Episode 5 - Strausbourg Attack, Technology bites and Romance Scams

Pandemonium in the streets of Strausbourg, is it part of a bigger threat?  You be it is!

 

and Oops! Technology reveals secret russian bases!

 

And scammers get so darn creative in finding ways to commit crimes online.

 

I'm Chuck Holton, and You're watching the Hot Zone.

 

[Intro]

 

Hi folks, Welcome to the Hot Zone.  Christmas markets are a centuries-old tradition that take place this time of year across the continent of Europe.  But there's a new tradition forming there, apparently.  Attacking those christmas markets.  We don't have all the details about tuesday's bloody shooting in Strausbourg, France as I record this, but a look at the other attacks on other markets in the region and even in Australia show a pattern developing that is really  a symptom of the changing demographics of Europe brought on by massive waves of third-world migration.  

 

Earlier this year I was in Berlin, and while we were there we visited the Kaiser Wilhelm church, the site of another bloody terror attack in 2016.

 

[Berlin christmas market stand up] (:45 seconds)

 

A new issue of a magazine published online by ISIS called Dabiq which called for just the kind of attacks we saw tuesday when a gunman opened fire on the peaceful shoppers in Strausbourg.  It turns out the perpetrator the suspect had 27 criminal convictions in France, Germany and Switzerland.  He was a known bad actor, who was apparently "radicalized" in prison.  As usual, the local news outlets are bending over backwards to keep from saying anything at all about radical islam, but the likelihood of a mass casualty event being linked to Islam anywhere in the world is somewhere north of ninety percent.  

 

In any case, ISIS supporters are rejoicing at this latest attack on Christmas.  The same magazine has been calling for attacks on Christian sites for some time, and it's pretty clear there are people reading this publication and taking it to heart.  I talked about this in February when we were in Dresden.

 

[Frauenkirche package] https://vimeo.com/305634479/945e906f89 (1:05)

 

So this is definitely a part of a larger trend - and it's not just an attack on tradition.  It's an attack on Christianity that is as old as Islam.  It bears noting that this most recent issue of Dabiq also called for sniper attacks in New York City on New Year's Eve.

 

This is the reality of the world we live in.  If you want to be safe, you first have to accept the reality of the situation you live in.  These days bollards, barriers and heightened security are becoming a fact of life for people across the globe.  But it's a mistake to think that you can leave your own safety in the hands of someone else.  We all need to learn to be more aware and to take common sense measures to reduce our personal risk wherever we go.  

 

Politicians in France are attempting to soothe the fears of the French people by spouting all the usual bromides.  The president of the European Parlaiment, which is based in Strausbourg, tweeted out that they would not be intimidated by this attack, even as the Parlaiment was placed on lockdown.  For all the assertions that europeans will not change their culture or way of life because of the constant threat of more attacks, in reality they are changing their behavior.  Europeans are getting fed up with the platitudes and are starting to vote for commonsense immigration reform.

 

You probably didn't hear there were two other Christmas market attacks planned by migrants linked to ISIS that were thwarted last week in Germany.  Strange how much the media overlooks when it cuts against the liberal narrative.

 

I should also point out that France has every "commonsense gun law" already in place that the left would like to see in the US.  And yet these attacks keep happening.  The gunman in the strasbourg attack had a grenade.  Which are pretty much against the law for civilians to possess everywhere on earth.  

 

Ideology is stronger than law.  Don't get me wrong, we need laws, but we also need to be careful to avoid the mindset that the best way to make people safer is to make them more vulnerable.  That's my opinion.

 

Now, let's move on.  You might have missed this report yesterday out of Russia. The russian version of google maps made a blunder that exposed sensitive and even secret russian military sites around the world.  Ironically, it happened because they were trying to hide those very sites by blurring them out.  But by blurring them they showed where they are, what size they are, etcetera.  Don't you hate it when that happens?  Kind of reminds me of the unofficial motto we had in the Rangers.  If it ain't broke, fix it till it is!

 

This isn't the first time technology like this has given away much more than it was intended to.  The Pentagon got in hot water earlier this year when it came out that American were compromising US national security by wearing fitbits.  Check this out.

 

[strava labs piece] https://vimeo.com/253278550/43429751cb (3:28)

 

I think this is a great example of how technology is progressing faster than our ability to manage it.  We often have no idea how the next exciting advance will affect our lives and our security.  So many of us live in a kind of bubble - I mean you probably don't know many terrorists or scammers personally, so your normalcy bias sort of convinces you they don't really exist.  But they are out there.  And today's technology is giving them access to you in ways we are only beginning to understand.  

 

I've seen this personally as criminals in Africa have made a habit of stealing my photos off the internet and using them to scam women.  Watch.

 

[Romance Scams Package] https://vimeo.com/298754229

 

It's always been so hard for me to grasp that there are people who think nothing of stealing from or victimizing others.  I just didn't grow up that way.  Neither did most of you.  But if there's anything I've learned in my travels it's that in the US our culture is based on the foundational principle of the Golden Rule you probably learned in Sunday school.  Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you.  America is based on that judeo-Christian principle.  But it's a mistake to think the rest of the world works this way.  Even here in central America, where most people are christian, this idea of treating others the way you would like to be treated isn't as much a part of their culture.  Instead, many cultures are just the opposite - do unto others before they do unto you.  Take from him before he takes from you.  Don't put others first - look out for number one.

 

When it comes to our personal security both here at home and when we travel abroad, we need to keep a clear understanding that there are bad people out there who would love nothing more than to do bad things to you and yours.  That doesn't mean we live in fear.  It means we live prepared and aware to safeguard those we love.  And it also gives us a responsibility to change the world one little interaction at a time as we love the people we meet and show them the great value of living a life based on love. 

 

That's all for today's podcast.  There was so much more I wanted to get to, but we'll save that for another day.  In the meantime, I hope you are taking some time to cherish the important things in life this Christmas season.  Thanks for being with us.  

 

Would you consider buying me a cup of coffee once a month to support this podcast.  Check out our patreon site to subscribe so we can bring you more great content.  also, it helps us a lot if you could take a second and like our facebook page, review us on itunes or podbean or wherever.  We appreciate it.

 

I'm Chuck Holton, and you're in the Hot Zone.

 

ISIS magazine calls for attacks