Why Greenland? "China's Desire to Dominate Global Waterways Is a Threat to Sovereign Nations"

Over at Fox News, Eric Mack has an interview with US Ambassador to the UK Warren Stephens [stating that] China's desire to dominate global waterways is a threat to sovereign nations. (Nie Hau to Sarah for the Instalink.)

China is using control over global seas as a tool of "political coercion," the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom warned, and President Donald Trump is restating his interest in Greenland for that very same reason.

China is seeking to turn ports, ships and supply chains into instruments of geopolitical leverage, U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. Warren Stephens warned in a statement to the International Maritime Organization Council (IMO).

"I spoke about a challenge that we cannot afford to ignore: China's systematic effort to use maritime power as an instrument of political coercion," Stephens wrote in a Truth Social post after the speech. 

"Beijing has pursued an aggressive strategy of acquiring port concessions and infrastructure around the world — not simply for commercial gain, but to extend its strategic reach and weaponize that access against sovereign nations."

The U.S. is "not a passive observer of maritime affairs," Stephens told the IMO, calling America a "cornerstone of the global maritime economy." 

  … The warning comes as Trump continued peacemaking efforts in the Strait of Hormuz and pressing Demark and NATO for U.S. control over Greenland due to Chinese and Russian threats to free navigation in the Arctic.

"Denmark doesn't spend money to really help Greenland, but it's an important part for the United States. And it's surrounded by China ships and Russian ships," Trump said at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.

For global security, Greenland "should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark," Trump added.

 … Greenland’s position between the Arctic and North Atlantic has made it a key piece of U.S. security planning.

Did you know? Back in February, I wrote a major article in Danish simply presenting the point of view of Donald Trump regarding the reasons for trying to overtake Greenland, and it was rejected by all parties, even the pro-rightist websites and even the (rare) pro-Trump websites, the equivalents of, say, Fox News and Instapundit.

FYI, the major reasons for President Trump's designs on Greenland are discussed in these articles:

• Bombshell Revelation! Lexington Institute Explains the Exact Event Which Caused Trump 45 to Want to Acquire Greenland; ADDENDUM: Here Is What Is Wrong with Greenland's Status Quo

• NOT SO DELUSIONAL — The Donroe Doctrine and Beijing's "Polar Silk Road": Last Month, a Report by None Other than Danish Intelligence Itself Warned About the Russian and Chinese Threat to Greenland and the Arctic

Back to Fox News' Eric Mack:

 … Stephens said China’s response to the Panama ruling was "swift and punishing," accusing Beijing of taking action against Panama-flagged vessels in a move the U.S. characterized as an attempt to undermine Panama’s sovereignty and disrupt global supply chains.

"What happened to Panama is a warning to every nation in this room," Stephens said.

"When a country allows a foreign power or its proxies to control its ports, it does not simply accept a commercial arrangement," he added. "It accepts a vulnerability."

Stephens urged IMO member states to closely scrutinize deals allowing foreign entities, especially state-linked enterprises, to operate critical port infrastructure.

"Transparency, the rule of law and genuine sovereignty are not obstacles to commerce," Stephens said. "They are its foundation."

 … "The pattern is consistent: China uses its maritime and economic power to coerce, to intimidate and to punish those who assert their sovereign rights," Stephens said. 

Trump envoy warns China's power move at sea is threat 'we cannot afford to ignore' 

 

Iran: "What Saves Us and the Free World Is the Ego of Donald Trump"

"The United States and the free world have all befitted from the continuation of the Iran war," says Philippe Karsenty to a crowd of leftist guests and hosts on BFMTV (video). "The objective remains régime change. The world will not be free until the Tehran régime has been obliterated." 

As the ceasefire is over, he adds that that "What is saving us and the Free World is the ego of Donald Trump." (Merci à Sarah pour l'Instalien.)

Moreover, the spokesman for le Comité Trump France (who appears at 2:55, 9:47-12:12, 14:36-15:56, and 17:00-17:51) warned against believing the mid-terms will be won by the Democrats as he mentions the New York town hall as an example showing how radical the Democrat Party has become. While he thinks that, consequently, Trump will win the mid-terms in November, he believes that, conversely, Benjamin Netanyahu will lose in Israel that same month.

BFM TV 8 juillet 2026 - Trump frappe l'Iran, le cessez le feu est terminé

 

 

Ray-Ban Semiology: France's "Top-Gunned" President and the Mystique Granted by His Dark Aviator Shades

It turns out that France's president has taken to wear aviator glasses. As the Élysée Palace explains that one of Emmanuel Macron's eyes is suffering from an unspecified illness or trauma, Élodie Mielczareck thinks that there is more to the story, however.

Indeed, his shades have become a political sign, the semiology expert explains to Madame Figaro's Axelle Dusart in Pourquoi Emmanuel Macron porte-t-il des lunettes aviateur ?

Their shape is far from insignificant: their large, wraparound lenses cover the entire field of vision, including peripheral vision. Originally, they were a piece of technical equipment designed to protect US military pilots from UV rays at high altitudes—hence the name Ray-Ban, literally meaning "banish sun rays."

I cannot deny how stupid I felt since I have considered ray-bans to be such a hallowed name in luxury items that it never dawned on me that the name simply refers to their original practical intent. (Could it be that I am maybe not alone and that many readers, such as Sébastien Laye, feel the same way?)

But very quickly, function gives way to symbolism. Aviator sunglasses no longer merely protect against the sun; they become a status symbol. They inherit the entire mystique of the fighter pilot: courage, composure, technical mastery, and authority. 

 … The object invokes a heroic masculinity—one now made accessible to everyone, without effort or risk. For the price of a pair of glasses, one buys a touch of the fighter pilot’s aura: the cool composure, the technical mastery, and the gaze that scans the horizon while remaining unreadable in return.

Moreover, says Elodie Mielczareck — who has written before about another president, the American one (A Frenchwoman's Detective Work on Donald Trump and His Choice of Language, Donald Trump the Punchline President) as well as about Elon Musk (Throughout History, Elon Musk's Alleged Nazi-Fascist Salute Has Meant Many Different Things) and the yellow jacket movement (Sémiologie du gilet jaune : Entre mots, symboles et imaginaires) — has this to add about France's "Top Gunned president" and his glasses' "physiological barrier": 

Regarding these particular glasses, there is a crucial aspect to mention: the mirrored lens creates an asymmetry in the gaze. The wearer of Aviator-style glasses sees without being seen—they look out, yet their eyes remain hidden from the other person. It is an object that generates power by concealing part of the face: one gains access not to the individual, but only to their role—to the function signified by the object itself. The "Top Gun" glasses do more than shield the eyes from the sun; they conceal the subject behind a persona—specifically, that of the aerial hero—which bears no relation to the original optical instrument.

NYT: How to Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday in the Country It Broke Up With

 … remnants of the American Revolution can be found all over London, including Benjamin Franklin’s living room and an original 1776 print of the Declaration of Independence

writes Claire Moses from 21st century London in a historical tourism piece for the New York Times, with Photographs by Jeremie Souteyraton, on "the topic of the American Revolution — or, as it is often called on the other side of the ocean, the U.S. War of Independence": How to Celebrate America’s 250th Birthday in the Country It Broke Up With. (Stateside, Anna Diamond provides A Summer Travel Checklist for America’s 250th Birthday.)

Here’s how you can follow the footsteps of some of America’s notable founders and celebrate the country’s 250th birthday this summer in London. …

Step into Benjamin Franklin’s home.

It was in London that Benjamin Franklin, one of America’s most famous founders, turned into a revolutionary. From 1757 to 1775, he lived in a terraced Georgian house at 36 Craven Street, near Trafalgar Square.

He came to London as an unofficial diplomat to resolve a tax issue between the provincial government and the Penn family, who governed Pennsylvania, but soon turned into a popular figure around town.

“He really valued being at the heart of the British Empire,” said Megan King, a historian at Benjamin Franklin House, now a museum. “Franklin came as a royalist and left a revolutionary.”

 … If you find yourself in London around the Fourth of July, there are multiple ways to celebrate America’s 250th birthday. You can listen to a Great American Songbook concert in a church in southeast London, learn about the science of fireworks by an American chemist or hear historians at the British Library discuss how the world made the American Revolution. And for an even bigger party: London’s annual Pride Parade in Central London falls on July 4 this year. 

Understand a divided city.

The war was a divisive issue in 18th-century London, according to Jerry White, a British historian. Merchants wanted to “avoid the war at all cost,” he said.

“It was a very disruptive moment for London’s trade,” he added. “And London was a commercial city.”

 … Among other notable opponents of the war was William Pitt, the Elder, a statesman who served as prime minister. He was so staunchly against the war that he proposed an act in the House of Lords in 1775 that was supposed to reconcile Britain and the colonies. He was convinced that a British military victory in America was impossible. (Fun fact: Pittsburgh is named after him.) 

The parlor in the house near Trafalgar Square where Benjamin Franklin lived 
from 1757 to 1775. He was better known as a scientist than as a diplomat in London.

Magnifique: Man Climbs Eiffel Tower to Hang an American Flag from the Iconic Paris Monument

While the Eiffel Tower had celebrated the 250 years of the USA in the dusk of the evening of July 3, writes Le Figaro with the AFP, one intrepid French(?)man decided to go a step further the following day, climb la Dame de Fer (the Iron Lady) during the afternoon from the second floor to the third, and hang the Stars and Stripes on the Fourth of July from the top of the Paris Monument (merci à Hervé, a Frenchman who emigrated to the Lone Star state; and merci also to Sarah, who emigrated to the Far West from Portugal).

The man — who was was dressed all in blue, as can be seen when a Spanish tourist named Francisco Campillo filmed the feat — was arrested upon arrival at the third floor and, indeed, the climb led in leftist Europe to, needless to say, what might be termed somewhat as an over-reaction.

The forecourt, as well as the second and third floors, were temporarily evacuated, according to the police source. The climber offered no explanation for his actions, the source reported. He was taken into custody at the 7th arrondissement police station on charges of endangering the lives of others, the source added.

In the article's comments section, the feat is applauded by just about every reader. 

Sans-dents
le 05/07/2026 08:33

Avec un drapeau palestinien ou algérien, ce grimpeur ne risquait rien.

VBO
le 05/07/2026 08:12

et si les flics arrêtaient plutôt tous les truands et pickpockets qui pourrissent le quartier de la Tour Eiffel?

Sombrero.06
le 04/07/2026 22:38

Magnifique.
Et cela a l'avantage de nous changer du bourrage de crâne des islamos gauchistes avec leurs drapeaux palestiniens, houtits, écolos, iraniens, Hamas, Hezbollah, lfi, algériens, et j'en oublie… et sans parler de ceux démodés que les gauchistes arboraient auparavant: cubains, maoïstes, trotskystes, staliniens, khmers rouges, etc…

Buena visita a la torre Eiffel, con espectáculo gratis pic.twitter.com/6vx4QF79fo

— Francisco Campillo (@_Igner_) July 4, 2026

Le grimpeur placé en garde à vue

Le parvis, ainsi que les deuxième et troisième étages ont été un temps évacués, selon la source policière. Le grimpeur n'a donné aucune explication sur les motivations de son geste, a-t-elle rapporté. Il a été placé en garde à vue pour «mise en danger de la vie d'autrui» au commissariat du 7e arrondissement de la capitale, a-t-elle ajouté.

Willing to Cross a Frozen River to Kill You: Happy Brexit 1776

 
After Sarah's memes, check out Trump's Outstanding Speech for America at 250 ("Communism is an ideology of mass theft, mass control, mass lies, and mass murder—It is the Enemy of July 4th, 1776")

And for today's Europeans…