Today’s Top 5
1.DeSantis Files Paperwork to Run for President in 2024
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on May 24 filed a formal notification with the Federal Election Commission that he is running for president.
2.Microsoft Says CCP Hackers Compromised “Critical” US Infrastructure
Microsoft on Wednesday warned that a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group – “Volt Typhoon” has compromised “critical” US cyber infrastructure across several industries – including manufacturing, construction, maritime, government, information technology and education.
The group, which has operated since 2021, is apparently working to disrupt “critical communications infrastructure between the United States and Asia,” as well as gather intelligence, in order to weaken efforts during “future crises.”
According to the advisory from Microsoft – which has “directly notified targeted or compromised customers,” the attack is apparently ongoing. The company has urged impacted customers to “close or change credentials for all compromised accounts.”
>> Related: CCP Presents ‘Grave Threat’ to the US Homeland: DHS Official
China’s communist regime presents a unique threat to the U.S. homeland and is actively working to undermine U.S. security and damage U.S. economic standing, a senior Homeland Security (DHS) official says.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which rules China as a single-party state, seeks to leverage the whole of the Chinese nation against the United States, according to Iranga Kahangama, assistant DHS secretary for cyber, infrastructure, risk, and resilience.
“Beijing presents an especially grave threat to the homeland,” he told the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence during a May 23 hearing.
“We must match our adversaries’ determination through a whole-of-government response, with DHS playing a leading role on the front lines of that defense every day.”
The Rockefeller Foundation and the World Health Organization (WHO) have announced a new partnership to strengthen the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence. As part of the collaboration, the Foundation is investing US$ 5M in partners working with WHO to cultivate global networks for pathogen detection and strengthen pandemic preparedness capabilities, including broadening surveillance for diseases worsened by rising temperatures and extreme weather.
4.Arizona’s Kari Lake Announces Plans to ‘Paint the State Red,’ Appeal Election Ruling
China’s communist regime presents a unique threat to the U.S. homeland and is actively working to undermine U.S. security and damage U.S. economic standing, a senior Homeland Security (DHS) official says.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which rules China as a single-party state, seeks to leverage the whole of the Chinese nation against the United States, according to Iranga Kahangama, assistant DHS secretary for cyber, infrastructure, risk, and resilience.
“Beijing presents an especially grave threat to the homeland,” he told the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence during a May 23 hearing.
“We must match our adversaries’ determination through a whole-of-government response, with DHS playing a leading role on the front lines of that defense every day.”
5. On This Day in 1787: Constitutional Convention Gets Down to Business
On this day in 1787, nearly two weeks after its planned opening, the Constitutional Convention of 1787 began. With the arrival of the delegations representing South Carolina and New Jersey, the number of states necessary for a quorum had been met.
One of the first official proposals taken up by the delegates was Robert Morris’ nomination of George Washington to be president of the convention. Morris’ motion was seconded by John Rutledge of South Carolina, “expressing his confidence that the choice would be unanimous, and observing that the presence of General Washington forbade any observation on the occasion which might otherwise be proper.”
In his Notes on Debates in the Federal Convention, James Madison echoed Rutledge’s confidence in the unanimous approval of the nomination of Washington:
The nomination came with particular grace from Pennsylvania, as Doctor Franklin alone could have been thought of a competitor. The Doctor was himself to have made the nomination of General Washington, but the state of his health confined him to his house.
Washington was indeed unanimously elected by the delegates; thereafter he was led to the Chair by Morris and Rutledge.
Madison reports that upon accepting his election as president of the convention, Washington “thanked the convention for the honor they had conferred upon him, reminded them of the novelty of the scene of business in which he was to act, lamented his want of better qualifications, and claimed the indulgence of the House towards the involuntary error which his inexperience might occasion.”
WORLD NEWS
World’s Largest Real Estate Market on the Brink of Collapse: Experts
Recent statistics from China’s central bank show that home buyers’ enthusiasm has fallen drastically. Despite price cuts and incentives, the world’s largest housing market continues to slump, and China’s banking sector is taking a hit on two fronts, as both defaults and prepayments rise. Meanwhile, China’s developers are starting to show the strain, with real estate giant Wanda Group making headlines this week as the value of its dollar bonds plunged.
In early 2023, the Chinese real estate market had a short-lived rebound as local governments across the country issued policies to bail out the failing real estate sector, according to the China Index Academy, a real estate research institute. By the end of April, the mortgage rate for first-home buyers in more than 40 cities had been lowered to below 4 percent.
However, after an optimistic outlook in March, April’s sales failed to live up to analysts’ expectations.
Hohmann: The Entire World Is Clamoring For A Global Pandemic Treaty
Former Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is in Geneva this week as part of a small team of prayer warriors interceding for the very serious situation in which the world finds itself. We are on the brink of a major historical event in which power is in the process of shifting from nation-states to international bodies affiliated with the United Nations. It’s that process and how to accomplish it that’s being discussed right now at the 76th annual World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.
Bachmann will be monitoring the proceedings regarding major amendments to the International Health Regulations (last amended in 2005) as well as an all-new pandemic accord that would shift massive amounts of power from national governments over to the United Nations World Health Organization and its director general.
Today, she provided me with a timetable for the nations of the world to enter into this global pact, surrendering their sovereignty over “public health emergencies” to the WHO.
Germany falls into recession as inflation hits economy
Persistent inflation has helped push Germany into recession in the first three months of the year, an upgrade to growth data shows.
Europe’s largest economy was also badly affected when Russian gas supplies dried up after the invasion of Ukraine, analysts said.
The economy contracted by 0.3% between January and March, the statistics office said.
That followed a 0.5% contraction in the last three months of last year.
A country is deemed to be in recession when its economy shrinks for two consecutive three-month periods, or quarters.
“Under the weight of immense inflation, the German consumer has fallen to his knees, dragging the entire economy down with him,” said Andreas Scheuerle, an analyst at DekaBank.
Germany’s inflation rate stood at 7.2% in April, above the euro area’s average but below the UK’s 8.7%.
Higher prices have weighed on household spending on things such as food, clothing and furniture. Industrial orders are also weaker, reflecting the impact of higher energy prices on businesses.
“The persistence of high price increases continued to be a burden on the German economy at the start of the year,” the federal statistics agency Destatis said in a statement.
German Police Raid Properties of Radical Green Protesters
Authorities raided 15 properties across Germany on Wednesday and seized assets in an investigation into the financing of protests by the Last Generation climate activist group, prosecutors said.
Munich prosecutors said they were investigating seven people, ranging in age from 22 to 38, on suspicion of forming or supporting a criminal organization. They launched the inquiry following numerous criminal complaints they received since mid-2022.
Mayhem broke out in a Cardiff suburb on Monday evening as rioters attacked police and torched cars following the alleged police involvement in the death of two teenage boys in an electric bike crash.
In the wake of the death of two boys, named as Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, rumours began to swirl in the Ely suburb of the Welsh capital of Cardiff that police were involved in a pursuit that resulted in their deaths.
Excess Deaths Are Exploding, Experts Remain Stumped
According to a May 11, 2023, report by the British Express,1 Britons are dying by the tens of thousands, “but no one knows why.” Between May and December 2022 alone, there were 32,441 excess deaths in England and Wales, according to data2 released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), and that doesn’t include COVID-related deaths. As reported by the Express:3
“Excess deaths are defined as the number of people who died above the five-year average — worked out excluding 2020 due to how COVID spiked death figures that year … The shock revelation has raised alarm bells amid health professionals …
Professor David Coleman, Emeritus Professor of Demography at Oxford University, told the Mirror that no one knew for certain what had caused so many deaths throughout last year.
He pointed out that, post COVID, the UK’s population had been changed through the deaths of a significant proportion of the elderly due to the virus. He explained: ‘Once those poor people have been packed off, the remaining population should be healthier, there should be a period afterwards where deaths are lower than usual but that hasn’t happened.’”
Treason trial set for Russian hypersonic missile scientist
The first of three Russian hypersonic missile scientists to be arrested on suspicion of treason will go on trial next week in a case which sources say involves accusations of betraying secrets to China.
The criminal case against Anatoly Maslov, 76, will open in Saint Petersburg’s city court on June 1, the court said on its website on Wednesday.
Maslov and two colleagues at the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (ITAM) in Siberia were all arrested on suspicion of treason over the past year.
The three are specialists in hypersonics – a field of key importance to the development of Russia’s next generation of missiles, which are capable of flying at 10 times the speed of sound.
The case, which is marked as “top secret”, will be closed to the media and public, the court said. The Kremlin previously said the suspects face “very serious accusations” though details of their alleged crime are classified.
New poll shows 28% of Canadians support euthanasia for homelessness, 27% for poverty
Nearly three-quarters of Canadians are OK or undecided when it comes to the current state of Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying laws.
Dutch Caribbeans to sue Netherlands for climate crisis failure
A group of Bonaire residents threaten to sue the Dutch government for failing to protect the island from climate change.
Bangladesh promises free, fair polls after US warns of visa curbs
Dhaka assures of free elections, due by January 2024, after the US says it would restrict visas to Bangladeshis who undermine the vote.
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
New U.S. lab will work with deadly animal pathogens—in the middle of farm country
Virologist Robert Cross’s lab is equipped to handle some of the world’s most dangerous viruses. At the Galveston National Laboratory he has worked with guinea pigs infected with Ebola virus and macaques carrying Lassa fever. What it can’t accommodate are pigs, which are common carriers of the deadly Nipah virus. “We’re not really geared to handle large animals,” says Cross, who wears a pressurized biosafety suit for his studies. “You can’t just pick them up when you’re wearing these space suits.”
That’s one reason why Cross is welcoming tomorrow’s ceremonial opening of a massive new high-security laboratory in Kansas, the first in the United States designed with pens and equipment such as cranes to move big animals tainted with the most hazardous infectious agents, including Nipah virus. Although active research won’t begin at the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) in Manhattan for several years, Cross predicts that “a high containment resource to deal with agriculturally important pathogens … is going to change the [research] landscape.”
The laboratory, which will be operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has taken nearly a decade longer to complete than planned and, at $1.25 billion, cost nearly three times as much as first predicted. It is also controversial. Although many researchers and powerful Kansas politicians have supported the project, some scientists, Manhattan residents, and farm groups have voiced concerns about handling pathogens dangerous to livestock and humans in the nation’s agricultural heartland. If a highly contagious animal disease escaped the lab, “it would just shut down commerce,” says Larry Kendig, a board member of the Kansas Cattlemen’s Association.
Technical Difficulties Plague DeSantis, Musk Twitter Spaces Campaign Launch
Technical issues plagued the beginning of the highly anticipated presidential campaign launch of Gov. Ron DeSantis, as the initial Twitter Spaces audio continued cut out prior to DeSantis even being introduced.
Trump Appears Virtually for Hearing in Manhattan Criminal Case, Judge Sets Trial Date
Former President Donald Trump appeared remotely in the Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday to hear a judge’s instructions on his handling of discovery evidence in the criminal case brought against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
Legendary singer Tina Turner died Wednesday at the age of 83.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner,” a spokesperson said in a post on Turner’s Facebook page. “With her music and her boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans around the world and inspired the stars of tomorrow. Today we say goodbye to a dear friend who leaves us all her greatest work: her music. All our heartfelt compassion goes out to her family. Tina, we will miss you dearly.”
Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes faces sentencing for seditious conspiracy in Jan. 6 attack
Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes will be sentenced Thursday after a landmark verdict convicting him of spearheading a weeklong plot to keep former President Donald Trump in power.
Rhodes’ sentencing comes just weeks after former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio was convicted of seditious conspiracy alongside other leaders of his far-right group this month for what prosecutors said was a separate plot to block the transfer of presidential power. The Proud Boys will be sentenced in August and September.
Rhodes’ lawyers say he should be sentenced to the 16 months he has already served behind bars since his January 2022 arrest. In seeking leniency for Rhodes, his lawyers cited his military service and told the judge that Rhodes’ writings and statements were all “protected political speech.” Rhodes’ attorneys plan to appeal his conviction.
Rhodes and Meggs were the first people in nearly three decades to be found guilty at trial of seditious conspiracy. Meggs is expected to be sentenced after Rhodes later Thursday and two other Oath Keepers will be sentenced Friday. Four other defendants convicted of seditious conspiracy will be sentenced next week.
Rhodes and the other Oath Keepers said there was never any plan to attack the Capitol or stop Congress from certifying Biden’s victory.
The defense tried to seize on the fact that none of the Oath Keepers’ messages laid out an explicit plan to storm the Capitol. But prosecutors said the Oath Keepers saw an an opportunity to further their goal to stop the transfer of power and sprang into action when the mob began storming the building.
An Arkansas man who was photographed during the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol protest with his feet propped on a desk in then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office was sentenced on Wednesday to four and a half years in prison.
Federal prosecutors asked the judge to sentence Barnett to more than seven years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his actions during the January 6 protest.
He was ultimately sentenced to four and a half years in prison and three years of supervised release.
During the trial, Barnett testified that he was looking for a bathroom inside the Capitol when he unintentionally entered Pelosi’s office and encountered two news photographers.
He claimed one of the photographers told him to “act natural,” so he kicked back in a chair and put his legs onto the desk.
A two-year investigation into Rep. Eric Swalwell’s (D-Calif.) associations with a Chinese national and suspected spy has concluded, the bipartisan House Ethics Committee stated on May 22.
The Committee announced the news in a private letter (pdf) to Swalwell in which Chairman Michael Guest (R-Miss.) and ranking Democratic member Susan Wild (D-Pa.) explained that no further action will be taken against the California Democrat.
Swalwell published the letter on his official website.
“As you are aware, on April 9, 2021, the Committee on Ethics (Committee) informed you that it had determined to investigate allegations raised in the complaint that you may have violated House Rules, laws, or other standards of conduct in connection with your interactions with Ms. Christine Fang,” the letter reads.
“The Committee will take no further action in this matter.”
Despite the committee’s conclusion, Guest and Wild urged Swalwell to remain cautious and conscious of the possibility of improper influence by foreign agents and governments who they said may attempt to secure improper influence through gifts and other interactions.
“We encourage you to contact the Office of House Security for any guidance on steps you can take to prevent or address such attempts,” the letter reads.
House Republican ‘Speechless’ After Senior FBI Official Admits Not Reading Durham Report
Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas) said he was “speechless” when he learned that a senior FBI official had not read the Durham report, which was released more than a week ago.
Pfluger, chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence, questioned Jill Murphy, deputy assistant director of counterintelligence at the FBI, during a hearing on May 23.
“Special Counsel Durham assesses that neither U.S. law enforcement nor the Intelligence Community appears to have possessed any actual evidence of collusion in their holdings at the commencement of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation,” Pfluger said. Crossfire Hurricane is the FBI codename for the agency’s 2016–17 FBI investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.
Pfluger continued, “The bureau subsequently discounted or willfully ignored material that did not support the narrative of a collusive relationship between [former President Donald] Trump and Russia.”
“As the deputy assistant director for the FBI Counterintelligence Division, are you familiar with this report?” Pfluger asked.
In response, Murphy said, “I have not read that report.”
“I’m honestly speechless at this point in time,” Pfluger said in reply.
When pressed on why she had not read the report, Murphy said, “I just haven’t had time.”
Newly Revealed Records Show How Probe Into Clinton Foundation Ended
Federal prosecutors refused to bring charges against the Clinton Foundation, prompting the FBI to close an investigation into the organization, newly released records show.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas declined to bring charges against the Clinton Foundation in January 2021, according to the records.
That move prompted the FBI to close the case, which had been worked on for years, the records show.
The records were obtained and published (pdf) by The New York Times, which stated that it received them through a Freedom of Information Act request.
While Hillary Clinton was secretary of state, she was one of the nine members of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States who approved the 2010 sale of a majority of Uranium One, a company that has mines and other projects in the United States, to a Russian state-owned company. That same year, Bill Clinton received $500,000 from a Russian government-linked bank to speak in Moscow. The Clinton Foundation also received donations from Uranium One officials before the approval and didn’t disclose them, despite agreeing to do so before Clinton became secretary of state.
After the donations became known in 2015, the foundation said in a statement that it “made mistakes.”
“But we are acting quickly to remedy them, and have taken steps to ensure they don’t happen in the future,” the foundation stated.
Clinton has said that claims that she was bribed for the approval of the sale have been “debunked repeatedly.”
The newly revealed timeline means that the investigation into the foundation, which was started by the Clintons, lasted until just days before President Donald Trump left office.
Montana, Tennessee Legally Define Male and Female
Addressing the LGBTQ agenda in schools and other public institutions, both Montana and Tennessee have enacted legislation to define sex as male and female. Montana’s Republican Governor Greg Gianforte has signed into law two bills to define sex as biological and protect parental rights, and Tennessee’s Republican Governor Bill Lee has signed two bills that define sex as male and female and also protect teachers from having to use students’ “preferred pronouns.”
As schools and other institutions have hidden behind alleged concerns that not affirming the delusions of those claiming LGBTQ status could lead to lawsuits or worse, attempts to push back have been met with resistance. It is a form of circular reasoning known as begging the question: Since the LGBTQ crowd claims a “right” to be affirmed, including the forced use of “preferred pronouns” — that claim has been seen as evidence of the fact. But no evidence beyond the claim has been offered. The claim is all that is needed. School boards say they are following the requirements of Title IX, because the LGBTQ crowd claims that Title IX requires that “trans” students, faculty, and staff be affirmed in their claims that they are “trans” even though Title IX does not actually say any such thing.
But by addressing the issue as a matter of law, both Montana and Tennessee are removing the thin cover behind which the LGBTQ crowd has been hiding. Now, according to state law in both states, there are only two classifications: male and female. Period.
Montana’s Republican Governor Greg Gianforte — who recently made news for banning TikTok in his state over concerns of Chinese spying — has also signed into law HB 676 and SB 458. As LifeSiteNews reports:
HB 676, signed and effective on Thursday, May 18, declares that “a government entity may not interfere with the fundamental rights of parents to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of their children unless the government entity demonstrates that the interference furthers a compelling government interest.”
2ND AMENDMENT
Rep. Andrew Clyde: AR-Pistols Registered with ATF Will Be Illegal in 5 States
When Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) spoke with Breitbart News this week, he pointed out that AR-pistols registered with the ATF via the stabilizer brace rule will be illegal in five states.
The ATF’s stabilizer brace rule recategorizes AR-pistols with stabilizer braces, defining them as short-barrel rifles instead.
Clyde is sounding the alarm that this recategorization means people in certain states will literally be prohibited from keeping their gun once they register it with the ATF.
Mark W. Smith, a constitutional attorney, author of Disarmed: What the Ukraine War Teaches Americans About the Right to Bear Arms, and host of The Four Boxes Diner YouTube channel, told Breitbart News the Ukraine War illustrates the left’s hypocrisy on the Second Amendment and that the country is “paying the price” for its decision not to enshrine the right to bear arms into its constitution.
Smith highlighted the hypocrisy of President Joe Biden and the American left for arming Ukraine while trying to disarm American citizens.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit to Shut Down Following Bankruptcy, Assets Sold in Auction
Virgin Orbit, the satellite launch provider founded by Sir Richard Branson, has confirmed it is shutting down after selling its facility leases and equipment to three aerospace companies following bankruptcy.
CNBC reports that Virgin Orbit, a pioneer in satellite launch services, announced its closure after selling its equipment and facility leases to three aerospace firms in the wake of bankruptcy. Virgin Orbit, which Sir Richard Branson founded as a spin-off from Virgin Galactic in 2017, made significant advancements in the space industry. However, the business experienced financial issues, which slowed execution and made it challenging to raise money. These difficulties ultimately resulted in bankruptcy and the choice to cease operations.
New Amnesty Bill Seeks to Flood Americans’ White-Collar Labor Market
Several GOP legislators have joined with Democrats to push a draft migration and amnesty bill that supercharges the flow of foreign visa workers into the white-collar careers sought by many striving U.S. graduates.
Three GOP legislators have endorsed the combined amnesty and visa worker giveaway: Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR), and Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL).
Alongside the amnesty for many millions of blue-collar migrants, “What they’re doing is further deflating wages of white-collar workers,” said Kevin Lynn, founder of U.S. Tech Workers, an advocacy group for U.S. graduates, adding:
It’s another race to the bottom … No-one [in the establishment] seems to care that in the medical profession, and in all the other white-collar professions, wages are being deflated as people are being muscled out of jobs by the [visa worker] migrants.
The visa worker giveaway is hidden in Section 51312, on page 490 of the 493-page bill, under the obscure title, “Individuals with Doctoral Degrees in STEM field Recognized as Individuals Having Extraordinary Ability.”
The reclassification ensures that an unlimited number of foreign graduates can get renewable 0-1 work permits once they have “earned a doctoral degree in at least one of such fields, in a health profession, or in a related program, from an institution of higher education in the United States.”
Theft Is Now Costing Retailers In The United States About 100 BILLION Dollars A Year
If we don’t fix this, will the retail industry be able to survive? There has always been shoplifting, but in the old days it was at a level that made it only a minor nuisance to the big box retailers. Unfortunately, now everything has changed. Highly organized gangs have developed extremely sophisticated plans for how to rapidly loot our major retailers, and the best ones can be in and out in just minutes. Those goods are then resold online or in the streets, and the amounts that we are talking about are absolutely staggering. In fact, as you will see below, theft is now costing retailers in this country about 100 billion dollars a year.
This week, Target made headlines all over the nation when it publicly admitted that theft will cost it 500 million more dollars than it did last year…
Target said Wednesday that organized retail crime will fuel $500 million more in stolen and lost merchandise this year compared with a year ago.
Target’s inventory loss, called shrink, totaled about $763 million last fiscal year, based on calculations from the company’s financial filings. With the anticipated increase, shrink this year would surpass $1 billion.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Eric Schmidt: AI Poses Existential Threat To People
Artificial intelligence could pose “existential risks” and governments need to know how to make sure the technology is not “misused by evil people,” former Google CEO Eric Schmidt warned on Wednesday.
The future of AI has been thrust into the center of conversations among technologists and policymakers grappling with what the technology looks like going forward and how it should be regulated.
ChatGPT, the chatbot that went viral last year, has arguably sparked more awareness of artificial intelligence as major firms around the world look to launch rival products and talk up their AI capabilities.
Speaking at the Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit in London, Schmidt said his concern is that AI is an “existential risk.”
“And existential risk is defined as many, many, many, many people harmed or killed,” Schmidt said.
“There are scenarios not today, but reasonably soon, where these systems will be able to find zero-day exploits in cyber issues, or discover new kinds of biology. Now, this is fiction today, but its reasoning is likely to be true. And when that happens, we want to be ready to know how to make sure these things are not misused by evil people.”
Zero-day exploits are security vulnerabilities found by hackers in software and systems.
Schmidt, who was CEO of Google from 2001 to 2011, did not have a clear view on how AI should be regulated but said that it is a “broader question for society.” However, he said there is unlikely to be a new regulatory agency set up in the U.S. dedicated to regulating AI.
Schmidt is not the first major technology figure to warn about the risks of AI.
Sam Altman, the CEO of Open AI which developed ChatGPT, admitted in March that he is a “little bit scared” of artificial intelligence. He said he worries about authoritarian governments developing the technology,
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in the past he thinks AI represents one of the “biggest risks” to civilization.
Even current Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, who recently oversaw the company’s launch of its own chatbot called Bard AI, said the technology will “impact every product across every company,” adding society needs to prepare for the changes.
SURVEILLANCE STATE
Samsung OLED Tech Integrates Biometric Fingerprint and Health Sensors Into Display Panel
Samsung Display has revealed new advancements in biometric technology at the SID Display Week 2023 in Los Angeles (running May 23-25).
In particular, the company is showcasing its new Sensor OLED Display, a technology that directly integrates biometric fingerprint and health sensors into the display panel.
The Sensor OLED Display relies on an embedded light-sensing organic photodiode (OPD) within the panel structure, eliminating the need for separate sensor modules beneath the display.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Alternative Energy Projects Are Bankrupting The Energy Grid
Developers looking to build thousands of wind turbines off the Mid-Atlantic and New England coast are coming up against a force even more relentless than the Atlantic winds: the Iron Law of Megaprojects, offering a warning of the trouble ahead for green-energy projects.
The Iron Law, coined by Oxford Professor Bent Flyvbjerg, says that “megaprojects” — which cost billions of dollars, take years to complete, and are socially transformative — reliably come in over budget, over time, over and over.
From Boston’s Big Dig to California’s high-speed rail to New York’s 12 years-overdue and 300% over-budget East Side Access rail project, big boondoggles routinely demonstrate the validity of the rule.
Offshore wind projects are not immune to the Iron Law, regularly experiencing vast cost overruns before a single watt is generated.
The New York state government, looking to replace oil- and gas-fired powerplants with hundreds of wind towers off Long Island, set out in 2019 to create an offshore wind supply chain from scratch, beginning with a massive state-funded turbine fabrication facility about 100 miles north of New York City on the Hudson River.
Ground still hasn’t even been broken, but the budget certainly has: The price of that Port of Albany facility has already doubled from $350 million to $700 million. An additional $100 million may be needed for equipment costs, raising the final price tag to $800 million.
A similar situation is playing out in New London, Connecticut, where a state-funded pier facility being built to support that state’s offshore wind buildout has more than doubled in price from an original estimate of $95 million to $250 million.
And in Massachusetts, developer Commonwealth Wind has asked the state to scrap its power purchase guarantees and rebid the project, arguing that inflation and supply chain problems mean the project is not financially viable under its current contracts.
House Votes Against EPA Truck Emissions Rule, Setting Up Biden Veto
The House voted on May 23 to overturn the Biden administration’s rule on heavy-duty vehicles’ tailpipe emissions, the latest knock against the president’s environmental agenda in a closely divided Congress and the forerunner to an expected Biden veto.
The short piece of legislation would roll back a rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for trucks in December 2022.
The rule, which can be read here, “sets stronger emissions standards to further reduce air pollution, including pollutants that create ozone and particulate matter, from heavy-duty vehicles and engines starting in model year 2027,” according to the EPA.
It follows a Biden executive order and the administration’s “Clean Trucks Plan.” Proposals for vehicle tailpipe emissions released in April are likewise intended to curb greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. transportation sector.
The legislation passed the House 221-203. Four Democrats crossed the aisle to join 217 Republicans in backing the measure.
The legislation is one half of a joint resolution that passed through the Senate in April, emerging unscathed from a narrow 50-49 vote.
If President Joe Biden vetoes it, backers would need two-thirds majorities in both chambers to overcome his opposition. That’s an unlikely scenario.
GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
Raised Bed Gardening For Beginners & Planning, Building, Soil Mix, And Planting Guide
One of the best ways to get started gardening is by using raised garden beds. Raised garden beds are an option for all gardeners and allow you to grow more vegetables in a limited space while increasing your soil quality.
As more people turn back to gardening to grow their food, raised bed gardening continue to increase in popularity. Using this method of gardening allows you to create the perfect environment to produce high yielding plants.
Chances are you have many questions about building your own DIY raised bed garden, like types of material to use, how deep your raised bed should be, how to fill your raised bed cheaply, what type of soil raised beds need, and what and when to plant in a raised bed.
We have you covered! We answer all of the questions that you might have about raised garden beds.
How To Effectively Use Diatomaceous Earth (DE) As A Natural Pest Control In Your Garden
Natural and “authorized in organic farming”, diatomaceous earth (DE) combines the roles of repellent and insecticide, helps you get rid of slugs, caterpillars, aphids, ants pollen beetles, and moths in the garden.
Fruit trees in the orchard, plants in the vegetable garden or even ornamental plants and trees can benefit from this effective treatment of diatomaceous earth that will scare away even the most reckless of garden pests!
Despite the fact that diatomaceous earth has many benefits, it can be a controversial topic among gardeners, and you may have heard conflicting information about its use. So diatomaceous earth must be used wisely on your plants.
If you have considered using diatomaceous earth for pest control in your garden, but not sure how, or even if it’s a good idea? we will get you covered!
We will talk about what it is, how it works, and which pests it is effective against. You’ll also find out what forms are safe to use, what precautions to take when using DE, and how to apply it in the garden.
HEALTH
5 Gross Grilling Mistakes Damaging Your Health
Are you making a common marinating mistake that creates a surge in potential cancer-causing compounds? Avoid this and the other top grilling mistakes at your Memorial Day cookout.
27 Healthy Grilling Recipes for Year-Round Deliciousness
These healthy grilling recipes are simple, making the flavors shine through and work year-round, and there’s no better time to try some of these out than at your Memorial Day barbecue.
Dry Needling for Muscle Pain & Headache Relief
Dry needling, also known as trigger point dry needling and intramuscular stimulation, is used by physical therapists for muscle pain relief, headaches and even whiplash.
Dry needling is different than acupuncture, which is intended to unblock energy meridians and help create balance within the bodily system. While acupuncture focuses on addressing the flow of energy around the body and bodily organs, dry needling focuses on stimulating a specific trigger point that is leading to pain and disability.
Myofascial trigger points are a common type of pain. The word myofascial means muscle tissue (myo) and the connective tissue in and around it (fascial). These trigger points are usually the result of a muscle injury, such as common running injuries or repetitive strain. “From a pain science perspective, trigger points are constant sources of peripheral nociceptive input leading to peripheral and central sensitization,” according to a study in the Journal of Manual and Manipulative Therapy.
In other words, trigger points are painful when pressed on and can create pain in another area as well, which is called referred pain. It can even generate something called hyperalgesia, which is an increased sensitivity to pain and which is often the result of damage to nociceptors or the peripheral nerves.
For example, trigger points in the muscles of the shoulder, neck and face are a common source of headaches because the trigger point refers pain to the head. According to research published in Current Pain and Headache Reports, muscle overtraining or direct trauma to the muscle can lead to the development of trigger points.
Trigger points can develop during occupational, recreational or sports activities when muscle use exceeds muscle capacity and normal recovery is disturbed. Dry needling differs from other types of physical therapy because it focuses on stimulating these trigger points and releasing the tension in order to alleviate pain.
Do You Know the Benefits of Practicing Solitude?
Solitude — the state of being alone — is often described as a bad thing. But that’s because it’s often discussed in the context of other psychological experiences like isolation, social rejection or loneliness.1
Solitude is different from loneliness, however. When researchers sought to understand solitude as a “psychological experience of being alone, without communications, stimuli, activities or devices,” they found it led to beneficial effects on health.
Solitude Can Increase Relaxation and Reduce Stress
Thuy-vy Nguyen, assistant professor in the department of psychology at Durham University in England, has been studying solitude for a decade. Early research from 1978 suggested being alone was often perceived as a negative experience,2 but Nguyen and colleagues have found otherwise.
“In psychology,” she wrote in The Conversation, “researchers define loneliness as a distressed feeling that we experience when we don’t have, or are unable to get, the kind of social connections or relationships we hope for. Solitude is different … my research suggests that taking some time for yourself could have a positive impact on your daily mood.”3
In a series of experiments on undergraduate students,4 Nguyen found that spending just 15 minutes alone had a “deactivation effect,” such that any strong emotions were reduced. This was true whether the emotion was positive, such as excitement, or negative, such as anxiety.
“I concluded that solitude has the capacity to bring down people’s arousal levels, meaning it can be useful in situations where we feel frustrated, agitated or angry,” she said.5 The study suggested it’s possible to use solitude as a form of self-regulation, to become “quiet after excitement, calm after an angry episode, or centered and peaceful when desired.”6 It could also be useful when you need to relax in order to fall asleep.
Chosen Solitude Is Most Beneficial
In a survey of 18,000 people from 34 countries, spending time alone was the third most common “restful” activity described, after reading and being in the natural environment.7 The key to this alone time feeling restful and restorative instead of lonely and sad may be making it a choice.
COVID RELATED NEWS
Messenger RNA COVID-19 Vaccines Linked to Increased Risk of Vaginal Bleeding: Study
Women vaccinated with the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are at higher risk of vaginal bleeding, according to a new study.
One or more doses of the messenger RNA shots increased the risk of the bleeding in women aged 12 to 74, Swedish researchers reported in the study, published on May 3 by the British Medical Journal.
Adjustments to the data resulted in the removal of some of the heightened risks, but even after adjustments, younger women were still more likely to experience bleeding after the first and third doses and older women were more likely to suffer from the issue after the first, second, and third doses.
CANCEL CULTURE
Target Removes Controversial Kids LGBT Products From All Stores After Boycott Threats
Target has removed a range of controversial LGBT-themed children’s products from all of its U.S. stores and its website after calls to boycott the retailer spread on social media.
The retail giant cited employee safety concerns and angry backlash in some stores as motivating the move. It comes after calls spread on social media to boycott Target over its 2023 “Pride Collection,” which included LGBT-themed products for children as young as infants.
“Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and wellbeing while at work,” a statement from Target reads. “Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior.”
Products for infants, including onesies with pro-LGBT slogans and content, were part of the collection. One onesie includes the text “Bien Proud,” and another features what appear to be LGBT rainbows and hearts along with the transgender flag colors.
The Minneapolis-based retailer was offering a range of child-oriented LGBT books in its inventory, such as “Bye Bye, Binary” and “What Are Your Words?” These books instruct children on the use of transgender pronouns. Some products for kids also appear to feature drag queens, according to products sold on the company’s website.
Gavin Newsom Criticizes Target For ‘Selling Out’ LGBT Community
Target’s response to an ongoing customer backlash has drawn ire from California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who on Tuesday accused the retail chain giant of “selling out the LGBTQ+ community” by pulling some transgender-themed merchandise from its shelves.
Target has recently come under fire as many social media users reacted with disgust to its promotion of an “LGBT Pride” collection, which appeared to include items intended for children, such as bathing suits with “tuck-friendly construction” and “extra crotch coverage.”
Woke ‘Trans-Former’ Cartoon Robot Character Appearing on TV for Ages 7 and Up
A nonbinary robot on the cartoon series “Transformers: Earth Spark” has generated a heated debate on social media with the controversy spilling over to national TV talk shows.
In a recent episode of the cartoon, Nightshade—the name of the androgynous automaton—tells a teenage girl it encounters that its preferred pronouns are “they/them.”
The girl, who is donning a purse with rainbow-colored handles and gender affirming pins, reveals that she is nonbinary too.
She initially is scared of the robot and tells it she only feels safe when she is around her nonbinary friends.
“It is just sometimes the world can be a scary place,” the teen, who also has two-colored hair, says, “It’s hard to know who’s dangerous or not.”
The show is streamed by Paramount+ and is rated TV-Y7 or for ages 7 and up.
Nightshade, which has both female and male features and speaks in an effeminate voice, first professed its gender dysphoria back in December.
However, the issue surfaced after Libs of TikTok posted a video clip on social media from the recent “Transformers” episode.
Laura Ingraham of the Fox show “The Ingraham Angle,” which spotlighted the controversy on her show after the video went viral, accused Paramount of “shoving corrosives lies down the throats of kids.”
“As a parent, you often ask yourself ‘what do my kids need? A loving family, a roof over their heads, a life grounded in faith and freedom.’ But you probably never thought what they really, really need is a nonbinary robot,” said Ingraham on her May 13 show. “But that’s exactly what Paramount thinks they need.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have indeed proven themselves to be the “Bud Light of Baseball” after backing down to the woke and reinviting the radical, anti-Christian gay and transgender group, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, to their Pride Night on June 16.
Now that the Dodgers have reversed its decision to disinvite the hate group from its gay pride night after acquiescing to Christians who were outraged that the group was set to get a community award at the game, Christians are again mounting efforts to denounce the team for reinviting the LGBTQ group to the game.
Nolte: Major League Baseball, Budweiser, Disney, and Target Hate You
What we have are some of the world’s largest and most powerful corporations—Major League Baseball, Budweiser, Walt Disney, and Target—actively abusing our trust to expose and normalize hate and to target innocent children with perversions.
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