Links For Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 8

Donald Trump says FBI carried out ‘unannounced raid’ on Mar-a-Lago property

Corruption is sending shock waves through China’s chipmaking industry

The system of rolling holidays for different industrial areas is expected to reduce pressure on electricity demand as well as fuel oils for public transport, Hamid said. The South Asian nation, also the world’s No. 2 garments exporter after China, has resorted to power cuts to preserve fuel reserves amid war-induced energy price shocks, and separately approached multilateral lenders including the International Monetary Fund for loans to shore up its foreign reserves as import bills balloon.

The world’s least understood ignition source is causing devastating wildfires across Montana’s Powder River Basin.

One of the biggest textbook publishers is tired of not making any money when you buy a used textbook — and wants to explore using NFTs to get a cut

China builds watchtowers inside India-claimed lines

Wasted and not properly tracked are two separate things and this site is over hyping this a little bit. But it is a reminder that self censorship is alive and well on this subject. CBS News Censors Its Own Documentary Exposing How 70% of US Funding of Ukraine is Wasted

Maybe this seemed more consistent in the original German? Kevin Short, a professor who specializes in environmental education at the Tokyo University of Information Sciences, agrees that the loss of habitat is a major reason for increasing numbers of wild animal intrusions into urban areas.He also pointed out that due to Japan’s shrinking rural populations, there are fewer hunters to cull wildlife, resulting in an explosion in the number of bears, boars and monkeys in recent years.

Links For Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 7

To be more precise, the bill as it currently stands is going to more then double the IRS headcount. Dems Poised To Make IRS Larger Than Pentagon, State Department, FBI, and Border Patrol Combined

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne warned that France is facing the “most severe drought” ever recorded in the country and announced the activation of a government crisis unit.

Hu Xijin faced some blowback after Pelosi landed safely in Taiwan

BRINGING THE HAVOC HOME

WTI crude oil prices fell to their lowest point since early February on Thursday, giving up virtually all gains since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Putting Ukraine’s Grain Export Deal Into Context

I think the deal was more about giving the western powers a fig leaf to letting Russian wheat go to market (and the Russians are on track to have a great harvest). Also, Ukraine has been destroyed by war and oppressions many times in the last 100 years alone and it keeps bouncing back as a bread basket. But in the short term I think the clip below is pretty spot on.

Links For Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 3

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry described the latest PLA actions as essentially a “maritime and aerial blockade.”

Germany’s Natural Gas Crunch Could Cause Supply Chains To Collapse

To be precise, the headline should have said Pentecostal churches. Spiritual union: why Gulf migrants are turning to evangelical Christianity

While the infrastructure act authorizes a pilot program to test collecting the personal information needed to charge drivers for their use of roads and highways, it doesn’t answer the far thornier questions about how to protect that data. Will only the feds track drivers? Will each state and locality that currently depends on fuel taxes also monitor drivers? If so, will the data be pooled? Will destinations be tracked along with mileage?

Four dead in South Africa protests over high power costs

IRANIAN PROXIES MAY ATTACK US IN RESPONSE TO IRAQI POLITICAL CRISIS

Kansans vote to uphold abortion rights in their state

Mauna Loa is the largest shield volcano on Earth (above water, at least) – and scientific data reveals more about what might be enough to set off future eruptions.

Newly Discovered Emails Confirm Joe Biden Obstructed Justice For His Son’s Foreign Business Deal

Links For Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 2

There is a third possibility that is not mentioned. He might have legitimate issues that are not being covered. Why Is the White House Quietly Griping about Zelensky Now?

A Vicious Smear

Canada’s government is now coming for the farmers

Get the Lead Out of Turmeric!

Surprise: Misleadingly-Named “Inflation Reduction Act” Will Raise Taxes Even On The Middle Class

Iran vows to build nukes if provoked, turn NY into ‘hellish ruins’

Earth Is Spinning Faster Than Usual, Leading to the Shortest Day Ever Recorded

China’s 7nm chip surprise reveals more than Beijing might like

HAS TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS STALLED?

US House Speaker Pelosi Lands in Taiwan; Chinese Warplanes Take to Skies

Links For Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, AUGUST 1

Yes, Things Are Really As Bad As You’ve Heard

Not over yet: Drenching downpours to renew flood threat in hard-hit communities

Public Safety Canada released a statement last week indicating that the gun buyback program is “mandatory for individuals to participate

Here’s the quickest way to grill burgers, according to math

Blackouts Hit Asia As LNG Prices Soar In Tight Global Market

Flipper Zero – Cyber Tool Disguised As A Toy

Common viruses may be triggering the onset of Alzheimer’s disease

Zawahiri’s death is being hailed as a counterterrorism success, but that narrative masks the fact that Afghanistan has become a safe haven for top Al Qaeda leaders

Links for Today

RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, JULY 29

Public Pensions’ Lost Decade

Vladimir Putin is toying with Germans by further reducing gas flows from Russia. Companies are worrying about a potential financial abyss as politicians do what they can to prevent the worst this winter.

China’s defense ministry issues fresh, rare warning ‘action the most powerful language’ over Pelosi’s Taiwan visit; reinforces resolve

NY Judge Tosses State Quarantine Camp Law Declaring It Unenforceable

China Advances Into Bhutan’s Doklam; India Watches

CDC warns deadly bacteria detected in U.S. for 1st time

Scientists Are Perplexed by Mysterious Holes They Keep Finding on The Ocean Floor

Hershey warns it won’t be able to meet demand for Halloween candy

Mayor Bowser calls for National Guard to deal with migrants, citing the ‘volume of arrivals’