# entry

guid: 1031463 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Keep An Eye On Cocoa Prices
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/keep-eye-cocoa-prices
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<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Keep An Eye On Cocoa Prices </span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Cocoa futures surged as much as 7.9% on Friday to $11,068/ton in New York, approaching record levels once again, as mounting supply-side risks reignite upside price action. Persistent drought conditions across key West African growing regions—despite recent rain—continue to pressure the global production outlook, raising concerns over both mid-crop and main-crop harvests. The deteriorating weather backdrop and slowing port arrivals in top producer Ivory Coast have also reintroduced upward pressure on prices. </p>

<p>Analysts from BMI, a unit of Fitch Group, wrote last week that bullish price action "<strong>continues to be driven by concerns about weather conditions in West Africa weighing on the size and quality of the ongoing harvest</strong>." </p>

<p>Data from the African Flood and Drought Monitor showed that droughts still cover at least 33% of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, sparking fears about production.</p>

<p>According to a Rabobank note, the <strong>Ivory Coast's mid-crop has been of poor quality so far due to a lack of rain</strong>. The mid-crop, the smaller of the country's two annual cocoa harvests and typically beginning in April, is now projected to reach 400,000 metric tons—down around 9% from last year's 440,000 MT. </p>

<p>Traders are monitoring cocoa arrivals at Ivorian ports as the slowdown in shipment volumes raises concerns that already tight global supplies could face further pressure. So far this season, deliveries remain about 11% above last year, but the pace of arrivals has noticeably decelerated, signaling supply constraints ahead. </p>

<p>In New York, cocoa contracts erupted on Friday...</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Snag_c638f01.png?itok=nOaJ6J4q" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Snag_c638f01.png?itok=nOaJ6J4q"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="507ab1b0-85e8-4c2c-a998-cc1a1230be84" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="276" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Snag_c638f01.png?itok=nOaJ6J4q" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Cocoa prices jumped 18.5% during the week, the largest weekly gain since Nov. 15, 2024. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Snag_c64c781.png?itok=Ja-F6zbS" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Snag_c64c781.png?itok=Ja-F6zbS"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e634385a-65d1-40ee-85e3-0a4e2728cc00" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="250" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Snag_c64c781.png?itok=Ja-F6zbS" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Higher cocoa prices will only bring forward demand destruction amongst consumers. </p>
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<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T08:15:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 04:15</span>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747640017
title: Lionel Messi, Inter Miami lose to Orlando City in MLS
hash: \ر�L3C3���h��6
tags: #Sport
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content:
Lionel Messi's Inter Miami had one of their worst performances of the season, losing at home to their Florida rivals.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2025/5/19/lionel-messi-inter-miami-lose-to-orlando-city-in-mls?traffic_source=rss


guid: 1031500 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: New Dietary Guidelines Will Recommend Americans 'Eat Whole Food,' Says RFK Jr.
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: <�FW9]�:ѭ�j��
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content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">New Dietary Guidelines Will Recommend Americans 'Eat Whole Food,' Says RFK Jr.</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/new-dietary-guidelines-will-recommend-americans-eat-whole-food-says-rfk-jr-5858341?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=ZeroHedge&amp;src_src=partner&amp;src_cmp=ZeroHedge">Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times</a> (emphasis ours),</em></p>

<p><strong>Dietary guidelines that are set to be issued by the federal government later this year will recommend Americans eat “whole food,” </strong>Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on May 14.</p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/image_92%2853%29_0.jpg?itok=EDmdDBz4" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/image_92%2853%29_0.jpg?itok=EDmdDBz4"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4bf3a3a6-4237-448a-bf9d-5f3033dc0c82" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="333" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/image_92%2853%29_0.jpg?itok=EDmdDBz4" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><em>Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before the House Appropriations Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 14, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times</em></figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>The Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are working on a new set of guidelines that will be in place through 2030.</p>

<p>“<strong>We are about to reissue the dietary guidelines, and we’re going to do it very quickly. We have until January, but ... I think we'll have it done even before Augus</strong>t,” Kennedy said in Washington while testifying to a House of Representatives committee.</p>

<p>The current dietary guidelines, <a href="https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2021-03/Dietary_Guidelines_for_Americans-2020-2025.pdf">published</a> in December 2020, run 164 pages. They say that people should eat a healthy diet and limit sugary foods and drinks.</p>

<p>Health and agriculture officials in late 2024 <a href="https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2024-12/Scientific_Report_of_the_2025_Dietary_Guidelines_Advisory_Committee_508c.pdf">received</a> a draft of updated guidelines from an advisory committee that spans 421 pages and proposed instructing Americans to eat less meat, avoid full-fat dairy products, and ingest more plant-based proteins such as lentils.</p>

<p><strong>Kennedy said on Wednesday that the 2024 update was “clearly written by industry” </strong>and driven by the “kind of carnal impulses that put Froot Loops at the top of the food pyramid.” In the past, some members of the advisory committee have <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/conflicts-of-interest-for-members-of-the-us-2020-dietary-guidelines-advisory-committee/843992D8901540296BCEB43D716C1497">been found</a> to have links to corporations, including Kellogg.</p>

<p>Kennedy told lawmakers: “We are changing that. So we’re going to have four-page dietary guidelines that tell people essentially, ‘eat whole food, eat the food that’s good for you.’”</p>

<p>The purpose of the guidelines is to outline what Americans should eat and drink to get enough nutrients, stay healthy, and prevent disease, <a href="https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/about-dietary-guidelines/purpose-dietary-guidelines">according</a> to the government. The guidelines are updated every four years and are “written for a professional audience, including policymakers, healthcare providers, nutrition educators, and Federal nutrition program operators.”</p>

<p><strong>The guidelines influence nutrition standards for federal programs, including the school lunch program.</strong></p>

<p>Kennedy said that simplifying the guidelines would help Head Start, a program that provides childcare to lower-income families. He said he’s been touring Head Start facilities and has seen children eating packaged foods that are loaded with sugar and chemicals.</p>

<p>“We’re poisoning this generation,” he said.</p>

<p>The public comment period for the 2025–2030 guidelines closed in February, and the USDA and HHS said in March that they would release the final guidelines by the end of 2025.</p>

<p>Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/agriculture-secretary-says-new-dietary-guidelines-are-coming-later-this-year-5853940">told</a> a House panel earlier in May that the new guidelines might be completed by early fall.</p>

<p><strong>The guidelines will “be very simple” and “speak directly to the American family,” Rollins said.</strong></p>

<p>Later on Wednesday, Kennedy told a Senate committee that the four-page guidelines will focus on foods that “can be locally sourced,” which he said will affect school lunches.</p>

<p><strong><a data-image-external-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/wagyu-ribeye-grilling-bundle/" data-image-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/wagyu-ribeye-grilling-bundle/" data-link-option="2" href="https://store.zerohedge.com/wagyu-ribeye-grilling-bundle/"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="dd73e0b7-f76a-423d-85a6-136cda3d1fe1" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="295" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/memorial%20day%20ebersold.jpg?itok=zAcpFO2j" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></strong></p>
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<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T09:00:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 05:00</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/new-dietary-guidelines-will-recommend-americans-eat-whole-food-says-rfk-jr


guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885387
title: ‘Transition’ to a new world order is beyond most in the West
author: ;A A
link: https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/transition-to-new-world-order-beyond-most-in-west/
hash: @�U' -�Nf˟ӳ4Xd
tags: #Americas #Europe #World #Donald Trump #Globalism #New World Order #United States #West
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<div data-sanitized-class="code-block code-block-2">
<p><strong><em>The new era marks the end to ‘old politics’: The Red vs Blue; Right vs Left labels lose relevance.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Join us on </span><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875661"></a><span>, and</span> <a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875662"></a>.</strong></p>
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<p><strong><span>Contact us:</span> </strong><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u><strong>info@strategic-culture.su</strong></u></a></p>
<p>Even the need for transition – just to be clear – has only just begun to be <em><u>recognised</u></em> in the U.S.</p>
<p>For the European leadership however, and for the beneficiaries of financialisation who haughtily lament Trump’s ‘storm’ unwisely unleashed on the world, his base economic theses are ridiculed as bizarre notions completely divorced from economic ‘reality’.</p>
<p>That is completely untrue.</p>
<p>For, as Greek Economist Yanis Varoufakis <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUBTHQ11G8M" target="_blank" rel="noopener">points out</a>, the reality of the western situation and the need for transition was clearly spelled out by Paul Volcker, former chair of the Federal Reserve, as long ago as 2005.</p>
<p>The harsh ‘fact’ of the liberal globalist economic paradigm was evident even then:</p>
<blockquote><p><em>“What holds together the globalist system is a massive and growing flow of capital from abroad, running to more than $2 billion every working day – and growing. There is no sense of strain. As a nation we don’t consciously borrow or beg. We aren’t even offering attractive interest rates, nor do we have to offer our creditors protection against the risk of a declining dollar”.</em></p>
<p><em>“It’s all quite comfortable for us. We fill our shops and garages with goods from abroad, and the competition has been a powerful restraint on our internal prices. It’s surely helped keep interest rates exceptionally low despite our vanishing savings and rapid growth”.</em></p>
<p><em>“And it’s [been] comfortable for our trading partners too, and for those supplying the capital. Some, such as China [and Europe, particularly Germany], have depended heavily on our expanding domestic markets. And for the most part, the central banks of the emerging world have been willing to hold more and more dollars, which are, after all, the closest thing that world has to a truly international currency”.</em></p>
<p>“<em><u>The difficulty is that this seemingly comfortable pattern can’t go on indefinitely</u>”</em>.</p></blockquote>
<p>Precisely. And Trump is in the process of blowing up the world trading system so as to re-set it. Those western liberals, who today are gnashing teeth and lamenting the advent of ‘Trumpian economics’, are simply in denial that Trump has at least <em>recognised</em> the most important American reality – ie. that the <em>pattern can’t go on indefinitely</em>, and that debt-led consumerism is way past its sell-by date.</p>
<p>Recall that most participants in the western financial system have known nothing other than Volcker’s ‘comfortable world’ their entire life. No wonder they have difficulty thinking outside their sealed retort.</p>
<p>That does not mean, of course, that Trump’s solution to the problem will work. Possibly, Trump’s particular form of structural rebalancing could make matters actually worse.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, restructuring in some form clearly is inevitable. It comes down otherwise to a choice between bankruptcy slow, or fast and disorderly.</p>
<p>The dollar-led globalist system worked well initially – at least from the U.S. perspective. The U.S. exported its post-WW2 manufacturing over-capacity to a newly dollarized Europe, who consumed the surplus. And Europe too, enjoyed the benefit of having its macroeconomic environment (export-led models, guaranteed by the U.S. market).</p>
<p>The present crisis began however, when the paradigm inverted – when the U.S. entered on its era of unsustainable structural budget deficits, and when financialisation led Wall Street to build its inverted pyramid of derivative ‘assets’, resting upon a tiny pivot of real assets.</p>
<p>The raw fact of the structural imbalance crisis is bad enough. But the western geo-strategic crisis goes much deeper than just the structural contradiction of inward capital flows and a ‘strong’ dollar eating the heart out of the U.S. manufacturing sector. Because it is bound up, too, with the concomitant collapse of core ideologies underpinning liberal globalism.</p>
<p>It is because of this western deep devotion to ideology (as well as to the Volker ‘comfort’ provided by the system) that has triggered such a torrent of anger and outright derision towards Trump’s ‘rebalancing’ plans. Barely a western economist has a good word to say – and yet no plausible alternative framework is offered. Their passion directed at Trump simply underlines that western economic theory is bankrupt, too.</p>
<p>Which is to say that the deeper geo-strategic crisis in the West consists in both a collapse of archetypal ideology AND of a paralytic élite order.</p>
<p>For thirty years, Wall Street sold a fantasy (debt didn’t matter) … and that illusion just shattered.</p>
<p>Yes, some understand that the western economic paradigm of debt-led, hyper-financialised consumerism has run its course and that change is inevitable. But so heavily invested is the West in the ‘Anglo’ economic model that, for the most part, the economists stay paralysed in the spider’s web. There is no Alternative (TINA) is the watch phrase.</p>
<p>The ideological spine to the U.S. economic model lies firstly with Friedrich von Hayek’s <em>The Road to Serfdom</em>, which was understood to mean that <em>any</em> government involvement in the management of the economy was an infringement of ‘liberty’ – and tantamount to socialism. And then secondly, following the Hayekian union with the Chicago School of Monetarism in the person of Milton Friedman who would pen the ‘American edition’ of <em>The Road to Serfdom</em> (which (ironically) came to be called <em>Capitalism and Freedom),</em> the archetype was set.</p>
<p>Economist Philip Pilkington <a href="https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2013/01/philip-pilkington-the-origins-of-neoliberalism-part-iii-europe-and-the-centre-left-fall-under-hayeks-spell.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a> that Hayek’s delusion that markets equal ‘freedom’ and were therefore consonant with the deeply embedded American Libertarian current <em>“has become widespread to the point of all discourse being completely saturated”:</em></p>
<blockquote><p><em>“In polite company, and in public, you can certainly be left-wing or right-wing, but you will always be, in some shape or form, neoliberal; otherwise you will simply be not allowed entry to discourse”.</em></p>
<p><em>“Each country may have its own peculiarities … but on broad principles they follow a similar pattern: <u>debt-led neoliberalism is, first and foremost, a theory of how to re-engineer the state in order to guarantee the success of markets – and its most important participant: modern corporations</u>”.</em></p></blockquote>
<p>So here is the fundamental point: The crisis of liberal globalism is not just a matter of re-balancing a failing structure. Imbalance anyway is inevitable where all economies similarly pursue, all together, all at once, the export-led ‘open’ Anglo-model.</p>
<p>No, the bigger problem is that the archetypal myth of individuals (and oligarchs) pursuing their own separate and individual utility maximisation – thanks to the hidden hand of market magic – is such that in aggregate, their combined efforts will be to the benefit of the community as a whole (Adam Smith) has collapsed too.</p>
<p>Effectively, the ideology to which the West clings so tenaciously – that human motivation is utilitarian (and only utilitarian) is a delusion. As philosophers of science like Hans Albert have pointed out, the theory of utility-maximisation rules out real world mapping, a priori, thus rendering the theory untestable.</p>
<p>Paradoxically, Trump nonetheless, is of course the chief of all utilitarian maximisers! Is he then the prophet of a return to the era of swash-buckling American tycoons of the nineteenth century, or is he the adherent of a more fundamental re-think?</p>
<p>Put plainly, the West cannot transition to an alternate economic structure (such as a ‘closed’, internal-circulation model) precisely because it is so heavily invested ideologically in the philosophical underpinnings to the present one – that to question those roots seems tantamount to a betrayal of European values and of the foundational libertarian values of America (drawn from the French Revolution).</p>
<p>The reality is that today the western vision of its claimed Athenian ‘values’ is as discredited as its economic theory in the rest of the world, as well as amongst a significant slice of its angry and disaffected own populations!</p>
<p>So the bottom line is this: Do not look to the European élites for any coherent view on the emergent World Order. They are in collapse and are pre-occupied by trying to save themselves amidst the crumbling of the western sphere and the fear of retribution from their electorates.</p>
<p>This new era does however also mark the end to ‘old politics’: The Red vs Blue; Right vs Left labels lose relevance. New political identities and groupings are already being formed, even if their contours are not yet defined.</p>
<p></p>


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330847
title: HSE trains salon workers to spot domestic abuse
author: ;Ben Scallan
link: https://gript.ie/hse-trains-salon-workers-to-spot-domestic-abuse/
hash: �[#����_� 6
tags: #Featured #Irish News #abuse #Ben Scallan #Garda #Salon
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div><img src="https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Salon.jpg" data-sanitized-class="ff-og-image-inserted"></div><p><strong>Dear Reader,</strong></p>
<p>It is a simple statement of fact that if you are looking for diversity of thought in the Irish media, you will struggle to find it. That is why we founded Gript – to serve the gap in the market left by so many of our colleagues, when they decided that the job of journalists was not to challenge consensus thought, but to herd around it, and defend it fiercely.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a media outlet that blames everything on the “far right” in Ireland, then you don’t have to go far to find one. If, by contrast, you are looking for a media outlet that looks beyond that cheap sloganeering, and tries to understand and report on the real concerns held by ordinary people – and a good few prominent people, albeit privately – then that is what we try to do here.</p>
<p>But we cannot do it without your support, and your subscription.</p>
<p>We reject Government funding, because, in our view, that would be the end of our independence. The moment we did so, we would begin looking over our shoulder, and wondering if our coverage of a particular issue might lead to that money being taken away. In time – not all at once, but slowly and inexorably – we would become just another safe, consensus, state-funded voice.</p>
<p>But there’s a bargain to be struck here: If you value our independence, then you must support it. If you want us to be answerable to you, then you must take a stake in our work.</p>
<p>What we try to do here is to be open, honest, and brave. That does not mean that you will always agree with us. It does mean that there will be times when we will annoy you, and publish things you disagree with: That’s part of the deal. We are independent, not servants of one cause, or another.</p>
<p>That is what media is supposed to be, but too often in Ireland no longer is. We are trying to change that, and we need your help. I am, therefore, asking for it, and would deeply appreciate a subscription at the level you can afford.</p>
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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747643839
title: Video: Protesters pressure Dutch govt with ‘red line’ Gaza demonstration
hash: U��`��Q���/Zmv�@
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Protesters wearing red staged a march in the Netherlands to demand an end to the government’s support for Israel.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/video-protesters-pressure-dutch-govt-with-red-line-gaza-demonstration?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330853
title: O’Leary rejects EU talk of tariffs on Boeing jets
author: ;Ben Scallan
link: https://gript.ie/oleary-rejects-eu-talk-of-tariffs-on-boeing-jets/
hash: D�MXS��@�� T�
tags: #Featured #Irish News #Ben Scallan #Michael O'Leary #Ryanair
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div><img src="https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Ryanair.jpg" data-sanitized-class="ff-og-image-inserted"></div><p><strong>Dear Reader,</strong></p>
<p>It is a simple statement of fact that if you are looking for diversity of thought in the Irish media, you will struggle to find it. That is why we founded Gript – to serve the gap in the market left by so many of our colleagues, when they decided that the job of journalists was not to challenge consensus thought, but to herd around it, and defend it fiercely.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a media outlet that blames everything on the “far right” in Ireland, then you don’t have to go far to find one. If, by contrast, you are looking for a media outlet that looks beyond that cheap sloganeering, and tries to understand and report on the real concerns held by ordinary people – and a good few prominent people, albeit privately – then that is what we try to do here.</p>
<p>But we cannot do it without your support, and your subscription.</p>
<p>We reject Government funding, because, in our view, that would be the end of our independence. The moment we did so, we would begin looking over our shoulder, and wondering if our coverage of a particular issue might lead to that money being taken away. In time – not all at once, but slowly and inexorably – we would become just another safe, consensus, state-funded voice.</p>
<p>But there’s a bargain to be struck here: If you value our independence, then you must support it. If you want us to be answerable to you, then you must take a stake in our work.</p>
<p>What we try to do here is to be open, honest, and brave. That does not mean that you will always agree with us. It does mean that there will be times when we will annoy you, and publish things you disagree with: That’s part of the deal. We are independent, not servants of one cause, or another.</p>
<p>That is what media is supposed to be, but too often in Ireland no longer is. We are trying to change that, and we need your help. I am, therefore, asking for it, and would deeply appreciate a subscription at the level you can afford.</p>
<p>With gratitude,</p>
<p><strong>John</strong></p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747642204
title: Thunder vs Nuggets: OKC win Game 7, reach Western Conference finals
hash: ���@t>�����zk
tags: #Sport
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Oklahoma City Thunder dominate Game 7 decider against Denver Nuggets to set up Minnesota Timberwolves West finals clash.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2025/5/19/thunder-vs-nuggets-okc-win-game-7-reach-western-conference-finals?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747645130
title: Pro-EU centrist wins Romania’s tense presidential race
hash: ��3�zH�>�.O]�~k
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Pro-EU candidate Nicusor Dan has won Romania’s presidential election, which was re-run after allegations of Russian

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/pro-eu-centrist-wins-romanias-tense-presidential-race?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747641370
title: China’s industrial output, retail sales dip amid US trade tensions
content: Despite slowdown, data points to reliance of Chinese economy in the face of Donald Trump's tariffs.
hash: �5���ω�G����� |
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2025/5/19/chinas-industrial-output-retail-sales-dip-amid-us-trade-tensions?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330859
title: 46,000 waiting for Occupational Therapy assessment
author: ;Niamh Uí Bhriain
link: https://gript.ie/46000-waiting-for-occupational-therapy-assessment/
hash: �Tzby�z���zK���
tags: #Featured #Irish News #46000 #Carol Nolan #Occupational therapy #waiting assessment
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Data released to Nolan </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/46000-waiting-for-occupational-therapy-assessment/">46,000 waiting for Occupational Therapy assessment</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: 1031553 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: These Are The Most Accident-Prone Cars In America
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/these-are-most-accident-prone-cars-america
hash: $�Gz �[_�ƥRjBh
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">These Are The Most Accident-Prone Cars In America</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em><strong>Certain vehicles tend to show up in crash statistics more often than others, but why?</strong></em></p>

<p>There are many factors that play a role in how frequently a model is involved in accidents, including driver demographics, size, and even color.</p>

<p>In this infographic, <a href="https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-car-models-with-the-highest-accident-rates-in-the-u-s">Visual Capitalist's Marcus Lu ranks</a> America’s most accident prone car models using data compiled by <a href="https://insurify.com/car-insurance/insights/car-accident-statistics/">Insurify</a>.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_13-34-05.jpg?itok=ib-Thsu5" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_13-34-05.jpg?itok=ib-Thsu5"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="90e83f3e-7cdf-4af9-b0ee-293ca05d0905" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="1868" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-18_13-34-05.jpg?itok=ib-Thsu5" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><em>Data and Discussion</em></p>

<p>The car models with the highest accident rates in 2024 are listed in the table below. Note that this is a slightly longer top 50 list.</p>

<table data-sanitized-id="tablepress-5665" data-sanitized-class="tablepress tablepress-id-5665"><thead><tr data-sanitized-class="row-1"><th data-sanitized-class="column-1">Rank</th>
			<th data-sanitized-class="column-2">Make</th>
			<th data-sanitized-class="column-3">Model</th>
			<th data-sanitized-class="column-4">Accident Rate<br>
			(2024)</th>
		</tr></thead><tbody data-sanitized-class="row-striping row-hover"><tr data-sanitized-class="row-2"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">1</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Kia</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Soul EV</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">15.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-3"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">2</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Mazda</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Mazdaspeed 3</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">12.6%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-4"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">3</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Chevrolet</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Bolt EUV</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-5"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">4</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Jeep</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Wrangler<br>
			Unlimited</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.7%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-6"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">5</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Volkswagen</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">ID.4</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.7%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-7"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">6</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Jeep</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Wrangler / YJ</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.6%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-8"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">7</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Hyundai</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Ioniq Hybrid</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-9"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">8</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Chevrolet</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Bolt EV</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-10"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">9</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 RAM</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">2500</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.2%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-11"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">10</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Chrysler</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Voyager</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.2%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-12"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">11</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Chevrolet</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Volt</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-13"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">12</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Volkswagen</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">EOS</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-14"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">13</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 RAM</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">3500</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-15"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">14</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Toyota</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Prius Prime</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">11.0%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-16"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">15</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Kia</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">EV6</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-17"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">16</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Lexus</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">CT</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.6%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-18"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">17</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Volkswagen</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Beetle</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.6%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-19"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">18</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Kia</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Telluride</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.5%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-20"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">19</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Jeep</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Gladiator</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.5%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-21"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">20</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Lexus</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">RC</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-22"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">21</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Kia</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Carnival</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-23"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">22</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Infiniti</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">QX60</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-24"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">23</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Kia</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Stinger</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-25"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">24</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Subaru</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">WRX</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.4%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-26"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">25</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Mazda</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">CX-5</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.3%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-27"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">26</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 BMW</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">i3</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.3%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-28"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">27</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 RAM</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">1500</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.3%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-29"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">28</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Nissan</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">TITAN XD</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.3%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-30"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">29</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Jeep</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Wrangler / TJ</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.2%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-31"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">30</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 RAM</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">1500 Classic</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.2%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-32"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">31</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Mazda</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">3</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.2%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-33"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">32</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Subaru</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Impreza</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-34"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">33</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Volkswagen</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">GTI</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-35"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">34</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Jeep</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Wrangler</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.1%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-36"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">35</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Chevrolet</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Equinox<br>
			Limited</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.0%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-37"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">36</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Audi</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">S4</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.0%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-38"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">36</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Scion</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">FR-S</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.0%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-39"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">38</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Volkswagen</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Atlas</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">10.0%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-40"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">39</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Buick</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Encore GX</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.9%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-41"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">40</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Ford</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Bronco</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.9%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-42"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">41</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Toyota</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Prius V</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.9%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-43"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">42</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Ford</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Mustang<br>
			Mach-E</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.9%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-44"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">43</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Honda</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Insight</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-45"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">44</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Hyundai</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Ioniq 5</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-46"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">45</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Toyota</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">FJ Cruiser</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-47"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">46</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇩🇪 Audi</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">A3</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.8%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-48"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">47</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇰🇷 Hyundai</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Palisade</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.7%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-49"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">48</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇺🇸 Tesla</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Model X</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.7%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-50"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">49</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇸🇪 Volvo</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">XC40</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.7%</td>
		</tr><tr data-sanitized-class="row-51"><td data-sanitized-class="column-1">50</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-2">🇯🇵 Honda</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-3">Passport</td>
			<td data-sanitized-class="column-4">9.7%</td>
		</tr></tbody></table><p>Most major automakers have at least one model on the list, but <a href="https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-favorite-car-brands-of-the-ultra-rich/">several premium brands</a>—such as Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Cadillac—are absent.</p>

<h2>Are EVs More Likely to Get Into Accidents?</h2>

<p>While we can’t come to a conclusion based on this dataset, it is interesting to note that there are several EV models at the top of the ranking.</p>

<p>This includes the Kia Soul EV (#1), the Chevrolet Bolt EUV (#3), Bolt EV (#8) and Volt (#11), the Volkswagen ID.4 (#5), and the Kia EV6 (#15).</p>

<p>A likely reason for this could be the way electric motors deliver instant torque, which may surprise drivers who are used to the more gradual power curve of gasoline engines.</p>

<p>Here’s something else to consider: research from 2024 found that <a href="https://scitechdaily.com/electric-car-drivers-more-likely-to-cause-accidents-research-shows/"><strong>EVs were 4% more likely to have an at-fault insurance claim compared to gasoline cars.</strong></a></p>

<p><em>If you enjoyed today’s post, check out The Best Selling Car in Every State in 2024 on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.</em></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T09:45:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 05:45</span>


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330833
title: The Great Eurovision troll
author: ;John McGuirk
link: https://gript.ie/the-great-eurovision-troll/
hash: �vF?6��c?�Bw�@�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>"It is clear that there is a segment of the European public entirely sickened by the constant moralising about Israel"</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/the-great-eurovision-troll/">The Great Eurovision troll</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>

tags:
#Comment World #Featured #Featured Picks #Highlights #Irish News #World News #Eurovision #Gaza #Hamas #israel #middle east #Yuval Raphael


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330828
title: PREMIUM: Varadkar’s crippling lack of self-awareness
author: ;John McGuirk
link: https://gript.ie/premium-varadkars-crippling-lack-of-self-awareness/
hash: _ ����M�)휧�g�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>If the prevailing political winds have shifted, and not to his liking, where could the blame possibly lie?</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/premium-varadkars-crippling-lack-of-self-awareness/">PREMIUM: Varadkar’s crippling lack of self-awareness</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>

tags:
#Comment #Comment Ireland #Featured #Featured Picks #Highlights #Irish News #Premium #World News #Fine Gael #Gay marriage #Leo Varadkar #LGBT #Sunday Times


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330860
title: Opposition to LC Climate course publicly toned down:
author: ;Jason Osborne
link: https://gript.ie/widespread-opposition-to-lc-climate-course-toned-down/
hash: � e.��u5! EW8�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div><img src="https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/amy-gatenby-UgInB2h89sM-unsplash-scaled.jpg" data-sanitized-class="ff-og-image-inserted"></div><p><strong>Dear Reader,</strong></p>
<p>It is a simple statement of fact that if you are looking for diversity of thought in the Irish media, you will struggle to find it. That is why we founded Gript – to serve the gap in the market left by so many of our colleagues, when they decided that the job of journalists was not to challenge consensus thought, but to herd around it, and defend it fiercely.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a media outlet that blames everything on the “far right” in Ireland, then you don’t have to go far to find one. If, by contrast, you are looking for a media outlet that looks beyond that cheap sloganeering, and tries to understand and report on the real concerns held by ordinary people – and a good few prominent people, albeit privately – then that is what we try to do here.</p>
<p>But we cannot do it without your support, and your subscription.</p>
<p>We reject Government funding, because, in our view, that would be the end of our independence. The moment we did so, we would begin looking over our shoulder, and wondering if our coverage of a particular issue might lead to that money being taken away. In time – not all at once, but slowly and inexorably – we would become just another safe, consensus, state-funded voice.</p>
<p>But there’s a bargain to be struck here: If you value our independence, then you must support it. If you want us to be answerable to you, then you must take a stake in our work.</p>
<p>What we try to do here is to be open, honest, and brave. That does not mean that you will always agree with us. It does mean that there will be times when we will annoy you, and publish things you disagree with: That’s part of the deal. We are independent, not servants of one cause, or another.</p>
<p>That is what media is supposed to be, but too often in Ireland no longer is. We are trying to change that, and we need your help. I am, therefore, asking for it, and would deeply appreciate a subscription at the level you can afford.</p>
<p>With gratitude,</p>
<p><strong>John</strong></p>

tags:
#Comment #Comment Ireland #Featured #Highlights #Premium #Climate Action and Sustainable Development #National Council for Curriculum And Assessment


guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885389
title: Trump makes Syria’s Muslim Brotherhood head choppers kosher
author: ;A A
hash: 5Dk� �>0v�G����
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div data-sanitized-class="code-block code-block-2">
<p><strong><em>Although the position for Syrians will improve a little once NATO’s sanctions are lifted, their position will not really improve.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Join us on </span><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875661"></a><span>, and</span> <a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875662"></a>.</strong></p>
</div>
<p><strong><span>Contact us:</span> </strong><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u><strong>info@strategic-culture.su</strong></u></a></p>
<p><em>A novel can’t defuse a bomb. But we are not helpless. We can sing the truth and name the liars</em>. ~<a href="https://write.as/silent-sentinel/we-can-sing-the-truth-and-name-the-liars">Salman Rushdie</a>.</p>
<p>POTUS Trump’s recent foray into the Persian Gulf put a few things straight, not the least of which it is OK to play YMCA, which <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uZ4vQFiVv0">Trump claims is the gay national anthem</a>, in the supposedly homophobic <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/01/shithole-countries/580054/">shit hole country</a> of Saudi Arabia. While he was in the neighbourhood, Trump also accepted $1.3 trillion in arms deals from Saudi Arabia, as well as a flying palace from Qatar and a firm handshake from Syria’s head chopper in chief, whom Trump, perhaps in the gay spirit of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS9OO0S5w2k">Village People’s YMCA</a>, described as a handsome and virile man with a strong past.</p>
<p>Although all of that is a hypocritical mouthful, let’s break it down into digestible parts. The fact that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have made mouth watering gifts to Trump, while not even giving the Gazans a drop of water, show what foot those serial grifters kick with. As my <a href="https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/09/united-arab-emirates-nato-little-sparta-flexes-its-muscles-against-muslim-brotherhood/">recent article on them</a> pointed out, they exist to keep the wealth of the Persian Gulf in the hands of NATO and out of the hands of the Arab people, to which it rightfully belongs.</p>
<p>As regards their blarney about the<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ummah"> Islamic Ummah</a>, that is just a crock of ahistorical blarney they use to keep their head choppers focussed on easy victims and not on such things as an equal distribution of their ill gotten wealth.</p>
<p>And how about Jolani, Syria’s chief head chopper, who is now hailed as some sort of Syrian Messiah by his American, Turkish, Qatari and Saudi paymasters, who financed him and his head choppers in their brutal war against the secular Syrian Arab Republic and its defenders, the heroic men and women of the Syrian Arab Army?</p>
<p>Let’s forget the American men and women who had their throats slit on Jolani’s orders. Let’s forget spectaculars like the 9/11 attack, which Jolani’s comrades pulled off and which was NATO’s original excuse for waging their wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. Let’s forget how Jolani was recruited by the CIA when they captured him in Iraq and rejoice that sanctions, which were only ever a tool to destroy secularism in Syria and the entire Arab world, have done their job by starving Syrians into the blood soaked hands of the Muslim Brotherhood. Mission accomplished.</p>
<p>Although Trump hadn’t time to pop in on Israel, let’s give them and their ongoing genocide in Gaza a shout out. With Hezbollah very much on the back foot, I see very little hope for Gaza and, if the “natives” there are depending on Qatar or Saudi Arabia for deliverance, they might be better off depending on the non existent good graces of Netanyahu or Trump’s ambassador to Jerusalem (not Tel Aviv) <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Huckabee">Mike Huckabee</a>, who is the gold standard in Christian Zionist fanaticism.</p>
<p>Moving on to Iran, though they might breathe a sigh of relief that Trump has not waged cartographical jihad on them by renaming the Persian Gulf the Arab Gulf, they should be in no doubt what awaits them and their Yemeni allies on <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/06_iran_strategy.pdf">NATO’s road to Persia</a>. For the cleptomaniacs in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel to feel safe, Iran has to go. It is as simple as that.</p>
<p>Moving northwards, we come to Russia, which not only has its own cartographical problems but is still entwined in Syria, where it maintains a number of bases and in the Gulf, where it would like to be at peace with the aforementioned countries that safeguard NATO’s assets in that neck of the woods.</p>
<p>NATO’s Russian problem, as we will call it, is compounded by the fact that Russia has something between its ears and, to NATO, that cannot be tolerated. When the Russian Air Force first intervened in Syria, they hit the oil wells and the oil trucks NATO was using to rob Syria’s oil. When the Russian Air Force, together with the heroes of the Syrian Arab Army, had Jolani’s ISIS franchise on the ropes, the U.S. air force intervened by levelling Raqqa and setting up a puppet statelet there to thwart the Russians and the Arab forces allied with them. The upshot of that was that, when the Syrian civil war settled down, Damascus was left with three proxy forces, one each to its north, to its south and to its east, and NATO was eventually able to leverage all three of those toeholds to establish their Caliphate in Damascus.</p>
<p>Before leaving Russia, let’s note that Egypt’s Armed Forces took part in Moscow’s 9<sup>th</sup> May military parade. This is significant as the Egyptian Armed Forces, since the days of the great Colonel Nasser, has always been the guarantor of Egypt’s secularism and it was the great Egyptian Army that saved their homeland from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_Morsi">the jaws of Morsi</a> and his Muslim Brotherhood cut throats, who had plans to invade and overthrow the secular Syrian Arab Republic but not, of course, little Israel.</p>
<p>Although I previously <a href="https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/13/habemus-papam-bob-chicago-left-field-pope-leo-xiv/">wished Pope Bob well</a>, I had also previously pointed out that the Vatican is a <a href="https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/01/james-bonds-cassocks-vaticans-secret-service-gets-ready-elect-next-pope/">nest of CIA and MI6 vipers</a>, who are no doubt urging His Holiness to go easy on Jolani, just as folk like Mother Agnes Mariam are no doubt asking Syria’s new ruler to go easy on the head chopping and making sex slaves of pre-pubescent Alawite teenagers.</p>
<p>For me, there can be no such forgiveness in this life or the next, as<a href="https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/07/syria-silent-genocides/"> far too many innocents have needlessly died</a>, just so Jolani and his equally contemptible Gulf State and NATO paymasters can listen to YMCA as they line up to rim POTUS Trump’s orange ass. And, as regards Israel’s turkey shoot in Gaza, which all of these jackals support, what can one say that has not already been said?</p>
<p>Although Trump, Starmer, Macron and NATO’s other jokers have forgiven Jolani his war crimes, we must remember that, as with Zelensky in Ukraine,. he was only ever a low level operator in this NATO enterprise and that those three, along with the rest of their YMCA buddies, are the stockholders in NATO’s revamped Murder Inc.</p>
<p>Though we have seen prequels to this in the way the mafia carved up New York and Pope Bob’s Chicago, we have also seen it in how the European powers carved up Africa towards the end of the nineteenth century and how that wholesale theft has repercussions to this day. The rape of Syria and the complicity of Turkey, Israel, the United States and the punk Gulf State autocracies is no different, except in the one respect that it is happening today, in real time.</p>
<p>Although the position for Syrians will improve a little once NATO’s sanctions are lifted, their position will not really improve, and the AI forces Trump, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5qjDz7saS0">Musk</a> and the rest of them are harnessing will only make things worse not only for them but for all those who stand in the way of NATO conquering Iran and whatever nations might be next for the chopping block once Iran falls.</p>
<p>Although that might sound alarmist, such are the plans of Trump and those close to him in the United States, in Israel and in the Gulf. And, though China might eventually frustrate the best laid plans of these mice and excuses for men, for now NATO’s plans for Palestine, Syria, Iran and all of the Middle East are right on schedule and right on time. Bad days ahead!</p>
<p></p>

link:
https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/trump-makes-syria-muslim-brotherhood-head-choppers-kosher/

tags:
#Americas #Middle East #World #Donald Trump #Muslim Brotherhood #NATO #Syria #Terrorism #United States


guid: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/long-format/2165603/vieillir-proche-aidant-aine-age
title: Regards croisés sur le vieillissement
link: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/long-format/2165603/vieillir-proche-aidant-aine-age
hash: S5{n,qQ�����I�
content:
<p>La vieillesse, bien qu’inévitable, est encore un sujet tabou. Vieillir, est-ce toujours difficile?</p>

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747644276
title: US PGA Championship 2025: Scottie Scheffler wins third major title
hash: m��x��T��յ�:�
tags: #Sport
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content:
World number one Scottie Scheffler outlasts a final round challenge from Jon Rahm to record a five-stroke victory.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2025/5/19/us-pga-championship-2025-scottie-scheffler-wins-third-major-title?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747634258
title: Israel to allow limited food into Gaza amid intensified military offensive
hash: 35^i\Qv�;�4m]�L
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Director-general of Gaza's Health Ministry says it's still unclear when border will open to allow humanitarian aid.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/israel-to-allow-limited-food-into-gaza-amid-intensified-military-offensive?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304436
title: Reproductive-rights groups push against Kennedy’s mifepristone review
author: ;Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech
link: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5304436-fda-mifepristone-review-abortion-rights-advocates/
hash: �f$��@j�N��
tags: #Health Care #News
content:
Reproductive-rights advocates are pushing back against the review of the abortion medication mifepristone ordered by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.   Kennedy directed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review the medication during a Senate hearing Wednesday because of findings laid out in a new study conducted by the Ethics…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304984
title: Senate Republicans want to break up House’s Trump bill into bite-size pieces
author: ;Alexander Bolton
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5304984-trump-agenda-stalled-senate-considering-split/
hash: ��q��W�� K:�iU
tags: #House #News #Senate
content:
Senate Republicans say the House-drafted bill to enact President Trump’s legislative agenda has “problems” and are taking a second look at breaking it up into smaller pieces in hopes of getting the president’s less controversial priorities enacted into law before the fall. Even if Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) manages to squeak Trump’s agenda through the…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304805
title: Miami Republicans fight Trump policies threatening deportations for their community
author: ;Rebecca Beitsch
hash: �W:Kx���#��[��<
tags: #Administration #House #Latino #National Security #State Watch
content:
A trio of Miami-area Republicans are pushing back against the administration as President Trump works to end programs protecting many of the region’s immigrant communities from deportation. In a hearing with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last week, Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.) asked for “nuance” in plans for a wholesale rescission of Temporary Protected Status…

link:
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5304805-miami-republicans-trump-deportations-dhs-tps-noem-cuba-haiti-venezuela/

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304218
title: Colleges to use summer break to regroup after rough start with Trump
author: ;Lexi Lonas Cochran
hash: �-s�x��Rc9�v�
tags: #Administration #Education #Harvard
content:
U.S. colleges and universities will have three months to regroup after a brutal beginning to the second Trump administration that included sweeping funding cuts, foreign students arrested and the launch of investigations from multiple federal agencies.  President Trump is living up to his promise of a crusade against higher education, leaving campus administrators struggling for…

link:
https://thehill.com/homenews/education/5304218-colleges-universities-summer-break-trump-harvard-columbia-transgender-students-campus-protests/

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guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885397
title: Un primo profilo di Papa Leone XIV
author: ;A A
link: https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/un-primo-profilo-di-papa-leone-xiv/
hash: D�О1 8�~3��1
tags: #Italiano #Christianity #Leo XIV #Religion #Vatican
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p><strong><em>Sappiamo già, inoltre, che Israele sarà a disagio con il nuovo Papa, proprio come la sua dichiarazione che i cristiani sono il “popolo eletto” di Dio ha causato disagio tra i sionisti.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span><span><em>Segue nostro</em></span> <a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span>.</span></a></span></strong></p>
<p>Il Conclave del 2025 si è concluso in tempi relativamente brevi con l’elezione del cardinale Robert Francis Prevost al soglio di San Pietro, succedendo al defunto Papa Francesco. Prevost ha scelto per sé il nome papale Leone XIV, una scelta significativa di per sé.</p>
<p>Superiamo la disinformazione e la confusione per riassumere le informazioni concrete e le indicazioni ragionevoli che possono aiutare a prevedere la logica del pontificato di Leone XIV.</p>
<p>In primo luogo, il consenso su Prevost è stato ampio. Il desiderio di un pontificato stabile, moderato e conciliante ha prevalso su altre preoccupazioni e anche i cardinali più “ideologici” (sia del campo conservatore che di quello progressista) sembrano aver posto il bene e l’unità della Chiesa cattolica come priorità assoluta. Le basi per questa scelta sembrano essere state gettate dai cardinali americani, in particolare dal cardinale Timothy Dolan, relativamente vicino a Donald Trump. Alla vigilia del Conclave, Prevost avrebbe partecipato a una riunione con altri cardinali nella residenza del cardinale Raymond Burke, di orientamento tradizionale. Secondo tutte le indicazioni, Prevost avrebbe anche ricevuto il sostegno del cardinale Robert Sarah, uno dei preferiti dai conservatori.</p>
<p>Considerando che il cardinale Pietro Parolin aveva scommesso sulla sua preferenza alla luce di una possibile candidatura ultraprogressista, come quella dei cardinali Tagle o Zuppi, ciò non si è concretizzato e la sua candidatura – la più favorita dagli esperti – è rapidamente crollata.</p>
<p>Ora, col senno di poi, tutti i cardinali sembrano entusiasti dell’esito del Conclave. Lo “Spirito”, in modo hegeliano, ha infatti operato una sintesi dialettica tra gli ultimi due pontificati, ma così facendo ha indicato l’Assoluto, che in altri tempi era apparso in modo più evidente. Così, senza cessare di essere una sorta di fusione tra Benedetto XVI (attaccamento alla tradizione) e Francesco (opzione preferenziale per i poveri), Prevost evoca una Chiesa pre-Vaticano II, “eterna”, , ricordando con la scelta del nome che la Chiesa cattolica non è nata nel XX secolo e non è riducibile ai suoi dilemmi – che hanno occupato un ruolo eccessivamente centrale negli ultimi anni, come si è visto nella disputa sulla «messa in latino».</p>
<p>In questo perfetto equilibrio, Leone XIV sembra combinare l’umiltà e la vicinanza ispirate dal pontificato precedente con un apprezzamento per la bellezza e la tradizione che ricorda il regno di Benedetto XVI. Abbiamo ancora pochi elementi per confermarlo, ma questa perfetta moderazione è già evidente nelle apparizioni pubbliche del nuovo Papa, sia nel modo di parlare che nella reintroduzione di elementi liturgici abbandonati. Meno attento ai media, il nuovo Papa sembra intenzionato a evitare le polemiche che Francesco, anche se involontariamente, ha suscitato. Per ora ha mantenuto un discorso incentrato su Cristo, concentrandosi su temi teologici più centrali.</p>
<p>Spiegando la scelta del suo nome, Leone XIV ha espresso un interesse fondamentale nel recuperare e continuare i contributi chiave di Leone XIII, sottolineando in particolare l’enciclica Rerum Novarum, una critica fondamentale al capitalismo (e al marxismo) e un documento ispiratore per le leggi sul lavoro in gran parte del mondo all’inizio del XX secolo. In questa enciclica, Leone XIII ha stabilito la Dottrina Sociale della Chiesa Cattolica, affrontando questioni come il “giusto salario”, “usura”, ‘sfruttamento’ e molti altri tipici del capitalismo industriale, offrendo una prospettiva cattolica su questi dibattiti.</p>
<p>Leo XIV ha insistito sulla necessità di continuare la necessaria critica al Capitale senza radici e usuraio come sfruttatore dei popoli, ma ha anche sottolineato la mobilitazione di una critica cattolica alle nuove espressioni del Capitale e della Tecnologia, come l’intelligenza artificiale e altre nuove tecnologie sviluppate dalle grandi aziende. È quindi plausibile che la Chiesa cattolica inizi a parlare in modo più dettagliato del transumanesimo e delle sue varie manifestazioni e tendenze contemporanee.</p>
<p>Qui abbiamo il primo Papa americano, che coincide inoltre con la nuova presidenza di Donald Trump. Il cattolicesimo sta crescendo in importanza negli Stati Uniti (dove rappresenta il 20% della popolazione) e questo avrà sicuramente un impatto sulle relazioni tra il Vaticano e l’egemonia unipolare in declino. Naturalmente, Trump cercherà di sfruttare a proprio vantaggio l’elezione di un Papa americano (è significativo che sembrasse sapere che il nuovo Papa sarebbe stato americano ancora prima che fosse annunciato il risultato…). Allo stesso tempo, il nuovo Papa rivolgerà senza dubbio la sua attenzione, di tanto in tanto, alla profonda crisi nichilista in cui gli Stati Uniti continuano a essere impantanati – una crisi, tra l’altro, ben descritta da Benedetto XVI.</p>
<p>Sarebbe tuttavia errato considerare Prevost un semplice «trumpista». Di indole conservatrice, in qualità di cardinale Prevost sembrava allinearsi a un conservatorismo conciliante e umanista. Critico nei confronti dell’immigrazione di massa, ad esempio, si è comunque opposto ai metodi utilizzati dall’amministrazione Trump per affrontare la questione. Inoltre, il suo anticapitalismo renderebbe impossibile associarlo alla destra reazionaria tradizionale, e le sue posizioni sono del tutto incompatibili con il tecno-feudalesimo neoreazionario. Tuttavia, Prevost ha sempre espresso una posizione antitetica nei confronti delle tendenze postmoderne in materia di sessualità e genere, molto più di Papa Francesco.</p>
<p>Non dobbiamo dimenticare, tuttavia, che è latinoamericano tanto quanto nordamericano. Avendo trascorso gran parte della sua vita in Perù e avendo la cittadinanza peruviana, Papa Leone XIV ha parlato in spagnolo durante il suo discorso inaugurale e si sente chiaramente legato alle comunità povere del Terzo Mondo. In questo senso, la sua elezione segnala il crescente riconoscimento dell’importanza del Sud del mondo. Anche il primo Papa americano è, in pratica, un rappresentante del Terzo Mondo.</p>
<p>Per quanto riguarda il profilo geopolitico di Leone XIV, è ancora troppo presto per fare previsioni sostanziali. Il nuovo Papa ha deciso di mantenere Parolin come Segretario di Stato per il momento, quindi è ragionevole aspettarsi una continuità geopolitica tra questo pontificato e quello precedente (che era già una continuazione di quello di Benedetto XVI).</p>
<p>Le uniche osservazioni ragionevolmente geopolitiche fatte finora dal nuovo Papa hanno sottolineato l’importanza della pace, indicando che Leone XIV si sforzerà di svolgere un ruolo sempre più attivo nei vertici mondiali e nelle controversie diplomatiche del XXI secolo. Egli ha infatti espresso il desiderio di una pace giusta e duratura in Ucraina, di un accordo rapido e duraturo tra India e Pakistan, e ha sottolineato che la situazione dei palestinesi a Gaza lo preoccupa particolarmente, chiedendo un cessate il fuoco immediato.</p>
<p>Sappiamo già, inoltre, che Israele sarà a disagio con il nuovo Papa, proprio come la sua dichiarazione che i cristiani sono il “popolo eletto” di Dio ha causato disagio tra i sionisti.</p>
<p></p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747631664
title: Trump-Putin call: Could it lead to a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire?
hash: $�+��%'}�����~�'
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
The US president says only Putin and he can stitch together a truce. Their call on Monday will test that theory.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/trump-putin-call-whats-holding-up-a-russia-ukraine-ceasefire?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747637476
title: Iran summons UK charge d’affaires amid nuclear friction
hash: �fc�L�_�� �S��L
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Arrests of Iranians come amid lingering tensions over Iran's nuclear programme and fallout of Russia-Ukraine war.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/iran-summons-uk-charge-daffaires-amid-nuclear-friction?traffic_source=rss


guid: 1031521 at https://www.zerohedge.com
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: _��� �} �G�4�:�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
title:
Inside World Of High-Net-Worth Lending: Kevin Plank Pledges Georgetown Home For $15M Commercial Loan

content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Inside World Of High-Net-Worth Lending: Kevin Plank Pledges Georgetown Home For $15M Commercial Loan</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Local Baltimore media outlets have reported that Under Armour founder Kevin Plank—who returned as CEO in April 2024—recently pledged his $2 million Georgetown rowhouse as collateral for a $15 million loan. Just three months earlier, Plank <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/need-liquidity-under-armour-ceo-kevin-plank-lists-22m-race-horse-farm-ua-near-lows">relisted</a> his 400-acre equestrian farm in northern Baltimore County. At the time, we asked one very simple question:<strong> <em>Is the billionaire CEO searching for liquidity?</em></strong></p>

<p><a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/2025/05/16/kevin-plank-georgetown-home-collateral/">The Baltimore Sun</a>—once a far-left, woke newspaper but now showing signs of journalistic revival <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/conservative-billionaire-buys-baltimore-sun-newspaper">under new ownership</a>—reported that the $15 million loan is intended to fund or acquire "<strong>a business or commercial investment</strong>." The paper cited a deed of trust filed last week in Washington, D.C.</p>

<p>"<strong>The document makes no mention of specific investments in the filing with the district's recorder of deeds</strong>," The Sun wrote, adding Plank "<strong>signed the deed on May 9 in a deal to borrow $15 million from Breezewood DE LLC, a Denver-based limited liability company</strong>." </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-38-29.png?itok=SL0Spckg" data-link-option="0" href="https://www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-38-29.png?itok=SL0Spckg"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d0a2a650-d54c-4be6-b558-1306090f97bc" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="379" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-38-29.png?itok=SL0Spckg" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Shedding more light on the opaque world of high-net-worth lending—where anonymity and asset protection are often by design—a blog post from a local real estate team "<a href="https://www.foxessellfaster.com/blog/billionaires-borrow-too-inside-kevin-planks-15m-commercial-loan-tied-to-his-georgetown-home/">Fox Homes Team</a>" offers additional color, noting: </p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>At the center of this transaction is </em><strong><em>Breezewood DE LLC, a Wyoming-registered limited liability company</em></strong><em> with no clear public-facing identity. The LLC was formed by Kevin Walton, a Denver-based attorney with the law firm Snell &amp; Wilmer. Curiously, the LLC's mailing address traces back to the accounting firm Eide Bailly, also located in Denver—a </em><strong><em>layered structure that hints at deliberate opacity and financial insulation</em></strong><em>. This isn't </em><strong><em>uncommon in the world of high-net-worth lending</em></strong><em>, where anonymity and asset protection are often baked into the very architecture of a deal.</em></p>

<p><em>What stands out most is the explicit wording in the deed: the loan is designated for "carrying on or acquiring a business or commercial investment." </em><strong><em>That leaves a wide interpretive window—one that's fueling curiosity across financial and real estate sectors</em></strong><em>. The ambiguity has sparked a flurry of speculation. </em><strong><em>Is this loan a vehicle for expanding Plank's private investment firm, Sagamore Ventures? </em></strong><em>Is it tied to Under Armour's restructuring strategy? Or is it a positioning move to take advantage of D.C.'s evolving commercial real estate lending climate in 2025?</em></p>

<p><em>Whatever the answer, the use of a historically significant Georgetown property as </em><strong><em>collateral signals more than liquidity needs</em></strong><em>—it's a sophisticated financial tactic. The property isn't just real estate; it's equity in motion. And in this context, Georgetown's value isn't merely aesthetic—it's fiscal leverage in one of the most discerning real estate markets in the nation.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>The designation of the loan for "acquiring a business or commercial investment" suggests to us that it will be used for a financial transaction via <strong>Plank's Sagamore Ventures</strong>, a privately held investment company managed by the Plank family and J. Kelly Dayton. Plank's venture arm has diversified holdings in commercial real estate, hospitality, food, and beverage. </p>

<p>Mapping Plank's empire via publicly available data:</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-34-26.png?itok=k9sFldhV" data-link-option="0" href="https://www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-34-26.png?itok=k9sFldhV"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2468a637-7857-4624-8e62-273c600f7170" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="420" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-18_09-34-26.png?itok=k9sFldhV" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>At first glance, Plank's decision to collateralize his Georgetown home may seem unusual. But in reality, it's a common strategy among high-net-worth individuals looking to secure lower-cost financing—especially in today's environment of elevated interest rates, where swaps are only pricing in two 25-basis-point cuts by year-end.</p>

<p>Outside of whatever the Plank family may invest in next around the Baltimore metro area, the prospect of continuing to pour money into an imploding state—<a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/political/maryland-dems-lose-all-sense-reality-focus-condoms-kids-reparations-crises-pile">controlled by woke leftists in Annapolis</a>—seems increasingly risky.</p>

<p>Decades of regime-style Democratic rule have culminated in a series of rolling crises: <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/political/paying-price-failed-leadership-maryland-hit-first-credit-downgrade-50-years">the first credit downgrade in half a century</a>, massive deficits, violent crime, an energy crisis, homelessness, an opioid crisis, an illegal alien invasion, and a lopsided economy heavily dependent on government spending. Taken together, these issues risk transforming Maryland into "Illinois 2.0" by the end of the decade—triggering a deeper exodus of residents and businesses.</p>

<p>Last spring, Plank hosted a private fundraiser for far-left Governor Wes Moore—whose tenure has been nothing short of a disaster for Maryland.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GNvkF76WgAA49q-.jpg?itok=CgoERdf7" data-link-option="0" href="https://www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GNvkF76WgAA49q-.jpg?itok=CgoERdf7"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="590de7af-c41b-4cf1-84e9-1ae4b5db80db" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="375" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GNvkF76WgAA49q-.jpg?itok=CgoERdf7" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GNvkF71XQAAA9fV.jpg?itok=Y8iMvesj" data-link-option="0" href="https://www.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GNvkF71XQAAA9fV.jpg?itok=Y8iMvesj"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="dba51d41-6403-4b6c-b1c6-83cc494b5c58" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="375" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GNvkF71XQAAA9fV.jpg?itok=Y8iMvesj" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>We get that Plank and his inner circle have to play the game of local politics in a state run by Marxist Democrats. But seriously...</p>

<p>In markets, Under Armour is still undergoing a restructuring process, with shares down 19% (as of Friday's close) on the year.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T10:55:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 06:55</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/inside-world-high-net-worth-lending-kevin-plank-pledges-georgetown-home-15m-commercial-loan


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5303703
title: The media’s coverage of deportations is consciously manipulative
author: ;Becket Adams; Opinion Contributor
hash: �[`ς3���D2��m��
tags: #Immigration #Opinion
content:
The press is using an emotional approach to influence the immigration debate, focusing on the personal stories of deportees rather than their criminal records.

link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/5303703-1st-slug-immigration-deportations-coverage-strategy/

attributes:
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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304701
author: ;Joseph Choi
hash: �T$��d���>C� �s
tags: #Health Care #News #HHS
title:
Progressive PAC slams RFK Jr.’s swim in contaminated river: ‘Doesn’t give a damn’ about grandchildren

content:
The progressive PAC 314 Action launched an ad campaign Monday slamming Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as he comes up on his 100th day in office, ridiculing him for his recent swim in a Washington, D.C.-area river that has long been deemed unsafe due to contamination. In the 30-second ad, 314…

link:
https://thehill.com/homenews/5304701-progressive-pac-slams-rfk-jr-s-swim-in-contaminated-river-doesnt-give-a-damn-about-grandchildren/

attributes:
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guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330872
title: Why the Papacy is a Most Misunderstood Institution
author: ;David Thunder
link: https://gript.ie/why-the-papacy-is-a-most-misunderstood-institution/
hash: �_Er�G^���Ơe ��
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Unchanging teachings </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/why-the-papacy-is-a-most-misunderstood-institution/">Why the Papacy is a Most Misunderstood Institution</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>

tags:
#Comment World #Featured #Premium #Church teachings #misunderstood institution #Not a CEO #Papacy #Pope Leo


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747632529
title: Biden’s prostate cancer: What happened, how serious is Gleason score 9?
content: Biden, 82, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, the most common form of cancer in US males.
hash: rêq�N8��T�
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/gleason-score-9-how-aggressive-is-bidens-prostrate-cancer?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747630921
title: Mexican ship hits Brooklyn Bridge: What went wrong, who were the victims?
hash: � �kAƇ������
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Two Mexican cadets are killed when the vessel, carrying 277 people, crashes into the New York landmark.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/mexican-ship-hits-brooklyn-bridge-what-went-wrong-who-were-the-victims?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330877
title: European election results see the right gain ground:
author: ;Jason Osborne
link: https://gript.ie/european-election-results-see-the-right-gain-ground/
hash: ^⃫zM��]�S���
tags: #Featured #News #World News #Poland #portugal #Romania
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div><img src="https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Nicosur-Dan.jpg" data-sanitized-class="ff-og-image-inserted"></div><p><strong>Dear Reader,</strong></p>
<p>It is a simple statement of fact that if you are looking for diversity of thought in the Irish media, you will struggle to find it. That is why we founded Gript – to serve the gap in the market left by so many of our colleagues, when they decided that the job of journalists was not to challenge consensus thought, but to herd around it, and defend it fiercely.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a media outlet that blames everything on the “far right” in Ireland, then you don’t have to go far to find one. If, by contrast, you are looking for a media outlet that looks beyond that cheap sloganeering, and tries to understand and report on the real concerns held by ordinary people – and a good few prominent people, albeit privately – then that is what we try to do here.</p>
<p>But we cannot do it without your support, and your subscription.</p>
<p>We reject Government funding, because, in our view, that would be the end of our independence. The moment we did so, we would begin looking over our shoulder, and wondering if our coverage of a particular issue might lead to that money being taken away. In time – not all at once, but slowly and inexorably – we would become just another safe, consensus, state-funded voice.</p>
<p>But there’s a bargain to be struck here: If you value our independence, then you must support it. If you want us to be answerable to you, then you must take a stake in our work.</p>
<p>What we try to do here is to be open, honest, and brave. That does not mean that you will always agree with us. It does mean that there will be times when we will annoy you, and publish things you disagree with: That’s part of the deal. We are independent, not servants of one cause, or another.</p>
<p>That is what media is supposed to be, but too often in Ireland no longer is. We are trying to change that, and we need your help. I am, therefore, asking for it, and would deeply appreciate a subscription at the level you can afford.</p>
<p>With gratitude,</p>
<p><strong>John</strong></p>


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330880
title: Aodhán Ó Ríordáin is right – the Coolock protestors won
author: ;Dr Matt Treacy
link: https://gript.ie/aodhan-o-riordain-is-right-the-coolock-protestors-won/
hash: �80� n������IR��
tags: #Comment Ireland #Featured #asylum #Coolock #IPAS #local community #protesters won
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Huge victory </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/aodhan-o-riordain-is-right-the-coolock-protestors-won/">Aodhán Ó Ríordáin is right – the Coolock protestors won</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747637748
title: Tens of thousands march in the Netherlands to protest against Gaza genocide
hash: �a:f��_̙ ��S��
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Protesters march through The Hague to call on government to do more to halt Israel’s onslaught on besieged enclave.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2025/5/19/tens-of-thousands-march-in-the-netherlands-to-protest-against-gaza-genocide?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307110
title: Trump congratulates Republicans after ‘big, beautiful bill’ passes House panel
author: ;Elizabeth Crisp
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/5307110-trump-praises-house-republicans-on-bill/
hash: 6+> �^�+��rA{ 
content:
House Republicans advanced the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act", a bill containing most of Trump's legislative priorities, after a late-night vote.

tags:
#Administration #House #News #&quot;One Big Beautiful Bill Act&quot; #Andrew Clyde #Chip Roy #House Budget Committee #House Republicans #Josh Brecheen #Mike Johnson #President Trump #Reps. Ralph Norman #Truth social

attributes:
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guid: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/?p=139071
title: Doctors who trust Big Pharma and Medical Boards Will Kill You. Avoid them at all costs.
author: ;pcr3
hash: 9�vΪ=U@���Ń?R�
tags: #Guest Contributions
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p>Doctors who trust Big Pharma and Medical Boards Will Kill You.<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>Avoid them at all costs.</p>
<p>Those yet to understand that the American health care system is totally corrupt will gain comprehension when they read this article:</p>
<p><a href="https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/05/18/how-politics-threaten-your-medical-freedom.aspx?ui=2fc2f6dbac85c9723816d28ab2dd1b8b57d121198c6c648409acc8929797f569&amp;sd=20240213&amp;cid_source=dnl&amp;cid_medium=email&amp;cid_content=art1ReadMore&amp;cid=20250518&amp;foDate=false&amp;mid=DM1748474&amp;rid=295663317">https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/05/18/how-politics-threaten-your-medical-freedom.aspx?ui=2fc2f6dbac85c9723816d28ab2dd1b8b57d121198c6c648409acc8929797f569&amp;sd=20240213&amp;cid_source=dnl&amp;cid_medium=email&amp;cid_content=art1ReadMore&amp;cid=20250518&amp;foDate=false&amp;mid=DM1748474&amp;rid=295663317</a><span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>

link:
https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2025/05/19/doctors-who-trust-big-pharma-and-medical-boards-will-kill-you-avoid-them-at-all-costs/


guid: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/?p=139076
author: ;pcr3
hash: �� ��ՅKP�#�
tags: #Guest Contributions
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
title:
Aided and Abetted by Western governments every European Woman regardless of age will have been raped by immigrant-invaders by the end of this year.

content:
<p>Aided and Abetted by Western governments every European Woman regardless of age will have been raped by immigrant-invaders by the end of this year.</p>
<p>Why haven’t these governments been dragged into the street and executed?</p>
<p>Why are Europeans preparing for war with Russia when their own governments are at war with them?</p>
<p><a href="https://www.unz.com/article/rulers-and-rape-gangs-how-traitors-at-the-top-have-imported-and-incubated-non-white-evil/">https://www.unz.com/article/rulers-and-rape-gangs-how-traitors-at-the-top-have-imported-and-incubated-non-white-evil/</a><span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>

link:
https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2025/05/19/aided-and-abetted-by-western-governments-every-european-woman-regardless-of-age-will-have-been-raped-by-immigrant-invaders-by-the-end-of-this-year/


guid: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/?p=139064
title: In Remembrance of Western Civilization
author: ;pcr3
link: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2025/05/19/in-remembrance-of-western-civilization/
hash:  $��Z��_S�Jiu
tags: #Articles &amp; Columns
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p>In Remembrance of Western Civilization</p>
<p>Paul Craig Roberts</p>
<p>Here is my friend, concert pianist Balint Vazsonyi, playing Beethoven’s 4th piano concerto.<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>I listen to it regularly as it is restorative of one’s soul.<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>I recommend it to you.</p>
<p>The combination of Beethoven and Vazsonyi show the heights of a disappearing culture once celebrated as Western Civilization, now derided as white racism. I wait to see if the Sodom &amp; Gomorrah Tower of Babel being constructed for us by the Democrats and liberal-left will produce its match.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFGkzGNeW0c">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFGkzGNeW0c</a><span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>


guid: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/?p=139073
title: The Question of the Day
author: ;pcr3
link: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2025/05/19/the-question-of-the-day/
hash: ��֞ �/D�f�vN
tags: #Guest Contributions
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p>The Question of the Day</p>
<p>Why Does the US Supreme Court give immigrant-invaders priority over American Citizens?</p>
<p>Biden’s Department of Justice (sic) politically persecuted January 6 protesters for years, with the Supreme Court taking forever to grant relief.</p>
<p>Yet Tren de Aragua illegal alien terrorists got a favorable ruling in 24 hours.</p>


guid: https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/?p=139061
title: Comey Brought the FBI to Disgrace
author: ;pcr3
hash: ��µ<s���^�� ~
tags: #Articles &amp; Columns
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p>Comey Brought the FBI to Disgrace</p>
<p>Paul Craig Roberts</p>
<p>Biden FBI Director James Comey has been interviewed by the Secret Service for his social media post seemingly calling for the assassination of President Trump. <span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>
<p>Comey’s FBI did its best to destroy President Trump.<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>The FBI orchestrated “Russia-gate,” encouraged two impeachments, raided Trump’s home as part of a highly publicized “documents-gate” accusation that Trump had stolen national security documents, framed and arrested as “insurrectionists” American citizens who used their Constitutional rights to protest a stolen presidential election.<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>And now this despicable blackguard has posted a photo of numbers made with sea shells in the sand that mean assassinate President Trump.</p>
<p>Hopefully the excrement that Comey is will be arrested, tried, and sentenced. America’s reputation cannot afford Comey, or Biden, or any of the anti-white<span data-sanitized-class="Apple-converted-space">  </span>anti-Americans that ran the corrupt Biden regime, one of the worst disgraces in American history.</p>
<p><a href="https://thepostmillennial.com/ex-fbi-director-james-comey-interviewed-by-secret-service-over-controversial-86-47-social-media-post?utm_source=deployer&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter&amp;utm_term=24625">https://thepostmillennial.com/ex-fbi-director-james-comey-interviewed-by-secret-service-over-controversial-86-47-social-media-post?utm_source=deployer&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter&amp;utm_term=24625</a></p>

link:
https://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2025/05/19/the-corrupt-biden-white-house-brought-the-fbi-to-disgrace/


guid: 1031535 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: House Probes Pfizer's Delay Of COVID Jab To Influence 2020 Election
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/house-probes-pfizers-delay-covid-jab-influence-2020-election
hash: � �Y�6�0���� �
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">House Probes Pfizer's Delay Of COVID Jab To Influence 2020 Election</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em>Authored by <a href="https://headlineusa.com/author/lcornelio/">Luis Cornelio</a> via <a href="https://headlineusa.com/subscribe/">Headline USA</a>,</em></p>

<p><strong>The House Judiciary Committee has zeroed in on a former Pfizer researcher following a <em>Wall Street Journal</em> report that the pharmaceutical company may have delayed positive COVID-19 vaccine trial results to influence the 2020 election.</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/AP22123408641215-scaled-e1665794.jpg?itok=t1C2FS0r" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/AP22123408641215-scaled-e1665794.jpg?itok=t1C2FS0r"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8ab9a179-472f-4e59-8fc9-09d7fcd27937" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="251" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/AP22123408641215-scaled-e1665794.jpg?itok=t1C2FS0r" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>On Thursday, the committee sent a letter to Philip Dormitzer, Pfizer’s former head of vaccine research and development, <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2025-05-15-jdj-to-dormitzer-re-vaccine-delay.pdf">demanding</a> all documents about his work on Pfizer’s vaccine trials from March 1, 2020 to present. The letter comes as federal prosecutors are also reportedly<a href="https://headlineusa.com/feds-look-into-tip-that-pfizer-delayed-announcing-covid-vaccine-success/"> looking into the matter</a>.</p>

<p><strong>The allegation surfaced when Dormitzer told coworkers at his new employer, GSK, that Pfizer deliberately slowed clinical testing so it would not be complete until after the election</strong></p>

<p>Positive results from the clinical trials may have given Trump a political boost. Instead, he left the White House in 2021—only to return in 2025.</p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">🚨 HUGE 🚨<br><br>
New Information Suggests Senior Pfizer Executives Conspired to Delay COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Testing to Influence 2020 Election.<br><br>
One exec was so scared about this being investigated that he asked to be relocated to Canada!<br><br>
MASSIVE SCANDAL uncovered by <a href="https://twitter.com/Jim_Jordan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Jim_Jordan</a>. <a href="https://t.co/pZKLAz1Wmx">pic.twitter.com/pZKLAz1Wmx</a></p>
— House Judiciary GOP 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@JudiciaryGOP) <a href="https://twitter.com/JudiciaryGOP/status/1923046327136485732?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>After Trump’s 2024 election, Dormitzer asked GSK to transfer him to Canada, fearing he might become a target of an investigation. When pressed on the reason, he replied, “Let’s just say it wasn’t a coincidence, the timing of the vaccine.” </p>

<p>GSK later passed his comments to federal prosecutors in New York, as <a href="https://archive.is/KuDJd">reported</a> by <em>The Journal</em> in March. The House Judiciary swiftly stepped in and pressed GSK for more information about <em>The Journal’s</em> reporting. </p>

<p>According to GSK’s answers to congressional investigators, <strong>Dormitzer claimed that “in late 2020, the three most senior people in Pfizer R&amp;D were involved in a decision to deliberately slow down clinical testing so that it would not be complete prior to the results of the presidential election that year.” </strong></p>

<p>Dormitzer reportedly clarified that “this was not a situation of delaying disclosure of completed results but was a situation of slowing down results before disclosure became necessary.” </p>

<p>Dormitzer has until May 29 to produce the requested documents and schedule his transcribed interview with the Committee.</p>

<p><a href="https://headlineusa.com/tag/Donald-trump">Trump</a> previously made similar claims that Pfizer withheld knowledge on its alleged vaccine success.</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em><strong>“The @US_FDA and the Democrats didn’t want to have me get a Vaccine WIN, prior to the election, so instead it came out five days later – As I’ve said all along!” Trump <a href="https://apnews.com/ap-fact-check-trumps-claims-on-vaccine-election-are-wrong-108077c4b716db604ee49b42c6d64af0">wrote</a> on social media after the 2020 election.</strong></em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>The safety of the COVID vaccines have been speculated since it was released. </p>

<p><strong>There has been concerns that the vaccines could cause myocarditis.</strong></p>

<p>A <a href="https://headlineusa.com/tag/freedom-of-information-act">Freedom of Information Act</a> on a myocarditis study was <a href="https://headlineusa.com/cdc-foia-myocarditis-all-redacted/">released</a> in March 2024 and was entirely redacted.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T11:45:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 07:45</span>


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&quot;Comey Should Be in Jail&quot; DNI Tulsi Gbbard —You Don't Want to Miss The Schiller Institute Conference

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&quot;Comey Should Be in Jail&quot; DNI Tulsi Gbbard —You Don't Want to Miss The Schiller Institute Conference

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304349
title: I have seen State’s dysfunction up close — Rubio’s reshuffle is just what it needs
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Rubio is enacting his organizational change to break the stranglehold of the type of bureaucratic quagmire that runs counter to American diplomatic effectiveness and responsiveness

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<div data-sanitized-class="code-block code-block-2">
<p><strong><em>By CIAgate</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Join us on </span><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875661"></a><span>, and</span> <a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875662"></a>.</strong></p>
</div>
<p><strong><span>Contact us:</span> </strong><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u><strong>info@strategic-culture.su</strong></u></a></p>
<p>We are diving deeper into our investigation of CIA actions that contradict U.S. national interests.</p>
<p>Today, we uncover another CIA-affiliated company using taxpayer money to supply Ukraine with weapons and military equipment—outside the scope of official aid packages.</p>
<p>Typically, money-laundering scandals involve substantial sums, ranging from tens of millions to billions of dollars. In such cases, unscrupulous individuals are driven by greed and fear that this rare chance for enrichment might slip away, making it crucial to act quickly before the opportunity vanishes. The record suggests that most schemes unravel precisely in these moments of haste.</p>
<p>And it seems the CIA has also recognized this risk, shifting its approach toward laundering relatively small amounts while increasing the number of transactions. This method significantly reduces the chance of detection, even with high financial transparency, avoiding unnecessary scrutiny from oversight bodies. While the scheme appears to work effectively, one cannot help but wish that the CIA had used these skills for more constructive purposes.</p>
<p>Now, we will discuss a non-profit organization called the American Rescue Project (ARP), based in Washington D.C., at 800 Maine Ave, SW, Suite 400.</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbe43b85a-c13a-489e-9585-ec4372ed1e08_625x387.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-2.jpeg?resize=625%2C387&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="625" height="387" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77642" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/word-image-77640-2/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-2.jpeg?fit=625%2C387&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="625,387" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}' data-image-title="word-image-77640-2" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-2.jpeg?fit=300%2C186&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-2.jpeg?fit=625%2C387&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77642"></a></p>
<p>American Rescue Project website. [Source: <a href="https://www.theamericanrescueproject.org/">theamericanrescueproject.org</a>]</p>
<p>At first glance, the mission of the American Rescue Project appears commendable and inspires faith in humanity. As it claims, it does “the thing that needs to be done when governments or larger organizations cannot or will not assist in a crisis.” Its website, adorned with images of vulnerable children, is designed to tug at heartstrings and evoke trust.<a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F621aa690-603c-4e3d-a4da-d1418bab7db0_1207x521.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-3.jpeg?resize=696%2C300&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="696" height="300" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77643" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/word-image-77640-3/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-3.jpeg?fit=1207%2C521&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="1207,521" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}' data-image-title="word-image-77640-3" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-3.jpeg?fit=300%2C129&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-3.jpeg?fit=696%2C300&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77643"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://www.theamericanrescueproject.org/">theamericanrescueproject.org</a>]</p>
<p>However, to be blunt, when an organization wraps itself in such lofty rhetoric, it often signals smoke and mirrors.</p>
<p>To cut through the fluff, we decided to investigate whether this “noble” façade hides a less savory reality. The bigger their claims, the more critical our scrutiny should be. Soon enough, you will see if these heart-wrenching images of vulnerable children are just a clever disguise for something else entirely.</p>
<p>First and foremost, it is worth noting that, in 2021, the organization was known as the Afghan Rescue Project and provided aid to Afghanistan just in time for the Biden administration to drop a whopping <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/nov/10/us-spent-14-billion-afghan-evacuees/">$14 billion</a> on resettling approximately 65,000 Afghans—a truly staggering sum, considering it works out to about $215,000 per person. One cannot help but wonder: In this grand scheme of generosity, who among these “deserving” individuals was genuinely seeking asylum, and who might just be a sleeper cell of Taliban operatives?</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5a3600ac-c9e8-45d6-8587-b8f9cd248f99_1920x950.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-4.png?resize=696%2C344&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="696" height="344" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77644" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/word-image-77640-4/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-4.png?fit=1456%2C720&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="1456,720" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}' data-image-title="word-image-77640-4" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-4.png?fit=300%2C148&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-4.png?fit=696%2C344&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77644"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://ciagate.substack.com/p/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1685806&amp;post_id=161456792&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;r=jn0x9&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email">ciagate.substack.com</a>]</p>
<p>But let’s get back to the core of the issue.</p>
<p>Upon reviewing the website, we found a glaring absence of evidence supporting Afghan Rescue Project’s claims or achievements: no photo reports, an inactive social media presence (a defunct Facebook link and a blocked Twitter account)—nothing at all. The site appears hastily put together, as if it were merely a formality. This kind of shoddy workmanship is all too characteristic of the CIA, where doing things “horribly wrong” seems to be par for the course.</p>
<p>One thing is certain: The Afghan Rescue Project saw a silver lining in the Ukrainian crisis—it jumped at the chance to “help” Ukrainians while keeping an eye on the bottom line. In other words, it was quick to pivot its mission to “aiding” those affected by the conflict, all the while positioning itself for some serious profit under the guise of humanitarian work.</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F223ef7dd-5c1e-4f3c-a1e0-f3f4f1945d21_829x265.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c.png?resize=696%2C222&amp;ssl=1" alt="A white background with black text AI-generated content may be incorrect." width="696" height="222" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77645" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c.png?fit=829%2C265&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="829,265" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}' data-image-title="a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c.png?fit=300%2C96&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-white-background-with-black-text-ai-generated-c.png?fit=696%2C222&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77645"></a></p>
<p>Projects of the newly named American Rescue Project. [Source: <a href="https://www.theamericanrescueproject.org/">theamericanrescueproject.org</a>]</p>
<p>Despite the organization’s bold claims on its website about aiding crisis-stricken nations, American Rescue Project has remained focused solely on Ukraine. It would be premature to accuse the NGO and its leader, U.S. Army veteran Kurtis (Kurt) Lee Warner, of bias. Let us momentarily set aside the fact that crises have erupted not only in Ukraine but also across other regions, including the Middle East and Africa, where American Rescue Project has yet to make an appearance.</p>
<p>For those interested in understanding the reasons behind this selective geographical presence, we encourage reaching out directly to Kurtis Lee Warner via social media:</p>
<ul>
<li>Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/kurtis.warner/"><em>https://www.facebook.com/kurtis.warner</em>/</a></li>
<li>LinkedIn: <em><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtwarner/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtwarner/</a></em></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F903d0da4-39c1-468b-a3ac-4eba99c6871b_588x402.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-6.jpeg?resize=588%2C402&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="588" height="402" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77646" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/word-image-77640-6/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-6.jpeg?fit=588%2C402&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="588,402" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}' data-image-title="word-image-77640-6" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-6.jpeg?fit=300%2C205&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-6.jpeg?fit=588%2C402&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77646"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://ciagate.substack.com/p/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1685806&amp;post_id=161456792&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;r=jn0x9&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email">ciagate.substack.com</a>]</p>
<p>Our source has revealed that just two months after the conflict began, in April 2022, attorneys from the law firm Elias Law Group LLP were tasked by Kurtis Lee Warner to explore the legal justification for supplying military equipment to Ukrainian forces under the guise of charitable activities—essentially equating military aid with philanthropy. Another objective was to identify or establish a fund in Ukraine capable of receiving all such supplies. Swiftly, suitable individuals were found within the “Ukrainian” foundation named Bird of Light Ukraine, based in Chernivtsi, a city located in western Ukraine.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Screenshot-2025-05-15-at-11.04.56.png?resize=696%2C436&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="696" height="436" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77778" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/screenshot-2025-05-15-at-11-04-56/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Screenshot-2025-05-15-at-11.04.56.png?fit=2374%2C1488&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="2374,1488" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}' data-image-title="Screenshot 2025-05-15 at 11.04.56" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Screenshot-2025-05-15-at-11.04.56.png?fit=300%2C188&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Screenshot-2025-05-15-at-11.04.56.png?fit=696%2C436&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77778"></p>
<p>Bird of Light Ukraine logo. [Source: <a href="https://www.birdoflightukraine.org/">birdoflightukraine.org</a>]</p>
<ul data-sanitized-class="wp-block-list">
<li>Official website: <a href="https://www.birdoflightukraine.org/">https://www.birdoflightukraine.org/</a></li>
<li>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/birdoflightukraine/">https://www.instagram.com/birdoflightukraine/</a></li>
<li>YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@birdoflightukraine/featured">https://www.youtube.com/@birdoflightukraine/featured</a></li>
<li>TikTok: <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@birdoflightukraine">https://www.tiktok.com/@birdoflightukraine</a></li>
</ul>
<p>The most prominent figure in this purportedly “Ukrainian” foundation is Thomas Stuart Price Perriello, a member of the U.S. Democratic Party and a former member of Congress who served as executive director of the George Soros-founded Open Society Foundations from 2018 to 2023.</p>
<div data-sanitized-class="wp-block-image"></div>
<p>Perriello also spent two years at the State Department as a Special Representative for the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review. In this role, Perriello cultivated an extensive network of contacts that now aids him in advancing the personal interests of certain state officials in Ukraine through a web of NGOs, including Bird of Light Ukraine.</p>
<p>Moreover, the Chief Operating Officer position at Bird of Light Ukraine is held by Isaac Yeung, a Canadian citizen and co-founder of the foundation. According to the organization’s official website, Yeung oversees all operations outside Ukraine, including financial matters.</p>
<p>His expertise in operational management is well-established: He previously managed similar responsibilities for Inertia Network, a Canadian travel agency known for organizing expeditions to remote parts of the world.<strong> </strong>Inertia Network<strong> </strong>specializes in collaborating with local communities to develop off-the-beaten-path experiences. In his role at Bird of Light Ukraine, Yeung applies these skills by managing logistics and supply chains that bypass traditional routes for military equipment.</p>
<p>Interestingly, just as the conflict in Ukraine heated up, Zhanna Galeyeva—co-founder of the NGO and only nominally Ukrainian since she was born, educated, and worked in New York City—suddenly decided to drop everything and “rush to the aid” of her supposed compatriots.</p>
<figure data-sanitized-class="wp-block-image alignright is-resized"><figcaption data-sanitized-class="wp-element-caption"></figcaption></figure>
<p>As you can see, while in Afghanistan the most “beneficial” activity was involvement in local population evacuation efforts, ARP shifted its focus to Ukraine, where it began supplying various goods, following broader trends. We have obtained a document indicating that representatives of the charitable foundation received not only humanitarian aid, such as medical kits and sleeping bags, but also uniforms, thermal imaging equipment, night vision devices, pocket Wi-Fi routers with encryption, and drones from American companies Drone Nerds and Drone Works. The total value of this shipment exceeds $4.7 million.</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9238af22-8085-4f1c-9df0-967c684b4a55_899x388.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m.jpeg?resize=696%2C300&amp;ssl=1" alt="A screenshot of a computer AI-generated content may be incorrect." width="696" height="300" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77652" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m-3/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m.jpeg?fit=899%2C388&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="899,388" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}' data-image-title="a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m.jpeg?fit=300%2C129&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-screenshot-of-a-computer-ai-generated-content-m.jpeg?fit=696%2C300&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77652"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://ciagate.substack.com/p/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1685806&amp;post_id=161456792&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;r=jn0x9&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email">ciagate.substack.com</a>]</p>
<p>To put this into perspective, a quick internet search revealed that these Pard TA 62 Thermal Monoculars can be found online for just half the price—$2,500 each—and this is not a wholesale rate.<strong> </strong>Consequently, the markup exceeds double.</p>
<p>For many American families earning an average of $75,000 per year, it would take nearly two years to save up $130,000. This highlights just how significant the profit margin was in comparison to what most households can accumulate over time.</p>
<p>Equally intriguing are ARP’s procurement practices and pricing for pocket Wi-Fi routers. Despite no specific model being mentioned in the list, a quick internet search reveals that a single 4G Wi-Fi router with encryption features starts at around $50. Even increasing this price ten-fold, it still falls short of the document’s listed cost of $1,150 per device.</p>
<p>Conversely, and for some reason,<strong> </strong>the prices on Parrot drones appear artificially low: while a retail Parrot drone typically costs around $4,500, the document lists them at a mere $510 each—either an act of charity or the rest paid “under the table.”</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F943563e5-ca48-4f8c-8991-d522686fb80c_1399x687.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be.png?resize=696%2C342&amp;ssl=1" alt="A close up of a drone AI-generated content may be incorrect." width="696" height="342" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77653" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be.png?fit=1399%2C687&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="1399,687" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}' data-image-title="a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be.png?fit=300%2C147&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/a-close-up-of-a-drone-ai-generated-content-may-be.png?fit=696%2C342&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77653"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://ciagate.substack.com/p/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1685806&amp;post_id=161456792&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;r=jn0x9&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email">ciagate.substack.com</a>]</p>
<p>It is crucial to note that military equipment transported alongside humanitarian goods bypasses customs inspection, lacks authorization documents, and circumvents all parties responsible for overseeing such procedures.</p>
<p>In the other document we obtained, there are some new items with pricing that is really puzzling.</p>
<p><a href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24333489-7016-4be3-a35b-a3d28b832d7e_1365x558.png%22%20/t%20%22_blank"><img loading="lazy" src="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-13.png?resize=696%2C285&amp;ssl=1" alt="" width="696" height="285" data-recalc-dims="1" data-attachment-id="77654" data-permalink="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/word-image-77640-13/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-13.png?fit=1365%2C558&amp;ssl=1" data-orig-size="1365,558" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta='{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}' data-image-title="word-image-77640-13" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-13.png?fit=300%2C123&amp;ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/covertactionmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/word-image-77640-13.png?fit=696%2C285&amp;ssl=1" data-sanitized-class="wp-image-77654"></a></p>
<p>[Source: <a href="https://ciagate.substack.com/p/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden?utm_source=post-email-title&amp;publication_id=1685806&amp;post_id=161456792&amp;utm_campaign=email-post-title&amp;isFreemail=true&amp;r=jn0x9&amp;triedRedirect=true&amp;utm_medium=email">ciagate.substack.com</a>]</p>
<p>Take Tranexamic Acid at 650 mg — it is priced at $575 per pack here, but in the U.S., you would typically see prices between $37 and $155.</p>
<p>The American Rescue Project has also established several reliable partners and supply channels to facilitate its operations. Notably, there is a complex network of logistics chains between ARP and the Bird of Light Ukraine charitable foundation<strong>,</strong> which operates outside traditional customs control—a topic we will explore in more detail.</p>
<p>Tradinghouse Global (Pty) Ltd serves as the primary transshipment hub for these goods. Based in Johannesburg, South Africa, this boutique trading company began working with ARP on May 1, 2022.</p>
<p><strong>American Rescue Project and Tradinghouse Global Agreement</strong></p>
<p>Kurtis Lee Warner has demonstrated business acumen by identifying intermediaries in Poland, Romania, and Turkey to ensure packages reach Ukraine without going through customs. Of particular note is Alexander Lastivka, who serves as ARP’s contact person in Romania and the consignee at Suceava Ștefan cel Mare International Airport.</p>
<p>The Turkish partner of American Rescue Project is similarly captivating. In May 2022, cargo shipper Tradinghouse Global (Pty) Ltd dispatched thermal monoculars from Johannesburg to Istanbul for consignee HM27 International, represented by Hasan Çiftçi, for further transport to Ukraine. The address is 6E, Merkez Efendi Tekke Street, Merkezefendi District, 34015 Zeytinburnu/Istanbul, Turkey.</p>
<ul data-sanitized-class="wp-block-list">
<li>Phone: +380955220665; +905317428971</li>
<li>Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hasan.ciftci.7545</li>
<li>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/hasan.ciftci.7545/">https://www.instagram.com/hasan.ciftci.7545/</a></li>
</ul>
<p>Hasan Çiftçi, who currently has an agreement with the American Rescue Project to organize shipments to Ukraine, counts among his Facebook friends a representative of Turkey’s far-right nationalist party, Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi (MHP). This party is linked to the radical youth group known as Grey Wolves (Bozkurtlar), which has been rumored to operate as an armed formation involved in Turkey’s interests in the Middle East.</p>
<p><strong>09 22 22 Hasan Çiftçi (inv#220801389) American Rescue Project</strong></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Finally, in Poland, Ms. Adrianna Haszczyn receives the cargo, which she then transports to Chernivtsi, Ukraine, for Bird of Light Ukraine.</p>
<p>Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/haszczyn.adrianna/">https://www.facebook.com/haszczyn.adrianna/</a></p>
<p>It seems that, as the cargo travels through Ukraine, it is closely tracked. For example, the American Rescue Project works with transport and logistics companies like SHERP in Kyiv and Meest Post in Lviv. Specifically, in 2022, Meest Post’s warehouses were used for storing shipments. It is convenient when trusted individuals handle the cargo—no questions or issues arise.</p>
<p>Incredibly, these prized packages end up in the hands of Bird of Light Ukraine, which conveniently receives direct grants from the American Rescue Project for its own use.</p>
<p><strong>Grant Agreement American Rescue Project Bolu</strong></p>
<p><strong>Arp Grant October 26, 2022</strong></p>
<p>So more than $230,000 was simply swept under the rug as donations—no questions were asked, and there was no oversight to speak of. The contract did not even include provisions for any third party to monitor these financial flows.</p>
<p>And here comes the most pressing question:</p>
<p>Given that Ukraine was already receiving everything it needed through official military aid packages in the past, why go to such convoluted lengths with complex routes and a slew of middlemen? After all, this obscure American Rescue Project could have simply shipped goods directly to Ukraine using an established U.S. company like Ukraine Express—it would have been faster, cheaper, and Zhanna Galeyeva herself knew it existed and used it regularly.</p>
<p><strong>Ukraine Express Not Paid Invoice</strong></p>
<p>So what is the real deal here that prevented them from delivering the rest of the cargo the same way? It sure looks suspicious. Moreover, how does one explain that military equipment is being received by an NGO rather than the official recipients of military aid, like Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense?</p>
<p>Given the high probability that ARP has made significant efforts to obfuscate its logistical channels for the purpose of laundering funds received from CIA sponsors, it is crucial to understand how this operates. Typically, such schemes involve distributing budgets among various parties in small sums and sending goods in small batches—methods designed to create a veneer of legitimacy while effectively laundering money.</p>
<p>It is important to remember that the CIA’s funding does not simply materialize; it comes directly from the federal budget, which is funded by the hard-earned taxes of American taxpayers. This means that any misuse of these funds implicates not just the CIA but also the broader taxpayer base.</p>
<p>Therefore, oversight bodies, including DOGE, should thoroughly investigate both ARP and the “Ukrainian” Bird of Light, led by Tom Perriello, to ensure there is no misappropriation or illicit activity involving CIA resources.</p>
<p>Stay tuned.</p>
<p><em>Original article: </em><strong><a href="https://covertactionmagazine.com/2025/05/15/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CovertAction Magazine</a></strong></p>

link:
https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/under-the-guise-of-charity-cias-hidden-money-laundering-network-exposed/


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title: Video: Netanyahu says military will ‘take control’ of Gaza
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Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu says the military is to 'take control of the entire territory of the Gaza Strip'.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/video-netanyahu-says-military-will-take-control-of-gaza?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747645183
title: Rains halt search for gold miners after deadly Indonesian landslide
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title: DR Congo’s coltan miners struggle as they dig to feed world’s tech
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Despite global thirst for key tech material, miners in rebel-held Rubaya toil in poverty, mired in conflict and unrest.

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307136
title: Biden on diagnosis: ‘Cancer touches us all’
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Former President Biden has expressed gratitude for the support following his diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer.

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title: A father’s fight to find out what happened to his son who joined ISIS
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When a 19-year-old Swede joined ISIL (ISIS), his father was left to bear the weight of his decision.

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https://www.aljazeera.com/features/longform/2025/5/19/a-fathers-fight-to-find-out-what-happened-to-his-son-who-joined-isis?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747645296
title: Cheer up, people of Gaza! You’ll get killed on a full stomach
content: The new US humanitarian plan will ‘save us’, just like the previous ones did.
hash: ������n��ͭ�(�U
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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304864
title: Trump’s climate change ‘cancel culture’ is our real national energy emergency
author: ;William S. Becker; opinion contributor
content: The American people are suffering from Trump's refusal to recognize reality.
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guid: 1031763 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Futures Slide, Yields And Gold Jump As Markets React To Moody's Downgrade
author: ;Tyler Durden
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content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Futures Slide, Yields And Gold Jump As Markets React To Moody's Downgrade</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>US equity futures and bond yields are sharply higher across the curve as market react to Moody's greatly delayed downgrade to US credit on Friday (it follows 14 years after S&amp;P did the same in August 2011), with the USD trading broadly lower, gold higher and macro credit trading notably wider. As of 8am ET, S&amp;P 500 contracts fell 1.0% and Nasdaq 100 futures down 1.4%, with investors cooling on equities after a five-day winning streak, and up 7 of the past 8 days. Pre-mkt, MegaCap Tech names are down 2-4% with Semis/Cyclicals under pressure. European and Asian shares also dropped. The yield curve is bear steepening with the 30Y yield surpassing 5% and hitting its highest level since Nov 2023 and the USD selling off: the euro rose as much as 1.1% as all major currencies advanced against the greenback. Commodities are mixed with energy/base lower and precious/ags higher. Looking ahead today, there are no major economic data releases. Fed voters Williams, Jefferson, and non-voters Logan, Kashkari and Bostic are scheduled to speak today. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/ES%202025-05-19_8-03-52.jpg?itok=-vcE0NJP" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/ES%202025-05-19_8-03-52.jpg?itok=-vcE0NJP"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6442f1d9-b33b-46ca-9554-8087529bff04" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="309" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/ES%202025-05-19_8-03-52.jpg?itok=-vcE0NJP" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>In premarket trading, Mag 7 stocks are lower as risk appetite broadly falters (Tesla -3.5%, Nvidia -2.7%, Meta Platforms -1.9%, Alphabet -1.8%, Amazon -1.8%, Apple -1.5%, Microsoft -0.9%). Nvidia is in focus after CEO Jensen Huang showed new technologies from faster chip systems to software aimed at sustaining the AI boom at Computex in Taiwan. Alibaba shares slumped in Asia after a report that the Trump administration has raised concerns over its potential AI deal with Apple. Cryptocurrency-linked stocks including Coinbase, Robinhood and MicroStrategy fall, tracking the price of Bitcoin lower amid the risk-off mood. Here are some other notable premarket movers:</p>

<ul><li>Alibaba ADRs (BABA) fall 2.3%, following Hong Kong shares lower, after the New York Times reported that the Trump administration has raised concerns over Apple’s potential deal with the Chinese tech giant</li>
	<li>Novavax (NVAX) shares rally 12% after the US FDA approved the drugmaker’s Covid-19 vaccine for adults 65 years and older as well as those aged 12 to 64 years who have at least one medical condition that puts them at a higher risk of severe illness from Covid</li>
	<li>Reddit (RDDT) shares are down 6.4% after the web forum operator is downgraded to equal-weight from overweight at Wells Fargo, with analysts saying that recent user disruptions are likely to be more permanent as Google “more aggressively” implements AI features in search</li>
</ul><p>Global markets are slower after Friday's Moody's downgrade of the US credit rating to Aa1 (vs AAA prev), which was attributed to "increased interest payments on debt, rising entitlement spending, and relatively low revenue generation. While markets have reacted this AM, Goldman notes that Moody’s has had a negative rating outlook since November 2023, and has lagged the other two major rating agencies, S&amp;P and Fitch, in the downgrade to AA+. Bessent comments yesterday are also helping price action, with the Treasury Sec noting that Liberation Day tariffs may be reimposed if countries do not negotiate "in good faith" before the 90 day pause expires on July 9th. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_0.jpg?itok=05QR_eBg" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_0.jpg?itok=05QR_eBg"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="725a581d-9889-44f4-9bf8-748c8a9dda3e" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="332" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_0.jpg?itok=05QR_eBg" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Monday’s pullback comes after the S&amp;P 500 saw a nearly 20% rally from April lows, and the market was probably ripe for a retreat after such a V-shaped bounce.</p>

<p>Besides the sellin in stocks, we have also seen a concurrent slide in rates, with 30-year Treasury yields hitting 5.03%, at the highest since November 2023. As Bloomberg notes, the 30-year yield is in an uptrend since the March 2020 low, broke the long-term channel downtrend dating back to 1987 peak in December 2022.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/10Y%20trendline.jpg?itok=YZnji0Px" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/10Y%20trendline.jpg?itok=YZnji0Px"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="029eb003-963a-4232-9759-8b0c24bb0c37" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="300" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/10Y%20trendline.jpg?itok=YZnji0Px" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Morgan Stanley’s Michael Wilson said investors should buy dips triggered by rising yields, as the trade truce between China and the US has lowered the odds of a recession. Among other strategists, Goldman’s David Kostin said Mag 7 stocks are likely to outperform this year, driven by robust earnings growth. RBC’s Lori Calvasina, however, sees more cuts to S&amp;P 500 earnings estimates ahead, and said the market may be “a little ahead of itself from a fundamental perspective.”</p>

<p>“The current level of yields on US Treasuries doesn’t feel out of touch with economic fundamentals,” said Stephane Deo, senior portfolio manager at Eleva Capital in Paris. As for equities<strong>, “it feels very normal to me that the market needs a breather and the Moody’s downgrade is good excuse for doing just that.”</strong></p>

<p>With the US deficit in focus, investors will also be parsing Trump’s giant tax and spending package. A key House committee advanced the legislation late Sunday night after Republican hardliners won agreement from party leaders to speed up cuts to Medicaid coverage.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/big%20beautiful%20bill_1.jpg?itok=XGJKDFZe" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/big%20beautiful%20bill_1.jpg?itok=XGJKDFZe"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6d44143e-9e45-4873-825f-0b00117967cc" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="396" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/big%20beautiful%20bill_1.jpg?itok=XGJKDFZe" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>In Europe, the Stoxx 600 falls 0.7% with technology shares the worst performers, followed by mining and real estate names; Estoxx 50 is down 0.7% with underperforming sectors including consumer discretionary and info tech. Here are some of the biggest European movers:</p>

<ul><li>Ryanair shares rise as much as 5.4% to a record high. The budget airline gave strong commentary ahead of the key summer season and announced a €750m buyback.</li>
	<li>Diageo shares gain as much as 2.9% after the maker of alcoholic beverages saw third-quarter sales beat estimates, with analysts reassured by the company maintaining its full-year guidance.</li>
	<li>Genuit Group shares rise as much as 3.5% after the plastic pipe maker said trading was in line with expectations over the opening four months of the year, and noted “encouraging” signs of recovery in the UK market.</li>
	<li>Romania’s BET index gains 4.6% after Nicusor Dan, the centrist mayor of Bucharest, won presidential runoff on Sunday, quashing the ambitions of a far-right Donald Trump loyalist.</li>
	<li>Mota-Engil shares rise as much as 6.4% to €4.4, the highest intraday price since April 2024, after JB Capital raised its target price on the infrastructure construction firm.</li>
	<li>Pierer Mobility shares rally as much as 21% in Zurich after co-owner Bajaj Auto signs loan deal before deadline to fund restructuring at KTM unit.</li>
	<li>Euronext shares drop as much as 3.2% after downgrades from JPMorgan and Keefe, Bruyette &amp; Woods. JPMorgan notes the bourse operator’s “phenomenal rally” since the start of last year.</li>
	<li>Ithaca Energy shares fall as much as 9.1% as Jefferies downgrades the stock to hold, saying the performance so far this year means they now trade at a premium to the broker’s valuation.</li>
	<li>Getlink shares slip as much as 2.9% after the Eurotunnel operator suspended its electricity interconnector between France and the UK for two weeks.</li>
	<li>Kainos shares fall as much as 7.3% after the UK reseller of Workday software reported a 10% drop in bookings for its fiscal year ended March 31, citing a “challenging” year.</li>
	<li>Poland’s WIG20 index slips as much as 1.7% after the ruling party candidate Rafal Trzaskowski secured only a narrow win over a pro-Donald Trump opponent in the first round of presidential elections.</li>
	<li>Pantheon Resources shares sink as much as 46% to the lowest since December after the oil and gas company reported further disappointing flow testing results for its Megrez-1 well in Alaska.</li>
</ul><p>Earlier in the session, Asian stocks were set for their longest run of losses in over a month, with tech shares leading the retreat following Moody’s downgrade of the US’ credit rating. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.2% to head for a third day of declines, the longest streak since April 7. Chipmakers TSMC and Samsung were among the biggest drags as Treasury yields advanced. Alibaba’s shares slid after a report said that the Trump administration has raised concerns over Apple’s potential deal with the company on AI features. South Korea’s benchmark fell the most in a month, while gauges in Taiwan and Australia also slipped.</p>

<p>Moody’s downgrade “hammers home questions about the appropriate value of US government debt and begs the question whether the downgrade may shift investment mandates by portfolio managers, treasurers and other investors,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior market analyst at Capital.com. “A weak batch of Chinese economic data weighed on market sentiment slightly.”</p>

<p>In FX, the Dollar is starting off the week on the backfoot, weighed on by the Moody downgrade on Friday and weekend headlines from Bessent. EUR is leading gains, trading 100 bps higher as FX vols turn bid across G10 pairs with EUR 1m now trading at 8.4vols (+0.9v overnight). JPY is also gaining this morning (+60bps vs USD) as short dated downside remains bid while people add positions over the Kato-Bessent meeting later this week with ~35bp implied gap in USDJPY. Despite the broadly weaker Dollar this morning and the lowest USDCNY fix since early April (7.1916), USDCNH is trading flat after local data came in weaker than expected. Activity weakened in April, reflecting both the negative impact of increased US tariffs and still-soft domestic demand. Our economists now forecast USDCNY to gradually move lower through the year, shifting from a headwind to a tailwind to many EM currencies, for which the cross is an important anchor. EM currencies that can benefit the most in this environment are those (i) with a larger undervaluation signal, (ii) with a positive beta to CNY and to risk more broadly, (iii) where conversion of USD deposits can have large flow impacts, and (iv) where carry contributes positively to total returns.</p>

<p>In credit, macro credit is opening the first trading session of the week notably wider in sympathy with equity futures, after closing Friday a touch firmer in an underperformance relative to equities in the risk-on tape. As a whole, last week saw CDX IG move over -7bps tighter and CDX HY rise nearly +1.75pt following positive developments on the US/China trade tariff negotiations front. Sharp downward price action in the distressed credit universe (NFE Inc, LINTA, SAGLEN) were front and center throughout the week on the micro front, some of which impacted CDX HY curves and led to some curve steepening. With CDX spreads back in the ~55bps neighborhood, the desk saw a resumption of hedge-setting demand both in one-delta and vol -- with the latter continuing to be better bid, particularly tail.</p>

<p>In rates, treasuries near lows into the early US session, after extending Friday’s late selloff on the back of Moody’s Ratings stripping the US government of its top credit rating. Leading the selloff, <strong>30-year yields top 5%, steepening the curve. 10-year Treasury yields advanced seven basis points to 4.54% and their 30-year equivalents rose about eight basis points to 5.02%. </strong>European rates are also higher while stock futures are under pressure ahead of the cash open. US yields are 1bp to 8bp cheaper across maturities, with 2s10s curve steeper by ~6bp, 5s30s by ~4bp; 10-year is near 4.55%, higher by 7bp since Friday’s close, with Gilts faring worse than their German peers. UK 30-year yields rise 9 bps to 5.49%. This week’s Treasury auctions include $16 billion 20-year new issue Wednesday and $18 billion 10-year TIPS reopening Thursday. </p>

<p>In commodities, oil prices are lower ahead of a phone call between US President Trump and Russian President Putin later on Monday. WTI is down 0.6% at $62.10 a barrel. Meanwhile, gold rose 1.2% or $36 to around $3,240/oz, with appetite for the haven asset boosted by concerns about the US economic outlook.</p>

<p>Today's US economic data calendar includes April leading index (10am). Fed speaker slate includes Bostic (8:30am, 2:45pm), Jefferson and Williams (8:45am), Logan (1:15pm) and Kashkari (1:30pm)</p>

<p><strong>Market Snapshot</strong></p>

<ul><li>S&amp;P 500 mini -1.0%</li>
	<li>Nasdaq 100 mini -1.4%</li>
	<li>Russell 2000 mini -1.6%</li>
	<li>Stoxx Europe 600 -0.7%</li>
	<li>DAX -0.3%</li>
	<li>CAC 40 -0.8%</li>
	<li>10-year Treasury yield +7 basis points at 4.55%</li>
	<li>VIX +2.5 points at 19.74</li>
	<li>Bloomberg Dollar Index -0.6% at 1224.79</li>
	<li>euro +0.9% at $1.1267</li>
	<li>WTI crude -0.6% at $62.14/barrel</li>
</ul><p><strong>Top Overnight News </strong></p>

<ul><li>US President Trump said he would be willing to travel to China to speak with Chinese President Xi regarding foreign policy and economic issues. It was separately reported that President Trump said Walmart (WMT) should stop trying to blame tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain, while he added that between Walmart and China, they should “eat the tariffs” and not charge valued customers anything.</li>
	<li>US VP Vance said Europe is an important ally of the US but disagreements on trade, while he hoped the meeting in Rome with European Commission President Von der Leyen would lead to long-term trade negotiations and trade advantages.</li>
	<li>US VP Vance discussed with Canadian PM Carney the shared interests and goals of the US and Canada including fair trade policies and the continued lasting relationship between the two countries.</li>
	<li>US Treasury Secretary Bessent said regarding new tariff rates that countries are coming up with very good proposals with few exceptions and the timing of deals depends on whether countries are negotiating in good faith, while he thinks they will do a lot of regional deals. Furthermore, he said countries will get a letter with a US tariff rate if they are not negotiating in good faith and he thinks that rate would be the April 2nd level, according to interviews with CNN and NBC.</li>
	<li>US-China trade truce and China’s prior defiant stance in negotiating with the US is said to have convinced some countries they need to take a tougher position in their own negotiations with the Trump administration, according to Bloomberg.</li>
	<li>Australian PM Albanese said he is "up for a deal" with Europe on free trade following years of trade discussions, according to Bloomberg.</li>
</ul><p><em>A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk</em></p>

<p><strong>APAC stocks were mostly subdued following the US sovereign rating downgrade by Moody's which spurred a mild 'sell America' impulse, while participants also digested mixed Chinese activity data. </strong>ASX 200 declined with underperformance in the commodity-related sectors but with the downside stemmed ahead of tomorrow's RBA rate decision in which money markets are pricing around a 99% likelihood of a 25bps cut. Nikkei 225 retreated amid currency-related headwinds while the data calendar for Japan is very light to start the week and BoJ Deputy Governor Uchida stuck to the script in which he maintained the rate hike signal should prices improve as forecast. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were lacklustre amid the glum mood across the Asia-Pac region but with the downside in the mainland limited after mixed Chinese data in which Industrial Production topped forecast but Retail Sales disappointed, while the latest House Prices continued to contract Y/Y albeit at a slightly slower than previous pace.</p>

<p><em>Top Asian News</em></p>

<ul><li>Nomura raises China's 2025 GDP forecast to 4.5% (prev. 4.0%).</li>
	<li>South Korean presidential front-runner Lee said ties with Russia and China are also important, while he also stated that South Korea should not go all in on the alliance with the US and there is no need to rush a trade agreement with the US.</li>
	<li>US White House and Congressional officials reportedly scrutinised in recent months Apple’s (AAPL) plan to strike a deal to make Alibaba’s (9988 HK) AI available on iPhones in China.</li>
	<li>China's NDRC cuts retail fuel prices by CNY 230/t for Gasoline, CNY 220/t for Diesel; effective Tuesday 20th May.</li>
</ul><p><strong>European bourses (STOXX 600 -0.5%) opened lower across the board and have been trading sideways throughout the morning.</strong> Pressure which follows on from a mostly negative APAC session, stemming from Moody's downgrading the US. European sectors opened mixed but now display a mostly negative picture. Optimised Personal Care tops the pile, joined closely by Insurance and then Healthcare. Real Estate lags given the yield environment.</p>

<p><em>Top European News</em></p>

<ul><li>European Commission cuts EZ GDP growth forecast for 2025 to 0.9% (prev. 1.3% in Nov); sees 2026 growth at 1.4% (prev. 1.6%); risks tilted to the downside; 2025 Inflation seen at 2.1%, 2026 seen at 1.7%. Growth outlook revised significantly downwards amid weaker trade outlook and trade policy uncertainty. EZ growth forecast based on assumption of 10% US tariff on all EU goods, 25% on steel and aluminium on cars, no tariffs on pharma and chips.</li>
	<li>UK and EU Deal: Should work towards association of UK to the EU ERASMUS+ programme; continue efforts to support travel and cultural exchange; work towards a balanced youth experience scheme on terms to be mutually agreed. Should explore UK's possible participation in EU's internal electricity market. Work towards establishing a link between carbon markets.</li>
	<li>"Sky News has been told Brussels has dropped demands to link the duration of the agrifood deal to the one for fish - a key [UK PM] Starmer ask", according to Sky News' Coates.</li>
	<li>UK and the EU are expected to agree on Monday on a major post-Brexit reconciliation in which they will sign a security and defence partnership as the centrepiece of a “reset”, although some sticking points were said to remain with talks ‘going down to the wire‘, according to FT. More recently, Sky's Coates posted "Sky News understands there was a late breakthrough on the deal and that you expect news on it mid morning. Talks went well post midnight last night".</li>
	<li>EU and UK negotiators reportedly reached an outline deal to strengthen ties; deal needs political sign off, according to Bloomberg sources.</li>
	<li>EU capitals have reportedly agreed to launch a EUR 150bln loans-for-arms fund which will be backed by the bloc's joint budget, via FT citing sources; follows political agreement being secured this morning. Formal agreement expected on Wednesday.</li>
	<li>ECB’s Wunsch said the ECB may have to cut interest rates below 2% and noted that downside risks to growth and inflation have become bigger, while he currently sees no case for a half-point cut in the foreseeable future. Furthermore, he said the Euro area may be exposed to a negative economic shock in the short term which may be followed by a positive shock in 2026 and 2027, according to FT.</li>
	<li>ECB’s Schnabel said the ECB should remain cautious on interest rate moves and that a steady hand is needed for now, while she commented it is to be seen what will happen regarding a June cut and noted that declining energy prices and slowing global growth may lower inflation in the short term but could reverse in the medium term.</li>
	<li>Portugal's incumbent centre-right party won the election with around 32% of the votes, while PM Montenegro said after the election win that another minority government is the most likely option.</li>
	<li>Portugal will appeal to the European Commission to pressure France over cross-border electricity links after a blackout last month, according to FT.</li>
	<li>Polish pro-EU candidate Trzaskowski was narrowly ahead in Poland’s first round presidential vote and will enter a run-off with right-wing rival Nawrocki.</li>
	<li>Fitch affirmed Greece at BBB: Outlook Revised to Positive from Stable.</li>
</ul><p><strong>FX</strong></p>

<ul><li>USD is very much on the backfoot vs. peers after Moody's downgraded the US sovereign rating, whereby the rating agency warning of government debt and a widening budget deficit. These concerns have been heightened by news that the House Budget Committee approved President Trump's tax cut bill to set up a possible vote on the passage of the bill as soon as this week. Concerns over the final price tag of the bill has triggered a "sell US" theme at the start of the week. Data docket today is light, but Fed speak is heavy today with Bostic, Williams, Jefferson, Logan &amp; Kashkari all due on the docket. DXY has slipped below last week's low at 100.27.</li>
	<li>EUR is firmer vs. the USD and at the top of the G10 leaderboard as traders seek a liquid alternative to the USD. Newsflow out of the Eurozone over the weekend has mainly centered over ECB speak with ECB’s Wunsch stating that the ECB may have to cut interest rates below 2% and noted that downside risks to growth and inflation have become bigger. Elsewhere, ECB’s Schnabel said the ECB should remain cautious on interest rate moves and that a steady hand is needed for now. EUR/USD has ventured as high as 1.1273, currently near highs.</li>
	<li>JPY has been a beneficiary of the softer USD and downbeat risk sentiment with USD/JPY back below the 145 mark. Newsflow out of Japan has been on the light side following reporting late last week that Japan is holding out for a better trade deal with the US, which would include a full removal of 25% tariffs.</li>
	<li>GBP is one of the better performers across the majors with sentiment underpinned by news that the EU and UK have agreed an outline of a deal which will strengthen ties between both sides. As part of a post-Brexit reconciliation deal, they will sign a security and defence partnership as the centrepiece of a “reset”. Cable has eclipsed last week's best at 1.3360 with a session peak at 1.3382.</li>
	<li>Antipodeans are both firmer vs. the broadly weaker USD but to a lesser degree than most peers alongside the subdued risk tone. Chinese data was mixed, in which Industrial Production topped forecast, Retail Sales disappointed and House Prices continued to contract Y/Y. Attention now turns to Tuesday's RBA rate decision with the central bank widely-expected to deliver a 25bps rate cut.</li>
	<li>PBoC set USD/CNY mid-point at 7.1916 vs exp. 7.2057 (Prev. 7.1938).</li>
</ul><p><strong>Fixed Income</strong></p>

<ul><li>USTs have started the week on the backfoot as the complex reacts to Moody’s cutting the US by one notch, joining S&amp;P (cut August 2011) and Fitch (cut in 2023, after covid), with an AA1 rating. A cut which sparked on Sunday a sell-US trade. The announcement by Moody’s came amid US House Republicans blocking the passage of the Republican tax/spending bill due to concern that it would lift the short-run deficit. USTs themselves at the bottom of a 109-23 to 110-08 band, slipping from Friday’s 110-10+ close. Ahead, the US session is dominated by Fed speak, featuring Bostic, Williams, Logan and Kashkari.</li>
	<li>Bunds are also lower, with price action following the losses seen in the US. But there has been some updates for the bloc specifically, the main one of course being the EU-UK reset talks which appear to have gone well (see Gilts below for more). Elsewhere, political developments with the EU have been net-positive, but some uncertainties/risk points remain. Bunds just off the low of a 129.79 to 130.41 band, downside that accelerated as Friday’s 130.11 trough was lost. Support next at 129.59 from May 12th.</li>
	<li>Gilts are pressured and lagging peers amid the EU-UK updates, and also with focus on a 30yr syndication. The main development this morning was indications and since confirmation that there was a late-doors breakthrough on EU-UK reset talks, and an update is expected mid-morning once political sign off is attained. A press conference featuring UK PM Starmer and EU Commission President von der Leyen is currently set for 12:30BST. Gilts underperforming and lower by over 80 ticks at worst.</li>
</ul><p><strong>Commodities</strong></p>

<ul><li>Subdued trade across the crude complex amid the broader downbeat sentiment across markets emanating from Moody's downgrading the US' rating, for the first time in over a century, from AAA to Aa1 - which effectively put it in line with the ratings by S&amp;P and Fitch. In geopolitics, focus will be on a looming Trump-Putin call later today. Brent trades in a USD 64.69-65.60/bbl parameter.</li>
	<li>Positive trade across precious metals amid a leg lower in the dollar following the US sovereign rating downgrade by Moody's, which spurred a mild 'sell America' impulse. Spot gold rose from a USD 3,206.72/oz low to test USD 3,250/oz to the upside.</li>
	<li>Little action was seen across base metals amid the overnight release of mixed Chinese data, in which Industrial Production topped forecast but Retail Sales disappointed, while the latest House Prices continued to contract Y/Y albeit at a slightly slower than previous pace. 3M LME copper currently resides in a USD 9,435.25-9,520.10/t range.</li>
	<li>EU will need to spend at least EUR 10bln more than last year to refill its gas reserves ahead of winter, after the first cold season in four years left its reserves heavily depleted, according to FT.</li>
	<li>Estonia’s Foreign Ministry said Russia detained a Liberia-flagged oil tanker after it left an Estonian Baltic Sea port.</li>
	<li>Oman’s Energy and Minerals Ministry signed an agreement with Occidental Petroleum (OXY) to amend and extend the Block 53 exploration and production sharing agreement.</li>
</ul><p><strong>Geopolitics: Middle East</strong></p>

<ul><li>Israeli PM Netanyahu says "Israel will 'take control of all' of Gaza Strip", via AFP.</li>
	<li>Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister says Iran-US nuclear talks will fail if the US insists on zero enrichment, according to NourNews.</li>
	<li>Israeli airstrikes killed at least 100 in Gaza as negotiators sought a ceasefire, while Israel’s military said it began a wide ground operation in northern and southern Gaza.</li>
	<li>Israeli PM Netanyahu’s office announced that Israel will allow the entry of a basic quantity of food into Gaza to prevent a hunger crisis.</li>
	<li>Israeli PM Netanyahu’s office said Gaza talks in Doha now include ending the war or a truce and hostage deal, while it added that the end of the war must include Gaza demilitarisation, Hamas exile and the release of all hostages. However, a senior Israeli official said there was little progress in Gaza talks that include ending the war.</li>
	<li>Hamas confirmed a new round of ceasefire talks with Israel in Doha and said both sides are discussing all issues without preconditions, according to an official cited by Reuters. It was separately reported that a series of Israeli airstrikes last week killed the de facto commander of Hamas in Gaza, Muhammad Sinwar, according to reports by Israeli press on Sunday.</li>
	<li>Yemen’s Houthis claimed to target Israel’s Ben Gurion airport with a ballistic missile, although Israel’s military said it successfully intercepted the missile from Yemen, while Houthis announced on Sunday evening that it planned to target Israeli airports in the coming few hours.</li>
	<li>Iran’s President Pezeshkian questioned whether they should believe US President Trump, who speaks of peace and threatens Iran at the same time, while he added that Tehran will continue nuclear talks with the US but is not afraid of threats.</li>
	<li>Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei said US President Trump’s comments during his regional visit are an embarrassment and that the US must and will leave the region, while he also commented that Israel is a dangerous and deadly cancerous tumour which must be uprooted.</li>
</ul><p><strong>Geopolitics: Ukraine</strong></p>

<ul><li>US President Trump said he will speak with Russian President Putin on Monday at 10:00EDT/15:00BST about stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, while he will speak to Ukrainian President Zelensky and NATO members after. However, it was later reported that UK PM Starmer spoke with leaders of the US, Italy, France and Germany regarding the situation in Ukraine and catastrophic costs of the war to both sides, while they also discussed the use of sanctions if Russia failed to engage seriously in a ceasefire and peace talks.</li>
	<li>US President Trump said he thinks that they will make a deal with Russian President Putin and said he will use leverage against Putin if he has to, while he added that they have to meet and thinks they will probably schedule it, according to Fox News.</li>
	<li>US Secretary of State Rubio spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and welcomed the prisoner exchange agreement reached, while Rubio emphasised President Trump’s call for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the violence. Furthermore, Lavrov discussed with Rubio further contacts between Russia and the US, while Lavrov noted the positive role of the US in the resumption of Russia-Ukraine talks.</li>
	<li>Russia’s Kremlin spokesperson said preparations are underway for a Putin-Trump conversation, while it stated that a Putin-Zelensky meeting could happen but only if certain agreements are reached.</li>
	<li>Russian negotiators at Istanbul talks demanded that Ukraine withdraw troops from all Ukrainian regions claimed by Moscow before a ceasefire can start, while they also demanded international recognition that five Ukrainian regions are Russian, neutrality for Ukraine, and no reparations, according to a Ukrainian official familiar with the talks.</li>
	<li>Ukrainian President Zelensky met with US VP Vance and Secretary of State Rubio on the sidelines of the Pope’s inauguration.</li>
	<li>Ukraine’s military said Kyiv was under a long-lasting drone attack. It was also reported that Ukrainian military intelligence agency said Russia plans to conduct a ‘training and combat’ launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile late on Sunday to intimidate Ukraine and the West.</li>
</ul><p><strong>Geopolitics: Other</strong></p>

<ul><li>Turkish President Erdogan said it is possible to say that US sanctions on the Turkish defence sector have eased somewhat, while he added that NATO allies US and Turkey should not have restrictions in the defence sector.</li>
	<li>Taiwan Coast Guard said it does not rule out China launching political warfare to disrupt public morale ahead of President Lai’s inauguration anniversary on Tuesday.</li>
</ul><p><strong>US Event Calendar</strong></p>

<ul><li>10:00 am: Apr Leading Index, est. -0.94%, prior -0.7%</li>
</ul><p><strong>Central Banks Speakers</strong></p>

<ul><li>8:30 am: Fed’s Bostic Gives Opening Remarks</li>
	<li>8:45 am: Fed’s Jefferson Gives Keynote, Bostic Moderates</li>
	<li>8:45 am: Fed’s Williams Speaks in Moderated Discussion</li>
	<li>1:15 pm: Fed’s Logan Gives Remarks, Moderates Panel</li>
	<li>1:30 pm: Fed’s Kashkari Participates in Q&amp;A</li>
	<li>2:45 pm: Fed’s Bostic on Bloomberg TV</li>
</ul><p><strong>DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap</strong></p>

<p>In terms of heartwarming domestic news this morning, regular readers will remember my daughter Maisie suffered from Perthes disease between the ages of 5 and 7, spending months on crutches and then over a year in a wheelchair after a major operation. Her hip ball had disintegrated and there was no guarantee it would regrow or would regrow in the right shape. It could have been a childhood of limping and constant pain. However we were fortunate it did regrow while in the chair and over the last 2 and a half years she’s got stronger and stronger with the only thing we don’t allow being trampolining. Therefore imagine our immense surprise when last week she got picked to represent her school at the long jump in an U9 event with five other schools! I couldn’t have imagined anything less likely three years ago. My wife and I were a bit nervous about letting her do it but in the end she came second. She swims four times a week for her artistic swimming club and I can only think this has done her a world of good in terms of strength. So we were delighted for her, especially given all she went through.</p>

<p>In terms of what the market has been through in recent weeks, I think we could all do with a lie down and there are some hopes of that this week given the scarcity of front line data. However as we know the headlines will keep coming, especially with regards to trade.</p>

<p>It‘s likely that fiscal developments in Washington will take centre stage with the House expected to vote on its reconciliation package this week just as Moody's removed the US's last remaining triple-A rating late on Friday night. As our economists discussed last week (see "Tax bill details suggest still-elevated deficits in the near term'), though the specific components of additional tax cuts on top of the TCJA extension differed from what they had previously outlined (see "US outlook: Tariff-struck"), the JCT score of the Ways and Means mark-up was largely in line with our top-line deficit assumptions. Assuming House Republicans are able to resolve their outstanding policy disagreements and vote on the tax package this week, the Senate will then start to mark up the bill, where even more policy disagreements await. One thing stands out though, and that is that at this stage there are no signs of any serious deficit restraint.</p>

<p>On that topic, Moody's cut the US credit rating on Friday night from Aaa to Aa1 (stable outlook). This is a major symbolic move as Moody's were the last of the major rating agencies to have the US at the top rating. Moody's have had them on watch since November 2023 and if there is going to be a change then it tends to happen within 12-18 months so this news shouldn't have been unexpected. Remember S&amp;P was the first to downgrade the US from AAA back in August 2011 which brought a brief market panic at the time. The S&amp;P 500 fell -6.7% on August 8th (the Monday after the cut) while Treasuries actually rallied 20bps on a flight to quality bid. A slightly different reaction this time given they are "only" playing catch-up on one hand, but with debt sustainability now more of a concern on the other. 10yr USTs spiked +4bps in very late trading on Friday on the news. This morning 10 and 30yr USTs are another +3.8bps and +5.2bps higher, respectively, with the latter now at 5% again and +10bps higher than just before the announcement late on Friday. If we stay at these levels this would be a higher yield than that seen at the worst close after Liberation Day. In fact it's only just over 10bps below the highest point in 2023 when inflation concerns were still bubbling. Prior to that you'd have to go back to 2007 to see 30yr yields higher than current levels.</p>

<p>S&amp;P 500 (-1.0%) and NASDAQ (-1.27%) futures are also weaker on the news along with the Dollar (-0.26%). Mixed China data isn't helping the general Asia mood with Retail Sales growth slowing to +5.1% y/y in April, falling short of Bloomberg's forecast of +5.8% and down from +5.9% in the previous month. Fixed-asset investment for the first four months of this year increased by +4.0%, slightly below the anticipated +4.2%. The real estate sector continues to exert downward pressure on fixed asset investment, with a year-on-year decline of -10.3% as of April. Nevertheless, industrial production has exceeded expectations, growing by +6.1% y/y in April, compared to the expected +5.7%, although this represents a slowdown from the +7.7% increase recorded last month.</p>

<p>In the region, the KOSPI is the most affected equity market, down by -1.23% this morning, while the Nikkei (-0.74%), the Hang Seng (-0.49%), the CSI (-0.38%), and the S&amp;P/ASX 200 (-0.62%) are also lower.</p>

<p>The flash global PMIs for May released on Thursday will be the main data focal point this week given that it should fully cover a period of trade uncertainty. European numbers are expected to edge up with US numbers broadly flat. </p>

<p>Elsewhere inflation in Canada (tomorrow), the UK (Wednesday - preview here) and Japan (Friday - preview here) will be of note. Other things to watch are the RBA decision tomorrow, where DB expect a 25bps cut (preview here), the account of the April ECB decision, the German Ifo and US jobless claims, all on Thursday. This week’s jobless claims corresponds to payrolls survey week so it will allow us to refine our current +125k forecast for May. The full day-by-day week ahead is at the end as usual but there’s not a lot of high profile releases. There are though plenty of central bank speakers and these are also highlighted in that calendar. Many are speaking at the Atlanta Fed's annual Financial Markets Conference in Amelia Island, Florida which starts today through to Thursday. Other things to note are the UK-EU summit will be in London today. Then tomorrow, G7 finance ministers and central bankers convene in Canada (through May 22) and the EU's foreign and defence ministers meet in Brussels.</p>

<p>Recapping last week now and risk markets had another strong run with the S&amp;P 500 up +5.27% as it advanced for all five days to post its second best weekly gain since 2023. The bulk of its gains came last Monday (+3.27%) as the US and China dramatically slashed their reciprocal tariff rates for 90 days. The Mag-7 (+9.30% on the week) led the recovery, with tech stocks also helped by a series of deals coming out of Trump’s Middle East tour. On Friday, Trump announced that the US would be “sending letters out” to 150 countries on its new tariff rates over the next two to three weeks. US equities responded positively to the news, with the S&amp;P 500 up +0.70% on Friday. Although Bessent did explain to NBC over the weekend that those not negotiating in good faith will receive the letter with the rate announced on Liberation Day.</p>

<p>The positive backdrop last week saw the VIX index post a sixth consecutive weekly decline (-4.66pts) to its lowest level since mid-February at 17.24. Other risk assets also saw a strong week, with US HY credit spreads falling -38bps to 205bps. The gains were more moderate in Europe, with the STOXX 600 rising +2.10% (+0.42% Friday), while the DAX rose +1.14% (+0.30% Friday) to a new record high. By contrast, gold lost ground amid the risk-on mood, seeing its biggest weekly decline since November (-3.65%).</p>

<p>In the rates space investors pared back their expectations of Fed rate cuts, with the amount of cuts priced by December falling -16.5bps to 49bps on the week. This marks the first time since February that the market expects less than two Fed rate cuts in 2025 and the move came despite softer than expected US CPI and PPI data on Wednesday and Thursday. By contrast, the latest U. Mich survey data showed 1-year median inflation expectations shooting up to +7.3% (vs +6.5% expected), even as consumer sentiment fell to its second lowest level on record. 10yr Treasury yields rose for a third week running, up +10.0bps (+4.7bps Friday) to 4.48%, while 30yr yields rose +11.0bps to their highest weekly close since January at 4.94%. As discussed above, friday’s sell off in Treasuries was mostly due to a late spike on the Moody’s US downgrade news.</p>

<p>Lastly, European bonds saw more muted moves, with 10yr bund yields up +2.8bps to 2.59% (-3.1bps Friday), but OAT (-0.2bps) and BTP (-1.3bps) yields were marginally lower over the week as sovereign spreads continued to grind lower.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T12:30:38+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 08:30</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/market-recaps/futures-slide-yields-and-gold-jump-markets-react-moodys-downgrade


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307199
title: Trump set for critical phone call with Putin
author: ;Ian Swanson
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307199-trump-putin-phone-call-ukraine-war/
hash: }\�a005jꖜD�~q�
tags: #Administration #News
content:
President Trump is set to hold a critical Monday phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid rising tensions between the two countries over the Ukraine war. Trump has said he will discuss the war with Putin and then will hold a separate call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as the leaders of…

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guid: 1031756 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: DNA For Sale: Regeneron To Scoop Up Bankrupt 23andMe In Court-Supervised Sale
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: � ��ac������r�:d
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">DNA For Sale: Regeneron To Scoop Up Bankrupt 23andMe In Court-Supervised Sale</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Regeneron Pharmaceuticals announced it has been "<strong>named the successful bidder</strong>" in the <strong>defunct 23andMe's bankruptcy auction</strong>. It will acquire 23andMe's core business lines—including Personal Genome Service, Total Health and Research Services, and Biobank—for<strong> $256 million.</strong></p>

<p>New York-based Regeneron revealed that the <strong>$256 million deal</strong> to acquire 23andMe's <strong>gigantic pool of genetic data (estimated to include 15 million people) </strong>will close by the third quarter of this year. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_08-08-05.png?itok=uWG_xSe9" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_08-08-05.png?itok=uWG_xSe9"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2b593cb7-79d3-48be-bbe7-2f56f895a7b7" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="292" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-19_08-08-05.png?itok=uWG_xSe9" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>"Regeneron was one of the first biotech companies to bet its future on the power of DNA, fueling our drug discovery efforts so as to deliver some of the world's leading and most innovative medicines, including treatments to prevent blindness, for allergic diseases from asthma to atopic dermatitis, for several forms of cancer, and even for Ebola and COVID-19," stated George D. Yancopoulos, M.D. Ph.D., co-founder, Board co-chair, President, and Chief Scientific Officer of Regeneron. </p>

<p>Yancopoulos said, "<strong>We have deep experience with large-scale data management</strong>, having worked with collaborators around the world to link deidentified DNA sequences from nearly three million consented participants to electronic health records, safely and securely enabling future medical advances. <strong>We believe we can help 23andMe deliver and build upon its mission to help those interested in learning about their own DNA and how to improve their personal health, while furthering Regeneron's efforts to use large-scale genetics research to improve the way society treats and prevents illness overall</strong>."</p>

<p>Regeneron emphasized it will "<strong>prioritize the privacy, security and ethical use of 23andMe's customer data; stands ready to work with independent, court-appointed Customer Privacy Ombudsman</strong>." </p>

<p>23andMe's bankruptcy <strong>sparked massive concerns</strong> over the potential <strong>exploitation of Americans' genetic data</strong>, including fears that foreign entities might gain access through the auction process. However, U.S. government officials reassured the public that the genetic pool of 15 million individuals would be safeguarded and not fall into the hands of foreign adversaries. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="https://siphox.zhstore.com/" data-image-href="https://siphox.zhstore.com/" data-link-option="2" href="https://siphox.zhstore.com/"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b93608f8-0bc4-40a9-8aa9-1203df540ae4" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="141" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/SiPhox_18.png?itok=mwZVhg3Q" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><strong>Our reporting: </strong></p>

<ul><li>
	<p><em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/23andme-files-bankruptcy-ceo-resigns-fate-americans-dna-data-now-court-supervised-sale">23andMe Files For Bankruptcy, CEO Resigns - Fate Of Americans' DNA Data Now In Court-Supervised Sale</a></em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/undercover-report-us-trade-official-alleges-23andme-sold-americans-dna-data-pharma">U.S. Official Alleges 23andMe Sold Americans' DNA Data To Pharma Companies Owned By Foreign Adversaries</a></em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/potential-sale-americans-dna-23andme-database-may-trigger-national-security-review">Potential Sale Of Americans' DNA In 23andMe Database May Trigger National Security Review</a></em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/bankrupt-23andme-cleared-judge-sell-americans-dna-data-highest-bidder">Bankrupt 23andMe Cleared By Judge To Sell Americans' DNA Data To Highest Bidder</a></em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/23andme-customers-panic-delete-genetic-data">23andMe Customers Panic To Delete Genetic Data</a></em></p>
	</li>
</ul><p><strong>The key takeaway</strong>: <em>Think twice before handing over your genetic data to private companies...</em></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T13:15:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 09:15</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/dna-sale-regeneron-scoop-bankrupt-23andme-court-supervised-sale


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307185
title: Live updates: Trump says Russia, Ukraine agree to direct talks; GOP bill clears key House hurdle
hash: �?�o��� #��Ղ��B
content:
President Trump said Monday afternoon that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to meet for direct talks to end the war, following his high-stakes phone calls with leaders of each country. Trump first spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, before calling Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday morning. The conversations follow talks in Turkey late last…

link:
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/trump-the-next-100-days/5307185-live-updates-trump-putin-ukraine-congress-biden-cancer/

tags:
#News #Trump - The Next 100 Days #Donald Trump #Jill Biden #Joe Biden #President Joe Biden #russia #Russia-Ukraine war #Trump administration #Vladimir Putin

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304748
title: What happens when religious freedom clashes with personal protections in court?
author: ;Austin Sarat; opinion contributor
link: https://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/5304748-religious-liberty-case-boston/
hash: I@�{�W6f�*U!��
tags: #Judiciary #Opinion
content:
Religious liberty must be balanced against other values. Not surprisingly, they become the stuff of intense legal and political debate. 

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guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885393
title: Nayib Bukele’s El Salvador dictatorship: Made in Israel
author: ;A A
link: https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/nayib-bukeles-el-salvador-dictatorship-made-in-israel/
hash: FL�:�@�5��#@ ӳ
tags: #Editor's Choice #Big Tech #Human Rights #Israel #Nayib Bukele #Palestine #Salvador
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div data-sanitized-class="code-block code-block-2">
<p><strong><em>By Alan MACLOED</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Join us on </span><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/strategic_culture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875661"></a><span>, and</span> <a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875662"></a>.</strong></p>
</div>
<p><strong><span>Contact us:</span> </strong><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u><strong>info@strategic-culture.su</strong></u></a></p>
<p>Nayib Bukele may be Palestinian, but the dictatorship he has built in El Salvador is very much made in Israel. From arming his security forces to supplying him with weapons and high-tech surveillance tools, MintPress explores the Israeli influence helping to prop up the man who calls himself “the world’s coolest dictator.”</p>
<p><strong>Arming a Dictatorship</strong></p>
<p>Since Bukele’s ascension to the presidency in 2019, Israeli exports to El Salvador have been rapidly advancing, <a href="https://nacla.org/christian-zionism-bukeles-el-salvador" target="_blank" rel="noopener">growing</a> at an annual rate of more than 21%. This increase <a href="https://oec.world/en/profile/bilateral-country/isr/partner/slv" target="_blank" rel="noopener">consists</a> primarily of weapons. Salvadoran forces are well supplied with Israeli hardware. The military and police use the Israeli-made Galil and ARAD 5 rifles, the Uzi submachine gun, numerous Israeli pistols, and ride in AIL Storm and Plasan Yagu armored vehicles.</p>
<p>Some equipment Salvadoran forces use comes free, courtesy of Israeli sources. In 2019, an Israeli NGO, the Jerusalem Foundation (a group that builds illegal settlements on Palestinian land), <a href="https://x.com/nayibbukele/status/1141781668656754691?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that it would donate $3 million worth of supplies to the Salvadoran police and military.</p>
<p>For others, however, the Bukele administration is paying top dollar, meaning that this relationship is extremely profitable for the high-tech Israeli defense sector.</p>
<p>In 2020, the Salvadoran police <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/israeli-cyber-weapons-taking-latin-america/283926/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">paid</a> around $3.4 million for one year’s use of three Israeli spyware products. These tools include GEOLOC, a program that intercepts calls and texts from targeted phones, and Web Tangles, which uses individuals’ social media accounts to build up files on people, including using their photos for facial recognition. A third, Wave Guard Tracer (marketed in some regions as Guardian), tracks users’ movements through the GPS on their phone.</p>
<p>Perhaps the most notorious piece of spyware used, however, is Pegasus, developed by the <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/meet-toka-the-most-dangerous-israeli-spyware-firm-youve-never-heard-of/278020/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NSO Group</a>, an outgrowth of the Israeli Defense Forces’ <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/revealed-israel-unit-8200-spies-american-media/288457/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Unit 8200</a>. The app hit the headlines in 2022, when it was revealed that repressive governments the world over had used it to surveil thousands of public figures, including kings, presidents, politicians, activists, and reporters. El Salvador was one of the most heavily penetrated nations.  A <a href="https://citizenlab.ca/2022/01/project-torogoz-extensive-hacking-media-civil-society-el-salvador-pegasus-spyware/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from Citizen Lab found that the Bukele administration was using it to secretly monitor dozens of public figures critical of the president, including 22 journalists from the independent outlet El Faro.</p>
<p><strong>Incarceration Nation</strong></p>
<p>Bukele has used these Israeli tools and weapons to crack down on dissent and opposition to his rule. Since 2022, when he declared a State of Exception, suspending rights and civil liberties, he has <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/nayib-bukele-worlds-coolest-dictator/289493/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">imprisoned</a> at least 85,000 people, a staggering figure for such a small country. Today, around 2% of the adult population — along with over 3,000 children — languish behind bars in dangerously overcrowded jails.</p>
<p>The most well-known of these is the Terrorism Confinement Center (Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo, or CECOT), which is by far and away the largest prison in world history. Built to incarcerate over 40,000 people, it is to this center that the Trump administration has been <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/nayib-bukele-worlds-coolest-dictator/289493/">sending</a> migrants rounded up by ICE. In a meeting with Bukele in the Oval Office, President Trump <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/nayib-bukele-worlds-coolest-dictator/289493/">stated</a> that U.S. nationals would be sent there next.</p>
<p>El Salvador <a href="https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/incarceration-rates-by-country" target="_blank" rel="noopener">holds</a> vastly more people in prisons per capita than any other country, and conditions are among the worst in the world. Food is <a href="https://orinocotribune.com/this-is-what-everyday-life-is-like-in-nayib-bukeles-flagship-mega-prison/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sparse</a>, lights are <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2025/03/17/americas/el-salvador-prison-trump-deportations-gangs-intl-latam/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">kept on</a> 24 hours a day, and cells are frequently packed with more than 100 occupants. Those incarcerated at CECOT are allowed no contact with the outside world, not even with their families or lawyers.</p>
<p>Often, the first thing a Salvadoran family hears about their disappeared relative is news that he died while incarcerated. Torture is commonplace. Osiris Luna, the director of El Salvador’s prison system, has even been <a href="https://nacla.org/el-salvador-no-place-asylum-seekers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sanctioned</a> by the U.S. government for his role in “gross human rights abuses.”</p>
<p>Bukele has justified the mass imprisonment of his countrymen as a necessary step to break the power of organized gangs and drug cartels. Yet a significant portion of those held are his political opponents. Among those detained are union leaders, politicians, and human rights defenders.</p>
<p>Facing the threat of imprisonment or other punishment, El Faro has <a href="https://elfaro.net/en/202304/opinion/26805/El-Faro-Moves-to-Costa-Rica.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">moved</a> its operations to neighboring Costa Rica.</p>
<p><strong>A Palestinian Who Loves Israel</strong></p>
<p>Amid the chaos, Bukele has <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/nayib-bukele-worlds-coolest-dictator/289493/">fired</a> tens of thousands of public service workers and reduced taxes on the business community. He has also reoriented El Salvador’s foreign policy from a progressive, anti-imperialist stance to allying itself with right-wing governments around the world, including Israel.</p>
<p>Despite coming from a prominent Palestinian family that emigrated from Jerusalem in the early 20th century, throughout his political career, he has made a point of vocally supporting Israel, its culture, and its foreign policy. As far back as 2015, when he was Mayor of San Salvador, the Israeli Embassy had <a href="https://x.com/elblog/status/600816211266502656" target="_blank" rel="noopener">identified</a> him as a “partner for cooperation.”</p>
<p>Three years later, in February 2018, he visited Israel on a trip organized by Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Tzipi Hotovely, and American Jewish Congress President, Jack Rosen. There, he <a href="https://x.com/nayibbukele/status/961358899063541760?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">participated</a> in a security conference attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin, and made a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BfEiHGhHVEz/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=embed_video_watch_again" target="_blank" rel="noopener">public appearance</a> at the Western Wall.</p>
<div>
<div>In the wake of the October 7 assault, Bukele voiced his support for Israel and condemnation of Hamas. “As a Salvadoran of Palestinian ancestry, I’m sure the best thing that could happen to the Palestinian people is for Hamas to completely disappear,” he <a href="https://x.com/nayibbukele/status/1711220281820278875" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>, describing Hamas as “savage beasts” and comparing them to MS-13, one of El Salvador’s most violent gangs.</div>
</div>
<p>El Salvador is home to a large Palestinian population; some 100,000 <a href="https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/235652" target="_blank" rel="noopener">live</a> in the small country. And yet, the Central American nation is far from a stronghold of support for anti-colonial struggles. Palestinians in El Salvador have generally done very well and entered society’s upper echelons. Bukele is actually the third Palestinian to become president.</p>
<p>Historically, the Latin American business community has sided with conservative or reactionary forces, and the Palestinian diaspora has shied away from supporting resistance movements in the Middle East.</p>
<p>“Bukele’s culture is not so much Palestinian as it is neo-fascist. That’s his culture. So he is going to identify with repressive governments around the world,” <a href="https://robertolovato.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Roberto Lovato</a>, a Salvadoran-American writer and professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told MintPress News.</p>
<p>The country is also home to a large and active evangelical Christian community, for whom Israel’s rise is a key issue. Despite being the son of the country’s most notable imam — one who <a href="https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/235652" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> his son is a practicing Muslim — Bukele has <a href="https://nacla.org/christian-zionism-bukeles-el-salvador" target="_blank" rel="noopener">positioned</a> himself as a Christian conservative, and his evangelical supporters say he was chosen by God to rid the nation of gang violence. “I believe in God, in Jesus Christ. I believe in His word, I believe in His word revealed in the Holy Bible,” he <a href="https://allisrael.com/salvadoran-president-of-palestinian-descent-is-self-proclaimed-believer-in-jesus-christ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Dirty Wars and Dirty Politics</strong></p>
<p>The connections between Israel and El Salvador, however, predate Bukele by decades. During the 1970s and 1980s, the country was a hotspot in the Cold War, and U.S.-backed death squads battled the leftist FMLN rebels. The military regime <a href="https://cja.org/where-we-work/el-salvador/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed</a> around 75,000 civilians in a dirty war that scars the region to this day. The violence was so extreme and so well-publicized that even the United States sought to distance itself from it. Into that void stepped Israel, <a href="https://electronicintifada.net/content/israeli-arms-industrys-great-leap-central-america/26881" target="_blank" rel="noopener">providing</a> 83% of El Salvador’s military needs from 1975 to 1979, including napalm. In return, El Salvador <a href="https://merip.org/1986/05/israel-in-central-america/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">moved</a> its embassy to Jerusalem, legitimizing Israel’s claim to the city.</p>
<p>Lovato, a <a href="https://robertolovato.com/unforgetting/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">former member</a> of the FMLN, told MintPress that the country was turned into a “laboratory for repression.”</p>
<blockquote><p>During the Civil War, the U.S. government aligned a whole panoply of different practitioners of torture and mass murder. You had trainers from Taiwan, Israel, and other countries going to El Salvador to train the Salvadoran government to do what they had learned how to do.”</p></blockquote>
<p>One of the most notable individuals who received Israeli training was <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/notorious-georgia-army-school-became-americas-training-ground-for-global-torture/285223/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Major Roberto D’Aubuisson</a>, leader of a far-right death squad. D’Aubuisson is known to have ordered the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero. Nicknamed “Blowtorch Bob” for his penchant for using the tool on his opponents’ genitals, his death squad is thought to have <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-02-21-mn-2740-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">killed</a> some 30,000 people, many of whom were tortured to death. Thus, it is no stretch to say that El Salvador’s repressive state apparatus has long been sustained by Israeli money, tech, and know-how.</p>
<p>But this is far from an isolated example. Indeed, Israel has supplied weapons and training to repressive governments around the world, honing the skills acquired suppressing the Palestinian population and taking them global.</p>
<p>In Guatemala, Israel sold planes, armored personnel carriers and rifles to the military, and even built them a domestic ammunition factory. General Efraín Ríos Montt <a href="https://electronicintifada.net/content/israels-shadowy-role-guatemalas-dirty-war/19286" target="_blank" rel="noopener">thanked</a> Israel for its participation in a coup that brought him to power in 1982, stating that it went so smoothly “because many of our soldiers were trained by Israelis.” Around 300 Israeli advisors worked to train Ríos Montt’s forces into genocidal death squads who systematically killed over 200,000 Mayans. A sign of the deep connections between the two groups is that Ríos Montt’s men began <a href="https://electronicintifada.net/content/israels-shadowy-role-guatemalas-dirty-war/19286" target="_blank" rel="noopener">referring</a> to the indigenous Mayans as “Palestinians” during their attacks.</p>
<p>It is a similar story in Colombia, where the country’s most notorious death squads were <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/investigation-israel-mossad-colombia-genocide-rafael-eitan/277499/">trained </a>by Israeli operatives, such as General Rafael Eitan. To this day, Colombian police and military make <a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/birds-fascist-feather-why-israel-aiding-colombia-crackdown-protesters/277406/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extensive use</a> of Israeli weaponry. So normalized has the Israeli influence become in Colombian society that, in 2011, sitting President Juan Manuel Santos appeared in an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZvHfRgbBPA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advertisement</a> for Israeli mercenary firm Global CST. “They are people with a lot of experience. They have been helping us to work better,” he stated.</p>
<p>Israel also armed and supported the military dictatorships of Chile and Argentina in the 1970s and 1980s, even as the latter explicitly <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/1999/mar/24/guardianweekly.guardianweekly1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">targeted</a> over 1,000 Jews in the largest slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust.</p>
<p>In Nicaragua, Israel supplied the Somoza dictatorship, helping it carry out a dirty war. In Rwanda, it <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-s-weapon-exports-to-rwanda-during-genocide-to-stay-secret-following-supreme-court-ruling-a6981911.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sold</a> weapons to the Hutu government as it was carrying out a genocide against the Tutsi population. Israeli weapons were used by Serbia during the Yugoslav civil war in the 1990s. And successive administrations in Tel Aviv also <a href="https://www.972mag.com/who-will-stop-the-flow-of-israeli-arms-to-dictatorships/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">helped</a> sustain the Apartheid government of South Africa, sending it weapons and sharing intelligence with it.</p>
<p>Therefore, it should come as little surprise that Bukele’s administration has sought and established such close ties to the Israeli government. These weapons and techniques, honed on the Palestinian population, are going global, helping a government thousands of miles away crack down on civil liberties. While Bukele — a Palestinian — is very much in charge of El Salvador, it is clear that his dictatorship has a distinct Israeli flavor.</p>
<p><em>Original article: </em><strong><a href="https://www.mintpressnews.com/bukele-israel-dictatorship-surveillance/289578/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mintpressnews</a></strong></p>


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307125
title: Trump says he’ll call for ‘major investigation’ into performers at Harris events
author: ;Elizabeth Crisp
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5307125-trump-investigate-celebrities-harris-election/
hash: &Vד��kd�,y�W��
content:
President Trump is calling for an investigation into the alleged illegal campaign contributions by Hollywood celebrities to Kamala Harris, while they have denied receiving any payment for their support.

tags:
#Campaign #In The Know #News #Beyoncé #Bono #Bruce Springsteen #Democratic Party #Kamala Harris #Oprah Winfrey #President Trump #Republican Party #Truth social

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307218
title: Trump threatens ABC News over Qatar jet coverage
author: ;Dominick Mastrangelo
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5307218-trump-threatens-abc-news-qatar-jet-coverage/
hash: �C� u�{��QJ^��
tags: #Media
content:
President Trump is threatening ABC News over its coverage of a luxury jet he is set to receive from Qatar, a decision that is drawing criticism from both congressional leaders and national security experts. “Why doesn’t Chairman Bob Iger do something about ABC Fake News,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Saturday, name-checking the…

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guid: 1031784 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: "It Went Very Well" - Trump Sees Imminent "End To The War" After Two-Hour-Call With Putin
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: k�q�����f�e���
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">"It Went Very Well" - Trump Sees Imminent "End To The War" After Two-Hour-Call With Putin</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em><strong>Update (1335ET)</strong></em>: Confirming the optimistic readout from the Kremlin, President Trump just <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/114535693441367601"><strong>posted on TruthSocial stating that his call with Putin "went very well."</strong></a><em> (emphasis ours)</em></p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>Just completed my two hour call with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. </em></p>

<p><em><strong>I believe it went very well. </strong></em></p>

<p><em>Russia and Ukraine will <strong>immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War. </strong></em></p>

<p><em>The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of. </em></p>

<p><strong><em>The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later. </em></strong></p>

<p><em>Russia wants to do largescale TRADE with the United States when this catastrophic “bloodbath” is over, and I agree. </em></p>

<p><strong><em>There is a tremendous opportunity for Russia to create massive amounts of jobs and wealth. Its potential is UNLIMITED. Likewise, Ukraine can be a great beneficiary on Trade, in the process of rebuilding its Country. </em></strong></p>

<p><em>Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will begin immediately. </em></p>

<p><em>I have so informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, President Emmanuel Macron, of France, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, of Italy, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, of Germany, and President Alexander Stubb, of Finland, during a call with me, immediately after the call with President Putin. </em></p>

<p><strong><em>The Vatican, as represented by the Pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations. </em></strong></p>

<p><strong><em>Let the process begin!</em></strong></p>
</blockquote>

<p>And cue the European leaders and US neocons fuming over the potential for peace.</p>

<p>*  *  *</p>

<p><strong>Update(1300ET): </strong>Presidents Trump and Putin have ended their phone call, which lasted for <strong>more than two hours</strong>, according to RIA. This suggests some heavy lifting was done regarding peace in Ukraine, and restoring Washington-Moscow relations. Trump had reportedly phoned Zelensky just prior to speaking with Putin. It appears an overall 'positive' development, also given the emerging wire headlines:</p>

<ul><li>PUTIN CALLED HIS CONVERSATION WITH TRUMP USEFUL: TASS</li>
	<li>PUTIN: MEMORANDUM WITH UKRAINE MAY INCLUDE TRUCE TERMS: TASS</li>
	<li>RUSSIA READY TO WORK WITH UKRAINE ON FUTURE PEACE DEAL: TASS</li>
	<li>PUTIN SAYS HIS CONVERSATION WITH TRUMP WAS VERY MEANINGFUL: IFX</li>
	<li>PUTIN SAYS TRUCE IS POSSIBLE IF CERTAIN AGREEMENTS REACHED:TASS</li>
</ul><p>But this Putin reference to "certain agreements" or conditions being reached will be the sticking point. Zelensky has repeatedly made clear "this is Ukraine's land" when it comes to the annexed four eastern territories and Crimea.</p>

<p>Very likely, Putin pressed this point with Trump - that Zelensky is refusing any level of compromise (which is precisely what Kiev is currently accusing Moscow of doing). </p>

<p>As we await the call readouts from both sides, Vice President JD Vance's latest remarks upon returning to the US from Rome lay out where things stand:</p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">JD Vance:<br><br>
There's fundamental mistrust between Russia and the West. It's one of the things Trump thinks is frankly stupid, and we should be able to move beyond the mistakes that have been made in the past, but that takes two to tango. <a href="https://t.co/o0UU9aSBOu">pic.twitter.com/o0UU9aSBOu</a></p>
— Clash Report (@clashreport) <a href="https://twitter.com/clashreport/status/1924479544888590774?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>Meanwhile...</p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">Guys, we are again allowed to admit that NATO's open door to Ukraine and integration with Kyiv was one of the causes of the war. Also that Russia is shaping its forces to counter NATO expansion. <a href="https://t.co/jQZQ6Ca9CD">pic.twitter.com/jQZQ6Ca9CD</a></p>
— Justin Logan (@JustinTLogan) <a href="https://twitter.com/JustinTLogan/status/1924447081520918725?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>* * *</p>

<p>President Trump is expected to hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, followed by a call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky - after they were first announced Saturday.</p>

<p>Writing in all caps, the president posted over the weekend to <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114523762104941397">Truth Social</a>, "The subjects of the call with be, <strong>stopping the 'bloodbath' that is killing</strong>, on average, more than 5000 Russian and Ukrainian soldiers a week, and trade."</p>

<p>He continued in the statement by saying "hopefully it will be a productive day, a ceasefire will take place, and <strong>this very violent war, a war that should have never happened, will end</strong>." His highly optimistic note ended with "God bless us all!!!" - again written in all caps.</p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/trumpzelensky1.jpg?itok=em7xp_nn" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/trumpzelensky1.jpg?itok=em7xp_nn"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7f695e5b-5d05-4932-b7d5-68ed888f03af" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="281" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/trumpzelensky1.jpg?itok=em7xp_nn" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><em>Via AFP</em></figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>Trump has further indicated he'll be in contact with <strong>"various" NATO leaders </strong>related to these ceasefire efforts, coming on heels of the Friday meeting between Russian and Ukrainian delegations - the first such direct engagement since efforts at talks ceased within the opening months of 2022 and the war's start.</p>

<p>The NY Times has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/19/world/europe/trump-putin-ukraine.html">previewed</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>The call, which Mr. Trump said would take place at 10 a.m. Eastern, would be the <strong>third known phone conversation between the two men since the American president’s second term began</strong>. The first two, which took place in February and March, were celebrated in Moscow as signs of weakening Western resolve to isolate and punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>And the Kremlin issued the following <a href="https://tass.com/politics/1959939">Monday</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>"The conversation is important, taking into account the negotiations held in Istanbul," Peskov said. "As for the talks, we [in the Kremlin] <strong>have already said everything we could</strong>, we underscored the basic points," he added. "We will now wait for it. <strong>We will give the maximum information possible</strong> based on the results of the conversation," he stated.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>There was little concrete which came out of the meeting, other than a new POW swap - which is to involve 1,000 captives returned on either side - and declarations that each side is open to meeting a gain.</p>

<p>Still, the warring sides are <strong>far apart in terms of conditions</strong>, with Zelensky having <a href="https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/ukraine-russia-talks-istanbul-turkey-intl#cmapgdtew000x3b6m9nfcc4cx">reasserted</a> on Friday, "In all discussions – and I emphasize this – and this is my unwavering position – <strong>we do not legally recognize any of our temporarily occupied territories as Russian</strong>. This is the Ukrainian land."</p>

<p><em>Just ahead of the Putin-Zelensky calls at the White House on Monday:</em></p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">.<a href="https://twitter.com/zerohedge?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@zerohedge</a> reporter gets the first question during today's White House press briefing.<a href="https://twitter.com/cosgrove_iv?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cosgrove_iv</a> does not disappoint: question about financing foreign wars, comments on the "Clinton body count," and further probing of the Jeffrey Epstein files. <a href="https://t.co/YjXQBpNAK9">pic.twitter.com/YjXQBpNAK9</a></p>
— Liberty Nation (@libertynation) <a href="https://twitter.com/libertynation/status/1924456571179839626?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio revealed the US administration's thinking on how things are really going at this point. He reiterated to CBS News’ ‘Face the Nation’ on Sunday that the White House will not tolerate endless negotiations which simply drag the war and killing on further.</p>

<p>"On the one hand, we’re trying to achieve peace and end a very bloody, costly, and destructive war. <strong>So there’s some element of patience that is required</strong>," he began by acknowledging.</p>

<p data-end="1526" data-start="991">"On the other hand, we don’t have time to waste. There are a lot of other things happening in the world that we also need to be paying attention to. So <strong>we don’t want to be involved in this process of just endless talks</strong>. There has to be some progress, some movement forward," he then emphasized.</p>

<p data-end="1730" data-start="1528">The US is currently examining competing ceasefire proposals offered by each side. <strong>"If those papers have ideas on them that are realistic and rational, then I think we know we’ve made progress," </strong>he said.</p>

<p>The following is reportedly among Moscow's top list of demands, which can be described as <strong>maximalist</strong> (at least from the West's perspective), per a recent <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-17/kremlin-sets-conditions-for-putin-zelenskiy-meeting-interfax">Bloomberg report</a>:</p>

<ul><li>Ukraine agreeing to neutral status regarding NATO</li>
	<li>No foreign troops in Ukraine</li>
	<li>No nuclear weapons in Ukraine</li>
	<li>De-facto recognition of Crimea and lost eastern territories as now Russia's</li>
	<li><strong>Withdrawal of Kiev forces from these territories <em>before</em> a ceasefire takes effect</strong></li>
</ul><p>But Ukraine has <strong>rejected the Kremlin's demand of de-facto recognizing the loss of its territories</strong>. Zelensky has time and again vowed to fight on, despite mounting losses and serious manpower issues. </p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">Getting Trump on side is not about Russia. UK/EU want the US bogged down in Ukraine, which means US bogged down in Europe, and US money continues to flow. They don't care about Ukraine, they care about the US remaining in Europe, invested in the globalist agenda.<br><br>
They… <a href="https://t.co/p3mM1T7hDc">pic.twitter.com/p3mM1T7hDc</a></p>
— Alex Christoforou (@AXChristoforou) <a href="https://twitter.com/AXChristoforou/status/1924370029413351914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p data-type="paragraph">The White House is likely to latch on to anything positive regarding these talks that it can; however, President Trump has clearly been exerting pressure for more speedy resolution, and is growing impatient.</p>

<p data-type="paragraph">The Europeans are ready to slap more sanctions on Moscow, and Washington has also warned that this would essentially be plan B if Russia doesn't cooperate. But Russia's fresh maximalist demands will be a hard sell.</p>

<p>*  *  *</p>

<p><em><strong>Grow your own food with <a href="https://store.zerohedge.com/wise-food-storage-heirloom-seed-vault-39-varieties-4-500-seeds/?utm_source=zerohedge.com&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=store_promo">HEIRLOOM SEEDS</a></strong> (39 varieties - 4,500 seeds) from <a href="https://store.zerohedge.com/?utm_source=zerohedge.com&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=store_promo">ZH Store!</a>  Free shipping in the USA. </em></p>
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      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-20T09:44:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Tue, 05/20/2025 - 05:44</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/trump-speak-putin-zelensky-monday-toward-ending-ukraine-bloodbath


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307162
title: Watch live: White House holds news briefing ahead of Trump-Putin call
author: ;The Hill staff
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307162-watch-live-white-house-news-briefing/
hash: 8l29��j{�R��A�
tags: #Administration #News
content:
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is scheduled to brief reporters Monday morning. The briefing is scheduled shortly before President Trump is scheduled to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in separate calls as he pushes for a ceasefire between the two nations. It also follows the House Budget Committee…

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guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330889
title: Serial offender stole copper from building site
author: ;Fatima Gunning
link: https://gript.ie/serial-offender-stole-copper-from-building-site/
hash: ��su��:X��0M[�9�
tags: #Featured #Irish News #Crime
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Empty bottle of vodka </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/serial-offender-stole-copper-from-building-site/">Serial offender stole copper from building site</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747657903
title: Gaza hospitals under siege and attack
hash: {2k� ����� n���
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
The Indonesian Hospital in north Gaza is under siege after being bombarded in the latest Israeli attacks on hospitals.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/gaza-hospitals-under-siege-and-attack?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747657603
title: Israeli police break up protest against new Gaza assault
hash: ř �.s�"�;dB��n
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Anti-war protesters in Israel faced heavy police force after blocking a military road amid Gaza assault.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/israeli-police-break-up-protest-against-new-gaza-assault?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747650711
title: Military and economic deals in pipeline as UK looks to EU reset
hash: %����Cp�"9R�jmF�
tags: #News
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content:
London and Brussels to remove selected post-Brexit barriers as Trump's global disruptions drive return to closer ties.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/military-and-economic-deals-in-pipeline-as-uk-looks-to-eu-reset?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747658421
title: Cat caught smuggling drugs into prison in Costa Rica
hash: ��rt�D�6l�u
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
A cat carrying packages of crack cocaine and marijuana was rescued by prison officers at the Pococi Penitentiary

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/cat-caught-smuggling-drugs-into-prison-into-costa-rica?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747648545
title: Romania, Poland, Portugal election results: Who are the winners and losers?
content: Pro-EU forces prevail on electoral 'super Sunday', but far right gains ground.
hash: 6^������Ģ9��e
tags: #News
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link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/romania-poland-portugal-election-results-who-are-the-winners-and-losers?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747650164
title: Car bomb in Pakistan’s restive southwest kills four people
content: The attack is just the latest in Balochistan, which is plagued by insurgency.
hash: �H��>��_}N+��a�
tags: #News
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link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/car-bomb-in-pakistans-restive-southwest-kills-four-people?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747658787
title: What we know so far about Biden’s cancer diagnosis
hash: <~P�kd�\�8c��1
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
US President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. Here’s what we know so far.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2025/5/19/what-we-know-so-far-about-bidens-cancer-diagnosis?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5306479
title: Not-so-grand old party: Democrats have an elderly problem
author: ;Juan Williams; opinion contributor
hash: x���]b�0�Ǫ@Y
tags: #Columnists #Juan Williams #Opinion
content:
Late-night comedians love to joke about Congress as a retirement home. Last week, it looked like no joke.

link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/columnists/juan-williams/5306479-not-so-grand-old-party-democrats-have-an-elderly-problem/

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307260
title: Stocks slump after US credit rating downgrade
author: ;Sylvan Lane
link: https://thehill.com/business/5307260-us-credit-rating-downgrade-impact/
hash: b�(n��� ����
tags: #Budget #Business
content:
The stock market opened with losses Monday as trading began for the first time since the U.S. government suffered a significant hit to its creditworthiness. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, Nasdaq composite and S&amp;P 500 all fell after the opening bell Monday, following a weekend of fading stock futures and spiking bond yields driven by…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307282
title: Maryland governor vetoes reparations bill
author: ;Cheyanne M. Daniels
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307282-maryland-governor-wes-moore-reparations-bill/
hash: q��@����\����<
tags: #Race &amp; Politics #State Watch
content:
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) says he has vetoed a state-approved bill to create a commission to study and recommend reparations for slavery and racial discrimination.  In his veto letter sent Friday, Moore pointed to several commissions the state has already approved, including the Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the State Commission to…

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747649968
title: Tanzanian opposition leader makes defiant appearance at treason trial
content: The trial has added to rising concerns across East Africa about threats to democracy.
hash: !�v���=Ԫ���lQ�
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/tanzanian-opposition-leader-makes-defiant-appearance-at-treason-trial?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747646219
title: Chechnya’s Kadyrov wanted to resign. Or did he?
content: The Russian president is said to have denied Kadyrov's request.
hash: 7U��r{����8 P
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/chechnyas-kadyrov-wanted-to-resign-or-did-he?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747654236
title: Gary Lineker leaves BBC amid anti-Semitism row, pro-Palestinian comments
hash: ~X�z�����vz&'��I
tags: #Sport
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Britain's top football host is 'bowing out by mutual agreement' after backlash to a social media post about Zionism.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2025/5/19/gary-lineker-leaves-bbc-amid-anti-semitism-row-pro-palestinian-comments?traffic_source=rss


guid: 1031803 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Supreme Court Weighs Trump's Birthright Citizenship Challenge
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/supreme-court-weighs-trumps-birthright-citizenship-challenge
hash: ]8M��BW�el�Ľ�o
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Supreme Court Weighs Trump's Birthright Citizenship Challenge</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/supreme-court-weighs-trumps-birthright-citizenship-challenge-5859161?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=ZeroHedge"><em>Authored by Stuart Liess via The Epoch Times,</em></a></p>

<p><strong>The United States’ highest court this week seemed divided over whether lower court judges had overstepped their authority in blocking the Trump administration’s attempts to limit birthright citizenship.</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/image%20%2811%29_8.jpg?itok=UMgA3Tbx" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/image%20%2811%29_8.jpg?itok=UMgA3Tbx"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="cfffc339-c99f-4e76-a1e0-0eea8f004fb7" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="333" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/image%20%2811%29_8.jpg?itok=UMgA3Tbx" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Federal judges had put a nationwide block on President Donald Trump’s attempt to remove automatic citizenship status from children born in the United States to immigrants with noncitizen status.</p>

<p>The question at hand is whether the federal judges were allowed to do this. The Trump administration argues they do not, and have overstepped their jurisdiction in this matter.</p>

<p><strong>The decision will also determine the limits of presidential power and whether a president can make such decisions, which will then determine the authority of judges in blocking Trump’s agenda on a much broader level in other cases where he is facing legal challenges.</strong></p>

<p>The United States’ governance system is based on a series of checks and balances where the president enforces laws that Congress has made, and the Supreme Court interprets them and can even overrule them if it deems the laws unconstitutional.</p>

<p>Since Inauguration Day, Trump has signed 151 executive orders, which are directives by the president ordering the government to take specific actions. Their limitations, however, are that they cannot overrule existing federal law or statutes created by Congress.</p>

<p>President Joe Biden signed 162 executive orders during his term, and President Barack Obama signed 277 executive orders during his eight years of office. Trump signed a total of 220 during his entire first term.</p>

<p><strong>Critics of Trump argue that he is overstepping his presidential authority on a number of decisions.</strong></p>

<p>The president declared a national emergency on Jan. 20, vowing to solve the country’s illegal immigration crisis and fulfilling one of his campaign promises to stop an “invasion” at the border.</p>

<p><strong>Trump has vowed to end “birth tourism,” in which he says illegal immigrants are giving birth in this country so that the children will be U.S. citizens.</strong></p>

<p>According to Pew Research Center, the illegal immigrant population was at a 15-year high of 11 million in 2022, while border encounters have been soaring in recent years.</p>

<p>U.S. southern border apprehensions reached a high of 370,883 in December 2023, before dropping in 2024, according to Customs and Border Protection data.</p>

<p>The latest data recorded an 88 percent drop from the previous year, with 29,238 encounters in April this year falling from 247,929 around the same time in 2024.</p>

<h2>Constitutional Reinterpretation</h2>

<p><strong>The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1868 in the aftermath of the Civil War, addressing the citizenship rights of American-born former slaves.</strong></p>

<p>Then in 1898, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Wong Kim Ark, who was born in the United States but was denied reentry after leaving to visit China. </p>

<p><strong>The justices said a child born in the United States became a citizen at birth. This set the precedent for birthright citizenship.</strong></p>

<p>The United States is one of about 30 countries that currently offer automatic citizenship by birth. Neighbouring Canada and Mexico do the same.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/34472.jpg?itok=-XYdRaqR" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/34472.jpg?itok=-XYdRaqR"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="56308a23-a731-4192-a2a8-94ac16b67cde" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="500" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/34472.jpg?itok=-XYdRaqR" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Trump argues that the amendment was misinterpreted, and the act of birthright citizenship doesn’t necessarily apply to all children born in the United States, particularly immigrants who entered unlawfully or people on a temporary visa.</p>

<p>The statement from the Constitution in question reads: <em><strong>“All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”</strong></em></p>

<p>The president has argued that the phrase “the jurisdiction thereof” should be interpreted as meaning that the person has sworn allegiance to the country, and to qualify, one parent would need to be a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T13:46:07+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 09:46</span>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747657822
title: Moscow outlaws Amnesty International for ‘Russophobia’ amid Ukraine war
hash: �9�N���y���R��@
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Amnesty International said the decision taken by Moscow is part of its 'broader effort to silence dissent'.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/moscow-outlaws-amnesty-international-for-russophobia-amid-ukraine-war?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307294
title: DOJ may waive key review for elected officials’ prosecutions
author: ;Rebecca Beitsch
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307294-doj-key-review-elected-officials-prosecutions/
hash: �.x�����Q��Y��
tags: #Administration #National Security #News #Policy
content:
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is considering allowing prosecutors to bypass consultation with the Public Integrity Section as they pursue charges against elected officials. In doing so, the Trump administration would cut a key review from a team of prosecutors who specialize in bringing cases against public officials — a team also assembled to help…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304827
title: The right and wrong ways to address campus antisemitism
author: ;Glenn C. Altschuler and David Wippman; opinion contributors
content: The Trump administration’s narrative and response are clearly overblown.
hash: ��| 8;� g-Fk � B
tags: #Education #Opinion
link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/education/5304827-the-right-and-wrong-ways-to-address-campus-antisemitism/

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guid: yt:video:0qsLznJsQgI
title: Who’s That Senator?
author: ;Senate of Canada | Sénat du Canada
link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qsLznJsQgI
hash: ��]���?�c1�� ��
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guid: yt:video:PRvB8oh2qFg
title: Qui est ce sénateur?
author: ;Senate of Canada | Sénat du Canada
link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRvB8oh2qFg
hash: �-��`����/��`n
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{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://www.youtube.com/v/PRvB8oh2qFg?version=3","title":"Qui est ce sénateur?","description":"Grand philanthrope, il jour un rôle très actif au sein de nombreux milieux à Montréal.\n\nAvez-vous deviné correctement?\n\n#SenCA #PolCan\n\n-----------------\nSuivez le Sénat du Canada sur :\nFacebook http://ow.ly/dSjS307h4in\nTwitter http://ow.ly/6TTa307h4vw\nInstagram http://ow.ly/UDUy307h4oG\nVisitez le site web du Sénat https://sencanada.ca","type":"application/x-shockwave-flash","height":390,"width":640,"thumbnails":["https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/PRvB8oh2qFg/hqdefault.jpg"]}]}


guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885399
title: La autodestrucción de Europa
author: ;A A
link: https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/la-autodestruccion-de-europa/
hash: sZѕ1�+�0�� �S�
tags: #Español #European Union #France #Germany #Ukraine #War
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p><strong><em>¿Cómo interpretar la postura aparentemente autodestructiva de Europa? Cuatro dimensiones pueden ayudar a entender la postura de sus líderes: psicológica, política, estratégica y trasatlántica</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><em>Thomas FAZI</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Únete a nosotros en </span><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Spanish" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram </a><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Spanish" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25"></a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25"></a> <span>y </span><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a> <a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25"></a>.</strong></p>
<p><span><strong>Escríbenos: </strong></span><a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su"><strong>info@strategic-culture.su</strong></a></p>
<p>Para quienes la desconocen, la política europea puede ser difícil de descifrar hoy en día, y en ningún otro lugar esto es más evidente que en la respuesta del continente a la cambiante situación en Ucrania. Desde el resurgimiento político de Donald Trump y su iniciativa de negociar el fin del conflicto entre Rusia y Ucrania, <strong>los líderes europeos han actuado de maneras que parecen desafiar la lógica básica de las relaciones internacionales</strong>, en particular el realismo, que sostiene que los Estados actúan principalmente para promover sus propios intereses estratégicos.</p>
<p>En lugar de apoyar los esfuerzos diplomáticos para poner fin a la guerra, los líderes europeos se han mostrado decididos a descarrilar las propuestas de paz de Trump, socavar las negociaciones y prolongar el conflicto. Desde la perspectiva de los intereses fundamentales de Europa, <strong>esto no solo es desconcertante, sino irracional</strong>. La guerra en Ucrania, mejor descrita como un conflicto indirecto entre la OTAN y Rusia, ha infligido un inmenso daño económico a las industrias y los hogares europeos, a la vez que ha aumentado drásticamente los riesgos de seguridad en todo el continente. Se podría argumentar, por supuesto, que<strong> la participación de Europa en la guerra fue errónea desde el principio, fruto de la arrogancia y de un error de cálculo estratégico</strong>, teniendo en cuenta, además, la creencia errónea de que Rusia sufriría un rápido colapso económico y una derrota militar.</p>
<p>Sin embargo, sea cual sea la lógica detrás de la respuesta inicial de Europa a la guerra, cabría esperar que, a la luz de sus consecuencias, los líderes europeos aprovecharan con entusiasmo cualquier opción viable hacia la paz, y con ella, la oportunidad de restablecer las relaciones diplomáticas y la cooperación económica con Rusia. En cambio, han respondido <strong>alarmados ante la “amenaza” de la paz</strong>. Lejos de aprovechar la oportunidad, han redoblado sus esfuerzos: prometieron apoyo financiero y militar indefinido a Ucrania y anunciaron un plan de rearme sin precedentes que sugiere que Europa se prepara para un enfrentamiento militarizado a largo plazo con Rusia, incluso en caso de un acuerdo negociado.</p>
<p>¿Cómo interpretar esta postura <strong>aparentemente autodestructiva</strong>? Este comportamiento puede parecer irracional si se juzga desde el punto de vista de los intereses generales u objetivos de Europa, pero se vuelve <strong>más comprensible al analizar los intereses de sus líderes</strong>. Cuatro dimensiones interrelacionadas pueden ayudar a explicar su posición: psicológica, política, estratégica y transatlántica.</p>
<p>Desde una perspectiva psicológica, los líderes europeos se han distanciado cada vez más de la realidad. La creciente brecha entre sus expectativas iniciales y la trayectoria real de la guerra ha creado una especie de <strong>disonancia cognitiva</strong>, lo que les lleva a adoptar <strong>narrativas cada vez más delirantes, incluyendo llamamientos alarmistas a prepararse para una guerra total contra Rusia</strong>. Esta desconexión no es meramente retórica; revela un malestar más profundo a medida que su visión del mundo choca con una realidad incómoda sobre el terreno.</p>
<p>La psicología también ofrece información sobre la reacción de Europa ante Trump. Dado que Washington siempre ha visto a la OTAN como una forma de asegurar la subordinación estratégica de Europa, la amenaza del presidente de reducir los compromisos de Estados Unidos con la alianza podría representar una oportunidad para que Europa se redefina como un actor autónomo. El problema es que Europa ha estado atrapada en una relación de subordinación con Estados Unidos durante tanto tiempo que, ahora que Trump amenaza con desestabilizar su histórica dependencia en materia de seguridad, Europa no puede aprovechar esta oportunidad; <strong>en cambio, intenta replicar la agresiva política exterior estadounidense: es decir, “convertirse” inconscientemente en Estados Unidos.</strong></p>
<p>Por eso, tras sacrificar voluntariamente sus propios intereses en aras de la hegemonía estadounidense, ahora se presentan como los últimos defensores de las mismas políticas que los hicieron irrelevantes en un principio. Esto es menos una muestra de convicción real que un reflejo psicológico: un débil intento de ocultar la humillación de ser expuestos por su patrón como meros vasallos, una farsa hueca de “autonomía”.</p>
<p>Más allá de lo psicológico y simbólico, también intervienen cálculos más pragmáticos. Para la actual generación de líderes europeos, admitir el fracaso en Ucrania equivaldría a un suicidio político, sobre todo teniendo en cuenta los inmensos costes económicos que soportan sus propias poblaciones. <strong>La guerra se ha convertido en una especie de justificación existencial para sus gobiernos. Sin ella, sus fracasos quedarían al descubierto.</strong> En un momento en que los partidos del establishment se ven sometidos a una creciente presión por parte de movimientos y partidos “populistas”, esta es una vulnerabilidad que no pueden permitirse. Poner fin a la guerra también requeriría reconocer que la indiferencia de la OTAN hacia las preocupaciones de seguridad rusas contribuyó a desencadenar el conflicto, una medida que socavaría la narrativa dominante sobre la agresión rusa y pondría de manifiesto los propios errores estratégicos de Europa.</p>
<p>Ante estos dilemas, los líderes europeos han optado por afianzar su posición. <strong>La continuación del conflicto —y el mantenimiento de una postura hostil hacia Rusia— no solo les proporciona un salvavidas político a corto plazo, sino que también les sirve de pretexto para consolidar el poder interno, reprimir la disidencia y anticiparse a futuros desafíos políticos.</strong> Lo que a primera vista puede parecer una incoherencia estratégica, refleja, al examinarlo más de cerca, un intento desesperado por gestionar la decadencia interna proyectando fuerza hacia el exterior.</p>
<p>A lo largo de la historia, los gobiernos a menudo han exagerado, inflado o directamente inventado las amenazas externas con fines políticos internos, una estrategia que persigue múltiples objetivos, desde unir a la población y silenciar la disidencia hasta justificar un mayor gasto militar y expandir el poder estatal. Esto sin duda se aplica a lo que estamos presenciando actualmente en Europa. En términos económicos, existe la esperanza de que el aumento de la producción de defensa pueda ayudar a revitalizar las anémicas economías europeas, <strong>una forma cruda de keynesianismo militar</strong>. No sorprende, en este sentido, que el país que lidera la iniciativa de remilitarización sea Alemania, cuya economía ha sido la más afectada por la guerra en Ucrania.</p>
<p>Los planes de remilitarización de Europa sin duda beneficiarán al complejo militar-industrial del continente, que ya registra avances récord, pero es poco probable que se transmitan a los ciudadanos europeos de a pie, sobre todo porque un mayor gasto en defensa implicará inevitablemente recortes en otras áreas, como las pensiones, la salud y la seguridad social. Janan Ganesh, columnista del Financial Times, expresó la lógica subyacente: «Europa debe recortar su estado de bienestar para construir un estado de guerra».</p>
<p>Dicho esto, si bien los factores económicos sin duda influyen, los verdaderos objetivos del programa de rearme europeo posiblemente no sean económicos, sino políticos. <strong>En los últimos 15 años, la Unión Europea se ha convertido en una estructura cada vez más autoritaria y antidemocrática.</strong> Especialmente bajo el mandato de von der Leyen, la Comisión Europea ha utilizado crisis tras crisis para aumentar su influencia en áreas que antes se consideraban dominio exclusivo de los gobiernos nacionales —desde los presupuestos financieros y la política sanitaria hasta los asuntos exteriores y la defensa—, en detrimento del control democrático y la rendición de cuentas.</p>
<p>Durante los últimos tres años, Europa se ha militarizado cada vez más, ya que von der Leyen aprovechó la crisis de Ucrania para liderar la respuesta del bloque, transformando a la Comisión, y a la UE en su conjunto, en una extensión de la OTAN. Ahora, bajo el pretexto de la “amenaza rusa”, von der Leyen pretende acelerar drásticamente este proceso de centralización de la política del bloque. Ya ha propuesto, por ejemplo, la compra colectiva de armas en nombre de los Estados miembros de la UE, siguiendo <strong>el mismo modelo de “yo compro, tú pagas” utilizado para la adquisición de la vacuna contra la COVID-19</strong>. Esto otorgaría a la Comisión el control sobre todo el complejo militar-industrial de los países de la UE, el último de una larga lista de golpes institucionales liderados por Bruselas.</p>
<p>Se trata de algo más que simplemente aumentar la producción de armas. Bruselas persigue <strong>una militarización integral que abarque a toda la sociedad</strong>. Esta ambición se refleja en la aplicación cada vez más estricta de la política exterior de la UE y la OTAN: desde las amenazas y presiones empleadas para obligar a líderes no alineados, como Viktor Orbán en Hungría y Roberto Fico en Eslovaquia, a acatar las normas, hasta la prohibición total de candidatos políticos críticos con la UE y la OTAN, como se vio en Rumanía.</p>
<p><strong>En los próximos años, este enfoque militarizado se convertirá en el paradigma dominante en Europa</strong>, ya que todas las esferas de la vida —política, económica, social, cultural y científica— se subordinarán al supuesto objetivo de la seguridad nacional, o mejor dicho, supranacional. Esto se utilizará para justificar <strong>políticas cada vez más represivas y autoritarias</strong>, invocando la amenaza de la «injerencia rusa» como pretexto general para todo, desde la censura en línea hasta la suspensión de las libertades civiles fundamentales, así como, por supuesto, la mayor centralización y verticalización de la autoridad de la UE, especialmente dada la inevitable reacción negativa que estas políticas generarán. <strong>En otras palabras, la «amenaza rusa» servirá como último recurso para salvar el proyecto de la UE</strong>.</p>
<p>Por último, está la dimensión transatlántica. Sería un error considerar la actual ruptura transatlántica únicamente a través de la lente de los intereses divergentes de los líderes europeos y estadounidenses. Más allá de estas diferencias, podrían estar en juego dinámicas más profundas. No es descabellado suponer que los europeos puedan estar, en cierto modo, coordinándose con el establishment demócrata estadounidense y la facción liberal-globalista del Estado permanente estadounidense: la red de intereses arraigados que abarca la burocracia estadounidense, el Estado de seguridad y el complejo militar-industrial. Estas redes, que siguen activas a pesar de la declarada “guerra contra el Estado profundo” de Trump, comparten el interés de descarrilar las conversaciones de paz y perturbar la presidencia de Trump.</p>
<p>En otras palabras, lo que a primera vista parece un enfrentamiento entre Europa y Estados Unidos podría ser, en un sentido más fundamental, <strong>una lucha entre diferentes facciones del imperio estadounidense </strong>—y, en gran medida, dentro del propio establishment estadounidense— librada a través de representantes europeos. Al fin y al cabo, muchos de los líderes europeos actuales tienen fuertes conexiones con estas redes.</p>
<p>Estados Unidos tiene, por supuesto, una larga historia de influencia política en Europa. A lo largo de las décadas, ha forjado fuertes vínculos institucionales con los aparatos estatales de los países de Europa Occidental, en particular entre sus servicios de defensa e inteligencia. Además, el establishment estadounidense ejerce una influencia considerable en el discurso público europeo a través de los principales medios de comunicación y centros de investigación angloparlantes. Estos centros, como el German Marshall Fund, el National Endowment for Democracy, el Council on Foreign Relations y el Atlantic Council, contribuyen a moldear las narrativas políticas que dominan la sociedad europea y, de hecho, hoy en día están a la vanguardia de la idea de que «ningún acuerdo es mejor que uno malo».</p>
<p>Sus orígenes se remontan a la Guerra Fría, cuando Estados Unidos promovió activamente la integración europea como baluarte contra la Unión Soviética. En otras palabras, la UE, especialmente en sus primeras iteraciones, siempre ha estado aferrada al atlantismo, y esto no ha hecho más que intensificarse tras la Guerra Fría. Por ello, el establishment tecnocrático de la UE —en concreto, <strong>la Comisión Europea— ha estado históricamente más alineado con Estados Unidos que con los gobiernos nacionales europeos</strong>. Ursula von der Leyen, apodada la “presidenta estadounidense de Europa”, es un excelente ejemplo de esta alineación, trabajando incansablemente para mantener el compromiso de la UE con la agresiva estrategia geopolítica de Estados Unidos, en particular respecto a Rusia y Ucrania.</p>
<p>Una herramienta clave en esta alianza siempre ha sido la OTAN, que hoy desempeña un papel clave para contrarrestar los esfuerzos de Trump por cambiar la postura de Estados Unidos hacia Rusia. En este contexto, la postura de Europa, aunque aparentemente dirigida a Trump, se deriva del reconocimiento de que algunos sectores de la clase dirigente estadounidense se oponen firmemente a las propuestas de Trump a Putin, albergan una profunda animosidad hacia Rusia y consideran las amenazas del presidente de retirarse de la OTAN y socavar otros pilares del orden de posguerra como un desafío estratégico a los sistemas que han sostenido la hegemonía estadounidense durante décadas.</p>
<p>Esta conexión podría explicar las políticas “irracionales” de ciertos líderes europeos, al menos desde la perspectiva de los intereses objetivos de Europa: primero, su apoyo incondicional a la guerra indirecta liderada por Estados Unidos en Ucrania, y ahora su insistencia en continuar la guerra a toda costa. Según este relato, los objetivos del establishment transatlántico parecen bastante claros: demonizar a Trump, presentándolo como un “apaciguador de Putin”; y avivar la ansiedad europea sobre su vulnerabilidad militar, incluso inflando la amenaza rusa, para empujar al público a aceptar un mayor gasto en defensa y la continuación de la guerra durante el mayor tiempo posible.</p>
<p>Ninguna de las partes en esta guerra civil transatlántica se preocupa realmente por los intereses de Europa. La facción trumpista considera a Europa un rival económico, y el propio Trump ha criticado repetidamente a la UE, calificándola de “atrocidad” diseñada para perjudicar a Estados Unidos, y ahora considera imponer fuertes aranceles a Europa. Por otro lado, la facción liberal-globalista ve a Europa como un frente crucial en la guerra indirecta contra Rusia.</p>
<p>En este contexto, un escenario en el que los europeos prolonguen la guerra en Ucrania, al menos a corto plazo, podría verse como un compromiso entre ambas facciones. Estados Unidos puede salir del atolladero ucraniano mientras busca un acercamiento con Rusia y centra su atención en China y la región de Asia-Pacífico, al tiempo que culpa directamente a Zelenski y a los europeos del fracaso en alcanzar la paz.</p>
<p>Mientras tanto, la continua participación de Europa en la guerra garantiza su continua separación económica y geopolítica de Rusia y refuerza su continua dependencia económica de Estados Unidos, especialmente en el contexto del aumento del gasto en defensa, gran parte del cual se destinaría al complejo militar-industrial estadounidense. Al mismo tiempo, los representantes europeos del establishment liberal-globalista seguirían utilizando la amenaza rusa para consolidar su poder. En general, este acuerdo podría considerarse aceptable para ambas partes. En otras palabras, como ha sugerido el investigador geopolítico Brian Berletic, lo que a menudo se presenta en los medios como una “ruptura transatlántica” sin precedentes podría, en realidad, ser más bien <strong>una “división del trabajo” en la que los europeos mantienen la presión sobre Rusia mientras Estados Unidos centra su atención en China.</strong></p>
<p>Lo que surge de este análisis es la imagen de una clase política europea sumida en una profunda crisis de legitimidad, atrapada entre las presiones externas y la decadencia interna. Lejos de actuar en función de los intereses racionales y estratégicos de sus naciones, los líderes europeos parecen cada vez más apegados a las estructuras de poder transatlánticas, los imperativos políticos internos y los reflejos psicológicos moldeados por décadas de dependencia y negación. Su respuesta a la guerra de Ucrania —y a la renovada presencia de Trump en el escenario global— <strong>refleja menos una estrategia geopolítica coherente que un intento frenético por preservar un orden en ruinas por cualquier medio</strong>.</p>
<p>En este contexto, las acciones de Europa no son simplemente erróneas; son <strong>sintomáticas de una disfunción más profunda en el corazón del propio proyecto de la UE</strong>. La militarización de la sociedad, la erosión de las normas democráticas, la consolidación del poder tecnocrático y la represión de la disidencia no son medidas temporales de guerra; son los contornos de un nuevo paradigma político, nacido del miedo, la dependencia y la inercia institucional. Amparados en el lenguaje de la seguridad y los valores, los líderes europeos no están defendiendo el continente, sino que están <strong>consolidando su subordinación, tanto a la hegemonía menguante de Washington</strong> como a sus propios regímenes <em>en crisis.</em></p>
<p><em>Publicado originalmente por </em><a href="https://infoposta.com.ar/notas/14108/la-autodestruccion-de-europa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>infoposta.com.ar</strong></a></p>


guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885398
title: Le ostilità tra India e Pakistan hanno indirettamente dimostrato le capacità militari della Cina
author: ;A A
hash: �f��f�8��$�ݫ �
tags: #Italiano #China #India #Pakistan
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p><strong><em>Con le armi cinesi, le forze pakistane hanno dimostrato la capacità di neutralizzare obiettivi indiani utilizzando attrezzature occidentali.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span><span><em>Segue nostro</em></span> <a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Telegram</a><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Italiano" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><span>.</span></a></span></strong></p>
<p>Il recente scontro tra India e Pakistan, avvenuto nelle prime settimane di maggio, ha rivelato una nuova dinamica nel panorama geopolitico asiatico, mettendo in evidenza la crescente efficacia delle armi cinesi in situazioni di combattimento reale. L’uso dei caccia J-10C e dei missili PL-15, forniti dalla Cina al Pakistan, avrebbe provocato la distruzione di cinque aerei dell’aeronautica militare indiana, tra cui tre Rafale di fabbricazione francese. Questo evento segna il primo test significativo dell’equipaggiamento militare cinese in un conflitto reale dagli anni ’90 e rappresenta una pietra miliare nell’ascesa della Cina come potenza militare globale.</p>
<p><strong>Il contesto del conflitto e il coinvolgimento della Cina</strong></p>
<p>Il Pakistan, alleato strategico della Cina, ha ricevuto un sostegno militare sostanziale negli ultimi anni, con oltre l’80% delle sue importazioni di armi provenienti da Pechino. Durante le recenti ostilità, il Pakistan ha schierato caccia J-10C equipaggiati con radar AESA e missili PL-15 contro le forze indiane che utilizzavano aerei occidentali come i Rafale e sistemi di difesa aerea israeliani. L’efficacia dei sistemi cinesi in combattimento reale è stata osservata per la prima volta in molti anni, superando le aspettative occidentali.</p>
<p>Come previsto, questo sviluppo ha turbato gli strateghi occidentali e i loro piani per la regione asiatica. Contenere la Cina (oltre alla Russia) è da tempo un obiettivo strategico centrale della NATO, un programma al quale l’India ha collaborato in modo sconsiderato. Ora sembra che le armi ad alto costo e ad alto valore di mercato prodotte dal complesso militare-industriale occidentale non riescano a dimostrare la loro efficacia sul campo di battaglia.</p>
<p><strong>Implicazioni strategiche e geopolitiche</strong></p>
<p>Le prestazioni delle attrezzature cinesi in combattimento reale rappresentano una sfida diretta alla supremazia militare occidentale in Asia. Gli analisti militari osservano che, utilizzando il Pakistan come banco di prova, la Cina ha acquisito dati preziosi sull’efficacia dei suoi sistemi d’arma contro le tecnologie occidentali. Questa strategia consente alla Cina di testare e perfezionare le sue capacità militari senza un coinvolgimento diretto nei conflitti, rafforzando la sua posizione nell’arena geopolitica globale.</p>
<p>Inoltre, la dimostrazione di potenza militare da parte della Cina arriva in un momento di crescenti tensioni in regioni come Taiwan e il Mar Cinese Meridionale. Con l’obiettivo di consolidare la propria posizione nell’ambiente strategico indo-pacifico, l’efficacia reale delle sue armi potrebbe influenzare la percezione sia degli alleati che degli avversari, con ripercussioni sulle alleanze strategiche e sulle politiche di difesa in tutta la regione.</p>
<p><strong>Reazioni occidentali e conseguenze per l’industria della difesa</strong></p>
<p>Il successo dei sistemi d’arma cinesi ha allarmato le potenze occidentali, che tradizionalmente dominano il mercato globale della difesa. L’efficacia del J-10C e del PL-15 in combattimenti reali mette in discussione la narrativa della superiorità tecnologica occidentale, spingendo i paesi occidentali a rivalutare le loro strategie di difesa e la competitività dei loro sistemi d’arma.</p>
<p>Sui mercati finanziari, l’impennata del valore azionario della Chengdu Aircraft Corporation, produttrice del J-10C, riflette il crescente interesse e la fiducia nei prodotti di difesa cinesi. Questa tendenza potrebbe portare a una ridefinizione delle dinamiche di mercato nel settore della difesa, con potenziali ripercussioni sui contratti di acquisto e sulle partnership strategiche in tutto il mondo.</p>
<p><strong>L’ascesa di una nuova potenza militare</strong></p>
<p>Il recente scontro tra India e Pakistan ha messo in evidenza l’emergere della Cina come potenza militare globale, in grado di contendere l’egemonia occidentale in Asia. L’efficacia delle sue armi, dimostrata in combattimento, non solo sposta gli equilibri di potere nella regione, ma ridefinisce anche le strategie di difesa e le alleanze internazionali. Mentre la Cina continua ad espandere la sua influenza militare ed economica, il mondo osserva con attenzione per vedere quali saranno le prossime mosse di questa nuova potenza.</p>
<p>Di fronte a questa realtà, l’Occidente si trova ancora una volta costretto a rivalutare le proprie ambizioni in un mondo in fase di profondi cambiamenti geopolitici. L’idea di contenere la Cina con la forza appare sempre più un terribile errore di calcolo.</p>
<p></p>

link:
https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/le-ostilita-tra-india-pakistan-hanno-indirettamente-dimostrato-capacita-militari-della-cina/


guid: 1031789 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Moody's Blues
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/moodys-blues
hash: s�4����a) xv�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Moody's Blues</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em>By Philip Marey, Senior US strategist at Rabobank</em></p>

<p>On the same day that the fiscal hawks among the House Republicans blocked their own party’s tax and spending bill because it pushes up the budget deficit in the short run, Moody’s downgraded US government debt from Aaa to Aa1. Moody’s said that expanding budget deficits mean US government borrowing will rise at an accelerating rate, pushing interest rates up over the long term. In fact, Moody’s didn’t believe that any current budget proposals under consideration by lawmakers would do anything significant to reduce the persistent gap between government spending and revenues. According to the rating agency, <strong>successive US administrations and Congress have failed to agree on measures to reverse the trend of large annual fiscal deficits and growing interest costs.</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_1.jpg?itok=bCo1El4G" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_1.jpg?itok=bCo1El4G"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a3301b75-d4c1-409d-99cf-3d3210c46c27" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="332" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Moodys%20US%20downgrade%20in%20context_1.jpg?itok=bCo1El4G" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>In November 2023, Moody’s lowered the US rating outlook to negative from stable while affirming the nation’s rating at Aaa, so the downgrade was just a matter of time. On Friday, Moody’s shifted its outlook on US debt to stable, noting the nation retains exceptional credit strength such as the size, resilience and dynamism of its economy and the role of the US dollar as global reserve currency. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in Meet the Press, on Sunday, said that Moody’s was a lagging indicator and that this has been caused by the Biden administration. After the downgrade, US treasury yields jumped from about 4.44% to almost 4.50% on Friday. This morning, it climbed further to 4.52%. Moody’s is the last of the three big rating agencies to downgrade US debt. Fitch downgraded the US in August 2023 by one level to AA+, and S&amp;P was the first major credit agency to strip the US of its AAA rating back in 2011. <strong>Moody’s downgrade does not tell markets anything they did not know and in fact, recent movements in US treasury yields and the US dollar may be of more concern than the official downgrade by a rating agency.</strong></p>

<p>Earlier on Friday, five Republican members of the House Budget Committee voted against advancing the “one big, beautiful bill”, four because they think it front-loads tax cuts in the next few years and delays spending cuts, causing a rise in the budget deficit in the short run. They want bigger cuts in social programs and a faster removal of clean-energy tax credits. On Sunday, the House Budget Committee resumed its session and finally approved the measure for floor action. <strong>The Republicans still hope to get the bill through the full House of Representatives before Memorial Day </strong>(May 26). Trump wants the bill passed by both the House and the Senate by Independence Day (July 4).</p>

<p><em><strong><u>Week ahead</u></strong></em></p>

<p><strong>Today</strong>, the Conference Board’s Leading Economic Index for the US will be published. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic gives welcome remarks at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference in Florida. Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson And Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan give keynote remarks at the same event. Probably more relevant for monetary policy is Bostic’s interview on Bloomberg TV today. In an interview released on Friday, Bostic said he expected only one rate cut this year, because the uncertainty about the economic outlook is unlikely to resolve itself quickly, and tariffs may put upward pressure on inflation. Elsewhere, New York Fed President John Williams speaks in a moderated conversation at an event organized by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari will take part in a moderated Q&amp;A at the University of Minnesota.</p>

<p>On <strong>Tuesday</strong>, the German PPI and the Canadian CPI for April will be released. Euro zone consumer confidence for May is also scheduled. ECB Governing Council member Pierre Wunsch delivers a keynote speech, ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone appears in pre-recorded video interview, and ECB's Knot presents DNB's Financial Stability Overview. Across the channel, BoE Chief Economist Huw Pill also speaks. Across the pond, Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin gives a speech at the Richmond Fed's Investing in Rural America Conference. Boston Fed President Susan Collins will host a Fed Listens event and offer brief remarks, but no discussion of current monetary policy and the outlook. More interesting is St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem’s speech on the economy and monetary policy at the Economic Club of Minnesota, including a Q&amp;A.</p>

<p>On <strong>Wednesday</strong>, we get Japan’s trade balance for April, and the UK CPI and RPI for April. The ECB's Guindos presents the Financial Stability Review and ECB Chief Economist Philip Lane discusses "Negative interest rates and the impact of monetary policy," perhaps a bit academic at this time. ECB Governing Council member Jose Luis Escriva speaks at an event near Madrid. In Florida, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack  participate in a panel discussion at the "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference. Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin and Fed Governor Michelle Bowman will participate in a Fed Listens event.</p>

<p>On <strong>Thursday</strong>, a lot of survey data for May will be published: the German Ifo index, the HCOB PMIs for manufacturing and services for the Euro zone and individual countries, and the S&amp;P Global PMIs for manufacturing and services for the UK and the US. We also get US initial jobless claims for the week ending on May 17, and US existing home sales for April. The ECB publishes its account of the April 16-17 policy meeting.</p>

<p>We also get a lot of central bank speakers. Starting with the ECB, Governor Robert Holzmann delivers opening remarks at the OeNB conference on "Monetary policy and structural tectonic shifts." The ECB’s Vujcic delivers an introductory presentation on the topic: "In Uncharted Waters: Macroeconomic Prospects in the Conditions of a Trade War." ECB Executive Board member Frank Elderson gives a speech on World Biodiversity Day in Leiden, the Netherlands. ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos and Spanish central-bank head Jose Luis Escriva speak at a conference on “Global Challenges for a New Era in Economics, Geopolitics.” Finally, ECB Governing Council member Joachim Nagel holds a press conference with the German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil in Banff, Canada.</p>

<p>On behalf of the BoE, Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden speaks on a panel on "climate liquidity crisis – the rising financial risks of climate change," BoE rate-setter Swati Dhingra speaks on a panel titled "Made in the UK: trade and productivity in British firms 2005-2022," and BoE Chief Economist Huw Pill delivers keynote speech at Austrian central bank conference mentioned earlier.</p>

<p>On <strong>Friday</strong>, the ECB’s Philip Lane holds a lecture on “Inflation and disinflation in the euro area” at the European University Institute in Florence. On the other side of the Atlantic, Canadian retail sales for March and US new home sales for April will be published. New York Fed President John Williams will give keynote remarks at a New York Fed event. He will have a prepared text and there is a Q&amp;A. By the end of the week, the House Republicans should pass their tax and spending bill in order to meet their self-imposed deadline.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T14:05:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 10:05</span>


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330898
title: New medicines could ‘transform’ treatment of EB
author: ;Maria Maynes
link: https://gript.ie/new-medicines-could-transform-treatment-of-eb/
hash: bG��rq�LP�n�Sf
tags: #Irish News #Butterfly skin #Debra #EB #epidermolysis bullosa #Skin Condition
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<div><img src="https://gript.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/IMG_3496.jpeg" data-sanitized-class="ff-og-image-inserted"></div><p><span><strong>Two new medicines could transform the treatment of epidermolysis bullosa (EB) – often called “butterfly skin” – in Ireland.</strong> Debra, the charity which works to support those with the skin disorder, where the skin is extremely fragile and blisters easily, says the entry of Filsuvez into the Irish market will ease the extreme pain endured by those with ‘Butterfly Skin’.</span></p>
<p><span>The condition occurs when there is an absence of the proteins needed to bind different layers of the skin together. This creates excruciating blistering and tearing with the slightest touch or movement. The most serious cases of EB require bandaging every 24 hours to prevent infection. </span></p>
<p><span>The disease is rare,  affecting around 300 people in Ireland, and Debra says it is often overlooked when it comes to medical research, which has resulted in a need for research to be done. Debra is currently funding EB research projects in Ireland in the hope that it can move the needle forward for a potential new combination of treatments for the chronic condition. </span></p>
<p><span>The expected introduction of the prescription medical gel before the end of the year could pave the way for gene therapy treatments, such as Vyjuvek, Debra said.</span></p>
<p><span>In 2023, the US Food and Drug Administration granted approval of VYJUVEK is based on two clinical studies. VYJUVEK became available in the US the following year.</span></p>
<blockquote readability="16">
<p><span>“Where Filsuvez is a promising start, as it can offer temporary pain relief, we hope it will mark just the beginning for the treatment of rare disease in Ireland,” – Sinead Hickey, Head of Research at Debra, said on Monday.</span></p>
<p><span>“Vyjuvek has the potential to provide life-changing wound healing for people living with Dystrophic EB – it has already proven to be very effective in the US,” the organidation said.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span>A topical gel, it delivers new COL7A1 genes directly to skin wounds to promote wound healing.</span></p>
<blockquote readability="6">
<p><span>“A huge benefit is that it does not have to be applied by a medical practitioner but can be done – using only a credit card sized amount – by a trained individual or family member.”</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span>“Unfortunately, Ireland is one of the slowest countries in Europe to move from recommendation to market and it could still be between seven and 12 years before we see Vyjuvek available to people here.”</span></p>
<p><span>Filsuvez, meanwhile, is applied to a sterile non-adhesive wound dressing or directly to the skin to ease the extreme pain of wounds caused by EB. </span></p>
<p><span>Debra made submissions to the NCPE (National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics), which has recommended the HSE provide the gel once agreement is reached on pricing. A timeline has yet to be announced but Debra says it is optimistic a resolution will be found by the end of summer.</span></p>
<blockquote readability="14">
<p><span>“The treatment for EB hasn’t advanced much over time, so new treatments are always bring hope,” CEO of Debra, Jimmy Fearon, said. Mr Fearon ssaid that while the treatments are not a cure for the condition, it may reduce the equivalent of a bandage change every two weeks, providing some pain alleviation.</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span>“What this primarily represents is hope – breaking through the glass ceiling would hopefully mean that others will follow,” he said, adding:</span></p>
<blockquote readability="9">
<p><span>“Debra and other EB charities around the world support and invest in important research but, ultimately, it’s going to be the pharmaceutical companies and venture capitalists that run the breakthrough.”</span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span>“What we really need is faster progression from recommendation to market – time is of the essence for the 300 people in Ireland living in pain due to this condition.”</span></p>
<p><span>Debra has reiterated calls for government help – saying that for the cost of two coffees per person living with EB in Ireland per day, a real difference can be made in the lives of those with the genetic condition.</span></p>
<p><span>Last year, patient ambassador for Debra Ireland, Emma Fogarty, took on the Dublin Marathon with actor Colin Farrell, who she met 15 years ago through the charity. Fogarty, 40, is the oldest surviving person with the condition in Ireland. While Debra had expressed disappointment that the Government had “failed to prioritise” EB care for the second year in a row in the 2024 budget, Mr Farrell seemed to capture the attention of the Government – meeting with then-Taoiseach Simon Harris after he completed the marathon.</span></p>
<p><iframe title="Colin Farrell and Emma Fogarty 2024 Irish Life Dublin Marathon" width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9IVU54mCmTE?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin">[embedded content]</iframe></p>


guid: 1031809 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Key Events This Week: Big Beautiful Bill; Initial Claims, Home Sales And Fed Speakers Galore
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: j�(�aWM�Tp��)@�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Key Events This Week: Big Beautiful Bill; Initial Claims, Home Sales And Fed Speakers Galore</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>As DB's Jim Reid writes in his weekly preview, "in terms of what the market has been through in recent weeks we could all do with a lie down and there are some hopes of that this week given the scarcity of front line data. However as we know the headlines will keep coming, especially with regards to trade."</p>

<p>Sure enough, it‘s likely that fiscal developments in Washington will take center stage with <strong>the House expected to vote on its reconciliation package this week just as Moody's removed the US's last remaining triple-A rating late on Friday night. </strong>As DB's economists discussed last week, though the specific components of additional tax cuts on top of the TCJA extension differed from what they had previously outlined, the JCT score of the Ways and Means mark-up was largely in line with top-line deficit assumptions. Assuming House Republicans are able to resolve their outstanding policy disagreements and vote on the tax package this week, the Senate will then start to mark up the bill, where even more policy disagreements await. <strong>One thing stands out though, and that is that at this stage there are no signs of any serious deficit restraint.</strong></p>

<p>The flash global PMIs for May released on Thursday will be the main data focal point this week given that it should fully cover a period of trade uncertainty. European numbers are expected to edge up with US numbers broadly flat. <strong>Elsewhere inflation in Canada (tomorrow), the UK (Wednesday) and Japan (Friday - preview here) will be of note. </strong>Other things to watch are the RBA decision tomorrow, where DB expect a 25bps cut (preview here), the account of the April ECB decision, the German Ifo and US jobless claims, all on Thursday. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/week%20ahead%205.19.jpg?itok=xxXlY0pC" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/week%20ahead%205.19.jpg?itok=xxXlY0pC"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="4f8f85a8-b204-4442-b543-5c8f1fc999b5" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="276" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/week%20ahead%205.19.jpg?itok=xxXlY0pC" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>This week’s jobless claims corresponds to payrolls survey week so it will allow banks to refine their current forecast for May. The full day-by-day week ahead is at the end as usual but there’s not a lot of high profile releases. There are though plenty of central bank speakers and these are also highlighted in that calendar. Many are speaking at the Atlanta Fed's annual Financial Markets Conference in Amelia Island, Florida which starts today through to Thursday. Other things to note are the UK-EU summit will be in London today. Then tomorrow, G7 finance ministers and central bankers convene in Canada (through May 22) and the EU's foreign and defence ministers meet in Brussels.</p>

<p><em>Courtesy of DB, here is a day-by-day calendar of events</em></p>

<p><strong>Monday May 19</strong></p>

<ul><li><strong>Data</strong>: US April leading index, China April retail sales, industrial production, home prices, property investment, Japan March Tertiary industry index</li>
	<li><strong>Central banks: </strong>Fed's Bostic, Jefferson, Williams, Kashkari and Logan speak, ECB's Muller speaks</li>
	<li><strong>Earnings: </strong>Trip.com, Ryanair</li>
	<li><strong>Other: </strong>UK-EU summit in London</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Tuesday May 20</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>Data</strong>: US May Philadelphia Fed non-manufacturing activity, China 1-yr and 5-yr loan prime rates, Germany April PPI, Italy March current account balance, ECB March current account, Eurozone March construction output, May consumer confidence, Canada April CPI, Denmark Q1 GDP</li>
	<li><strong>Central banks: </strong>Fed's Bostic, Barkin, Collins and Musalem speak, ECB's Wunsch, Cipollone and Knot speak, BoE's Pill speaks, RBA decision</li>
	<li><strong>Earnings: </strong>Home Depot, Palo Alto Networks, Vodafone</li>
	<li><strong>Other: </strong>G7 finance ministers and central bankers meeting in Canada (through May 22), EU's foreign and defence ministers meeting in Brussels</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Wednesday May 21</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>Data</strong>: UK April CPI, RPI, March house price index, Japan April trade balance</li>
	<li><strong>Central banks: </strong>Fed's Hammack, Daly, Bostic, Barkin and Bowman speak, ECB's Lane and Guindos speak</li>
	<li><strong>Earnings: </strong>TJX, Medtronic, Snowflake, Target, Baidu, SSE, XPeng, Marks &amp; Spencer</li>
	<li><strong>Auctions: </strong>US 20-yr Bonds ($16bn)</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Thursday May 22</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>Data: </strong>US, UK, Japan, Germany, France and the Eurozone May flash PMIs, US April Chicago Fed national activity index, existing home sales, May Kansas City Fed manufacturing activity, initial jobless claims, UK April public finances, Japan March core machine orders, Germany May Ifo survey, France May business confidence, April retail sales, Canada April industrial product price index, raw materials price index</li>
	<li><strong>Central banks: </strong>Fed's Williams speaks, ECB account of the April meeting, Holzmann, Vujcic, Elderson, Guindos, Escriva and Nagel speak, BoJ's Noguchi speaks, BoE's Pill, Breeden and Dhingra speak</li>
	<li><strong>Earnings: </strong>Intuit, Analog Devices, Workday, Generali, Lenovo</li>
	<li><strong>Auctions: </strong>US 10yr TIPS (reopening, $18bn)</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Friday May 23</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>Data</strong>: US April new home sales, May Kansas City Fed services activity, UK May GfK consumer confidence, April retail sales, Japan April national CPI, France May consumer confidence, Canada March retail sales</li>
	<li><strong>Central banks: </strong>ECB's Lane speaks</li>
</ul><p><em>Finally, looking at just the US, Goldman notes that the key economic data releases this week are initial jobless claims on Thursday and new home sales on Friday. There are many speaking engagements by Fed officials this week, including Chair Powell, Vice Chair Jefferson, and Governors Kugler and Cook.</em></p>

<p><u><strong>Monday, May 19</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>There are no major economic data releases scheduled.</strong></li>
	<li><strong>08:30 AM Atlanta Fed President Bostic (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic will give welcome remarks at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference in Fernandina Beach, Florida.</li>
	<li><strong>08:45 AM Fed Vice Chair Jefferson speaks: </strong>Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson will give keynote remarks at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference. Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic will moderate. Speech text and Q&amp;A are expected. On May 14, Jefferson said that he will be "watching for signs that the labor market could cool as tariff increases," and that tariffs "are likely to interrupt progress on disinflation and generate at least a temporary rise in inflation." He later said that "With the increased risks to both sides of our mandate, I believe that the current stance of monetary policy is well positioned to respond in a timely way to potential economic developments."</li>
	<li><strong>08:45 AM New York Fed President Williams (FOMC voter) speaks: </strong>New York Fed President John Williams will speak in a moderated conversation at an event organized by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Q&amp;A is expected. On April 11, Williams said, "The current modestly restrictive stance of monetary policy is entirely appropriate given the solid labor market and inflation still above our 2 percent goal." He added that the current stance of policy "gives us the opportunity to assess incoming data and developments and ultimately positions us well to adjust to changing circumstances that affect the achievement of our dual mandate goals."</li>
	<li><strong>01:15 PM Dallas Fed President Logan (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan will give remarks and will moderate a panel titled "The increasing role of nonbank institutions in the Treasury and money markets" at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference. Speech text is expected. On April 10, Logan said, "To sustainably achieve both of our dual-mandate goals, it will be important to keep any tariff-related price increases from fostering more persistent inflation. For now, I believe the stance of monetary policy is well positioned."</li>
	<li><strong>01:30 PM Minneapolis Fed President Kashkari (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari will take part in a moderated Q&amp;A at the Minnesota Young American Leaders Program at the University of Minnesota. On April 22, Kashkari said that the two sides of the Fed's dual mandate are "in tension right now because of the nature of this policy change that’s hitting the economy." He also said that "There’s a very logical argument to be made that a tariff is a one-time increase in prices and then inflation should be low going forward. The challenge is that we’ve had four years of high inflation. So, with that backdrop, are we running the risk of allowing inflation expectations to become unanchored?"</li>
	<li><strong>02:45 PM Atlanta Fed President Bostic (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic will be interviewed on Bloomberg TV.</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Tuesday, May 20</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>There are no major economic data releases scheduled.</strong></li>
	<li><strong>09:00 AM Atlanta Fed President Bostic (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic will give welcome remarks at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference.</li>
	<li><strong>09:00 AM Richmond Fed President Barkin (FOMC non-voter) speaks: </strong>Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin will give a speech at the Richmond Fed's Investing in Rural America Conference. Speech text is expected.</li>
	<li><strong>09:30 AM Boston Fed President Collins (FOMC voter) speaks: </strong>Boston Fed President Susan Collins will host a Fed Listens event and offer brief remarks. Speech text is expected. On April 10, Collins said "Maintaining the current monetary policy stance seems appropriate for the time being, as we learn more about the scope of changes in government policy and their impact on the economy." She added that "It may still be appropriate to lower the federal funds rate later this year. But renewed price pressures could delay further policy normalization."</li>
	<li><strong>01:00 PM St. Louis Fed President Musalem (FOMC voter) speaks: </strong>St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem will speak on the economy and monetary policy at the Economic Club of Minnesota. Speech text and Q&amp;A are expected. On May 9, Musalem said, "It is possible that higher inflation will be short lived and mostly concentrated in the second half of 2025, [but]... It is equally likely that inflation could prove to be more persistent." He added that "The risks of higher and more persistent inflation are currently elevated because: the pre-tariff starting point for inflation is above target; the recent period of elevated inflation likely has raised the public’s sensitivity to it; some measures of inflation expectations have risen; and tariffs apply broadly to intermediate inputs, prompting global supply chains’ rearrangement."</li>
	<li><strong>05:00 PM Fed Governor Kugler speaks:</strong> Fed Governor Adriana Kugler will give a commencement address at the Spring 2025 Berkeley Economics Commencement Ceremony. Speech text is expected. On May 12, Kugler said that, as a result of the effects of tariffs on the economy, "Ultimately, I see the U.S. as likely to experience lower growth and higher inflation."</li>
	<li><strong>07:00 PM Cleveland Fed President Hammack (FOMC non-voter) and San Francisco Fed President Daly (FOMC non-voter) speak: </strong>San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack will participate in a panel discussion moderated by Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic at the Atlanta Fed's "Financial Intermediation In Transition" conference. On April 24, Hammack said, "I think it’s too soon [to make policy decisions]... We want to make sure we’re moving in the right direction, rather than moving quickly in the wrong direction." She added that "If we have clear and convincing data by June, then I think you’ll see the committee move, if we know which way is the right way to move at that point." On May 14, Daly said that policy is in a "good position" to respond to the evolving outlook, adding that when considering the path of policy, "patience is the word of the day."</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Wednesday, May 21</strong></u></p>

<ul><li>There are no major economic data releases scheduled.</li>
	<li><strong>12:15 PM Richmond Fed President Barkin (FOMC non-voter) and Fed Governor Bowman speak:</strong> Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin and Fed Governor Michelle Bowman will participate in a Fed Listens event.</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Thursday, May 22</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>08:30 AM Initial jobless claims, week ended May 17 (GS 230k, consensus 228k, last 229k); </strong>Continuing jobless claims, week ended May 10 (last 1,881k)</li>
	<li><strong>09:45 AM S&amp;P Global US manufacturing PMI, May preliminary (consensus 49.8, last 50.2); </strong>S&amp;P Global US services PMI, May preliminary (consensus 51.1, last 50.8)</li>
	<li><strong>10:00 AM Existing home sales, April (GS -2.0%, consensus +2.7%, last -5.9%)</strong></li>
	<li><strong>02:00 PM New York Fed President Williams (FOMC voter) speaks; </strong>New York Fed President John Williams will give keynote remarks at a New York Fed event. Speech text and Q&amp;A are expected.</li>
</ul><p><u><strong>Friday, May 23</strong></u></p>

<ul><li><strong>09:35 AM St. Louis Fed President Musalem (FOMC voter) and Kansas City Fed President Schmid (FOMC voter) speak: </strong>St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem and Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid will participate in a fireside chat on the Fed and the economy. Q&amp;A is expected.</li>
	<li><strong>10:00 AM New home sales, April (GS -3.0%, consensus -4.7%, last +7.4%)</strong></li>
	<li><strong>12:00 PM Fed Governor Cook speaks: </strong>Fed Governor Lisa Cook gives a speech on financial stability at the Seventh Annual Women in Macro Conference. Speech text is expected. On May 9, Cook said, "I expect to see a drag on productivity in the near term stemming from the recent changes to trade policy and the related uncertainty [because]... uncertainty around trade policy is likely to reduce business investment going forward; protectionist trade policies, while intended to support domestic industries, may inadvertently lead to a less competitive environment, if they prop up less efficient firms; and any supply-chain disruptions resulting from the policy changes would make production slower and less efficient."</li>
</ul><p><em>Source: BofA, Goldman</em></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T14:15:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 10:15</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/key-events-week-big-beautiful-bill-initial-claims-home-sales-and-fed-speakers-galore


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307225
title: Patel, Bongino dismiss Epstein conspiracy theories: ‘He killed himself’
author: ;Elizabeth Crisp
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307225-epstein-killed-suicide-fbi-director/
hash: ^� 7�*r\���Q%�
content:
FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino have confirmed that Jeffrey Epstein's death in 2019 was a suicide, countering conspiracy theories that have persisted since his death.

tags:
#Administration #Attorney General Pam Bondi #Dan Bongino #Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo #Ghislaine Maxwell #Jeffrey Epstein #Kash Patel #President Trump #Prince Andrew

attributes:
{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/02/Epstein-DOJ-02.27.png?w=900","type":"image/png","length":2183336}]}


guid: 1031818 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: What Downgrade? Stocks &amp; Bonds Surge Into The Green After Moody's Cut
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/what-downgrade-stocks-bonds-surge-green-after-moodys-cut
hash: }�x5�?�5�%
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">What Downgrade? Stocks &amp; Bonds Surge Into The Green After Moody's Cut</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Despte all the doomsaying and blame-scaping following Moody's downgrade late on Friday night, the market has well and truly shrugged off the FUD (for now).</p>

<p>US equity markets have ripped higher from the cash open with The Dow erasing all of the losses sine Friday's cash close...</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_07-19-35.jpg?itok=KErH-OMp" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_07-19-35.jpg?itok=KErH-OMp"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="1f9a5f2d-a7a9-4504-b327-c4546b90a893" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="335" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-19_07-19-35.jpg?itok=KErH-OMp" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>2Y Treasury yields are now lower on the day also...</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/bfm1320.jpg?itok=j1ZGxC3-" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/bfm1320.jpg?itok=j1ZGxC3-"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f4532b84-ac88-4cec-bb21-22790c3d1558" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="278" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/bfm1320.jpg?itok=j1ZGxC3-" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>As we detailed <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/it-wont-be-moodys-kills-foreign-treasury-demand">here </a>and <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/top-goldman-trader-not-particulartly-worried-about-usa-downgrade">here</a>, this is<strong> not the end of the world.</strong></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T14:24:07+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 10:24</span>


title: Étoiles Michelin : à Montréal, beaucoup de joie, mais aussi de la déception
content: <p>La métropole en méritait plus, croit l'un des trois restaurateurs montréalais étoilés.</p>
hash: =3�g�YH� � �
guid:
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/long-format/2165900/etoiles-michelin-montreal-sabayon-patrice-demers-beaudoin

link:
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/info/long-format/2165900/etoiles-michelin-montreal-sabayon-patrice-demers-beaudoin

attributes:
{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://images.radio-canada.ca/q_auto,w_635,h_357/v1/ici-info/16x9/patrice-demers-marie-josee-beaudoin-sabayon.JPG","type":"image/jpeg","length":0}]}


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307351
title: Vatican details ‘cordial’ meeting between Vance, pope
author: ;Brett Samuels
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307351-vance-pope-discuss-religion-peace/
hash: lw!H~~\�����$ԇ�
tags: #Administration #News
content:
Vice President Vance on Monday met with Pope Leo XIV and held what the Vatican called “cordial talks.” Vance and the pope discussed issues of religion and religious freedom and exchanged views on international issues, the Vatican said. The pope has called for peace in Gaza and Ukraine. During the meeting, Vance passed along a…

attributes:
{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/05/AP25138405381934.jpg?w=900","type":"image/jpeg","length":269912}]}


guid: 1031805 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: What Comes Next After The (Allegedly Fraudulent) Liberal-Globalist Victory In Romania?
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: ~�R�"���=��b���"
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">What Comes Next After The (Allegedly Fraudulent) Liberal-Globalist Victory In Romania?</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://korybko.substack.com/p/what-comes-next-after-the-allegedly"><em>Authored by Andrew Korybko via substack,</em></a></p>

<p><strong>The battle was lost but the political war isn’t over...</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%288%29_7.jpg?itok=UpGlYcYS" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%288%29_7.jpg?itok=UpGlYcYS"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ce73e14e-2248-412f-b546-65ab39804651" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="375" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%288%29_7.jpg?itok=UpGlYcYS" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><strong>The <a href="https://thealtworld.com/andrew_korybko/romania-is-at-the-center-of-the-struggle-between-liberal-globalists-populist-nationalists">struggle</a> between liberal-globalists and populist-nationalists in Romania ended in the former’s favor after Sunday’s presidential run-off election, </strong>which was preceded by the authorities controversially annulling the first round in early December on the <a href="https://www.rt.com/news/609757-eu-states-pro-russian-presidential/">false pretext</a> that the frontrunner was Russian-backed. Calin Georgescu was ultimately barred from running again and instead appointed his ally George Simion in his place, who came out on top in early May’s first-round re-do, only to lose the second round.</p>

<p>Simion <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/simion-accuses-moldova-manipulating-romanian-election-vote-split/">alleged</a> that the Moldovan government was rallying the diaspora there against him and also <a href="https://x.com/georgesimion/status/1924141555872375282?s=46">claimed</a> that other friendlier diasporas’ polling stations didn’t have enough ballots. <strong>Traditional fraud like ballot-stuffing was also suspected by some.</strong> </p>

<p>Meanwhile, <strong>Telegram founder Pavel Durov <a href="https://www.rt.com/news/617811-durov-names-french-spy-chief/">revealed</a> that he rejected the French intelligence chief’s request to ban conservative Romanian accounts</strong>, thus showing the international stakes in this election. </p>

<p>A few words will now be shared about the geostrategic context.</p>

<p>It was assessed before December’s now-annulled first round that “<a href="https://korybko.substack.com/p/the-outcome-of-romanias-presidential">The Outcome Of Romania’s Presidential Election Could Spoil The US’ Potential Escalation Plans</a>” of using Romania as a launchpad for any conventional European intervention in Ukraine.</p>

<p><strong>France, the country that’s most loudly called for the aforesaid scenario, has a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230127094814/https:/www.reuters.com/world/europe/with-troops-romania-france-seeks-capitalise-military-ties-2023-01-27/">military base</a> in Romania and signed a <a href="https://www.rt.com/russia/593988-moldova-france-sign-defense-accord/">defense pact</a> with neighboring Moldova last year. This positions France to swiftly <a href="https://korybko.substack.com/p/france-will-likely-seek-to-secure">make a move on nearby Odessa</a> if the decision is ever made.</strong></p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">Completely unfounded allegations are circulating on Telegram and Twitter regarding alleged French interference in the Romanian presidential election.<br><br>
France categorically rejects these allegations and calls on everyone to exercise responsibility and respect for Romanian… <a href="https://t.co/PxFO7KnzDm">pic.twitter.com/PxFO7KnzDm</a></p>
— France Diplomacy 🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo_EN) <a href="https://twitter.com/francediplo_EN/status/1924138188722815052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>The only way to prevent that would be for populist-nationalists to come to power and either kick out French troops or ensure that measures are in place to stop them from unilaterally using Romanian soil for conventional military operations in Ukraine. <strong>Likewise, the only way to retain the viability of this scenario is to keep populist-nationalists out of power, ergo the alleged fraud against Simion. </strong></p>

<p>The significance of Sunday’s election was therefore that it keeps this possibility open even if it’s never used.</p>

<p><strong>If there’s any silver lining to their loss, populist-nationalists could take partial consolation in the fact that they unprecedentedly galvanized their supporters during the election, and this mobilization of civil society could remain in place to expose the liberal-globalists’ corruption and organize peaceful protests.</strong> They could also attempt to raise maximum awareness of the abovementioned scenario of France using Romania as a launchpad for conventionally intervening in Ukraine with all that could dangerously entail.</p>

<p>To that end, more investigative journalism will be key, as will circulating their findings through the global network of friends that they built over the past half-year.</p>

<p><strong>Populist-nationalists in the US and across Europe are enraged at the injustice that the liberal-globalists committed against Georgescu,</strong> with even Vance <a href="https://www.rt.com/news/612732-us-vance-romania-elections-eu/">mentioning it</a> during his famous speech in February at the Munich Security Conference, so they can count on them to inform the world if France takes any steps to use Romania as a military launchpad.</p>

<p>That’s what comes next after the liberal-globalists’ (allegedly fraudulent) victory in Romania, namely strengthening the populist-nationalist movement in ways that hold the new authorities accountable for everything that they do, including exposing possibly forthcoming French military plans vis-à-vis Ukraine. </p>

<p><strong>The battle was lost but the political war isn’t over, and Simion’s impressive second-round showing in spite of alleged fraud proves that populist-nationalism has finally gone mainstream in Romania.</strong></p>

<p><strong><a data-image-external-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/creatine-monohydrate" data-image-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/creatine-monohydrate" data-link-option="2" href="https://store.zerohedge.com/creatine-monohydrate"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0689e72e-8207-430c-b542-0e57f325a070" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="205" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/creatine%202_0.png?itok=TZq7efgn" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></strong></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T17:15:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 13:15</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/what-comes-next-after-allegedly-fraudulent-liberal-globalist-victory-romania


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307325
title: New media member asks Leavitt about Clinton conspiracy theory
author: ;Dominick Mastrangelo
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5307325-white-house-new-media-epstein-conspiracy-theory/
hash: j��;m�#V ֌�
tags: #Media #News
content:
A reporter sitting in the “new media” seat in the White House briefing room Monday asked press secretary Karoline Leavitt about Justice Department documents related to the Jeffrey Epstein case, citing a conspiracy theory about the Clinton family in the process. “Trump posted to Truth Social a video highlighting what most people call the Clinton…

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747662467
title: Gaza’s Khan Younis latest focus of Israeli forced displacement, bombing
hash: ���^���Db�_O�u
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Israeli army warns of 'unprecedented' assault on the southern city as dozens killed in strikes across blockaded enclave.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/gazas-khan-younis-latest-focus-of-israeli-forced-displacement-bombing?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307407
title: Florida GOP flips Miami-Dade in voter registration for first time in history
author: ;Julia Manchester
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307407-florida-republicans-flip-miami-dade/
hash: I��)��|h����|�
tags: #Campaign #State Watch
content:
Florida Republicans took the lead in voter registration in Miami-Dade County on Monday, flipping what was once considered a Democratic stronghold for the first time in the state’s history, according to Decision Desk HQ. Republicans made up 464,370 voters, or 34 percent of voters, in the county, while Democrats made up 440,790 voters, or 32.27…

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747666339
title: Israel should be excluded from Eurovision, Spanish prime minister says
hash: �:  j�$����}�4
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez says Israel should be excluded from the Eurovision Song Contest over its war in Gaza.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/israel-should-be-excluded-from-eurovision-spanish-prime-minister-says?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5304626
title: Trump’s not serious about campus threats and antisemitism
author: ;Frank Figliuzzi and Claire Finkelstein; opinion contributors
hash: s���'�� �s�
tags: #Civil Rights #Opinion
content:
Some colleges may be getting serious about addressing environments that threaten Jewish students. We can’t say the same about the Trump administration’s efforts.  

link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/5304626-pro-palestinian-protests-campus-tension-deportation/

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guid: https://strategic-culture.su/?post_type=article&amp;p=885400
title: Hostilidades entre Índia e Paquistão comprovaram indiretamente as capacidades militares da China
author: ;A A
hash: A�N ����p��h
tags: #Português #China #India #Military Industrial Complex #Pakistan
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<p><strong><em>Com armas chinesas, forças militares paquistanesas se provaram capazes de neutralizar alvos indianos que usavam equipamentos ocidentais.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Junte-se a nós no</span> <a href="https://t.me/SCF_Portuguese" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u>Telegram</u></a></strong><strong><u><a href="https://t.me/SCF_Portuguese" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/tlg.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875659"></a></u>, <u><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a><a href="https://twitter.com/SCJournalOnline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/twitter.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875661"></a></u></strong><strong><span> e </span></strong><strong><u><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VK</a><a href="https://vk.com/strategicculture/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img loading="lazy" src="https://strategic-culture.su/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/wk.jpg" alt="" width="25" height="25" data-sanitized-class="alignnone wp-image-875662"></a></u>.</strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Escreva para nós:</span> <a href="mailto:info@strategic-culture.su" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><u>info@strategic-culture.su</u></a></strong></p>
<p>O recente confronto entre Índia e Paquistão, ocorrido nas primeiras semanas de maio, revelou uma nova dinâmica no cenário geopolítico asiático, evidenciando a crescente eficácia do armamento chinês em situações de combate real. A utilização dos caças J-10C e mísseis PL-15, fornecidos pela China ao Paquistão, resultou alegadamente na destruição de cinco aeronaves da Força Aérea Indiana, incluindo três Rafales franceses. Este episódio marca o primeiro teste significativo do hardware militar chinês em um conflito real desde a década de 1990, representando um marco na ascensão da China como potência militar global.</p>
<p><strong>O Contexto do Conflito e a Participação Chinesa</strong></p>
<p>O Paquistão, aliado estratégico da China, tem recebido substancial apoio militar nos últimos anos, com mais de 80% de suas importações de armamentos provenientes de Pequim. Durante o recente conflito, o Paquistão empregou os caças J-10C, equipados com radares AESA e mísseis PL-15, contra forças indianas que utilizavam aeronaves ocidentais como os Rafales e sistemas de defesa aérea israelenses. A eficácia dos sistemas chineses em combate real foi observada pela primeira vez em muitos anos, superando as expectativas ocidentais.</p>
<p>Esta situação tem, como esperado, incomodado os estrategistas ocidentais e seus planos para a região asiática, já que o cerco militar e político contra a China, além da Rússia, há muito tempo se tornou um dos principais objetivos estratégicos da OTAN – estando a Índia irresponsavelmente colaborando com tais projetos. Aparentemente, as armas de alto custo de produção e valor de mercado do complexo industrial-militar ocidental não estão se provando eficientes no campo de batalha.</p>
<p><strong>Implicações Estratégicas e Geopolíticas</strong></p>
<p>A performance dos equipamentos chineses em combate real representa um desafio direto à supremacia militar ocidental na Ásia. Analistas militares destacam que a China, ao utilizar o Paquistão como plataforma de testes, obteve dados valiosos sobre a eficácia de seus sistemas de armas contra tecnologias ocidentais. Essa estratégia permite à China aprimorar suas capacidades militares sem se envolver diretamente em conflitos, fortalecendo sua posição no cenário geopolítico global.</p>
<p>Além disso, a demonstração de poderio militar chinês ocorre em um momento de crescente tensão em regiões como Taiwan e o Mar Meridional, com a China buscando consolidar sua posição no ambiente estratégico do Indo-Pacífico. A eficácia dos armamentos chineses em combate real pode influenciar as percepções de aliados e adversários, impactando alianças estratégicas e políticas de defesa em toda a região.</p>
<p><strong>Reações Ocidentais e Consequências para a Indústria de Defesa</strong></p>
<p>O sucesso dos sistemas de armas chineses gerou alarme entre as potências ocidentais, que tradicionalmente dominam o mercado global de defesa. A eficácia do J-10C e do PL-15 em combate real desafia a narrativa de superioridade tecnológica ocidental, pressionando os países ocidentais a reavaliarem suas estratégias de defesa e a competitividade de seus sistemas de armas.</p>
<p>No mercado financeiro, a valorização das ações da Chengdu Aircraft Corporation, fabricante do J-10C, reflete o crescente interesse e confiança nos produtos de defesa chineses. Essa tendência pode levar a uma reconfiguração das dinâmicas de mercado no setor de defesa, com implicações para contratos de fornecimento e parcerias estratégicas em todo o mundo.</p>
<p><strong>O Despertar de uma Nova Potência Militar</strong></p>
<p>O recente confronto entre Índia e Paquistão destacou a ascensão da China como uma potência militar global, capaz de desafiar a hegemonia ocidental na Ásia. A eficácia de seus sistemas de armas em combate real não apenas altera o equilíbrio de poder na região, mas também redefine as estratégias de defesa e alianças internacionais. À medida que a China continua a expandir sua influência militar e econômica, o mundo observa atentamente os próximos passos dessa nova potência no cenário global.</p>
<p>Diante de tal realidade, mais uma vez, só resta ao Ocidente reavaliar suas ambições em meio a um mundo de mudanças geopolíticas significativas. Cada vez mais o plano de conter a China pela força parece uma péssima ideia.</p>
<p></p>

link:
https://strategic-culture.su/news/2025/05/19/hostilidades-entre-india-paquistao-comprovaram-indiretamente-as-capacidades-militares-da-china/


guid: 1031778 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Germany Makes "Sea-Change Policy Shift" On Nuclear Power In Europe
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/germany-makes-sea-change-policy-shift-nuclear-power-europe
hash: ���)@u�i8��&~
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Germany Makes "Sea-Change Policy Shift" On Nuclear Power In Europe</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Three weeks after <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/spain-hit-massive-really-massive-power-blackout?ref=biztoc.com">widespread power grid failures</a> across Portugal and Spain, triggered by unreliable solar and wind power, <strong>Germany appears to be sharply recalibrating its energy stance</strong>. </p>

<p>In a notable policy shift, the new conservative government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz has <strong>reversed its longstanding opposition to nuclear power</strong>. The move reflects a growing understanding in Berlin that <strong>overreliance on unreliable solar and wind power generation poses serious risks to economic stability and energy security</strong>. The shift also signals a broader <strong><u>return to common-sense energy policymaking</u></strong> in Europe, with nuclear power increasingly viewed as critical in France in achieving reliable, low-carbon power generation.</p>

<p>The <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/e99efa2b-338a-4065-89c6-0683d5759ed7#comments-anchor">Financial Times</a> reports that <strong>German officials have informed Paris they will no longer oppose French efforts to have nuclear energy recognized as equivalent to renewables in EU legislation</strong>. This marks a significant policy shift, considering former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had firmly opposed treating nuclear power on the same level as solar and wind in the EU's framework for achieving net zero by 2050.</p>

<p>"<strong>The Germans are telling us: we will be very pragmatic on the issue of nuclear power</strong>," an anonymous French diplomat told the FT, which was involved in the talks with the Germans. The person said this means that "<strong>all the biases against nuclear power, which still remain here and there in EU legislation, will be removed</strong>."</p>

<p>"<strong><u>This will be a sea-change policy shift</u></strong>," said a German official.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Nuclear%20energy%20production_2019data.png?itok=lnpuroOO" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Nuclear%20energy%20production_2019data.png?itok=lnpuroOO"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ea143a32-c30f-4ced-862a-eb5e67620c5b" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="518" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Nuclear%20energy%20production_2019data.png?itok=lnpuroOO" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>Guntram Wolff, a senior fellow at think-tank Bruegel, said, "<strong>It's a welcome rapprochement </strong>that will make the topic of energy easier in the EU," adding, "Politically, Merz is also thinking about the nuclear umbrella."</p>

<p><strong>Berlin's reversal on nuclear power comes three weeks after solar and wind collapsed the power grids across Portugal and Spain</strong>. </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/Gprx4SpWUAECXYM.jpg?itok=MSfXs4Hq" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/Gprx4SpWUAECXYM.jpg?itok=MSfXs4Hq"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5467fe29-c9e0-471f-9e5b-ac8734ecde79" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="320" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/Gprx4SpWUAECXYM.jpg?itok=MSfXs4Hq" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GpsfU2rWAAAhKvG.jpg?itok=ZikWxJVo" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GpsfU2rWAAAhKvG.jpg?itok=ZikWxJVo"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f142de4b-1514-4a8f-846f-0692a188de55" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="502" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GpsfU2rWAAAhKvG.jpg?itok=ZikWxJVo" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><strong>Europe's dangerous and radical shift to unreliable net-zero energy</strong> has been nothing short of a disaster and an <strong>embarrassment</strong> for the far-left liberals high in their castles in Brussels. </p>

<p><strong>Merz has clearly recognized the urgent need</strong> to reverse degrowth net-zero policies. He also understands the <strong>strategic urgency of revitalizing Franco-German cooperation</strong>—a prerequisite for unlocking stalled EU-level decision-making under former Chancellor Scholz.</p>

<p>"<strong>When France and Germany agree, it is much easier for Europe to move forward,"</strong> said Lars-Hendrik Röller, a professor at Berlin-based ESMT business school who was chief economic adviser to former Chancellor Angela Merkel, adding, "While several challenges remain, I believe this issue will be solved."</p>

<p>Last week, FT obtained a letter sent to the European Commission by ministers from 12 European member states explaining that it was <strong>"imperative" that Brussels acknowledge the "complementary nature of nuclear and renewable energy sources."</strong></p>

<p>The new Franco-German policy shift on energy is critical for Europe to get its house in order, considering NatGas prices have surged since the Ukraine-Russia war, making manufacturing uncompetitive on global markets because inputs have driven up prices of end products (such as automobiles). Solar and wind trends have also created instability in the power grid, which is a national security threat.</p>

<p><strong>It's encouraging to see that Germany has finally acknowledged</strong> what has long been clear: a stable, reliable path to net-zero requires nuclear power. <strong>ZeroHedge readers</strong> have been well ahead of this theme since December 2020. <em><a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/uranium-stocks-soar-beginning-next-esg-craze">More details here...</a></em></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T15:05:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 11:05</span>


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307414
title: CBS News president steps down amid Trump lawsuit
author: ;Dominick Mastrangelo
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5307414-cbs-news-president-steps-down-amid-trump-lawsuit/
hash: �7�����n�~��
tags: #Blog Briefing Room #Blogs #Media
content:
The president of CBS News announced Monday she will resign, citing what she called differences with the network’s corporate ownership, which has faced a torrent of attacks and a multibillion-dollar lawsuit filed last year by President Trump. “The past few months have been challenging,” Wendy McMahon wrote in a memo to network staff that was…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307467
title: Netanyahu: Israel will control all Gaza, take over aid deliveries
author: ;Laura Kelly
link: https://thehill.com/policy/international/5307467-netanyahu-israel-gaza-hamas-aid/
hash: �aP�J�J��^�i
tags: #International #News
content:
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel would control all of the Gaza Strip and prevent Hamas from looting aid. The prime minister made his remarks as the Israeli military started in earnest a large-scale operation, called Gideon’s Chariot, that Netanyahu said amounted to his country essentially taking over Gaza.  “This is part of defeating…

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guid: 1031820 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Texas House OKs Bill To Sue Vaccine Makers for False Ads
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/texas-house-oks-bill-sue-vaccine-makers-false-ads
hash: �r��`�E�u|���
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Texas House OKs Bill To Sue Vaccine Makers for False Ads</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://jonfleetwood.substack.com/p/texas-house-passes-bill-allowing"><em>Authored by Jon Fleetwood via substack,</em></a></p>

<p><strong>In a major victory for accountability and informed consent,</strong> the Texas House of Representatives passed <strong><a href="https://legiscan.com/TX/bill/HB3441/2025">HB 3441</a></strong> yesterday, a bill that would allow Texans to sue vaccine manufacturers whose advertising leads to injury or harm.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/kvnqi27ncqj.2407010717550.jpg?itok=3qRxY1gC" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/kvnqi27ncqj.2407010717550.jpg?itok=3qRxY1gC"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="224de27b-e4ca-47eb-8185-9b8240da99ae" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="334" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/kvnqi27ncqj.2407010717550.jpg?itok=3qRxY1gC" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>The unprecedented move comes as CDC data <a href="https://openvaers.com/">show</a> there have been an alarming <strong>2,665,796 adverse events linked to vaccines</strong> since 1990, the vast majority related to COVID-19 jabs.</p>

<p>But if fewer than 1% of adverse events are reported - as a 2010 HHS-funded Harvard <a href="https://digital.ahrq.gov/sites/default/files/docs/publication/r18hs017045-lazarus-final-report-2011.pdf">analysis</a> confirms - the <strong>real number could exceed 266 million</strong>, or roughly 7.6 million per year, or 20,800 per day.</p>

<p>First filed in February, the new bill passed yesterday by a vote of <strong>88–31</strong>, moving the legislation one step closer to becoming law.</p>

<p>The pioneering legislation boasts a whopping <strong>79 brave sponsors</strong>, 74 Republicans and 5 Democrats.</p>

<p>The bill is spearheaded by Representatives Shelley Luther (R-62), Jeff Leach (R-67), Marc LaHood (R-121), Oscar Longoria (D-35), and Mike Schofield (R-132).</p>

<p>If you want this kind of bill passed in your state or at the federal level, you can <a href="https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials">find your local, state, and U.S. representatives here</a> and let them know.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2810%29_7.jpg?itok=RpGxLmN8" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2810%29_7.jpg?itok=RpGxLmN8"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="97e00cac-1a7d-4a1f-b534-4109f52d16ec" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="254" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2810%29_7.jpg?itok=RpGxLmN8" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<h2><strong>What the Bill Does</strong></h2>

<p>Texas House Bill 3441, titled <em>“Relating to the liability of vaccine manufacturers that advertise a harmful vaccine,”</em> holds pharmaceutical companies liable if:</p>

<ul><li>
	<p>They <strong>advertise a vaccine</strong> in Texas through paid promotion, and</p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p>That <strong>advertised vaccine causes injury or harm</strong> to an individual.</p>
	</li>
</ul><p>In short: if a vaccine manufacturer pushes a product through ads—and that product ends up causing harm—they can be sued for it in court.</p>

<p>The bill defines “advertising” broadly to include:</p>

<ul><li>
	<p><strong>Television and radio ads</strong></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><strong>Print media and digital media</strong></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><strong>Product placements and influencer promotions</strong></p>
	</li>
</ul><p>But <strong>excludes</strong> materials inside a clinical setting or direct conversations between doctors and patients.</p>

<h2><strong>Legal Ramifications</strong></h2>

<p>HB 3441 creates a clear legal pathway for Texans to bring a civil action against vaccine manufacturers—<strong>up to three years</strong> after the injury occurs.</p>

<p>If the injured party prevails in court, the manufacturer is required to pay:</p>

<ul><li>
	<p><strong>Actual damages</strong></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><strong>Court costs</strong></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><strong>Attorney’s fees</strong></p>
	</li>
</ul><p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2811%29_7.jpg?itok=0VcF262L" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2811%29_7.jpg?itok=0VcF262L"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b96e92f9-1311-4f3e-850b-3f388db25500" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="900" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/httpssubstack-post-media.s3.amaz%20%2811%29_7.jpg?itok=0VcF262L" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<h2><strong>Why This Matters</strong></h2>

<p>For decades, vaccine manufacturers have enjoyed near-total immunity from liability thanks to federal protections under the <strong>National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986</strong> and the <strong>PREP Act</strong>.</p>

<p>But HB 3441 cuts through that shield—<strong>not by targeting the product itself</strong>, but by going after the <strong>promotional lies used to sell it</strong>.</p>

<p>Cleverly, the bill’s authors appear to be leveraging the <strong>advertising hook</strong> as a legal workaround to federal immunity, holding companies accountable for the <strong>claims</strong> they make, not merely the product they produce.</p>

<p>This represents a <strong>massive legal shift</strong>.</p>

<p>If HB 3441 becomes law, Texas could become the first state in the nation to <strong>strip vaccine manufacturers of their immunity—at least when it comes to deceptive advertising that leads to harm</strong>.</p>

<h2><strong>What’s Next</strong></h2>

<p>The bill is now classified as <strong>“engrossed,”</strong> meaning it’s cleared the House and is headed to the Texas Senate for consideration. If it passes the Senate and is signed by the governor, it will go into effect on <strong>September 1, 2025</strong>.</p>

<h2><strong>Bottom Line</strong></h2>

<p>The message from Texas lawmakers is clear: <strong>If you lied in your ad and your shot injured someone - get ready to pay up.</strong></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T15:25:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 11:25</span>


guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330908
title: WHO’s limited resources must focus on real priorities
author: ;Gript Column
link: https://gript.ie/whos-limited-resources-must-focus-on-real-priorities/
hash: ���c�P��u����r+
tags: #Comment World #Featured #Ageism Scale #core mission #misfire #priorities #WHO
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>What is core mission? </p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/whos-limited-resources-must-focus-on-real-priorities/">WHO’s limited resources must focus on real priorities</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747647581
title: UK, EU reach landmark deal: All you need to know
hash: �<���6[3_���l
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
The new deal will allow EU boats to continue fishing in UK waters before the first post-Brexit UK-EU summit.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/uk-eu-reach-landmark-deal-all-you-need-to-know?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747555421
title: If the Dead Come Home: Iraq’s Mass Graves
hash: Fit�b�9�Wk;HR�k
tags: #Documentary
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
In Iraq, a mass grave excavation reveals the challenges of identifying remains and returning them to their families.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/program/witness/2025/5/19/if-the-dead-come-home-iraqs-mass-graves?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747664900
title: Sudan’s army leader al-Burhan appoints former UN official as prime minister
hash: HY�eW�;=9u��� *
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Dagalo, who leads the rival Rapid Support Forces paramilitary, also announces a government as war ravages Sudan.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/sudans-army-leader-al-burhan-appoints-former-un-official-as-prime-minister?traffic_source=rss


guid: 1031644 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: FBI ID's 'Pro-Mortalist' Suspect Shredded In Bombing Of Palm Springs Fertility Clinic
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: ��r�"���l�&�Eq
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">FBI ID's 'Pro-Mortalist' Suspect Shredded In Bombing Of Palm Springs Fertility Clinic</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The FBI has identified the suspect in Saturday's powerful car-bombing of a Palm Springs fertility clinic as <strong>25-year-old Guy Edward Bartkus, a man who held an odd set of beliefs about humanity and other sentient life forms. </strong>Officials say Bartkus was fatally torn to shreds, and classified his attack as an act of terrorism.</p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GrQOGEuXAAEpcAY.jpg?itok=9ERL5a3d" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GrQOGEuXAAEpcAY.jpg?itok=9ERL5a3d"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a5c6c507-3846-400b-a509-ea1270fd4806" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="281" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GrQOGEuXAAEpcAY.jpg?itok=9ERL5a3d" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><strong>The FBI says Bartkus, who embraced "pro-mortalism" and "anti-natalism," tried to livestream the bombing</strong></figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>While investigators are still working to fully confirm it was the work of Bartkus, they believe <strong>he foreshadowed his attack in a manifesto he posted to the internet</strong>, along with a 30-minute audio recording. Bartkus was an adherent to a strange philosophy called "pro-mortalism," which <strong>encourages the extinction of humanity and other sentient beings</strong> to preclude the suffering associated with life. Hand in hand with that belief goes Bartkus' embrace of <strong>"anti-natalism," </strong>which argues that nobody should have children -- a belief that bears directly on his targeting of a fertility clinic.  </p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GrK8DG3W8AAmvd-_92a.jpg?itok=q5Kk9fbJ" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GrK8DG3W8AAmvd-_92a.jpg?itok=q5Kk9fbJ"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="57d55f2e-b4a9-4e0a-ac5b-703f398fa591" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="300" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GrK8DG3W8AAmvd-_92a.jpg?itok=q5Kk9fbJ" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><strong>Doing his part to advance pro-mortalism: This hearty slab o' beef is believed to be the torso of Bartkus</strong> (<em>via <a href="https://x.com/_nimasworld">@_Mnimasworld</a>)</em></figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>In the half-hour-long audio file saved under the title "pre," the calmly-speaking and occasionally-chuckling narrator believed to be Bartkus <a href="https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/guy-edward-bartkus-pro-mortalism-b2753367.html">says</a>: </p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>“Ooookay, I figured I would just make a recording explaining why I’ve decided to bomb an [in vitro fertilization] building or clinic. Basically, it just comes down to <strong>I’m angry that I exist and that, you know, nobody got my consent to bring me here</strong>. And I know what you're going to say: 'How could we have gotten your consent, because you didn't exist, blah, blah, blah.' Exactly the point. <strong>There's no way you can get consent to bring someone here, so don't fucking do it</strong>."         ...   </em></p>

<p><em>"Obviously, I'm very against [IVF]. It's extremely wrong. I mean, <strong>these are people who are having kids after they've sat there and thought about it. How much more stupid can it get?.</strong>..I guess you can make the argument 'well at least they're thinking about it'...Yeah, that is something I guess, but at the same time, again, you still can't get the [infant's] goddam consent, you're not getting around that argument...basically, I'm anti-life. And <strong>IVF is kind of the epitome of pro-life ideology, so fuck IVF,</strong> fuck IVF clinics, and fuck the people that work for them, quite frankly."</em></p>
</blockquote>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">BOMBING: This is an audio recording of Guy Edward Bartkus' manifesto. Bartkus was the Palm Springs Fertility Clinic Bomber. <a href="https://t.co/WNtDgYGHVo">pic.twitter.com/WNtDgYGHVo</a></p>
— @amuse (@amuse) <a href="https://twitter.com/amuse/status/1924154950424400001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>The audio recording also likens giving birth to raping an unconscious woman, as neither the woman nor the unborn child is capable of granting consent. The speaker says he has some reluctance about the term "pro-mortalism," because some might misinterpret it as being sadistically "pro-dying;" he emphasizes that it means he's "pro-non-existence." The narrator argues that "<strong>parents are the real killers" because "they're the ones making you exist in the first place, which then guarantees a death." </strong>He says pro-mortalists encourage that guaranteed death to happen sooner than later so the individual "experience[s] less of life's bullshit."  </p>

<p>The manifesto referred to the homicide of his best friend, someone identified as "Sophie." It seems Sophie shared Bartkus' beliefs: Investigators say <a href="https://ktla.com/news/local-news/palm-springs-bombing-suspects-father-speaks-with-ktla-in-exclusive-interview/">she convinced her boyfriend to shoot her in the head</a> as she slept. He was charged with second-degree murder.  <strong>“We had agreed… if one of us died, the other would probably follow,”</strong> the manifesto read. </p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/palm-springs-bombing-2.jpeg?itok=Hi8YSVmG" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/palm-springs-bombing-2.jpeg?itok=Hi8YSVmG"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="69ebe9f1-5f5d-4597-ad97-93f63b8fa227" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="280" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/palm-springs-bombing-2.jpeg?itok=Hi8YSVmG" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><strong>Investigators comb through the wreckage at the American Reproductive Centers clinic in Palm Springs </strong>(Reuters / David Swanson)</figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>In its initial report on the bombing, the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/17/us/palm-springs-explosion.html"><em>New York Times</em> used four paragraphs to allude to the possibility that the bombing was the work of conservatives</a>, noting that "many Christian conservatives who oppose abortion also oppose I.V.F. because they do not support the loss of embryos, which they consider people." Bartkus clearly didn't match the <em>Times'</em> roundabout suggestion. However, social media users trying to tether Bartkus to the "extreme left" seem almost as baseless. Indeed, <strong>there's no indication yet of Bartkus being aligned with any mainstream political movements or candidates</strong>.</p>

<p>He was dismembered when a powerful bomb in his silver 2010 Ford Fusion exploded around 11am local time Saturday -- when the <a href="https://arcbabies.com/">American Reproductive Centers</a> clinic was closed; four bystanders suffered minor injuries and none are hospitalized. While the clinic suffered major damage to its offices and patient-consultation spaces, the <a href="https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/crime/guy-edward-bartkus-pro-mortalism-b2753367.html">IVF lab and its stored embryos went unscathed</a>. Investigators say <strong>Bartkus intended to livestream the explosion</strong>, going so far as to set up a tripod and camera. However, the video never uploaded to the web. </p>

<p>Bartkus, who lived about 60 miles away in Twentynine Palms, had been <strong>coping with depression and some sort of personal relationship struggles</strong>, according to law enforcement sources that spoke to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/palm-springs-fertility-clinic-bomb-anti-natalism-rcna207543"><em>NBC News</em></a>. It's not yet been reported if, like so many other mentally-troubled people who lash out violently, Bartkus was taking SSRI antidepressant drugs. Neighbors told the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-05-18/suicide-bomber-targeted-fertility-clinic"><em>Los Angeles Times</em></a> they hadn't seen anyone in his residence for months. “It’s a bit unsettling to know our neighbor was doing something so evil," said Jeanette Hogan, who lives directly across the street. </p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/ca-times.brightspotcdn_0.jpeg?itok=tbGB4Yv7" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/ca-times.brightspotcdn_0.jpeg?itok=tbGB4Yv7"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="00920738-fa9b-4fea-8744-556e13985bf3" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="278" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/ca-times.brightspotcdn_0.jpeg?itok=tbGB4Yv7" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><strong>Neighbors were evacuated when police executed a search warrant at Bartkus' home in Twentynine Palms </strong>(Gina Ferazzi via <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-05-18/suicide-bomber-targeted-fertility-clinic"><em>LA Times</em></a>)</figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>The suspect's 75-year-old father, Richard Bartkus, told <a href="https://ktla.com/news/local-news/palm-springs-bombing-suspects-father-speaks-with-ktla-in-exclusive-interview/"><em>KTLA 5 News</em></a> that he hadn't seen his son in 11 years. He described him as having been a "smart, good kid" who'd set fire to the family home as he played with matches at an unspecified age. <strong>“After he had burned the house down, he started changing a little bit</strong>, he’d light fires,” his father said, choking back tears. “I was too strict for him, so he wanted to stay with Mom until the divorce came through. Mom was lenient.” He said his son was <strong>fascinated by making model rockets and smoke bombs</strong> -- a fascination he apparently put to work in building a powerful bomb used against the fertility clinic.  </p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/iq-mood/" data-image-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/iq-mood/" data-link-option="2" href="https://store.zerohedge.com/iq-mood/"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="80f68f47-f729-444c-8e6b-4f63a0868d52" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="129" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/mood_0.JPG?itok=i2IA3n1h" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T15:45:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 11:45</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/fbi-ids-pro-mortalist-suspect-shredded-bombing-palm-springs-fertility-clinic


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307337
title: Hogg on Democratic primaries: ‘There are older people who are great’
author: ;Elizabeth Crisp
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5307337-dnc-hogg-backlash-younger-progressives/
hash: ��0Ѻ!��3�ʓb
content:
David Hogg, a Democratic National Committee Vice Chair and student survivor of the 2018 Parkland school shooting, has pushed back on claims that he is targeting older Democrats, stating that he is focused on bringing in fresh, young faces to the party.

tags:
#Campaign #News #Bakari Sellers #Catherine Rampell #Congressional Hispanic Caucus #david hogg #DNC #Jim Clyburn #Nancy Pelosi #Parkland #Florida #republicans #Steny Hoyer

attributes:
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guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330894
title: Steenson: No more migration until housing etc resolved
author: ;Gript Video
link: https://gript.ie/steenson-no-more-migration-until-housing-etc-resolved/
hash: �f� m��Cx�j��;R
tags: #Comment Ireland #Videos #Immigration #malachy steenson
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Cllr Malachy Steenson, an organiser of the recent massive rally opposing mass immigration, says he “wants to live in a nation” and that migration must be stopped until the crises faced by the country – including housing and health – are resolved.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/steenson-no-more-migration-until-housing-etc-resolved/">Steenson: No more migration until housing etc resolved</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747644784
title: What is Israel’s new major ground offensive, Operation Gideon’s Chariots?
hash: ]Ȩ�����@����Fq
tags: #Features
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Israeli military launches a ground offensive in the besieged Gaza Strip as ceasefire talks are held in Doha.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2025/5/19/what-is-israels-new-major-ground-offensive-operation-gideons-chariots?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307562/
title: Netflix steps in to save ‘Sesame Street’
author: ;Christine Samra
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5307562-netflix-steps-in-to-save-sesame-street/
hash: ��wbƮַ;}A�o
tags: #In The Know #Media
content:
Elmo, Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Cookie Monster and the rest of the "Sesame Street" crew are headed to Netflix.

attributes:
{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://thehill.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/05/bigBirdGetty1280-e1747668424711.jpg?w=800","type":"image/jpeg","length":59702}]}


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747669749
title: Gaza medical supplies warehouse hit in Israeli attack
hash: Gy�7�����G��,<�
tags: #Show Types
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Gaza’s Nasser Hospital is “suffering immensely” from a shortage of medical supplies after an Israeli attack.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/5/19/gaza-medical-supplies-warehouse-hit-in-israeli-attack?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307557
title: Vance: Putin ‘doesn’t quite know how’ to get out of war in Ukraine
author: ;Brett Samuels
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5307557-trump-putin-vance-ukraine-war/
hash: ��"�7�g|�X�8a_�,
tags: #Administration #International
content:
Vice President Vance on Monday questioned whether Russian President Vladimir Putin has a strategy to get out of the war in Ukraine ahead of a call between Putin and President Trump. “I’m not sure that Vladimir Putin has a strategy himself for how to unwind the war,” Vance told reporters on Air Force Two. The…

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title: Augmentations des loyers : le FRAPRU se mobilise pour dénoncer l’inaction du gouvernement
content: <p>Une quinzaine d'actions seront menées tout au long de la semaine.</p>
hash: Q �"�Y��vI�
guid:
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166042/frapru-semaine-mobilisation-loyers-inabordabilite-social

link:
https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166042/frapru-semaine-mobilisation-loyers-inabordabilite-social

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guid: 1031825 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Dept Of Defense Tells Commanders To Identify Troops With Gender Dysphoria
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/military/dept-defense-tells-commanders-identify-troops-gender-dysphoria
hash: �,�념e�MX����
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Dept Of Defense Tells Commanders To Identify Troops With Gender Dysphoria</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/department-of-defense-tells-commanders-to-identify-troops-with-gender-dysphoria-5859815?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=ZeroHedge"><em>Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,</em></a></p>

<p><strong>The Department of Defense has directed commanders to identify service members with a history of gender dysphoria who have not come forward under a new policy that bans transgender troops.</strong></p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>“Commanders who are aware of Service members in their units with gender dysphoria, a history of gender dysphoria, or symptoms consistent with gender dysphoria will direct individualized medical record reviews of such Service members to confirm compliance with medical standards” under the military’s readiness program, Jules W. Hurst III, a Pentagon official, <a href="https://media.defense.gov/2025/May/15/2003715662/-1/-1/0/PRIORITIZING-MILITARY-EXCELLENCE-AND-READINESS-IMPLEMENTATION-GUIDANCE.PDF">wrote</a> in a memorandum dated May 15.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p><strong>President Donald Trump has <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/DCPD-202500187/pdf/DCPD-202500187.pdf">said</a> that people who express a “false ‘gender identity’” cannot meet the standards for military service,</strong> and defense officials later promulgated a new policy that bars troops who have or are experiencing gender dysphoria from serving.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/image%20%2812%29_8.jpg?itok=3w9UpKmb" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/image%20%2812%29_8.jpg?itok=3w9UpKmb"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="728700f2-a62d-4eb1-8a99-f78fdc374cbb" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="333" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/image%20%2812%29_8.jpg?itok=3w9UpKmb" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>At least some of the troops with gender dysphoria, which refers to when people believe they’re a gender that does not match their sex, are undergoing or have completed transgender procedures in an attempt to alter their gender..</p>

<p><strong>The Supreme Court recently <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/supreme-court-lets-trump-admin-ban-troops-who-identify-as-transgender-5853172">stayed</a> a district court order that had been blocking the policy.</strong> </p>

<p>Officials <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/1000-troops-who-identify-as-transgender-being-discharged-pentagon-5855118">said</a> on May 8 that about 1,000 members have come forward to identify themselves as having gender dysphoria.</p>

<p><strong>Active-duty troops have until June 6 to identify themselves as being unable to serve due to gender dysphoria. The deadline is July 7 for reserves.</strong></p>

<p>During that period, military departments will seek to identify affected troops who choose not to identify themselves, a senior defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/4188052/transcript-of-a-senior-defense-official-background-briefing-on-prioritizing-mil/">told</a> reporters in a call on May 15.</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em><strong>“Commanders who are aware of service members in their units who meet the criteria of this policy will direct individualized medical record reviews. Any individuals who meet the criteria of the policy and do not voluntarily identify themselves and go through the voluntary separation process will be processed involuntarily unless they are granted a waiver,” </strong></em>the official added later.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Troops who are involuntarily separated may lose certain benefits that they would receive if they come forward, according to the Department of Defense.</p>

<p><strong>An estimated 4,200 troops have gender dysphoria. The force has about 2.1 million troops.</strong></p>

<p>The military uses its readiness program to make sure troops are qualified and fit for duty. Medical evaluations are done through the program periodically, including an annual health screening.</p>

<p>When asked about concerns that commanders could abuse the process, the official told reporters in the call that leaders are confident in commanders’ exercising their discretion and protecting the privacy of troop health information.</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em><strong>“Any negative action that they would take to one of their assigned service members that would be retaliatory would be completely unacceptable regardless of whether it concerned this policy or any other policy,” </strong></em>the official added later.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Troops who are discharged under the new policy are eligible for up to $125,000 in separation payments, depending on their rank and how long they’ve been serving.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T16:05:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 12:05</span>


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307602
title: Axelrod: Biden discussion should be ‘set aside’ after cancer diagnosis
author: ;Ian Swanson
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307602-obama-strategist-biden-prostate-news/
hash: ��\�ݠݮ���m*��
tags: #News #State Watch
content:
Political strategist David Axelrod on Sunday said discussions about President Biden’s mental acuity and whether he should have exited last year’s presidential race sooner should be “set aside” as the former president deals with a prostate cancer diagnosis. “I think those kinds of discussions are going to happen, but they should be more muted and…

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guid: https://gript.ie/?p=330925
title: Jury sworn in for trial of Jozef Puska associates
author: ;Fatima Gunning
link: https://gript.ie/jury-sworn-in-for-trial-of-jozef-puska-associates/
hash: Kԕ�a��� g���C��
tags: #Featured #Irish News #Ashling Murphy #Puska
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
[unable to retrieve full-text content]<p>Trial to last 5 weeks</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://gript.ie/jury-sworn-in-for-trial-of-jozef-puska-associates/">Jury sworn in for trial of Jozef Puska associates</a> appeared first on <a href="https://gript.ie/">Gript</a>.</p>


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307547
title: Vance asks if Biden ‘was capable of doing the job,’ citing cancer diagnosis
author: ;Elizabeth Crisp
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307547-biden-cancer-diagnosis-fitness-questioned/
hash: �Ze�v?A�ʏ s��b
content:
Vice President Vance questioned whether former President Biden was fit for the presidency due to concerns about his mental acuity and health, despite wishing him a "fast and successful recovery" after his diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer.

tags:
#Administration #Campaign #News #State Watch #Air Force Two #Barack Obama #Cancer diagnosis #classified documents #Former President Biden #President Trump #robert hur #Vice President Vance

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747664822
title: Project Esther and the weaponisation of Zionism
hash: ʄ 7 h� H�I
tags: #Opinions
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
A conservative project to allegedly counter anti-Semitism is using a pro-Israel stance to mask white nationalist goals.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2025/5/19/project-esther-and-the-weaponisation-of-zionism?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747669101
title: Lithuania files case against Belarus at ICJ over alleged people smuggling
content: The Baltic nation is seeking damages, including compensation for border reinforcement costs.
hash: l�^ӱ� ���Jy3t\
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/lithuania-files-case-against-belarus-at-icj-over-alleged-people-smuggling?traffic_source=rss


guid: 1031826 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: GM Urges The Senate To Kill California's 2035 EV Rules
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/gm-urges-senate-kill-californias-2035-ev-rules
hash: �I�MM���$
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">GM Urges The Senate To Kill California's 2035 EV Rules</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://mishtalk.com/economics/gm-urges-the-senate-to-kill-californias-2035-ev-rules/"><em>Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,</em></a></p>

<p><strong><em>GM once supported California’s 2035 EV target. It wisely has second thoughts...</em></strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/GM-abandoned-its-own-target.jpg?itok=DwtfR9wN" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/GM-abandoned-its-own-target.jpg?itok=DwtfR9wN"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="caa0911c-f961-4ad6-8609-39d2ccba5764" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="369" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/GM-abandoned-its-own-target.jpg?itok=DwtfR9wN" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<h2><strong>Sanity Prevails</strong></h2>

<p>In 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom approved regulations banning the sale of new gasoline-powered cars and trucks by 2035. GM foolishly supported the idea.</p>

<p>I am pleased to report that sanity has prevailed. The Wall Street Journal reports <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/california-ev-mandate-auto-industry-64708033?mod=hp_lead_pos1">GM Is Pushing Hard to Tank California’s EV Mandate</a></p>

<blockquote>
<p><em><strong>“We need your help!” </strong></em>GM said in an email it sent this past week to thousands of its white-collar employees. “Emissions standards that are not aligned with market realities pose a serious threat to our business by undermining consumer choice and vehicle affordability.”</p>

<p>GM, one of the biggest sellers of EVs in the U.S., is encouraging employees to use scripted talking points to lobby Senators. The goal is to nullify a 2022 California measure that would ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars and trucks by 2035, a mandate that has since been adopted by 11 other states. The Senate could vote as early as next week to revoke a waiver that allows California to set its own stricter tailpipe-emissions standards.</p>

<p><strong><em>GM set its own internal goal of ending sales of nearly all gas-only vehicles by 2035 and initially supported the California target, while advocating for a uniform national standard</em>.</strong></p>

<p>But the EV market has taken a turn. Three years ago, U.S. automakers couldn’t keep up with demand; now EV sales are beginning to sputter. Discounts are drying up, car buyers are seeking lower-priced alternatives, and Congress is looking to roll back tax credits that for years have powered electric-vehicle sales.</p>

<p>GM abandoned a self-imposed target to build 400,000 electric vehicles by mid-2024, and last year the company said it would delay plans for a new Buick electric vehicle and push back the opening of an EV truck factory. Ford Motor and other automakers have similarly scaled back plans.</p>

<p><strong><em>“GM believes in customer choice, and we continue to focus on offering the best and broadest portfolio of vehicles on the market</em>,” </strong>the spokeswoman said. </p>

<p>The turn against California’s mandate has been bipartisan. When the U.S. House passed a bill identical to the Senate’s earlier this month, 35 Democrats supported the legislation, including two from California.</p>

<p>Rep. Laura Gillen, a Democrat from New York, one of the states to adopt the mandate, said she supports the goal of reducing emissions but that the timeline is “out of touch with reality” and an undue burden on consumers facing a cost-of-living crisis.</p>

<p><em><strong>“If everybody in my district went out and got an EV, the grid could not accommodate that,” </strong></em>Gillen said.</p>
</blockquote>

<h2><strong>Hoot of the Day</strong></h2>

<p><strong>GM now supports customer choice. Fancy that.</strong></p>

<p>Republicans are using the Congressional Review Act (CRA) which allows Congress to review and potentially overturn federal agency rules.</p>

<p><strong>The maneuver only needs a simple majority and is thus filibuster-proof. </strong>Thus, the CRA should pass the Senate easily.</p>

<p>There may be a legal challenge, but I expect Trump will prevail on this one if there is a challenge. If seven Democrats sign on, then this can pass by normal legislation.</p>

<p>Eleven states have adopted California’s mandate and if Democrats take the White House again, they may adopt more nonsensical EV rules.</p>

<p><strong>So it’s best to get 60 votes. But 4 years of sanity is better than none.</strong></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T16:45:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 12:45</span>


guid: 1031816 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Israel Allows Aid Into Gaza As WHO Warns 500,000 On Brink Of Starvation
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: �r��D?i���)Q�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Israel Allows Aid Into Gaza As WHO Warns 500,000 On Brink Of Starvation</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Israel has enforced a nearly three-month blockade on humanitarian aid going into the Gaza Strip, amid reports that Hamas and criminal elements have been intercepting and stealing the aid, and then reselling it.</p>

<p><em>The Wall Street Journal</em> reports Monday that "Israel will <strong>allow the resumption of limited aid deliveries</strong> to the Gaza Strip, ending a nearly three-month blockade that has depleted humanitarian supplies in the enclave as the <strong>military expands its operations there</strong>."</p>

<p>Pressure has been coming from Washington and international organizations for the ban on aid to be lifted, on new reports that famine is once again hitting the largely destroyed Palestinian enclave.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office first announced Sunday that <strong>"a basic quantity of food to be brought in" to avoid a starvation crisis</strong>. He has also declared his intent to take over all of the Gaza Strip.</p>
<a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/gazaaidfile.jpg?itok=rRqHGPbB" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/gazaaidfile.jpg?itok=rRqHGPbB"><picture><figure role="group" data-sanitized-class="caption caption-img inline-images image-style-inline-images"><img alt="" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="173a29c4-23a3-468c-9c58-ec6e0b43ab9e" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="333" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/gazaaidfile.jpg?itok=rRqHGPbB" typeof="foaf:Image" width="500"><figcaption><em>via Associated Press</em></figcaption></figure></picture></a>

<p>Interestingly, the statement said that a driving concern is not the plight of Gaza civilians, but that <strong>mass starvation could risk endangering the Israeli military campaign</strong> to annihilate the militant group Hamas.</p>

<p>Netanyahu is framing the move as necessary to keep up political support <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-kills-20-palestinians-airstrikes-after-agreeing-let-some-aid-into-gaza-2025-05-19/">from Washington</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>Netanyahu said U.S. senators he has known for years as supporters of Israel, "our best friends in the world", were telling him the scenes of hunger were draining vital support and bringing Israel close to a <strong>"red line, to a point where we might lose control"</strong>.</em></p>

<p><em><strong>"It is for that reason, in order to achieve victory, we have to somehow solve the problem," </strong>he said, in a message apparently addressed to far-right hardliners in his government who have insisted aid be denied to Gaza to stop it reaching Hamas.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>So the new policy to allow aid in is a political ploy, but one that will indeed likely satisfy critics, for the time being at least.</p>

<p>Fresh reports out of the UN and World Health Organization (WHO) have sounded the alarm, saying nearly 500,000 people are at risk of starvation in Gaza.</p>

<p>"Populations across the Gaza Strip are at risk of famine as fighting has surged again, border crossings are still closed, and food is dangerously scarce," a UN statement says.</p>

<p>"Hunger and malnutrition have intensified sharply since all aid was blocked from entering on 2 March, reversing the clear humanitarian gains seen during the ceasefire earlier this year," the UN's World Food Program has said.</p>

<blockquote data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">Unbelievable<br>
Happening now in Rafah..<br><br>
Destroying the rubble.. Operation Gideon Chariot. <a href="https://t.co/dZkAd1G2Xz">pic.twitter.com/dZkAd1G2Xz</a></p>
— Motasem A Dalloul (@AbujomaaGaza) <a href="https://twitter.com/AbujomaaGaza/status/1924307613220516342?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<p>And the organization, Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), projects that "an alarming 71,000 children and more than 17,000 mothers will need urgent treatment for acute malnutrition. A report states that "At the beginning of 2025, agencies estimated 60,000 children would need treatment."</p>

<p>The organization further warned that <strong>"Families in Gaza are starving while the food they need is sitting at the border." </strong>As it's believed that tens of thousands of Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants are still utilizing Gaza's vast tunnel network to fight the Israelis, the war looks to continue possibly for years to come.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T17:05:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 13:05</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/israel-allows-aid-gaza-after-3-month-blockade-who-warns-500000-brink-starvation


guid: 1031868 at https://www.zerohedge.com
author: ;Tyler Durden
hash: �6Ƚ�7Bh��Uon= @
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
title:
Supreme Court Sides With Trump - Allows Removal Of 'Protected Status' From 300,000 Venezuelan Migrants

content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Supreme Court Sides With Trump - Allows Removal Of 'Protected Status' From 300,000 Venezuelan Migrants</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The Supreme Court handed a major win to the Trump administration on Monday, <strong>granting its request to proceed with revoking legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants.</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/trum_2.PNG?itok=j0IzYV5s" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/trum_2.PNG?itok=j0IzYV5s"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="607a6829-75c5-4ccd-a901-ef2b9ffb2a39" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="331" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/trum_2.PNG?itok=j0IzYV5s" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p>In a brief order,<strong> the justices approved an emergency application from the administration,</strong> allowing officials to undo a Biden-era extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that shields Venezuelans from deportation and grants them work permits. <strong>Liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter,</strong> indicating she would have denied the request.</p>

<p>The decision allows Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to move forward with a policy reversal <strong>that would strip protections from more than 300,000 Venezuelans who were granted TPS</strong> due to political and humanitarian crises in their home country.</p>

<p><strong>TPS, created by Congress in 1990, offers safe harbor to nationals of countries suffering from war, natural disaster, or other emergencies.</strong> Individuals granted status can legally remain and work in the U.S. for renewable 18-month periods.</p>

<p>At the center of the legal fight is a TPS designation made in October 2023 and extended again in January—just before Trump returned to office. The protections were originally set to expire in October 2026, but in February, Noem moved to unwind the designations early, triggering a legal challenge.</p>

<p>In April, <strong>a federal judge in the Northern District of California <a href="https://www.zerohedge.com/political/smacks-racism-activist-judge-halts-trump-admins-move-revoke-protected-status-venezuelans">blocked the rollback</a></strong>, citing potential racial bias behind the move. But the Trump administration fired back, arguing the judiciary had no business second-guessing decisions made under the executive branch’s immigration authority.</p>

<p>At the time, Trump border czar Tom Homan called the move "Another activist judge making a stupid ruling," adding "I've been around since 1984 — and 'temporary protected status' is never temporary."</p>

<p>"B<strong>f you look at that decision, it's based on opinion, not the rule of law</strong>."</p>

<blockquote data-media-max-width="560" data-sanitized-class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">🚨Tom Homan sounds off on judge blocking Trump’s effort to end TPS for Venezuelan illegals:<br><br>
"Another activist judge making a stupid ruling."<br><br>
"I've been around since 1984 — and 'temporary protected status' is never temporary."<br><br>
"If you look at that decision, it's based on… <a href="https://t.co/fymufGw3HO">pic.twitter.com/fymufGw3HO</a></p>
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1907054421282001270?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2025</a></blockquote>

<p><em>h/t <a href="https://x.com/WesternLensman/status/1907054421282001270">Western Lensman</a></em></p>

<p>Solicitor General D. John Sauer, in the emergency application to the Supreme Court, said, "<strong>The court’s order contravenes fundamental executive branch prerogatives </strong>and indefinitely delays sensitive policy decisions in an area of immigration policy that Congress recognized must be flexible, fast-paced and discretionary."</p>

<p>The move was challenged by the National TPS Alliance and individual Venezuelans, who argued the administration was trying to dodge judicial oversight altogether.</p>

<p>“<strong>It should be unremarkable that federal courts say what the law is</strong>,” their lawyers wrote.</p>

<p>Monday’s ruling comes just days after the high court dealt a blow to Trump’s immigration playbook in a separate case. In that decision, the court ruled that immigrants detained under the Alien Enemies Act must be given a real chance to contest deportation.</p>

<p>While litigation over the TPS rollback continues in lower courts, the Supreme Court’s order clears the way for the Trump administration to begin rescinding protections while the legal fight plays out.</p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/dual-arc-plasma-lighter-flashlight/?m=search&amp;st=fla&amp;aq=true" data-image-href="https://store.zerohedge.com/dual-arc-plasma-lighter-flashlight/?m=search&amp;st=fla&amp;aq=true" data-link-option="2" href="https://store.zerohedge.com/dual-arc-plasma-lighter-flashlight/?m=search&amp;st=fla&amp;aq=true"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="203c7420-8694-41a2-9096-3983bd429130" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="254" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/arclight%20flash1_1.png?itok=YQmbLvjS" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T19:00:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 15:00</span>

link:
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/supreme-court-hands-trump-major-win-allows-removal-protected-status-300000-venezuelan


guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747669860
title: Regeneron buys 23andMe for $256m after bankruptcy
content: Sale of genetic testing company raises concerns about privacy of 23andMe’s 15 million customers.
hash: iu�A���ʕ1���� �
tags: #Economy
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2025/5/19/regeneron-buys-23andme-for-256m-after-bankruptcy?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307670
title: Supreme Court allows Trump to strip Venezuelans’ temporary legal status over Jackson dissent
author: ;Zach Schonfeld; Rebecca Beitsch
link: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307670-trump-administration-ends-tps/
hash: �X�� Y>� {K�Y
tags: #Administration #Court Battles #News #State Watch
content:
The Supreme Court in an emergency order on Monday allowed the Trump administration to strip legal protections the Biden administration gave to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans, over the public dissent of one of the court’s liberal justices.  The Trump administration in January said it would move to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans — lifting…

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guid: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166061/centre-controle-hopital-chirurgies-chu
title: Éliminer l’annulation de chirurgies non urgentes grâce à un centre de contrôle
link: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166061/centre-controle-hopital-chirurgies-chu
hash: �H�tY�����)�W%�
content:
<p>Très peu d'opérations non urgentes sont désormais annulées à l'Hôpital Saint-François d'Assise.</p>

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5306321
title: What the end of the Houthi campaign means for US power
author: ;Michael Knights; opinion contributor
link: https://thehill.com/opinion/5306321-trump-houthis-peace-agreement-deal/
hash:  �FIx6� @=���
content:
The U.S. has ended Operation Rough Rider after 52 days of airstrikes, and a fragile Omani-brokered agreement has been reached to stop the Houthis from attacking U.S. ships, aircraft and drones, but the U.S. should continue to monitor the situation to prevent the Houthis from rebuilding their missile capabilities.

tags:
#International #Opinion #Iran-backed Houthi terrorist organization #Israel #J.D. Vance #President Donald Trump #yemen

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5306453
title: Lifting Syria sanctions could be a major boon — if we don’t repeat history’s mistakes
author: ;Wa’el Alzayat; opinion contributor
link: https://thehill.com/opinion/5306453-trump-lifts-sanctions-syria/
hash: �����Q�U�7�e� �
content:
President Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Syria has the potential to revitalize the Syrian economy, create a safer Middle East, and strengthen U.S. relationships in the region, but will require a strategic approach and a commitment to supporting the new Syrian leadership.

tags:
#International #Opinion #Ahmed Al-Sharaa #Bashar al-Assad #Hayat Tahrir al-Sham #Islamic State #President Trump #Qatar #Syria #Tehran

attributes:
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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307683
title: Trump economic adviser on debt downgrade: ‘Moody’s can do what it wants to’
author: ;Sarah Fortinsky
link: https://thehill.com/business/economy/5307683-trump-adviser-downgrade-us-debt/
hash: ����G�剝[q�X�l
tags: #Administration #Business #Economy #News #credit rating #Moody's
content:
One of President Trump’s top economic advisers on Monday brushed off news that Moody’s Ratings downgraded the U.S. creditworthiness, saying he would still give the U.S. economy the top triple-A rating. In an interview on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria,” host Maria Bartiromo asked White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett about the drop…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5306572
title: Another barrier to nuclear war between India and Pakistan has fallen
author: ;Andrew Latham; opinion contributor
hash: ��W��4�5 Nd���
tags: #International #Opinion
content:
Something fundamental has changed. India has set a new threshold: It will no longer absorb attacks without a kinetic response.

link:
https://thehill.com/opinion/international/5306572-another-barrier-to-nuclear-war-between-india-and-pakistan-has-fallen/

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307741
title: New Oklahoma curriculum standards to teach ‘discrepancies in 2020 elections results’
author: ;Lexi Lonas Cochran
hash: �W�;���2V�I�
tags: #Education #State Watch #2020 election #Oklahoma
content:
Curriculum standards to be implemented in Oklahoma public schools next academic year include a change to how the 2020 election is taught, working in allegations central to President Trump’s baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. The revised standards call for classrooms to identify “discrepancies in 2020 elections results by looking at graphs and other information,…

link:
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5307741-oklahoma-2020-election-conspiracy-trump-biden-walters/

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307769
title: Trump says Russia-Ukraine direct talks to ‘begin immediately’
author: ;Laura Kelly
link: https://thehill.com/policy/international/5307769-trump-pushes-russia-ukraine-ceasefire/
hash: �����q1�5D��
tags: #Administration #International #Russia-Ukraine war #Trump peace talks
content:
President Trump on Monday said that Russia and Ukraine will immediately begin negotiations on a ceasefire, following phone calls with the leaders of each country. He also noted the Vatican has offered to host the talks. The White House said Trump spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for about two hours, after speaking with Ukrainian…

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guid: https://thehill.com/?p=5307665
title: Judge deems DOGE takeover of US Institute of Peace ‘null and void’
author: ;Ella Lee
link: https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5307665-judge-nullifies-doge-takeover-usip/
hash: ���HM 5�s�%����
tags: #Court Battles #News #DOGE #Donald Trump #US Institute for Peace
content:
A federal judge on Monday ruled that the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) takeover of the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) was unlawful, deeming it “null and void.” U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell found that President Trump and his subordinates used “brute force” to take over USIP’s headquarters and dissemble the independent institute, despite warnings…

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guid: https://www.aljazeera.com/?t=1747669881
title: Measure targeting pro-Palestine NGOs disappears from US tax bill
hash: Rnˑ��8_��ήN
tags: #News
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
Legislation would have allowed the executive branch to crack down on 'terrorism supporting' nonprofits.

link:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/5/19/measure-targeting-pro-palestine-ngos-disappears-from-us-tax-bill?traffic_source=rss


guid: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166040/ondes-de-choc-collision-etobicoke
title: Onde de choc à la suite d’une collision à Toronto qui a coûté la vie à trois enfants
link: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2166040/ondes-de-choc-collision-etobicoke
hash: 2��M�x侴��z)��
content:
<p>Trois enfants sont morts dans une collision près de l’autoroute 401 dans la nuit de samedi à dimanche. </p>

attributes:
{"enclosures":[{"url":"https://images.radio-canada.ca/q_auto,w_635,h_357/v1/ici-info/16x9/fleurs-bouquet-intersection-beton.JPG","type":"image/jpeg","length":0}]}


guid: 1031827 at https://www.zerohedge.com
title: Goldman Raises Oil Demand Outlook
author: ;Tyler Durden
link: https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/goldman-raises-oil-demand-outlook
hash: �$�b����t བྷ�z�
attributes: {"enclosures":[]}
content:
<span property="schema:name" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Goldman Raises Oil Demand Outlook</span>

            <div property="schema:text" data-sanitized-class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="https://oilprice.com/Energy/Crude-Oil/Goldman-Raises-Oil-Demand-Outlook.html"><em>Authored by Irina Slav via OilPrice.com,</em></a></p>

<ul><li>
	<p><em>Goldman Sachs has increased its global oil demand forecast but maintained its price predictions for Brent crude and WTI for the current year, despite current trading values exceeding those projections.</em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em>The potential for a US-Iran nuclear deal and the progression of the tariff war are significant factors creating uncertainty in the oil market, influencing forecasts and potential price fluctuations.</em></p>
	</li>
	<li>
	<p><em>Future oil prices could drop significantly if the tariff war worsens and OPEC Plus restores its previously cut oil supply, according to Goldman Sachs analysts.</em></p>
	</li>
</ul><p><strong>Goldman Sachs analysts have revised their outlook for global oil demand upwards, now expecting growth of 600,000 barrels daily this year and 400,000 barrels daily in 2026.</strong></p>

<p><a data-image-external-href="" data-image-href="/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_iflzrox3yk.jpg?itok=F5BykUMd" data-link-option="0" href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/s3/files/inline-images/2025-05-19_iflzrox3yk.jpg?itok=F5BykUMd"><picture><img data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="425ad84c-eb51-44e4-a261-b285d7e25af7" data-responsive-image-style="inline_images" height="209" width="500" src="https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/2025-05-19_iflzrox3yk.jpg?itok=F5BykUMd" alt="" typeof="foaf:Image" data-sanitized-class="inline-images image-style-inline-images"></picture></a></p>

<p><strong>The bank, however, maintained its oil price forecast at $60 per barrel of <a href="https://oilprice.com/oil-price-charts/">Brent crude</a> and $56 per barrel of <a href="https://oilprice.com/oil-price-charts/">West Texas Intermediate</a> for this year, </strong>Reuters reported, citing a new note. </p>

<p>Brent crude was trading at over $65 per barrel at the time of writing, and WTI was trading at over $62.</p>

<p>Goldman’s analysts expect the benchmarks to fall further next year, to $56 for Brent crude and $52 for WTI. </p>

<p><strong>A big reason for the bearish outlook is the nuclear deal between the U.S. and Iran that recently became a more distinct possibility than it was until now. </strong></p>

<p>Last Thursday, President Trump the two sides were really close to sealing such a deal. </p>

<p>The news dealt a <a href="https://oilprice.com/Energy/Oil-Prices/Oil-Prices-Sink-4-on-Hints-of-US-Iran-Deal.html">blow</a> to oil prices.</p>

<p>Later <a href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/oil-little-changed-investors-eye-iran-us-talks-china-data-2025-05-19/">updates</a>, however, tamed any optimism as they revealed persistent differences between the two sides on what conditions they would accept. The U.S. side insists on Iran committing to stop any uranium enrichment activities. The Iranian side considers its uranium-enrichment activities non-negotiable.</p>

<p><strong>However, the prospect of a shorter rather than longer tariff war has improved the outlook for global growth, which could offset any bearish supply effect stemming from a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal by improving demand for crude,</strong> per Goldman. </p>

<p>This was the basis for their upward revision of demand for the second half of the year, or, as they put it, “Incorporating lower tariffs and higher GDP.”</p>

<p><strong>On the other hand, if the tariff war drags on and comes to affect global economic growth in the physical world rather than the realm of forecast, the investment bank expects Brent could drop as far as $40 per barrel in late 2026. </strong></p>

<p>For that to happen, OPEC+ must also bring back all the barrels it cut from its combined supply back in 2022, Goldman analysts noted.</p>
</div>
      <span rel="schema:author" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><a title="View user profile." href="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" lang="" about="https://cms.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden" typeof="schema:Person" property="schema:name" datatype="" xml:lang="" data-sanitized-class="username">Tyler Durden</a></span>
<span property="schema:dateCreated" content="2025-05-19T17:45:00+00:00" data-sanitized-class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 13:45</span>


