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☆ How a Crypto Fugitive Upended the Politics of a Troubled Balkan Nation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( Andrew Higgins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Already notorious as an agent of market mayhem, the crypto industry has now unleashed political havoc, too, upending a critical general election in Montenegro, a troubled Balkan nation struggling to shake off the grip of organized crime and the influence of Russia. Only days before a vote on June 11, the political landscape in Montenegro was thrown into disarray by the intervention of Do Kwon, the fugitive head of a failed crypto business whose collapse last year contributed to a $2 trillion crash across the industry. In a handwritten letter sent to the authorities from the Montenegrin jail where he has been held since March, Mr. Kwon claimed that he had “a very successful investment relationship” with the leader of the Europe Now Movement, the election front-runner, and that “friends in the crypto industry” had provided campaign funding in return for pledges of “crypto-friendly policies.”Europe Now had been expected to win a decisive popular mandate in elections for a new Parliament. Its campaign mixed populist promises to raise salaries and pensions with pledges to put the country on a clear path to joining the European Union by cleansing the crime and corruption that flourished under Montenegro’s former longtime leader Milo Djukanovic.

Persons: Kwon, ”, Milo Djukanovic Organizations: Montenegrin, Mr, European Locations: Montenegro, Balkan, Russia, Europe, European Union

☆ Montenegro holds parliamentary vote to secure reforms, EU path
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The parliamentary vote is the first in the small former Yugoslav republic since Milo Djukanovic, former leader of the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), lost the presidential election in April and stepped down after 30 years in power. Polling stations for the 540,000-strong electorate open at 7 a.m. (0500 GMT) and close at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT). The state election commission said 15 parties and alliances will compete for 81 parliamentary seats in the nation of just over 620,000 people. Montenegro is a candidate to join the EU, but it must first root out corruption, nepotism and organised crime. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, Montenegro - unlike Serbia - joined EU sanctions against Moscow.

Persons: Djukanovic, Milo Djukanovic, Jakov Milatovic, Milojko Spajic, Danijel Zivkovic, Zivkovic, Moscow, Aleksandar Vasovic, Stevo, Helen Popper Our Organizations: PODGORICA, NATO, European Union, Democratic Party of Socialists, Centre for Democracy, Human, European, Finance, EU DPS, Russia Democratic Front, Serbian Orthodox, EU, Serbian, Moscow, Thomson Locations: Yugoslav, EU, Montenegro, Serbia, Serbian, Ukraine, Belgrade, Podgorica

☆ How a Cracked Phone App Upended a Crime-Ridden Balkan State
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Andrew Higgins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When police forces in Western Europe cracked ‌‌an encrypted phone app popular with narco-traffickers, the messages they deciphered from the Balkan nation of Montenegro provided shocking evidence of a state captured by crime. A Montenegrin police officer discussed cocaine shipments with a notorious crime boss, and the son of the head of the country’s supreme court offered to skew verdicts and help with smuggling. Another police officer sent photographs to the leader of an organized crime group to show how his police unit had roughed up members of a rival crime gang. Rumors had swirled for years of Mr. Djukanovic’s collusion with criminals, something he has always denied. “It was evident that the institutions were captured by corruption and organized crime,” Mr. Djukanovic’s successor, Jakov Milatovic, 36, said in an interview last month on his first day at work as president in Podgorica, the capital‌.

Persons: Milo Djukanovic, Europe’s, Mr, Djukanovic’s, Jakov Milatovic Locations: Western Europe, Balkan, Montenegro, Montenegrin, Podgorica

☆ For a Better Workout, Trick Your Brain
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Connie Chang | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For example, Milo Bryant, a performance coach in San Diego, uses an exercise grab bag for his group classes. “They’ll draw an exercise from one bag and a rep count from the other and whatever comes up, that’s what they do,” he said. — a cross between a fitness tracker and an episode of “The Last of Us” — take this to a new level. The app Rouvy connects to a smart trainer, which converts your regular bike into a stationary one, for a virtual ride through different city streets around the world. In a recent study, athletes who believed they had received a customized workout plan outperformed those who thought they were following a generic one.

☆ Penguin Random House and Florida parents sue school district over book bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A selection of books including "The Bluest Eye," by Toni Morrison, that have been the subject of complaints from parentsPenguin Random House, authors, parents and an advocacy group filed a lawsuit Wednesday against a Florida school district for removing 10 books related to race and the LGBTQ community after a high school teacher complained. In addition to the publishing house, PEN America, a nonprofit group that advocates for free expression in literature, five authors whose books have been removed from the district, and two parents whose children go to school in the district filed the suit against the Escambia County School District and the Escambia County School Board in Pensacola, Florida. "The clear agenda behind the campaign to remove the books is to categorically remove all discussion of racial discrimination or LGBTQ issues from public school libraries. Neither the district nor the school board immediately returned requests for comment. More than 100 other titles are restricted and require parental approval for access.

☆ How to invest in the S&P 500 — a guide to the funds that mimic the influential index's makeup and moves
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Martin Daks | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

After tracking the S&P 500 from 1965 to 2021, Berkshire Hathaway found the compound annual gain in the S&P 500 was 10.5%. In the case of S&P 500 index funds, the stocks are those of the companies listed in the S&P 500. With 500+ stocks in their portfolio, S&P 500 funds are especially diversified, their securities representing a range of industries. With 500+ stocks in their portfolio, S&P 500 funds are especially diversified, their securities representing a range of industries. The diversified, passive approach of S&P 500 funds — like most index funds — means an investor's downside is generally limited.

Violent clashes between supporters of Imran Khan and police broke out across the country after Pakistan's anti-corruption agency arrested the former prime minister on Tuesday. Pakistan's rupee has lost nearly 50% over the past 12 months. JPMorgan analyst Milo Gunasinghe said little relief from political uncertainty was in sight while the IMF programme remained stalled. "It is usually up to the country to present a credible plan of policies and financing that, in the face of political uncertainty, will credibly address the members’ balance of payment problems." The armed forces remain Pakistan's most powerful institution, having ruled directly for close to half the country's 75-year history through three coups.

☆ Inside the Wild World of Celebrity Keynote Speakers: Drugs, Alcohol
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( David Kushner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +31 min

"I never saw myself as a speaker, let alone a motivational speaker," Leonard tells me while his assistant irons his jeans. 'When I ramble," Hunter told me, "hit me in the leg!" Every plane had been grounded, including the one stuck on the tarmac with an increasingly inebriated Hunter Thompson trapped inside. But by far the most all-consuming task was booking gigs for Hunter Thompson. Just before a debate with G. Gordon Liddy at Brown University, Hunter demanded that Betsy Berg, whom I now worked alongside at GTN, score him some crystal meth.

☆ ‘Rear View,’ a Show About Butts, Is Forward Thinking
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Jason Farago | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The four art dealers who trade together as LGDR have opened a gallery on East 64th Street with a preposterous inaugural exhibition — but before you take that the wrong way, remember the etymology. Preposterous, adjective: from the Latin prae-, meaning “before,” and posterus, or “coming after.” Something preposterous is turned the wrong way. …I had better stop; “Rear View,” with more than 60 paintings, sculptures and photographs of human figures facing the more interesting way, invites a preposterous amount of wordplay. Many of the artists in “Rear View” channel their backward glances through the classical ideal. Michelangelo Pistoletto, the Arte Povera artist, places a concrete copy of the Aphrodite of Knidos in a pile of trash.

☆ Marjorie Taylor Greene warns Trump against hiring far-right activist Laura Loomer, calling her 'mentally unstable and a documented liar'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Georgia Republican warned Trump not to hire Laura Loomer to work on his 2024 campaign. Greene and far-right activist Loomer once publicly praised one another, but they are now feuding. The New York Times reported that Trump wanted to hire Loomer, but sources said the plan was scrapped. Greene took to Twitter on Friday to say Loomer is "mentally unstable and a documented liar" who "can not be trusted." Loomer responded with multiple tweets attacking Greene, calling her a liar and describing her behavior as "not very "Christian."

☆ Five Children’s Movies to Stream Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Dina Gachman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The “adorable animals on an epic journey” genre has enchanted young viewers for decades — “Homeward Bound” and “The Adventures of Milo and Otis” being just two beloved examples. Over in the United Forest of America, the evil Don Vulture is running for president against a bear, John Grizzly. (There is talk of “fake lies” and “big empty promises,” so you can probably guess which real-life former president the vulture is modeled after.) The law says no childless animal can become president, but the stork delivered Grizzly’s cub to the wrong home, so our heroes must race to return the cub in time for the election. Along the way they battle hungry hyenas and snowstorms, protecting the cooing baby bear so they can complete their quest.

☆ Montenegro holds run-off presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] A child plays with a ball on a street, a day before the second round of presidential elections in Podgorica, Montenegro, April 1, 2023. REUTERS/Marko DjuricaPODGORICA, April 2 (Reuters) - Montenegrins were set to vote in a run-off presidential election on Sunday, pitting long-time incumbent Milo Djukanovic against a Western-educated economist pledging to lift the nation out of a crisis marked by no-confidence votes in two governments. Djukanovic, 61, has dominated Montenegro as president or prime minister for 33 years, since the start of the collapse of the now-defunct federal Yugoslavia. Djukanovic wound up with 35.37% of the vote in the first round of the election on March 19, with Milatovic on 28.92%, necessitating a run-off as neither garnered a 50% majority, and analysts have predicted a tight race in the run-off. Although the presidential post in Montenegro is largely ceremonial, a victory in the election would bolster the chances of the winner's party in June.

☆ Montenegro's ex-Economy Minister Jakov Milatovic declares victory in run-off presidential vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PODGORICA, April 2 (Reuters) - Montenegro's former Economy Minister Jakov Milatovic declared victory in a presidential election run-off on Sunday, ahead of long-standing incumbent Milo Djukanovic. "Tonight is the night we have been waiting for over 30 years and I wish you a happy this victory of all of us," Milatovic told cheering supporters of his right-centrist Europe Now Movement in its party headquarters in Podgorica. "Within the next five years, we will lead Montenegro into the European Union," he said. Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Lisa ShumakerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Montenegro run-off presidential election under way
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/13] A man prepares to vote at a polling station during the run-off presidential election in Podgorica, Montenegro, April 2, 2023. REUTERS/Marko DjuricaPODGORICA, April 2 (Reuters) - Montenegrins went to the polls on Sunday in a run-off presidential election pitting incumbent Milo Djukanovic against a Western-educated economist pledging to lift the nation out of a crisis marked by no-confidence votes in two governments. He led Montenegro to independence from a state union with much larger Serbia in 2006 and to NATO membership in 2017. Although the presidential post in Montenegro is largely ceremonial, victory in the election would bolster the chances of the winner's party in June. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, Montenegro joined EU sanctions against Moscow and expelled a number of Russian diplomats.

[1/4] A taxi waits for pedestrians at a street crossing under a pre-election billboard of candidate Jakov Milatovic in Podgorica, Montenegro, March 30, 2023. Montenegro, whose economy relies on tourism generated by its scenic mountains and seaside, ditched a state union with much larger Serbia in 2006 and declared independence. A row between lawmakers and Djukanovic over his refusal to name a new prime minister deepened the political paralysis. "I am here to lead Montenegro to success because for too long we have been led by the unsuccessful," Milatovic told a campaign rally. After the invasion of Ukraine last year, Montenegro signed up to EU sanctions against Russia.

[1/6] Milo Djukanovic, President of Montenegro and a candidate from the Democratic Party of Socialists, visits a polling station during the presidential elections in Podgorica, Montenegro, March 19, 2023. Milatovic described his result as a victory of "a beautiful, better, just ... and European Montenegro." Djukanovic has served as president or prime minister for 33 years. "We are content with this level of support, it is a good foundation ... that will carry us to the victory in the run-off," Djukanovic said. A victory in the run-off would bolster the chances of his DPS party in the parliamentary vote.

☆ Montenegro votes in presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

First unofficial results by pollsters, based on a sample of the electorate, are expected about two hours later. If no candidate secures more than 50% of votes, a second round of voting between the top two is scheduled for April 2. A victory in the presidential election would bolster the chances of the winner's party in the parliamentary vote. Following the invasion of Ukraine last year, Montenegro joined EU sanctions against Russia. The Kremlin has placed Montenegro on its list of unfriendly states.

[1/5] Milo Djukanovic, President of Montenegro and a candidate from the Democratic Party of Socialists, speaks to the media at a polling station during the presidential elections in Podgorica, Montenegro, March 19, 2023. REUTERS/Stevo VasiljevicPODGORICA, March 19 (Reuters) - Montenegro's veteran President Milo Djukanovic will face a run-off on April 2 against a pro-Western former economy minister, after no candidate secured a 50% majority in a first round election on Sunday, according to a vote projection. The Center for Monitoring and Research polling group (CEMI) projected Djukanovic would end up with the most votes, with 35.5%, based on results tabulated from a statistical sample of votes cast. Djukanovic has served as president or prime minister for 33 years. A victory in the presidential election would bolster the chances of his DPS party in the parliamentary vote.

☆ Nestlé to close operations in Myanmar
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Nestlé has announced that it will close its sole factory and head office in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, as it switches to a more “sustainable” business model amid ongoing turmoil in the country. Myanmar has been rocked by violence and instability since 2021 when a military coup ousted democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her government. “We will do all we can to support everyone affected by this decision,” a Nestlé spokesperson told CNN Tuesday in a statement. Total (TOT) started operating the offshore Yadana gas field in Myanmar in 1992, and was the biggest shareholder in the project. “Nestlé started distributing our products in Myanmar in 1991 and expanded our presence in the country,” the spokesperson said.

☆ Montenegro's long-ruling Djukanovic launches bid for third presidential term
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SARAJEVO, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Milo Djukanovic, Montenegro's incumbent president who has held high-ranking political posts in the Adriatic country for the last 30 years, launched his bid on Saturday to run for a third term in a presidential election next month. The office of president is largely ceremonial in Montenegro, but a Djukanovic victory could trigger an early parliamentary election after the presidential vote because he has so far rejected proposed candidates for the prime minister's job. "I am entering the election race with the intention to win quickly and convincingly," Djukanovic, who heads the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), said on Saturday as he submitted his bid with electoral authorities. Opponents accuse Djukanovic and the DPS of corruption, links to organised crime and of running the country of some 620,000 people as their personal fiefdom - charges Djukanovic and his party deny. The state election commission has already approved two other presidential candidates - Andrija Mandic from the ethnic Serb party New Serb Democracy and Draginja Vuksanovic Stankovic of the Social Democratic Party.

☆ Kanye West paid white nationalist Nick Fuentes nearly $15,000 out of his 2020 campaign funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kanye West paid nearly $15,000 to white nationalist Nick Fuentes, per campaign finance records. Fuentes traveled with West to meet with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. A new filing from the occasional rapper's presidential campaign shows those relationships have not come cheap. West's campaign also made payments to another far-right provocateur, Milo Yiannopoulous. According to campaign records, Yiannopoulous pocketed nearly $50,000 from the West campaign: $9,955 for a "Domain Transfer," dated the same day as the meeting with Trump, and $40,000 in mid-December for "Campaign Wrap Up Services."

☆ Trump boasts that Mar-a-Lago was a secure place to keep classified documents, despite evidence that it clearly wasn't
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

"Mar-a-Lago is a highly secured facility, with Security Cameras all over the place, and watched over by staff & our great Secret Service," wrote Trump. In the post, Trump compared Mar-a-Lago to President Joe Biden's "flimsy, unlocked, and unsecured" private residence in Wilmington, Delaware. This was recently spotlighted by the Justice Department investigation into the mishandling of classified documents and presidential records at Mar-a-Lago. The New York Times reported that of the more than 100 classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago, most were located in a non-secure storage area. During its August 2022 raid, FBI agents found classified documents in Trump's "45 Office" — located above Mar-a-Lago's main ballroom.

☆ Regular homebuyers feel they struggle to compete with investors who turn properties into Airbnbs and Vrbos. Government officials are trying to change that.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Atlanta lawmakers want short-term rentals to be licensed and to fine owners who violate city laws. In some cities, government officials are trying to regulate the number of short-term rentals that investors can purchase. The debate over short-term rentals in Atlanta is emblematic of similar debates in other cities. For instance, voters in Colorado towns like Dillon, Aspen, and Steamboat Springs this year approved measures to tax short-term rentals to help regular homebuyers afford homes. There are more than 1,300 short-term rentals in Joshua Tree, according to AirDNA, compared with a population of 7,700.

WASHINGTON — Doug Emhoff is set to convene a roundtable with Jewish leaders and other experts Wednesday to discuss the rise of antisemitism and efforts to counter hate nationwide. The White House announced Monday that the roundtable hosted by the second gentleman will include White House Domestic Policy Adviser Susan Rice; Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism; and Keisha Lance Bottoms, senior adviser to the president for public engagement. Antisemitism in the U.S. hit record highs last year, according to the Anti-Defamation League, which has been tracking antisemitic incidents since 1979. During an unrelated event Friday, Emhoff spoke briefly about the effects of widespread antisemitism. Former President Donald Trump hosted several people who have espoused antisemitic beliefs for dinner last month, including Ye, white nationalist Nick Fuentes and Milo Yiannopoulos.

☆ Milo Yiannopoulos has been fired from Kanye West's political team: report
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Milo Yiannopoulos is no longer working for Ye's political team. "Ye and I have come to the mutual conclusion that I should step away from his political team," Yiannopoulos wrote: "I will continue to pray for Ye and all his endeavors." Yiannopoulos was one of a handful of right-wing figures who joined Ye during a dinner at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home on November 22. Fuentes denied that the dinner was a plot against Trump in a Telegram post following the NBC report. Ye removed references to Yiannopoulos and Fuentes on his Twitter account on Thursday before he was permanently suspended later that day, Newsweek reported.

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