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☆ Jan. 6 Rioter Gets 14 Years for Police Attacks, Longest Sentence Yet in Inquiry
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Alan Feuer | Zach Montague | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

At a hearing in Federal District Court in Washington, the man, Peter Schwartz, 49, joined a growing list of people charged with assaulting the police on that day who have received stiff sentences. Until now, the longest sentence in a Jan. 6 case had been the 10-year term given to Thomas Webster, a former New York City police officer who was found guilty last year of swinging a metal flagpole at an officer at the Capitol. The sentence could presage more long prison terms to come. The prosecutors said holding Mr. Rhodes accountable at his sentencing hearing, scheduled for May 24, would be essential to preserving American democracy. His punishment, they said, could help decide whether “Jan.

Whatever the provenance of the two drones that approached the Kremlin early Wednesday morning, one thing was clear: The Russian government wanted the world to know about them. The Kremlin made a deliberate choice to quickly make public what it claimed was a drone attack aimed at assassinating President Vladimir V. Putin. It published an unusual, five-paragraph statement on its website that named the Ukrainian government as the perpetrator and asserted the right to retaliate against Kyiv. The Kremlin’s messaging diverged significantly from its response to previous episodes involving attacks on Russia or Russian-occupied territory. Now the question is whether Russia will use the incident to justify more and even deadlier strikes against Ukraine.

☆ Oil AGMs presage awkward investor decoupling
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Yawen Chen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Chair Helge Lund defended a sudden reversal in February to now cut less oil and gas production by 2030. Big Oil had more than doubled its profits in 2022 as energy prices spiked after Western sanctions on Russian energy. Pension investors like the Universities Superannuation Scheme, for example, are strengthening their climate investment policies and targeting board members to drive change. The traditional oil investor base may soon start to question why companies aren’t doing much more in oil and gas, if that’s what drives profitability and market performance. The oil world’s own awkward decoupling is happening fast.

This month, an anonymous producer jolted the music industry by using artificial intelligence to impersonate the singers Drake and the Weeknd, creating a fake track, “Heart on My Sleeve,” that quickly went viral. Joe Coscarelli, a culture reporter for The Times, talks about how the song’s rise and fall could presage widespread changes in the way music is made.

☆ India likely to get "below normal" monsoon rains in 2023 - Skymet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, April 10 (Reuters) - India is likely to get "below normal" monsoon rains in 2023 with an increasing likelihood of El-Nino, which typically brings dry weather to Asia, private weather forecasting agency Skymet said on Monday. "Likelihood of El Nino is increasing and its probability to become a dominant category during the monsoon is growing large. El Nino return may presage a weaker monsoon," Jatin Singh, managing director, Skymet said in a statement. Monsoon rains in India are expected to be 94% of the long-term average, said Skymet, retaining its previous view of sub-par monsoon. Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, known as the agriculture bowl of North India, are likely to observe less than normal rains during the 2nd half of the season, the weather forecaster said.

At some Silicon Valley Bank branch locations in California, depositors gathered early Friday to attempt to get their cash out, fearing it could be inaccessible in the coming days. It has had financial relationships with a who’s who of Silicon Valley firms over the years, including Snapchat's parent Snap Inc (SNAP.N). A locked door to a Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) location on Sand Hill Road is seen in Menlo Park, California, U.S. March 10, 2023. A Silicon Valley Bank spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for comment sent Friday. As of Friday, FarmboxRx’s funds were still tied up with Silicon Valley Bank.

March 10 (Reuters) - The sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday sent shockwaves through the startup community, which has come to view the lender as a source of reliable capital, particularly for some of tech’s biggest moonshots. It has had financial relationships with a who’s who of Silicon Valley firms over the years, including Snapchat's parent Snap Inc (SNAP.N)Snap declined to comment. A Silicon Valley Bank spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for comment sent Friday. Uncertainty swept through Silicon Valley as startup founders and venture capital firms worried they could, among other things, fail to make payroll. As of Friday, FarmboxRx’s funds were still tied up with Silicon Valley Bank.

☆ Twitter suffers 'massive outage' under Elon Musk leaving users unable to tweet, message and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Twitter users on Wednesday were suddenly unable to tweet, direct message, or use other features. The ability to tweet, retweet, quote tweet and direct message on Twitter, each core functions of the platform, stopped for many users on Wednesday. By Wednesday afternoon Pacific Time, tweeting and likes were functioning again for many users, while the ability to direct message and retweet was still out. Fortune reported that Musk message earlier on Wednesday. A former Twitter executive previously told Insider how Twitter was likely to degrade over time, not simply implode all at once.

☆ ABA Passes Resolution Opposing Suspicious-Transaction Reporting Rule for Lawyers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Dylan Tokar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

The association also is considering changes to its professional conduct rules around the vetting of clients. The ABA’s rules for professional conduct are typically used as a basis for the rules enforced by state courts, which serve as primary regulators of the legal trade. Under current rules, lawyers have an ethical obligation to keep confidential all information relating to the representation of their clients. Requiring lawyers to report suspicious transactions by their clients also could undermine attorney-client privilege, the group argued in their resolution. Those committees are expected to file a resolution at the annual meeting of the ABA’s policy arm later this year.

☆ Is the Fed ignoring long Covid in its inflation fight?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

But it’s premature to say that Covid is no longer an economic issue when long Covid has such a significant effect on America’s workforce, economists and health care officials say. Long Covid, which stems from a Covid-19 infection, is considered a chronic illness that is sometimes debilitating. As many as 30% of Americans, about 23 million people, develop long Covid after a Covid infection, said the US Department of Health and Human Services in November. “Long Covid has harmed the workforce,” said the report, compiled by the New York State Insurance Fund. Caregiving for those suffering from Covid or long Covid is also affecting the labor imbalance, said Giacomo Santangelo, an economics professor at Fordham University.

☆ House Republicans Press for Details of Hunter Biden’s Art Sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Natalie Andrews | C. Ryan Barber | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The prices for Hunter Biden’s latest art collection range from $55,000 to $225,000, according to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. WASHINGTON—House Republicans on Wednesday pushed for details about sales of Hunter Biden ‘s artwork, an early step as they step up an investigation into the business dealings of President Biden’s son. In a letter, the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability renewed a request that Republican lawmakers had previously made while in the minority to the younger Mr. Biden’s art dealer, Georges Bergès. House Republicans said Mr. Bergès hadn’t responded to previous requests, but now that they have the majority, their latest demand could carry more weight and presage a congressional subpoena that would ratchet up the pressure on the New York City gallery owner to cooperate with the inquiry.

Power giant Orsted aims to build a huge offshore windfarm to help the country meet renewable goals. Last year the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which regulates offshore energy activity, concluded that large crossovers between such ventures were unfeasible with current technology. This largely unreported clash risks undermining Britain's drive to meet its climate goals, according to the companies involved and a North Sea green transition expert. The BP-Orsted showdown could also presage similar disputes elsewhere in an increasingly crowded North Sea, the experts told Reuters. There is hope on the horizon for wind and CCS projects that share ground, say regulators and industry experts.

Spreads indicate the premium investors demand to hold corporate bonds rather than safer government debt. However, some investors expect credit spreads may widen again to reflect a recession potentially ahead. Hedge funds and some asset managers short credit, meaning they are betting on a fall in a bond's price, by buying products like credit default swaps (CDS), which rise in value if the risk of a credit default event increases. Primary markets indicate there is no lack of demand for corporate bonds. They expect credit spreads to widen in the first half of this year.

☆ A band of immigrant tenants went to war with their $31 billion landlord. It's a sneak peek at what's to come across America.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

In Alexandria, Virginia, $31 billion landlord CIM Group bought a massive apartment complex in 2020. The group was organizing against CIM Group, the landlord they said had upended their lives. Insider spoke with 10 Southern Towers tenants. The battle between the Southern Towers tenants and CIM could presage what's to come across America. "We're not going to leave"The Southern Towers tenants aren't the only ones following the money.

☆ Tens of thousands march in Mexico City to support president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Ana Isabel Martinez | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] People take part in a march in support of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's government policies and to celebrate his four years in the office, in Mexico City, Mexico November 27, 2022. REUTERS/Henry RomeroMEXICO CITY, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands marched with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Sunday in a massive demonstration through the center of the country's capital to show their support for the head of state before a 2024 general election. Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard and Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, who were at the march, are likely party candidates to run for the next election, scheduled for the summer of 2024. "AMLO criticizes the salaries of INE councillors," wrote columnist Sergio Negrete on Twitter. "With the cost of his ego-boosting march, he could pay the salaries of 11 INE councillors for 43 years and three months."

Christopher Gregory/Getty ImagesDonald McGahn, Trump campaign counsel: I was at the top. Trump's 2016 campaign aides said they paid about 50 people, including part-time actors, to appear as supporters for his 2016 campaign announcement. Corey Lewandowski, Trump campaign managerCorey Lewandowski: I called my wife just as we were getting onto the plane. Stuff that would be from Mars on any other campaign was perfectly normal for the Trump campaign. Mark J. Terrill/AP photo Show less Trump at the Republican National Convention while Cruz speaks on July 20, 2016.

☆ Tens of thousands protest Mexican president's electoral reform plan
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Demonstrators march against the electoral reform proposed by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and in support of the National Electoral Institute (INE) in Mexico City, Mexico, November 13, 2022. In the past, Lopez Obrador pursued contentious policies by pitching referendums - including on the cancellation of a part-built airport - to claim popular mandates for his objectives. Organizers put the number at hundreds of thousands but some political allies of Lopez Obrador gave far lower estimates. Lopez Obrador posted a video message on his Twitter as he celebrated his 69th birthday - but did not address the protests. Reporting by Stefanie Eschenbacher, Dave Graham and Carlos Carrillo in Mexico City; editing by Diane CraftOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Ticking bomb: The risks the IMF sees to financial stability
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Oct 11 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday of a disorderly repricing in markets, saying global financial stability risks have increased, raising the potential of contagion and spillovers of stress between markets. The IMF's Global Financial Stability Report, which warned of the risks to markets, came as the Fund also cut its growth outlook in its latest World Economic Outlook. read moreHere are key indicators of stress and risks the IMF sees to financial stability:Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register* LIQUIDITYDeteriorating market liquidity conditions may poserisks to financial stability, the IMF said. * CURRENCY SWAPSInternational short-term dollar funding markets have begun to show signs of concern with a widening of the cross-currency basis swap spreads, a proxy for the marginal cost of offshore US dollar funding, the IMF said. * LEVERAGE LOAN MARKET CREDIT CRUNCHTighter financial conditions, mounting liquidity strains, and decelerating earnings growth could presage ratings downgrades and eventual defaults and lower returns for collateralized loan obligations (CLO) investors, the IMF said.

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