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☆ Got an Idea for a Toy? Toymakers Want to Hear From You.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Isaac Aronow | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“I spent two very intense weeks working on it, every night, every weekend, all the time that I had,” he said. Mr. Bolt was hoping to create the design for Lego Ideas, a program the toymaker started in 2008 to solicit ideas online directly from fans. Typically, designers post their concept on the platform, and if a design gets 10,000 votes, the company considers it for production. This case was different, though: It was the first time the company had given fans a concept to work with. A panel of judges selected his set and four others for a shortlist, and in a vote fans chose his set as their favorite.

Persons: Lucas Bolt, “, ”, Bolt Organizations: & Locations: Amsterdam

☆ Kenya floods: Anger mounts as people left homeless and searching for loved ones swept away in floods
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Larry Madowo | Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Mai Mahiu, Kenya CNN —When Julia Wanjiku put her son Isaac to bed last Sunday after a day celebrating his third birthday, she didn’t realize she was also saying goodbye. She was among the survivors gathering at Ngeya Girls High School in Mai Mahiu on Tuesday. A damaged car buried in mud in an area heavily affected by torrential rains and flash floods in the village of Kamuchiri, near Mai Mahiu, on April 29. Luis Tato/AFP via Getty ImagesPeople removing mud and water from their house in Mai Mahiu, Kenya, on April 29. Rescuers carry the body of a young man recovered in the debris following flooding, in Mai Mahiu, Kenya.

Persons: Mai Mahiu, Kenya CNN —, Julia Wanjiku, Isaac, Wanjiku, — Isaac, “, ” Wanjiku, Isaac’s, Mai Mahui, It’s, Luis Tato, El, William Ruto, Kithure Kindiki, Isaac Mwaura, ” Ruto, Mark Laichena, ”, Simon Maina, Mwaura, Nyagoah Tut, James Wakibia, Joyce Kimutai, herder, Makau, “ I’m, ” Larry Madowo, Laura Paddison, CNN’s Louis Mian, Allison Chinchar, Mary Gilbert Organizations: Kenya CNN, CNN, Girls High School, Getty, Getty Images, “, Kenyan, Space Agency European Space Agency, European Space Agency, Isaac Mwaura ., Communities, United Arab Emirates, Rights Watch, Kenya Meteorological Department, Human Rights Watch, Rescuers, Imperial College London’s Grantham Institute Locations: Kenya, Mai, Kenya’s, Nairobi, Mai Mahiu, Kamuchiri, AFP, Getty Images Kenya, Garissa, Tanzania, Tana, Mathare, New York, El, Nyagoah Tut Pur, Africa, East Africa, London

☆ Kenya floods: Maasai Mara visitors stranded as death toll nears 200
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Larry Madowo | Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Staff and visitors have been left stranded and buildings submerged at Kenya’s famous Maasai Mara nature reserve, as the death toll in catastrophic flooding in the country’s southwest rose to at least 188 people. Local authorities ordered some tourist facilities in the National Reserve to close after River Talek, one of the tributaries of the Mara River, burst its banks and swept through more than a dozen riverside tourist lodges and camps. In Maasai Mara, camp owners were told to leave the affected properties and “move to higher ground further away from River Talek,” governor of Narok county Patrick Ole Ntutu said on Wednesday. Parts of Maasai Mara National Reserve were left submerged by the flooding. Authorities said they had deployed two helicopters to rescue stranded tourists and local staff around the national reserve after receiving distress calls.

Persons: Mai Mahiu, Isaac Mwaura, Susan Kihika, Mara, Patrick Ole Ntutu, Bobby Neptune, Luis Tato, Kipkech Lotiatia, Bush, James Apolloh Omenya, couldn’t, “, X, El Niño, Jagan Chapagain, ”, Nyagoah Tut Organizations: CNN — Staff, National Reserve, CNN, Mara National Reserve, Authorities, Cross, Paramilitary, ”, Youth Service, ” International Federation of Red, Red Crescent Societies, Human Rights, “ Kenyan Locations: Mara, Kenya, Nairobi, Mai, Nakuru County, ”, Narok, AFP, Talek, Kenya’s, Africa, East Africa, Tanzania, Burundi, “ Kenya, Nyagoah Tut Pur

☆ Middle East Crisis Blinken Meets With Israeli Leaders as Netanyahu Promises Assault on Rafah
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The talks have been stalled for months, and Israeli officials said Monday that they had agreed to lower their demands. Mr. Blinken is scheduled to meet Mr. Netanyahu later. Mr. Blinken and other U.S. officials say Hamas has a narrow window to take the deal since Mr. Netanyahu is pressing for the offensive in Rafah. U.S. officials say they would prefer that Israel do targeted operations against Hamas leaders and fighters in Rafah, where Israeli officials say Hamas still has four battalions. “We want to see in the coming days this agreement coming together.”When asked about Mr. Netanyahu’s statements on Rafah, Mr. Blinken said that U.S. efforts were focused on a hostage and cease-fire deal.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, Biden, Biden’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Isaac Herzog of Israel, Netanyahu, Herzog, Mr, “, ” Organizations: Israel, U.S, Hamas Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Tel Aviv, U.S, Israel, Jordan

☆ Far-right Israeli ministers urge Netanyahu not to accept ceasefire proposal
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Benjamin Brown | Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is coming under fierce pressure from far-right members of his government not to agree to the ceasefire proposal currently on the table, which could prevent an Israeli military offensive in Rafah from moving forward. Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages protest in Tel Aviv, Israel, April 27, 2024. Jack Guez/AFP/Getty ImagesFormer Israeli Prime Minister and opposition leader Yair Lapid hit back at Strook’s remarks. In the first phase, between 22 and 33 hostages are to be released over several weeks in exchange for the pause and the release of Palestinian prisoners. A woman looks at a wall of photos of hostages captured by Hamas on October 7, displayed in Tel Aviv.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Antony Blinken, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Orit Strook, Strook’s, Netanyahu mulls, Bezalel Smotrich, ”, Netanyahu, Jack Guez, Yair Lapid, “, Benny Gantz, Gantz, ” Strook, Amir Levy, Blinken, Jordan, “ We’re, ” Blinken, Isaac Herzog, wouldn’t, Herzog, Joe Biden Organizations: CNN, Israeli, Israel’s Army, Hamas, Getty Locations: Rafah, Egypt, Gaza, Israel, Tel Aviv, AFP, “, Saudi Arabia

Mai Mahiu, Kenya CNN —Eleven people and a dog were rescued from the raging flood waters in Kenya on Wednesday, the country’s Red Cross has said. The humanitarian agency described the rescue mission as “challenging” but later offered a glimmer of hope with reports that floodwaters were gradually receding. Residents in Mai Mahiu are frantically sifting through heaps of debris to recover bodies trapped by the floods. When CNN visited the town on Tuesday, corpses could be seen accumulating beneath toppled trees and layers of mud. Evacuation from flood hit areasCitizens in the worst affected areas have been ordered to leave due to fears of more rain.

Persons: Mai Mahiu, Isaac Mwaura, William Ruto, he’s, ” Ruto, Ruto, Mwaura Organizations: Kenya CNN —, Red Cross, Residents, CNN, National Youth Service Locations: Kenya, Kitengela, Kajiado County, Nairobi, Mai

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken delivered twin messages to Hamas and Israel on Wednesday, pressing Hamas to accept a cease-fire proposal while at the same time urging Israeli leaders to put off a major ground invasion into the thickly populated southern Gaza city of Rafah. On the last day of a Middle East trip, his seventh visit to the region since the war began in October, Mr. Blinken tried to turn up the pressure on Hamas. “We are determined to get a cease-fire that brings the hostages home and to get it now, and the only reason that that wouldn’t be achieved is because of Hamas,” Mr. Blinken said at the start of a meeting in Tel Aviv with Isaac Herzog, the president of Israel. “There is a proposal on the table, and as we’ve said: No delays, no excuses. The time is now.”The proposed agreement calls for the release of 33 hostages in the initial stage of a cease-fire, and would lead to the release of Palestinian prisoners being held in Israel.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, “, wouldn’t, ” Mr, Isaac Herzog, Israel, we’ve Organizations: Israel, Mr Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Tel Aviv, Israel

☆ Blinken Presses Hamas to Accept Israel’s Latest Cease-Fire Proposal
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Genevieve Glatsky | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

One of the Israeli officials said those returning to the north would be subject to no inspections or limitations, while the second said there would be nearly no restrictions, without elaborating. It was not clear whether Hamas would accept the most recent Israeli proposal, which is part of negotiations that the two sides are conducting indirectly through mediators from Egypt and Qatar. The cease-fire talks were a focus of Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken as he visited Israel on Wednesday. The Israeli offer, according to one of the Israeli officials, doesn’t include language that refers explicitly to an end to the fighting. On Monday, The New York Times reported that, as part of its proposal, Israel had reduced the number of hostages Hamas would need to release in the initial phase of a deal.

Persons: hadn’t, Antony J, Blinken, we’ve, ” Mr, Isaac Herzog, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Netanyahu, Bezalel Smotrich, Mr, doesn’t, ”, “, Aaron Boxerman Organizations: Hamas, The New York Times, Mr, Finance Locations: Israel, Gaza, Egypt, Qatar, Rafah

CNN —A Palestinian writer who has been in an Israeli prison for 20 years has won a prestigious prize for Arabic fiction for his novel “A Mask, the Color of the Sky.”Basim Khandaqji won the prize on Sunday for his book, and was awarded $50,000 and funding for an English translation. The novel, published by Lebanon’s Dar Al-Adab, “dissects a complex, bitter reality of family fragmentation, displacement, genocide, and racism,” said Nabil Suleiman, a Syrian writer who chaired the 2024 prize. A Mask, the Colour of the Sky (2023) by Palestinian novelist, Basim Khandaqji, winner of the 2024 International Prize for Arabic Fiction. Khandaqji began to write “A Mask, the Color of the Sky” in 2021. During his time in prison, Khandaqji has written poetry collections, as well as three earlier novels, according to IPAF.

Persons: Basim Khandaqji, Nur, ”, Abu, Lebanon’s Dar, “, Nabil Suleiman, Suleiman, Yousef Khandaqji, Bahr, ” “, Khandaqji Organizations: CNN Locations: Ramallah, Abu Dhabi, Syrian, Palestinian, Nablus, Khandaqji, Tel, UAE, Abu, Bab

☆ Florida’s 6-week abortion ban set to take effect this week
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A stricter abortion law is set to take effect in Florida on Wednesday — dropping the state’s 15-week ban to a six-week ban — and it will likely affect thousands of people seeking abortion care within the first month alone. In Texas, the number of abortions provided within the formal health-care system dropped by about half after a six-week abortion ban took effect in 2021, and there were thousands more births than expected in the following year. Florida will join Georgia and South Carolina with a six-week ban. The Tampa Bay Abortion Fund anticipates that at least 90% of people who call their hotline will be impacted by a six-week abortion ban and will need to seek abortion care outside of Florida. The six-week ban will only exacerbate those barriers in the cruelest fashion,” Kris Lawler, president of the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund Board said in a statement.

Persons: Court’s Dobbs, Roe, Wade, It’s, don’t, —, Virginia —, ” Isaac Maddow, “, ”, Dobbs, Amber Gavin, that’s, Gavin, ” Gavin, Dr, Sanjay Gupta, ” Kris Lawler Organizations: CNN, Guttmacher Institute, ., Florida Supreme, CNN Health, Chicago Abortion, Abortion, Board Locations: Florida, Texas, South Carolina, Georgia, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Louisiana, Florida , North Carolina, New York, Tampa, Chicago

Rescue teams are digging through the mud and debris trying to find survivors near Mai Mahiu, in Kenya’s Nakuru County, Gov. In Mai Mahiu, Kihika said a serious situation was unfolding as floodwaters swept away people and homes. Access to Mai Mahiu, 20 miles north of the capital Nairobi, had been difficult as part of the road had been cut off from recent heavy rains, Kihika said. Other video shows vast flooding around the Tana River, with large parts of the surrounding area underwater. Heavy rains in East Africa have also affected Tanzania and Burundi.

Persons: Susan Kihika, Isaac Maigua Mwaura, Mai Mahiu, Kihika, ” Kihika, Tana, Andre Kasuku, downpours, El Niño, Jagan Chapagain, Kassim Majaliwa Organizations: Kenya CNN —, Gov, CNN, Kenya Red Cross Society, of Education Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, Mai Mahiu, Kenya’s Nakuru County, Mai, Mororo, Tana River, Garissa, North Eastern Kenya, Tana, Kona, Tana River County, East Africa, Tanzania, Burundi, Tanzanian

☆ CEO says the FICO score provider isn't a monopoly: 'There are alternatives'
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Julie Coleman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

In a Friday interview with CNBC's Jim Cramer, Fair Isaac CEO Will Lansing challenged the accusation that his company has a monopoly on the industry. Fair Isaac is an analytics software and services company known for developing the FICO score. "We don't have a monopoly, there are alternatives to FICO score. "There are alternatives, and we're there because we're good, not because we have some kind of special privileges." He also pointed out that Fair Isaac faced an antitrust investigation several years ago and "came out clean."

Persons: CNBC's Jim Cramer, Isaac, Will Lansing, Lansing, Missouri Sen, Josh Hawley, Hawley Organizations: of Justice Locations: Missouri

☆ Meta’s Profits More Than Double, While Spending on A.I. Rises
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Mike Isaac | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Profit was $12.4 billion, up from $5.7 billion a year earlier. “It’s been a good start to the year,” said Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, referring to the company’s A.I. efforts and “healthy growth across our apps.”But Meta’s efforts on A.I., which require substantial computing power, come with a lofty price tag. The Silicon Valley company said it planned to raise its spending forecast for the year to $35 billion to $40 billion, up from a previous estimate of $30 billion to $37 billion. infrastructure, including data centers, chip designs and research and development costs.

Persons: “ It’s, ”, Mark Zuckerberg Organizations: Revenue, FactSet Locations: A.I

Kyiv, Ukraine CNN —As the US prepares to transfer significant military aid to Ukraine following the Senate passing funding legislation worth $61 billion, reports from eastern Ukraine continue to highlight Kyiv’s sliding fortunes on the battlefield. Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty ImagesUkrainian soldiers on the front lines have spoken of being badly outgunned by Russian forces. A Ukrainian military blogger, Bohdan Myroshnykov, wrote, “In Novobakhmutivka, the enemy made progress in the village, advancing up to 400 meters in depth. Meanwhile, around Chasiv Yar, about 40 kilometers to the north, both Ukrainian and Russian reports suggest Ukraine has succeeded in stopping Russian advances, at least for the moment. Oleksandr Ratushniak/Reuters“In the Chasiv Yar direction, the offensive of the Russian forces ‘stalled’ on the eastern outskirts,” a Russian military blogger, Wargonzo, reports, though fierce fighting continues, the site adds.

Persons: DeepState –, –, Biden, Joe Biden, Charly Triballeau, Volodymyr Zelensky, Bohdan Myroshnykov, “, DeepState, Ukraine’s Eastern Command –, Oleksandr Ratushniak, ‘, Ukraine’s DeepState, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Vladimir Putin, Chasiv Yar Organizations: Ukraine CNN —, Russian, Wednesday, Senate, Scranton Army, Getty, 100th, Ukraine’s Eastern Command, CNN, Reuters, 92nd Brigade, Nazi Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Ocheretyne, Ukrainian, Avdiivka, Israel, Taiwan, Scranton, Scranton , Pennsylvania, AFP, Russian, Russia, Novobakhmutivka, Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, ”, Ivanivske, Bakhmut, Nazi Germany

☆ At least 32 dead as flash floods sweep through half of Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Lindsay Isaac | Larry Madowo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Nairobi, Kenya CNN —At least 32 people have been killed and two are missing after flash floods swept through almost half of Kenya. Kenya has registered heavy rain since mid-March but downpours have intensified over the past week, leading to mass flooding. Simon Maina/AFP/Getty ImagesTwo major highways out of Nairobi saw heavy traffic on Wednesday after floodwaters submerged parts of them. The Kenya Urban Roads Authority partially closed four roads that were heavily affected and warned of flooding on two others. The Kenya Meteorological Department warned of “heavy to very heavy” rainfall in parts of the country in an update on Wednesday.

Persons: downpours, ”, Edwin Sifuna, Simon Maina Organizations: Kenya CNN —, Kenyan, The Kenya Red Cross Society, Getty, Kenya Urban Roads Authority, Kenya Railways, Kenya Meteorological Department Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, The, ”, Mathare, AFP

☆ NABTU: Biden scores major union backing as its leaders attack Trump
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Edward-Isaac Dovere | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Joe Biden landed a major union endorsement Wednesday from North America’s Building Trades Unions, whose leaders say the president has his infrastructure bill largely to thank for it. The backing from NABTU, which has 3 million members nationwide, is more enthusiastic than its 2020 backing of Biden. That’s raised questions about the political future of the next generation of union members. It’s “almost like the perfect leader was sent at the perfect time for working people,” NABTU President Sean McGarvey told CNN about Biden in an interview announcing the endorsement. Biden appeared at the union’s conference in Washington on Wednesday to officially get the nod – which union leaders also want to be seen as a stark rebuff of Trump, who eagerly solicited support from union members and leaders during his time in office, but, their leaders say, didn’t deliver.

Persons: CNN — Joe Biden, Biden, Donald Trump, That’s, It’s, ”, Sean McGarvey, Trump, NABTU, ” Biden, “, ” “, Joe Biden, Elizabeth Frantz, Biden’s, McGarvey, ” McGarvey, it’s, Trump’s, Sean, “ Donald Trump, ” Brent Booker, Booker, ” Booker, didn’t, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, “ Biden, he’s, Mitch Landrieu, ” Landrieu, CNN’s Michael Williams Organizations: CNN, Unions, Teamsters, Republican, Democratic, Biden, Trump, Covid, North, Washington Hilton, ’ International Union of Locations: America’s, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, NABTU, Washington, Washington ,, Chicago, ’ International Union of North America

☆ Abortion rights: State bans, Supreme Court case and Biden’s Florida dream
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The new Florida law has limited exemptions for rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother. In the electionPresident Joe Biden visited Florida to focus on abortion rights Tuesday. Referendums placing the issue of abortion rights before voters will be on the ballot in Arizona and Florida. New realityIt is the cases currently before the Supreme Court that could have the most direct effect on the new reality for pregnant American women. Cox fled Texas to obtain an abortion just before the state Supreme Court denied her access to the care under the medical exemption in Texas’ abortion law.

Persons: Roe, Wade, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, CNN’s Edward, Isaac Dovere, Donald Trump, Wade . Biden, Harris, Trump, CNN’s Tierney Sneed, “, Read, Jen Adkins, Adkins, CNN’s Meg Tirrell, John Bonifield, Julie Lyons, who’s, ” Lyons, Allie Phillips, Dobbs, Amanda Zurawski, Trump’s, Jill Biden, Kate Cox, Cox, CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez, Michael Williams, Dale Mabry, Biden, Joe Raedle, Dovere, he’s, ”, Court’s Dobbs Organizations: CNN —, Senate, Biden, CNN, Jackson, Health, Hillsborough Community, Republican, ” Locations: Florida, Arizona, Florida ., Idaho, Sneed, Portland , Oregon, Hailey, Sun Valley, New York, Tennessee, Texas, Florida , Arizona, year’s State, Tampa , Florida

☆ 'Best thing' is for everyone to stay 'puzzled' on last week's odd retaliation strike on Iran, Israeli president says
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Jake Epstein | Paul Ronzheimer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

"I think the best thing would be for everybody to stay puzzled," Herzog said during an interview with Axel Springer media outlets on Sunday. Military equipment displayed at the Army Day ceremony in front of the President of Iran and high-ranking military commanders on April 17, 2024 in Tehran, Iran. The bold strike killed several high-ranking military officials, including two generals in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. AdvertisementThe incidents of the past few weeks have dragged a decades-long shadow war between Israel and Iran into broad daylight. However, Tehran has signaled that it won't retaliate over the Isfahan strike after appearing to dissociate itself from the attack.

Persons: —, Isaac Herzog doesn't, Herzog, Axel Springer, ATTA KENARE, Antony Blinken, Iran's Organizations: Service, Business, Tehran's, United Nations, Getty Images, Experts, US, Army, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Locations: Tehran, Iranian, Isfahan, AFP, Iran, Israel, America, Syria

☆ Apple, Meta caught in proxy war between U.S. and China, NY Times' Mike Isaac suggests
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailApple, Meta caught in proxy war between U.S. and China, NY Times' Mike Isaac suggestsMike Isaac, New York Times technology correspondent, joins 'Fast Money' to talk the proxy war brewing between U.S. and China over technology.

Persons: Meta, Mike Isaac Organizations: Apple, NY Times, New York Times Locations: China

☆ Meta, in Its Biggest A.I. Push, Places Smart Assistants Across Its Apps
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Mike Isaac | Cade Metz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On a call with investors last spring, Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta, said he believed that he had an opportunity to introduce artificially intelligent assistants “to billions of people in ways that will be useful and meaningful.”A year later, he is making good on his statement. On Thursday, Meta will begin incorporating new versions of its A.I.-powered smart assistant software across its apps, which include Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Facebook. The latest technology will be rolled out in more than a dozen countries, including Australia, Canada, Singapore and the United States. software will become practically omnipresent — inside the news feed, in search bars and in chats with friends. People will be able to ask the assistant, Meta A.I., for help in completing tasks and getting information, such as what concerts might be occurring in San Francisco on a Saturday night or the best options for vegan enchiladas in New York.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Meta A.I Organizations: Meta, Facebook Locations: Australia, Canada, Singapore, United States, San Francisco, New York

☆ Björn Höcke: Far-right German politician on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Lindsay Isaac | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —A far-right German politician has gone on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans at two rallies dating back to 2021. Björn Höcke, leader of the regional branch of Alternative for Germany party (AfD) in the eastern state of Thuringia, is accused of ending a May 2021 election event in Merseburg by shouting the Socialist Nationalist slogan, “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany,” according to the regional court of Halle. Prosecutors allege that although he was aware the slogan is banned in Germany, and despite already facing criminal charges related to the first instance, Höcke went on to use it a second time at an AfD event in December 2023. In that incident he allegedly shouted to the crowd: “Everything for” and incited the audience to reply “Germany.”Prosecutors also claim Höcke was aware of the phrase’s origins as the slogan for the Nazi paramilitary wing. Höcke, a former history teacher, intends to run as the lead candidate for the AfD in the upcoming state elections in Thuringia in September.

Persons: Björn Höcke, Höcke, ” Prosecutors, ”, Elon Musk, ” Hans, Christoph Berndt Organizations: CNN, Germany, Socialist Nationalist, Prosecutors, ”, Nazi Locations: Thuringia, Merseburg, Saxony, Anhalt, Germany, Halle, Brandenburg

Apple said it pulled the Meta-owned apps WhatsApp and Threads from its app store in China on Friday on government orders, potentially escalating the war over technology between the United States and China. The House of Representatives was preparing to vote on a bill as soon as this weekend that would force the Chinese internet company ByteDance to sell its popular video app TikTok or have it be banned in the United States. U.S. lawmakers have said TikTok poses a security threat because of its ties to China. Apple said that China’s internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration, ordered the removal of WhatsApp and Threads from its app store because of national security concerns. “We are obligated to follow the laws in the countries where we operate, even when we disagree,” an Apple spokesman said.

Persons: Apple Organizations: U.S, Cyberspace Administration, Apple Locations: China, United States

☆ Volkswagen union vote in Tennessee to test UAW's power after victories in Detroit
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Elijah Nouvelage | Getty ImagesDETROIT — Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee, will vote this week on whether to organize with the United Auto Workers in a key test of the union's sway. More than 4,000 VW workers are eligible to vote, beginning Wednesday and ending at 8 p.m. EDT on Friday. The organizing vote, which is being overseen by the National Labor Relations Board, will need a simple majority to succeed. Volkswagen, which has union workers at non-U.S. plants, has said it will let its workers determine whether to organize. An aerial view of the Chattanooga Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee on April 10, 2024.

Persons: Elijah Nouvelage, Shawn Fain, Fain, Stephen Silvia, Southern, Silvia, Kevin Wurm, it's, we're, —, Isaac Meadows, Meadows Organizations: Volkswagen, Getty, DETROIT, United Auto Workers, UAW, General Motors, Ford Motor, Chrysler, Detroit, Tennessee VW, VW, National Labor Relations Board, Detroit automakers, Southern Gamble, Workers, Foreign, American University, Washington , D.C, Chattanooga Volkswagen, Washington Post, Ford Locations: Chattanooga , Tennessee, U.S, Detroit, Tennessee, Chattanooga, Washington ,

☆ Scientists identify three new species of ancient kangaroo—and one was more than 6.6 feet tall
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

One species – P. viator – would have weighed up to 170 kilograms (375 pounds), making it around twice as heavy as the largest male red kangaroos living today. Flinders UniversityThe largest specimens would have stood more than 2 meters (6.6 feet) tall, Kerr told CNN on Monday. By around 40,000 years ago Protemnodon had become extinct on mainland Australia, despite the differences between the various species. This extinction, however, did not affect similar animals such as wallaroos and grey kangaroos, for reasons scientists do not fully understand. “There is a species of Protemnodon present in the formation we’ll be digging at, Protemnodon otibandus, and I’m hoping for a complete skull of this very interesting species,” he said.

Persons: Isaac Kerr, South Australia Aaron Camens, viator, Kerr, ”, “, ’, Thylacoleo, mamkurra, ” Kerr, Protemnodon, Protemnodon otibandus Organizations: CNN —, Flinders University, Volunteers, CNN Locations: South Australia, Lake Callabonna, Australia, Callabonna, Tasmania, New Guinea, Papua New Guinea

☆ Ready for a Chatbot Version of Your Favorite Instagram Influencers?
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Sapna Maheshwari | Mike Isaac | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Being an influencer can be a lot of work. Instagram is pitching popular influencers on a program that relies on artificial intelligence to interact with fans, the latest example of how Meta, Instagram’s parent company, is trying to expand the technology across its products. The program will essentially be a chatbot that mimics the “voice” of the Instagram influencer to respond to fans, the people said. Most of the messages would be sent automatically and would at least initially disclose that they were A.I.-generated, according to two of the people. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they were asked to sign nondisclosure agreements as part of the program.

Persons: Instagram, A.I

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