccine advisers, and the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, which advises the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, after receiving that data but did not present it to either one.

The meetings resulted in the approval of Pfizer's vaccine and the authorization of a Pfizer booster. The CDC then recommended both for wide swaths of the U.S. population.

The CDC declined to comment on withholding the Humetrix data.

https://www.zerohedge.com/covid-19/over-277000-vaccinated-covid-19-cases-hidden-cdc-2021-newly-obtained-files-show