WORLD NEWS
Netanyahu says current phase of war against Hamas is nearly over …
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on June 24 that the current phase of the war against Hamas in Gaza is nearly over and that some Israeli troops in Rafah will be redeployed to Israel’s northern border with Lebanon, where fighting with the Iran-backed Hezbollah has escalated.
During an interview with Israeli broadcaster Now 14, also known as Channel 14, on June 23, Mr. Netanyahu said that after the current phase in Gaza is finished, Israel will have the possibility of transferring some of its forces north and that it “will do that.”
He didn’t provide a specific timeline, saying that Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip would continue.
Mr. Netanyahu said the decision was “first and foremost for defensive purposes.” The secondary purpose of moving more troops to the northern border is to facilitate the return of displaced Israeli residents, who had to be evacuated because of Hezbollah’s cross-border attacks.
The attacks violate U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which prohibits armed personnel, assets, and weapons in the demilitarized zone from south of the Litani River to the Blue Line border with Israel, except for U.N. peacekeeping forces and the Lebanese government, which are authorized to maintain security.
Both the United States and Israel designate Hezbollah as a Lebanese terrorist group.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange freed; DOJ agrees time served in plea deal!
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is due to plead guilty tomorrow to violating U.S. espionage law, in a deal that will set him free after a 14-year British legal odyssey and allow his return home to Australia.
Assange, 52, has agreed to plead guilty to a single criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified U.S. national defense documents, according to filings in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands.
The deal marks the end of a legal saga that has seen Assange spend more than five years in a British high-security jail and seven holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London as he fought accusations of sex crimes in Sweden and battled extradition to the U.S., where he faced 18 criminal charges.
The U.S. government viewed him as a reckless villain who had endangered the lives of agents through WikiLeaks’ mass release of secret U.S. documents – the largest security breaches of their kind in U.S. military history.
But to free press advocates and his supporters, which includes world leaders, celebrities and some prominent journalists, he is a hero for exposing wrongdoing and alleged war crimes, and was persecuted for embarrassing U.S. authorities.
On Wednesday, Assange is due to be sentenced to 62 months of time already served at a hearing in Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, at 9 a.m. local time.
Australian-born Assange left Belmarsh maximum security jail in the early hours of Monday, before being bailed by the London High Court and later boarding a flight, his wife, Stella Assange said. He was currently on a stopover in Bangkok, she said.
Did a British MP warn of a NATO dirty bomb false flag attack op; then blame it on Russia!
British Member of Parliament Andrew Bridgen is warning the world that NATO is planning to launch a false flag attack on a European city using a nuclear “dirty bomb” and to put the blame on Russia. Bridgen says he is receiving information from defense analysts in military intelligence who have told him there is plenty of nuclear material floating around from Ukraine.
NATO is planning to launch a false flag attack on a European city using a nuclear “dirty bomb” and pin the blame on Russia, according to British Member of Parliament Andrew Bridgen who was citing high-level parliamentary intelligence.
Bridgen explained on GB News that British intelligence service agents have warned him about the plot to embroil the world in the Ukraine war with Russia and spark World World 3.
An “attack” by Russia on any NATO country in Europe would result in Article 5 being triggered, requiring the United States and all NATO members to declare war on Russia. A false flag by NATO, pinned on Russia, could perform the same function. Watch:
Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization holds that “The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all.”
NATO secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has been desperate to bring more parties into the war in Ukraine, citing Russia as an expansionist threat, despite the fact Russian forces have remained stationed within Russian territory for decades, while NATO forces have been steadily encroaching closer to Russian borders.
The outgoing secretary-general used a recent interview with NPR to stress the importance of Article 5 and call for the US to recommit to defending Europe in the event of an attack.
Fact checkers are denouncing Bridgen’s claim, stating that Bridgen is not privy to parliamentary intelligence; that Bridgen never mentioned NATO per se; Andrew Bridgen only claimed on GB News that there would be a nuclear detonation, and in fact, appears to make that comment after being asked about Russia using nuclear weapons.
The People’s Voice (https://www.techarp.com/tag/the-peoples-voice/) is the current name for NewsPunch (https://www.techarp.com/tag/NewsPunch/), which possibly changed its name because its brand has been so thoroughly discredited after posting numerous shocking but fake stories.
Founded as Your News Wire in 2014, it was rebranded as NewsPunch in November 2018, before becoming The People’s Voice. A 2017 BuzzFeed report identified NewsPunch as the second-largest source of popular fake news on Facebook that year.
Emmanuel Macron Warns of ‘Civil War’ in France if Public Votes for Populists
An increasingly desperate Emmanuel Macron has warned the public that “civil war” awaits France if they fail to vote for his brand of centrist neo-liberalism in the upcoming legislative elections.
Voting for either of the “two extremes” of the populist right-wing National Rally or the leftist-socialist New Popular Front will lead to “civil war”, Macron said in an interview in which he castigated the leadership of the two main opposition parties “and those who follow them”.
The embattled French leader, who’s party is trailing in third place in the snap elections he called, said that the “response of the extreme right” to France’s current problems would lead to insecurity “because it refers people to a religion or an origin, that is what divides them and pushes them towards civil war,” Le Figaro reports.
NATO state announces plans to stockpile grain
Norway plans to have stored 82,500 tons of crops by the end of the decade, the Agriculture Ministry has said
The Norwegian government has signed a deal to start stockpiling grain, as the NATO member seeks to prepare for the “unthinkable,” the country’s Agriculture Ministry has announced.
The agreement between the Agriculture Ministry and four private companies was announced on Tuesday, and cites the Covid-19 pandemic, the Ukraine conflict, and climate change as prompting the decision.
“The building up of a contingency stock of food grains is about being prepared for the unthinkable,” the Agriculture and Food Ministry said in a statement.
Under the deal, the Scandinavian country’s government seeks to store 30,000 tons starting next year, with the aim to build up the reserve to 82,500 tons by 2029, according to Agriculture and Food Minister Geir Pollestad.
Kenya’s Parliament on Fire as Thousands Storm Complex
Part of Kenya’s parliament building was on fire Tuesday as thousands of protesters against a new finance bill entered and legislators fled, in the most direct assault on the government in decades.
A paramedic reported a death toll of at least 10 people, while a Reuters journalist observing outside the parliament noted the bodies of at least five protesters, The Guardian reported.
The protesters had demanded that legislators vote against the controversial bill imposing new taxes on a country where frustrations over the high cost of living have simmered for years
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
CNN defends debate moderators amid criticism from GOP …
CNN is defending its two moderators for the upcoming presidential debate amid accusations of bias from former President Donald Trump’s campaign.
During a segment on Monday, CNN host Kasie Hunt and Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt got into an argument over Ms. Leavitt’s claims about CNN anchors and debate hosts Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.
Ms. Leavitt criticized CNN for using “debate moderators who have made their opinions about him very well known over the past eight years and their biased coverage of him.” Ms. Hunt pushed back on her statements and later abruptly cut off the interview.
Following Ms. Leavitt’s comments as well as critical statements made by Trump allies on social media network X, CNN defended Mr. Tapper and Ms. Bash.
“Jake Tapper and Dana Bash are well-respected veteran journalists who have covered politics for more than five decades combined,” the network said in a statement posted online. “They have extensive experience moderating major political debates, including CNN’s Republican Presidential Primary Debate this cycle. There are no two people better equipped to co- moderate a substantial and fact- based discussion, and we look forward to the debate on June 27th in Atlanta.”
In response to the on-air incident, Ms. Hunt, issued a comment on X stating: “You come on my show, you respect my colleagues. Period. I don’t care what side of the aisle you stand on, as my track record clearly shows.”
During the segment on Monday, Ms. Leavitt asserted that former President Trump is “going into a hostile environment” and said the moderators “have made their opinions about him very well known over the past eight years.”
And in response to Ms. Hunt’s post, Ms. Leavitt claimed that the CNN host “cut off” her microphone “for bringing up the debate moderator’s [Tapper’s] history” of bias against the former president. “He [Trump] is still willing to go into this three on one fight to bring his winning message to the American people—and he will win,” she said.
In the interview, Ms. Hunt asked Ms. Leavitt what she anticipates President Biden will do, while the Trump spokeswoman continued to criticize Mr. Tapper. Ms. Hunt then warned she would end the interview if she kept “attacking [her] colleagues” before doing so.
PREDICTION: CNN’s ratings will go up for the debate, and then slump back down again!
Steve Bannon calls on Trump to skip debate after CNN moderators scandals …
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon is urging Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to boycott the upcoming CNN debate scheduled for Thursday, citing numerous bias scandals plaguing the network.
Bannon’s call for action follows a viral altercation where CNN anchor Kasie Hunt viciously kicked Trump spokesperson Karoline Leavitt out during a live interview. What triggered Hunt’s disturbing behavior? Leavitt pointing out the outlet’s bias.
“They have never in the history of television, ever, taken a national press secretary and treated her with such lack of respect,” a fired-up Bannon told Leavitt during an Monday interview on the WarRoom Podcast.
“Kasie Hunt owes you an apology, CNN owes you an apology today, and if we don’t get that apology to Karoline Leavitt, to the Trump Campaign and MAGA today, President Trump should cancel this,” he added.
Bannon’s demand coincides with mounting criticism directed at CNN personalities Hunt, Jake Tapper, and Dana Bash, slated to co-anchor the debate.
The Media Research Center, a conservative media watchdog group, compiled damning videos exposing Bash’s and Tapper’s leftist bias against Trump and his supporters.
Following the contentious 2020 presidential debate between Trump and Biden, Bash referred to the event as a “shitshow,” while Tapper characterized it as a “disgrace primarily because of President Trump.”
During CNN’s coverage of Biden’s State of the Union address, both Tapper and Bash praised Biden for supposedly meeting “the moment.”
“They wanted him to be a fighter and — boy — fight, did he deliver,” Bash remarked during the broadcast, adopting a tone reminiscent of a state-owned television announcer.
On another occasion, Bash expressed disappointment over a Supreme Court decision that blocked the left’s efforts to kick Trump off presidential ballots, lamenting it as “unfortunately for America.”
In subsequent discussions, Bash questioned whether Trump, as a former president and a leading candidate, should continue to receive intelligence briefings, echoing sentiments frequently found on the left.
Trump Advisers Plan Aid Halt to Ukraine for Peace Talks
Two key advisers to Donald Trump have presented him with a plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine — if he wins the presidential election — that involves telling Ukraine it will only get more U.S. weapons if it enters into peace talks.
The United States would at the same time warn Moscow that any refusal to negotiate would result in increased U.S. support for Ukraine, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, one of Trump’s national security advisers, said in an interview.
Under the plan drawn up by Kellogg and Fred Fleitz, who each served as chiefs of staff in Trump’s National Security Council during his 2017-2021 presidency, there would be a cease-fire based on prevailing battle lines during peace talks.
They have presented their strategy to Trump, and the former president responded favorably, said Fleitz, a Newsmax TV contributor.
“I’m not claiming he agreed with it or agreed with every word of it, but we were pleased to get the feedback we did,” he said.
Supreme Court turns away COVID-19 vaccine appeals by Childrens’ Health Defense!
U.S. Supreme Court justices yesterday rejected appeals brought over COVID-19 vaccines by Children’s Health Defense (CHD), a nonprofit founded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., which sought
to overturn lower court rulings that found CHD and its members lacked standing to sue the FDA over its emergency authorizations of COVID-19 vaccines for minors.
The justices also rebuffed another CHD appeal in a case that challenged the COVID-19 vaccine mandate imposed on students at Rutgers University, a public college in New Jersey.
The Supreme Court did not comment on either denial. It included them in a lengthy list dealing with dozens of cases.
In order to have standing in either case, you have to prove actual, concrete injury-in-fact or in the least, imminent harm, which neither case was able to show.
In a filing to the Supreme Court, lawyers for CHD said the lower courts erred and that justices should intervene.
“If the government is allowed to mandate experimental vaccines that do not prevent transmission against a person’s right to freely exercise informed consent, then COVID-19 will have eroded one of our most basic liberties—the right to refuse a medical experiment,” they said.
Supreme Court to hear the case on States’ restrictions of transgender treatments for minors! The Supreme Court agreed on June 24 to hear a challenge by the federal government to a Tennessee law that prohibits the use of puberty blockers and medical treatments for minors who identify as transgender.
The decision comes as several states have enacted legislation regarding transgender individuals’ treatments, participation in school sports, use of gender-specific bathrooms, and drag shows.
The court granted the petition for certiorari, or review, in United States v. Skrmetti, in an unsigned order.
But don’t feel bad … the Supreme Court also denied Josh Duggar’s appeal too!
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied former reality television star Josh Duggar’s request to appeal his conviction for downloading images of child sexual abuse.
Mr. Duggar, 36, whose large family was featured on the TLC show “19 Kids and Counting,” was convicted in December 2021 on one count each of receiving and possessing child pornography. As is typical, the court did not provide details on its decision.
Federal investigators launched an investigation after law enforcement in Little Rock, Arkansas, found child pornography files that were shared from a computer traced to Mr. Duggar at a car dealership he owned. A federal agent testified that the images that were downloaded in 2019 depicted the sexual abuse of children, including toddlers. He was sentenced to 151 months in prison.
Lower courts have rejected Mr. Duggar’s argument that his attorneys should have been permitted to ask about the prior sex offense conviction of a former employee of the dealership who had allegedly used the same computer. His lawyers did not ask the former employee to testify after the judge ruled that they could not bring up the prior conviction.
Mr. Dugger has maintained his innocence.
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao speaks out 4 days after FBI raid; then her attorney resigns …
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao’s attorney reportedly resigned hours after she made her first public statement yesterday—four days after the FBI raided her residence.
The mayor said she isn’t involved in wrongdoing, at the press conference Monday morning.
“I want to be crystal clear; I have done nothing wrong,” the mayor told reporters at City Hall. “I can tell you with confidence that this investigation is not about me. I have not been charged with a crime and I am confident that I will not be charged with a crime because I am innocent.”
High-profile attorney Tony Brass was hired as Ms. Thao’s counsel late last week after the federal raid. He resigned several hours after the mayor’s statements on Monday, after telling local television station KRON4 that he was unaware of the mayor’s public statement and only found out about it through the news.
On June 20, local media footage showed federal agents removing boxes, trash bags, and plastic bins from a residence identified as the mayor’s on Maiden Lane in Oakland’s Lincoln Highlands neighborhood. Reports indicate that the mayor was escorted from her home during the search. The reason for the raid remains unclear.
Federal agents also raided two other residences, including the home of Andy Duong, the director of the city’s garbage vendor California Waste Solutions, and that of his father, David Duong, president of the waste contractor, as reported by local outlets.
Since 2020, Oakland’s Public Ethics Commission has investigated the recycling company for alleged improper campaign contributions to city officials, including the mayor. The commission’s enforcement chief Simon Russell confirmed to The Epoch Times that the case remains under investigation.
The June 20 raid took place two days after the Alameda County Registrar of Voters confirmed that a recall effort against Ms. Thao had gathered enough signatures to be placed on the November ballot —a sequence the mayor said was not a coincidence.
The mayor has linked the raid to the recall effort, saying that it is an attempt by wealthy political opponents to remove her from office.
Welfare offices are providing voter registration forms to illegals without proof of citizenship!
Illegal migrants are being provided with voter registration forms without requiring proof of citizenship, the NY Post reports.
The forms, available in every state except Arizona – which recently passed a law barring the practice on state (but not federal) forms, are used to obtain welfare benefits, driver’s licenses, and in many cases mail-in ballot voter registration forms.
There is currently no federal law requiring proof of citizenship on voter forms, though it is illegal to lie and claim citizenship in order to cast a ballot in a federal election.
So if an applicant says they are a US citizen, that’s enough to be able to register to vote.
But millions of migrants with humanitarian parole, refugee or asylum status are eligible for benefits that would bring them to the offices where voter registration takes place.
The National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) of 1993 ordered states to register voters at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and agencies where Americans apply for public benefits — and those offices are required by federal law to hand over the registration forms along with the application papers. -NY Post
“While Biden and radical progressive Democrats give ISIS and criminals an app to literally schedule their illegal entry, Republicans must fight any chance of illegal voter registration until we can mass deport,” said Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), who introduced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act which was approved by the House Administration Committee last month.
Upon the approval of the SAVE Act, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said: “As President Biden has welcomed millions of illegal aliens through our borders, including sophisticated criminal syndicates and foreign adversaries, it is incumbent upon Congress to implement greater enforcement measures that secure the voter registration process and ensure only American citizens decide the outcome of American elections.”
Ryan Walker, executive vice president at the conservative Heritage Foundation’s sister group, Heritage Action, told The Post, “It is undeniable that the current structure makes it possible for illegal immigrants and non-citizens to vote — and the American people have no way of knowing how widespread the problem may be,” adding “The SAVE Act puts all of these issues to rest and gives Americans confidence that our elections are decided on a more even playing field.”
That said, the measure has yet to be scheduled for a floor vote, though one Hill source told The Post that it could come up before the August recess.
The left, of course, is livid over this election integrity effort.
Angry Democrats even sued Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger earlier this year for attempting to implement citizenship verification methods.
And while they may call it a fabrication, The Post further notes that federal prosecutions, state investigations and audits have shown in recent years that thousands of non-citizens are being registered. Former Federal Election Commission (FEC) member and manager of the Election Law Reform Initiative at the Heritage Foundation, Hans von Spakovsky, presented multiple examples of non-Americans being caught illegally voting in races ranging from local to presidential. “It’s a real problem, not an imaginary problem,” he told The Post.
According to Von Spakovsky, if the SAVE Act successfully amends the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), proof-of-citizenship laws would “get passed in a lot of states.”
After insisting people wear masks and get vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic, New York Governor Kathy Hochul now wants to criminalize people wearing masks in public spaces.
The topic came up while the governor was being interviewed by CNN, when she was asked if she supported the call to ban masks on the New York City subway by Jewish leaders. Claiming a rise in anti-Semitism by anti-Israel protesters, leaders such as Anti-Defamation League Regional Director Scott Richmond have said that enacting mask laws would reduce this behavior.
Some of the incidents Jewish leaders have cited in their calls for a mask ban include an individual at a protest in Union Square saying that he wished “Hitler was still here” to wipe Jewish people out and a vandalism incident in which red paint was tossed at the homes of the director of the Brooklyn Museum and Jewish board members.
The leaders are now calling to restore New York state’s anti-mask law, which was suspended during the pandemic to accommodate mask mandates; the law had previously banned gatherings of people using masks to cover their faces, with a penalty of 15 days in jail. Restoring it, they maintain, would mean that protesters cannot behave anonymously and avoid punishment.
Hochul told CNN that she was considering reenacting the ban on masks on the subway, a position she repeated during an Albany news conference, where she said New York officials would “not tolerate individuals using masks to evade being responsible for criminal or threatening behavior.”
It’s an interesting stance for someone who fought so hard to force people to wear masks just a few years ago. During the pandemic, Hochul announced that everyone aged two and older who was medically able to tolerate a mask had to wear one in all indoor public places whether they were vaccinated or not, unless the place in question required proof of vaccination to enter it. Individuals who violated this faced a fine of $1000 per violation.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Fed president points to several warning signs for the U.S. economy …
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said that he’s hopeful that inflation will continue to come down while pointing to several warning signs for the economy, such as cooling consumer spending, a key economic driver.
He said policymakers need to weigh whether the relatively high level of the Fed’s benchmark interest rate, now within a range of 5.25 to 5.5 percent, is appropriate for an economy that’s starting to show patches of softness.
The current economic situation is far from what could be described as “traditional overheating,” he said, noting that there are “a couple of warning signs” to take note of.
He singled out rising unemployment claims, increases in debt delinquency rates, and what seems to be cooling in consumer spending—all factors that he said make it “worth wondering about where we are on our restrictiveness scale,” referring to the level of interest rates.
The warning signs mentioned by the Chicago Fed president hint at a cooling in the labor market and signs of consumer weakness.
Under Armor agrees to pay $434-million to settle lawsuit alleging sales manipulation …
Sports apparel manufacturer Under Armour has agreed to pay $434 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging the company manipulated sales data.
The lawsuit, originally filed in 2017, accused Under Armour of “falsely claiming that consumer demand for the Company’s products was strong between the third quarter of 2015 and the fourth quarter of 2016 when in reality demand was in decline,” according to the court notice.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigated the matter, and in 2021, found the company had engaged in a “pull forward” practice through which future orders were added to earlier quarters to boost sales numbers. This inflated the revenue numbers for those quarters, thus deceiving investors.
The SEC claimed that Under Armour engaged in this tactic for six consecutive quarters starting from Q3, 2015. In the class action lawsuit, plaintiffs alleged that the pull forward scheme masked a declining demand for the company’s products.
On Friday, Under Armour announced it had entered into an agreement to resolve the lawsuit pending in the U.S. District Court of Maryland.
Under the terms of the settlement, the company will pay $434 million to plaintiffs who had bought the firm’s shares between Sept. 16, 2015, and Nov. 1, 2019, according to a June 20 SEC filing. In addition, Under Armour also agreed to two internal governance changes.
Freddie Mac’s feckless foray into second mortgages …
The Biden administration is currently reviewing a proposal by mortgage giant, Freddie Mac, to begin buying second mortgages. Fannie Mae would be certain to follow. Not only would such be inconsistent with the administration’s legal obligations, but it would also intentionally put the taxpayer and countless families at considerable risk.
The second mortgage and home equity loan market are already adequately served by existing and far better capitalized lenders. In fact, commercial banks, the primary lender in this market, are experiencing historically low loan to deposit ratios, indicating significant balance sheet capacity to serve this market. It appears the primary reason for the proposal is to benefit not homeowners but nonbank mortgage lenders. It is speculated that approving this product is to pass along the losses knowingly and intentionally to the American taxpayer.
Texas logistics company with 500 truck drives abruptly ceases operations; no paychecks!
About 2,000 truck drivers, warehouse and dock workers, and office personnel of Humble, Texas-based U.S. Logistics Solutions (USLS), formerly Forward Air Solutions, say they were blindsided late Thursday when they were notified via conference calls or by text messages that the company was ceasing operations and that they would not receive paychecks Friday.
Eric Culberson, former president of USLS, confirmed the closure in a LinkedIn post on Saturday, stating that thousands of workers were without jobs after the company’s owner, private equity firm Ten Oaks Group, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, shuttered operations.
“Due to the abrupt decision by our private ownership group to close our doors at the same time business was surging, I am completely devastated and heartbroken for the 2000+professionals I’ve had the pleasure of working with,” Culberson wrote. “The timing of this closure did not give me the chance to thank my team for their commitment and support to our customers and to each other.”
Ten Oaks Group has not issued a statement about the closure. Curtis Griner, managing partner and general counsel for Ten Oaks Group, did not respond to FreightWaves’ request seeking comment about when the former USLS workers should expect to receive their final paychecks and paid time off.
At the time of its closure, the company had undergone several rounds of layoffs in the past few months, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
USLS, a logistics company that provided last-mile handling and distribution of time-sensitive products, had 500 drivers and 732 power units, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s SAFER website. The FMCSA database shows the company’s insurance coverage remains active and its safety scores are far below the national averages for both drivers and vehicle inspections. The trucking company had one fatal crash, five injuries and 12 tow-aways over the past 24-month period.
HEALTH
Potential botulism sparks coffee recall: what consumers need to know!
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) posted a recall by Snapchill LLC of more than 100 coffee products over concerns that they might contain a potentially deadly toxin.
Snapchill said via the FDA announcement earlier this month that it is recalling dozens of its products because “its current process could lead to the growth and production of the deadly toxin in low acid canned foods.”
The coffee products were produced by Snapchill, based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, but they can be sold under different coffee roaster names.
The products include a variety of metal can sizes ranging from seven ounces to 12 ounces, according to the notice. They will have the note, “Produced and distributed by Snapchill LLC” under the nutrition facts panel, or “Snapchill Coffee” on the label.
A full list of recalled products can be accessed via the FDA website. Some of the products are sold under the Bent Tree Coffee, Black Nerd, Cape Cod Coffee, Coffee Hound, Five Grounds, Lanys Coffee, QUIVR, Rusty Dog, Upshot, and other brand names.
Appeals court finds Obamacare mandate unconstitutional!
A federal appeals court has found an Affordable Care Act mandate unconstitutional, although it declined to block the requirement.
A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled on June 21 that the mandate requiring insurers to cover preventive services, such as cancer screenings and HIV prevention drugs, was unconstitutional because the task force issuing these requirements wasn’t appointed by the president or confirmed by the Senate.
The Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare, requires coverage of “preventative care” but doesn’t include a definition of that care. Instead, it requires coverage of preventative services and drugs that receive an A or B rating from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
Members of the task force wield power akin to that of presidentially appointed officers but aren’t appointed by presidents. The task force is completely independent, issuing legally binding ratings without supervision, the panel found.
The ruling only blocks the mandate for businesses that brought a lawsuit over the required coverage, although the case could ultimately lead to the coverage being struck down for all.
Opioid Prescription Rates Plummet by 68% with Chiropractic Intervention, Study Finds
With the opioid epidemic claiming nearly 600,000 lives since 1999,1 could alternative therapies like chiropractic care and acupuncture hold the key to safer pain management?
A recent study published in BMJ Open has found that chiropractic spinal manipulation can significantly reduce the likelihood of patients with low back pain being prescribed tramadol, a commonly used opioid.2 The study, which analyzed over 2,300 patients, found that those who received chiropractic adjustments were 68% less likely to be prescribed tramadol compared to those receiving usual medical care. The impact was seen quickly and lasted the entire year of follow-up.
“This study found that US adults initially receiving chiropractic spinal manipulation for a new index diagnosis of radicular low back pain had a reduced likelihood of receiving a tramadol prescription over 1-year follow-up compared with those receiving usual medical care,” the authors concluded.
Interestingly, the study found both groups had similar use of NSAIDs, physical therapy, and imaging – suggesting it was the chiropractic care itself that made the difference in reducing opioid prescriptions. By offering effective pain relief without drugs, chiropractic may provide a safer avenue for patients to address their back pain.
Acupuncture: More Effective than Morphine
Previous research has already demonstrated the power of acupuncture as a pain management intervention. A groundbreaking study published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine found that acupuncture, a centuries-old practice involving the insertion of thin needles into specific points on the body, was more effective, faster-acting, and had fewer adverse effects than intravenous morphine for acute pain in emergency department patients.
The study, conducted at a university hospital in Tunisia, included 300 patients randomly assigned to receive either acupuncture or morphine. Remarkably, the acupuncture group had a 92% success rate in pain relief compared to 78% in the morphine group. Acupuncture also provided pain relief faster and with significantly fewer side effects.
“Our study demonstrated that in patients with acute pain syndromes presenting to the ED, acupuncture is at least as efficacious and has a better safety profile than IV morphine,” the researchers reported. “The results of this study suggest that acupuncture has a potential role in controlling acute pain conditions presenting to EDs and appears to be safe and effective.”
Faster Pain Relief, Fewer Side Effects
The study also found that acupuncture provided pain relief much faster than morphine. “From the 5-minute time point, the acupuncture group reported significantly larger pain decrease compared with the morphine group. This difference persisted during the entire study period,” the authors noted.
Perhaps most strikingly, the acupuncture group experienced far fewer adverse effects. “Overall, 89 patients (29.3%) experienced minor adverse effects: 85 (56.6%) in morphine group and 4 (2.6%) in acupuncture group; the difference was significant between the 2 groups,” according to the study.
2ND AMENDMENT
Surgeon General declares gun violence a public health crisis
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy is declaring firearm violence in the U.S. a public health crisis, not only for the tens of thousands who die from gun violence each year but also due to far-reaching trauma that impacts the wider population.
In his advisory, the first time a Surgeon General has declared a public health advisory on gun violence, Murthy highlights recent statistics on gun violence in the U.S. which show a consistent rise in deaths due to firearm-related injuries.
“In 2022, 48,204 total people died from firearm‑related injuries, including suicides, homicides, and unintentional deaths,” the advisory stated. “This is over 8,000 more lives lost than in 2019 and over 16,000 more lives lost than in 2010.”
According to Murthy, it’s not just firearm deaths, which reached a record high in 2021, that have created a crisis, but also the “major reverberations” that stem from them.
“We have for every one person who loses their life to gun violence, we have two individuals who survive that are injured. We have people who witness the impact of these incidences, these episodes of violence, and then suffer often the mental health consequences in the form of depression, anxiety and PTSD,” Murthy told The Hill.
The results of a national survey included in the advisory show that 54 percent of adults have personally experienced or have a family member who’s experienced a firearm-related incident. Roughly a fifth of those surveyed have been threatened by a firearm and the same percentage of respondents say they have a family member who’s died by a firearm.
Murthy noted how gun violence disproportionately affects young people and children.
“Gun violence is now the leading cause of death among kids. That was not true five years ago, it was not true 10 years ago, it is true now. And that in my mind should be alarming to all of us,” he said.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Robots Integrate Biometrics for Parcel Delivery, Security, and Military Operations
Tech firms have announced the development and testing of robotic systems with biometric capabilities aimed at enhancing operational efficiency and security surveillance.
Hyundai Motor Group, for instance, has created robotics that integrate facial recognition for smart buildings. Similarly, Kody Technolab has deployed surveillance and service robots at the Tuneland Music Festival in India.
In addition, countries like the United States and China are incorporating rifle-armed robot dogs into their militaries.
Hyundai develops intra-building delivery robot for smart office
Hyundai Motor Group has designed the DAL-e Delivery, an autonomous robot for intra-building delivery. It is equipped with an AI face identification system for navigation within the smart office environment of Factorial Seongsu in Seoul. The biometric integration allows the robot to enhance security and efficiency by identifying delivery recipients.
For autonomous navigation, the DAL-e Delivery robot is synced with the building’s elevator and door control system, enabling it to move freely across different floors and rooms. It is equipped with an 11.6-inch high-resolution display that provides detailed information about the service status to operators and recipients.
Crowdfunding for personal AI companion robot
After two successful robotic crowdfunding campaigns, Luwu Intelligence has introduced another project: XGO-Rider, a desktop wheel-legged robot. The module integrates image-based AI features such as gesture recognition, face detection, and skeleton recognition using the TensorFlow-based MediaPipe framework.
Robot with facial recognition at music festival in India
During the recent Tuneland Music Festival in Gandhinagar, India, Kody Technolab deployed two of its robotics -– known as Athena and Dasher — to handle security and service tasks, ensuring the safety of more than 35,000 attendees.
Athena is equipped with 360-degree cameras that provide high-definition recording coverage of the festival grounds. Its advanced computer vision capabilities enable the robot to capture vehicle plate numbers and associate them with specific locations, facilitating vehicle plate recognition and monitoring of vehicles within its operational area.
Athena also incorporates a facial recognition system, according to a post on the Interesting Engineering blog. The lack of clarity on the specific databases used for this purpose is raising privacy and security concerns.
“The deployment of Athena and Dasher at the Tuneland Music Festival is a testament to the vast possibilities that robotics holds for improving both security and service in public spaces,” says Manav Patel, founder of Kody Technolab Limited.
Chinese, US militaries add new robotic weapons to their arsenal
The Chinese military unveiled the Go2 robotic weapon, a gun-wielding robotic dog, during joint military exercises with Cambodia, as reported by CNN. This robot dog is armed with an automatic rifle mounted on its back and is accompanied by a similarly equipped quadcopter.
In a YouTube video showcasing the Chinese Go2 robot dog, a soldier can be seen controlling it with a handheld device, indicating that human oversight is still required for its operation. Despite their advanced capabilities, both the robotic dog and drone appear to have been modified for consumer products.
GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
Why You Should Grow A Clover Lawn Instead Of Grass
Here are compelling reasons why you should consider growing a clover lawn instead of grass.
Traditional grass lawns have long been the standard for residential landscaping, but they come with significant maintenance demands and environmental costs.
In contrast, clover lawns offer numerous benefits, making them an increasingly popular alternative. Clover is not only low-maintenance and eco-friendly but also adds aesthetic and practical value to your yard.
Here are compelling reasons why you should consider growing a clover lawn instead of grass.
- Low Maintenance
Reduced Mowing Needs
Clover grows lower to the ground than most grass varieties, reducing the frequency and effort required for mowing.
Minimal Watering
Clover is drought-resistant and requires significantly less water than traditional grass lawns.
- Eco-Friendly
Natural Fertilizer
Clover is a nitrogen-fixing plant, meaning it enriches the soil by converting atmospheric nitrogen into a form that plants can use.
Attracts Pollinators
Clover flowers attract bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects, supporting local biodiversity.
- Cost-Effective
Lower Lawn Care Costs
Maintaining a clover lawn is less expensive than a traditional grass lawn due to reduced watering, fertilizing, and mowing requirements.
- Aesthetic Appeal
Year-Round Green
Clover stays green throughout the growing season and often remains vibrant longer into the fall than grass.
Soft Texture
Clover’s soft, cushiony texture makes it pleasant to walk on, especially for barefoot activities.
- Weed Suppression
Dense Growth
Clover grows densely, outcompeting many common lawn weeds and reducing the need for herbicides.
- Soil Improvement
Erosion Control
Clover’s deep root system helps prevent soil erosion, especially on slopes and in areas prone to runoff.
How to Establish a Clover Lawn
Choosing the Right Clover
There are several types of clover to consider, with white clover (Trifolium repens) being the most common for lawns.
Tips:
- White Clover: Ideal for most lawns due to its low-growing habit and resilience.
- Microclover: A newer variety that blends well with grass, offering a traditional lawn appearance with the benefits of clover.
COVID RELATED NEWS
UK Government destroys £1.4bn of PPE from one Covid deal
About £1.4bn worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) has been destroyed or written off in what is understood to be the most wasteful government deal of the pandemic.
Figures obtained by the BBC reveal that at least 1.57 billion items of PPE provided by the NHS supplier, Full Support Healthcare, will never be used, despite being manufactured to the proper standard.
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), which was responsible for purchasing and delivering Covid PPE, said: “We do not recognise the £1.4bn quoted. Our position on PPE stock is set out in the department’s annual accounts as audited by the National Audit Office.”
The Labour Party described the contract as a “staggering waste” while the Liberal Democrats said it was a “colossal misuse of public funds”.
Explosive peer-to-peer reviewed study: 74% of COVID-19 deaths linked to the jab!
Technocracy News is calling out a previously censored paper from The Lancet, which has now undergone peer review and is available online.
“Should The Lancet staff be held liable for deaths that resulted after it censored this now-peer- reviewed paper? Not likely. However, the Big Pharma narrative has fallen apart. The shots have been declared ineffective, and the 8th Circuit Court recently ruled that mRNA injections are NOT vaccines. This means that the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) granted by the FDA was illegal. Thus, all shot recipients were tricked into a horrific medical experiment.
Call it what it is: A war against all humans in which “crimes against humanity” are seen wherever you look. I declared war on Technocracy on December 18, 2015 – nine years ago. It was clear back then, and now we are piling up the bodies and nursing the wounded. We have yet to mount a defense,” Patrick Wood stated.
The study, titled “A Systematic Review of Autopsy Findings in Deaths After COVID-19 Vaccination,” analyzed 325 autopsy cases and found that a staggering 73.9% of deaths were either directly due to or significantly contributed to by the COVID-19 vaccination.
The paper’s lead author, Dr. Nicolas Hulscher, faced significant opposition in bringing these findings to light. After initially being downloaded over 100,000 times, The Lancet removed the paper within 24 hours, according to Dr. William Makis.
According to The Daily Sceptic, the reason given at the time was, “This preprint has been removed by Preprints with the Lancet because the study’s conclusions are not supported by the study methodology.”
CANCEL CULTURE
Infowars Bankruptcy: BK Trustee wants to shut down the Infowars media platform!
A U.S. bankruptcy court trustee is planning to shut down Alex Jones’ Infowars media platform and liquidate its assets to help pay the $1.5 billion in lawsuit judgments.
In an “emergency” motion filed Sunday in Houston, trustee Christopher Murray indicated publicly for the first time that he intends to “conduct an orderly wind-down” of the operations of Infowars’ parent company and “liquidate its inventory.” Murray, who was appointed by a federal judge to oversee the assets in Jones’ personal bankruptcy case, did not give a timetable for the liquidation.
Jones has been saying on his web and radio shows that he expects Infowars to operate for a few more months before it is shut down because of the bankruptcy. But he has vowed to continue his bombastic broadcasts in some other fashion, possibly on social media. He also had talked about someone else buying the company and allowing him to continue his shows as an employee.
Murray also asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez to put an immediate hold on the Sandy Hook families’ efforts to collect the massive amount Jones owes them. Murray said those efforts would interfere with his plans to close the parent company, Free Speech Systems in Austin, Texas, and sell off its assets — with much of the proceeds going to the families.
On Friday, lawyers for the parents of one of the 20 children killed in the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, asked a state judge in Texas to order Free Speech Systems, or FSS, to turn over to the families certain assets, including money in bank accounts, and garnish its accounts. Judge Maya Guerra Gamble approved the request, court records show, prompting Murray’s emergency motion.
The parents, Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose 6-year-old son, Jesse Lewis, was killed in the shooting, won a $50 million verdict in Texas over Jones’ lies about the shooting being a hoax staged by crisis actors with the goal of increasing gun control. In a separate Connecticut lawsuit, Jones was ordered to pay other Sandy Hook families more than $1.4 billion for defamation and emotional distress.
Referring to the families’ collection efforts, Murray said in the Sunday court filing that “The specter of a pell-mell seizure of FSS’s assets, including its cash, threatens to throw the business into chaos, potentially stopping it in its tracks, to the detriment” of his duties in Jones’ personal bankruptcy case.
“The Trustee seeks this Court’s intervention to prevent a value-destructive money grab and allow an orderly process to take its course,” Murray said.
Murray also asked the judge to clarify his authority over Jones’ bank accounts. As part of Jones’ personal bankruptcy case, his ownership rights of FSS were turned over to Murray. Jones has been continuing his daily broadcasts in the meantime.
It was not immediately clear when the bankruptcy judge would address Murray’s motion.
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