********** USA POLITICS **********
return to top
The House Just Blessed Trump’s Authoritarian Playbook by Passing Nonprofit-Killer Bill
Thu, 21 Nov 2024 16:12:31 +0000
Democratic support for the bill dwindled as critics warned it would let Donald Trump crack down on political foes.
The post The House Just Blessed Trump’s Authoritarian Playbook by Passing Nonprofit-Killer Bill appeared first on The Intercept.
Democrats are in disarray. It’s time to name our enemies and assert our demands to build a party that can win.
The post Take Out the Trash: A Proposal to Clean Up the Democratic Party appeared first on The Intercept.
Experts warn assuming minority groups will reject a racist candidate ignores nuance, particularly on the economy
Since Donald Trump won the 2024 US presidential election, many have publicly speculated why people of color – with whom Trump made some gains – would vote for a racist candidate. Throughout his campaign, Trump and his supporters spouted a series of racist remarks aimed at Black and Latino people, immigrants at large and other marginalized groups. He also promised to utilize the military to carry out mass deportations, ban sanctuary cities, and escalate attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts at the federal level.
Swaths of non-white voters still supported Trump at the ballot box. And though this sort of data can vary in reliability, experts agree that Trump made inroads among some minorities despite his bigoted comments.
Continue reading...Silicon Valley has successfully rebranded military contracting as a proud national duty for the industry.
The post Trump’s Election Is Also a Win for Tech’s Right-Wing “Warrior Class” appeared first on The Intercept.
The PRESS Act, a federal reporter shield bill, already passed the House unanimously. Trump wants it dead.
The post Trump Wants to Kill a Bipartisan Bill That Protects Journalists and Whistleblowers appeared first on The Intercept.
Sanders’s resolutions to block arms sales to Israel gained momentum, but ran headlong into White House opposition.
The post Bernie Sanders Lost Vote to Block Arms for Israel, Says U.S. Is “Funding the Starvation of Children in Gaza” appeared first on The Intercept.
Ocasio-Cortez accused Republican Nancy Mace of trying to ‘make a buck and fundraise’ with her anti-trans restrictions
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has defended Representative Sarah McBride and criticized House Republicans’ efforts to ban trans people from using bathrooms on Capitol Hill that match their gender identity.
The new restrictions, introduced by Republican representative Nancy Mace and supported by the GOP speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, bans transgender people, including congressional members, officers and employees, from using the single-sex bathrooms and other facilities in the Capitol and House office buildings that correspond to their gender identity.
Continue reading...Trump campaigned on mass deportations. Now he’s threatening to use the U.S. military to carry them out.
The post “Absolutely Insane”: Pentagon Officials on Trump’s Military Deportation Plan appeared first on The Intercept.
Republican says nomination process was ‘unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition’
The reactions to Matt Gaetz’s surprise withdrawal of his attorney general nomination are coming in.
First up is California’s Democratic representative Eric Swalwell, who took to X and wrote:
“As I said repeatedly last week, Matt Gaetz is never, ever becoming Attorney General.
Like ever.”
“I had excellent meetings with senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback – and the incredible support of so many. While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition.
There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as attorney general. Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1. I remain fully committed to see that Donald J. Trump is the most successful President in history. I will forever be honored that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I’m certain he will Save America.”
Continue reading...Critics argue it would give Trump sweeping powers to crack down arbitrarily on his political opponents
The Republican-controlled US House on Thursday passed a bill that would give the government broad powers to punish non-profit organizations it deems support “terrorism”.
This was the second time members voted on the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, or HR 9495. Last week, after suspending House rules to fast-track the bill, the lower chamber failed to garner the two-thirds majority required to pass. This time, after passing the House committee on rules, the bill – requiring only a simple majority to pass – survived by a vote of 219-184. Fifteen Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the measure.
Continue reading...A joint resolution from Sen. Bernie Sanders would block arms sales to Israel. The challenge is convincing Democrats to act.
The post Senators Have a Chance to Halt Weapons Sales to Israel. Will They Take It? appeared first on The Intercept.
Republican calls Trump’s choice of national intelligence director ‘a Russian, Iranian, Syrian, Chinese sympathizer’
Nikki Haley, the former UN ambassador and Republican presidential hopeful, criticized two of Donald Trump’s cabinet picks, calling his choice for director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, “a Russian, Iranian, Syrian, Chinese sympathizer” and Robert F Kennedy Jr, tapped for health secretary, a “liberal Democrat” with no background in relevant policy.
“So now she’s defended Russia, she’s defended Syria, she’s defended Iran, and she’s defended China,” Haley said of Gabbard on her SiriusXM radio show on Wednesday. “No, she has not denounced any of these views. None of them. She hasn’t taken one of them back.
Continue reading...RFK Jr has articulated what our Democratic and Republican leaders have largely ignored: our healthcare system is a national disgrace hiding in plain sight
Among the cast of characters poised to join the Trump administration, no one is as exasperating, polarizing or potentially dangerous as Robert F Kennedy Jr. But in a twist that is emblematic of our times, no single nominee has the potential to do as much good for the American people.
Bear with me. RFK Jr has been rightly pilloried for promoting a litany of theories linking vaccines with autism, chemicals in the water supply to gender identity, how people contract Aids and saying the Covid-19 vaccine, which in fact stemmed the deadliest pandemic of our lifetimes, was itself “the deadliest vaccine ever made”. He claimed Covid-19 was meant to target certain ethnic groups, Black people and Caucasians, while sparing Asians and Jewish people.
Continue reading...The Republicans were always the party of big business, but Mr Trump is turning them into a playpen for oligarchs
One person turns up surprisingly often at Donald Trump’s side. Not his No 2, JD Vance, nor his wife, Melania, but another man a quarter-century younger and about $300bn heavier: Elon Musk. The two hunkered down in Mar-a-Lago on the night of the election, celebrating the results. This week they were in Texas, watching Mr Musk’s staff test-launch a spacecraft. During the campaign, Mr Musk personally chipped in $130m, made speeches at rallies and organised campaigns to “get out the vote”. Last week, the world’s richest man was picked by the president-elect to run a new “department of government efficiency”. So close are the pair that Mr Musk dubs himself “First Buddy”.
American politics has always been coiled around money, tight as a vine around a trunk. Nearly 25 years ago, George W Bush joked at a swanky white-tie dinner: “Some people call you the elites; I call you my base.” Nor is it confined to the right wing. Of the two main candidates in this month’s election, more billionaires backed Kamala Harris. One result is a highly warped politics that works against the very people it urges to go out and vote.
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
Continue reading...Nine health care workers at UCSF report censorship or punishment for speaking out about human rights for Palestinians — or simply wearing a pin.
The post San Francisco’s Biggest Hospital System: Don’t Talk About Palestine appeared first on The Intercept.
The former culture secretary’s ‘real-life political thriller’ takes in sex parties and pasta plotters – but raises more questions than it answers
Does Nadine Dorries know, in Downfall, she’s borrowing her title from a much-giffed film about the last days of Hitler? When the publishers blurb on the back that this is an “astonishing real-life political thriller”, do they mean its facts are as lurid as fiction, or are they trying to gloss the account as fiction to avert legal challenge? Why, in her anonymous, deep-throat encounters, do her sources tend to start by telling her how much they enjoyed her last book, The Plot?
This is nominally the story of Christmas 2023 to July 2024, and how the so-called “pasta plotters” tried to get rid of Rishi Sunak. There is no way on God’s Earth you would ever get that from the narrative, which doubles back on itself so often, to praise and defend Boris Johnson and castigate his enemies, that you never have any idea where you are, chronologically, or what point Dorries is trying to land. It’s like trying to map terrain by following a dog. You have to take that time period, and that subject matter, on trust from the author, and I just cannot stress strongly enough how much you shouldn’t do that.
Continue reading...In new videos, Vice editor-in-chief Shane Smith treats immigrants as a problem and apologizes to Elon Musk for past coverage.
The post Vice’s Hard-Right Turn to Trumpism appeared first on The Intercept.
Whisky and migration thwarted earlier deal but UK PM hopeful of reaching agreement with Narendra Modi
Keir Starmer is to restart the aborted UK-India trade talks in the new year after an agreement stalled amid disagreements over whisky tariffs and migration.
No progress has been made on the deal since early this year after the last round of talks concluded. As prime minister, Boris Johnson promised a swift deal, but Rishi Sunak was said to be deeply uneasy with some of the provisions that had been negotiated by his predecessor. Talks were put on hold in March while both countries prepared for general elections.
Continue reading...Progressives in Congress are urging party leaders to use their two remaining months in power to erect barriers to Trump’s agenda.
The post Squad Goals: Democrats Must Use Lame-Duck Power to Fight Trump Now appeared first on The Intercept.
Reports of the criminal justice reform movement’s death are greatly exaggerated.
The post Elon Musk Quietly Tried to Oust a Reform DA. Here’s Why He Failed. appeared first on The Intercept.
Gaetz’s withdrawal comes amid intense scrutiny of allegations of sexual misconduct against the cabinet nominee
Matt Gaetz, the former Republican representative, withdrew from consideration to serve as Donald Trump’s attorney general on Thursday, amid intense scrutiny of allegations of sexual misconduct against the cabinet nominee.
After meeting with senators on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Gaetz determined that his nomination was “becoming a distraction to the critical work” of the new Trump administration, he explained on X.
Continue reading...Trump’s Pentagon pick accused of 2017 sexual assault after Republican women’s conference in California
A woman told police that she was sexually assaulted in 2017 by Pete Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report made public late on Wednesday.
Hegseth, a Fox News personality and Donald Trump’s nominee to be defense secretary, told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said.
Continue reading...Dozens of Democrats still support the bill — giving the Republican-controlled House plenty of breathing room to pass it next week.
The post House GOP Moves to Ram Through Bill That Gives Trump Unilateral Power to Kill Nonprofits appeared first on The Intercept.
World’s richest man responds to UK parliamentarians saying they will call him to testify about X’s role in spreading disinformation during riots
Elon Musk has said UK MPs “will be summoned to the United States of America to explain their censorship and threats to American citizens” in a fresh escalation of tensions between the world’s richest man and Labour.
Musk, who has been a fixture at the side of Donald Trump since his re-election as US president, was responding to a Guardian report on Wednesday that the Commons’ science and technology select committee would call him to give evidence in the new year in its inquiry into the spread of harmful content on social media after the August riots.
Continue reading...A violent, white supremacist regime is coming, but there is room to organize — and capture the backlash when it fails.
The post How to Fortify Against the Trump Agenda While There’s Still Time appeared first on The Intercept.
The fate of the new “click-to-cancel” rule will show whether some Republicans are serious about cracking down on anti-competitive practices.
The post The Looming GOP Battle Over Whether You Have to Go to Hell and Back to Cancel Amazon Prime appeared first on The Intercept.
Trump’s pick for attorney general shows that loyalty is the only qualification that matters.
The post Matt Gaetz Is Barely a Lawyer appeared first on The Intercept.
This live blog is closed
British prime minister Keir Starmer says he is “deeply saddened” to hear that Prescott has died, and called him a “true giant of Labour”.
In a statement on X, he said, “I am deeply saddened to hear of the death of John Prescott. John was a true giant of the Labour movement. On behalf of the Labour Party, I send my condolences to Pauline and his family, to the city of Hull, and to all those who knew and loved him. May he rest in peace.”
He possessed an inherent ability to connect with people about the issues that mattered to them – a talent that others spend years studying and cultivating, but that was second nature to him.
He fought like hell to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol and was an unwavering champion of climate action for decades to come. I’m forever grateful to John for that commitment to solving the climate crisis and will miss him as a dear friend.”
Continue reading...Thousands of farmers descended on Westminster this week, to protest against changes made in last month’s budget over inheritance tax. The government claim that this will affect a small minority of farms. But with slim profits and many farmers saying it will spell the end of their businesses, has the government got it wrong? The Guardian’s John Harris speaks to some of those protesting against the changes, and environmental correspondent Helena Horton
Support the Guardian today: theguardian.com/politicspod
Continue reading...From long-range missiles being launched to North Korean troops being drafted in, Dan Sabbagh looks at whether the rapid escalation could signal the beginning of the end of the conflict
Tuesday marked 1,000 days of the Ukraine war – a conflict that for months had seemingly no end in sight. Russia has been advancing, but its progress has been grindingly slow, with Ukraine’s resistance struggling with a lack of weapons and aid. Both sides have had problems with morale and recruitment.
Over the past week, things have changed. Russia has drafted in North Korean troops, while Ukraine has hit Russia with long-range missiles provided by the US. Dan Sabbagh is in Ukraine and explains how hits to the energy grid could make the difference on the ground, and how important the use of North Korean troops could be given the lack of willing Russian conscripts.
Continue reading...The letter urges President Joe Biden to follow through on an ultimatum his administration issued to Israel over humanitarian aid.
The post White House Staffers to Biden: “You Are Running Out of Time” on Gaza appeared first on The Intercept.
In the face of a second Trump term, the left must cultivate a politics of everyday life that goes beyond voting, says columnist Natasha Lennard.
The post Radical Action Under Trump appeared first on The Intercept.
Veteran Labour politician was an analytical thinker who could ask sharp, pertinent questions in a natural way
• UK politics live – latest updates
Tributes have been piling in for John Prescott, the deputy prime minister from 1997 to 2007, who has died aged 86.
The son of a railway signalman, Prescott was born in Prestatyn, Wales, in 1938 and left school at 15 to work as a trainee chef and then as a steward on the Cunard Line before entering politics.
Continue reading...Sector will have extra £2.8bn cost burden from April due to tax and wage rises announced in budget, says Nuffield Trust
Large parts of England’s adult social care market face collapse as a result of tax and wage rises announced in the budget, with devastating consequences for vulnerable and older people who rely on care services, a leading thinktank has warned.
The Nuffield Trust said that while the government has consistently spoken of its long term ambition to reform the social care sector, there may be “little of it left” to reform unless it takes urgent action to stabilise the care market financially.
Continue reading...Readers respond to a police chief’s call for reforms to end the different standards of policing across England and Wales
Yet again we have a senior chief constable calling for a single national police force (In England and Wales, where you live determines the kind of policing you get. That isn’t right, 18 November). Gavin Stephens rightly points out the logistical difficulties created by having 43 separate and independent police forces in England and Wales, but he fails to mention the other side of the coin: the increased danger in reduced accountability and the potential increases in the abuse of power by concentrating the considerable powers of chief constables into a single authority.
The importance of pluralism in police provision is occasionally seen in the identification of poor performance and the rectification of abuses by chief constables. To do this would be far more difficult in a single national force. My time on the West Yorkshire police authority when it was an integral part of the West Yorkshire metropolitan county council was salutary. Its policing of the 1984-85 miners’ strike was significantly different from the more confrontational actions in South Yorkshire. It is not possible to guarantee which policy would be followed by a single national force. I would not wish the latter style to become nationally dominant.
Michael Meadowcroft
Leeds
John Burton on the overhaul of children’s social care, and Janet Maitland on how chronic underfunding has tainted assessments of people’s needs
As someone who has worked in children’s homes since the 1960s and who is part of a community of people who have experience of generally good children’s homes, I don’t expect the government’s proposed reforms will have the desired effect (Overhaul of children’s social care in England will crack down on firms’ profiteering, 18 November). When care was put in the hands of profit-driven providers and local authorities and charities stopped providing the homes that some ran well in the past, what did we think would happen?
When social workers are so restricted in time and resources that they are forced to turn to shameless profiteers to accommodate children who need a home, love and childcare expertise, why are we shocked that children are not getting the support they need?
Continue reading...NAHT says early checks on phonics, arithmetic and English in primary schools are potential waste of time and funding
Primary school pupils in England should not face compulsory tests on phonics, times tables or grammar and punctuation, an influential headteachers’ union has advised the government.
The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) told the government’s national curriculum and assessment review that there was an “urgent need” to reconsider the phonics check of reading ability, along with the multiplication check and tests of spelling, grammar and punctuation, as a potential waste of school time and funding.
Continue reading...Action on World Health co-founder’s firm provides services to organisation that advocates for nicotine pouches
Nigel Farage’s group campaigning against the World Health Organization (WHO) is staffed by consultants who work with the nicotine products industry, the Guardian can reveal.
Farage is the chair and a co-founder of Action on World Health, which campaigns to reform or replace the WHO, arguing that it should not be putting pressure on governments to bring in public health measures.
Continue reading...Programme for company’s move north includes Glass’s Einstein on the Beach, Britten and a new youth company
A rarely produced, interval-free five-hour opera hailed as revolutionary when it was first performed in 1976 is to be part of English National Opera’s first three years of plans for Greater Manchester.
Philip Glass and Robert Wilson’s plotless Einstein on the Beach baffled some opera-goers when it was first seen in 1976. But many also saw it as visionary. The New York Times critic Clive Barnes said it was “bizarre, occasionally boring, yet always intermittently beautiful”, adding: “You will never forget it, even if you hate it.”
Continue reading...Putin is an isolated dictator, devoid of scruple. Firing missiles into Russia will only lead to more hardship for the people of Ukraine
This is how big wars start, when small ones go wrong. Nato politicians are deliberately playing with fire along the Ukrainian frontier, as UK-made missiles have been launched into Russia for the first time since the beginning of the conflict. The attack came a day after Kyiv used US-supplied long-range weapons to strike within Russia. Every military comment on British and US authorisation of missile attacks on Russia has said the same. They are “too little, too late”, and unlikely to affect a war that has increasingly turned to Russia’s advantage.
So why are the attacks happening? The answer of Britain’s defence secretary, John Healey, is that he wants to “continue doubling down” on Britain’s support for Ukraine and give a morale boost to its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, before Donald Trump takes power in Washington. He clearly thinks the obvious risk involved in the escalation is worthwhile.
Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...The word is trending as Trump makes cabinet picks – but it’s not the first time it’s been used to describe lousy leadership
Matt Gaetz running the justice department. Fox hosts in charge of the Pentagon and transportation. Elon Musk as head of layoffs. And Robert F Kennedy Jr and Dr Oz overseeing the nation’s health.
Some have likened Donald Trump’s administrative picks to a clown car; others are calling our incoming leadership a kakistocracy, or “government by the worst people”, as Merriam-Webster puts it.
Continue reading...Former health secretary also pressed at Covid inquiry on the ‘slowness’ of the resumption of elective care
The former health secretary Matt Hancock has said he “reluctantly” approved of the decision to pause non-urgent planned care during the pandemic.
Ministers prioritised hospital capacity for Covid and emergency patients, and so paused elective (non-urgent) treatment from April 2020.
Continue reading...Communications minister says there is ‘no place for sexist, racist or otherwise derogatory language’, but PM declines to comment on Kyle and Jackie O show
Kyle Sandilands has boasted about being able to broadcast sexually explicit content on breakfast radio, as he comes under fire for the “derogatory” language used on the Kyle and Jackie O show.
Following Guardian Australia’s report into how the show skirts decency standards despite having underage listeners, Sandilands and his Kiis FM co-host Jackie O Henderson took to the airwaves, playing audio of someone reading out one of Henderson’s sexual fantasies, which was read despite Henderson’s repeated objections.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email
Continue reading...People are being threatened and punished at the hint of cross-party cooperation. It’s control freakery we cannot afford
In June 2023 I was served notice by the Labour party that my 44-year membership could be terminated over a retweet supporting cross-party progressive cooperation. Almost 18 months later I, quite nervously, opened an email telling me I had been found “not guilty”. In most ways I matter not a jot: I was probably being used as a more high-profile example to warn others off such abhorrent behaviour.
Less robust and less well-connected figures, those for whom their party membership matters enormously, find such a trial a real ordeal. I’ve been let off by people I don’t know in a system operating in the dark. I made a big public fuss. Others can’t, and suffer their fate alone. And there are many of them. Their plight matters, but more importantly: why is this happening, and what does it tell us about Labour’s deep purpose and culture?
Neal Lawson is director of the cross-party campaign organisation Compass
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
Continue reading...Steve Reed says he may not agree on inheritance tax changes but government will listen to rural Britain
The UK environment secretary has promised to reform the food system to ensure farmers are paid fairly for the food they produce, after many filled the streets of Westminster to campaign against inheritance tax changes.
Speaking at the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) conference, Steve Reed said: “I heard the anguish of the countryside on the streets of London earlier this week. We may not agree over the inheritance tax changes, but this government is determined to listen to rural Britain and end its long decline.”
Continue reading...They disagree on the climate crisis, Farage and the president-elect – so how did they have such a nice time?
Wendy, 55, Bristol
Occupation Works in IT
Continue reading...Say Nothing, about 1972 abduction and murder of Jean McConville, is horrendous, says Michael McConville
The son of Jean McConville, a woman who was murdered and buried in secret by the IRA, has condemned a new Disney series on her death as “horrendous” and “cruel”.
The series is based on the acclaimed book Say Nothing, about McConville and the wider role of the IRA during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, written by the US journalist Patrick Radden Keefe.
Continue reading...Gynaecology has one of the longest waiting lists in the UK. Women’s health has been neglected for too long
A few weeks ago, a police officer came to my urogynaecology clinic for a follow-up appointment. She told me that, since her surgery, her life had changed completely. When I first met her she had been waiting years for treatment for incontinence, and she was miserable. She’d been taking more and more time off work as her condition deteriorated, and had started to feel that there was no hope. Now, after a relatively simple operation, she’s back at work and thrilled with life. I love my job, and I cannot measure the joy that we give to patients when we manage to help them, but I’m frustrated that they often have to wait so long.
As a new report from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) shows, women such as my patient are the tip of the iceberg. It found that more than three-quarters of a million women are on waiting lists trying to get treatment for serious gynaecological conditions – and they are just the ones who have seen a GP and been referred onwards for specialist care. Gynaecology has one of the worst waiting lists across the UK. More than three-quarters (76%) of women waiting for care reported worsening mental health and more than two-thirds (69%) said they were unable to take part in daily activities, including work, socialising, having relationships and caring responsibilities. Many of them mentioned experiencing pain, exhaustion, breathlessness, dizziness, anaemia and infections because of their worsening conditions.
Ranee Thakar is president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and a consultant obstetrician and urogynaecologist at Croydon university hospital
As told to Katy Guest
Continue reading...John Prescott, who has died at 86, served as deputy prime minister for more than a decade under Tony Blair, and was seen as a custodian of the Labour party’s traditional values in the face of a modernising leadership. Blair and Gordon Brown led tributes, with Blair telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme he was 'one of the most talented people I ever encountered in politics'
Continue reading...We would like to hear your memories of John Prescott – whether you met him, or appreciated his work in politics
John Prescott, former British deputy prime minister, has died aged 86. Prescott was a former trade union activist and a significant figure of the New Labour movement. Prescott served as deputy prime minister under Blair, and was seen as a custodian of the Labour party’s traditional values in the face of a modernising leadership.
We would like to hear your tributes and memories of John Prescott – whether you met him, or appreciated the work he did in politics.
Continue reading...The former British deputy prime minister John Prescott has died aged 86. His family said he ‘spent his life trying to improve the lives of others, fighting for social justice and protecting the environment’
Continue reading...From the niqab reimagined as a luxury brand good to the plights of female boxers in Lagos, this year’s festival mixes politics with panache
Continue reading...Cheap, better-run public transport can transform people’s everyday lives. The government should be more ambitious in its plans to deliver it
Six years ago, when Jeremy Corbyn focused on failing bus services during prime minister’s questions, the then leader of the Labour opposition was greeted with mirth and derision. Tory backbenchers amused themselves with shouts of “Taxi!”, as Mr Corbyn urged Theresa May to give metro mayors the powers to take the industry back under public control. To a certain kind of Westminster mind, buses were far too parochial a concern to warrant the political centre-stage. But Mr Corbyn proved to be on the right side of history.
By January 2025, all of Greater Manchester’s bus services will be part of the publicly run Bee Network. Since launching two years ago – after lengthy legal battles in which the private sector fought re-regulation tooth and nail – the franchise model has delivered impressively on mayor Andy Burnham’s vision of a low-fare, high-patronage service for the region. A buses bill soon to be introduced by Louise Haigh, the transport secretary, will give local authorities across England new powers to follow suit. Plans are already under way to replicate the approach in Liverpool City Region and West Yorkshire.
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.
Continue reading...Communities on Paraná River fear privatisation of waterway operations will destroy way of life
River communities in Argentina fear that Javier Milei’s plans to privatise operations on a key shipping route could lead to environmental damage and destroy their way of life.
Since taking office almost a year ago, the self-styled “anarcho-capitalist” president has pledged to privatise a number of the state’s assets. The latest is the Paraguay-Paraná waterway – a shipping route of strategic importance for Argentina and its neighbours.
Continue reading...Amid a protest in central London on Tuesday against changes to inheritance tax announced by Labour, the Guardian discovered a mistrust of politicians, fear over the future of UK farming and suspicion of Bill Gates
Continue reading...The fights over Gaza protests are playing out online, in campus quads, internal disciplinary proceedings, and in the courts.
The post From Campus to the Courts, the “Palestine Exception” Rules University Crackdowns appeared first on The Intercept.
I get Kennedy’s appeal, but Trump will undo the protections with the most direct, proven impact on our health.
The post RFK Jr. Talks About Public Health, but He’s Joining an Administration That’ll Make Us Sicker Than Ever appeared first on The Intercept.
We would like to hear about your favourite new podcast you’ve been listening to this year and why
We would like to hear about your favourite new podcast you’ve been listening to this year and why. Let us know and we’ll run a selection of your recommendations in December. Tell us your favourite using the form below.
Continue reading...The eight-year conflict between the country’s French- and English-speaking populations has its roots in the colonial past and modern injustice
Two plants sprouting from the rusty-red soil mark the grave behind the family’s mud house in the Mokwebu neighbourhood of Bamenda, capital of Cameroon’s embattled north-west. Morine Ngum’s husband, Calistus Nche, was killed in 2022 by soldiers of the country’s francophone-dominated government in a civil war he had joined four years earlier.
Calistus Nche, a separatist fighter shot by government troops in Bamenda in 2022. Photograph: Morine Ngum
Continue reading...Fine Gael is seeking an unprecedented fourth successive term in office and could well achieve it on 29 November
Ireland’s voters go to the polls on Friday 29 November, three weeks after the prime minister, Simon Harris, ended months of speculation by dissolving the coalition government before the end of its five-year term in March next year.
Harris’s centre-right Fine Gael is seeking an unprecedented fourth successive term in office, a prospect that looks far from impossible given its recent dramatic recovery in the polls – and the equally dramatic collapse in support for its rival, Sinn Féin.
Continue reading...Tom Homan, Trump’s former acting ICE director who contributed to Project 2025, will be “border czar” in the next administration.
The post Trump’s Family Separation Czar Is Back appeared first on The Intercept.
Ofwat hasn’t stopped recipients getting their bonuses but its increased powers in other areas are meaningful
New rules on bonuses are “beginning to bite,” said the regulator Ofwat as it detailed how nine water companies “will not be using customers’ money” to fund a total of £6.8m of payments to executives. Really? Who is being bitten?
Not the executives because, as Ofwat’s careful phrasing indicated, they will still get their lolly. It’s just that the cash and incentive shares will come from the bucket marked “shareholders’ funds”, or, in the case of Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water, from somewhere else because the firm doesn’t have shareholders.
Continue reading...The international criminal court has issued arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister, his former defence minister and a Hamas leader. Julian Borger reports
After 10 months of deliberation, the international criminal court has issued an arrest warrant for the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the former defence minister Yoav Gallant and the Hamas leader Mohammed Deif for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza war.
Julian Borger, the Guardian’s senior international correspondent, explains the significance of this moment – the first time a western ally from a modern democracy has been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity by a global judicial body. He tells Hannah Moore how allies such as the US and UK are likely to react to the news, and the impact it has had in Israel.
Continue reading...Man who led English rugby’s governing body for 12 years is urging game to ‘wake up’ amid potential record losses
England have had some tough results on the field lately and things are about to get even gloomier off it. Next Monday the Rugby Football Union’s council members will be formally presented with the annual accounts for the 2023-24 financial year amid expectations of potential record losses at what was once the world’s wealthiest union.
Among those awaiting the figures with particular interest is Francis Baron, who spent 12 years as the RFU’s chief executive and was at the helm when England won their first – and only – men’s World Cup in 2003. Since leaving Twickenham, Baron has become increasingly concerned about the state of the union’s finances and is predicting “very bad news for the game” when the figures are unveiled.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Confidential report seen by Guardian Australia does not mention cashless gaming cards trial and recommends ‘account-based gaming system’
Anonymous gambling on poker machines in New South Wales should be allowed until 2028 and operating hours should not be further restricted, according to senior members of the government’s independent panel for gaming reform.
A leaked report by the panel’s three-person executive committee, which outlines a “draft roadmap for gaming reform”, has also warned that a buyback scheme for pokies “would be costly and not likely impact gaming machine numbers in a significant way”.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email
Continue reading...Hampshire have been accused of taking part in a “sportswashing vehicle” before their participation in this month’s Global Super League in Guyana, a T20 tournament sponsored by the oil giant ExxonMobil.
Hampshire’s participation in the GSL comes despite their venue’s public commitment to playing a leading global role in environmental sustainability. The Utilita Bowl celebrated switching on more than 1,000 solar panels before a T20 between England and Australia in September. David Mann, chief executive of the Utilita Bowl, used the initiative to highlight “our commitment to being the greenest international cricket venue”.
Continue reading...Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Jonathan Wilson and Jonathan Liew to preview the Premier League action this weekend
Rate, review, share on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Audioboom, Mixcloud, Acast and Stitcher, and join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and email.
On the podcast today; Pep Guardiola will stay at Manchester City beyond this season. The panel debate whether it is good for the Premier League and how it will affect the players before their game against Spurs on Saturday.
Continue reading...Resolute Mining chief executive Terence Holohan and two employees had been held since 9 November
Three British mining executives who had been detained by the government of Mali have been released and are “safe and well”, days after agreeing to pay $160m to settle a tax dispute.
Resolute Mining, an Australian company, said on Thursday its chief executive, Terence Holohan, and two other employees, who had been held in the country since 9 November, have been freed.
Continue reading...The pronatalist movement in the US is gathering pace once again, rekindled by Silicon Valley personalities and hard-right conservatives who are becoming increasingly vocal about whether or not women are having enough babies. But it's not just in the US, some governments in other countries have launched marketing campaigns encouraging people to have more children, while others have offered financial incentives. But while many of these policies claim to be about halting population decline, there are other factors at play. Josh Toussaint-Strauss interrogates efforts around the world to boost birth rates, as well as the underlying political motivations, from bodily autonomy to immigration
Birthrates are plummeting worldwide. Can governments turn the tide?
When desperate measures to persuade women to have children fail, it’s time for fresh thinking
Regulator uses new powers to ensure investors pay at Thames, Yorkshire, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
Investors at Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, and Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water will be forced to pick up the tab for executive bonuses after the regulator determined that the sector had awarded “undeserved” extra payments, worth £6.8m.
Ofwat said on Thursday it had used new powers to ensure that bonuses at the three companies were paid by shareholders and bondholders – rather than through customer bills – because the payments had not “adequately reflected overall company performance issues”.
Continue reading...Indian chair of Adani Group, worth about $85bn, accused of agreeing to pay bribes to obtain solar energy contracts
Gautam Adani, one of the world’s richest men, has been indicted in New York over an alleged multibillion-dollar scheme to pay $250m in bribes and conceal it from US investors.
Prosecutors charged the chair of the Indian conglomerate Adani Group and two other executives of a renewable energy company with securities fraud and conspiring to commit securities and wire fraud.
Continue reading...Science editor Ian Sample joins host Madeleine Finlay to discuss some of the most intriguing science stories of the week. From a study finding that fat cells ‘remembering’ past obesity drives yo-yo dieting, to concerning developments in the bird flu virus, and research pinpointing which parts of the UK are best at spotting fake accents
Clips: RTE, BBC, Global News
Can you spot a fake accent? Take part in a new study from Cambridge University
Continue reading...Council in Yukon territory deadlocked, citing the crown’s tarnished relations with Indigenous peoples in the region
The council of a town in Canada’s Yukon territory has been locked for weeks in bureaucratic standstill after its members refused to swear a mandatory oath of allegiance to King Charles, citing the crown’s tarnished relations with Indigenous peoples in the region.
The standoff, which threatens to cost them their seats, reflects a complicated view of the country’s head of state, who lives thousands of miles away, and increasingly serves as a reminder to a history of violence and broken promises
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.
Be the first to see our latest thought-provoking films, bringing you bold and original storytelling from around the world
Discover the stories behind our latest short films, learn more about our international film-makers, and join us for exclusive documentary events. We’ll also share a selection of our favourite films, from our archives and from further afield, for you to enjoy. Sign up below.
Can’t wait for the next newsletter? Start exploring our archive now.
Continue reading...
ESA and Thales Alenia Space have signed a contract amendment today at the International Astronautical Congress in Milan to extend the Lunar View refuelling module for the lunar Gateway.
Indian capital imposes emergency measures including closing schools and offices and barring heavy vehicles
Pollution levels in India’s capital, Delhi, have soared to their highest levels this year, forcing schools and offices to close and cloaking the city in thick brown smog.
In some parts of the city, a live air quality ranking by IQAir put pollution levels at more than 30 times the maximum level deemed healthy.
Continue reading...I get Kennedy’s appeal, but Trump will undo the protections with the most direct, proven impact on our health.
The post RFK Jr. Talks About Public Health, but He’s Joining an Administration That’ll Make Us Sicker Than Ever appeared first on The Intercept.
Outcry after draft text contains only an ‘X’ instead of setting $1tn funding goal to support developing countries
Hopes of a breakthrough at the deadlocked UN climate talks have been dashed after a new draft of a possible deal was condemned by rich and poor countries.
Faith in the ability of the Azerbaijan presidency to produce a deal ebbed on Thursday morning, as the draft texts were criticised as inadequate and providing no “landing ground” for a compromise.
Continue reading...On Qikiqtaruk, off Canada, researchers at the frontier of climate change are seeing its rich ecology slide into the sea as melting permafrost ice leaves little behind
Last summer, the western Arctic was uncomfortably hot. Smoke from Canada’s wildfires hung thick in the air, and swarms of mosquitoes searched for exposed skin. It was a maddening combination that left researchers on Qikiqtaruk, an island off the north coast of the Yukon, desperate for relief.
And so on a late July afternoon, a team of Canadian scientists dived into the Beaufort Sea, bobbing and splashing in a sheltered bay for nearly two hours. Later, as they lay sprawled on a beach, huge chunks of the island they were studying slid into the ocean.
Continue reading...Sherry Rehman says rich nations should pay ‘internationally determined contributions’ to help poorer and worst-affected countries
Amid the endless politicking and inscrutable arguments at the UN climate negotiations in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, it can be hard to remember what is at stake. That’s why Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s former climate change minister, is calling on global leaders to “keep an eye on the big picture”.
“We’re here for life and death reasons,” Rehman said.
Continue reading...Democrats are in disarray. It’s time to name our enemies and assert our demands to build a party that can win.
The post Take Out the Trash: A Proposal to Clean Up the Democratic Party appeared first on The Intercept.
SEMrush and Ahrefs are among
the most popular tools in the SEO industry. Both companies have been in
business for years and have thousands of customers per month.
If you're a professional SEO or trying to do digital
marketing on your own, at some point you'll likely consider using a tool to
help with your efforts. Ahrefs and SEMrush are two names that will likely
appear on your shortlist.
In this guide, I'm going to help you learn more about these SEO tools and how to choose the one that's best for your purposes.
What is SEMrush?
SEMrush is a popular SEO tool with a wide range of
features—it's the leading competitor research service for online marketers.
SEMrush's SEO Keyword Magic tool offers over 20 billion Google-approved
keywords, which are constantly updated and it's the largest keyword database.
The program was developed in 2007 as SeoQuake is a
small Firefox extension
Features
Ahrefs is a leading SEO platform that offers a set of
tools to grow your search traffic, research your competitors, and monitor your
niche. The company was founded in 2010, and it has become a popular choice
among SEO tools. Ahrefs has a keyword index of over 10.3 billion keywords and
offers accurate and extensive backlink data updated every 15-30 minutes and it
is the world's most extensive backlink index database.
Features
Direct Comparisons: Ahrefs vs SEMrush
Now that you know a little more about each tool, let's
take a look at how they compare. I'll analyze each tool to see how they differ
in interfaces, keyword research resources, rank tracking, and competitor
analysis.
User Interface
Ahrefs and SEMrush both offer comprehensive information
and quick metrics regarding your website's SEO performance. However, Ahrefs
takes a bit more of a hands-on approach to getting your account fully set up,
whereas SEMrush's simpler dashboard can give you access to the data you need
quickly.
In this section, we provide a brief overview of the elements
found on each dashboard and highlight the ease with which you can complete
tasks.
AHREFS
The Ahrefs dashboard is less cluttered than that of
SEMrush, and its primary menu is at the very top of the page, with a search bar
designed only for entering URLs.
Additional features of the Ahrefs platform include:
SEMRUSH
When you log into the SEMrush Tool, you will find four
main modules. These include information about your domains, organic keyword
analysis, ad keyword, and site traffic.
You'll also find some other options like
Both Ahrefs and SEMrush have user-friendly dashboards,
but Ahrefs is less cluttered and easier to navigate. On the other hand, SEMrush
offers dozens of extra tools, including access to customer support resources.
When deciding on which dashboard to use, consider what
you value in the user interface, and test out both.
If you're looking to track your website's search engine
ranking, rank tracking features can help. You can also use them to monitor your
competitors.
Let's take a look at Ahrefs vs. SEMrush to see which
tool does a better job.
The Ahrefs Rank Tracker is simpler to use. Just type in
the domain name and keywords you want to analyze, and it spits out a report
showing you the search engine results page (SERP) ranking for each keyword you
enter.
Rank Tracker looks at the ranking performance of
keywords and compares them with the top rankings for those keywords. Ahrefs
also offers:
You'll see metrics that help you understand your
visibility, traffic, average position, and keyword difficulty.
It gives you an idea of whether a keyword would be
profitable to target or not.
SEMRush offers a tool called Position Tracking. This
tool is a project tool—you must set it up as a new project. Below are a few of
the most popular features of the SEMrush Position Tracking tool:
All subscribers are given regular data updates and
mobile search rankings upon subscribing
The platform provides opportunities to track several
SERP features, including Local tracking.
Intuitive reports allow you to track statistics for the
pages on your website, as well as the keywords used in those pages.
Identify pages that may be competing with each other
using the Cannibalization report.
Ahrefs is a more user-friendly option. It takes seconds
to enter a domain name and keywords. From there, you can quickly decide whether
to proceed with that keyword or figure out how to rank better for other
keywords.
SEMrush allows you to check your mobile rankings and
ranking updates daily, which is something Ahrefs does not offer. SEMrush also
offers social media rankings, a tool you won't find within the Ahrefs platform.
Both are good which one do you like let me know in the comment.
Keyword research is closely related to rank tracking,
but it's used for deciding which keywords you plan on using for future content
rather than those you use now.
When it comes to SEO, keyword research is the most
important thing to consider when comparing the two platforms.
The Ahrefs Keyword Explorer provides you with thousands
of keyword ideas and filters search results based on the chosen search engine.
Ahrefs supports several features, including:
SEMrush's Keyword Magic Tool has over 20 billion
keywords for Google. You can type in any keyword you want, and a list of
suggested keywords will appear.
The Keyword Magic Tool also lets you to:
Both of these tools offer keyword research features and
allow users to break down complicated tasks into something that can be
understood by beginners and advanced users alike.
If you're interested in keyword suggestions, SEMrush
appears to have more keyword suggestions than Ahrefs does. It also continues to
add new features, like the Keyword Gap tool and SERP Questions recommendations.
Both platforms offer competitor analysis tools,
eliminating the need to come up with keywords off the top of your head. Each
tool is useful for finding keywords that will be useful for your competition so
you know they will be valuable to you.
Ahrefs' domain comparison tool lets you compare up to five websites (your website and four competitors) side-by-side.it also shows you how your site is ranked against others with metrics such as backlinks, domain ratings, and more.
Use the Competing Domains section to see a list of your
most direct competitors, and explore how many keywords matches your competitors
have.
To find more information about your competitor, you can
look at the Site Explorer and Content Explorer tools and type in their URL
instead of yours.
SEMrush provides a variety of insights into your
competitors' marketing tactics. The platform enables you to research your
competitors effectively. It also offers several resources for competitor
analysis including:
Traffic Analytics helps you identify where your
audience comes from, how they engage with your site, what devices visitors use
to view your site, and how your audiences overlap with other websites.
SEMrush's Organic Research examines your website's
major competitors and shows their organic search rankings, keywords they are
ranking for, and even if they are ranking for any (SERP) features and more.
The Market Explorer search field allows you to type in
a domain and lists websites or articles similar to what you entered. Market
Explorer also allows users to perform in-depth data analytics on These
companies and markets.
SEMrush wins here because it has more tools dedicated to
competitor analysis than Ahrefs. However, Ahrefs offers a lot of functionality
in this area, too. It takes a combination of both tools to gain an advantage
over your competition.
When it comes to keyword data research, you will become
confused about which one to choose.
Consider choosing Ahrefs if you
Consider SEMrush if you:
Both tools are great. Choose the one which meets your
requirements and if you have any experience using either Ahrefs or SEMrush let
me know in the comment section which works well for you.
Mathangi Arulpragasam has been mixing it up for more than 20 years, blending Bollywood and Suicide samples with funk, electro and hip-hop. We select her standout cuts
In contrast to her first attention-grabbing mixtape (2004’s Piracy Funds Terrorism), 2023’s Bells Collection slipped out virtually unnoticed: to say its lo-fi, Christian-themed contents divided fans is putting it mildly, but Solitude’s murky synth arpeggios and reflective mood were good enough to surmount some clumsy lyrics (“You used to have gurus, now it’s Google” etc).
Continue reading...
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the most popular digital assets today, capturing the attention of cryptocurrency investors, whales and people from around the world. People find it amazing that some users spend thousands or millions of dollars on a single NFT-based image of a monkey or other token, but you can simply take a screenshot for free. So here we share some freuently asked question about NFTs.
NFT stands for non-fungible token, which is a cryptographic token on a blockchain with unique identification codes that distinguish it from other tokens. NFTs are unique and not interchangeable, which means no two NFTs are the same. NFTs can be a unique artwork, GIF, Images, videos, Audio album. in-game items, collectibles etc.
A blockchain is a distributed digital ledger that allows for the secure storage of data. By recording any kind of information—such as bank account transactions, the ownership of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), or Decentralized Finance (DeFi) smart contracts—in one place, and distributing it to many different computers, blockchains ensure that data can’t be manipulated without everyone in the system being aware.
The value of an NFT comes from its ability to be traded freely and securely on the blockchain, which is not possible with other current digital ownership solutionsThe NFT points to its location on the blockchain, but doesn’t necessarily contain the digital property. For example, if you replace one bitcoin with another, you will still have the same thing. If you buy a non-fungible item, such as a movie ticket, it is impossible to replace it with any other movie ticket because each ticket is unique to a specific time and place.
One of the unique characteristics of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is that they can be tokenised to create a digital certificate of ownership that can be bought, sold and traded on the blockchain.
As with crypto-currency, records of who owns what are stored on a ledger that is maintained by thousands of computers around the world. These records can’t be forged because the whole system operates on an open-source network.
NFTs also contain smart contracts—small computer programs that run on the blockchain—that give the artist, for example, a cut of any future sale of the token.
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) aren't cryptocurrencies, but they do use blockchain technology. Many NFTs are based on Ethereum, where the blockchain serves as a ledger for all the transactions related to said NFT and the properties it represents.5) How to make an NFT?
Anyone can create an NFT. All you need is a digital wallet, some ethereum tokens and a connection to an NFT marketplace where you’ll be able to upload and sell your creations
When you purchase a stock in NFT, that purchase is recorded on the blockchain—the bitcoin ledger of transactions—and that entry acts as your proof of ownership.
The value of an NFT varies a lot based on the digital asset up for grabs. People use NFTs to trade and sell digital art, so when creating an NFT, you should consider the popularity of your digital artwork along with historical statistics.
In the year 2021, a digital artist called Pak created an artwork called The Merge. It was sold on the Nifty Gateway NFT market for $91.8 million.
Non-fungible tokens can be used in investment opportunities. One can purchase an NFT and resell it at a profit. Certain NFT marketplaces let sellers of NFTs keep a percentage of the profits from sales of the assets they create.
Many people want to buy NFTs because it lets them support the arts and own something cool from their favorite musicians, brands, and celebrities. NFTs also give artists an opportunity to program in continual royalties if someone buys their work. Galleries see this as a way to reach new buyers interested in art.
There are many places to buy digital assets, like opensea and their policies vary. On top shot, for instance, you sign up for a waitlist that can be thousands of people long. When a digital asset goes on sale, you are occasionally chosen to purchase it.
To mint an NFT token, you must pay some amount of gas fee to process the transaction on the Etherum blockchain, but you can mint your NFT on a different blockchain called Polygon to avoid paying gas fees. This option is available on OpenSea and this simply denotes that your NFT will only be able to trade using Polygon's blockchain and not Etherum's blockchain. Mintable allows you to mint NFTs for free without paying any gas fees.
The answer is no. Non-Fungible Tokens are minted on the blockchain using cryptocurrencies such as Etherum, Solana, Polygon, and so on. Once a Non-Fungible Token is minted, the transaction is recorded on the blockchain and the contract or license is awarded to whoever has that Non-Fungible Token in their wallet.
You can sell your work and creations by attaching a license to it on the blockchain, where its ownership can be transferred. This lets you get exposure without losing full ownership of your work. Some of the most successful projects include Cryptopunks, Bored Ape Yatch Club NFTs, SandBox, World of Women and so on. These NFT projects have gained popularity globally and are owned by celebrities and other successful entrepreneurs. Owning one of these NFTs gives you an automatic ticket to exclusive business meetings and life-changing connections.
That’s a wrap. Hope you guys found this article enlightening. I just answer some question with my limited knowledge about NFTs. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to drop them in the comment section below. Also I have a question for you, Is bitcoin an NFTs? let me know in The comment section below
RSS Rabbit links users to publicly available RSS entries.
Vet every link before clicking! The creators accept no responsibility for the contents of these entries.
Relevant
Fresh
Convenient
Agile
We're not prepared to take user feedback yet. Check back soon!
