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DOGE’s Lawyer Once Warned That Ignoring Court Orders Would Destroy the Country
Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:33:18 +0000
With DOGE initiatives getting hung up in court, Elon Musk and Donald Trump attacked judges and flirted with defying their rulings.
The post DOGE’s Lawyer Once Warned That Ignoring Court Orders Would Destroy the Country appeared first on The Intercept.
Trump’s crusade against “wokeness” is co-opting the language of the civil rights movement to undo its legacy.
The post How Trump Twisted DEI to Only Benefit White Christians appeared first on The Intercept.
Billionaire claims workers will face administrative leave if they ‘ignored President Trump’s executive order’
Elon Musk’s so-called “department of government efficiency” has been accused of setting off a political firestorm in India after it claimed that the US government had been sending millions of dollars to support the Indian elections.
In a list published on Musk’s social media platform X last week, Doge, a special group that Donald Trump created, claimed that a $21m grant distributed by USAid – the US agency for international development – to help “voter turnout in India” had been cancelled, as part of the president’s sweeping cuts to foreign aid.
Continue reading...A byelection in Runcorn and Helsby would be the first of this parliament and will pose a big challenge for Labour
Here are comments from some of the other UK political parties on the third anniversary of the invastion of Ukraine.
From Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader
For three years, the brave Ukrainian people have heroically defended their country against Putin’s war machine. Now we face an era-defining moment which will determine the future of our continent for generations to come.
Now, more than ever, we must stand firmly in support of our Ukranian friends, resist Trump’s alarming attempts at a stitch up with Putin and work with our European neighbours to defend freedom and democracy.
Across the world today, people will be standing in solidarity with Ukraine. Yes, Russia started the war and yes, Ukraine is a democracy with an elected President. These basic facts need restating loud and clear because US President Donald Trump has chosen to buy into and amplify the lies and disinformation of the Russian state.
Vladimir Putin is a dangerous tyrant. It is deeply worrying that President Trump is now joining him in sowing division and chaos, and undermining the rule of law.
Today we remember the sacrifices made by the people of Ukraine to resist the illegal invasion by Russia. We stand in solidarity to protect the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine. We welcome and hold dear the Ukrainian people who have come to Scotland.
Today, on the third anniversary of Russia’s inhumane and illegal invasion of Ukraine, Plaid Cymru reiterates our unwavering support for Ukraine’s security and its sovereignty. We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
We are deeply concerned about the decision by the President of the United States to exclude Ukraine from discussions whilst engaging directly with Russia. Decisions about Ukraine’s future must include Ukraine itself. We also believe it is vital that the UK does not capitulate to continued Russian aggression.
Continue reading...Whenever you see a horror of anti-democratic rule, remember Mitch McConnell. You have him to thank
You would think that this is exactly what Mitch McConnell wanted. McConnell, the 83-year-old Kentucky senator – who announced last week that he will retire in 2026 and not seek an eighth term – is one of the most influential Republicans in the history of the party. But he has in recent weeks expressed dissent and discontent with the direction of the Republican party. He voted against some of Donald Trump’s cabinet appointees, refusing, for example, to cast a vote for the confirmation of the anti-diversity campaigner and alleged rapist and drunk Pete Hegseth.
He has also voiced some tepid and belated opposition to Republicans’ extremist agenda, citing his own experience as a survivor of childhood polio as a reason for his opposition to Republican attacks on vaccines. But the Republican party that McConnell is now shaking his head at is the one that he created. He has no one but himself to blame.
Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist
Continue reading...A former campaign staffer said Sen. John Fetterman’s single-minded focus came at the exclusion of the progressive positions he ran on.
The post Fetterman Staff Quit Amid Frustration Over “Just Working on Israel All the Time” appeared first on The Intercept.
One of the world’s largest private equity investors has made an approach to buy Chemring, the FTSE 250 defence group, Sky News reports
Shares in some European weapons makers are rising in early trading too.
German tank maker Rheinmetall jumped 3% at the start of trading, while in London BAE Systems are up 1.7%.
‘’A dose of more certainty has been injected into European politics, with the Germany’s Conservatives winning the elections. It comes at a crucial time for the continent. Three years on from the invasion of Ukraine, high stakes deal making between the US and Russia continues, Ukraine is out in the cold and the outcome will have huge implications for security in Europe.
There is a dawning realisation that European nations will have to pull together and present a more united deterrent force, and Friedrich Merz, the CDU leader, is reading from that script. He has pledged to relax fiscal rules, to increase defence spending and inject the economy with much needed investment. But while Merz seems determined to ease off the so-called debt brake, which limits annual borrowing to 0.35% of GDP, it won’t be straightforward, because he will need a two-third majority in parliament.
Continue reading...This blog is now closed
How will the bulk-billing increase be paid for?
There’s been criticism of the opposition that its support of the $8.5bn package hasn’t come with a plan to pay for it.
We’ve been very clear about the things that we don’t think that the federal government should be investing in. I mean, we’ve done things like, you know, we don’t believe [in] the federal government’s rewiring the nation, as an example, the national reconstruction fund, all of these things we’ve voted against, you know, we believe that public servants in Canberra are not what we need. We actually need frontline services, service workers, like doctors, like nurses, which this policy addresses.
We are going to have to expect, unfortunately, a scare campaign. I mean, yesterday, at the launch, the prime minister and [Mark] Butler spent more time talking about Peter Dutton and the Liberal party than they did about themselves. So I think we can expect a scare campaign. But the facts don’t lie. The truth of all of this is quite clear in the statistics – under their watch, the health system in Australia has been significantly diminished.
Continue reading...The sooner the US’s former friends realise the old global order is over, the sooner they can organise to regain power and agency – the only language Trump understands
A resonant phrase during Donald Trump’s first administration was the advice to take him “seriously, but not literally”. It was a singularly detrimental expression, widely quoted by politicians and the media. Its adoption fit with the position many felt most comfortable taking: Trump was bad, but he wasn’t smart. He wasn’t intentional. He wasn’t calculated and deliberate. He sounded off, but rarely followed up with action. He was in essence a misfiring weapon that could do serious damage, but mostly by accident.
The residue of that approach still persists, even in analysis that describes Trump’s first executive orders as a campaign of “shock and awe”, as if it were just a matter of signalling rather than executing. Or that his plan for Gaza is to be taken – you guessed it – seriously, not literally. When that was suggested to Democratic senator Andy Kim, he lost it. “I understand people are bending over backwards to try to mitigate some of the fallout from these statements that are made,” he told Politico. But Trump is “the commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in the world … if I can’t take the words of the president of the United States to actually mean something, rather than needing some type of oracle to be able to explain, I just don’t know what to think about when it comes to our national security.”
Nesrine Malik is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...The cut, an anti-trans attack, was the latest example of confusion sown by bold claims that wither under scrutiny.
The post DOGE Said It Cut $232 Million From Social Security Budget. It Was Only About Half a Million. appeared first on The Intercept.
The video might bring pleasure to their supporters, but for us it is a call to shut down their fascist deportation machine.
The post Trump and Musk Delight in the Sounds of Human Suffering With Sick “ASMR” Immigrant Video appeared first on The Intercept.
Result is further evidence that political conversation around the climate crisis has shifted
In the final days of an election campaign dominated by migration, the likely new chancellor of Europe’s biggest polluter sought to assure voters that its economy ministry would not be occupied by NGOs. Instead, the conservative lead candidate Friedrich Merz posted on social media that it would be led by “someone who understands that economic policy is more than being a representative for heat pumps”.
Climate action barely featured on the campaign trail before Germany’s federal elections on Sunday – except when right-leaning parties used it to swipe at the Greens. Merz’s jab was at the tamer end of attacks aimed at the Green party candidate, Robert Habeck, the economy and climate minister who pushed through an unpopular law to promote clean heating, but is a sign of how far the political conversation around climate action has shifted.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Government reluctant to take action that could weaken UK’s attractiveness to AI firms, says Labour source
Ministers have delayed plans to regulate artificial intelligence as the UK government seeks to align itself with Donald Trump’s administration on the technology, the Guardian has learned.
A long-awaited AI bill, which ministers had originally intended to publish before Christmas, is not expected to appear in parliament before the summer, according to three Labour sources briefed on the plans.
Ministers had intended to publish a short bill within months of entering office that would have required companies to hand over large AI models such as ChatGPT for testing by the UK’s AI Security Institute.
The bill was intended to be the government’s answer to concerns that AI models could become so advanced that they pose a risk to humanity, and were different from separate proposals to clarify how AI companies can use copyrighted material.
Trump’s election has led to a rethink, however. A senior Labour source said the bill was “properly in the background” and that there were still “no hard proposals in terms of what the legislation looks like”. “They said let’s try and get it done before Christmas – now it’s summer,” the source added.
Another Labour source briefed on the legislation said an iteration of the bill had been prepared months ago but was now up in the air because of Trump, with ministers reluctant to take action that could weaken the UK’s attractiveness to AI companies.
Trump has torpedoed plans by his predecessor Joe Biden for regulating AI and revoked an executive order on making the technology safe and trustworthy. The future of the US AI Safety Institute, founded by Biden, is uncertain after its director resigned this month. At an AI summit hosted in Paris, JD Vance, the US vice-president, railed against Europe’s planned regulation of the technology.
The UK government chose to side with the US by refusing to sign the Paris declaration endorsed by 66 other countries at the summit. Peter Mandelson, the UK’s ambassador to Washington, has reportedly drafted proposals to make the UK the main hub for US AI investment.
Democrat Jasmine Crockett calls it ‘really wild’ that it is foreign leaders who are speaking truth to power
The congresswoman Jasmine Crockett has revealed she is “rooting” for Canada and Mexico over Donald Trump in their attempts to stand up to him, saying it is “really wild” to find herself in that position given he is the president of the US.
“They are really the ones that are speaking truth to power right now,” the Democratic representative from Texas said on Friday on the popular Breakfast Club podcast, alluding to the political feuds Trump has engaged in with the US’s two North American neighbors during the first month of his second presidency. “They can see what it is and they were like, ‘We are not messing with this crazy regime.’”
Continue reading...Senate Democrats have the power to block federal contracts to Tesla and SpaceX. It’s the path to pushing Musk out of politics.
The post This Is the Way to Stop Elon Musk appeared first on The Intercept.
This week on The Intercept Briefing, politics reporters Jessica Washington and Akela Lacy assess the full scope of Trump's first month in office.
The post One Month Under Trump: Are You Keeping Up? appeared first on The Intercept.
Parliamentary petition launched due to billionaire’s link to Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to conquer Canada
More than 150,000 people from Canada have signed a parliamentary petition calling for their country to strip Elon Musk’s Canadian citizenship because of the tech billionaire’s alliance with Donald Trump, who has spent his second US presidency repeatedly threatening to conquer its independent neighbor to the north and turn it into its 51st state.
British Columbia author Qualia Reed launched the petition in Canada’s House of Commons, where it was sponsored by New Democrat parliamentary member and avowed Musk critic Charlie Angus, as the Canadian Press first reported over the weekend.
Continue reading...PM tells Q&A that US relationship is ‘rock solid’ as he fields questions on cost of living, housing and antisemitism
Anthony Albanese says he is confident that the US would defend Australia if it were to come under attack, despite the change in leadership in the US, but that Australia needed to look after its own security and would make its own decisions on foreign policy, including on support for Ukraine.
The comments came on a special edition of the ABC’s Q&A on Monday night, in which the prime minister took questions from members of the public on foreign affairs, the cost of living crisis, housing and social cohesion, in a bid to win over voters ahead of the election being called.
Continue reading...Labor promised prior to 2022 election to allow the cohort to apply for permanent Resolution of Status visas
It would take 100 years for the government to resolve the cases of the 7,000 asylum seekers living in Australia on bridging visas, Greens senator David Shoebridge estimates.
The group of 7,000 arrived in Australia by boat before 2013, when the Rudd government determined that no asylum seekers arriving by sea would be permanently resettled in Australia.
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Continue reading...Business secretary says negotiations – now in their 15th round – are a ‘top priority’ for Labour government
Ministers are relaunching negotiations with India this week in an attempt to clinch a multibillion-pound free trade agreement that they hope will boost the UK’s flatlining economy.
Jonathan Reynolds, the business and trade secretary, flew to Delhi on Sunday to meet his Indian counterpart, Piyush Goyal, for the first time since Labour won the election.
Continue reading...Months-long Guardian investigation exposes weaknesses in code of conduct that could trigger calls for greater reform
A Guardian investigation into the House of Lords raises questions over the accountability of parliament’s second chamber, with revelations about how a string of peers are benefiting from commercial interests.
One in 10 members have been hired to give political or policy advice, according to their own declarations, and others do paid work for companies that could conflict with their role as legislators. The findings expose weaknesses in the Lords code of conduct and raise questions about whether the rules on lobbying and paid employment should be tightened in line with restrictions signed up to by MPs.
Nearly 100 members of the Lords are paid to give political or policy advice by commercial firms.
A Labour peer offered access to ministers during discussions to sponsor an event in parliament.
A former minister has earned millions of pounds since entering the Lords by working for 30 companies.
Multiple peers are being paid by foreign governments including repressive regimes.
More than £1 in every £14 donated to political parties since 2001 came from those who have sat as peers in the last parliament.
Continue reading...Germany is experiencing a political shift that is alarming many citizens. The photographer Fabian Ritter has spent years documenting the rise of the far-right AfD party and more extreme groups. Recent events illustrate the growing tension
In the run-up to Sunday’s election in Germany the political climate has become more heated. There have been attacks on politicians and campaign workers, and election posters have been destroyed. Many felt unsettled or even threatened after Friedrich Merz, the leader of the centre-right CDU, proposed a bill to tighten immigration control that had the backing of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland.
Björn Höcke, the AfD’s leader in Thuringia and head of its nationalist wing, speaks at the Domplatz in Erfurt during the party’s final campaign event before state elections, 31 August 2024.
Continue reading...Trump is leaving Ukraine with impossible choices: fight a losing war without U.S. support, or submit to economic vassalage.
The post Trump Doesn’t Care About Ukraine or Russia — Just Money appeared first on The Intercept.
Internal critics say Richard Hermer is a block on policy and abrasive – but perhaps its the prime minister they’re really frustrated with
Keir Starmer went to considerable effort to bring in his old friend and colleague Richard Hermer as the new attorney general in July. To facilitate the move, the barrister not only had to be ennobled, but it required giving the boot to Emily Thornberry – a long-serving shadow cabinet member who’d held the post in opposition for several years – which came as a surprise.
Friends of Hermer soon began to wonder how long he would last in post, as they suspected that the Labour government would not be radical enough to live up to his principles (particularly on Israel, the KC being a critic of its occupation of the Palestinian territories). And quitting would be low-stakes when an easy return to the day job awaits.
Sienna Rogers is deputy editor of the the House magazine
Continue reading...Jonathan Reynolds apologises for referring to himself as a solicitor in parliament and criticises Tories’ 'personal attacks’
Jonathan Reynolds has apologised for referring to himself as a solicitor in parliament but denied ever “misrepresenting” himself professionally amid calls by the Conservative party for an investigation.
The business secretary, who is in India to restart free trade talks, said he had spoken to the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) last week after it told him it was deciding whether to open a formal investigation.
Continue reading...Details of what goes on in the UK parliament’s upper chamber, where messages are written in Norman French and peers can claim £361 a day
Away from the noise of Big Ben and Parliament Square, tucked away on a quieter side of the walls that surround the Palace of Westminster, a doorkeeper in a thick red coat and black top hat stands at a gothic stone porch. A taxi pulls up and he steps forward to usher a pensioner laden with Selfridges bags into the warm lobby.
This may look like the door to a five-star hotel but in fact it is the members’ entrance for the House of Lords. Parliament’s upper chamber has ballooned in recent years to more than 800 peers, who range from the last of the blue-blooded aristocrats, to bishops and bestowers of generous political donations.
Continue reading...Critics say practice risks perception that members of House of Lords are exploiting role for personal gain
Ninety-one members of the House of Lords have been paid by commercial companies to give political or policy advice, amid concerns that their activities are not being properly regulated.
Analysis by the Guardian shows that more than one in 10 peers have taken payments from businesses such as lobbyists and companies operating in the banking, defence and energy sectors. Peers can earn tens of thousands of pounds a year for such roles.
Continue reading...An extract from Omar El Akkad’s new book argues that Gaza put to bed the fantasy of the USA as freedom fighter
Among my hazier memories of early adolescence in Qatar is a screening, at a friend’s home, of an obviously pirated Betamax copy of Red Dawn. My friend’s father – most everyone’s father or mother or uncle, whoever – would, while on business trips overseas, visit the occasional video store or flea market and return with whatever films or books or albums they happened to find. It’s a haphazard, incomplete thing to consume the culture of a faraway place in this manner, like trying to divine the contours of a mouth from the texture of spittle.
Red Dawn is a bad movie. Bad in a special, sincere kind of way. It’s about a bunch of teenagers who fight back against a Soviet invasion of the United States. Released in the early 80s, it belongs to a large fraternity of films in which scrappy underdog Americans fight back against the seemingly insurmountable but of course ultimately very surmountable power of the Soviet empire. In a couple of decades, the Russians would pass the baton of villainy to people who look like me, though in our case there was no real empire to speak of, and so we were mostly small-batch insidious, our specialty less tank-and-jet and more suicide-bomb-level violence. It didn’t much matter; Red Dawn with Arabs instead of Soviets for villains would have still been shit.
Continue reading...The Lives of the Caesars, translated from Latin by The Rest Is History podcast co-host Tom Holland, details everything from ancient policy failures to sex scandals
A gossipy account of the lives of Roman emperors has entered the bestseller charts – 2,000 years after it was written.
Sex scandals and foreign policy failures don’t only beleaguer the modern politician, it turns out: in the early second century, the scholar Suetonius chronicled the dramas of the first set of Roman emperors, and now, their indiscretions and eccentricities have been dug up in a new translation which is proving popular in bookshops.
The Lives of the Caesars, translated from Latin by The Rest Is History podcast co-host Tom Holland, made the Sunday Times hardback nonfiction chart this week. Publisher Penguin Classics said that the book is the first of their hardback nonfiction classics to appear on the list.
Continue reading...FBI head Kash Patel tells agents to ‘pause’ responses to order as unnamed Pentagon official calls it ‘silliest thing in 40 years’
Elon Musk has poured fuel on to the fire raging across the US government over his ultimatum that federal workers document what they do at their jobs or face dismissal – by attacking a Pentagon official who had criticized the scheme as “the silliest thing I’ve seen in 40 years”.
The billionaire businessman, who has been authorised by Donald Trump to slash the federal bureaucracy as head of the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge), stoked the flames in a post on his social media platform X late on Sunday night. He slammed the unnamed Department of Defense (DoD) official quoted by CNN, saying that “anyone with the attitude of that Pentagon official needs to look for a new job”.
Continue reading...Environment justice advocates say tools to study pollution in vulnerable communities by companies, including xAI and SpaceX, have disappeared
As Donald Trump’s administration continues its purge of federal agencies, environmental justice campaigners are alarmed by the disappearance of federal environmental and climate data tools – some of which have been used to identify pollution concerns about Elon Musk’s companies.
Several federal agencies, including the EPA and CDC, previously published data regarding pollution levels across the country, as well as data about the vulnerability of each census tract, such as poverty rates and life expectancy. Several of the websites containing that data have gone dark in the weeks following Trump’s inauguration.
Continue reading...DRC prime minister tells human rights council fighting has left about 450,000 without shelter after camps destroyed
About 7,000 people have died in fighting in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since Rwanda-backed M23 rebels started renewed advances in January, the DRC’s prime minister has said.
At a high-level meeting of the UN’s human rights council in Geneva on Monday, Judith Suminwa Tuluka also said the war had left about 450,000 people without shelter after the destruction of 90 displacement camps.
Continue reading...Figures emerge as Kindoki Witch Boy film tells true story of Mardoche Yembi who underwent an exorcism as a child
Thousands of children in England have been accused of witchcraft over the past decade, according to new figures that come alongside a film released on Monday.
Faith-based abuse is a worldwide phenomenon but experts found 14,000 social work assessments linked to witchcraft accusations since 2015. In the year running to March 2024 alone, there were 2,180 assessments linked to witchcraft.
Children accused of witchcraft can call Childline on 0800 1111 or NSPCC on 0808 800 500.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Terrorist group the Base appears defiant as new administration aims to deprioritize threat from far right
An international neo-Nazi terrorist group with origins in the US appears to be quickly rebuilding its global and stateside ranks, according to information obtained by the Guardian from its digital accounts.
Founded in 2018, the Base has been the intense focus of a years-long FBI counter-terrorism investigation that has resulted in more than a dozen of its members arrested. It has plotted an assassination, mass shootings and other actions in Europe, which made it a proscribed terrorist organization in several countries.
Continue reading...Search for man dragged overboard near Newcastle during fishing competition hampered by fast-moving currents
Police say the “very experienced” fisher who went missing overboard during a fishing competition on Sunday afternoon is believed to have become entangled in fishing gear before he was dragged off the boat.
A multi-agency search is under way for the game fisher Paul Barning, after he fell overboard while fishing at about 1pm on Sunday, 55km off the coast of Newcastle.
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Continue reading...The final state housing targets have seen a reduction in numbers, but the overall goal of refocusing growth to Melbourne’s inner core remains
Reading the headlines, you’d be forgiven for thinking the Victorian government has capitulated again – this time on its bold housing targets.
But for the well-heeled residents of Brighton and Boorondara – some of whom who had sought to quash any changes amid cries of “shame, premier, shame” – it’s full steam ahead, at least in their suburbs.
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Continue reading...New Zealand defence minister Judith Collins says department has ‘never seen a task group of this capability undertaking this sort of work’
New Zealand’s defence minister has warned that Chinese warships located off the east coast of Australia are armed with “extremely capable” weapons that could reach Australia.
The three vessels, known as Taskgroup 107, undertook two live-fire exercises in the seas between Australia and New Zealand last week, causing commercial flights to be diverted in the skies above.
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Continue reading...Government ruled out giving £10bn to women born in 1950s whose pensionable age was raised to be equal with men
Campaigners have threatened the government with legal action unless it reconsiders its decision to rule out spending £10bn compensating “Waspi” (Women Against State Pension Inequality) women hit by the change in the state pension age.
Last March, the parliamentary and health service ombudsman recommended compensation should be paid to women born in the 1950s whose pensionable age was gradually raised to be equal with men, arguing the changes had not been properly communicated to them.
Continue reading...Sixty years ago this week, Jennie Lee launched Britain’s first culture white paper. Lisa Nandy must pick up the baton
The date is not in many history books. But it should be. It is 60 years on Tuesday since Britain’s first minister for the arts, Jennie Lee, published the first UK government white paper on the arts. The white paper, which crammed more into 18 pages than many government documents do at 10 times that length, was a landmark, an attempt to set out “a more coherent, generous and imaginative approach” to the arts policy this country lacked.
The current culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, has yet to publish such a white paper herself. She ought to do so. Nevertheless, last week she did the next best thing, travelling to Stratford-upon-Avon, the most iconic location on these islands in which to reflect on arts policy, to deliver an anniversary lecture in Buzz Goodbody’s experimental Other Place theatre.
Continue reading...Studying the climate crisis | Dangerous dogs | A teacher’s scorn | Learning reluctantly | Whatevs, Megs
The obvious solution to American researchers having grants withdrawn for projects containing the word “climate” (Outcry as Trump withdraws support for research that mentions ‘climate’, 21 February) is to rename climate heating “Trump”. We could be amazed that “Trump makes seas rise”, “Trump makes Greenland a green land again” and “Trump makes summer warmer and longer”. Who would oppose that?
Mark Davis
Frome, Somerset
• My friend always said that you should never leave a small child and a dog of any size together as it is equivalent to leaving two toddlers together and giving one of them a pair of sharp scissors (The rise of the cane corso: should this popular status dog be banned in the UK?, 19 February).
Vanessa Rickett
Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire
Report from New Zealand navy personnel comes a day after similar drill forced multiple airlines to change flight paths between Australia and New Zealand
China’s navy has reportedly conducted a second live-fire exercise in international waters, a day after a similar drill forced multiple airlines to change flight paths between Australia and New Zealand.
New Zealand navy personnel advised live rounds were fired from a Chinese warship in international waters near the island nation on Saturday.
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Continue reading...Democratic party chair Lo Kin-hei would not comment on whether Beijing put pressure on members
Hong Kong’s oldest pro-democracy party, which became an influential voice of opposition before Beijing cracked down on dissent, will start preparations to shut down, its leader has said.
Lo Kin-hei, the chair of Hong Kong’s Democratic party, said on Thursday: “We are going to proceed and study on the process and procedure that is needed for the disbanding.”
Continue reading...Most likely next German chancellor warns against rise of far right and says he intends to form new government by Easter
Guten Morgen aus Berlin,
In November 2019, Freidrich Merz joined a conference of German students at Harvard.
From our point of view it can get going very, very quickly. We should hold the first talks this week already, in the coming days.
My impression is that there are many people in the SPD who also see that we can and should do something together, and then we will find compromises.
Continue reading...Leader of victorious conservative alliance says centrist parties must work together to provide effective leadership
The doubling of support for the far right in Germany’s federal election was “the last warning” to the country’s mainstream parties to provide effective leadership, Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany’s victorious conservative alliance, has said.
Speaking on Monday after his CDU/CSU alliance came first with 28.5% of the vote, the man who is on course to become the next German chancellor said centrist parties needed to heed the surge in support for the anti-immigration Alternative für Deutschland (AfD).
Continue reading...Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU may have won the German election, but all eyes are on the far-right AfD after its huge gains
Continue reading...Food delivery group’s board approves takeover by investor in German rival Delivery Hero
The food delivery business Just Eat Takeaway.com has been snapped up by an investor in its German rival Delivery Hero for €4.1bn (£3.4bn), two months after it left the London Stock Exchange.
Just Eat’s board has unanimously approved the takeover by the South African-owned internet investor Prosus, in an all-cash deal six years after Prosusmade its first effort to buy the British part of the business.
Continue reading...Gunners lose their heads while Mohamed Salah outperforms Kevin De Bruyne in Liverpool’s triumph
Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah have mirrored each other as leading men in the Premier League. They even share the status of being discarded by Chelsea, but Sunday’s match may be where their paths finally diverge. Salah delivered a goal and an assist while De Bruyne was a shock selection, unused by Manchester City in Madrid. On Friday Pep Guardiola hinted the Belgian’s time at the club was done. If Sunday was a last hurrah, De Bruyne misfiring passes and chasing shadows was a brutal reminder of how time catches up with even the very best. Where the Belgian exhibits physical decline from sheer miles on the clock, Salah, just a year younger, played to his peak, often buzz-sawing into midfield areas De Bruyne once commanded. The Egyptian king’s contract situation remains at an impasse, the sense being he awaits the right offer from Liverpool. De Bruyne may now be reduced to mere cameos as Guardiola rebuilds, a sad coda. John Brewin
Match report: Manchester City 0-2 Liverpool
Match report: Arsenal 0-1 West Ham
Match report: Everton 2-2 Manchester United
Match report: Aston Villa 2-1 Chelsea
Continue reading...Alternative für Deutschland projected to finish second in federal election with about 20% of the vote
For more than 150 years, the symbolism of the Siegessäule, or Victory Column, in Berlin’s Tiergarten, has shifted alongside German identity: from emblem of the empire to strategic relocation by the Nazis and, finally, its adoption as an icon of Berlin’s legendary love parade.
On Sunday, as throngs of people gathered in its shadow, the golden statue bore witness to yet another shift – an election that had yielded an emboldened far right in a result that was unprecedented in Germany’s postwar history.
Continue reading...As administration cuts off resources from African countries to contain outbreak, workers say ‘everybody’s lost’
As the Trump administration dismantles the US Agency for International Development (USAid) and retreats from funding global public health efforts, mpox – formerly known as monkeypox – is at greater risk of becoming a wider global emergency, according to aid workers and global health experts.
“It’s a real mistake not to be doing everything we can to control this while we’re still able to,” said Stephen Morse, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia University focusing on risk assessment of infectious diseases. “Taking huge steps backwards is only going to make everything worse.”
Continue reading...Three Chinese vessels currently in international waters notified Australia’s defence department before the drill
Chinese warships have undertaken an apparent live-fire drill in the seas between Australia and New Zealand, diverting commercial flights in the skies above.
The Chinese navy notified the Australian defence department shortly before the drill on Friday.
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Continue reading...And that’s how he wants to keep it, his executive orders and memos from Attorney General Pam Bondi show.
The post Trump Is Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud: Federal Prisons Are Purposely Inhumane appeared first on The Intercept.
Musk has emerged as Trump’s far-right-hand man, creating some awkwardness for the president’s Democratic foes.
The post Democrats Swear They’ll Fight Elon Musk. But What About the Cash They Took From SpaceX? appeared first on The Intercept.
“What he’s done is testing the limits of his power in a way we have never seen in this country,” says retired federal Judge Nancy Gertner.
The post Constitutional Crisis Looms appeared first on The Intercept.
Oracle, which has secret partnerships with Israel, has told employees to love the country or work elsewhere.
The post Poised to Take Over TikTok, Oracle Is Accused of Clamping Down on Pro-Palestine Dissent appeared first on The Intercept.
Civil servant Josie Stewart found to have been unlawfully dismissed in 2022 after she told BBC about failures
A civil servant who blew the whistle about the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and Boris Johnson’s involvement in a decision to evacuate a pet charity from Kabul has won her case for unfair dismissal against the government in a legal first.
An employment panel of three judges unanimously found the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) unfairly dismissed Josie Stewart in 2021 after she leaked information in the public interest.
Continue reading...Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s chaotic approach to reform is upending government operations. Critical functions have been halted, tens of thousands of federal staffers are being encouraged to resign, and congressional mandates are being disregarded. The next phase: The Department of Government Efficiency reportedly wants to use AI to cut costs. According to The Washington Post, Musk’s group has started to run sensitive data from government systems through AI programs to analyze spending and determine what could be pruned. This may lead to the elimination of human jobs in favor of automation. As one government official who has been tracking Musk’s DOGE team told the...
CoreCivic CEO Damon Hininger could barely contain his excitement about the Laken Riley Act and Trump’s anti-immigration executive orders.
The post Private Prison CEO on Trump Deportation Surge: “One of the Most Exciting Periods in My Career” appeared first on The Intercept.
Goal of increasing renewable energy generation 20-fold to be ditched, shareholders to be told this week
BP is expected to ditch a target to ramp up renewable energy generation by 2030 as part of a shift back towards fossil fuels when it presents its strategy to investors this week.
The chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, is poised to tell shareholders that the oil and gas company is scrapping its target to increase renewable generation 20-fold between 2019 and 2030 to 50 gigawatts, Reuters reported.
Continue reading...Max Rushden, Barry Glendenning, Jonathan Wilson and Dan Bardell discuss the weekend’s action in the Premier League and beyond
Rate, review, and share on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.
On the podcast today: Liverpool stamp their authority on the title race with a comfortable 2-0 win at Manchester City. The panel discuss whether the title race is done following Arne Slot’s tactical masterclass and asks if Pep Guardiola’s prowess is waning.
Continue reading...For the children of the Nigerian diaspora, displaced by war and split between two worlds, footballers from John Fashanu to Jay-Jay Okocha were a first glimpse of themselves in Britain’s mainstream. Written and read by Aniefiok Ekpoudom
Continue reading...How did Imam Muhsin change the lives of queer Muslims? Jamie Fullerton reports
“As a Muslim, you always question: ‘Have I pleased God, or have I angered him or her?’”
Imam Muhsin Hendricks of Cape Town, South Africa, was the world’s first openly gay imam. In early February, he was shot and killed and the identities and motives of those responsible are still unknown.
Continue reading...Two years ago, transgender teenager Brianna Ghey was stabbed to death by two 15-year-olds. The killers had been radicalised on the dark web, while the victim was trapped in an online world of her own. Now her mother has become friends with the parent of one of the murderers. On the second anniversary of Brianna’s death, Esther sits down with Simon Hattenstone to discuss her daughter’s murder and her own extraordinary response.
Oversight laws about foreign influence were already limited. Now the Trump administration is shredding them.
The post How Many Trump Officials Have Taken Money From Qatar? appeared first on The Intercept.
How exactly the IRS will use the SuperPod AI hardware is unclear. But it comes amid a push for automation in government.
The post The IRS Is Buying an AI Supercomputer From Nvidia appeared first on The Intercept.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is trying to eliminate all Defense Department DEI efforts. It hasn’t been entirely successful.
The post Pentagon Official: Hegseth’s Campaign to Scrub DEI History Is a “Dumb” Distraction appeared first on The Intercept.
Victor Pelevin made his name in 90s Russia with scathing satires of authoritarianism. But while his literary peers have faced censorship and fled the country, he still sells millions. Has he become a Kremlin apologist? By Sophie Pinkham. Read by Olga Koch
Continue reading...A GP surgery in one of the most deprived areas in the north-east of England is struggling to provide care for its patients as the health system crumbles around them. In the depths of the winter flu season, the Guardian video producers Maeve Shearlaw and Adam Sich went to Bridges medical practice to shadow the lead GP, Paul Evans, as he worked all hours keep his surgery afloat. Juggling technical challenges, long waiting lists and the profound impact austerity has had on the health of the population, Evans says: 'We are seeing the system fail'
Continue reading...Sale of the miner, which is now valued at $4bn, may be delayed following ‘really, really difficult’ market
The world’s biggest diamond miner, De Beers, cost its parent company almost $3bn last year as the growth in lab-grown stones continues to take the shine off the industry.
Anglo American was forced to write down the value of the renowned gem producer for a second consecutive year as its chief executive admitted the diamond markets had proved “really, really difficult for the company”.
Continue reading...In a tweet announcing his attack on the Climate Justice Alliance, EPA head Lee Zeldin linked it to the group’s protected speech about Palestine.
The post Trump’s EPA Kills Grant to Climate Nonprofit Over Its Support for Palestine appeared first on The Intercept.
For some members of the WhatsApp group, speaking out for Palestine and criticizing Israel are tantamount to supporting Hamas.
The post The Columbia Network Pushing Behind the Scenes to Deport and Arrest Student Protesters appeared first on The Intercept.
Even with Jordan and Egypt refusing to take in expelled Palestinians, Trump is charging on with his real estate development plan.
The post Trump Is Bullying Jordan and Egypt to Help in Ethnic Cleansing of Gaza. It Isn’t Working. appeared first on The Intercept.
ICE wants to hire contractors to monitor social media for threats. Those who criticize the agency could be pulled into the dragnet.
The post ICE Wants to Know If You’re Posting Negative Things About It Online appeared first on The Intercept.
We’d like to hear from people or anyone in their family who has been ‘evicted’ from a care home providing specialist care for vulnerable adults due to funding cuts
Residential homes providing specialist care to thousands of vulnerable adults with learning disabilities and severe autism have warned they are having to “evict” residents to avoid insolvency because of tax and wage rises and local authority funding cuts.
The annual Sector Pulse Check survey of more than 200 social care providers, both private and charitable, says many are on the brink as they struggle to remain viable in the face of cash-strapped councils’ refusal or inability to meet the rising cost of services.
Continue reading...
In the rapidly advancing landscape of AI technology and innovation, LimeWire emerges as a unique platform in the realm of generative AI tools. This platform not only stands out from the multitude of existing AI tools but also brings a fresh approach to content generation. LimeWire not only empowers users to create AI content but also provides creators with creative ways to share and monetize their creations.
As we explore LimeWire, our aim is to uncover its features, benefits for creators, and the exciting possibilities it offers for AI content generation. This platform presents an opportunity for users to harness the power of AI in image creation, all while enjoying the advantages of a free and accessible service.
Let's unravel the distinctive features that set LimeWire apart in the dynamic landscape of AI-powered tools, understanding how creators can leverage its capabilities to craft unique and engaging AI-generated images.
This revamped LimeWire invites users to register and unleash their creativity by crafting original AI content, which can then be shared and showcased on the LimeWire Studio. Notably, even acclaimed artists and musicians, such as Deadmau5, Soulja Boy, and Sean Kingston, have embraced this platform to publish their content in the form of NFT music, videos, and images.
Beyond providing a space for content creation and sharing, LimeWire introduces monetization models to empower users to earn revenue from their creations. This includes avenues such as earning ad revenue and participating in the burgeoning market of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). As we delve further, we'll explore these monetization strategies in more detail to provide a comprehensive understanding of LimeWire's innovative approach to content creation and distribution.
LimeWire Studio welcomes content creators into its fold, providing a space to craft personalized AI-focused content for sharing with fans and followers. Within this creative hub, every piece of content generated becomes not just a creation but a unique asset—ownable and tradable. Fans have the opportunity to subscribe to creators' pages, immersing themselves in the creative journey and gaining ownership of digital collectibles that hold tradeable value within the LimeWire community. Notably, creators earn a 2.5% royalty each time their content is traded, adding a rewarding element to the creative process.
The platform's flexibility is evident in its content publication options. Creators can choose to share their work freely with the public or opt for a premium subscription model, granting exclusive access to specialized content for subscribers.
As of the present moment, LimeWire focuses on AI Image Generation, offering a spectrum of creative possibilities to its user base. The platform, however, has ambitious plans on the horizon, aiming to broaden its offerings by introducing AI music and video generation tools in the near future. This strategic expansion promises creators even more avenues for expression and engagement with their audience, positioning LimeWire Studio as a dynamic and evolving platform within the realm of AI-powered content creation.
The LimeWire AI image generation tool presents a versatile platform for both the creation and editing of images. Supporting advanced models such as Stable Diffusion 2.1, Stable Diffusion XL, and DALL-E 2, LimeWire offers a sophisticated toolkit for users to delve into the realm of generative AI art.
Much like other tools in the generative AI landscape, LimeWire provides a range of options catering to various levels of complexity in image creation. Users can initiate the creative process with prompts as simple as a few words or opt for more intricate instructions, tailoring the output to their artistic vision.
What sets LimeWire apart is its seamless integration of different AI models and design styles. Users have the flexibility to effortlessly switch between various AI models, exploring diverse design styles such as cinematic, digital art, pixel art, anime, analog film, and more. Each style imparts a distinctive visual identity to the generated AI art, enabling users to explore a broad spectrum of creative possibilities.
The platform also offers additional features, including samplers, allowing users to fine-tune the quality and detail levels of their creations. Customization options and prompt guidance further enhance the user experience, providing a user-friendly interface for both novice and experienced creators.
Excitingly, LimeWire is actively developing its proprietary AI model, signaling ongoing innovation and enhancements to its image generation capabilities. This upcoming addition holds the promise of further expanding the creative horizons for LimeWire users, making it an evolving and dynamic platform within the landscape of AI-driven art and image creation.
Sign Up Now To Get Free Credits
Upon completing your creative endeavor on LimeWire, the platform allows you the option to publish your content. An intriguing feature follows this step: LimeWire automates the process of minting your creation as a Non-Fungible Token (NFT), utilizing either the Polygon or Algorand blockchain. This transformative step imbues your artwork with a unique digital signature, securing its authenticity and ownership in the decentralized realm.
Creators on LimeWire hold the power to decide the accessibility of their NFT creations. By opting for a public release, the content becomes discoverable by anyone, fostering a space for engagement and interaction. Furthermore, this choice opens the avenue for enthusiasts to trade the NFTs, adding a layer of community involvement to the artistic journey.
Alternatively, LimeWire acknowledges the importance of exclusivity. Creators can choose to share their posts exclusively with their premium subscribers. In doing so, the content remains a special offering solely for dedicated fans, creating an intimate and personalized experience within the LimeWire community. This flexibility in sharing options emphasizes LimeWire's commitment to empowering creators with choices in how they connect with their audience and distribute their digital creations.
After creating your content, you can choose to publish the content. It will automatically mint your creation as an NFT on the Polygon or Algorand blockchain. You can also choose whether to make it public or subscriber-only.
If you make it public, anyone can discover your content and even trade the NFTs. If you choose to share the post only with your premium subscribers, it will be exclusive only to your fans.
Additionally, you can earn ad revenue from your content creations as well.
When you publish content on LimeWire, you will receive 70% of all ad revenue from other users who view your images, music, and videos on the platform.
This revenue model will be much more beneficial to designers. You can experiment with the AI image and content generation tools and share your creations while earning a small income on the side.
The revenue you earn from your creations will come in the form of LMWR tokens, LimeWire’s own cryptocurrency.
Your earnings will be paid every month in LMWR, which you can then trade on many popular crypto exchange platforms like Kraken, ByBit, and UniSwap.
You can also use your LMWR tokens to pay for prompts when using LimeWire generative AI tools.
You can sign up to LimeWire to use its AI tools for free. You will receive 10 credits to use and generate up to 20 AI images per day. You will also receive 50% of the ad revenue share. However, you will get more benefits with premium plans.
For $9.99 per month, you will get 1,000 credits per month, up to 2 ,000 image generations, early access to new AI models, and 50% ad revenue share
For $29 per month, you will get 3750 credits per month, up to 7500 image generations, early access to new AI models, and 60% ad revenue share
For $49 per month, you will get 5,000 credits per month, up to 10,000 image generations, early access to new AI models, and 70% ad revenue share
For $99 per month, you will get 11,250 credits per month, up to 2 2,500 image generations, early access to new AI models, and 70% ad revenue share
With all premium plans, you will receive a Pro profile badge, full creation history, faster image generation, and no ads.
Sign Up Now To Get Free Credits
In conclusion, LimeWire emerges as a democratizing force in the creative landscape, providing an inclusive platform where anyone can unleash their artistic potential and effortlessly share their work. With the integration of AI, LimeWire eliminates traditional barriers, empowering designers, musicians, and artists to publish their creations and earn revenue with just a few clicks.
The ongoing commitment of LimeWire to innovation is evident in its plans to enhance generative AI tools with new features and models. The upcoming expansion to include music and video generation tools holds the promise of unlocking even more possibilities for creators. It sparks anticipation about the diverse and innovative ways in which artists will leverage these tools to produce and publish their own unique creations.
For those eager to explore, LimeWire's AI tools are readily accessible for free, providing an opportunity to experiment and delve into the world of generative art. As LimeWire continues to evolve, creators are encouraged to stay tuned for the launch of its forthcoming AI music and video generation tools, promising a future brimming with creative potential and endless artistic exploration
Are you looking for a new graphic design tool? Would you like to read a detailed review of Canva? As it's one of the tools I love using. I am also writing my first ebook using canva and publish it soon on my site you can download it is free. Let's start the review.
Canva has a web version and also a mobile app
Canva is a free graphic design web application that allows you to create invitations, business cards, flyers, lesson plans, banners, and more using professionally designed templates. You can upload your own photos from your computer or from Google Drive, and add them to Canva's templates using a simple drag-and-drop interface. It's like having a basic version of Photoshop that doesn't require Graphic designing knowledge to use. It’s best for nongraphic designers.
Canva is a great tool for small business owners, online entrepreneurs, and marketers who don’t have the time and want to edit quickly.
To create sophisticated graphics, a tool such as Photoshop can is ideal. To use it, you’ll need to learn its hundreds of features, get familiar with the software, and it’s best to have a good background in design, too.
Also running the latest version of Photoshop you need a high-end computer.
So here Canva takes place, with Canva you can do all that with drag-and-drop feature. It’s also easier to use and free. Also an even-more-affordable paid version is available for $12.95 per month.
The product is available in three plans: Free, Pro ($12.99/month per user or $119.99/year for up to 5 people), and Enterprise ($30 per user per month, minimum 25 people).
To get started on Canva, you will need to create an account by providing your email address, Google, Facebook or Apple credentials. You will then choose your account type between student, teacher, small business, large company, non-profit, or personal. Based on your choice of account type, templates will be recommended to you.
You can sign up for a free trial of Canva Pro, or you can start with the free version to get a sense of whether it’s the right graphic design tool for your needs.
When you sign up for an account, Canva will suggest different post types to choose from. Based on the type of account you set up you'll be able to see templates categorized by the following categories: social media posts, documents, presentations, marketing, events, ads, launch your business, build your online brand, etc.
Start by choosing a template for your post or searching for something more specific. Search by social network name to see a list of post types on each network.
Next, you can choose a template. Choose from hundreds of templates that are ready to go, with customizable photos, text, and other elements.
You can start your design by choosing from a variety of ready-made templates, searching for a template matching your needs, or working with a blank template.
Inside the Canva designer, the Elements tab gives you access to lines and shapes, graphics, photos, videos, audio, charts, photo frames, and photo grids.The search box on the Elements tab lets you search everything on Canva.
To begin with, Canva has a large library of elements to choose from. To find them, be specific in your search query. You may also want to search in the following tabs to see various elements separately:
The Photos tab lets you search for and choose from millions of professional stock photos for your templates.
You can replace the photos in our templates to create a new look. This can also make the template more suited to your industry.
You can find photos on other stock photography sites like pexel, pixabay and many more or simply upload your own photos.
When you choose an image, Canva’s photo editing features let you adjust the photo’s settings (brightness, contrast, saturation, etc.), crop, or animate it.
When you subscribe to Canva Pro, you get access to a number of premium features, including the Background Remover. This feature allows you to remove the background from any stock photo in library or any image you upload.
The Text tab lets you add headings, normal text, and graphical text to your design.
When you click on text, you'll see options to adjust the font, font size, color, format, spacing, and text effects (like shadows).
Canva Pro subscribers can choose from a large library of fonts on the Brand Kit or the Styles tab. Enterprise-level controls ensure that visual content remains on-brand, no matter how many people are working on it.
Create an animated image or video by adding audio to capture user’s attention in social news feeds.
If you want to use audio from another stock site or your own audio tracks, you can upload them in the Uploads tab or from the more option.
Want to create your own videos? Choose from thousands of stock video clips. You’ll find videos that range upto 2 minutes
You can upload your own videos as well as videos from other stock sites in the Uploads tab.
Once you have chosen a video, you can use the editing features in Canva to trim the video, flip it, and adjust its transparency.
On the Background tab, you’ll find free stock photos to serve as backgrounds on your designs. Change out the background on a template to give it a more personal touch.
The Styles tab lets you quickly change the look and feel of your template with just a click. And if you have a Canva Pro subscription, you can upload your brand’s custom colors and fonts to ensure designs stay on brand.
If you have a Canva Pro subscription, you’ll have a Logos tab. Here, you can upload variations of your brand logo to use throughout your designs.
With Canva, you can also create your own logos. Note that you cannot trademark a logo with stock content in it.
With Canva, free users can download and share designs to multiple platforms including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Slack and Tumblr.
Canva Pro subscribers can create multiple post formats from one design. For example, you can start by designing an Instagram post, and Canva's Magic Resizer can resize it for other networks, Stories, Reels, and other formats.
Canva Pro subscribers can also use Canva’s Content Planner to post content on eight different accounts on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Slack, and Tumblr.
Canva Pro allows you to work with your team on visual content. Designs can be created inside Canva, and then sent to your team members for approval. Everyone can make comments, edits, revisions, and keep track via the version history.
When it comes to printing your designs, Canva has you covered. With an extensive selection of printing options, they can turn your designs into anything from banners and wall art to mugs and t-shirts.
Canva Print is perfect for any business seeking to make a lasting impression. Create inspiring designs people will want to wear, keep, and share. Hand out custom business cards that leave a lasting impression on customers' minds.
The Canva app is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play. The Canva app has earned a 4.9 out of five star rating from over 946.3K Apple users and a 4.5 out of five star rating from over 6,996,708 Google users.
In addition to mobile apps, you can use Canva’s integration with other Internet services to add images and text from sources like Google Maps, Emojis, photos from Google Drive and Dropbox, YouTube videos, Flickr photos, Bitmojis, and other popular visual content elements.
In general, Canva is an excellent tool for those who need simple images for projects. If you are a graphic designer with experience, you will find Canva’s platform lacking in customization and advanced features – particularly vectors. But if you have little design experience, you will find Canva easier to use than advanced graphic design tools like Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator for most projects. If you have any queries let me know in the comments section.
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Continue reading...Ukraine president hails ‘three years of resistance’ as world leaders commemorate anniversary in Kyiv
The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas earlier said that she would be travelling to the US tomorrow to meet with US secretary of state Marco Rubio, adding that what she called the “Russian narrative” is “strongly represented” in comments being made by the second Donald Trump administration.
She told reporters “I think it’s good that we have as many interactions with the new administration in US as possible. I’m also travelling tomorrow to the US to meet Marco Rubio and others there to discuss these issues, because it’s extremely important.”
Continue reading...Why wait until you’re in your 60s or 70s to enjoy yourself? Some young people are opting for short periods off throughout their working lives
Name: Micro-retirement.
Age: Coined in 2007, but surging in popularity.
Continue reading...Sixty years ago this week, Jennie Lee launched Britain’s first culture white paper. Lisa Nandy must pick up the baton
The date is not in many history books. But it should be. It is 60 years on Tuesday since Britain’s first minister for the arts, Jennie Lee, published the first UK government white paper on the arts. The white paper, which crammed more into 18 pages than many government documents do at 10 times that length, was a landmark, an attempt to set out “a more coherent, generous and imaginative approach” to the arts policy this country lacked.
The current culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, has yet to publish such a white paper herself. She ought to do so. Nevertheless, last week she did the next best thing, travelling to Stratford-upon-Avon, the most iconic location on these islands in which to reflect on arts policy, to deliver an anniversary lecture in Buzz Goodbody’s experimental Other Place theatre.
Continue reading...In a tweet announcing his attack on the Climate Justice Alliance, EPA head Lee Zeldin linked it to the group’s protected speech about Palestine.
The post Trump’s EPA Kills Grant to Climate Nonprofit Over Its Support for Palestine appeared first on The Intercept.
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A group of volunteers is spending two months lying in bed—with their feet up and one shoulder always touching the mattress—even while eating, showering, and using the toilet. But why? This extreme bedrest study is helping scientists understand how space travel affects the human body and how to keep astronauts healthy on long missions.
Microgravity causes muscle and bone loss, fluid shifts, and other physiological changes similar to those experienced by bedridden patients on Earth. By studying volunteers here on Earth, researchers can develop better countermeasures for astronauts and even improve treatments for medical conditions like osteoporosis.
In this study, participants are divided into three groups: one stays in bed with no exercise, another cycles in bed to mimic astronaut workouts, and a third cycles while being spun in a centrifuge to simulate artificial gravity. Scientists hope artificial gravity could become a key tool in protecting astronauts during deep-space missions.
From biking adventures to city breaks, get inspiration for your next break – whether in the UK or further afield – with twice-weekly emails from the Guardian’s travel editors. You’ll also receive handpicked offers from Guardian Holidays.
From biking adventures to city breaks, get inspiration for your next break – whether in the UK or further afield – with twice-weekly emails from the Guardian’s travel editors.
You’ll also receive handpicked offers from Guardian Holidays.
Continue reading...
I can find essential and unusual facts for my arts journalism in the dusty old tomes – information not readily available on Google. And, as I did as a child, I lose myself in a world of books ...
Last September, I started walking to the library every day. As a University College London alumnus, I get free membership of both the Senate House library and the university’s main library. It is 90 minutes door to door, at a thinking pace, the perfect stretch of time during which to fuss over whatever is bothering me (a sentence, a professional hurdle, a private conversation) then gradually forget all about it and just let my mind wander too. That’s what the walk does. It unknots me.
That the destination is a library only compounds that. The beep when I swipe in with my card is the loudest thing I’ll hear all day. The necessary quiet of the space gentles my every gesture. I open doors more quietly. I pull chairs out from behind tables more carefully. I set up my station and sit down more promptly. And then I breathe.
All around me are these old tomes with clothbound covers – exactly the kind of books I used to look for as a child in my library at primary school. At that age, already, I often felt the need to escape the busyness of the world outside and I’d latch on to the oldest hardbacks as the best place to go for a good story.
These days, it is online we are all trying – if momentarily – to escape. Well, this really is the place to do that. It is not that I need to consult an art history book for every piece of journalism I write, but doing so inevitably yields different details from only Googling an artist: a quote, say, from a 1970s catalogue no one has thought to digitise, or the title of a piece an artist mentioned seeing when they were a student in the 1980s.
Also, just looking up from my laptop for the kind of regular break physios or optometrists sternly recommend now brings excitement, not dread. Instead of seeing the many chores (laundry, admin, clutter) that crowd my tiny workspace at home, my eyes land on a sea of titles. I’ve started photographing stacks of books. It is like concrete poetry.
I got to Senate House early the other morning and picked an empty room at random, only to realise at 10am that I was in the German literature section, surrounded by titles that composed something unexpectedly lyrical when put together (Light Beneath the Horizon; So I Sat Then Between All the Seats; Twilight). In the art history section, I’ve felt a certain thrill at reconnecting with the kind of Big Book you have to consult repeatedly as a student (Erwin Panofsky’s Early Netherlandish Painting) but that you then somehow never lose, like furniture in your mind. This week I opened a book on Cy Twombly and glitter drifted out from the creases. You see what books do? Someone was inspired …
If I’m cold or jittery, I’ll go downstairs and kind of melt into the noise of the coffee shop. If I’m stressed, I’ll walk to the Frank Auerbach section. And when I’m done, if there’s time, I walk home. No day at the office or WFH has ever felt as good.
For some members of the WhatsApp group, speaking out for Palestine and criticizing Israel are tantamount to supporting Hamas.
The post The Columbia Network Pushing Behind the Scenes to Deport and Arrest Student Protesters appeared first on The Intercept.
Report by Environmental Justice Foundation has found evidence that at least 12 Chinese fishing vessels had employed North Korean crew between 2019 and 2024
Chinese fishing fleets are allegedly using North Korean forced labour, a potential breach of international sanctions, with workers allegedly kept at sea for up to a decade, according to a new report by the UK-based Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF).
The report, published on Monday, has identified at least 12 Chinese deep-water fishing vessels that employed North Korean crew between 2019 and 2024.
Continue reading...One of the world’s largest private equity investors has made an approach to buy Chemring, the FTSE 250 defence group, Sky News reports
Shares in some European weapons makers are rising in early trading too.
German tank maker Rheinmetall jumped 3% at the start of trading, while in London BAE Systems are up 1.7%.
‘’A dose of more certainty has been injected into European politics, with the Germany’s Conservatives winning the elections. It comes at a crucial time for the continent. Three years on from the invasion of Ukraine, high stakes deal making between the US and Russia continues, Ukraine is out in the cold and the outcome will have huge implications for security in Europe.
There is a dawning realisation that European nations will have to pull together and present a more united deterrent force, and Friedrich Merz, the CDU leader, is reading from that script. He has pledged to relax fiscal rules, to increase defence spending and inject the economy with much needed investment. But while Merz seems determined to ease off the so-called debt brake, which limits annual borrowing to 0.35% of GDP, it won’t be straightforward, because he will need a two-third majority in parliament.
Continue reading...Ukraine president hails ‘three years of resistance’ as world leaders commemorate anniversary in Kyiv
The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas earlier said that she would be travelling to the US tomorrow to meet with US secretary of state Marco Rubio, adding that what she called the “Russian narrative” is “strongly represented” in comments being made by the second Donald Trump administration.
She told reporters “I think it’s good that we have as many interactions with the new administration in US as possible. I’m also travelling tomorrow to the US to meet Marco Rubio and others there to discuss these issues, because it’s extremely important.”
Continue reading...A byelection in Runcorn and Helsby would be the first of this parliament and will pose a big challenge for Labour
Here are comments from some of the other UK political parties on the third anniversary of the invastion of Ukraine.
From Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader
For three years, the brave Ukrainian people have heroically defended their country against Putin’s war machine. Now we face an era-defining moment which will determine the future of our continent for generations to come.
Now, more than ever, we must stand firmly in support of our Ukranian friends, resist Trump’s alarming attempts at a stitch up with Putin and work with our European neighbours to defend freedom and democracy.
Across the world today, people will be standing in solidarity with Ukraine. Yes, Russia started the war and yes, Ukraine is a democracy with an elected President. These basic facts need restating loud and clear because US President Donald Trump has chosen to buy into and amplify the lies and disinformation of the Russian state.
Vladimir Putin is a dangerous tyrant. It is deeply worrying that President Trump is now joining him in sowing division and chaos, and undermining the rule of law.
Today we remember the sacrifices made by the people of Ukraine to resist the illegal invasion by Russia. We stand in solidarity to protect the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine. We welcome and hold dear the Ukrainian people who have come to Scotland.
Today, on the third anniversary of Russia’s inhumane and illegal invasion of Ukraine, Plaid Cymru reiterates our unwavering support for Ukraine’s security and its sovereignty. We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
We are deeply concerned about the decision by the President of the United States to exclude Ukraine from discussions whilst engaging directly with Russia. Decisions about Ukraine’s future must include Ukraine itself. We also believe it is vital that the UK does not capitulate to continued Russian aggression.
Continue reading...Like a judo master, the Russian aggressor wears down his opponents until they break. Then he comes back for more
I have a friend, an American author, who writes about war. Over the past decades, he has been to South Sudan, Rwanda, Congo, Afghanistan, Iraq, Gaza and other conflict zones. In the case of Ukraine, he said one thing stood out: here it was obvious who was the aggressor and who was the victim. Alongside Bosnia, Ukraine’s resistance to Russia remains, in his opinion, one of two truly just wars.
After three years of fighting a just war against Putin’s aggression, we are now facing, with Donald Trump, an unjust peace. Ukraine will lose lands and will not receive compensation for its losses. War crimes will go unpunished and Ukrainians will not be provided with the security guarantees needed to protect them from future Russian attack.
Yaroslav Hrytsak is a historian and professor at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv
Continue reading...From claiming Ukraine was responsible for the war to incorrect numbers about aid received from the US and Europe, Donald Trump made a number of inaccurate statements while praising the progress made in US-Russia talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Guardian has had a look at his claims
Continue reading...Mikey Madison’s open-spirited performance as a lapdancer who falls for a feckless young client ignites a film brimful of heart, and we ought to return the love
When future historians look back at this year’s crop of Oscar nominees and ask what the world was like in 2024, what will they learn? Maybe that we’d had enough of reality, thanks. It’s telling that nine out of the 10 nominees are essentially set in the past, or in isolated or fantasy realms, from 1960s America (A Complete Unknown, Nickel Boys) to “Mexico” (Emilia Pérez, filmed in France), from Wicked’s Oz to Dune: Part Two’s Arrakis. Only one entry is set in genuine, here-and-now, modern-day society. What’s more, Anora goes to places mainstream cinema rarely does: the grubby streets, the strip clubs, the all-night cafes, off-season Brighton Beach in Brooklyn and the Russian and Armenian communities who live there. Anora also gives us the opposite: gated mansions, deluxe hotel suites, private jets. That’s the kind of film it is; that’s the kind of world we live in.
But the main reason Anora should win is that it’s simply an adorable film – full of heart and passion and energy and just life. It’s impossible not to be swept along with its hero, Ani – a gutsy but tragically naive lapdancer who falls for a Russian oligarch’s spoilt son, and spontaneously marries him. Mikey Madison’s beautifully open and spirited performance means we’re rooting for her every step of the way. Some have likened Anora to a Cinderella-like fairytale – minus the happy ever after. Pretty Woman it ain’t – but there’s far more going on here. As a snapshot of the degraded American Dream, a quarter of the way into the 21st century, for my money there’s been nothing better.
Continue reading...Trump is leaving Ukraine with impossible choices: fight a losing war without U.S. support, or submit to economic vassalage.
The post Trump Doesn’t Care About Ukraine or Russia — Just Money appeared first on The Intercept.
Spending ranges from new AI server factory in Texas to film and TV content and may add 20,000 jobs
Apple said on Monday it would spend $500bn in US investments in the next four years that will include a giant factory in Texas for artificial intelligence servers and add about 20,000 research and development jobs across the country in that time.
That $500bn in expected spending includes everything from purchases from US suppliers to US filming of television shows and movies for its Apple TV+ service. The company declined to say how much of the figure it was already planning to spend with its US supply base, which includes firms such as Corning that makes glass for iPhones in Kentucky.
Continue reading...Billionaire claims workers will face administrative leave if they ‘ignored President Trump’s executive order’
Elon Musk’s so-called “department of government efficiency” has been accused of setting off a political firestorm in India after it claimed that the US government had been sending millions of dollars to support the Indian elections.
In a list published on Musk’s social media platform X last week, Doge, a special group that Donald Trump created, claimed that a $21m grant distributed by USAid – the US agency for international development – to help “voter turnout in India” had been cancelled, as part of the president’s sweeping cuts to foreign aid.
Continue reading...FBI head Kash Patel tells agents to ‘pause’ responses to order as unnamed Pentagon official calls it ‘silliest thing in 40 years’
Elon Musk has poured fuel on to the fire raging across the US government over his ultimatum that federal workers document what they do at their jobs or face dismissal – by attacking a Pentagon official who had criticized the scheme as “the silliest thing I’ve seen in 40 years”.
The billionaire businessman, who has been authorised by Donald Trump to slash the federal bureaucracy as head of the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge), stoked the flames in a post on his social media platform X late on Sunday night. He slammed the unnamed Department of Defense (DoD) official quoted by CNN, saying that “anyone with the attitude of that Pentagon official needs to look for a new job”.
Continue reading...Environment justice advocates say tools to study pollution in vulnerable communities by companies, including xAI and SpaceX, have disappeared
As Donald Trump’s administration continues its purge of federal agencies, environmental justice campaigners are alarmed by the disappearance of federal environmental and climate data tools – some of which have been used to identify pollution concerns about Elon Musk’s companies.
Several federal agencies, including the EPA and CDC, previously published data regarding pollution levels across the country, as well as data about the vulnerability of each census tract, such as poverty rates and life expectancy. Several of the websites containing that data have gone dark in the weeks following Trump’s inauguration.
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Exclusive: Government reluctant to take action that could weaken UK’s attractiveness to AI firms, says Labour source
Ministers have delayed plans to regulate artificial intelligence as the UK government seeks to align itself with Donald Trump’s administration on the technology, the Guardian has learned.
A long-awaited AI bill, which ministers had originally intended to publish before Christmas, is not expected to appear in parliament before the summer, according to three Labour sources briefed on the plans.
Ministers had intended to publish a short bill within months of entering office that would have required companies to hand over large AI models such as ChatGPT for testing by the UK’s AI Security Institute.
The bill was intended to be the government’s answer to concerns that AI models could become so advanced that they pose a risk to humanity, and were different from separate proposals to clarify how AI companies can use copyrighted material.
Trump’s election has led to a rethink, however. A senior Labour source said the bill was “properly in the background” and that there were still “no hard proposals in terms of what the legislation looks like”. “They said let’s try and get it done before Christmas – now it’s summer,” the source added.
Another Labour source briefed on the legislation said an iteration of the bill had been prepared months ago but was now up in the air because of Trump, with ministers reluctant to take action that could weaken the UK’s attractiveness to AI companies.
Trump has torpedoed plans by his predecessor Joe Biden for regulating AI and revoked an executive order on making the technology safe and trustworthy. The future of the US AI Safety Institute, founded by Biden, is uncertain after its director resigned this month. At an AI summit hosted in Paris, JD Vance, the US vice-president, railed against Europe’s planned regulation of the technology.
The UK government chose to side with the US by refusing to sign the Paris declaration endorsed by 66 other countries at the summit. Peter Mandelson, the UK’s ambassador to Washington, has reportedly drafted proposals to make the UK the main hub for US AI investment.
Exclusive: Terrorist group the Base appears defiant as new administration aims to deprioritize threat from far right
An international neo-Nazi terrorist group with origins in the US appears to be quickly rebuilding its global and stateside ranks, according to information obtained by the Guardian from its digital accounts.
Founded in 2018, the Base has been the intense focus of a years-long FBI counter-terrorism investigation that has resulted in more than a dozen of its members arrested. It has plotted an assassination, mass shootings and other actions in Europe, which made it a proscribed terrorist organization in several countries.
Continue reading...Whenever you see a horror of anti-democratic rule, remember Mitch McConnell. You have him to thank
You would think that this is exactly what Mitch McConnell wanted. McConnell, the 83-year-old Kentucky senator – who announced last week that he will retire in 2026 and not seek an eighth term – is one of the most influential Republicans in the history of the party. But he has in recent weeks expressed dissent and discontent with the direction of the Republican party. He voted against some of Donald Trump’s cabinet appointees, refusing, for example, to cast a vote for the confirmation of the anti-diversity campaigner and alleged rapist and drunk Pete Hegseth.
He has also voiced some tepid and belated opposition to Republicans’ extremist agenda, citing his own experience as a survivor of childhood polio as a reason for his opposition to Republican attacks on vaccines. But the Republican party that McConnell is now shaking his head at is the one that he created. He has no one but himself to blame.
Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist
Continue reading...Parliamentary petition launched due to billionaire’s link to Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to conquer Canada
More than 150,000 people from Canada have signed a parliamentary petition calling for their country to strip Elon Musk’s Canadian citizenship because of the tech billionaire’s alliance with Donald Trump, who has spent his second US presidency repeatedly threatening to conquer its independent neighbor to the north and turn it into its 51st state.
British Columbia author Qualia Reed launched the petition in Canada’s House of Commons, where it was sponsored by New Democrat parliamentary member and avowed Musk critic Charlie Angus, as the Canadian Press first reported over the weekend.
Continue reading...The sooner the US’s former friends realise the old global order is over, the sooner they can organise to regain power and agency – the only language Trump understands
A resonant phrase during Donald Trump’s first administration was the advice to take him “seriously, but not literally”. It was a singularly detrimental expression, widely quoted by politicians and the media. Its adoption fit with the position many felt most comfortable taking: Trump was bad, but he wasn’t smart. He wasn’t intentional. He wasn’t calculated and deliberate. He sounded off, but rarely followed up with action. He was in essence a misfiring weapon that could do serious damage, but mostly by accident.
The residue of that approach still persists, even in analysis that describes Trump’s first executive orders as a campaign of “shock and awe”, as if it were just a matter of signalling rather than executing. Or that his plan for Gaza is to be taken – you guessed it – seriously, not literally. When that was suggested to Democratic senator Andy Kim, he lost it. “I understand people are bending over backwards to try to mitigate some of the fallout from these statements that are made,” he told Politico. But Trump is “the commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in the world … if I can’t take the words of the president of the United States to actually mean something, rather than needing some type of oracle to be able to explain, I just don’t know what to think about when it comes to our national security.”
Nesrine Malik is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...She won hearts with True Romance – and an Oscar for Boyhood. The actor reflects on her TV show Severance, political chaos in the US and why human beings are a disaster
If escaping the world by running for the hills looks increasingly attractive to many of us – perhaps living on a commune – Patricia Arquette feels like that too. Head to the mountains, she says. “Plant seeds and farm.” But maybe not the commune part – she lived in one as a child and it wasn’t always utopian. If our conversation is more dystopian than usual, it’s probably because we’re talking about Severance, the hit Apple TV+ show now in its second season. In the first series, we were introduced to Lumon Industries, where some workers, tasked with doing something unknown but probably malevolent with data, were willingly “severed”; their work selves detached from their outside selves, with no memory between the two. If the drama started as an off-kilter take on work-life balance, it soon morphed into something much darker.
Arquette plays Harmony Cobel, an icy and (mostly) controlled senior manager at Lumon before she was fired, then rehired. In the outside world, she is Mrs Selvig, neighbour of Mark, another Lumon employee (he is severed, she isn’t, and he doesn’t know she is his boss). Arquette wouldn’t say she likes Cobel as a character. “I feel sorry for her, in a way,” she says. “To be so indoctrinated by a thought system or organisation, whether it’s a religion, or a corporation or a military. Obviously, she’s done some things that are reprehensible, but like all people who do bad things, they always have reasons, excuses, for why they needed to do that thing.”
A forthcoming episode, which Arquette can’t talk about, explains a lot about why Cobel is as she is. It’s intense – the flashes of almost violent emotion we’ve already seen come out in a deluge – and Arquette is typically brilliant. It reinforced her sympathy for the characters. “I kind of feel sorry for everyone. There’s a lot of self-deception, a lot of wanting to belong, of wilful ignorance – and then just a lot of trickery and deception. That is never good.”
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Studying the climate crisis | Dangerous dogs | A teacher’s scorn | Learning reluctantly | Whatevs, Megs
The obvious solution to American researchers having grants withdrawn for projects containing the word “climate” (Outcry as Trump withdraws support for research that mentions ‘climate’, 21 February) is to rename climate heating “Trump”. We could be amazed that “Trump makes seas rise”, “Trump makes Greenland a green land again” and “Trump makes summer warmer and longer”. Who would oppose that?
Mark Davis
Frome, Somerset
• My friend always said that you should never leave a small child and a dog of any size together as it is equivalent to leaving two toddlers together and giving one of them a pair of sharp scissors (The rise of the cane corso: should this popular status dog be banned in the UK?, 19 February).
Vanessa Rickett
Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire
Comments come after Israel suspended release of 600 Palestinian detainees. This live blog is now closed
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said the group would keep following the path of slain chief Hassan Nasrallah on Sunday during a televised speech broadcast at his massive funeral on the outskirts of Beirut.
“We will uphold trust and walk on this path, we will uphold your will,” Qassem said referring to Nasrallah, adding: “you are still with us: your... path and struggle live within us” and “I am loyal to the legacy Nasrallah”.
Continue reading...John Feeley launches stinging critique of US president’s bully-boy approach to Latin America
The former US ambassador to Panama has launched a stinging critique of Donald Trump’s approach towards Latin America, comparing his conduct to that of the ruthless and egotistical fictional mob boss Tony Soprano.
In the first month of his presidency, the US president has shocked some observers with his aggressive focus on a region many expected him to largely ignore. Early steps have included threatening to “take back” the Panama Canal, accusing Mexico’s government of being in cahoots with narco-traffickers, sending an envoy to meet the Venezuelan dictator, Nicolás Maduro, and clashing with Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, over deportation flights.
Continue reading...Democrat Jasmine Crockett calls it ‘really wild’ that it is foreign leaders who are speaking truth to power
The congresswoman Jasmine Crockett has revealed she is “rooting” for Canada and Mexico over Donald Trump in their attempts to stand up to him, saying it is “really wild” to find herself in that position given he is the president of the US.
“They are really the ones that are speaking truth to power right now,” the Democratic representative from Texas said on Friday on the popular Breakfast Club podcast, alluding to the political feuds Trump has engaged in with the US’s two North American neighbors during the first month of his second presidency. “They can see what it is and they were like, ‘We are not messing with this crazy regime.’”
Continue reading...Trump’s crusade against “wokeness” is co-opting the language of the civil rights movement to undo its legacy.
The post How Trump Twisted DEI to Only Benefit White Christians appeared first on The Intercept.
With DOGE initiatives getting hung up in court, Elon Musk and Donald Trump attacked judges and flirted with defying their rulings.
The post DOGE’s Lawyer Once Warned That Ignoring Court Orders Would Destroy the Country appeared first on The Intercept.
This week on The Intercept Briefing, politics reporters Jessica Washington and Akela Lacy assess the full scope of Trump's first month in office.
The post One Month Under Trump: Are You Keeping Up? appeared first on The Intercept.
The cut, an anti-trans attack, was the latest example of confusion sown by bold claims that wither under scrutiny.
The post DOGE Said It Cut $232 Million From Social Security Budget. It Was Only About Half a Million. appeared first on The Intercept.
As well as intense human suffering, three years of war have had a catastrophic environmental effect, killing wildlife, felling trees and increasing emissions
Since 2022, the Guardian photographer Alessio Mamo has been tracking the impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine. The Kremlin’s full-scale invasion, which began three years ago on Monday, caused millions of Ukrainians to flee. Cities have been flattened, villages occupied and lives destroyed. At least 46,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and many more injured in Europe’s biggest conflict since the second world war.
Aerial view of craters caused by rocket fire in a field in the liberated area between Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Ammunition and missile residues in these craters may become a source of chemical pollution that could reach the groundwater
Continue reading...The Russian attack on Ukraine has reached its third anniversary amid intense diplomatic pressure from the US to force an end to the conflict
Continue reading...Hackney Empire, London
Eloise Lally’s Little Italy take on Bellini’s Romeo and Juliet opera has, in Samantha Price and Jessica Cale, strong and powerful leads. In the pit however, things are less assured
An attempt at brokering peace between warring factions is made in a tense call from a phonebox to a bar where men crowd around the beige receiver. The look: double-breasted suits and Brylcreem for one gang, brown leather and rollnecks for the other. Fedoras for all. As the curtain falls on act one, a man lights a Molotov cocktail and raises his arm to lob it into enemy property. Poison comes in mini liqueur bottles. The heroine has a serving hatch, not a balcony. Forget Verona.
Even without directorial input, Bellini’s Romeo and Juliet opera has long been a red rag to purists, riffing as it does on Shakespeare’s play via multiple Italian sources. Produced in six weeks to plug a gap in the roster at Venice’s La Fenice after another composer failed to deliver, this opera-against-the-odds has never matched the popularity of Bellini’s La Sonnambula or Norma.
Continue reading...An extract from Omar El Akkad’s new book argues that Gaza put to bed the fantasy of the USA as freedom fighter
Among my hazier memories of early adolescence in Qatar is a screening, at a friend’s home, of an obviously pirated Betamax copy of Red Dawn. My friend’s father – most everyone’s father or mother or uncle, whoever – would, while on business trips overseas, visit the occasional video store or flea market and return with whatever films or books or albums they happened to find. It’s a haphazard, incomplete thing to consume the culture of a faraway place in this manner, like trying to divine the contours of a mouth from the texture of spittle.
Red Dawn is a bad movie. Bad in a special, sincere kind of way. It’s about a bunch of teenagers who fight back against a Soviet invasion of the United States. Released in the early 80s, it belongs to a large fraternity of films in which scrappy underdog Americans fight back against the seemingly insurmountable but of course ultimately very surmountable power of the Soviet empire. In a couple of decades, the Russians would pass the baton of villainy to people who look like me, though in our case there was no real empire to speak of, and so we were mostly small-batch insidious, our specialty less tank-and-jet and more suicide-bomb-level violence. It didn’t much matter; Red Dawn with Arabs instead of Soviets for villains would have still been shit.
Continue reading...Pontiff, 88, was awake and in good humour, say Vatican sources, after being admitted to hospital with pneumonia
Pope Francis, who is battling pneumonia and “mild” kidney failure, had a good night, slept and is resting, the Vatican said in a brief statement on Monday morning.
Vatican sources said later that the pope was awake and continuing with the therapy, and was eating normally and in good humour.
Continue reading...Situation on American Airlines flight originally bound for New Delhi reportedly involved bomb threat sent by email
An American Airlines flight from New York to New Delhi landed safely in Rome on Sunday afternoon after it was diverted due to a security concern, which later proved to be “non-credible”, the airline said.
While the airline did not elaborate, NBC reported that the situation involved a bomb threat sent by email. The network cited a source familiar with the situation.
Continue reading...Nathan Gill is accused of agreeing to receive money to make statements ‘benefiting’ Russian narrative on Ukraine
A former leader of Reform UK in Wales agreed to receive money to make statements “benefiting” the Russian narrative on Ukraine while serving as an MEP, a court has been told.
Details of the allegations against Nathan Gill, who served as a member of the European parliament for Ukip and later the Brexit party from 2014 to 2020, were laid out at Westminster magistrates court on Monday.
Continue reading...Emissions estimated at 55m tonnes in 2024 and nearly 230m tonnes in three years of war
The burning of Ukraine’s forests at unprecedented rates over the past year has helped push the total greenhouse emissions from the war since Russia’s full-scale invasion to almost 230m tonnes, analysis shows.
The study, published on the third anniversary of the invasion, found the fighting and its consequences had led to 55m tonnes of emissions in the past 12 months.
Continue reading...No injuries reported after incident on Monday, which marks third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
An incendiary device exploded outside the Russian consulate in Marseille early on Monday, authorities said, on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. No injuries were reported.
A second device was thrown but did not explode, and a bomb disposal expert was called to the scene.
Continue reading...After Ademola Lookman’s miss in midweek, Lorenzo Lucca invited further criticism in ignoring his Udinese teammates
This was the week of the undesignated penalty taker in Italian football. On Tuesday, Ademola Lookman missed a spot-kick against Club Brugge and then listened to his manager, Gian Piero Gasperini, tear him to shreds for having the audacity to step up when teammates encouraged him to. The responsibility was supposed to fall to Charles De Ketelaere, but Lookman claimed the Belgian had told him to go for it.
Gasperini used his post-game press conference to roast Lookman, calling him “one of the worst penalty takers I’ve ever seen,” and adding that: “even in training he has a very low conversion rate. He shoots them really badly.” Four days later, Gasperini claimed surprise that his words had caused the striker to feel disrespected.
Continue reading...Three years after Russia’s invasion, UPL teams dream of a seat at Uefa’s top table to avoid an uncertain financial future
Last Friday, Kolos Kovalivka opened the second half of this Ukrainian Premier League season with a home match against a struggling Chornomorets Odesa. The match was kicked off by Dmytro Orel, a soldier who has fought for his country on the frontlines in the war-ravaged east. Orel took in the appreciation of a sparse crowd and saw Kolos score within two minutes. The cheers ended there: a fightback from the visitors brought a 2-1 win and dragged Kolos towards the relegation fight.
The previous day, an infinitely worse piece of news had broken. It was reported that Mykyta Kalin, a former Kolos youth-team player, had been killed during a combat mission in the Kharkiv region. Three years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, life must continue where possible and football is back on its feet. But its proximity to unimaginable violence, grief and destruction has not really shifted: the effects continue to be felt severely.
Continue reading...Research reveals UK institutions educated 50 world leaders in post in 2022, despite job cuts, course closures and a fall in foreign students
Universities in the UK, many of which are in the grip of a financial crisis, “educate more national leaders than any other country in the world”, according to analysis.
Research by Jisc, the UK’s higher education digital, data and technology agency, found UK institutions had educated 50 world leaders who were in post in 2022, with the US in second place with 41, followed by the Russian Federation (14) and France (six).
Continue reading...Labor promised prior to 2022 election to allow the cohort to apply for permanent Resolution of Status visas
It would take 100 years for the government to resolve the cases of the 7,000 asylum seekers living in Australia on bridging visas, Greens senator David Shoebridge estimates.
The group of 7,000 arrived in Australia by boat before 2013, when the Rudd government determined that no asylum seekers arriving by sea would be permanently resettled in Australia.
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Continue reading...This blog is now closed
How will the bulk-billing increase be paid for?
There’s been criticism of the opposition that its support of the $8.5bn package hasn’t come with a plan to pay for it.
We’ve been very clear about the things that we don’t think that the federal government should be investing in. I mean, we’ve done things like, you know, we don’t believe [in] the federal government’s rewiring the nation, as an example, the national reconstruction fund, all of these things we’ve voted against, you know, we believe that public servants in Canberra are not what we need. We actually need frontline services, service workers, like doctors, like nurses, which this policy addresses.
We are going to have to expect, unfortunately, a scare campaign. I mean, yesterday, at the launch, the prime minister and [Mark] Butler spent more time talking about Peter Dutton and the Liberal party than they did about themselves. So I think we can expect a scare campaign. But the facts don’t lie. The truth of all of this is quite clear in the statistics – under their watch, the health system in Australia has been significantly diminished.
Continue reading...Search for man dragged overboard near Newcastle during fishing competition hampered by fast-moving currents
Police say the “very experienced” fisher who went missing overboard during a fishing competition on Sunday afternoon is believed to have become entangled in fishing gear before he was dragged off the boat.
A multi-agency search is under way for the game fisher Paul Barning, after he fell overboard while fishing at about 1pm on Sunday, 55km off the coast of Newcastle.
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Continue reading...New Zealand defence minister Judith Collins says department has ‘never seen a task group of this capability undertaking this sort of work’
New Zealand’s defence minister has warned that Chinese warships located off the east coast of Australia are armed with “extremely capable” weapons that could reach Australia.
The three vessels, known as Taskgroup 107, undertook two live-fire exercises in the seas between Australia and New Zealand last week, causing commercial flights to be diverted in the skies above.
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Continue reading...Many of the nations gathering in Rome for Cop16 have offered no plans to honour their agreement to protect 30% of land and sea for nature
More than half the world’s countries have no plans to protect 30% of land and sea for nature, despite committing to a global agreement to do so less than three years ago, new analysis shows.
In late 2022, nearly every country signed a once-in-a-decade UN deal to halt the destruction of Earth’s ecosystems. It included a headline target to protect nearly a third of the planet for biodiversity by the end of the decade – a goal known as “30 by 30”.
Continue reading...As administration cuts off resources from African countries to contain outbreak, workers say ‘everybody’s lost’
As the Trump administration dismantles the US Agency for International Development (USAid) and retreats from funding global public health efforts, mpox – formerly known as monkeypox – is at greater risk of becoming a wider global emergency, according to aid workers and global health experts.
“It’s a real mistake not to be doing everything we can to control this while we’re still able to,” said Stephen Morse, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia University focusing on risk assessment of infectious diseases. “Taking huge steps backwards is only going to make everything worse.”
Continue reading...A former campaign staffer said Sen. John Fetterman’s single-minded focus came at the exclusion of the progressive positions he ran on.
The post Fetterman Staff Quit Amid Frustration Over “Just Working on Israel All the Time” appeared first on The Intercept.
The video might bring pleasure to their supporters, but for us it is a call to shut down their fascist deportation machine.
The post Trump and Musk Delight in the Sounds of Human Suffering With Sick “ASMR” Immigrant Video appeared first on The Intercept.
Victor Pelevin made his name in 90s Russia with scathing satires of authoritarianism. But while his literary peers have faced censorship and fled the country, he still sells millions. Has he become a Kremlin apologist? By Sophie Pinkham. Read by Olga Koch
Continue reading...Goal of increasing renewable energy generation 20-fold to be ditched, shareholders to be told this week
BP is expected to ditch a target to ramp up renewable energy generation by 2030 as part of a shift back towards fossil fuels when it presents its strategy to investors this week.
The chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, is poised to tell shareholders that the oil and gas company is scrapping its target to increase renewable generation 20-fold between 2019 and 2030 to 50 gigawatts, Reuters reported.
Continue reading...Critics say practice risks perception that members of House of Lords are exploiting role for personal gain
Ninety-one members of the House of Lords have been paid by commercial companies to give political or policy advice, amid concerns that their activities are not being properly regulated.
Analysis by the Guardian shows that more than one in 10 peers have taken payments from businesses such as lobbyists and companies operating in the banking, defence and energy sectors. Peers can earn tens of thousands of pounds a year for such roles.
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Photographer Ewen Spencer captures the energy of a garage music night for working-class kids
Ewen Spencer took this picture at a Sunday club night called Twice As Nice at The End in London’s West Central Street in 1999. He’d been a regular there back in the days when it was held at the Colosseum in Vauxhall, south of the river. The move to the West End signalled that its garage music was becoming more a mainstream part of culture. Spencer, who grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne, had been documenting underground party nights for a decade by then for magazines such as the Face and i-D. He was a soul boy at heart, and saw in garage culture similar attractions: “It was working-class kids dressing up for a big night out,” he recalls, “quite different from acid house, for example.”
Spencer’s picture is included in a new Hayward Gallery touring exhibition After the End of History: British Working Class Photography 1989-2024. Spencer was influenced by north-east based photographers such as Chris Killip and Graham Smith; he wanted to make authentic pictures that captured “some of the moves and female-heavy love and jubilation of those nights”, he says.
After the End of History: British Working Class Photography 1989-2024 is at Stills, Edinburgh, 21 March to 28 June
Continue reading...Data shows aircraft parts from more than 100 western companies reached Russian aviation industry via India
British firms are among more than 100 western companies, including the aerospace giant Boeing, which have exported aircraft parts to India that reached Russia, according to customs data.
Analysis suggests products worth more than $50m have passed through intermediaries in India to Russian airlines and other entities over a 21-month period up to September 2024.
Continue reading...This isn’t new, but it’s increasingly popular:
The technique is known as device code phishing. It exploits “device code flow,” a form of authentication formalized in the industry-wide OAuth standard. Authentication through device code flow is designed for logging printers, smart TVs, and similar devices into accounts. These devices typically don’t support browsers, making it difficult to sign in using more standard forms of authentication, such as entering user names, passwords, and two-factor mechanisms.
Rather than authenticating the user directly, the input-constrained device displays an alphabetic or alphanumeric device code along with a link associated with the user account. The user opens the link on a computer or other device that’s easier to sign in with and enters the code. The remote server then sends a token to the input-constrained device that logs it into the account...
Russia's foreign minister has dismissed the prospect of a place for Europe at talks between the US and Russia to end the fighting in Ukraine. Speaking at a press conference alongside his Serbian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov said: 'If they are going to weasel out some cunning ideas about freezing the conflict, while actually intending – as is their custom, nature and habit – to continue the war, then why should we invite them at all?'
European leaders have been unnerved by the willingness of Donald Trump, the US president, to engage the Kremlin directly over Ukraine and have been attempting to find a place for themselves in the talks
Continue reading...Oracle, which has secret partnerships with Israel, has told employees to love the country or work elsewhere.
The post Poised to Take Over TikTok, Oracle Is Accused of Clamping Down on Pro-Palestine Dissent appeared first on The Intercept.
Senate Democrats have the power to block federal contracts to Tesla and SpaceX. It’s the path to pushing Musk out of politics.
The post This Is the Way to Stop Elon Musk appeared first on The Intercept.
Benjamin Netanyahu has said his government is working closely with the US to implement Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, which involves US ownership of the coastal strip, the removal of more than 2 million Palestinians and the redevelopment of the occupied territory as a resort. The Israeli prime minister was speaking after a meeting in Jerusalem with the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, who defended the Trump plan as bold and visionary
Continue reading...Oversight laws about foreign influence were already limited. Now the Trump administration is shredding them.
The post How Many Trump Officials Have Taken Money From Qatar? appeared first on The Intercept.
The parents of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny joined hundreds of mourners at their son's grave on Sunday to mark the anniversary of his death. Navalny died aged 47 on 16 February last year while being held in a jail about 40 miles north of the Arctic Circle, where he had been sentenced to 19 years under a ‘special regime’
Continue reading...For some members of the WhatsApp group, speaking out for Palestine and criticizing Israel are tantamount to supporting Hamas.
The post The Columbia Network Pushing Behind the Scenes to Deport and Arrest Student Protesters appeared first on The Intercept.
In a tweet announcing his attack on the Climate Justice Alliance, EPA head Lee Zeldin linked it to the group’s protected speech about Palestine.
The post Trump’s EPA Kills Grant to Climate Nonprofit Over Its Support for Palestine appeared first on The Intercept.
CoreCivic CEO Damon Hininger could barely contain his excitement about the Laken Riley Act and Trump’s anti-immigration executive orders.
The post Private Prison CEO on Trump Deportation Surge: “One of the Most Exciting Periods in My Career” appeared first on The Intercept.
And that’s how he wants to keep it, his executive orders and memos from Attorney General Pam Bondi show.
The post Trump Is Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud: Federal Prisons Are Purposely Inhumane appeared first on The Intercept.
How exactly the IRS will use the SuperPod AI hardware is unclear. But it comes amid a push for automation in government.
The post The IRS Is Buying an AI Supercomputer From Nvidia appeared first on The Intercept.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s chaotic approach to reform is upending government operations. Critical functions have been halted, tens of thousands of federal staffers are being encouraged to resign, and congressional mandates are being disregarded. The next phase: The Department of Government Efficiency reportedly wants to use AI to cut costs. According to The Washington Post, Musk’s group has started to run sensitive data from government systems through AI programs to analyze spending and determine what could be pruned. This may lead to the elimination of human jobs in favor of automation. As one government official who has been tracking Musk’s DOGE team told the...
“What he’s done is testing the limits of his power in a way we have never seen in this country,” says retired federal Judge Nancy Gertner.
The post Constitutional Crisis Looms appeared first on The Intercept.
Musk has emerged as Trump’s far-right-hand man, creating some awkwardness for the president’s Democratic foes.
The post Democrats Swear They’ll Fight Elon Musk. But What About the Cash They Took From SpaceX? appeared first on The Intercept.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is trying to eliminate all Defense Department DEI efforts. It hasn’t been entirely successful.
The post Pentagon Official: Hegseth’s Campaign to Scrub DEI History Is a “Dumb” Distraction appeared first on The Intercept.
Even with Jordan and Egypt refusing to take in expelled Palestinians, Trump is charging on with his real estate development plan.
The post Trump Is Bullying Jordan and Egypt to Help in Ethnic Cleansing of Gaza. It Isn’t Working. appeared first on The Intercept.
ICE wants to hire contractors to monitor social media for threats. Those who criticize the agency could be pulled into the dragnet.
The post ICE Wants to Know If You’re Posting Negative Things About It Online appeared first on The Intercept.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has signed a contract with Thales Alenia Space in Italy to lead European aerospace companies in building the Argonaut Lunar Descent Element, ESA’s first lunar lander.
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