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Surprisingly Weak Ukrainian Defenses Help Russian AdvanceUkrainian trenches Ukrainian trenches Rudimentary Ukrainian trench lines outside Avdiivka, in an area claimed by Russia. But there’s another reason the Kremlin’s troops are advancing in the area: poor Ukrainian defenses. These trench lines lack many of the additional fortifications that could help slow Russian tanks and help defend major roads and important terrain. 2 miles Pavlivs’ke Novofedorivka Robotyne Russian fortifications Russian-claimed control Verbove Russian defenses shown below Held by Russia Novoprokopivka Romanivs’ke 2 miles Pavlivs’ke Novofedorivka Russian-claimed control Russian fortifications Verbove Russian defenses shown below Held by Russia Romanivs’ke Russian-claimed control Pavlivs’ke Novofedorivka Russian fortifications Verbove Russian defenses shown below Held by Russia Romanivs’ke 2 miles Sources: Satellite image from Planet Labs; Russian-controlled territory (as of Feb. 29, 2024) from the Institute for the Study of War with American Enterprise Institute’s Critical Threats Project; Russian fortifications based on data from Brady Africk. Satellite imagery from February shows the multilayered Russian defenses to the west of Verbove, with thousands of shell craters visible in the surrounding fields.

Persons: Avdiivka, Soloviove, Berdychi Stepove, Krasnohorivka, Russia Berdychi, Kyiv’s, Russia Novoprokopivka, Pavlivs’ke, Brady Africk, Verbove, “, ”, Serhiy Hrabskyi, They’d, Denys Shmyhal, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky’s, Paroinen, Mr, Hrabskyi, ” Mr, Oleksandra Mykolyshyn Organizations: Planet Labs, The New York Times Russian, Ukrainian Army, Russia Berdychi Stepove, Institute for, American, The New York Times, Black Bird Group, Russian Army Locations: Avdiivka, Russia, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Russia Russian, Verbove, Russian, U.S, Moscow, Donetsk, Ivano, Frankivsk, shoring

☆ Takeaways from the Supreme Court arguments over bump stocks and machine guns
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( John Fritze | Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —The Supreme Court’s conservatives pressed the Biden administration Wednesday to justify a federal ban on bump stocks, a device that can convert a semi-automatic rifle into a weapon that can fire far more rapidly. The ATF reclassified the devices as machine guns in 2018. “And through many administrations, the government took the position that these bump stocks are not machine guns.”The court’s liberals seemed more certain the devices fell within what Congress intended when it banned machine guns. “That’s exactly what bump stocks do, as the Las Vegas shooting, vividly illustrated.”Justice Samuel Alito asked the attorney representing the ban’s challenger, Michael Cargill, if he could imagine the reasons why a lawmaker might ban machine guns but not bump stocks. “Bump stocks can help people who have disabilities, who have problems with finger dexterity, people who have arthritis in their fingers.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Brett Kavanaugh, ensnare, you’re, ” Kavanaugh, Biden, “ That’s, It’s, Barrett, Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, ” Barrett, “, Neil Gorsuch, ” Gorsuch, Elena Kagan, Kagan, ” Brian Fletcher, Fletcher, ” Fletcher, ”, Samuel Alito, Michael Cargill, Jonathan Mitchell, Sonia Sotomayor, ” Kagan, Alito Organizations: CNN, Biden, Trump, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives, ATF, Las Locations: Vegas

☆ Coldplay has a request: They really, really want to play in China
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

He really, really wants to play in China. “I promise we’ll play in China one day,” Martin said to the screaming crowd when he invited two lucky fans up on stage. “You know, we can’t get the permission (to play in China),” he told concertgoers. Chris Martin and Coldplay aren’t alone in wanting to serenade mainland Chinese audiences. Chinese authorities have also been known to vet the content of shows, including setlists and lyrics.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN — Coldplay, Chris Martin, “, ” Martin, don’t, Coldplay, ”, Martin, concertgoers, “ Coldplay, China …, Paul Kane, Coldplay aren’t, Jon Bon Jovi, Jovi, Bon Jovi’s, Lama, Xi Jinping, –, Xi, Golshifteh Farahani, “ Young, Bjork, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry's, Sam Yeh, Katy Perry, Madonna, James Hetfield, we’re Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, CNN, Coldplay, Tourism Ministry, Oasis, Communist Party, China’s Communist Party, Tibet, Municipal, of Culture, Getty, Taiwan, Chinese Culture Ministry, South China Morning Locations: Hong Kong, Thailand, China, Guangzhou, British, Asia, Tokyo, –, Beijing, Shanghai, Macao, Covid, Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Worth, Iranian, Buenos Aires, Iran, Taipei, AFP, Taiwan

NEW YORK (AP) — A prosecutor in Manhattan announced six additional indictments of men allegedly involved in a brawl with police officers in Times Square, but he said investigators were still working to identify several suspects and their exact role in the frenzy. “We have to ensure we identify and charge those individuals who actually committed criminal acts in this matter,” Bragg said. The man allegedly at the center of the conflict, Yohenry Brito, 24, was indicted on charges including two counts of assault by a grand jury on Tuesday and is being held on Rikers Island. He has said that only a “small minority” of new arrivals were participating in illegal behavior, but he has faced allegations of weaponizing the Times Square incident for political gain. Earlier this week, members of the Guardian Angels were seen roughing up a man in Times Square during a live television interview on Fox News.

Persons: —, Alvin Bragg, Bragg, ” Bragg, “, Wilson, Kelvin Servita Arocha, Yohenry Brito, Joseph Kenny, Brito “, Kenny, Eric Adams, ”, Ana María Archila, Curtis Sliwa Organizations: Times, District, Police, NYPD, . New, . New York City, New York, Families Party, ” Police, Guardian Angels, Fox News Locations: Manhattan, Wilson Juarez, Rikers, ., . New York, ”

☆ How an Indian startup hacked the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +41 min

The Indian company hacked on an industrial scale, stealing data from political leaders, international executives, prominent attorneys and more. Run by a pair of brothers, Rajat and Anuj Khare, the company began as a small Indian educational startup. The Indian company hacked on an industrial scale, stealing data from political leaders, international executives, sports figures and more. Back in 2012, Kristi Rogers was an executive at Aegis, a London-based security company. Canadian security company GardaWorld, which acquired Aegis in 2015, said it had no information on the incident.

Persons: Chuck Randall, Randall, “, ” Randall, ”, Randall’s inbox, Appin, Rajat, Anuj Khare, Rajat Khare’s, Clare Locke, Khare “, Khare, ” Clare Locke, Ted Kaczynski, Anuj, who’ve, SentinelOne, Tom Hegel, Appin “, Hegel, Mandiant, ” Hegel, Shane Huntley, ” Huntley, Google’s Huntley, ‘, Jochi Gómez, Gómez, Halevi, Tamir Mor, Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, Mohamed Azmin Ali, ” Mor, Berezovsky, Azmin, Mor, Roman Abramovich, Mark Hastings, Hastings, didn’t, Jim H, ” Jim H, Jim H’s, Kristi Rogers, Mike Rogers, he’s, Global’s, sully, Rogers, Damian Perl, – “, Steven Santarpia, ” Santarpia, Santarpia, Leonel Fernández, ” Fernández, Rajat Khare, “ Let’s, Ministry of Home Affairs didn’t, Peter Hargitay, Stevie, Billing, ” Stevie, ’, ” Peter Hargitay, Mookhey, Norman Shark, Jonathan Camp, Shark, Camp, Norman, Dominican Republic –, Dan Brady, Sandra Schweingruber, ” Schweingruber, Schweingruber, Brady, ” Gómez, –, ” –, Anna Carter, Mark Califano, ” Rajat Khare’s, India’s, Educomp, Karen Hunter, Hunter, Bryan, Rajat’s, Vijay Kumar, Deepak Kumar, Kumar, ACSG, Jay Solomon, Solomon, ” Rebsec’s, Vishavdeep Singh, Rebsec, CyberRoot, Sumit Gupta, Gupta, Raphael Satter, Zeba Siddiqui, Christopher Bing, Ryan McNeill, Corinne Perkins, John Emerson, Marla Dickerson Organizations: Reuters, Google, Harvard University, U.S, Symantec, Appin, Caribbean, El, Israeli Defense Forces, Commando, Quillon Law, U.S . House Intelligence, The Michigan Republican, U.S . Senate, Aegis, Global Security, Security, Rogers, Army Corps of Engineers, Rotary, Aegis ’, Global, ” Reuters, Britain’s, Appin Software Security, Ltd, Appin Security, –, Research, Analysis, Intelligence Bureau, Indian, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs, India’s Ministry of Defense, of Home Affairs, Central Bureau of Investigation, CBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Ministry of Home Affairs, Telenor, Broadcom, FBI, Dominican, Criminal Investigation Service, Appin Security Group, CERT, country’s, Bureau of Investigation, Educomp, State Bank of India, State Bank, The National Security Agency, NSA, U.S ., Swiss, Appin Technology, India’s Ministry, Corporate Affairs, Control Security Global, Technology, Kumar, Facebook, Meta, BellTroX, Services, Street, New, Rebsec, BellTroX’s, Hire Locations: Long, New Delhi, India, Yorker, Paris, Swiss, cybersecurity, Appin, Dominican, California, “, Dominican Republic, El Siglo, United States, Britain, Switzerland, New York, French, New Jersey, Israel, Russian, Malaysian, London, Rwandan, Virginia, Canadian, Chuck@shinnecock.org, Texas, Indian, India’s Punjab, Pakistan, Zurich, Australia, Norway, Oslo, Brady, Former, ”, U.S, Islip, Shinnecock, Washington, cyberespionage

Its motive is profit, and in seeking to maximize its financial gains, Meta has repeatedly misled the public about the substantial dangers of its social media platforms,” the complaint says. Almost all teens ages 13 to 17 in the U.S. report using a social media platform, with about a third saying they use social media “almost constantly,” according to the Pew Research Center. Other measures social platforms have taken to address concerns about children’s mental health are also easily circumvented. TikTok, Snapchat and other social platforms that have also been blamed for contributing to the youth mental health crisis are not part of Tuesday’s lawsuit. “They’re the worst of the worst when it comes to using technology to addict teenagers to social media, all in the furtherance of putting profits over people.”In May, U.S.

Persons: Meta, ”, Letitia James, “ Meta, ” “ We’re, Instagram, Frances Haugen, Rob Bonta, TikTok, Brian Schwalb, they’re, “, Vivek Murthy, Press Writers Michael Casey, Michael Goldberg, Susan Haigh, Maysoon Khan, Ashraf Khalil Organizations: Meta Platforms Inc, Facebook, Meta, D.C, “, New, The Wall Street, Associated Press, Pew Research Center, Washington D.C, U.S, Press Writers Locations: California, New York, Washington, California , Florida , Kentucky , Massachusetts , Nebraska , New Jersey , Tennessee, Vermont, British, U.S

☆ Meta sued by 33 US states in lawsuit accusing it of damaging young people's mental health with addictive Facebook and Instagram features
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Thirty-three states sued Meta, alleging potential harm to young people's mental health. The states accuse Meta of designing Instagram and Facebook features that addict children to the platforms. The lawsuit followed an investigation by a coalition of attorneys general. In addition to the 33 states, nine other attorneys general are filing in their respective states, bringing the total number of states taking action to 42. The broad-ranging suit is the result of an investigation led by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jersey, Tennessee, and Vermont.

Persons: —, Meta, Letitia James, Instagram Organizations: Meta, Service, Meta Platforms Inc, Facebook, New, Wall Street Locations: California, New York, California , Florida , Kentucky , Massachusetts , Nebraska , New Jersey , Tennessee, Vermont

☆ Instagram linked to depression, anxiety, insomnia in kids - US states' lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Companies Need To Integrate Climate Reporting Across Functions To Comply With California S New Law | Henry Engler | October | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Meta Platforms Inc FollowOct 24 (Reuters) - Dozens of U.S. states are suing Meta Platforms (META.O) and its Instagram unit, accusing them of contributing to a youth mental health crisis through the addictive nature of their social media platforms. "Research has shown that young people’s use of Meta's social media platforms is associated with depression, anxiety, insomnia, interference with education and daily life, and many other negative outcomes," the complaint said. The lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal actions against social media companies on behalf of children and teens. Meta deceptively denied publicly that its social media was harmful, the lawsuit said. Nine other states are expected to file similar lawsuits on Tuesday, bringing the total number of states suing to 42.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, ByteDance's, Meta, We’re, Jonathan Stempel, Diane Bartz, David Shepardson, Nate Raymond, Rod Nickel, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: REUTERS, Meta, YouTube, Menlo, Thomson Locations: Oakland , California, California, Illinois, , California, New York

The NewsMeta was sued by more than three dozen states on Tuesday for knowingly using features on Instagram and Facebook to hook children to its platforms, even as the company said its social media sites were safe for young people. The District of Columbia and eight other states filed separate lawsuits on Tuesday against Meta with most of the same claims. The states said Meta’s algorithms were designed to push children and teenagers into rabbit holes of toxic and harmful content. Features like “infinite scroll” and persistent alerts were used to hook young users, the states said. “Meta has harnessed powerful and unprecedented technologies to entice, engage, and ultimately ensnare youth and teens,” the states said in their lawsuit.

Persons: “, ” Meta, “ We’re Organizations: Meta, Northern, Northern District of, of Columbia Locations: Colorado , Tennessee, Massachusetts, U.S, Northern District, Northern District of California

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday filed a significant array of additional charges against Representative George Santos of New York, accusing him of new criminal schemes, including stealing the identities and credit card details of donors to his campaign. The new accusations were made in a 23-count superseding indictment that laid out how Mr. Santos had charged his donors’ credit cards “repeatedly, without their authorization,” distributing the money to his and other candidates’ campaigns and to his own bank account. The new indictment filed in the Eastern District of New York added 10 charges against Mr. Santos: conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, access device fraud, false statements to the Federal Election Commission and falsifying records to obstruct the commission. The accusations against Mr. Santos, a first-term Republican of New York, seem vastly different from the typical corruption cases that ensnare politicians. Many of those have hinged on intricate quid pro quos and complex legal questions about the nature of a political bribe.

Persons: George Santos, Santos, “ Organizations: of, Federal Locations: George Santos of New York, Eastern, of New York, United States, New York

☆ Gold Bullion and Halal Meat: Inside the Menendez Investigation
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-23 | by ( Nicole Hong | More About Nicole Hong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It was January 2018, and Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey had just won a huge legal victory. The future Ms. Menendez was eager to connect her influential new boyfriend with Mr. Hana’s high-level connections in the Egyptian government. Prosecutors accused Mr. Menendez, 69, of abusing his power to influence arms sales to Egypt and to attempt to interfere with criminal investigations into Mr. Hana’s web of business associates. search last year of the couple’s New Jersey home revealed some of the fruits of their scheme, prosecutors said. Inside the home were more than $100,000 worth of gold bars, some of which had unique serial numbers that traced back to Mr. Hana.

Persons: Robert Menendez, Weeks, Nadine Arslanian, Arslanian, Menendez, Wael Hana, Hana’s, Mr, Hana Organizations: Robert Menendez of New, U.S . Justice Department, Prosecutors, Benz Locations: Robert Menendez of, Robert Menendez of New Jersey, Egyptian American, New Jersey, Egypt, Jersey

☆ Ukraine's army keeps outsmarting Russia on the battlefield, with cunning ruses and opportunistic attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Tom Porter | Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

"Deception has succeeded against Russian forces at all echelons and across all three service branches," the report said. A Russian drone had earlier damaged a tank there, and Afanasyev wanted to make sure it didn't happen again. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe company says over 250 of these decoys have so far been handed over to the Ukrainian military. In eastern Ukraine's Popasna, a base used by the mercenary pro-Russian Wagner Group was bombed to rubble by Ukrainian troops in April 2022. Ukraine's 110th brigade then "worked effectively to attack the Russian soldiers," he said.

Persons: it's, Ivan Oleksii, Oleksii, Cmdr, Oleksandr Afanasyev, Afanasyev, Vladimir Solovyov, Wagner, Igor Russak, Ukraine's, Huw Dylan, David Gioe, Joe Littell Organizations: Service, Royal United Services Institute, Russian, Getty, Kremlin, Wagner, Russian Wagner, Wired, Purpose, Center for Information Resilience, 25th Airborne Brigade, Modern War Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Ukrainian, Russian, Kyiv, Makiivka, Lyman, Donetsk, St Petersburg, Ukraine's, Avdiyivka, Europe, Izium, Kharkiv, Kherson

☆ No time to lose on ocean treaty as threats to high seas rise - Greenpeace
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Greenpeace Limited FollowSINGAPORE, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Governments have no time to lose when it comes to implementing a new global ocean treaty to protect the high seas as threats from human activities intensify, a report by environmental group Greenpeace said on Thursday. In March, more than 100 countries completed a groundbreaking treaty to protect the high seas after years of negotiations. The high seas, or international waters, constitute more than 60% of the world's oceans but have not been under any protection. Greenpeace said fishing hours on the high seas increased by 8.5% from 2018 to 2022, and were up 22.5% in areas that need special protection. Greenpeace said that needs to happen before 2025 if there is any hope of achieving the "30 by 30" target.

Persons: Chris Thorne, Greenpeace's, David Stanway, Jamie Freed Organizations: Kyodo, Rights Companies Greenpeace, Greenpeace, United Nations, General, Thomson Locations: Kushiro, Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan, SINGAPORE

☆ Takeaways from the full Georgia special grand jury report on 2020 election subversion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Jeremy Herb | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The Fulton County special purpose grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia recommended charges against 39 people, the unredacted grand jury report made public Friday shows. The lengthy list of recommended charges underscores how widespread the special grand jury’s investigation was into efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The indictment also included 30 unindicted co-conspirators alleged to have taken part in the conspiracy, including some people the special grand jury recommended charges against. The special grand jury report was only a recommendation, and the district attorney decided which charges to bring to a grand jury last month before the indictment was returned. The charges against the fake electors were among the most contested in the special grand jury report.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Fani Willis, South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, David Perdue, Kelly Loeffler, Michael Flynn, Boris Epshteyn, Cleta Mitchell, Trump, ” Willis, Willis ’, Willis, Graham, Loeffler, Perdue, Brad Raffensperger, Raffensperger, Graham “, ” Graham, “, ”, ” Loeffler, Brian Kemp, Burt Jones, Wills, Jones, Pete Skandalakis, – David Shafer, Cathy Latham, Sen, Shawn Still – Organizations: CNN, Trump, South Carolina Republican, Georgia Gov, Gov, of Locations: Fulton, Georgia, Fulton County, Atlanta, South Carolina, of Georgia

☆ McConnell’s frozen moment renews questions about America’s aged leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Also in the Senate, California’s Dianne Feinstein, 90, has been ill and displayed apparent cognitive decline in public in recent months. But given that Biden, McConnell and Feinstein are public officials, voters are entitled to a high level of transparency. Biden, for instance, would be 86 by the time his second term ends, which represents his biggest vulnerability in the 2024 election. Remarkably, in an age where major questions divide on party lines, 69% of Democrats shared that view. Should Biden, if he wins a second term, experience a similar moment to McConnell, questions about the continuity of US leadership would reverberate around the world and offer openings for US adversaries.

Persons: Mitch, “, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, California’s Dianne Feinstein, Feinstein, –, Strom Thurmond, Robert Byrd of, Biden, McConnell, Jonathan Reiner, CNN’s Erica Hill, ”, Reiner, Trump, Karine Jean, Pierre, CNN’s Jake Tapper, Tapper, Jean, Nikki Haley, – Trump, Haley, Kamala Harris, Harris, ” Haley, Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, they’ve, Sen, Shelley Moore Capito, CNN’s Manu Raju, John Thune, McConnell “, Jim Banks, CNN’s Raju, Sprightly Iowa GOP Sen, Chuck Grassley, who’s Organizations: CNN, Kentucky Republican, Senate, George Washington University, United States Senate, Associated Press, White, White House, Former South Carolina Gov, GOP, Republicans, Biden, Fox News, Democratic, Supreme, Labor, West Virginia Republican, Republican, prudential, Indiana, Sprightly Iowa GOP, California Democrat, Capitol Locations: Kentucky, South Carolina, Robert Byrd of West Virginia, Rehoboth Beach , Delaware, Ukraine, Washington, Dakota, Sprightly Iowa, California, It’s

Yields on one-year real estate bonds rated AA- have widened 220 bps in the past month, data from Chinabond shows. That divergence reflects investors' expectations that Beijing will support LGFVs in order to minimise financial contagion, despite rising delinquencies among developers. Yields on LGFV bonds issued in August averaged around 3.9%, the lowest seen this year, according to data provider Dealing Matrix(DM). The chorus of economists calling for China to support LGFVs as part of measures to shore up the economy has grown. Chi Lo, Hong Kong-based senior economist at BNP Paribas Asset Management, said Beijing needs to refinance LGFV debt over the next three to five years to prevent the system from imploding.

Persons: Aly, Zhu Yangmo, LGFVs, Zhu, Chi Lo, Li Gu, Samuel Shen, Tom Westbrook, Vidya Ranganathan, Kim Coghill Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, China Central Depository, Asset Management, Garden Holdings, HK, China International Capital Corp, Tianjin Infrastructure Investment Group, AAA, China, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Rights SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, Hainan, Beijing, Tianjin, Hong Kong, imploding, Singapore

“Obviously, the little girls that are going to see Barbie, none of them are going to have any idea what those dashes mean,” Mr. Cruz told Fox News. “This is really designed for the eyes of the Chinese censors, and they’re trying to kiss up to the Chinese Communist Party because they want to make money selling the movie.”The response on the right is not a one-off. For a generation of conservative personalities, weaned on Andrew Breitbart’s much-cited observation that “politics is downstream of culture,” Hollywood and other ostensibly liberal bastions are to be confronted head-on, lest their leanings ensnare young voters without a fight. Recent years have provided ample evidence, some on the right say, for a “go woke, go broke” view that progressivism is bad business. (Of course, there is no way to trace exactly what determines any movie’s success or failure, and many observers adhere to the screenwriter William Goldman’s axiom: “Nobody knows anything.”)“Barbie” cannot be said to have gone broke.

Persons: Mr, Cruz, Andrew Breitbart’s, ensnare, ”, Mario, Halle Bailey, ’, William Goldman’s, Barbie, Rich Cromwell, ” Kyle Smith Organizations: Fox News, Chinese Communist Party, Mario Bros, Black, Wall Street

☆ Hard Right Presses Culture War Fights on Defense Bill, Imperiling Passage
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Karoun Demirjian | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Hard-right House Republicans are pushing to use the yearly bill that sets the United States military budget and policy as an opportunity to pick fights with the Biden administration over abortion, race and transgender issues, imperiling its passage and the decades-old bipartisan consensus in Congress around backing the Pentagon. Republican leaders have scheduled votes beginning on Wednesday on the $886 billion measure, but as of Tuesday evening, they had yet to dissuade their ultraconservative colleagues from efforts to load it up with politically charged provisions to combat what the G.O.P. calls “wokeness” in the military. Those proposals — including rolling back a Pentagon policy providing service members access to abortions and defunding the military’s diversity, equity and inclusion programs — would alienate the moderate Republicans and Democrats whose votes would be needed to get the bill through the narrowly divided House. The situation has turned the annual defense policy bill into the latest test of Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s leadership since the far right revolted over the debt ceiling deal he forged with President Biden, grinding the House to a halt to demand more influence over its agenda.

Persons: Biden, “ wokeness, Kevin McCarthy’s Organizations: Republicans, United States, Pentagon, Republican

“As Secretary Mayorkas has said, the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, was a violent assault on our democracy,” the spokesperson said. In a statement to CNN, the FBI said it worked with law enforcement agencies to share information before and during the Capitol attack. And yet it seemed as if our intelligence agencies completely dropped the ball,” Sen. Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat who chairs the committee, told reporters on Monday while previewing the report’s findings. Over 1,000 people have been charged in connection with the January 6 Capitol attack, nearly a third of whom have been charged with assaulting police that day, according to the Justice Department. These findings undercut a key criticism from Republicans who, in seeking to whitewash the Capitol attack, have often claimed law enforcement targeted conservatives in their open-source searches surrounding the insurrection.

Persons: ”, Donald Trump “, Trump, Trump’s, ’, “, Mayorkas, ” Sen, Gary Peters, Biden, Jan, Peters, ” Peters, “ We’re, Jack Smith, Jennifer Moore, “ yep Organizations: CNN, Capitol, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, Senate Homeland Security, DHS, of Intelligence, Trump, “, DC, U.S, Michigan Democrat, Justice Department, Senate, Republican, Washington Field Office

☆ How torture, inaction underpin UAE's thriving sex trafficking industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

“The suffering was too much.”In a statement to the court after she was charged, Gold denied that she and her brother were sex traffickers. Emirati authorities do little to protect these women, according to anti-trafficking activists, Nigerian authorities and interviews with trafficked women. Human traffickers keep African women in sexual slavery by playing on their financial desperation and creating webs of manipulation and coercion, the reporting shows. This article is part of a reporting collaboration led by ICIJ, Trafficking Inc., which is examining sex trafficking and labor trafficking in many parts of the globe. The UAE made sex trafficking a crime in 2006 and has established an interagency anti-trafficking panel and opened shelters for survivors.

Persons: Christy Gold’s, Gold, Christiana Jacob Uadiale –, they’d, “, ”, ICIJ, Fatima Waziri, NAPTIP, Angus Thomas Organizations: United Arab, International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Reuters, UAE, Gold, Emirates, NBC, Investigative Journalism, Dubai, UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria’s National Agency for, U.S . State Department Locations: Nigerian, Nigeria, Dubai, British, United Arab Emirates, Gulf, UAE, “, ”, Ghana, Gold, Europe, South Asia, Africa, Abu Dhabi

☆ Hong Kong Asks Court to Stop Protest Anthem From Circulating Online
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Chang Che | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After “Glory to Hong Kong” emerged as the unofficial anthem of pro-democracy demonstrators in 2019, the government of Hong Kong has tried to stifle its use. When it was played in error last year instead of the Chinese national anthem at a rugby match in South Korea, the Hong Kong government demanded an investigation. Hong Kong is seeking to prohibit the distribution or reproduction of the song “in any way,” including adaptations of its “melody or lyrics,” the government said in a statement on Tuesday. It said that the song had been used to “insult” the Chinese national anthem, “The March of the Volunteers,” causing “serious damage to the country” and to Hong Kong. The Hong Kong authorities had previously criticized Google for displaying the protest song under search results for Hong Kong’s national anthem.

Persons: Hong Kong ”, ” Organizations: Hong, Google, Volunteers Locations: Hong Kong, South Korea

Here’s what to know about the significance of the charges and what happens next:Three main buckets of chargesThe indictment lays out three main buckets of alleged criminal activity by Santos. The second set of accusations concern Santos’ allegedly false applications for unemployment benefits, resulting in a theft of public money count and two more wire fraud counts. To establish the alleged unemployment fraud scheme, investigators likely have the attestations Santos allegedly made to participate in the public benefits program. The House disclosure documents that Santos allegedly lied on are publicly available documents. There’s also the potential that, instead of a jury trial, Santos seeks a bench trial – i.e.

Capvision said in a statement soon after the broadcast that it would resolutely abide by national security rules. The CCTV report was the first clear indication of the national security scope of recent police action against several consulting firms. "The state security organ and other authorities will intensify law enforcement against activities that endanger national security, such as illegal consulting," the state-owned Global Times said. The revisions will see all documents, data, materials and items "related to national security and interests" given the same protection as state secrets. The law does not define China's national security or interests.

☆ The Biden tax proposals that could hit baby boomer, family businesses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

President Joe Biden's 2024 budget proposals contain several proposals that could hit small businesses right where it hurts — their wallets. Here are five provisions business owners should be aware of in President Biden's budget:A higher capital gains tax rate would be bad for business sellers. Biden is proposing that the corporate tax rate be increased to 28% from 21%. The majority of small businesses are pass-through businesses that are not subject to the corporate income tax, but for companies that are, the increase would be meaningful, tax experts said. Biden's proposal would increase the 3.8% net investment income tax rate on small business income over $400,000 to 5%.

☆ Russian spies are using Tinder to ensnare German soldiers and politicians to get them to disclose Ukraine war secrets, counterintelligence warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Sinéad Baker | Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian spies are using Tinder to pursue intelligence about the Ukraine war, Germany warned. Spies are targeting German soldiers and politicians, the country's counterintelligence service said. Intelligence services like Russia's appear to be using the dating app to seek intel and recruits. Other governments have previously warned that spies and foreign intelligence bodies could be using dating apps like Tinder to find sources and gather information. But the dating app has also been used by others in relation to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

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