WORLD NEWS
Paraguay Elections: Conservatives Sweep Presidency, Congress, Governorships
Santiago Peña of Paraguay’s incumbent conservative Colorado Party won the presidency of the South American nation in Sunday’s general elections with 42.74 percent of the votes, defeating leftist opposition candidate Efraín Alegre by a roughly 15-point margin.
The long-ruling Colorado Party also obtained a majority in both houses of the Paraguayan Congress and won in 15 out of the nation’s 17 state governor races.
Sudan Crisis: Chaos as Thousands Flee to Port, Evacuations Suspended
The BBC reported “chaos” at Port Sudan, even hours after midnight on Sunday, as thousands of foreigners and Sudanese frantically tried to get out of the country before vicious warfare between rival junta factions resumed in earnest.
Even the ostensible ceasefire negotiated last week, and extended for another 72 hours on Monday, has not prevented heavy fighting around the capital city of Khartoum.
EXCLUSIVE: DPS Video Captures Eco Devastation as Thousands of Migrants Cross Border to Texas
A video shot by the Texas Department of Public Safety shows the ecological disaster created by the more than 24,000 migrants who crossed the border near Brownsville in just over two weeks. The video shows the trash and waste left behind by the mostly Venezuelan migrants crossing from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, to Brownsville.
DPS spokesman Lt. Chris Olivarez provided a video to Breitbart Texas that he shot while walking along the northern bank of the Rio Grande on Friday. The video captures the images of what is left behind for taxpayers to clean up and remove.
‘Total Shock’: MasterChef Star Jock Zonfrillo Dies Suddenly at Age 46
MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo has died suddenly at the age of 46, with Melbourne Police discovering his body in the early hours of Monday morning.
Scottish-Australian restaurateur Jock Zonfrillo, who has served as a host of the popular spinnoff of the Gordon Ramsey programme down under since 2019, was found dead in his home on Monday.
At the time of this reporting police have not released any information on the cause of death, however, detectives told the Daily Mail Australia that the reality show star’s death did not appear to be suspicious.
German Law Legalising Prostitution Has Failed, Politicians Judge
Germany’s experiment in legalising prostitution and taxing their income has failed, and a better approach is needed a group of lawmakers have said.
Laws attempting to regulate prostitution in Germany have reportedly failed abysmally according to opposition politicians in the country, who are now calling for the selling of sex to be once again made illegal.
Canadian Folk Singer Gordon Lightfoot Dead at 84
Canadian folk singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot died in Toronto on Monday at the age of 84 after a long and storied career.
One of Canada’s most beloved artists having written songs that documented the country’s history and culture, the musician reportedly died at the hospital. Per the Associated Press (AP):
Over 100 police officers injured during French Labor Day protests
Violent clashes erupted across the country as part of continuing demonstrations against controversial pension reforms
Almost 300 protesters were arrested during massive French Labor Day demonstrations against controversial pension reforms on Monday. More than 100 police officers were injured during the unrest, according to local authorities.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Monday that police had detained a total of 291 people nationwide, 111 of whom were arrested in Paris. He noted that at least 108 officers had been wounded, a figure he described as “extremely rare” for a protest on May 1.
In the French capital alone, a total of 25 officers were injured, with one suffering serious burns to the face and hands after being hit by a Molotov cocktail, the minister said.
Darmanin put the total number of people who attended protests across the country at 782,000. However, the CGT trade union disputed this figure, claiming that almost 2.3 million people took to the streets nationwide.
Taxpayer ripoff or bargain? The cost of the British royal family
Critics of the monarchy say it is outdated and a waste of money, but supporters argue it more than pays its way.
The coronation of King Charles III on Saturday is again shining the global spotlight on every aspect of the British royal family, including their cost to the public.
The issue of cost is especially germane as the United Kingdom grapples with one of Europe’s worst cost-of-living crises amid double-digit inflation.
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Another One? U.S. Military Tracking New Mystery Balloon Near Hawaii
The U.S. Department of (DoD) confirmed Monday it is following the path of a mystery high-altitude balloon crossing over American territory.
A manhunt is underway by local, state, and federal officials 26 hours after one of two illegal aliens, accused of murdering K9 officer and sheriff’s deputy Ned Byrd last year, escaped from Piedmont Regional Jail in Prince Edward County, Virginia.
President Joe Biden’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is refusing to comment on the suspect accused of killing five individuals, including a nine-year-old boy, in Cleveland, Texas. The accused killer is a four-time deported illegal alien from Mexico.
Big Spend: Since 2006, 103 rank-and-file agencies outside of the Department of Defense (DOD) spent $3.7 billion on guns, ammunition, and military-style equipment (inflation adjusted to CPI). 27 of those agencies are traditional law enforcement under the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
However, 76 agencies are pencil-pushing, regulatory agencies, i.e. Environment Protection Agency (EPA), Social Security Administration (SSA), Veterans Affairs (VA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and many others.
Headcounts: There are now more federal agents with arrest and firearm authority (200,000) than U.S. Marines (186,000).
American Airlines pilots authorize a strike mandate
North American pilots took fresh steps on Monday to press for workforce gains, with American Airlines Group Inc (AAL.O) pilots backing a strike mandate and Air Canada (AC.TO) pilots supporting a merger with a larger union.
American Airlines pilots approved the mandate ahead of the busy summer travel season to further pressure the Texas-based carrier for a contract, although the chances of them actually walking off the job remain slim.
A relatively little-known Republican presidential candidate wants to shut down the FBI and replace it with a new bureau that sounds a lot like the FBI.
If you’re confused about 2024 GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy‘s proposal, you’re not alone.
MSNBC’s Chuck Todd called Ramaswamy’s plan to shutter the FBI “a bit of a head-scratcher for me” during an interview with the candidate on Sunday’s “Meet the Press.”
“I didn’t say defund the FBI. I said shut down the FBI and replace it with something new,” said Ramaswamy, an “anti-woke” biotech millionaire. “I think it’s a new apparatus built from scratch that actually respects the law instead of making it up.”
“So, you’re going to replace the FBI with a new FBI?” Todd asked.
The candidate has also suggested shutting down the Department of Education, limiting the Federal Reserve, and sending US troops to the Mexican border, according to The Washington Post.
“I personally believe someone who’s running to actually run the executive branch of the government, when you have a bureaucracy whose culture becomes so ossified, every once in a while, you need to turn it over,” said Ramaswamy, who notably has no political experience.
Glenn Youngkin Announces He Will Not Run for President in 2024
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) ended speculation about a potential presidential run in 2024 when he confirmed on Monday that he would not seek the nation’s highest office.
“No,” Youngkin told Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker when asked if he would be “dusting off” his signature fleece vest he became known for during his successful gubernatorial campaign.
Democrat Jay Inslee Will Not Seek Fourth Term as Washington Governor
Progressive Gov. Jay Inslee (D-WA) revealed Monday that he will not seek reelection for another term as governor.
Inslee’s announcement came Monday after months of speculation regarding a potential reelection bid for a fourth term as governor, Seattle Times political reporter Jim Brunner noted Monday.
“During a decade of dynamic change, we’ve made Washington a beacon for progress for the nation,” touted Inslee in a press release.
A 13-year-old dies after participating in a Benadryl TikTok ‘challenge’
A 13-year-old in Ohio has died after “he took a bunch of Benadryl,” trying a dangerous TikTok challenge that’s circulating online, according to a CNN affiliate and a GoFundMe account from his family.
Jacob Stevens was participating in a TikTok challenge with some friends at home when he ingested the antihistamine, the family donation account states. Jacob was on a ventilator for almost a week before he died, according to WSYX.
2ND AMENDMENT
Alleged Catalytic Converter Thief Shot by Store Employee
An alleged catalytic converter thief was shot and wounded by a furniture store employee in San Antonio, Texas, just before 7:00 a.m. on Monday.
KSAT reported that the furniture store employee arrived at work and saw the suspect “running out of the back of the business.”
HEALTH
New Benefit of Echinacea Discovered
Echinacea’s immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects are well-known, but its potential psychotropic effects are just beginning to be explored. Now, researchers believe this herbal remedy may even offer anxiety relief
Echinacea, also known as coneflower, is one of the most commonly used herbal products, valued traditionally for immune system support and relief from respiratory symptoms.[i] Native Americans used echinacea for hundreds of years to treat respiratory infections, colds, coughs, bronchitis and more.[ii]
While its immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activities are well-known, at our echinacea research database you can learn about 130 diseases that this herbal remedy may benefit. With at least 54 known pharmacological actions, emerging evidence also suggests echinacea has anxiety-relieving and mood-enhancing effects.[iii]
Echinacea for Anxiety Relief
In 2010, researchers showed for the first time that echinacea had anxiety-relieving effects in an animal study.[iv] In 2013, a study again found that echinacea extract reduced anxiety in rats.[v] The team then tested echinacea extract in humans, administering one or two tablets containing 20 milligrams (mg) of the plant extract daily for one week.
The higher, two-tablet dose decreased anxiety after just three days, “an effect that remained stable for the duration of the treatment (seven days) and for the two weeks that followed treatment,” the researchers noted. In 2020, another study — a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial — tested 40 mg of echinacea daily for seven days among adults with anxiety.
Echinacea led to significant decreases in anxiety scores compared to placebo, suggesting “particular echinacea preparations have significant beneficial effects on anxiety in humans.”[vi]
Antidepressant Effects of Echinacea Uncovered
Again in 2021, researchers looked into echinacea’s psychotropic effects, this time giving adults with mild- to moderately severe anxiety a placebo, 20-mg dose of echinacea or 40-mg dose of echinacea twice daily for six weeks.[vii]
While both doses of echinacea led to reductions in anxiety, the reductions were not significantly different than those in the placebo group. However, both echinacea groups had greater improvements in positive and negative affect and emotional well-being compared to placebo.
Positive affect describes the degree to which you feel interested, excited, proud, alert, inspired, enthusiastic and other positive feelings. Negative effect includes feelings like hostility, irritability, shame and fear.
“Low levels of positive affect have been shown to predict the onset of depression and are associated with increased severity in depressive symptoms,” the researchers noted. So the findings that echinacea boosts positive affect and lowers negative affect, while also improving emotional well-being scores, “suggests echinacea may have antidepressant effects.”[viii]
Echinacea May Influence the Cannabinoid System
Several of the studies used an echinacea extract with a standardized amount of alkamides, compounds in echinacea believed to be associated with its anxiety-reducing effects, likely by influencing cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors.[ix]
It’s believed that echinacea’s anxiety-relieving effects may be linked to the cannabinoid system, which is a network of chemical signals and cellular receptors that regulates learning, memory, emotional processing, sleep and much more throughout the body.[x] The cannabinoid system has been linked to not only anxiety but also depressive symptoms.
It’s also likely that echinacea’s powerful immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects are involved in its mood-boosting potential. According to research published in the Journal of Effective Disorders
“Another potential mechanism that may be associated with echinacea’s antidepressant effects is via its anti-inflammatory influence. There is a strong body of evidence confirming echinacea has immunomodulatory effects. Because depression is associated with chronic, low-grade inflammation, echinacea’s anti-inflammatory effects may potentially be responsible for its antidepressant influences.”
CDC Survey Finds Record Low Number of Adult Cigarette Smokers as Adult Vaping Increases
When 14 academic public health experts wrote in the American Journal of Public Health in 2021 supporting e‑cigarettes as a powerful tobacco harm reduction tool, it mostly fell on deaf ears. San Francisco and other cities have since banned the sale of all vaping products, and several states, including California, have imposed bans on sales of flavored vaping products and, in some cases, the online sale of all vaping products.
Now The Hill reports preliminary survey results from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that only 11 percent of adults are tobacco smokers, down from 12.5 percent in 2021 and 2020. The survey also found that vaping among adults increased from 4.5 percent to 6 percent during the same period.
The survey finds teen and adolescent vaping is on the increase: roughly 14.1 percent of high schoolers and 3.3 percent of middle schoolers are vaping. This is occurring despite efforts by the Food and Drug Administration and several states to ban flavored vaping.
Bans on flavored vaping are rooted in the fact that teen vapers prefer the fruit, candy, or menthol flavors over the tobacco flavor. But e‑cigarette sales to those under 18 have been prohibited since 2016, so the teens are already tapping the black or grey market to vape. And while teen vaping has been increasing, teen tobacco smoking is at an all‐time low.
Yet research shows that fruit or candy‐flavored e‑cigarettes are not determinants of teen vapers moving on to tobacco. And a study published in the May 2021 issue of Nicotine and Tobacco Research by researchers at Brown and Harvard Universities finds, “E‑cigarette use is largely concentrated among youth who share characteristics with smokers of the pre‐vaping era, suggesting e‑cigarettes may have replaced cigarette smoking.” Dr. Natasha Sokol, one of the study’s authors, told Filter journalist Alex Norcia, “The decline in youth smoking really accelerated after the availability of e‑cigarettes.”
Meanwhile, efforts to reduce teen vaping deprive adult tobacco smokers of a proven harm‐reduction strategy. It turns out that most adult tobacco smokers who wish to quit prefer flavored and menthol e‑cigarettes as more effective substitutes. The authors of the 2021 American Journal of Public Health article warned, “Policies intended to reduce adolescent vaping may also reduce adult smokers’ use of e‑cigarettes in quit attempts.”
Loneliness: Causes and Health Consequences
Loneliness is a universal human emotion that is both complex and unique to each individual. Because it has no single common cause, the prevention and treatment of this potentially damaging state of mind can vary dramatically.
For example, a lonely child who struggles to make friends at school has different needs than a lonely older adult whose spouse has recently died.
This article discusses what we mean by the term “lonely,” as well as the various causes, health consequences, symptoms, and potential treatments for loneliness.
Health Risks Associated With Loneliness
Loneliness has a wide range of negative effects on both physical and mental health,4
including:
- Alcohol and drug misuse
- Altered brain function
- Alzheimer’s disease progression
- Antisocial behavior
- Cardiovascular disease and stroke5
- Decreased memory and learning
- Depression and suicide
- Increased stress levels
- Poor decision-making
These are not the only areas in which loneliness takes its toll. For example, lonely adults get less exercise than those who are not lonely.6 Their diet is higher in fat, their sleep is less efficient, and they report more daytime fatigue. Loneliness also disrupts the regulation of cellular processes deep within the body, predisposing lonely people to premature aging.
Close Friends Help Combat Loneliness
Statistics suggest that loneliness is becoming increasingly prevalent, particularly in younger generations. According to one 2019 survey, 25% of adults between the ages of 18 and 27 reported having no close friends, while 22% reported having no friends at all.
The rise of the internet and ironically, social media, are partially to blame.
Having a few close friends is enough to ward off loneliness and reduce the negative health consequences associated with this state of mind. Research suggests that the experience of actual face-to-face contact with friends helps boost people’s sense of well-being.
Tips to Prevent and Overcome Loneliness
Loneliness can be overcome. It does require a conscious effort to make a change. In the long run, making a change can make you happier, healthier, and enable you to impact others around you in a positive way.
Here are some ways to prevent loneliness:
- Consider community service or another activity that you enjoy. These situations present great opportunities to meet people and cultivate new friendships and social interactions.
- Expect the best. Lonely people often expect rejection, so instead, try focusing on positive thoughts and attitudes in your social relationships.
- Focus on developing quality relationships. Seek people who share similar attitudes, interests, and values with you.
- Recognize that loneliness is a sign that something needs to change. Don’t expect things to change overnight, but you can start taking steps that will help relieve your feelings of loneliness and build connections that support your well-being.
- Understand the effects of loneliness on your life. There are physical and mental repercussions to loneliness. If you recognize some of these symptoms affecting how you feel, make a conscious effort to combat them.
- Join a group or start your own. For example, you might try creating a Meetup group where people from your area with similar interests can get together. You might also consider taking a class at a community college, joining a book club, or taking an exercise class.
- Strengthen a current relationship. Building new connections is important, but improving your existing relationships can also be a great way to combat loneliness. Try calling a friend or family member you have spoken to in a while.
- Talk to someone you can trust. Reaching out to someone in your life to talk about what you are feeling is important. This can be someone you know such as a family member, but you might also consider talking to your doctor or a therapist. Online therapy can be a great option because it allows you to contact a therapist whenever it is convenient for you.
>>Related: 18 Things to Do on Your Birthday When You’re Alone
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
BP’s profits labelled ‘heinous’ as calls grow for tougher windfall tax
Oil and gas company beats analysts’ forecasts, with profits reaching $5bn in first three months of year
Bumper profits at BP have been labelled “heinous” and sparked renewed calls for a tougher windfall tax, after the oil and gas giant recorded one of its best ever starts to the year while Britons struggled to pay high energy bills.
The energy company said its underlying profits reached $5bn (£4bn) in the first three months of the year, outstripping analysts’ forecasts of $4.3bn.
It represents the second-best results for the first quarter that it has notched up since 2012, when it made $4.7bn, behind last year’s $6.2bn.
BP said its results had been boosted by reduced refining costs, an “exceptional” result in its gas trading arm and a “very strong oil trading result”. Volatility in the energy markets has increased revenues in the trading divisions of oil companies.
The company said it would reward investors, buying back $1.75bn of its own shares, a slowdown on the $2.75bn bought during the previous quarter. Shares fell almost 4% on Tuesday morning, making it one of the top fallers on the FTSE 100.
The results will return attention to the debate over whether oil and gas firms should face a harsher windfall tax on their profits.
Paul Nowak, the TUC general secretary, said oil and gas companies were treating the British public “like cash machines”.
He said: “These eye-watering profits are an insult to working families as millions struggle with sky-high bills. The government has left billions on the table by refusing to impose a proper windfall tax on the likes of BP. And even now ministers are refusing to take action to fix our broken energy market and stop this obscene price gouging.
“We could have lower household bills and an energy system that served the public, if government taxed excessive profits, introduced a social tariff and created public ownership of new clean power.”
Global Justice Now, the campaign group, said: “Today’s heinous profits from BP are another kick in the teeth to the millions of people who can’t afford to heat their homes.”
Labour on Monday night called for the energy profits levy, introduced last year, to be made tougher to fund a freeze on council tax for cash-strapped households.
Dollar being ‘gradually abandoned’ – IMF boss
Kristalina Georgieva says there are no viable alternatives for a global reserve currency
The managing director of the International Monetary Fund (
IMF) has said the US dollar is gradually losing its status as the world’s main reserve currency.
Speaking on Monday, Kristalina Georgieva noted that there is no viable alternative among global currencies to replace the greenback in the near future.
“There has been gradual shift away from the dollar, it was 70% of reserves, now it is slightly under 60%,” Georgieva stated at the 2023 Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California.
According to the IMF chief, the euro can be viewed as the biggest competitor to the dollar, while the British pound, the Japanese yen and the Chinese yuan “play a very modest role.”
She stressed that the leading factor for trust in the currency of this or that country is the strength of its economy and the depth of its capital markets.
Yellen Sounds Alarm on Possible June 1 Default If Biden, Congress Fail to Pass Debt Limit Bill
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen projected Monday that the U.S. could run out of cash to pay its bills as early as June 1.
Yellen made the estimation in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), writing that the nation would reach its debt ceiling by at least early June based on current data.
Netflix is winding down its DVD business after 25 years
Netflix is officially winding down the business that helped make it a household name.
This fall, the streaming giant will officially say goodbye to its DVD rental service and all of the red envelopes that made it possible.
“On September 29th, 2023, we will send out the last red envelope,” the company tweeted Tuesday. “It has been a true pleasure and honor to deliver movie nights to our wonderful members for 25 years.”
The Banking Collapse Of 2023 Is Now Officially Bigger Than The Banking Collapse Of 2008 Was
Yes, you read the headline correctly. Collectively, the three big banks that have collapsed in 2023 had more assets than all 25 banks that collapsed in 2008 did. Unfortunately, the banking collapse of 2023 is far from over. We still have eight more months to go before this year is done, and many more banks are currently teetering on the brink of disaster. Executives at those banks are telling us not to worry, but of course executives at First Republic were issuing similar assurances just last week. Personally, I had heard that First Republic supposedly had enough reserves to keep going for months. But that was a lie, and now First Republic is toast. The following comes from the official statement that the FDIC issued when it took over the bank…
First Republic Bank, San Francisco, California, was closed today by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect depositors, the FDIC is entering into a purchase and assumption agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, Columbus, Ohio, to assume all of the deposits and substantially all of the assets of First Republic Bank.
JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association submitted a bid for all of First Republic Bank’s deposits. As part of the transaction, First Republic Bank’s 84 offices in eight states will reopen as branches of JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, today during normal business hours. All depositors of First Republic Bank will become depositors of JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, and will have full access to all of their deposits.
The government was not going to allow just anyone to snap up the assets of First Republic.
JPMorgan Chase was one of the institutions that was invited to make a bid, and they came out of this process as the big winners…
JPMorgan is getting about $92 billion in deposits in the deal, which includes the $30 billion that it and other large banks put into First Republic last month. The bank is taking on $173 billion in loans and $30 billion in securities as well.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation agreed to absorb most of the losses on mortgages and commercial loans that JPMorgan is getting, and also provided it with a $50 billion credit line.
In addition to providing JPMorgan Chase with a 50 billion dollar credit line, the FDIC will also take a loss on this deal of approximately 13 billion dollars. So they are definitely one of the big losers in this deal…
Needless to say, the biggest losers of all are the shareholders of First Republic.
And the U.S. Treasury is telling us that the U.S. banking system “remains sound and resilient”…
‘The banking system remains sound and resilient, and Americans should feel confident in the safety of their deposits and the ability of the banking system to fulfil its essential function of providing credit to businesses and families,’ a Treasury spokesperson said.
Does reading that make you feel better?
It shouldn’t.
They always offer such platitudes before things start getting really bad.
As I noted at the beginning of this article, the three banks that have collapsed so far this year were collectively bigger than all of the banks that collapsed in 2008 combined…
The three banks held a combined total of $532 billion in assets, which – according to the New York Times and when adjusted for inflation – is more than the $526 billion held by all the US banks that collapsed in 2008 at the peak of the financial crisis.
We are only one-third of the way through 2023.
The System Is Starting To Unravel At A Pace That Is Absolutely Breathtaking
It should have been apparent to everyone that the dark clouds on the horizon would bring a storm, and now rain is furiously falling all around us. Our entire system is being viciously shaken, and the dominoes are going to continue to fall in the months ahead. Once Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank went down, we all knew that it was just a matter of time before more large banks started to implode. Now First Republic has failed, and over the weekend U.S. regulators were working very hard to arrange a sale…
U.S. regulators have been trying to clinch a sale of First Republic over the weekend, with roughly half a dozen banks bidding, sources said on Saturday, in what is likely to be the third major U.S. bank to fail in two months. Guggenheim Securities is advising the FDIC, two sources familiar with the matter said on Saturday.
A Torrent Of Layoffs! Here Are 16 Large Companies That Have Just Announced Mass Terminations
The biggest companies in the United States are giving the axe to hundreds of thousands of workers, but this should not come as a shock to any of us. Officials at the Federal Reserve were warned over and over again that they were going to create an extremely harsh economic environment if they aggressively raised interest rates, and that is exactly what has transpired. We haven’t seen a tsunami of layoffs like this since 2008 and 2009, and the outlook for the months ahead is extremely bleak.
Many of us warned the Fed that it would be mind-numbingly stupid to push interest rates much higher just as we were entering a major economic downturn, but of course the Fed didn’t want to listen.
We were told that they are the “experts” and that they knew precisely what they were doing.
And now a nightmare scenario is playing out right in front of our eyes.
The following are 16 large companies that have just announced mass terminations…
#1 Tyson: “Tyson Foods Inc (TSN.N) will eliminate about 10% of corporate jobs and 15% of senior leadership roles, Chief Executive Donnie King told employees on Wednesday.”
#2 Lyft: “Ride-hailing app Lyft will lay off 1,072 employees, roughly 26% of its corporate workforce, and won’t hire for an additional 250 positions, the company said in an SEC filing Thursday.”
#3 Deloitte: “Deloitte will cut around 1,200 jobs or 1.5% of its U.S. workforce, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing internal employee communications.”
#4 Gap: “Gap will lay off about 1,800 employees, more than three times as many as the 500 layoffs it announced in September, as part of a broad effort to cut costs and streamline operations, the company said Thursday.”
#5 Ernst & Young: “Ernst & Young said Monday that it would eliminate roughly 3,000 jobs from its US workforce as it pivots to address shifts in demand and “overcapacity” in sections of its business.”
#6 3M: “The manufacturing behemoth behind some consumer brands, including Post-It Notes and Scotch Tape, said it would lay off 6,000 staff around the world. Those cuts are in addition to the 2,500 manufacturing roles 3M eliminated in January.”
#7 CDW: “CDW’s bombshell announcement this week that it expects first fiscal quarter results below expectations and the apparent layoff of hundreds of its employees is a sign that moderated technology demand since the height of the pandemic is more than just a one-quarter strain for hardware, software and services businesses.”
#8 David’s Bridal: “One of the largest sellers of wedding gowns in the United States, David’s Bridal is laying off thousands of workers nationwide, according to a notice filed to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor.”
#9 DropBox: “Shares of Dropbox are trading about 5% higher today after the company said it plans to slash its global workforce by approximately 16%.”
#10 Red Hat: “Following parent company IBM announcing thousands of layoffs in 2023, Red Hat CEO Matt Hicks told employees Monday that approximately 4 percent of its global workforce will be laid off.”
#11 Opendoor: “Opendoor Technologies on Tuesday said it was cutting roughly 560 jobs, or 22% of the workforce at the online U.S. real estate firm, citing a declining housing market.”
#12 First Republic: “First Republic plans to reduce its workforce between 20% and 25% this quarter following “unprecedented” deposit outflows in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse last month, the company said in a regulatory filing on Monday.”
#13 Walmart: “Walmart is laying off more than 2,000 workers at five US warehouses that fulfill website orders in a move that came weeks after America’s largest private employer warned it’s in for a tough year ahead.”
#14 Facebook: “A layoff notice filed with the state this week shows Facebook’s parent company Meta plans to let go 343 employees across three Manhattan offices.”
#15 Amazon: “Amazon has officially started up its most recent round of employee reductions. The company is kicking off its previously announced layoffs of ~9,000 staff by axing workers in its Amazon Web Services (AWS) and human resources sectors.”
#16 Disney: “Disney is laying off several thousand workers across the company this week in the second and largest wave of cuts as part of the media giant’s previously announced plan to slash its workforce by 7,000 employees.”
Sadly, these are not isolated examples.
According to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, during the first three months of this year job cuts in the United States were 396 percent higher than they were during the same period a year ago…
Companies announced nearly 90,000 layoffs in March, a sharp step up from the previous month and a giant acceleration from a year ago, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported Thursday.
Planned layoffs totaled 89,703 for the period, an increase of 15% from February. Year to date, job cuts have soared to 270,416, an increase of 396% from the same period a year ago.
The damage was especially bad in tech, which has announced 102,391 cuts so far in 2023. That’s a staggering increase of 38,487% from a year ago and good for 38% of all staff reductions. Tech already has cut 5% more than for all of 2022, according to the report, and is on pace to eclipse 2001, the worst year ever amid the dot-com bust.
Please take a moment to digest those numbers, because they are absolutely staggering.
Hollywood Writers Will Go on Strike, Halting TV and Film Production – The New York Times
Hollywood’s 15 years of labor peace was shattered Tuesday, as movie and television writers went on strike, bringing many productions to a halt and dealing a blow to an industry that has been rocked in recent years by the pandemic and sweeping technological shifts.
The unions representing the writers said in a statement, hours before their three-year contract expired at midnight Pacific time, that they had “voted unanimously to call a strike.” Writers will begin walking picket lines on Tuesday afternoon.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of Hollywood companies, said in a statement that its offer included “generous increases in compensation for writers.” The organization added that it remained willing to keep negotiating.
The primary sticking points, according to the studios, involve union proposals that would require companies to staff television shows with a certain number of writers for a specified period of time “whether needed or not.”
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
‘Godfather of AI’ Resigns from Google, Warns of the Danger of Artificial Intelligence
Renowned AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton has quit his job at Google to voice his concerns about the risks associated with generative AI, the technology behind popular chatbots like ChatGPT and Google Bard.
The New York Times reports that Geoffrey Hinton, a pioneer in artificial intelligence, has resigned from his position at Google in order to express his concerns about the potential dangers of generative AI technology.
Microsoft is planning to kill off Windows 10 in 2025 – does this confirm Windows 11?
Rumors are swirling that Microsoft will announce a new version of Windows, potentially called Windows 11, imminently, and its plans to stop supporting Windows 10 by October 14, 2025 appear to confirm this.
On Microsoft’s Windows 10 Home and Pro Lifecycle Policy page, the company states that it will “continue to support at least one Windows 10 Semi-Annual Channel until October 14, 2025.” Underneath, it then lists the retirement date of “Windows 10 Home and Pro” as “10/14/2025”.
Big Tech Companies More Powerful Than Nation-States?
A few years ago, I was having dinner with a friend who worked at Google. As we were discussing the ins and outs of the tech world, he casually remarked: “Google is going to take over the world you know.” Driving home and reflecting on that remark I thought: “How curious.” But now, as I contemplate the shambles our democracy has become, I’m more inclined to think: “How prescient.”
Democracy is under threat—not just in the U.S. but in many other countries as well. But the precipitous actions of newly minted authoritarian leaders and the turmoil in Western democracies are just a few of the puzzle pieces needed to figure out how we got to this point. Another less discussed trend is that U.S. citizens are being subjected to a relentless onslaught from intrusive technologies that have become embedded in the everyday fabric of our lives, creating unprecedented levels of social and political upheaval.
Advanced computer technology and the internet have given us many wonderful gifts when rightly applied. But we now know they can also be terrible taskmasters, impersonal forces that can dehumanize our personal interactions, cause severe mental health problems (especially for teenage girls), and serve as a de-facto wealth transfer mechanism to the billionaire class. Still, we accept the negatives because of the positive benefits. In this sense we might even call hyper-technology a Grand Seduction. Now, AI has exploded onto the scene and threatens to monkey wrench our lives in unimaginable ways.
U.S. citizens are being subjected to a relentless onslaught from intrusive technologies that have become embedded in the everyday fabric of our lives, creating unprecedented levels of social and political upheaval.
The limitations of these widely used technologies are well known. They include social media and what Harvard professor Shoshanna Zuboff calls “surveillance capitalism”—the buying and selling of our personal info and even our DNA in the corporate marketplace. But powerful new ones are poised to create another wave of radical change. Under the mantle of the “Fourth Industrial Revolution,” these include artificial intelligence or AI, the metaverse, the Internet of Things, the Internet of Bodies (in which our physical and health data is added into the mix to be processed by AI), and my personal favorite, police robots. All of these technologies will be enhanced and amplified by the use of 5G and 6G communications via a rapidly expanding satellite system provided by Elon Musk.
Get Zucked: Facebook’s Advertising System Glitches Out, Overcharging Advertisers
A technical glitch in Facebook’s advertising system led to customers being overcharged, sparking concerns about the company’s transparency in managing advertising budgets and campaign optimization.
Gizmodo reports that advertisers at Facebook (now known as Meta) were overcharged as a result of a technical error in the company’s advertising system, raising questions about how transparently the company manages advertising budgets and campaign optimization.
Twitter fulfilling more government censorship requests under Musk
Twitter has complied at least partially with 98.8 percent of takedown requests under Elon Musk’s ownership, data shows.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
California Sets ‘Zero Emissions’ For Passenger and Freight Trains
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has enacted new regulations that will require “zero emissions” trains to be introduced after 2030, focusing on a sector often seen as a “green” alternative to cars and trucks.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports:
Under the new regulations, zero-emissions models will be required for all switch, industrial and passenger locomotives built after 2030 and for all freight line locomotives built after 2035. Any non-zero emissions locomotive that is 23 years old or more will not be allowed to operate in the state past 2030.
The regulations also require train operators to open a spending account by July 2024 that they must deposit into every year to purchase or lease cleaner diesel trains and buy zero-emissions infrastructure. Operators that generate more pollutants are required to deposit more into the spending account, and the amount required to be deposited would also increase every year.
It is unclear how the new regulations on trains would affect interstate commerce, which is regulated by Congress under the U.S. Constitution, since many trains in California also travel through other states.
New York State To Be First To Ban Natural Gas In New Construction
New York is on the cusp of becoming the first state in the nation to pass a law banning natural gas in most new buildings, according to a handshake agreement that Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) announced she and state lawmakers had reached late Thursday.
The law would effectively require that most new buildings go all-electric, jettisoning fossil-fuel-burning appliances in favor of heat pumps and induction stoves for heating and cooking. It is part of a national movement, led by climate advocates, to cut greenhouse gas emissions from homes and businesses by ridding buildings of natural gas, heating oil and propane.
The deal follows weeks of negotiations over a slew of nonfiscal measures included in the New York state budget, which was delayed over disagreements between the governor and the Democrat-led legislature over bail and housing policy. Though its exact terms have not been made public, environmental advocates said the gas ban would take effect in 2026 for most new buildings under seven stories and in 2029 for taller buildings — the timeline the governor had sought.
GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
3 Ways to Preserve Food for Long-Term Storage
There are many ways to preserve food for long-term storage in the home setting—canning, freezing, root-cellaring, dehydrating, salt-curing, freeze-drying, and fermenting, just to name a few. Today, let’s take a closer look at canning, root-cellaring, and dehydrating. (But I encourage you to look into as many of the others as possible!)
Canning
Canning is one of the most common ways people preserve food for long-term storage in a home setting. While you cannot can everything, there are hundreds of things you are able to can safely at home!
There are 2 types of canning: water-bath canning (for high-acidic or pickled foods) and pressure canning (for low-acidic foods). Both are excellent ways to preserve the harvest and create food security for your family!
Learn to can safely with the step-by-step guidance in our online trainings—“Water Bath Canning” and “Pressure Canning.”
Water-Bath Canning
Water-bath canning, or the boiling-water method, is by far the simplest method of home canning. The water-bath method can only be used for high-acidic foods. Some garden-fresh favorites ideal for water-bath canning would be tomato-based recipes, pickles, jams and jellies, and other pickled foods.
- Tomato-based products safe for water-bath canning include salsa, tomato sauce, tomato juice, crushed or diced tomatoes, ketchup, and taco or hot sauce.
- Pickled products safe for water-bath canning include all types of pickles, chutneys, and relishes.
- Jams, jellies, preserves, and fruit butters that are safe for water-bath canning can be made from berries, figs, apples, grapes, peppers, citrus, and more!
Pressure Canning
Pressure canning is a bit more complicated than the water-bath method described above. Pressure canning is used to preserve low-acid foods. The processing temperature for canning low-acid foods is approximately 240°F, which is much hotter than the 212°F of a water-bath canner. These elevated temperatures ensure that all of the bacterial spores are destroyed during processing.
Some garden-fresh favorites for pressure canning include green beans, potatoes, carrots, beans, corn, and mixed vegetables. Since pressure allows for more versatility, you can even put up things like soups, stews, and meat!
How to Safely Can Without Electricity
What would you do if you didn’t have electricity? Would you have a way to preserve the harvest? With a little know-how and planning you can still have a stove, even in the event of the unthinkable.
Right now, buy something as simple as a camping stove or grill, both run on propane. If you have a fire pit, you could even use that! Maybe you have an outdoor kitchen. My husband built an outdoor canning stove from a secondhand cooktop we purchased from Craigslist.
Root Cellaring
What Can I Store in a Root Cellar?
You can store apples, dried beans, carrots, garlic, onions, parsnips, pears, peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash, and more!
Dehydrating
Blanching, steaming, and dipping are specific pretreatments and special preparations required for some foods. Humidity, time, and temperature all play a role in successful food dehydration, so it is an excellent idea to purchase a dehydrating book to add to your survival library!
Methods of Dehydration
There are many ways to dehydrate foods. Some methods work better and faster than others, but all of them are perfectly acceptable. Some of the most common ways food is dehydrated include:
- Sun drying
- Sun Oven drying
- Air drying
- Oven drying
- Electric dehydrator drying
Ways to Store Dehydrated Goods
There are many ways to store dehydrated foods. One of the most common ways is to use mason jars. However, you could use something as simple as a plastic storage bag. Whatever you choose, store dehydrated foods in a cool, dark, and dry location. If possible, add an oxygen absorber! Oxygen absorbers are small packets that contain an iron powder that helps keep foods fresh without unhealthy additives.
COVID RELATED NEWS
ABC News censors Bobby Kennedy remarks critical of COVID vaccines
ABC News refused to air a portion of its interview with Robert Kennedy, Jr., the recently announced Democrat primary challenger to Joe Biden, because it disagreed with his criticism of COVID vaccines.
Rather than play the full interview so that viewers could evaluate Kennedy’s own words, ABC chose to censor them, with reporter Linsey Davis giving what Kennedy said was a “defamatory disclaimer” on air: “[W]e should note that during our conversation, Kennedy made false claims about the COVID-19 vaccines. We’ve used our editorial judgment in not including extended portions of that exchange in our interview,” she said in the interview published April 27.
In 2021, the Biden-Harris Administration announced COVID-19 vaccination requirements to promote the health and safety of individuals and the efficiency of workplaces, protecting vital sectors of our economy and vulnerable populations. Since January 2021, COVID-19 deaths have declined by 95%, and hospitalizations are down nearly 91%. Globally, COVID-19 deaths are at their lowest levels since the start of the pandemic. Following a whole-of-government effort that led to a record number of nearly 270 million Americans receiving at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, we are in a different phase of our response to COVID-19 than we were when many of these requirements were put into place.
Pfizer Secretly Paid Thousands to Groups to Push COVID Vaccine Mandates
A recently released report shows a list of highly influential groups received funding from Pfizer to push COVID-19 vaccine mandates on Americans and intentionally manipulated us.
CANCEL CULTURE
Only Fools, Cowards, and Duped Obey the Blood-Sucking Fake Government (WOKE? Maybe not.)
Commentary by Andrew Wallace
Based upon what I read (and I read a lot!), it is the consensus of most serious Economists that the Economy is collapsing and MUST TOTALLY COLLAPSE in the near future, and the government is powerless to stop it. The following unlawful and unconstitutional government actions are some of the cause:
Open Borders, Green-energy scam, Climate Scam, Printing Fiat Money (Unconstitutional money rather than gold and silver), Destroying the Oil Industry, Paying able-bodied not to work, Ukraine false Flag, Financing wars to profit the Military Industrial Complex, Democrat cities being destroyed, Usurped State powers concentrated in DC, Electric Vehicle scam, etc, etc, etc, etc.
This has now been totally substantiated with the arrest of Airman Jack Teixeira for releasing classified documents reporting that Ukraine is losing and that NATO troops are fighting on the front lines. Teixeira exposed the truth proving that our government and pentagon officials are bald-faced serial liars, and for that they will hang Airman Teixeira!
You must quickly stand up now and repudiate the Machine (fake government, not the legitimate government!). There is no way that this is a violation of the law, unless you resort to violence or destruction. Put pressure on your governor to use his power to kick the Machine out of your state. Contact your members of Congress and demand that they terminate the Unconstitutional Departments and Agencies that comprise The Machine.
Those who do nothing are de facto supporters of the Machine (fake government). There is no free lunch. History indicates that their situation could be similar to the tens of thousands who remained loyal to King George during and after the Revolutionary war; it was not pretty.
Trans Cyclist Wins Women’s Category in Tour of the Gila Race in New Mexico
Austin Killips, a biological man, has been awarded first place in the women’s category in New Mexico’s Tour of the Gila cycling race, renewing calls to ban trans “women” from cycling, Fox News reported.
Killips had been a topic of controversy in the weeks leading up to the race, with many questioning the propriety of having a man racing as a woman. Indeed, after he won the race in the women’s category, race officials congratulated him on Twitter but turned off the comments to prevent anyone from being able to reply to the tweet.
PET NEWS
From Dr. Karen Becker: Toxic Food Myths: What Foods Are Actually Toxic to Dogs?
ICYMI
You need a definition??? Where’ve ya been???
What does ‘woke’ mean and why are some conservatives using it?
The definition of “woke” changes depending on who you ask.
The term has recently been used by some conservatives as an insult against progressive values.
The term, however, was originally coined by progressive Black Americans and used in racial justice movements in the early to mid-1900s.
To be “woke” politically in the Black community means that someone is informed, educated and conscious of social injustice and racial inequality, Merriam-Webster Dictionary states.
One of its earliest uses was in a historical recording of the protest song “Scottsboro Boys” by Lead Belly. In that recording, it was used as a term about staying aware of the potential for racist violence as a Black person in America.
What is a central bank digital currency (CBDC)?
A CBDC is a digital form of central bank money that is widely available to the general public.
“Central bank money” refers to money that is a liability of the central bank. In the United States, there are currently two types of central bank money: physical currency issued by the Federal Reserve and digital balances held by commercial banks at the Federal Reserve.
While Americans have long held money predominantly in digital form—for example in bank accounts, payment apps or through online transactions—a CBDC would differ from existing digital money available to the general public because a CBDC would be a liability of the Federal Reserve, not of a commercial bank.
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