| Tragic video highlights systemic problem: Minneapolis police kill black people 13 times more than white people Posted: 26 May 2020 01:51 PM PDT  "I can't breathe" were some of the last words that a handcuffed George Floyd said as he was pinned on the ground, while a white Minneapolis police officer held a knee to his neck for several minutes on Monday. Floyd, a black man, is now dead.
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| Trump, for some reason, compares coronavirus death toll (over 98,000) to that of swine flu (under 20,000) Posted: 26 May 2020 02:43 PM PDT  On a day when the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus pandemic neared 100,000, President Trump sought to direct the nation's attention back to the 2009 H1N1 swine flu pandemic as a way to smear the reputation of his Democratic rival Joe Biden, who was vice president at the time.
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| US priest who founded Knights of Columbus to be beatified Posted: 27 May 2020 05:01 AM PDT  The founder of the Knights of Columbus, the influential U.S.-based lay Catholic organization, is moving a step closer to possible sainthood. Pope Francis has approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Rev. Michael McGivney, a Connecticut priest who died at age 38 of pneumonia in 1890 during a pandemic similar to the current coronavirus outbreak. The Vatican said Wednesday that Francis had signed off on the miracle required.
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| Pakistani villager urges India to return 'spy' pigeon Posted: 27 May 2020 06:29 AM PDT  The owner of a pigeon "arrested" by India for spying says his bird was freed for Eid and is innocent.
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| Monterey County DA to investigate if Biden accuser Tara Reade gave 'false testimony under oath' about expert witness credentials Posted: 26 May 2020 11:00 PM PDT  Reade served as an expert witness in domestic violence cases in California, for a decade, but cases where she testified are now under scrutiny.
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| Taiwan leader vows 'action plan' for Hong Kong protesters Posted: 27 May 2020 04:07 AM PDT  Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday pledged a humanitarian "action plan" for Hong Kongers pushing for democracy in the financial hub as an influx of activists seek sanctuary on the self-ruled democratic island. Hong Kong was upended by months of often violent pro-democracy protests last year sparked by rising fears that Beijing is chipping away at the city's freedoms. Unrest has returned in recent days after Beijing announced plans last week to impose a sweeping national security law in response to the protests, a move that has alarmed many western governments and Taiwan.
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| Justice Department clears 3 senators in stock sales investigation, but Burr's case appears ongoing Posted: 27 May 2020 07:46 AM PDT  Investigations into Sens. Feinstein, Loeffler and Inhofe have been dropped. Sen. Richard Burr appears to still be under investigation.
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| Venezuela's Maduro vows to raise gasoline price as Iranian tanker nears Posted: 27 May 2020 08:03 AM PDT  Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday pledged to begin charging citizens for gasoline, as the fourth cargo of a five-tanker flotilla bringing fuel from Iran approached the South American nation's exclusive economic zone. Iran is providing the country with up to 1.53 million barrels of gasoline and components to help it ease an acute scarcity that has forced Venezuelans to wait in hours-long lines at service stations or pay steep prices on the black market. With the arrival of the gasoline, Maduro said he would end the policy of providing fuel effectively for free after more than two decades of frozen pump prices.
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| Arbery case exemplifies how 'stand your ground' is a right, hate crime laws are hypothetical Posted: 26 May 2020 09:33 AM PDT  "The only advantage for the McMichaels is they are alive to tell their version of the story."
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| Twitter employees 'very unhappy' the platform won't correct Trump falsehoods about Scarborough and staff member Posted: 26 May 2020 05:12 PM PDT  Twitter employees are outraged by the company's refusal to stop President Trump from using the platform to promote a conspiracy theory involving Joe Scarborough and a former staffer, according to tech journalist Kara Swisher.
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| A new 'parking lot Karen' is going viral on TikTok for physically blocking someone's car from an open parking spot Posted: 27 May 2020 08:21 AM PDT  A TikTok shows a "Karen" blocking TikTok user @savsoares and her friend from parking by leaning on their car as she directed another car to park.
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| Russian Jets Blocked US Plane in Unsafe Maneuvers Over Mediterranean, Navy Says Posted: 27 May 2020 06:47 AM PDT  It was the third time in two months that Russian aircraft have intercepted Navy aircraft in the Sixth Fleet of operations.
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| Sweden touts the success of its controversial lockdown-free coronavirus strategy, but the country still has one of the highest mortality rates in the world Posted: 26 May 2020 07:56 PM PDT  Some experts have said Sweden's risky strategy will eventually yield positive results, while others have highlighted serious pitfalls.
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| Hong Kong 'no longer autonomous from China' - Pompeo Posted: 27 May 2020 01:34 PM PDT  The US secretary of state says the territory no longer merits special treatment under US laws.
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| Levi’s Is Taking 50% off These Best-Selling Jeans Right Now Posted: 27 May 2020 07:23 AM PDT |
| Huawei CFO Meng to find out if a U.S extradition case against her will proceed Posted: 27 May 2020 08:41 AM PDT  A top executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei is scheduled to learn Wednesday if a U.S extradition case against her can proceed. Canada arrested Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei's founder, at Vancouver's airport in late 2018. The U.S. wants her extradited to face fraud charges. Her arrest infuriated Beijing, which sees her case as a political move designed to prevent China's rise.
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| Father's killing of 14-year-old daughter stirs outrage in Iran Posted: 27 May 2020 11:26 AM PDT |
| This Neo-Futuristic Home Found Its Inspiration in the British Countryside Posted: 27 May 2020 01:14 PM PDT |
| Biden says nation grieves for 100,000 US coronavirus victims Posted: 27 May 2020 04:58 PM PDT  Joe Biden released a video Wednesday evening marking the grim U.S. milestone of 100,000 Americans killed by the coronavirus, saying somberly, "To all of you hurting so badly, I'm so sorry for your loss" and "This nation grieves with you." Evoking the personal tragedies he's faced in his own life, Biden said, "I think I know what you're feeling." "You feel like you're being sucked into a black hole in the middle of your chest," said Biden, who lost his first wife and young daughter in a 1972 car crash and an adult son to cancer in 2015.
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| US military accuses Russian jets of "unsafe and unprofessional" intercept Posted: 27 May 2020 01:00 AM PDT 
The United States on Tuesday accused two Russian fighter jets of making an "unsafe and unprofessional" intercept of a U.S. patrol plane flying over the Mediterranean Sea. The U.S. Department of Defense identified the planes as Russian Su-35 jets and said they flew alongside the wings of a P-8A Poseidon aircraft, assigned to the U.S. 6th Fleet, for 64 minutes while in international airspace. The jets had restricted the P-8A's ability to safely maneuver, the Department of Defense added. The incident came the same day that the U.S. military said Russia had deployed fighter aircraft to Libya to support Russian mercenaries fighting for eastern forces. The U.S. 6th Fleet is headquartered in Naples, Italy, working to "advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa," according to the Department of Defense.
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| The next 100 days: How the coronavirus will continue to change your life at home, at work, at school and beyond Posted: 27 May 2020 05:04 PM PDT  In a little over 100 days, the coronavirus killed 100,000 Americans. What awaits the country over the next 100 days in the COVID-19 battle?
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| A Eurowings plane with just 2 passengers on board was forced to turn around after learning its destination airport was closed due to coronavirus Posted: 27 May 2020 04:11 AM PDT  The flight from Düsseldorf, Germany, to Sardinia, Italy, made it all the way to its destination before it had to turn around.
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| Kentucky governor hung in effigy during gun rights rally Posted: 25 May 2020 10:11 PM PDT  Protesters hung Gov. Andy Beshear (D) in effigy at the state capitol on Sunday, an act that one lawmaker called "sickening."Local media reports that about 100 people attended a gun rights rally at the capitol that also turned into a protest against coronavirus restrictions enacted by Beshear. Video posted online shows a man stringing up a doll with a picture of Beshear's face on it and a noose around the neck, with others then posing for photos in front of the effigy as "God Bless the U.S.A." plays in the background.This was "sickening," Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron (R) said. "We have to learn to disagree without threats of violence." Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he is a "strong defender of the First Amendment," and believes Americans have "the right to peacefully protest," but the "action toward Gov. Beshear is unacceptable. There is no place for hate in Kentucky."In a statement, the Kentucky House Democratic leadership said the act "reeks of hate and intimidation" and is "beyond reprehensible." Beshear has not made any public comments on the incident. More stories from theweek.com Demonstrators, police clash during protest over George Floyd's death Trump keeps falsely accusing Joe Scarborough of murder, and it's long past weird Jimmy Kimmel dings Trump's 'brazen hypocrisy' on golfing, calls America's mask war 'the dumbest standoff ever'
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| $11,000 in personal items stolen from doctor visiting New York to fight coronavirus, report says Posted: 26 May 2020 11:25 AM PDT  A Texas doctor who moved to New York temporarily to assist in the fight against coronavirus has had $11,000 worth of personal items stolen from her hotel room, according to a report.Police sources told The New York Post that a woman who was believed to be in her 20's reportedly broke into the unidentified doctor's room at the Brooklyn Hotel on Atlantic Avenue at around 9am on Saturday.
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| British mercenaries 'involved in botched operation' backing rebel leader in Libya, according to secret UN report Posted: 27 May 2020 12:43 PM PDT  Six British citizens including two former Royal Marine commandos have been accused of taking part in a botched mercenary mission to Libya to fight on behalf of renegade general Khalifa Haftar. The five men and one woman are named in a confidential report by the United Nations panel of experts on Libya into a botched mission that ended with the mercenaries making a remarkable sea-borne escape after falling out with their hosts. The men, including former Royal Marines Sean Callaghan Louw and Andrew Scott Ritchie, were among around 20 mercenaries who travelled to Benghazi in eastern Libya in June 2019 in a contract organised by a UAE based company called Opus, according to the report seen by the Daily Telegraph. Amanda Perry, a United Arab Emirate based businesswoman, is identified and is alleged to have been a "facilitator" of the project. She is the managing director of Opus Capital Asset FZE, the company that hired two boats used by the group. She is also company secretary of Lancaster 6, a business owned by Christiaan Durrant, a former Australian fighter pilot and Malta resident who is also named - and accused of being a facilitator in the report.
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| Taiwan president pledges humanitarian relief for Hong Kongers Posted: 27 May 2020 02:08 AM PDT  Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday pledged to draw up a plan to give humanitarian relief to people involved in pro-democracy protests in Taiwan's most concrete intervention since a renewal of unrest in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong. China's proposed new security legislation for the former British colony has prompted protests in Hong Kong and condemnation from Western governments over perceived threats to freedoms. Hong Kong's demonstrators have won widespread sympathy in democratic Taiwan, which China considers as its territory to be taken by force, if necessary.
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| Search for UConn student wanted in 2 deaths in 6th day; stolen car eyed Posted: 27 May 2020 06:58 AM PDT  Connecticut State Police urged Peter Manfredonia, 23, to surrender, saying, "We know this is not who you are," while Pennsylvania officers probed whether a car theft Sunday was connected.
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| Ex-Watergate prosecutors say judge has legal duty to review facts in Flynn case Posted: 27 May 2020 09:23 AM PDT  Sixteen former Watergate prosecutors on Wednesday said U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan should be allowed to review all the facts before deciding whether to grant a Justice Department request to drop the criminal case against President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn. In a filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the former prosecutors said they feared the Justice Department was not acting in the public interest, and that Sullivan has the power to scrutinize the request in order to ensure that "the waters of justice are not polluted." Flynn filed an emergency petition with the federal appeals court on May 21, asking the court to force Sullivan's hand and toss the case.
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| Fauci wears a mask as a 'symbol' of what 'you should be doing' amid coronavirus pandemic Posted: 27 May 2020 11:52 AM PDT  Infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci acknowledged masks aren't "100% effective" but are a "valuable safeguard" and part of "respect for another person."
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| Zuckerberg reportedly brushed aside internal research that showed Facebook exposed users to more and more extreme views, saying he never wanted the topic brought to him again Posted: 26 May 2020 01:21 PM PDT  After Facebook researchers found the site contributed to divisive rhetoric, executives reportedly nixed proposed changes for fear of appearing biased.
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| America Should Never Conduct Another Nuclear Test Posted: 27 May 2020 05:30 AM PDT  The U.S. government hasn't tested a nuclear weapon in 28 years, and for good reason.
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| Three European air forces approve performance benchmarks for next-gen fighter jet Posted: 27 May 2020 06:21 AM PDT  The criteria will be used to whittle down the number of design options as the Future Combat Air System program proceeds through the next stages of development.
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| A pharmacist known as 'the Mask Man' has been charged with hoarding $200,000 worth of N95 masks and price-gouging customers Posted: 27 May 2020 02:35 PM PDT  The DOJ said the pharmacist, 66-year-old Richard Schirripa, sold $2,690 of masks to an undercover officer and said he felt "like a drug dealer."
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| So-called honor killing of teen girl brings outcry in Iran Posted: 27 May 2020 05:16 AM PDT  The so-called honor killing of a 14-year-old Iranian girl by her father, who reportedly used a farming sickle to behead her as she slept, has prompted a nationwide outcry. Reza Ashrafi, now in custody, was apparently enraged when he killed his daughter Romina on Thursday after she ran away with 34-year-old Bahamn Khavari in Talesh, some 320 kilometers (198 miles) northwest of the capital, Tehran. In traditional societies in the Middle East, including Iran, blame would typically fall on a runaway girl for purportedly having sullied her family's honor, rather than on an adult male luring away a child.
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| Senate Democrats take on GOP court-packing in blistering new report Posted: 27 May 2020 03:12 PM PDT  The senators pointed to conservative activist Leonard Leo as the driving force behind the many of the president's appointments.
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| Tropical Storm Bertha makes landfall on South Carolina coast, could bring up to 8 inches of rain to some areas Posted: 27 May 2020 11:28 AM PDT  Tropical Storm Bertha formed off the South Carolina coast Wednesday morning, the second named storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season.
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| Pompeo says Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China, which could mean the US ends the city's special trade status Posted: 27 May 2020 09:27 AM PDT  "No reasonable person can assert today that Hong Kong maintains a high degree of autonomy from China, given facts on the ground," Pompeo said.
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| Iranian Tankers Arrive in Venezuela Despite the U.S. Navy Posted: 26 May 2020 02:25 AM PDT  The Iranian oil tanker Fortune slipped into Venezuelan waters in the pre-dawn dark of Monday morning, the first of five tankers from the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) bringing vitally needed gasoline to a regime the Trump administration has, for years, tried and failed to bring down. Four days before the Fortune arrived in Venezuelan waters, Secretary of State Michael Pompeo announced that sanctions slapped on Iran's shipping lines last December will take effect on June 8. The message seemed to get through. The tankers speeded up.While the Fortune was still unloading 280,000 barrels of the precious fuel, maritime live tracking websites showed three other tankers arrived in Venezuelan waters ahead of schedule. At approximately 1 am EDT Tuesday morning, the Faxom reached its final destination, three days earlier than its posted ETA. The Forest and the Petunia were close behind, also ahead of their scheduled arrival date. The last tanker, the Clavel, was still listed as arriving June 2.According to the petroleum industry news site Argus Media, the Fortune's cargo was being distributed under "a tightly rationed system, with some of the gasoline transported by pipeline to other points for truck distribution." It also cited an unnamed Defense Ministry official saying "some of the supply" could be transhipped to Cuba.The total cargo on the ships is an estimated 1.5 million barrels, barely enough to last two to three weeks, to make up for lost production from Venezuela's largest refinery complex that needs serious repair.Trump Just Inspired the Dumbest Damned Coup Plot in LatAm History, Complete with a QAnon CrazyThe fact that Venezuela is starved for gasoline—even though it has the world's largest proven reserves of petroleum—is testimony to the corruption and mismanagement that plague the country. In fact, the state-owned oil giant, Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) has crumbled. At the same time, an avalanche of U.S. sanctions intended to overthrow the government of President Nicolás Maduro has left the country effectively bankrupt. Much of the world, led by the Trump administration, recognizes opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the legitimate president of Venezuela despited a record that as proved both feckless and reckless. So Maduro has built a byzantine network of allies—notably Iran and Russia, but also shady gold traders and sympathetic shipping tycoons, to come to his rescue.On Venezuela's Government television channel, Venezolana de Television, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino announced the Iranian tankers would receive a royal welcome, even if they have to play tag with the U.S. Navy on the high seas: "When those ships enter our exclusive economic zone, they will be escorted by FANB [Venezuelan navy] vessels and planes to welcome them and thank the Iranian people for their solidarity and cooperation amid the difficulties caused by COVID-19."But for all the fanfare surrounding the tankers' arrival, the stark reality is that Venezuela had to go half way around the world to get refined fuel, underlining the desperation of the Maduro regime—and a risky count-down has begun. The Trump administration keeps feinting toward military action with an increased naval presence in the Caribbean. It gave covert—but not very secret—aid to a failed coup a year ago, and it recently offered huge rewards for the arrest of Maduro and his top lieutenants, inspiring an operation by disastrously incompetent adventurers organized by a former U.S. Green Beret. Most were killed or captured by Maduro's forces—and by a few Venezuelan fishermen. But it's the sanctions that really continue to bite. Even with today's very low prices, how can cash-strapped Venezuela afford the $45 million purchase price for Iran's refined product?According to Bloomberg News, Maduro turned to Alex Nain Saab Moran, a Colombian national indicted in the U.S. last July on federal money-laundering charges involving a $900 million shipment of Venezuelan gold to Turkey. Bloomberg reported Saab traveled to Tehran last April with senior executives from PDVSA and negotiated the Iran gasoline deal in exchange for crude oil. According to Bloomberg, Venezuelan officials sent about nine tons of gold—equivalent to US$ 500 million—to Iran on jets owned by Mahan Air, a Tehran-based carrier. In addition to the oil deal, Iran was also sending equipment to repair Venezuela's decaying refineries and broken gas pumps. Since then, Mahan Air has been placed on the growing U.S Treasury sanction list.But Venezuela still has to find ways to to get income from its crude oil, which accounts for about 95 percent of the nation's export revenues. In January 2019, the U.S. cut off Venezuela's main client, which was the United States itself. Venezuela lost the market for one third of its oil exports and production dropped to its lowest levels in 75 years. Russia's oil giant Rosneft stepped in, lending over US$ 6 billion to PDVSA. Through it's Swiss-based affiliate, Rosneft Trading, Rosneft tankers began transporting 80 percent of Venezuela's crude oil exports in a loan repayment deal. The U.S. slapped sanctions on Rosneft Trading. Rosneft itself, the mother company and the crown jewel in Russia's economy, was not targeted by Treasury. It shut down its operations in Venezuela immediately nonetheless—but only after transferring its Venezuelan crude oil exporting to another Rosneft unit, TNK Trading. Meanwhile, the image of Iranian tankers arriving in the backyard of the United States is a far departure from what one of Trump's short-lived cabinet members had envisioned. In February 2018, on the eve of his first whirlwind tour of South America, former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson invoked the 1823 Monroe Doctrine in his speech at the State University of Texas saying it was "as much alive today as the day when it was written." The doctrine claimed Washington has the right to intervene militarily at any time and anywhere in the western hemisphere to prevent foreign influences from establishing themselves. In fact, many have done so, from the British to the Soviets, in the nearly two centuries since its proclamation, but the supposed sanctity of the Monroe Doctrine appears to be an article of faint in the confines of the White House and the head of its mercurial occupant. On April 1, President Trump held one of his rambling news conferences pegged to COVID-19 as the nation grappled with daunting statistics and New York emerged as the new epicenter of the pandemic.As if out of nowhere, Trump made the startling announcement that he was sending U.S. Navy warships to the Caribbean to combat drug traffickers, and his administration fingered top Venezuelan officials as some of the worst. "As governments and nations focus on the coronavirus, there is a growing threat that cartels, criminals, terrorists and malign actors will try to exploit the situation for their own gain," said Trump. "We must not let that happen." National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien identified Venezuela directly, saying, "We will continue to execute our maximum pressure policy to counter the Maduro regime's activities, including drug trafficking." Earlier, the Trump administration had indicted Venezuelan President Maduro and members of his inner circle on charges they run a smuggling operation bringing up to 250 tons of cocaine a year to the U.S. They put a price on Maduro's head of $15 million and the total bounties on offer came to $55 million, prompting the ex-Green Beret Jordan Goudreau to launch the fiasco dubbed Operation Gideon. In the midst of all this, a shipping tycoon apparently has been delivering gasoline to his native Venezuela. Wilmer Ruperti told AP in an exclusive interview in April that his goal was humanitarian and that he had notified the U.S. Treasury Department which, he claimes, did not object. Ruperti also did not disclose where the refined fuel came from. As Iranian tankers continue arriving in Venezuela and Russian tankers head out of the Caribbean, it's apparent that no doctrine, Monroe's or otherwise, is stopping them. So there are several questions looming larger by the day: Will the U.S. Navy be ordered to stop those ships if there is a repeat performance? How long can Maduro continue like this? And how far is the Trump administration willing to go to bring him down at last?Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Taiwan was so pandemic-ready that it's had just 7 coronavirus deaths Posted: 26 May 2020 07:02 AM PDT  Small island just off mainland China is home to almost 24 million people, but they'd been bracing for a crisis like COVID-19 for 17 years.
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| UK PM Johnson to go to Brussels next month for Brexit talks: The Times Posted: 27 May 2020 04:42 PM PDT  Britain's negotiator with the European Union, David Frost, said Johnson will meet the presidents of the European Commission and Council to formally assess the state of the talks, according to the newspaper. Talks on a new pact to cover everything from trade to fisheries to security from 2021 had reached an impasse before a key deadline at the end of June, when the bloc and London are to assess their progress.
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| Israeli court: Alleged child sex abuser fit to stand trial Posted: 26 May 2020 04:22 AM PDT  An Israeli court Tuesday ruled that a former teacher accused of sexually abusing her students in Australia is fit to stand trial for extradition, capping a years-long battle that has strained relations between the two allies and angered Australia's pro-Israel Jewish community. The ruling was hailed by Malka Leifer's alleged victims, who have accused their one-time school principal and Israeli authorities of dragging out the case for far too long. A July 20 extradition hearing was set by the court.
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| Marine Corps to Shut Down, Cut Back 7 MOSs as the Force Prepares for Change Posted: 27 May 2020 02:20 PM PDT  Marines in several jobs will need to move into new fields -- or even other branches of the military.
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| Demand has ‘just dried up’ for U.S. small firms in requesting coronavirus stimulus Posted: 26 May 2020 08:37 AM PDT  When the U.S. government first rolled out forgivable loans to small businesses in early April under the Paycheck Protection Program, loan officers at Bank of the West in Grapevine, Texas, worked nights and weekends to process a tsunami of applications.
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| U.S. to end sanctions waivers allowing some work at Iran nuclear sites Posted: 27 May 2020 11:13 AM PDT  The United States said on Wednesday it will terminate sanctions waivers that had allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out work originally designed to make it harder for Iranian nuclear sites to be used for weapons development. The waivers, which officials said expire on July 27, covered the conversion of Iran's Arak heavy water research reactor, the provision of enriched uranium for its Tehran Research Reactor and the transfer of spent and scrap reactor fuel abroad. In a statement, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave no precise justification for the move, which will halt some work originally designed to make it more difficult for Iran to potentially develop fissile material for nuclear bombs.
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