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Fight by Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes review – scathing account of Biden, Harris and their election loss
Sun, 06 Apr 2025 12:00:51 GMT
Book details how Biden’s circle was reluctant to step down, Harris’s handling of a listing ship and a lack of faith in both
In their book Fight, Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes offer an account of the “Wildest Battle for the White House” – and a scathing indictment of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the losers of that battle.
By 2023, a year before the campaign, Biden’s age and fitness to be president were the topic of conversation among senior aides. He had difficulty stringing together a coherent sentence, yet there was no serious discussion of his exiting the ticket until it was way, way too late. Harris, meanwhile, was isolated in her party and terrified of facing the press. She took the wheel of a badly listing ship. It sank.
Continue reading...Sedentary lifestyles are bad for us, but which under-desk treadmills and walking pads are worth the cost? Our expert stepped up to find out
• The best treadmills for your home
Various guidelines suggest we all try to walk at least 10,000 steps a day to improve our overall health and wellbeing. Public Health England encourages a slightly more manageable target of just 10 minutes of brisk walking daily to introduce more moderate-intensity physical activity and reduce your risk of early death by up to 15%.
But even squeezing in “brisk walks” can be a chore, with busy schedules and increasingly desk-bound jobs forcing more of us to remain sedentary for long periods. That is where walking pads come in, being lighter, smaller and often easier to store than bulky and tricky-to-manoeuvre running treadmills.
Best overall walking pad:
JTX MoveLight
£499 at JTX Fitness
Best budget walking pad:
Rattantree shock-absorbing treadmill
£142.49 at Debenhams
Best foldable walking pad:
BodyMax WP60
£549 at Amazon
Best walking pad for incline:
Mobvoi Home Treadmill Plus
£224.99 at Mobvoi
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boasts he’s nixing contracts and grants amid DOGE’s cost-cutting campaign. But those trims won’t hit SpaceX.
The post DOGE’s Pentagon Budget Cuts Don’t Touch Elon Musk’s SpaceX appeared first on The Intercept.
When the world’s oldest woman passed away at 117, much was made of her three yoghurts a day diet. But what role does yoghurt actually play in longevity?
Supercentenarians – humans who live beyond 110 years of age – are objects of great fascination in our death-fearing culture. Interviews with them inevitably demand to know that one simple ingredient that is the secret to their extraordinary longevity; was it a shot of whisky before bedtime, maintaining good friendships, a happy marriage or always having a pet?
In the case of Spain’s Maria Branyas Morera – who was the world’s oldest person until she died at the very ripe old age of 117 last year – one possible answer to that question was yoghurt.
Continue reading...
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Europe’s human spaceflight ambitions are reaching new heights, and ESA’s Astronaut Reserve is a key part of this journey. Selected in 2022, these talented individuals are undergoing Astronaut Reserve Training (ART) to ensure they are ready for future missions.
Among these remarkable women from across Europe are Meganne Christian, a materials scientist from the UK, Anthea Comellini, an aerospace engineer from Italy, and Carmen Possnig, a medical doctor from Austria, who recently completed their first ART training block at the European Astronaut Centre (EAC) in Cologne, Germany.
Their diverse scientific backgrounds reflect the wide-ranging expertise needed for human spaceflight, whether as part of ESA’s astronaut class, mission planners, or scientists shaping the future of space exploration. Beyond their work with ESA, they are also driving innovation, advancing research, and strengthening the broader space sector. Women play key roles across ESA and beyond, contributing as leaders and experts in these areas.
Meganne, Anthea and Carmen recently completed their first ART training block at the European Astronaut Centre (EAC) in Cologne, Germany. In this image, they are pictured inside a mockup of the Columbus module, Europe’s permanent laboratory on the International Space Station.
The training covered key areas such as human behaviour and performance to develop teamwork and decision-making skills in high-pressure environments. They also received physical fitness training, scuba certification in ESA’s Neutral Buoyancy Facility, and media training to effectively communicate the importance of space exploration to the public.
In addition to technical and operational skills, they explored fundamental science, including biology experiments conducted on the International Space Station. Their training also includes insights into space policy, mission operations, and the latest advancements in space technology.
While members of the Astronaut Reserve are not yet assigned to specific missions, their training ensures that they are prepared for potential future opportunities through commercial spaceflight
The journey continues in the second half of 2025, when the members of ESA’s Astronaut Reserve will return to EAC for the next phase of ART, further building on the skills and knowledge they have gained.
Republicans need to worry about getting bullied by Elon Musk, and Democrats need to worry about AIPAC, Sanders said.
The post Trying to Block Arms to Israel, Bernie Sanders Denounces AIPAC’s Massive Election Spending appeared first on The Intercept.
Amid a wellspring of discontent over the Pennsylvania senator’s coziness with Israel and Republicans, people are demanding campaign donation refunds.
The post Small-Dollar Donors Are Asking John Fetterman for Their Money Back appeared first on The Intercept.
I accompanied one of the students who fled Trump’s crackdown. It gave me clarity on what’s at stake.
The post This Is Not About Antisemitism, Palestine, or Columbia. It’s Trump Dismantling the American Dream. appeared first on The Intercept.
The Guardian’s Rachel Leingang speaks to Nikki McCann Ramirez, from Rolling Stone magazine, about Donald Trump’s decision to upend US trade policy and reports that Elon Musk could soon be leaving his role as a special government employee
This week Donald Trump announced a blanket 10% tariff on all goods imported into the US from Saturday, and higher ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on countries taxing US exports from next Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration was forced to deny that Elon Musk would be leaving his role as a special government employee soon. The reports came a day after a Democrat defeated a Musk-backed Republican for a seat on the Wisconsin supreme court.
Continue reading...Commerce secretary insists on CBS that tariffs will ‘stay in place’ as treasury secretary tells NBC negotiation is possible
Senior officials within Donald Trump’s administration officials gave conflicting messages on Sunday about the US president’s global tariffs that have caused a meltdown in stock markets, prompted warnings of a world recession and provoked rare expressions of dissent from within his Republican party.
Cabinet members fanned out across Sunday’s political talk shows armed with talking points on Trump’s 10% across-the-board tariff on almost all US imports, with higher rates targeted at about 60 countries. If the intention was to calm nerves with a clear statement of intent, then it backfired as top officials gave starkly contrasting signals.
Continue reading...In what may be an American first, President Donald Trump pardoned a company sentenced to $100 million in fines for breaking money laundering laws.
The post Trump Just Pardoned … a Corporation? appeared first on The Intercept.
Congress members Jamie Raskin, Eric Swalwell and Ilhan Omar among speakers as demonstrators denounce ‘fascism’
Demonstrators estimated to be in the tens of thousands gathered in Washington DC on Saturday in a display of mass dissent against Donald Trump’s policies that organizers hoped would snowball into a rolling cycle of protests that could eventually stymie the US president in next year’s congressional elections.
Anger with Trump and his billionaire lieutenant, the SpaceX and Tesla entrepreneur Elon Musk, was expressed in a sea of placards and banners on the Washington mall, in the shadow of the Washington monument. Multiple messages denounced the two men for shuttering government agencies, cutting jobs and services and – in often graphic terms – for threatening the survival of US democracy.
Continue reading...Labour ‘gobsmacked’ by Tory leader ‘cheerleading’ decision to deport Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed
Labour and the Tories have become embroiled in a war of words after the Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, defended Israel’s decision to deny two MPs entry into the country and deport them.
The UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, criticised the decision to expel the Labour MPs Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed, and said he had taken the matter up with the Israeli government.
Continue reading...Tom Homan is taking heat in Sackets Harbor, New York, after ICE agents detained a mom and her three children in a raid.
The post Trump’s Border Czar Faces Backlash in His Hometown for Locking Up a Local Family appeared first on The Intercept.
Book details how Biden’s circle was reluctant to step down, Harris’s handling of a listing ship and a lack of faith in both
In their book Fight, Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes offer an account of the “Wildest Battle for the White House” – and a scathing indictment of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the losers of that battle.
By 2023, a year before the campaign, Biden’s age and fitness to be president were the topic of conversation among senior aides. He had difficulty stringing together a coherent sentence, yet there was no serious discussion of his exiting the ticket until it was way, way too late. Harris, meanwhile, was isolated in her party and terrified of facing the press. She took the wheel of a badly listing ship. It sank.
Continue reading...Grassroots revolt is taking shape across the country via elections, town halls, and Tesla protests.
The post Unplugged: The Backlash Against Trump–Musk appeared first on The Intercept.
Money-making potential | Cost of living alphabet | Antisocial cats | The value of bin collectors | Manspreading
After Donald Trump raised a range of tariffs, the US stock market tanked (Report, 4 April). If Trump rescinded these, within weeks the stock market would bounce back. Wouldn’t it be interesting to know in advance when that was going to happen? Somebody could make a great deal of money.
John Kinder
Romsey, Hampshire
• In the past, we referred to the ABC of the cost of living crisis: Austerity, Brexit, Covid. Now, it seems, we have to add D for Donald and E for Elon. I don’t want to think about what F might stand for.
Ruth Eversley
Paulton, Somerset
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boasts he’s nixing contracts and grants amid DOGE’s cost-cutting campaign. But those trims won’t hit SpaceX.
The post DOGE’s Pentagon Budget Cuts Don’t Touch Elon Musk’s SpaceX appeared first on The Intercept.
This blog is now closed
Greens to push for free early childhood education
The federal Greens have named access to free, universal early childhood education as one of their priority policies in the event of a minority government.
In a wealthy country like ours everyone should be able to afford childcare, but too many families are struggling with the cost.
What Labor’s doing isn’t working, and Peter Dutton would take childcare backwards.
Continue reading...Ben Britton, who was running as the candidate for Whitlam in NSW, has been removed from the Liberal party’s website
Ben Britton has been dumped as a Liberal candidate for the New South Wales seat of Whitlam after it was revealed he had expressed a string of controversial views on fringe podcasts before his preselection.
Britton was taken off the Liberal party’s website, and the party has confirmed he was no longer being endorsed, with the party quickly replacing him with Nathaniel Smith.
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Exposure to pornography leads to gender dysphoria and “transgender desires”;
Labor intentionally keeps some electorates poor to have a better chance of winning them;
Australia should “look at the Isle of Man” for lessons on introducing a flat tax rate to attract billionaires;
The education system has “brainwashed” young Australians with Marxist ideology.
Continue reading...Party suspends North East Somerset MP after he is taken into custody following police raid on his constituency home
Labour have suspended Dan Norris, the MP for North East Somerset and Hanham, after he was arrested on suspicion of rape and child sex offences.
Norris, a former Labour minister who defeated Jacob Rees-Mogg as MP at last year’s general election, was taken into custody after police raided his constituency home on Friday.
Continue reading...Labor and Coalition would both end Chinese company Landbridge’s long-term lease of strategically important asset
The Chinese company that controls the Port of Darwin has accused Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton of treating it like “a political football” in the middle of a federal election campaign.
Federal Labor and the Coalition have both announced that if elected on 3 May they would end Landbridge’s long-term lease of the Port of Darwin, arguing it is strategically important and should be controlled by an Australian entity.
Sign up for the Afternoon Update: Election 2025 email newsletter
Continue reading...“Do your job!” the crowd chanted, urging Rep. Victoria Spartz, one of the most outspoken DOGE supporters, to rein in Elon Musk.
The post GOP Leaders Said Don’t Do Town Halls. This Indiana Republican Did — and Got an Earful. appeared first on The Intercept.
The justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, should reject false, inflammatory rhetoric and focus on the real issues
Courts knowing more about the people they are sentencing is a good thing. Last month’s attack by the shadow justice secretary, Robert Jenrick, on guidelines recommending that individuals from ethnic and religious minorities, as well as women and young adults, should have pre-sentence reports written about them, typifies the corrosive cultural politics he specialises in.
Mr Jenrick wants to undermine the independence of the judiciary by changing the law so that the secretary of state, and not the 14-member Sentencing Council for England and Wales, has the final say. The guidelines have now been paused, after the government introduced legislation that would make parts of them illegal.
Continue reading...How does Gina Rinehart, like her father before her, use wealth and power to influence politics? Rinehart’s first major foray into the political spotlight was successfully lobbying against Labor’s mining super profit tax during the early 2010s. But what did she learn from Lang Hancock, who campaigned to overturn the iron ore export embargo in the 1950s, setting the foundation for their family fortune?
Contains excerpts from Interview with Lang Hancock by Lady Mary Fairfax obtained from the State Library of Western Australia, reproduced with the permission of the Library Board of Western Australia and the copyright holder WIN.
Continue reading...Deadline set by US president was supposed to be Saturday, with Trump now considering decreasing tariffs to get deal
Donald Trump said he will sign an executive order to extend the TikTok ban deadline. This is the second time the president will have delayed the ban or sale of the social media app, and will punt the deadline to 75 days from now.
The TikTok deal “requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed”, Trump announced on his Truth Social platform on Friday.
Continue reading...Whoever becomes president later this year has unenviable task of healing divisions and rebuilding trust in democratic institutions
It had been a long and at times intolerable wait. But the South Korean constitutional court’s decision on Friday to oust Yoon Suk Yeol from office may have restored the public’s faith in their democracy.
For 22 minutes, millions of South Koreans held their breath as the chief justice of the constitutional court, Moon Hyung-bae, began delivering the court’s verdict on Yoon’s impeachment over his chaotic declaration of martial law in December.
Continue reading...We’re interested to hear how people’s invested pension savings have been faring amid sharp ups and downs in recent months and years, and how this may affect them
US president Donald Trump’s trade war, political elections and societal shifts ushering in dramatic change and dire public finances in multiple countries, the war in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic have been creating tumultous conditions on international markets for the past few years.
We’d like to hear how people’s invested pension savings have been affected by this series of economic shocks. Has your invested portfolio sustained big losses, or have you enjoyed staggering stockmarket gains? How may you and your plans be affected by it all? Tell us.
Continue reading...The University of Pennsylvania has been a target of Canary Mission, a pro-Israel “blacklist” group. Turns out the call was coming from inside the house.
The post Pro-Israel Group That Attacked UPenn Was Funded by Family of UPenn Trustee appeared first on The Intercept.
Kevin Hassett claims tariffs will not have a big effect on US consumers and there will be no ‘political coercion’ over interest rates
Starmer orders economic reset amid Trump’s tariff mayhem
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy which faces a 32% tariff rate, said it will not retaliate against the levies and would instead pursue diplomacy and negotiations to find mutually beneficial solutions. Jakarta has said it would send a high-level delegation to the US for direct negotiations with the government.
Cambodia asked the US government on Friday to postpone the 49% tariff rate on its products, the highest rate in Asia and second-highest globally.
Vietnam’s leader To Lam and Donald Trump agreed on Friday to discuss a deal to remove tariffs (Vietnam will be subject to a 46% tariff).
Brazil, which faces a 10% levy on its exports to the US, has said its “government is evaluating all possible actions to ensure reciprocity in bilateral trade, including resorting to the World Trade Organization, in defense of legitimate national interests”.
Taiwan’s top financial regulator said this morning it will impose temporary curbs on short-selling of shares to help deal with potential market turmoil brought resulting from the new import tariffs. Taiwan’s government said on Thursday that the new 32% tariff rate levied on the island were unreasonable and it would discuss them with Washington.
China has hit back hard against Trump’s imposition of 34% tariffs on Chinese goods, which were already subject to a 20% levy, taking the total levy to 54%. Beijing in turn announced a slew of countermeasures, including extra levies of 34% on all US goods and export curbs on some rare earth minerals.
Canada announced a limited set of counter measures against the latest US tariffs. The new Canadian prime minister Mark Carney said the government will copy the US approach by imposing a 25% tariff on all vehicles imported from the US that are not compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal (Canada and Mexico were exempt from Trump’s latest duties because they are still subject to a 25% tariff related to the US fentanyl crisis for goods that do not comply with the US-Mexico-Canada rules of origin). Carney says Canada will retaliate against “unjustified, unwarranted” tariffs.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is set to travel to Washington to meet with his close ally, US president Donald Trump.
Continue reading...Analysts say risk of escalation cannot be overlooked and warn of possible recessions in the UK, US and EU
Markets are braced for another rollercoaster week as the most punitive of Donald Trump’s tariffs kick in and world leaders weigh up retaliatory action, adding to fears of a global recession.
Stock indices plunged by nearly $5tn last week, with markets in the UK and US suffering losses not seen since the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, as investors took cover from the opening salvoes of a global trade war.
Continue reading...Government officials and contractors long controlled spy operations. Now the likes of Musk and Bezos are in control
Just days before Donald Trump’s inauguration in January, Blue Origin, the space company owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, launched its New Glenn rocket, named for John Glenn, the Mercury astronaut who was the first American to orbit the Earth. Around 2am on 16 January, the 30-story rocket powered by seven engines blasted off into the Florida night from Cape Canaveral’s historic launch complex 36, which first served as a Nasa launch site in 1962.
The flight’s end was marred by a failure to bring the booster rocket back for further use, but the successful launch and orbit still marked a watershed moment for Blue Origin in its bid to compete with SpaceX, the company owned by Elon Musk, for dominance over American spy satellite operations. During the Trump administration, it is likely that both companies will play significant roles in placing spy satellites into Earth orbit, which could mean that the United States intelligence community will be beholden to both Bezos and Musk to handle the single most complex and expensive endeavor in modern espionage.
Continue reading...US health and human services department confirmed death but insisted the exact cause is under investigation
A second child with measles has died in Texas amid a steadily growing outbreak that has infected nearly 500 people in that state alone.
The US health and human services department confirmed the death to NBC late Saturday, though the agency insisted exactly why the child died remained under investigation. On Sunday, a spokesperson for the UMC Health System in Lubbock, Texas, said that the child had been hospitalized before dying and was “receiving treatment for complications of measles” – which is easily preventable through vaccination.
Continue reading...Just 2% of total penalties paid, raising concerns about agency given new powers to fight economic crime
The UK government agency responsible for overseeing a national register of companies has collected just £1,250 in fines after being given new powers to crack down on corruption, it has emerged.
Companies House is implementing a series of reforms, amid embarrassing revelations about fraudsters and jokers signing up to the corporate register with names such as “Darth Vader” and “Santa Claus”.
Continue reading...Defence officials believe Trident nuclear fleet is latest target in Putin’s ‘greyzone’ war with the UK
Britain is “behind the curve” in tracking Russia’s deep-sea operations, an ex-minister has said, after spy sensors targeting Royal Navy submarines were found in waters around the UK.
Tobias Ellwood, a former defence and Foreign Office minister, called for a huge expansion of the navy’s surveillance capability after it was revealed that a number of Kremlin spy devices had been seized by the military.
Continue reading...Move comes after Keir Starmer tells cabinet to stop ‘outsourcing’ decisions to regulators
Ministers could introduce legislation to abolish a swathe of quangos in one go as part of the UK government’s plans to restructure the state and cut thousands more civil service job cuts, the Guardian understands.
Government sources said they were considering a bill that would speed up the reorganisation of more than 300 arm’s-length organisations that between them spend about £353bn of public money.
Continue reading...The author’s sharply intelligent history of how black British identity was forged beyond London in the cauldron of the Thatcherite 1970s and 80s is a necessary corrective
“It’s so hard to create something when there has been nothing before,” the Trinidad-born Nobel laureate VS Naipaul once complained to me, referring to his work for the BBC World Service programme Caribbean Voices (1943-58). That sentiment, that each generation of black Britons believes themselves to be bold pioneers working in a vacuum, has persisted since the beginning of mass migration to this country.
But what if the contributions of black Britons were not carelessly neglected, but rather, as Lanre Bakare identifies in his estimable first book, We Were There, a history that has been more purposely obscured?
Continue reading...Alberto Lovo Rojas fled violence in his home country. Now, he fears Trump-backed deportation
It finally happened while he was waiting to get his hair cut.
Alberto Lovo Rojas, an asylum seeker from Nicaragua, had been feeling uneasy for weeks, worried that immigration officials would arrest him any moment. But he had pushed the worry aside as irrational – after all, he had a permit to legally work in the US, and he had been using an app to check in monthly with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice).
Continue reading...Internal investigation cleared the national security adviser Mike Waltz, but the mistake was months in the making
Donald Trump’s national security adviser Mike Waltz included a journalist in the Signal group chat about plans for US strikes in Yemen after he mistakenly saved his number months before under the contact of someone else he intended to add, according to three people briefed on the matter.
The mistake was one of several missteps that came to light in the White House’s internal investigation, which showed a series of compounding slips that started during the 2024 campaign and went unnoticed until Waltz created the group chat last month.
Continue reading...David Lammy says it is ‘unacceptable’ the parliamentary delegation had been detained and deported
The UK’s foreign secretary has criticised Israeli authorities for denying two Labour MPs entry into the country and deporting them.
Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed were rejected because they were suspected of planning to “document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israel hatred”, according to a statement from the Israeli immigration ministry cited by Sky News and Politics UK.
Yang, who represents Earley and Woodley in Berkshire, and Mohamed, the MP for Sheffield Central, flew into Ben Gurion airport from Luton with their aides, according to reports. They said they were part of an MPs’ delegation coming to visit humanitarian aid projects and communities in the West Bank with UK charity partners. The pair were on their way back to the UK on Sunday, according to the chief secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones.
The foreign secretary, David Lammy, said in a statement on Saturday: “It is unacceptable, counterproductive, and deeply concerning that two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by the Israeli authorities.
“I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British parliamentarians, and we have been in contact with both MPs tonight to offer our support.
“The UK government’s focus remains securing a return to the ceasefire and negotiations to stop the bloodshed, free the hostages and end the conflict in Gaza.”
In a joint statement posted on X, the two MPs said they were “astounded” at being denied entry, and that it was vital for parliamentarians to be able to witness the situation on the ground in Palestine.
Continue reading...Garment workers in countries such as Cambodia among those who fear they will lose pay cheques if companies move production elsewhere
“This is very messed up. If Trump wants Cambodia to import more American goods: look, we are just a very small country!”
Khun Tharo works to promote human rights in the Cambodian garment sector, which employs about 1 million people – many of them women.
Continue reading...Understaffed agency sent into ‘death spiral’ as employees warn Musk-led cuts will lead to structural collapse
Office closures, staffing and service cuts, and policy changes at the Social Security Administration (SSA) have caused “complete, utter chaos” and are threatening to send the agency into a “death spiral”, according to workers at the agency.
The SSA operates the largest government program in the US, administering social insurance programs, including retirement, disability and survivor benefits.
Continue reading...Instead of standing up to Trump, the PM is encouraging people who want to destroy our values to come and do it in our country at reduced tax rates
On 1 April, the TV comedian John Richardsons, who you will have seen on many panel shows, announced he was becoming a teacher, having already completed the training in secret. I was humbled by Richardsons’s decision to do something genuinely worthwhile and by his foolhardy bravery. How would he control a class of teenagers pre-armed with clips of him clowning around with Russell Brand on The Great Celebrity Bake Off?
But it turned out Richardsons’s story was merely an April fool prank. D’oh! The fact that the inspiring tale wasn’t true left me deeply saddened, like the time I wept when my mum finally told me Father Christmas hadn’t been eating the mince pies I’d made for him. I was 28 years old.
Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 250 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at observer.letters@observer.co.uk
Continue reading...The TSSA tried to prevent former female employees from making allegations of sexual harassment
Unions exist first and foremost to protect employee rights, and there are many examples of where they’ve done that well. But it turns out unions don’t always make for the best, or even adequate, employers themselves.
In last week’s parliamentary debate on the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) by employers to cover up abuse and discrimination in the workplace, Labour MP Louise Haigh recounted how unions have used confidentiality agreements to hush up appalling behaviour.
Continue reading...Unions urge energy giant EDF to take action as concerns mount over health of construction staff
Workers building the troubled Hinkley Point C nuclear reactor in Somerset have raised concerns that the construction site is overrun by rats.
The Unite and GMB trade unions are understood to have warned the developer, the French energy giant EDF, that urgent action is needed because the rodents are “everywhere”.
Continue reading...The award-winning producer and screenwriter of Philomena’s new show, Suspect, is about the shooting of an innocent young Brazilian electrician on the London Underground in the wake of the 7/7 bombings. Here he asks why the force still can’t admit that it acted incompetently
‘Everybody’s human. Mistakes can be made… But you are really not prepared to say that any mistake [was made] here, are you?”
Michael Mansfield QC put this question to Cressida Dick – then deputy assistant commissioner at the Metropolitan police – at the inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, a young man who, 20 years ago this summer, was shot dead at Stockwell station in south London by Met firearms officers. The inquest took place in 2008, three years after his shooting on the morning of 22 July 2005, which was 15 days after the 7/7 bombings in London and one day after copycat bombers had tried and failed to detonate more explosives on the transport system and then fled. De Menezes was a 27-year-old Brazilian man living in London, an electrician on his way to work, with a travel card in his pocket and a copy of the free newspaper Metro, which he’d just picked up, tucked under his arm. A man completely unconnected to terrorism, terrorists, bombs, extremism or fundamentalism. A man not carrying a bag or rucksack. A man wearing jeans and a thin denim jacket.
Continue reading...Survey says queues outside emergency departments are leading to ‘car park care’ and fatalities
Paramedics across England are watching patients die in the back of ambulances because of delays outside emergency departments, according to a survey by Unison.
The gridlock of patients in some of the country’s hospitals has led to queues of up to 20 ambulances outside casualty departments in certain areas. In a number of cases, crews have been forced to wait more than 12 hours before handing over patients.
Continue reading...The US president’s sweeping, unprecedented tariffs on countries around the world are threatening to reshape the global economy – so, what exactly happens next?
On Thursday evening, towards the end of a long week at a textiles factory on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen Thi Dieu and her husband were watching the news. More than 8,700 miles away, US president Donald Trump was announcing sweeping, unprecedented tariffs on every country around the world. Nowhere was safe, even the uninhabited Heard Island and McDonald Islands off the western coast of Australia that, for some unexplained reason, were hit with a 10% tariff.
His announcement launched a fierce global trade war and triggered a global market meltdown, including on Trump’s own cherished Wall Street, where hundreds of billions of dollars of stock values evaporated.
Continue reading...Trump’s baseline 10% tariff on all imports from many countries has begun, with higher levies on 57 trading partners to start next week
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to visit the White House on Monday to discuss recently announced tariffs with US president Donald Trump, three Israeli officials said on Saturday, according to Reuters.
The impromptu visit was first reported by Axios, which said that if the visit takes place, the Israeli leader would be the first foreign leader to meet Trump in person to try to negotiate a deal to remove tariffs.
Continue reading...Temporary protected status lets people stay when it’s not safe for them to go home, but Ice is arresting them anyway
Venezuelans with legal permission to live and work in the United States are being unlawfully arrested by federal authorities at their homes, in their cars, at regular immigration check-ins and on the streets, attorneys say.
They are then stuck in immigration detention around the country, sometimes for weeks, despite the law explicitly banning the government from keeping them behind bars.
Continue reading...US and Europe criticised by head of Norwegian Refugee Council for ‘neglect’ of people living ‘subhuman’ existence
World leaders should be ashamed of their neglect of people whose lives were “hanging by a thread” at a time of surging violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the international charity leader Jan Egeland has said.
In a stinging attack on aid cuts and the “nationalistic winds” blowing across Europe and the US, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s head told the Guardian how people were living out in the open, in overcrowded, unsanitary displacement encampments around the city of Goma, where 1.2 million people have had to flee from their homes as the M23 rebels advanced through the DRC’s North and South Kivu provinces.
Continue reading...White House has said US courts can’t order return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose wife has been protesting outside court
A federal judge on Friday afternoon ordered the US to return a Maryland man mistakenly deported to an El Salvador prison after a Trump administration attorney was at a loss to explain what happened.
The wife of the man, who was flown to a notorious Salvadoran prison had earlier joined dozens of supporters at a rally before a court hearing on Friday, where his lawyers had asked the judge – Paula Xinis – to order the Trump administration to return him to the US.
Continue reading...The project in Uganda has captured the disastrous effects of the climate crisis on a vital source of water that is central to the lives and sacred beliefs of the local Bakonzo community
• Photographs by Project Pressure
Continue reading...Justice committee said the majority of public submissions oppose the legislation, which seeks to reinterpret the country’s founding document
A parliamentary committee has recommended a bill that seeks to radically reinterpret New Zealand’s founding treaty between Māori tribes and the British Crown should not proceed.
The treaty principles bill, which was introduced to parliament by the minor coalition Act party, seeks to abandon a set of well-established principles that guide the relationship between Māori and ruling authorities in favour of its own redefined principles.
Continue reading...Amid a nationwide deportation crackdown, eight Arizona State University students may be forced to leave the U.S.
The post Eight International Students at ASU Have Had Their Visas Revoked appeared first on The Intercept.
Florida prosecutors say Michelle Taylor used gasoline to set a fire that killed her son. Top forensic chemists say they’re wrong.
The post The Arson Evidence Doesn’t Hold Up. Florida Is About to Convict Her for Murder Anyway. appeared first on The Intercept.
Leaders around the world have reacted with a mix of a mix of confusion and concern after Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on some of its largest trading partners, upending decades of US trade policy and starting a possible global trade war. The tariffs range from 10% to 49% on all goods imported from abroad
‘Nowhere on earth is safe’: Trump imposes tariffs on uninhabited islands near Antarctica
War-torn and struggling countries among those facing steepest Trump reciprocal tariffs
President to impose ‘reciprocal’ tariffs on largest trading partners and says new charges will bring about ‘golden age’
Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on some of its largest trading partners on Wednesday, upending decades of US trade policy and threatening to unleash a global trade war on what he has called “liberation day”.
Trump said he will impose a 10% universal tariff on all imported foreign goods in addition to “reciprocal tariffs” on a few dozen countries, charging additional duties onto countries that Trump claims have “cheated” America.
Continue reading...Exclusive: State makes no admissions as it settles case with activist who alleged police misconduct during 2019 arrest at Melbourne mining conference
A climate protester who alleged their head was repeatedly slammed by members of Victoria police’s riot squad in 2019 has reached a settlement with the state.
Timothy Buchanan, 39, alleged their head was slammed into a metal wall, the ground and a glass door that their head was then used to open, during their arrest at a protest at an international mining conference in Melbourne.
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Continue reading...Some of the country’s most loved native species, including the koala and the hairy-nosed wombat, are on the brink. Is this their last chance at survival?
Most parliamentarians might be surprised to learn it, but Australians care about nature. Late last year, the not-for-profit Biodiversity Council commissioned a survey of 3,500 Australians – three times the size of the oft-cited Newspoll and representative of the entire population – to gauge what they thought about the environment. The results tell a striking story at odds with the prevailing political and media debate.
A vast majority of people – 96% – said more action was needed to look after Australia’s natural environment. Nearly two-thirds were between moderately and extremely concerned about the loss of plants and animals around where they live.
Get Guardian Australia environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as an email
Continue reading...The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts
Why do sunglasses make you look cool? Allen Bollands, by email
Post your answers (and new questions) below or send them to nq@theguardian.com. A selection will be published next Sunday.
Continue reading...Australian federal police say the man, 46, allegedly tried to open the rear emergency exit door of the plane from Malaysia on Saturday
A Jordanian national has been charged after he allegedly attempted to open the doors of a Sydney-bound plane mid-flight.
Australian federal police (AFP) said the man, 46, allegedly tried to open the rear emergency exit door of the plane, travelling from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday night.
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Continue reading...Just 4% of Australia’s rental properties, or less than one in 20, are occupied by international students, the property council says
Peter Dutton claims cutting at least 80,000 new international students from Australian higher education institutions will make it easier for you to find a rental property, saying Labor’s high migration intake has fuelled the housing crisis.
It would mean space for 115,000 at publicly funded universities and up to 125,000 overseas students in VET sector (such as Tafe), private universities (including the Gold Coast’s Bond University and Melbourne Business School) and non-university higher education providers.
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Continue reading...US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who started the now-infamous group chat coordinating a US attack against the Yemen-based Houthis on March 15, is seemingly now suggesting that the secure messaging service Signal has security vulnerabilities.
"I didn’t see this loser in the group," Waltz told Fox News about Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg, whom Waltz invited to the chat. "Whether he did it deliberately or it happened in some other technical mean, is something we’re trying to figure out."
Waltz’s implication that Goldberg may have hacked his way in was followed by a ...
Brother of Jagtar Singh Johal claims he is being ‘mentally tortured’ through unwarranted detention
The British Sikh activist Jagtar Singh Johal, detained for seven years in an Indian jail, has been placed into solitary confinement and under 24-hour surveillance despite being acquitted of all terrorism charges against him by a Punjab court on 4 March, his family have claimed.
Johal is still facing the exact same charges in a parallel case in a clear example of double jeopardy, his brother Gurpreet said when giving testimony at Westminster to an all party committee on arbitrary detention. He said the Indian courts have not granted his brother bail, despite the prosecutor’s failure to produce any credible evidence or witnesses in the Punjab court.
Gurpreet said UK consular staff met his brother in jail on Tuesday and were told he had been put into solitary confinement with a 24-hour guard, adding no explanation had been given.
Continue reading...Objections from a top immigration official that none of the protesters were convicted of crimes were overruled amid political pressure.
The post Germany Turns to U.S. Playbook: Deportations Target Gaza War Protesters appeared first on The Intercept.
Craig Donaldson challenging ruling by UK regulator, which accused him of misleading investors over £900m accounting blunder
The former chief executive of Metro Bank says he has been made “untouchable”, advised to move to Australia and even had trouble opening bank accounts after the UK regulator accused him of misleading investors over a £900m accounting blunder.
Craig Donaldson, who resigned in 2019, told the upper tribunal in London that both his career and personal finances had suffered as a result of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) 2022 ruling.
Continue reading...Energoatom CEO, Petro Kotin, says ‘major problems’ need to be overcome before it can safely generate power
It would be unsafe for Russia to restart the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and would take Ukraine up to two years in peacetime if it regained control, the chief executive of the company that runs the vast six-reactor site has said.
Petro Kotin, chief executive of Energoatom, said in an interview there were “major problems” to overcome – including insufficient cooling water, personnel and incoming electricity supply – before it could start generating power again safely.
Continue reading...A wildlife crossing across the 101 freeway will connect two parts of the Santa Monica mountains for animals
Above the whirring of 300,000 cars each day on Los Angeles’s 101 freeway, an ambitious project is taking shape. The Wallis Annenberg wildlife crossing is the largest wildlife bridge in the world at 210ft long and 174ft wide, and this week it’s had help taking shape: soil.
“This is the soul of the project,” says Beth Pratt, regional executive director, California, at the National Wildlife Federation, who has worked on making the crossing become a reality over the last 13 years. She says she’s seen many milestones, like the 26m pounds of concrete poured to create the structure, but this one is special.
Continue reading...Executive producer of hit show says BBC, ITV and Channels 4 and 5 should take a chance on difficult projects
The success of Adolescence should encourage Britain’s public service broadcasters to take more risks in the programmes they commission, one of the hit show’s executive producers has said.
The programme, which examines the influence of misogynist “incel” culture on a boy who stabs a classmate to death, has been a global phenomenon. It is the No 1 show across 74 countries and the ninth most-watched Netflix show of all time, with 96.7m views so far.
Continue reading...The boss’s bonus is an annual debating point at Britain’s biggest company. But that’s not the only issue this year
AstraZeneca is used to facing protests over pay at its annual general meetings, given the position of its chief executive, Pascal Soriot, as the best-paid FTSE 100 chief executive for most of the past five years. But pay is not the only issue overshadowing this year’s virtual gathering on Friday.
Britain’s biggest listed company, valued at about £170bn, faces investigations in China over import and data breaches, while it ran into controversy when it ditched the planned £450m expansion of its vaccine site in Speke, near Liverpool, in late January, after failing to hammer out a state support package with the UK government.
Continue reading...Victor Pelevin made his name in 90s Russia with his 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?
There are more Audio Long Reads here, or search Audio Long Read wherever you listen to your podcasts
Continue reading...Removed president says he is ‘very sorry’ to have not lived up to expectations. This blog is now closed
Yoon violated his duty as South Korean commander-in-chief by mobilising troops, says Justice Moon, the constitutional court’s acting president says. The president’s martial law declarations violated parliament’s rights, he says as the ruling continues.
Justice Moon says it is difficult to see the South Korean opposition’s actions as a severe national crisis to justify Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law declaration, Reuters is reporting as he continues delivering the ruling.
Continue reading...Meteorite falls are extremely rare and offer a glimpse of the processes that formed our world billions of years ago. When a space rock came to an English market town in 2021, scientists raced to find as much out as they could
By Helen Gordon. Read by Sasha Frost
Continue reading...John Harris on how music helped him connect with his autistic son James
When James was a child, he loved playing songs over and over. I Am the Walrus, by the Beatles. Autobahn, by Kraftwerk.
“He hears emotion in music. I know that for a fact,” James’s father the Guardian journalist John Harris tells Helen Pidd.
Continue reading...She lost her job at Emerson College after screening a film critical of Israel. Her lawsuit seeks to leverage an unusual Massachusetts free speech law.
The post This College Staffer Lost Her Job After Showing a Film Critical of Israel. Now She’s Suing Over Free Speech. appeared first on The Intercept.
The Trump administration’s detention of Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk rests on an opinion article she wrote in 2024, her lawyers said in a filing.
The post In Trump’s America, You Can Be Disappeared for Writing an Op-Ed appeared first on The Intercept.
Intelligence reports warn law enforcement about “acts of violence against electric vehicles” and the danger of battery fires.
The post Police Across the Country Are on High Alert Over Tesla Protests appeared first on The Intercept.
Google is part of a Customs and Border Protection plan to use machine learning for surveillance, documents reviewed by The Intercept reveal.
The post Google Is Helping the Trump Administration Deploy AI Along the Mexican Border appeared first on The Intercept.
We’d like to hear from UK renters who have been asked to pay a fee or higher rent because they owned a pet
MP Taiwo Owatemi’s £900 expense claim for a landlord’s surcharge to let her keep her dog in her London flat has prompted ministers to ask the Commons authorities for a review of allowance rules.
The MP, who has a cockapoo called Bella, made her expense claim last August and it was accepted by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa). But security minister Dan Jarvis said on Sunday he would not have made such a claim, and criticised the rules that allowed his Labour colleague to do so.
Continue reading...The law behind the warrants bars concealment of people in the country illegally, yet the students were legal residents living on campus.
The post ICE Got Warrants Under “False Pretenses,” Claims Columbia Student Targeted Over Gaza Protests appeared first on The Intercept.
The shape of the Trump 2.0 White House has spurred serious concerns about public health and reproductive rights, and left military leaders 'stunned' and former intelligence experts 'appalled'. From a vaccine skeptic in charge of running the department of health, to a wrestling mogul in charge of the country's education, and even a ‘deep state conspiracy theorist’ becoming head of the FBI, the Guardian US live news editor Chris Michael takes us through the six most controversial members, and what their appointments could mean for the country
Continue reading...Trump wants Gaza for real estate deals, but Mike Huckabee’s all-inclusive Israel tours erase Palestinians for a higher purpose.
The post Trump’s Pick for Israel Ambassador Leads Tours That Leave Out Palestinians — and Promote End of Days Theology appeared first on The Intercept.
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...
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...Kevin Hassett claims tariffs will not have a big effect on US consumers and there will be no ‘political coercion’ over interest rates
Starmer orders economic reset amid Trump’s tariff mayhem
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy which faces a 32% tariff rate, said it will not retaliate against the levies and would instead pursue diplomacy and negotiations to find mutually beneficial solutions. Jakarta has said it would send a high-level delegation to the US for direct negotiations with the government.
Cambodia asked the US government on Friday to postpone the 49% tariff rate on its products, the highest rate in Asia and second-highest globally.
Vietnam’s leader To Lam and Donald Trump agreed on Friday to discuss a deal to remove tariffs (Vietnam will be subject to a 46% tariff).
Brazil, which faces a 10% levy on its exports to the US, has said its “government is evaluating all possible actions to ensure reciprocity in bilateral trade, including resorting to the World Trade Organization, in defense of legitimate national interests”.
Taiwan’s top financial regulator said this morning it will impose temporary curbs on short-selling of shares to help deal with potential market turmoil brought resulting from the new import tariffs. Taiwan’s government said on Thursday that the new 32% tariff rate levied on the island were unreasonable and it would discuss them with Washington.
China has hit back hard against Trump’s imposition of 34% tariffs on Chinese goods, which were already subject to a 20% levy, taking the total levy to 54%. Beijing in turn announced a slew of countermeasures, including extra levies of 34% on all US goods and export curbs on some rare earth minerals.
Canada announced a limited set of counter measures against the latest US tariffs. The new Canadian prime minister Mark Carney said the government will copy the US approach by imposing a 25% tariff on all vehicles imported from the US that are not compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal (Canada and Mexico were exempt from Trump’s latest duties because they are still subject to a 25% tariff related to the US fentanyl crisis for goods that do not comply with the US-Mexico-Canada rules of origin). Carney says Canada will retaliate against “unjustified, unwarranted” tariffs.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is set to travel to Washington to meet with his close ally, US president Donald Trump.
Continue reading...Visit would make Israel’s president the first foreign leader to travel to Washington in attempt to negotiate a better deal
Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a last-minute visit to Washington to meet with Donald Trump, where the Israeli leader is expected to discuss Iran, the war in Gaza, and tariffs with the US president.
The Washington visit, Netanyahu’s second since Trump was inaugurated in January, comes after the resumption of hostilities in the Gaza Strip, and underlines the strong relationship between the two men.
Continue reading...My friend Ken Chubb, who has died aged 80, was the founder, along with his wife, Shirley Barrie, of the London-based Wakefield Tricycle theatre company in 1972. Eight years later he and Shirley set up the Tricycle theatre in north-west London to provide a permanent base for the company’s productions.
Working with a small team of actors, Ken was the theatre’s artistic director for four years from its foundation, until he and Shirley returned to their native Canada. Over that period, and before that with the travelling company, he was a notable champion of new plays by writers such as Sam Shepard, John Antrobus and Olwen Wymark.
Continue reading...For many of us, the United States means music, progress, hope. Whatever their president does, plenty of Americans continue to believe in those too
It seems as inevitable as the economic chaos let loose by Donald Trump’s mad avalanche of tariffs: a precipitous drop in the number of tourists visiting the US, which is now forecast to be even worse than initially feared. In February, overseas travel to the country was down by 5% compared with the previous year – and, now, reputable forecasters are predicting a drop of nearly twice that size.
We all know why. Trump’s hostile words about Canada and Mexico have hit the US’s top two markets for tourism. Finnish, German and Danish transgender and non-binary people have been advised by their governments to contact a US diplomatic mission before travelling there. Note also a trickle of reports about outsiders falling foul of the cruel stringency apparently now gripping the American authorities: a 28-year-old woman from north Wales held for 19 days in a detention centre and escorted on to her plane home in chains; the French scientist who was summarily denied entry into the US after his phone was found to contain messages criticising the president. Those stories intensify the Trump administration’s general air of brutality and belligerence, which also brings familiar fears to the surface: of guns, politicised thuggery and a country in a frighteningly volatile state. The result is the sudden understanding of the US as somewhere that may be best unvisited – which, for millions of people, brings on a very painful pang of loss.
Continue reading...Australian federal police say the man, 46, allegedly tried to open the rear emergency exit door of the plane from Malaysia on Saturday
A Jordanian national has been charged after he allegedly attempted to open the doors of a Sydney-bound plane mid-flight.
Australian federal police (AFP) said the man, 46, allegedly tried to open the rear emergency exit door of the plane, travelling from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday night.
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Continue reading...The award-winning producer and screenwriter of Philomena’s new show, Suspect, is about the shooting of an innocent young Brazilian electrician on the London Underground in the wake of the 7/7 bombings. Here he asks why the force still can’t admit that it acted incompetently
‘Everybody’s human. Mistakes can be made… But you are really not prepared to say that any mistake [was made] here, are you?”
Michael Mansfield QC put this question to Cressida Dick – then deputy assistant commissioner at the Metropolitan police – at the inquest into the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, a young man who, 20 years ago this summer, was shot dead at Stockwell station in south London by Met firearms officers. The inquest took place in 2008, three years after his shooting on the morning of 22 July 2005, which was 15 days after the 7/7 bombings in London and one day after copycat bombers had tried and failed to detonate more explosives on the transport system and then fled. De Menezes was a 27-year-old Brazilian man living in London, an electrician on his way to work, with a travel card in his pocket and a copy of the free newspaper Metro, which he’d just picked up, tucked under his arm. A man completely unconnected to terrorism, terrorists, bombs, extremism or fundamentalism. A man not carrying a bag or rucksack. A man wearing jeans and a thin denim jacket.
Continue reading...Graphic artist Rebecca Burke was on the trip of a lifetime. But as she tried to leave the US she was stopped, interrogated and branded an illegal alien by ICE. Now back home, she tells others thinking of going to Trump’s America: don’t do it
Just before the graphic artist Rebecca Burke left Seattle to travel to Vancouver, Canada, on 26 February, she posted an image of a rough comic to Instagram. “One part of travelling that I love is seeing glimpses of other lives,” read the bubble in the first panel, above sketches of cosy homes: crossword puzzle books, house plants, a lit candle, a steaming kettle on a gas stove. Burke had seen plenty of glimpses of other lives over the six weeks she had been backpacking in the US. She had been travelling on her own, staying on homestays free of charge in exchange for doing household chores, drawing as she went. For Burke, 28, it was absolute freedom.
Within hours of posting that drawing, Burke got to see a much darker side of life in America, and far more than a glimpse. When she tried to cross into Canada, Canadian border officials told her that her living arrangements meant she should be travelling on a work visa, not a tourist one. They sent her back to the US, where American officials classed her as an illegal alien. She was shackled and transported to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detention centre, where she was locked up for 19 days – even though she had money to pay for a flight home, and was desperate to leave the US.
Continue reading...Legislation was repealed in 2018 but Caribbean country’s supreme court last week recriminalised the act after appeal
The privy council in London will soon be called upon to make the final decision on a court case to remove homophobic laws in Trinidad and Tobago.
The laws were repealed in 2018 in a high court judgment that struck from the statute book the “buggery law” that had criminalised consensual anal sex since an act passed in 1925 under British rule. However, last week Trinidad’s supreme court upheld a government appeal against the ruling and recriminalised the act, dealing a hammer blow to LGBTQ+ rights in the Caribbean country and prompting the UK Foreign Office to update its advice for LGBTQ+ travellers.
Continue reading...The University of Pennsylvania has been a target of Canary Mission, a pro-Israel “blacklist” group. Turns out the call was coming from inside the house.
The post Pro-Israel Group That Attacked UPenn Was Funded by Family of UPenn Trustee appeared first on The Intercept.
Florida prosecutors say Michelle Taylor used gasoline to set a fire that killed her son. Top forensic chemists say they’re wrong.
The post The Arson Evidence Doesn’t Hold Up. Florida Is About to Convict Her for Murder Anyway. appeared first on The Intercept.
Searches of phones and other electronics are on the rise for those entering the U.S. Take these steps to help secure your devices.
The post Crossing the U.S. Border? Here’s How to Protect Yourself appeared first on The Intercept.
Trump wants Gaza for real estate deals, but Mike Huckabee’s all-inclusive Israel tours erase Palestinians for a higher purpose.
The post Trump’s Pick for Israel Ambassador Leads Tours That Leave Out Palestinians — and Promote End of Days Theology appeared first on The Intercept.
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...She lost her job at Emerson College after screening a film critical of Israel. Her lawsuit seeks to leverage an unusual Massachusetts free speech law.
The post This College Staffer Lost Her Job After Showing a Film Critical of Israel. Now She’s Suing Over Free Speech. appeared first on The Intercept.
The University of Pennsylvania has been a target of Canary Mission, a pro-Israel “blacklist” group. Turns out the call was coming from inside the house.
The post Pro-Israel Group That Attacked UPenn Was Funded by Family of UPenn Trustee appeared first on The Intercept.
I accompanied one of the students who fled Trump’s crackdown. It gave me clarity on what’s at stake.
The post This Is Not About Antisemitism, Palestine, or Columbia. It’s Trump Dismantling the American Dream. appeared first on The Intercept.
The Trump administration’s detention of Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk rests on an opinion article she wrote in 2024, her lawyers said in a filing.
The post In Trump’s America, You Can Be Disappeared for Writing an Op-Ed appeared first on The Intercept.
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