Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, and Debt:
Stating the obvious: Deposits at non-bank entities, including crypto firms, are not insured — FDIC
Cry me a river: Crypto.com and FTX Bet Big on Stadium Naming Rights Before the Crypto Crash. What Happens if They Can’t Afford to Pay?
Japan and U.S. to Partner on Next-Generation Chips
Japan will open an R&D center for next-generation 2-nanometer chips by year-end under a partnership with the U.S., part of their efforts to establish secure chip supply chains amid tensions around industry leader Taiwan.
The countries plan to research cutting-edge 2-nanometer semiconductors, which offer superior performance while using less power. The research and development center will include a prototype production line, with the goal of start mass-producing the chips domestically as early as 2025.
Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:
COVID-19 Vaccination Increases Immunity, Contrary to Immune Suppression Claims
The key to universal Covid-19 vaccines lies in your bones
Austria mourns suicide of doctor targetted by anti-COVID vaccine campaigners
Politics:
Text Messages Missing for Two Key Trump Aides
Text messages for former President Donald Trump’s acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and acting deputy secretary Ken Cuccinelli are missing for a key period leading up to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
This discovery of missing records for the senior-most homeland security officials, which has not been previously reported, increases the volume of potential evidence that has vanished regarding the time around the Capitol attack…
The revelation comes on the heels of the discovery that text messages of Secret Service agents — critical firsthand witnesses to the events leading up to Jan. 6 — were deleted more than a year ago and may never be recovered.
I find it hard to believe that they may never be recovered. Even if they were intentionally scrubbed, the NSA has them. We all know that the Fourth Amendment is dead meat.
A Shrinking China Can’t Overtake America
But if U.S. democracy continues to decay, what’s the point of being on top?
Russian Advances Stall in Ukraine
Russian advances in Ukraine have slowed almost to a standstill as newly delivered Western weapons help Ukrainian forces reclaim much of the advantage they had lost in recent months, opening a window of opportunity to turn the tide of the war in their favor again.
Russian troops have made no significant territorial gains since the Ukrainian retreat on July 2 from the eastern city of Lysychansk under withering artillery fire.
If Donald Trump were Black, he’d be in jail already
GOP Seeks Revenge by Blocking Veterans’ Bill
The White House could hardly believe that Biden’s renewed legislative fortunes had driven Republicans — even the normally unflappable McConnell — to make such a self-destructive move.
Samuel Alito mocks world leaders over abortion ruling
Trump uses presidential seal at N.J. golf club amid ethics complaints
It is against federal law to use the presidential and vice-presidential seals in ways that could convey “a false impression of sponsorship or approval by the Government of the United States.”
Kansas Sheriff Lied About Claims of Election Fraud
Russia Sending Mercenaries to Hold Ukrainian Frontline
Russia has ordered mercenaries to hold sections of the frontline in Ukraine — a sign it is running short of combat infantry as Kyiv steps up a counter-offensive in the south.
Greater reliance on fighters from the Russian private military company Wagner Group for frontline duties rather than their usual work in special operations would be another sign that Russia’s military is under stress six months into its war in Ukraine.
Teen activist body-shamed by Rep. Matt Gaetz raises $1.5 million for abortion funds
How Six States Could Overturn the 2024 Election
Late last month, in one of its final acts of the term, the Supreme Court queued up another potentially precedent-wrecking decision for next year. The Court’s agreement to hear Moore v. Harper, a North Carolina redistricting case, isn’t just bad news for efforts to control gerrymandering. The Court’s right-wing supermajority is poised to let state lawmakers overturn voters’ choice in presidential elections.
To understand the stakes, and the motives of Republicans who brought the case, you need only one strategic fact of political arithmetic. Six swing states—Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina—are trending blue in presidential elections but ruled by gerrymandered Republican state legislatures. No comparable red-trending states are locked into Democratic legislatures.
Russian Advances Stall in Ukraine
Russian advances in Ukraine have slowed almost to a standstill as newly delivered Western weapons help Ukrainian forces reclaim much of the advantage they had lost in recent months, opening a window of opportunity to turn the tide of the war in their favor again.
Russian troops have made no significant territorial gains since the Ukrainian retreat on July 2 from the eastern city of Lysychansk under withering artillery fire.
Horrifying footage appears to show Russian captors castrating a Ukrainian prisoner of war
Serendipity:
Great Salt Lake “not that far off” from an ecosystem collapse: Toxic dust storms, die-offs loom
As the Great Salt Lake continues to dry up, the ecological future of the region may be bleak
Cable company ordered to pay $7 billion to family of Texas woman murdered by repairman
Nice! that lava monster reminds me of Scooby Doo monsters.. :P