Today’s News 19th December 2024

• Dr. Jay Bhattacharya Will Rebuild Trust In Public Health
  Dr. Jay Bhattacharya Will Rebuild Trust In Public Health

  Authored by Wilk Wilkinson via RealClearPolicy,

  Just weeks before President-elect Trump announced that Dr. Jay Bhattacharya would be his nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Bhattacharya and I were together at Stanford University for a bold, first-of-its-kind symposium on public health decision making during the COVID-19 crisis. 

  

  The idea behind the symposium was to shatter the public health echo chamber and bring diverse perspectives together in respectful dialogue. Dr. Bhattacharya and I are close friends, but our backgrounds are quite different. He is firmly at home at Stanford, having gone there as an undergraduate, and then going on to get a medical degree and a Ph.D. there before joining the faculty as a Professor of Health Policy. I, on the other hand, am a blue-collar Midwesterner who enlisted the in U.S. Navy after high school. I carry no titles of academic distinction and was likely the only participant at the symposium without a medical degree or PhD.

  Yet, I was invited by Stanford to moderate the symposium’s opening panel with seven leading public health authorities from top institutions across the world. What brought me into this unusual position was my expanding work to rebuild truth and trust in public health—a collaboration that began with former NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins and the Braver Angels organization, which is nation’s largest movement working to bridge the partisan divide.

  My work with the Truth & Trust Project began in early 2022 when Dr. Collins was the outgoing Director of NIH. He approached Braver Angels – of which I am an active member, ambassador and volunteer – with a unique request: he wanted to better understand his own “blind spots” and find ways to rebuild public trust in the U.S. health system after America’s bitter experience with it throughout the COVID-19 crisis. Braver Angels saw an opportunity to pair Dr. Collins with someone outside the the typical public health echo chamber, but who cares deeply about the subject. That unlikely someone was me.

  Dr. Collins and I began having regular conversations, including public ones on my podcast, DerateTheHate. Our work together was eye-opening for both of us. Dr. Collins brought deep expertise and years of leadership in public health, while I offered a fresh perspective, shaped by my experiences in blue-collar Middle America. Through our collaboration, Dr. Collins and I kept returning to the critical question of how to rebuild trust in institutions that have grown disconnected from the people they serve.

  Since our collaboration in this project began, I have had the opportunity to interview, engage, and develop personal relationships with many leading public health officials from across the nation, including Dr. Bhattacharya. The public health experts I have engaged do not always see eye-to-eye with each other on public health policy—in fact they often deeply disagree—but all are deeply troubled by the sharp declines in public health trust, and all have perspectives worth hearing. If we do not broaden our aperture and listen to dissenting voices from across America about where we went wrong in the last pandemic, we will not be prepared to manage the next one. It could arrive without warning at any time.

  The Stanford conference felt like the start of something significant. The symposium brought together leading public health experts with different viewpoints on the pandemic response and it demonstrated how intellectual pluralism and dialogue only sharpen our thinking. The conference reinforced the idea that meaningful change can only come when we move beyond echo chambers and engage with those who see the world differently. 

  What lessons did the COVID-19 crisis teach us?

  COVID-19 exposed glaring weaknesses in our public health response, which in my view were largely driven by an overreliance on centralized decision-making. Federal agencies issued sweeping directives that often ignored the diverse needs and realities of local communities. Schools were closed, businesses were shuttered, and lives were upended by policies that felt disconnected and, at times, arbitrary.

  We failed to recognize that local health departments, educators, and community leaders understand local needs, culture, geography and resources better than anyone at the federal level. We failed to empower them in the public health decision making process. By sidelining them in favor of centralized mandates, we not only eroded trust but also missed opportunities for effective and responsive solutions that could be supported and promoted by trusted local leaders.

  Had public health institutions prioritized the concept of localized decision making – the principle of subsidiarity– trust might not have been so deeply eroded. Rather than a faceless bureaucracy issuing mandates, imagine a system where local doctors, school principals, and community leaders were the primary messengers of public health guidance. These are the people families trust, the voices they are more likely to listen to and follow.

  The concept of subsidiarity is much more than a political or philosophical principle—it’s a deeply human and American idea that centers relationships, empowerment, and shared responsibility. Subsidiarity recognizes that the best solutions often come from those closest to the problem, and the principle fundamentally respects the knowledge, context, and capacity for self-governance of the American people.

  What Can We Expect from Dr. Bhattacharya’s Leadership of NIH?

  As I look to the future of public health under Dr. Bhattacharya, I am hopeful about what we can achieve. Dr. Bhattacharya demonstrated great professional courage and clarity during and after the pandemic, and he is a forceful advocate for a more localized and balanced response to the pandemic crisis. In The Great Barrington Declaration, which he co-authored, Dr. Bhattacharya underscored the importance of protecting the most vulnerable while minimizing societal disruptions like children’s learning loss, which the nation feels acutely as a result of pandemic school closures. Dr. Bhattacharya has argued that the federal government must focus on better equipping local health systems with tools and data rather than imposing rigid, top-down mandates. His vision is a public health system that is responsive, equitable, and grounded in trust – I could imagine no one better positioned to lead the NIH than him.

  As President Trump’s nominee, Dr. Bhattacharya will bring the principle of subsidiarity to life on a national scale. His advocacy for empowering local communities to manage public health challenges will not only lead to a better pandemic response next time; it will repair the trust we lost in our handling of the last one. In our highly polarized environment, the principle of decentralized decision making is more vital than ever because trust is built from the ground up—through relationships, transparency, and mutual respect. 

  Subsidiarity is about more than governance; it is about relationships, empowerment, and shared responsibility, too. Whether in public health, education, or any other area of American life, the principle reminds us that the solutions we seek are often closer to us than we realize. I know Dr. Bhattacharya well. I am confident that he will not only help us restore trust in public health as director of NIH but will demonstrate how the principle of subsidiarity can be help America rebuild trust in other areas of our democracy where it is deficient today. 

  Wilk Wilkinson is a devoted husband, a loving father, a steadfast Christian conservative, and the insightful host of the “Derate The Hate” podcast.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 23:20

• Smarter, Faster, & Focused
  Smarter, Faster, & Focused

  Authored by JP Errico via RealClearHealth,

  In March of 2016, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) initiated a program to see whether it was possible to literally enhance cognitive function, i.e., become inherently smarter, through technological intervention.  The quest for greater intelligence may sound like the stuff of ancient mythology or dystopian science fiction, complete with tragic moral teachings about hubris.  This tale, however, is less Greek tragedy and more Gene Roddenberry!

  

  DARPA’s mission was launched after a decade or so of provocative case reports and small uncontrolled studies that revealed improved mental capacities among various neuromodulation patients.  These seemingly enhanced abilities included memory, verbal facility, spatial relations, and combined accuracy and speed on specialized learning tests.

  The TNT, or Targeted Neuroplasticity Training program was established to test a series of different technologies to see if any could accelerate learning by enhancing the brain’s curious ability to continuously evolve based on experiences.  Neuroplasticity is a fancy term that simply means changing neural connections to improve performance, and it encompasses learning, recall, and applying acquired knowledge.

  After a series of tests conducted by multiple research groups across a dozen different technologies, one stood head and shoulders above the rest.  Before telling you what it is, however, I need to explain a little about how human brains form and how they evolve through life.

  The human brain starts forming just a few weeks after conception when the embryo is made up of only a few layers of cells. At this stage, a structure called the yolk sac exists inside the placenta, adjacent to the embryo. At a well-choreographed moment in the development, a group of cells, called macrophage progenitors, migrate en masse, from the yolk sac and invade the embryo. These cells settle into areas where major organs like the brain, heart, and liver will form, and they begin creating special immune cells called tissue resident macrophages (TRMs).

  The TRMs that settle in the neural tube (the future site of the brain) are called microglia. These cells stay inside the developing brain region, behind a protective layer called the blood-brain barrier, that they construct. Within that space, they help build the brain by guiding the growth, placement, and connections of neurons and all the other supporting tissue and structures. Rather critically, neurons need to communicate with each other across the brain, and microglia ensure this network gets set up correctly.

  More specifically, microglia initially encourage the brain to form as many connections as possible. But as the brain grows, their role shifts as they begin to refine and organize these connections, removing ones that aren’t useful. This process, called synaptic pruning, is guided by sensory inputs and other circumstances and helps the brain become more efficient and specialized based on individual experiences. It’s like trimming excess branches from a tree to help it grow stronger.

  Some brain regions stop developing after a certain point, but others—like the hippocampus, which helps with memory and learning—continue to grow and change throughout life. (An interesting observation that demonstrates this is how London cab drivers, who have to learn the entirety of the Gordian knot that is the city’s roadways in order to be licensed, have substantially larger hippocampi than “normal”.)

  Microglia are essential for brain development, but because they’re also immune cells, they can be affected by inflammation. When inflammation distracts microglia from their tasks, brain development can be disrupted, potentially leading to conditions like autism or schizophrenia. Even mild inflammation can impact brain development and can impact memory and learning functions in adults.

  It stands to reason, therefore, that any intervention that prevents microglia from being diverted by inflammation or helps inflamed microglia return quickly and effectively to their constructive state can enhance learning. DARPA’s TNT program identified exactly that, and it’s called brain development or more specifically, non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS).

  VNS using implanted devices, was already a proven medical treatment to treat drug-resistant epilepsy, refractory depression, and had even been found effective in treating obesity.  In fact, many of the provocative reports mentioned above had come from VNS patients.  Surgical implantation of a medical device to try to make soldiers smarter, however, sounded too much like The Terminator for even the military.  What they wanted was a hand-held device that was marketed as a wellness product.  Fortunately, such a device was being developed, to treat stress and enhance sleep quality, and thus, broader real-world studies began.

  Just a few months ago, the latest results on the benefits of this technology were reported in Nature’s Scientific Reports.  In this study, the therapy was tested at the Defense Language Institute – where high-performing military personnel learn new languages prior to deployments.  This study found that using the nVNS for just 2 minutes, twice per day, reduced mental fatigue by >30%, enhanced focus by >40%, and improved actual recall by >50%.  The military version of the product is called TAC STIM, but the same therapy is also available to the general public as a device called Truvaga.

  As amazing as all of this may seem (and it is), it pales in comparison to the final parts of this story, which are ones in which I am proud to be playing an active role.

  Remember when I mentioned that inflammation can distract microglia, impacting neurodevelopment, and how that can lead to autism or schizophrenia?  Well, this same nVNS therapy is now being tested to see if it can be used during pregnancy and in early childhood to help prevent the neurodevelopmental harm that inflammation can cause, and alter the skyrocketing rates of autism and the epidemic of mental health challenges.

  As remarkable as it may seem, at the other end of the developmental spectrum, nVNS is also being studied to see if it can modify neurodevelopment, not simply to protect against damage and disability, or temporarily enhance learning, but to optimize brain development permanently, e.g., deliver enhanced IQ!  Given the importance of intelligence in the modern world, the degree to which every measure of success depends on intelligence, and the fact that medical and sociological research continues to reveal the damaging impact of economically and socially disadvantaged environments on childhood cognitive growth, nVNS may provide an immediate leveling of the cognitive playing field for the next generation of American children.  That is a future worth imagining!

  And until you opt for an implant… boost neuroplasticity and reduce brain inflammation with IQ Biologix’s Peak Focus and Brain Rescue. We’ve been on it for months…

  

  JP Errico is a highly accomplished scientist with a diverse range of expertise as an executive, entrepreneur, and inventor. He is an expert on the Autonomic Nervous System. He is the Founder of ElectroCore, where he pioneered a non-invasive Vagus Nerve stimulator. JP has been credited as an inventor on over 250 issued US patents. He went to MIT for undergrad and holds graduate degrees in both law and mechanical/materials engineering from Duke University.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 22:55

• California's Regulations Causing Truck Shortages, Rising Costs, Industry Says
  California’s Regulations Causing Truck Shortages, Rising Costs, Industry Says

  Authored by Kimberly Hayek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  California’s zero emission regulations are causing truck shortages and rising costs, according to the trucking and heavy-duty vehicle industry.

  State officials plan to end traditional combustion truck sales by 2036.

  

  California’s Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) regulation requires manufacturing companies to gradually increase the percentage of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) they sell on the market—such as electric or hydrogen—and reduce the number of gas and diesel trucks.

  Anthony Bento, chief legal officer for the California New Car Dealers Association, said dealers in the state have seen dramatic decreases in available trucks for the 2024 model year as a result of the new rules.

  “These rules are decreasing product availability, and when there’s less product available, there’s increasing costs,” Bento told The Epoch Times. “The on-the-ground reality is that California consumers and businesses are going to be paying more, because there’s not an adequate supply of new product available that meets customers’ demands.”

  California’s goals include reducing tailpipe emissions and requiring the progress and adoption of advanced clean trucks. By the end of the 2024 model year, 5 to 9 percent of sales in California must be ZEVs.

  The ACT regulation was adopted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) in 2020 and approved by the state Office of Administrative Law in March 2021.

  Industry representatives say the rules are forcing businesses to drive out of state to purchase trucks and parts that are non-compliant, leave the state of California, or close up shop altogether. They also say truck business owners are delaying upgrading their fleet so as to not deal with the requirements.

  Mark Baatz, owner of Tow Industries in Los Angeles, which supplies trucks to emergency roadside services, told host Siyamak Khorrami on EpochTV’s “California Insider” in an interview published on Dec. 15, that the towing industry doesn’t yet have any available ZEV options.

  “In our industry, regardless of cost, there isn’t an electric truck that works for us at this time,” he said. “That next technology hasn’t arrived for us yet.”

  As a result, the number of diesel trucks available has been reduced dramatically, he said. Last year, his company sold around 600 trucks, and next year, only around 30 to 50 trucks are expected to be available. He said this will heavily impact the emergency towing industry.

  Meanwhile, CARB representatives have said the state’s ACT regulations may not be the problem, citing a nationwide downturn in the market, supply chain issues carrying over from previous years, and manufacturers not being sufficiently prepared to comply with other emissions regulations.

  “Inconsistencies in communication have led dealers and fleets to believe that the ACT regulation’s requirements are leading to the product shortages in the medium- and heavy-duty space which, upon discussions with all affected parties, is not backed by the data available,” Steven Cliff, executive officer for CARB, wrote in a memo on Sept. 25.

  “Additionally, some vehicle upfitters producing specialty vehicles, including tow trucks, have reached maximum production capacity thresholds nationwide and cannot increase production levels, which affects the manufacturers’ ability to accept new orders.”

  Cliff also said California zero-emission trucks have increased in price by an average of $86,512 since 2021–22, while such European trucks have decreased in price by an average of $12,641 during that same time period.

  “There appear to be no clear reasons for this disparity between regions,” he wrote.

  On Dec. 6, the board published a “Myth vs. Fact” fact sheet to address concerns raised about the ACT rules, stating for example, “The ACT regulation does not have any provisions prohibiting or restricting the types of diesel-powered vehicles that can be registered or operated in California.”

  CARB did not reply to The Epoch Times’ request for comment by publication time.

  A separate major regulation facing the California trucking industry is the Heavy-Duty Low NOx rule, which went into effect in 2021 and requires a 90 percent reduction in certain emissions for new heavy-duty vehicles compared to traditional diesel engines by 2031.

  ZEV Compliant Trucks

  At a CARB board meeting on Oct. 24, Bento said data suggests that the magnitude of declines in available trucks are significant—over 80 percent for Class 8 heavy-duty trucks weighing more than 33,000 pounds—and the scale of these declines is unique to California. Therefore, he said they cannot be attributed to national or economic factors.

  If the supply of new combustion trucks does not increase, businesses that rely on these vehicles will be left with a couple of choices, Bento said.

  “Continue to operate their older, more polluting vehicles for longer or purchase vehicles from out of state that do not comply with CARB requirements,” he said. “Both options undermine our state’s environmental goals and will harm air quality.”

  Brian Banks, owner of Action Towing and Road Service in the San Francisco Bay Area, said that while he supports clean energy and wants his children to live in a world with clean air, he also wants to support his 200 workers and their families.

  “Unfortunately at this point, there is no application that will work in our industry. I ask the board to please reconsider the regulations and continue to make amendments to allow us to run our businesses until there is a solution,” he said.

  Other commenters suggested emergency tow trucks be exempt from the ACT regulation or postpone the regulation altogether until the technology catches up.

  Ashley Porter, sales manager for Oakland-based Tec Equipment, said she has seen many of their large truck customers leave California or pass the costs of updating their fleet onto customers.

  She said it has been heart-wrenching to walk her clients through the ACT and other regulations and noted that certain businesses don’t have the resources to meet the requirements.

  “The impact of these regulations as it is written today will impact the California economy negatively for years to come,” Porter said.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 22:30

• FTC Bans Hidden 'Junk' Fees For Hotels, Concerts, Sports… But Spares Other Industries
  FTC Bans Hidden ‘Junk’ Fees For Hotels, Concerts, Sports… But Spares Other Industries

  The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Tuesday unveiled a new set of rules outlawing the practice of hiding so-called “junk fees” from consumers until the end of the purchase process. However, the long-awaited rules have a relatively narrow scope: They only encompass live event tickets, hotels and vacation rentals — sparing airlines, auto dealers and many other prominent generators of consumer grievances.  

  “Consumers searching for hotels or vacation rentals or seats at a show or sporting event will no longer be surprised by a pile of ‘resort,’ ‘convenience,’ or ‘service’ fees inflating the advertised price,” said the FTC in a statement accompanying the publishing of a 313-page explanation of the rules and the process used to draft them. The FTC claims the rule will save consumers upwards of 53 million hours annually in “wasted time spent searching for the total price,” putting a price tag of $11 billion on the time savings. Advocates for the rule also hope that clearer all-in pricing will also nudge prices downward.  

  

  Rather than banning “junk fees,” the rule demands that they be disclosed earlier, and requires businesses to display the total price more prominently than than most other pricing information. “This means that the most prominent price in an ad needs to be the all-in total price,” said the FTC. Sellers must “clearly and conspicuously disclose the true total price inclusive of all mandatory fees whenever they offer, display, or advertise any price of live-event tickets or short-term lodging.” 

  The rule is far narrower than what the unconstitutional FTC first had in mind: A 2023 proposal would have sweepingly applied the rules across the entire US economy. Meanwhile, other attempts by the Biden administration to limit fees have hit legal headwinds. For example, a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau-declared $8 cap on credit card late fees has been blocked by a federal judge in Fort Worth. 

  

  “I urge enforcers to continue cracking down on these unlawful fees and encourage state and federal policymakers to build on this success with legislation that bans unfair and deceptive junk fees across the economy,” said lame-duck FTC chair Lina Khan. 

  The FTC adopted the rule in a 4-1 vote. The sole dissenter was Republican Andrew Ferguson, Trump’s pick to chair the commission in his upcoming administration. In a dissenting statement, Ferguson said his “no” vote wasn’t a statement on the merits of the rule. “I dissent only on the ground that the time for rulemaking by the Biden-Harris FTC is over,” he said in a statement. “It is particularly inappropriate for the Biden-Harris FTC to adopt a major new rule that it will never enforce,” given the rule won’t take effect until April.

  Under Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” is promising to hack away at the sprawling thicket of federal regulations, it’s unclear if the new rules will be shredded by the new administration and its accompanying Republican-controlled House and Senate. Given the popular appeal, that seems doubtful.  

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 22:05

• Resident Of China Sentenced For Stealing Trade Secrets From Tesla
  Resident Of China Sentenced For Stealing Trade Secrets From Tesla

  Authored by Catherine Yang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Klaus Pflugbeil, a Canadian man currently residing in China, was sentenced on Dec. 16 to 24 months in prison for selling trade secrets stolen from an American company.

  

  Pflugbeil was charged in March and pleaded guilty in a New York federal court in June.

  He and co-conspirator Yilong Shao, who remains at large, had worked for a Canadian manufacturer that sold precision equipment to battery companies. That company was acquired in 2019 by a leading U.S.-based manufacturer of battery-powered electric vehicles and battery energy systems, which Pflugbeil and Shao stole from.

  The American company has been identified as Tesla. Pflugbeil had worked at Canadian manufacturer Hibar System Ltd. in Canada and China from 1995 to 2009, and Hibar was later purchased by Tesla.

  According to communications between Pflugbeil and Shao referenced in court documents, Pflugbeil detailed the original documents and drawings of proprietary technology he had stolen from Tesla. In or around July 2020, Pflugbeil joined Shao’s company, which made and sold the same equipment that their original employer made and sold.

  “The defendant built a business in China to sell sensitive technology that belongs to a U.S. company,“ said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York. ”His actions were bold—he even advertised that he was selling the victim’s products—because he thought, incorrectly, that he was outside the reach of U.S. prosecutors.”

  Pflugbeil had advertised these products on YouTube, through LinkedIn, and via Google, where the ads were shown tens of thousands of times per week. In direct advertising messages, Pflugbeil falsely stated his products did not infringe on patents, copyrights, or other intellectual property. According to the Justice Department (DOJ), Pflugbeil made more than $1.3 million on the stolen trade secrets.

  DOJ officials said the case implicated national security, referencing the Chinese communist regime’s practice of pricing out competitors in strategically important industries.

  The department stated that this had the potential to aid “Chinese automakers to swamp the U.S. and global market.” That market dominance also “presents a potential national security risk.”

  In September, the Biden administration had proposed a ban on Chinese vehicle software and hardware based on national security concerns, noting that all new cars are “connected” vehicles, which possess the capability to capture and transmit great amounts of sensitive data.

  “In stealing trade secrets from an American electric vehicle manufacturer to use in his own China-based company, Pflugbeil’s actions stood to benefit the PRC in a critical industry with national security implications,” stated Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen.

  “The Justice Department will mobilize every available resource to prevent our adversaries from advancing their global ambitions at the expense of U.S. national security.”

  Pflugbeil’s arrest occurred after undercover agents made contact with Shao in September 2023 at a trade show and were later connected with Pflugbeil via email. Pflugbeil had emailed the agents a 66-page document with technical details containing the stolen trade secrets.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 21:40

• Kratos Conducts First Test Of Mysterious Stealth Drone 
  Kratos Conducts First Test Of Mysterious Stealth Drone 

  Aviation Week revealed that US-based Kratos Defense successfully tested its Thanatos stealth Uncrewed Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV) prototype within the last few months.

  Steve Fendley, president of Kratos’ Unmanned Systems Division, told the aviation news website that the company’s Thanatos stealth UCAV was successfully tested in recent months. However, he declined to provide specifics about the test or its location.

  “Kratos unveiled the Thanatos design in November 2023 when company CEO Eric Demarco said in an earnings report that the company hoped to have a contract within a year. The design shows what appears to be a single-engine UCAV with two inlets and a single exhaust,” Aviation Week said, adding, “The aircraft does not have a vertical tail and horizontal stabilizers, showing the company’s stealth approach.” 

  On Dec. 7, during an interview at the Reagan National Defense Forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, Fendley said: “The air vehicle for Thanatos is now effectively proven. We’re not trying to figure out does the airplane fly, we’re now trying to figure out does the integrated system tick the mission box.”

  

  Kratos has indicated that it seeks a contract with an undisclosed customer for Thanatos. While the company has not confirmed its client, the USAF has been a potential customer because of its Collaborative Combat Aircraft program.

  As ‘dronegate‘ continues to escalate for the federal government amid mysterious drone sightings across New Jersey and New York, the latest test flights of super secretive UCAV by Kratos imply that ‘Tic Tac’-shaped unidentified flying objects reported by fighter pilots over the years may not be aliens, but instead top-secret stealth drones. 

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 21:15

• NASA Delays Return Of Stranded Astronauts Until March
  NASA Delays Return Of Stranded Astronauts Until March

  Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Two astronauts who have been stranded in space for months won’t be able to return to earth until March, NASA said on Dec. 17 as it announced the latest in a string of delays sparked by problems with their Boeing-designed Starliner spacecraft.

  

  NASA said it needed more time to complete the processing of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is scheduled to arrive at the space agency’s processing facility in Florida in early January.

  Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were initially expected to return within a week after traveling to the International Space Station (ISS) on NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test mission in June.

  Their mission was later extended after NASA decided to return the spacecraft empty in September after the pilots identified helium leaks and issues with the Starliner’s reaction control thrusters on June 6.

  NASA initially planned to launch the Crew-10 mission in February 2025, with Wilmore and Williams returning home by the end of that month alongside two other astronauts who arrived at the ISS on Sept. 29 aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule.

  The pair now face another delay, as NASA announced on Tuesday that Crew-10 will not launch until March 2025. By the time they return next year, they will have spent more than nine months in space.

  “Fabrication, assembly, testing, and final integration of a new spacecraft is a painstaking endeavor that requires great attention to detail,” Steve Stich, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, said in a statement. “We appreciate the hard work by the SpaceX team to expand the Dragon fleet in support of our missions and the flexibility of the station program and expedition crews as we work together to complete the new capsule’s readiness for flight.”

  NASA stated that it had considered using another SpaceX spacecraft but ultimately decided to wait until the Dragon spacecraft was ready and launch the Crew-10 mission in late March.

  On Sept. 30, NASA launched the SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon capsule carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov to join the Expedition 72 crew at the ISS to do research, technology demonstrations, and maintenance activities. Another two seats on the capsule were saved for Wilmore and Williams.

  NASA stated Tuesday that Crew-9 will return to Earth only after Crew-10 arrives at the orbital laboratory for a handover period.

  According to the space agency, Crew-9 will “share any lessons learned with the newly arrived crew and support a better transition for ongoing science and maintenance at the complex” during the handover period. NASA did not specify the duration of the handover process.

  The Associated Press contributed to this report.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 20:50

• Deputy Mayor In Washington Has Car Stolen While In The Middle Of City Council Meeting
  Deputy Mayor In Washington Has Car Stolen While In The Middle Of City Council Meeting

  How bad has crime gotten in the U.S.?

  Here’s one for you. In Auburn, Washington, last week a group of kids stole the city’s deputy mayor’s car while she was in the middle of a City Council Meeting, where they were voting her into a new role. 

  On Tuesday, the City Council elected Cheryl Rakes as deputy mayor. Meanwhile, police reported four kids stealing her Kia Soul outside city hall, according to Fox 13 Seattle.

  “She went into the meeting at 5:30 p.m. Monday and came out an hour later and the car was gone,” 770 KTTH reported. 

  

  “I went out to my car about 6:30 to grab a couple of things and noticed my car was gone,” Rakes said on 770 this week. “No, I don’t feel like I was targeted. I think it was because it was the Kia.”

  The suspects fled, abandoning the car at Madison at River’s Edge Apartments, a site of a 2022 double shooting. The vehicle’s ignition was damaged, and items were stolen, police said.

  Rakes commented: “I’m incredibly grateful to the Auburn Police Department and its officers for their work in recovering the vehicle quickly and safely.”

  The Fox report says that investigators used Flock license-reading cameras to track the stolen car from Kent back to Auburn. Police have no suspect images and believe four children were involved, but no arrests have been made.

  Just another day in Joe Biden’s America…

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 20:25

• Nancy Pelosi Profited As Luxury Napa Resort Won COVID-19 Bailout
  Nancy Pelosi Profited As Luxury Napa Resort Won COVID-19 Bailout

  Authored by Leighton Woodhouse via RealClearInvestigations,

  The Auberge du Soleil, a five-star hillside hotel and spa with a panoramic view overlooking the vineyards of Napa Valley, appears to be first-rate in all ways but one. While the glamorous resort, an hour’s drive from San Francisco, fills rooms that routinely go for $2,000 a night with A-list celebrities and tech titans, financial records suggest it did not provide much of a return to at least two of its investors – Rep. Nancy Pelosi and her husband, Paul. That changed when it received millions in congressionally authorized COVID-19 relief in 2020 and 2021.

  

  The Auberge du Soleil investment, held for decades by Paul Pelosi, has rarely turned a significant profit, according to Nancy’s financial disclosure forms. In some years, he has recorded a loss or a profit of between $50,000 to $100,000. But the year of the bailout money stands apart. In 2021, Pelosi’s ethics forms show that her family’s income from the resort surged to a range of $1 million to $5 million. 

  The French Riviera-themed resort may not be most people’s idea of a struggling business in need of a government bailout, yet the Auberge du Soleil – which shuttered briefly at the outset of the pandemic before swiftly rebounding – received about $9 million from a series of special taxpayer-funded emergency relief programs.

  The previously unreported windfall is among several COVID bailouts that flowed to Pelosi-backed restaurants, hotels, and properties, including several Courtyard Marriott hotels.

  A RealClearInvestigations analysis found that Pelosi’s profits spiked from a variety of holdings that won significant government rescue funds – which amounted to $28 million, a total more than previously known. For their family’s stake in the Auberge du Soleil, the Pelosis received more income in 2021, when bailout funds channeled to the resort, than any other time over the last 10 years.

  Pelosi is hardly alone among lawmakers whose businesses reaped awards from pandemic-era financial programs designed for small businesses. Rep. Greg Pence, the brother of the former vice president, received $79,441. Rep. Dean Phillips, who briefly campaigned in the Democratic presidential primary, is an investor in a small event production company, Geniecast, that received two forgivable loans that totaled $373,185. Other members with investments in car dealerships and restaurant companies also received scrutiny over COVID rescue funds.

  Yet Pelosi’s personal stake in the unprecedented taxpayer gusher has never been fully explored. Pelosi, during her previous stint as leader of the House of Representatives, shepherded all federal COVID stimulus measures, which totaled about $5.5 trillion – one of the largest domestic spending efforts in U.S. history outside of wartime. “These Republicans seem to have an endless tolerance for other people’s sadness,” said Pelosi at a press conference in December 2020, admonishing her opposition for delays in passing additional pandemic spending programs. The programs were touted as disaster measures designed to save the economy and help needy businesses and families.

  The exact amount of Pelosi’s profits from the Auberge Du Soleil is unclear. The hotel is a privately held company, and the lawmakers file ethics reports that show a range of income and assets rather than a precise amount. Her office did not respond to a request for comment.

  The former House Speaker has gained notoriety over her husband’s well-timed stock trades. Her husband, Paul Pelosi, 84, is an investor who has long dabbled in real estate. Fortune magazine, among other outlets, has reported on his unusually high gains from trading call options for technology-related stocks.

  The Pelosi household earned over 65% on trades last year, according to an analysis from Unusual Whales, one of several sites that track congressional trading activity. That record outshines even the most successful hedge fund managers. 

  Pelosi’s wealth has surged over her time in office. Disclosures show her net worth went from approximately $18 million in 1991 to nearly $250 million last year. “The Speaker has no prior knowledge or subsequent involvement in any transaction,” Pelosi’s spokesperson has told outlets in the past over questions about the trades. Her office did not respond to RCI’s request for comment.

  The COVID-related relief lavished on the Pelosi family’s private investment holdings has gone largely unnoticed. 

  Early in the pandemic, there were scattered reports about lawmakers from both parties who stood to gain financially from the initial Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The small business rescue fund, reporters at Roll Call noted in July 2020, awarded forgivable loans to Piatti, an Italian chain, and a firm tied to the El Dorado, a small hotel in Sonoma County, both owned in part by Pelosi. The Pelosi-linked PPP loans disclosed by the media totaled around $2.4 million.

  That figure scratches the surface. Newly discovered government disclosures show that Pelosi’s private holdings, such as the Auberge du Soleil resort, received upwards of $28 million in pandemic-related taxpayer funds, including the PPP, the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan, and a special grant program for restaurants.

  Much of the additional funding came from the second and third wave of pandemic stimulus legislation, passed in December 2020 and March 2021, that authorized an additional $2 trillion in cash and forgivable loans for needy individuals, businesses, and local governments. The additional rounds of spending effectively doubled the initial $2.1 trillion of CARES Act funds that began in March 2020. The new legislation authorized a second wave of PPP loans, along with billions of dollars in grants to theaters, restaurants, and travel companies impacted by the crisis.

  After the initial outcry over lawmakers reaping financial awards from the bailout programs they had authorized, Congress tightened the eligibility standards. These rules included a prohibition on PPP loans extended to companies in which lawmakers or their spouses owned a “controlling interest,” which the Small Business Administration has defined as an ownership stake of at least 20%.

  It is not clear if Pelosi violated any of the ethics rules. None of her family’s holdings in businesses that received PPP loans is mentioned in her ethics disclosures – suggesting the family’s stakes fell below the reporting threshold.

  Nevertheless, the Pelosis profited handsomely from the bailout funds she advocated for as speaker of the House. The Restaurant Revitalization Fund, one of the additional programs launched by the new round of pandemic spending, provided $5 million to the Auberge du Soleil in June 2021. The funds were not restricted by congressional ownership of the underlying business entities. The resort also won a second PPP loan that totaled about $2 million in 2021. The first PPP loan, awarded the previous year, provided $2.9 million – helping the Pelosis earn millions on an investment that has rarely turned a significant profit, according to Nancy’s ethics disclosures. 

  This was also the case for the Piatti Restaurant Company, the California-based pizza and Italian restaurant chain owned in part by Pelosi, which ended up receiving about $15 million in a mix of PPP and RRF grants and forgiven loans. The Pelosi household, in turn, received up to $1 million in partnership income distributions from their investment in the restaurant in 2021, the year that the company received the bulk of the government assistance.

  The investment return that year from Piatti was also the highest in over a decade for the Pelosis. In previous years, they typically earned less than $50,000 from their stake in the pizza chain.

  The taxpayer assistance to the Pelosi-backed resorts and restaurants may have come at the expense of other struggling businesses. In total, the Auberge du Soleil and Piatti won over $14.2 million in Restaurant Revitalization Fund grants, money that was shepherded through Congress by Pelosi and authorized by President Biden’s signature American Rescue Plan legislation. Most applicants were not as fortunate. Less than a third of the eateries, pubs and diners that sought funding from the program were approved, and the fund was quickly depleted after it opened.

  The billions of dollars in COVID money was cast as a targeted measure to save the economy. More recent analysis has found the rushed programs were poorly designed and were a significant factor in the high levels of inflation experienced over the last four years.

  Estimates of how much government money was misspent widely vary. The Associated Press reported that fraudsters potentially stole more than $280 billion from the assorted pandemic relief programs. A Senate report noted that wasted and abused pandemic funding ended up in the form of “Lamborghinis, luxury vacations, extravagant jewelry, and even an alpaca farm.”

  “The sheer amount of taxpayer losses due to pandemic relief fraud and abuse,” noted Craig Eyermann, a fellow at the Independent Institute, was on the “order of hundreds of billions of dollars.”

  There is no indication that the Pelosis did anything illegal. But Eyermann and other ethics experts argue the funds posed conflict of interest issues. He’s not surprised that wealthy lawmakers tapped COVID-related largesse. “To even pursue it,” he added, “they put themselves ahead of those who truly needed it.”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 20:00

• George Soros Funneled $50 Million Into Shadowy Iran-Sympathizing Nonprofit
  George Soros Funneled $50 Million Into Shadowy Iran-Sympathizing Nonprofit

  Among the many nonprofits funded by far-left billionaire George Soros and his even more radical son, Alex, are progressive super PACs, as well as, according to reporting by The New York Post, tens of millions of dollars funneled into a network of groups sympathetic to Iran whose members held top positions within the Biden-Harris administration. 

  NYPost reviewed records from Soros’ Open Society Foundations, revealing that the progressive billionaire has funneled $46.7 million since 2016 into the International Crisis Group, a far-left think tank allegedly connected to an Iranian plot to influence US lawmakers and policies. 

  Robert Malley, the former US special envoy to Iran, has been under FBI investigation for allegedly transferring classified information onto his personal email, where it could’ve slipped into the hands of a foreign actor. Malley was ICG’s president until he joined the Biden team in 2021. 

  Gabriel Noronha of the Polaris National Security think tank told NYPost: “Soros has continually funded organizations that act as apologists for the Iranian regime – downplaying their severe human rights abuses while working to advance Iranian propaganda.” 

  In 1994, Soros funded ICG’s formation and served as its trustee for years before handing the baton to Alex in 2018. 

  

  Jay Solomon penned a note in Semafor in 2023 about three of Malley’s aides who were part of the Iran Experts Initiative, a mysterious network of Iranian-American elites established by Iran’s Foreign Ministry in 2014. NYPost noted IEI members were able to rise in the ranks of Washington’s foreign policy circles while advocating easing sanctions on Tehran. 

  “If you were a regime running a game plan of how to subvert the United States’ political system from within, this would be it to a tee,” Noronha said.

  Meanwhile, radicals within the Biden-Harris administration are leaving the Middle East in flames as Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House next month, where he is expected to reimpose “maximum pressure” sanctions on Iran. 

  Noronha pointed out, “I don’t know what either Soros’s vision is regarding Iran … But the things they routinely fund are things that weaken America, both internally and externally.”

  The Soros family must understand that the American people have given Trump a mandate to usher in the ‘America First’ era. The days of funding non-profits to undermine America are over.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 19:35

• Al-Qaeda Linked Julani Meets With British Diplomats, Discusses Removal From Terror List
  Al-Qaeda Linked Julani Meets With British Diplomats, Discusses Removal From Terror List

  Authored by Kyle Anzalone via The Libertarian Institute, 

  The leader of the al-Qaeda-linked Syria rebel group that removed President Bashar al-Assad from power met with British officials to request the removal of sanctions and the terror designation on his group. 

  Abu Mohammed al-Julani met with Stephen Hickey, director of the Middle East department at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and Ann Snow, the UK’s envoy to Syria in Damascus on Monday. 

  

  According to statements given to Middle East Eye, officials from Julani’s Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) said the talks discussed the “latest developments” in Syria. The UK’s Foreign Ministry stated the British officials discussed London’s role in Damascus’ transition of power from Assad. 

  Julani also gave an interview with the British outlet, The Times, to press for sanctions relief. “Countries must now lift this designation. Syria is very important geostrategically. They should lift all restrictions, which were imposed on the flogger and the victim — the flogger is gone now. This issue is not up for negotiation,” he said. 

  Julani, who fought for Al-Qaeda in Iraq against American soldiers, added that HTS’s designation as a foreign terror organization is inappropriate. HTS has been labeled a terror organization by Washington and London since 2017, when Julani created the group.

  At the time, both governments recognized that HTS was merely a rebranding of al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, al-Nusra.  Following Julani’s triumph, the White House and 10 Downing Street are now considering removing HTS and Julani from the terror lists. 

  In recent years, Julani has attempted to soften his image by sitting down with Western journalists for interviews, often appearing in a suit and with a trimmed beard in an attempt to obscure his jihadist ideology. 

  A lot of interesting “diplomacy” happening in Damascus these days…

  Before rebranding: Saudi terrorist Abdullah Al-Muhaysini is sending an idiot to blow himself up in Aleppo.

  After rebranding: Saudi terrorist Abdullah Al-Muhaysini with Yasin Aktay, one of the chief aides to Erdoğan. pic.twitter.com/hSCzDcTj5A

  — Kevork Almassian🇸🇾🇦🇲 (@KevorkAlmassian) December 18, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  Julani’s meetings with the British government and media come on the heels of London using the Terrorism Act 2000 to target and frame supporters of Palestinian rights as aiding Hamas. London said last week that engagement with HTS would not violate the law.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 19:10

• Tanker Ships Are Now Being Fitted With Sails To Cut Carbon Footprints
  Tanker Ships Are Now Being Fitted With Sails To Cut Carbon Footprints

  Ever seen a massive tanker ship…with wind sails? You might soon.

  That’s because the Sohar Max, a 400,000-deadweight-ton vessel, was just retrofitted with five 35-meter rotor sails at China’s COSCO Zhoushan shipyard, according to Bloomberg. The purpose is to reduce fuel use by 6% and cut annual carbon emissions by 3,000 tons. 

  Bloomberg reported that the shipping industry already faces regulatory pressure to reduce emissions. Rotor sails remain uncommon, and the adoption of wind technologies hinges on cost savings. Their appeal may grow as shippers transition from oil to pricier, cleaner marine fuels, the report says.

  Nick Contopoulos, chief production and partnerships officer at Anemoi Marine Technologies, said: “There’s definitely an uptick in the adoption of wind propulsion and not just rotor sails, but other technologies too.”

  

  California, for example, just expanded its emissions regulations at its port, DNV wrote last month. Starting January 1, 2025, California will expand its emissions regulations for vessels at ports.

  Initially introduced in 2007 for container, passenger, and refrigerated-cargo ships, the rules now include Ro-Ro and tanker vessels. Ships must control emissions of NOx, PM 2.5, and reactive organic gases by connecting to onshore power, using approved exhaust capture systems, paying into a remediation fund, or adopting alternative fuels.

  Tanker vessels face phased compliance, starting with the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in 2025 and all California terminals by 2027.

  Most other emissions standards are “primarily governed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO)” and “require ships operating in designated Emission Control Areas (ECAs) to meet stricter sulfur fuel limits and engine emission standards”. 

  

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 18:45

• Mystery Drones Have Stalked US For Years
  Mystery Drones Have Stalked US For Years

  Authored by Andrew Thornebrooke via The Epoch Times,

  A sudden spike in unidentified drone sightings in the northeastern United States is unnerving residents and lawmakers alike. Similar incidents have occurred for years, however, with little apparent action from the government.

  

  Drone sighting reports in California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Virginia over the past month have raised questions about the possibility that drones are being used to surveil or attack U.S. infrastructure.

  The sightings follow several high-profile incidents in recent months, including at U.S. military facilities throughout the country and in the UK and Germany.

  The White House has downplayed the incidents and denied that there is any evidence of a sustained threat to public safety.

  “We have not identified anything anomalous or any national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the Northeast,” White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Dec. 16.

  Kirby did acknowledge that drones had penetrated restricted airspace, however, including that of the Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, and Picatinny Arsenal military research facility in New Jersey.

  Although such sightings are currently receiving a lot of media attention, there have been several high-profile drone incidents in the past half-decade for which the federal government has yet to formally account.

  Five years ago, for example, groups of large drones began appearing off the coast of California. They stalked and surveilled several Navy and Coast Guard ships, including the technologically advanced guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt.

  The incident caused alarm throughout the military and incurred a joint investigation by elements of the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard, and FBI. Members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the commander of the Pacific Fleet were kept apprised of the situation.

  No administration nor the Department of Defense has publicly stated what the drones were seeking to accomplish or who was operating them.

  Two investigative reports published by The War Zone in 2021 and 2022, however, revealed that ship logs from one of the Navy vessels involved had identified the source of the drones as the MV Bass Strait, a Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier.

  In 2020, a new swarm of large drones began appearing in the skies over rural Colorado and Nebraska, where some of the nation’s Minuteman III nuclear missiles are stored.

  Local officials eventually said no laws were being broken and that drone pilots were not required to file flight plans unless in controlled airspace, such as near an airport.

  Similarly, the FBI, the Federal Aviation Administration, and local authorities never publicly identified who was operating the drones and suggested most of the sightings were attributable to hobby drones and people misidentifying planets and stars as aircraft.

  Likewise, Kirby told reporters that many of the 5,000 reports of drone sightings over the past week were attributable to hobbyists, commercial drones, and people misidentifying stars as aircraft.

  Similar incidents have continued, apparently unabated.

  This year alone, drones have approached and entered the restricted airspace over U.S. military installations throughout the country and overseas.

  Drones were tracked around three separate military bases in the UK last month, including Royal Air Force Lakenheath, which serves as the U.S. Air Forces in Europe’s only fighter wing of the fifth-generation F-35 aircraft.

  Shortly thereafter, federal agents arrested a Chinese national for flying an unregistered drone over Vandenberg Space Force Base in California and taking photos of the SpaceX rocket pads on a day on which the contractor launched a sensitive national reconnaissance payload.

  Kirby attempted to assuage fears of a potential unidentified drone threat, saying that there were more than a million lawfully registered drones in the United States, with thousands of hobbyists and law enforcement offices using the technology.

  Still, the lack of a federal response to the growing number of drone-related incidents in recent years has left both lawmakers and the public in a state of uncertainty about what is to be done.

  Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testified earlier this week that the federal government simply doesn’t have enough legal authority to engage drones that are not within restricted airspace and instead said that local law enforcement should take the lead “under federal supervision.”

  In a post on social media platform X, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul urged Congress to “pass a law that will give us the power to deal directly with the drones.”

  On Dec. 16, Hochul also announced that the federal government will send the state “a state-of-the-art drone detection system” after a drone incursion forced the closure of a local airport.

  “I am grateful for the support, but we need more,” she said on X.

  The drone incursions of recent years have repeatedly come within striking distance of commercial airports and even within close range of the president’s aircraft. Federal officials have not identified the drone operators in most of those cases but maintain that there is no immediate or foreign-backed threat.

  President-elect Donald Trump suggested this week that the Biden administration had intelligence on the source of the drones but was not revealing it to the public.

  Kirby rejected the idea.

  “There’s absolutely no effort to be anything other than as up-front as we can be,” Kirby said.

  “If we had information, intelligence or otherwise, that told us that there was a national security threat posed by this drone activity, I would say that.”

  Kirby said the administration has engaged personnel from the departments of Defense and Homeland Security to help identify and respond to the northeastern U.S. drone sightings.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 18:20

• Philly Tow Company Owner Sentenced For $8.2 Million Catalytic Converter Theft Ring
  Philly Tow Company Owner Sentenced For $8.2 Million Catalytic Converter Theft Ring

  A family at the center of a catalytic converter theft ring has been sentenced for “operating a multi-million-dollar catalytic converter theft ring throughout the Philadelphia region”, according to authorities and a new report from Patch.

  A Philadelphia towing company owner was exposed as the ringleader of a catalytic converter theft ring, busted in June 2023 after a yearlong investigation, according to Bucks County prosecutors.

  Six family members, including some from Montgomery County, were sentenced Monday. Authorities revealed TDI Towing was “likely involved in the buying and reselling of over 25,000 likely stolen catalytic converters,” according to NBC. 

  The Patch report says that “TDI employees were paid an average of $300 per catalytic converter, for a total of nearly $8.2 million during the three years.”

  

   A joint investigation by Bucks County detectives and over 30 local, state, and federal agencies uncovered the ring. Michael Williams, owner of TDI Towing in Philadelphia, along with his wife, three sons-in-law, and her sister, were sentenced Monday. In June, five pleaded guilty, while one entered a no-contest plea.

  Michael Williams received 2.5 to 5 years in state prison and probation, while his accomplices, including Bruce, Schwartz, Hopkins, and Lisa Davalos, were sentenced to county jail terms ranging from 90 days to 23 months, and Deborah Davalos received two years of probation.

  “I think we got to see on the videos who [Williams] was when he didn’t know he was being recorded,” said Prosecutor Edward Furman. “Our position was that he was preying on people that were in the throes of addiction. He knew that they were looking for cheap, easy money and he was their source of it.”

  Coley Reynolds, Williams’s defense attorney, commented to NBC: “Michael was a person who was raised a certain way, wanted to take care of his friends, wanted to take care of his community. I’m not saying that led to these offenses, but certainly we thought it should have been more of a consideration to the court.”

  Williams will have to pay more than $100,000 in restitution.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 17:55

• Michelob Ultra Surpasses Bud Light As Top Draft Beer, Data Shows
  Michelob Ultra Surpasses Bud Light As Top Draft Beer, Data Shows

  Authored by Rudy Blalock via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

  Bud Light, once the reigning champion of American draft beers, continues to experience a decline in its market position.

  According to a statement from Anheuser-Busch InBev, Bud Light has been surpassed by Michelob Ultra, also owned by the company, as the top draft beer in the United States. Anheuser-Busch also owns Corona, Budweiser, and Stella Artois, among other popular beer brands.

  

  “We’re proud to have the top two beers on draft in the U.S. in Michelob Ultra and Bud Light, and by our data, Bud Light is more than 30% bigger than the next closest competitor,” the spokesperson told NTD News in an emailed statement, citing public Circana data.

  They said beyond just draft beers, Michelob Ultra is leading the industry as the number one overall fastest-growing beer in the United States and also the second overall beer brand in the country, behind Bud Light in that category.

  This shift in rankings followed a difficult year for Bud Light, which faced a widespread boycott.

  In July, Bud Light fell to third place in overall sales at grocery and convenience stores during the critical period between Memorial Day and July 4th. Michelob Ultra claimed the second spot, while Modelo Especial, manufactured by rival Constellation Brands, secured the top position.

  The boycott, which began in response to Bud Light’s partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, has had far-reaching impacts for Anheuser-Busch InBev.

  In May, the company reported its first-quarter earnings results for 2024, which showed a 9.1 percent decrease in revenues in the United States, primarily attributed to a drop in Bud Light volume. During the same period, Anheuser-Busch reported global revenues increased by 2.6 percent, largely due to strong sales of Corona beer outside of Mexico. Overall revenue rose to $14.5 billion, surpassing Wall Street’s forecast of $14.3 billion, according to analysts polled by FactSet.

  At the time, Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris said he was optimistic about the company’s performance.

  “The strength of the beer category, our diversified global footprint and the continued momentum of our megabrands delivered another quarter of broad-based top-and bottom-line growth,” Doukeris said.

  “We are encouraged by our results to start the year, and the consistent execution by our teams and partners reinforces our confidence in delivering on our 2024 growth ambitions.”

  In an effort to rebuild its image, Anheuser-Busch has undertaken several strategic partnerships.

  The company became the “official beer partner” of the UFC, a mixed martial arts league, and secured sponsorship deals with the U.S. Olympic team for its Michelob Ultra brand. Additionally, Corona Cero, AB InBev’s zero-alcohol beer, will be the global beer sponsor of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

  From NTD News

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 17:30

• High Altitude Unmanned Balloon Passes Near DC, New Jersey
  High Altitude Unmanned Balloon Passes Near DC, New Jersey

  A high-altitude unmanned balloon once operated by Loon, formerly an Alphabet subsidiary and now registered to Raven Aerostar as “N254TH,” traveled just north of the Baltimore-Washington, DC, airspace at 64,500 feet, moving east at 34 mph towards New Jersey. 

  Data from FlightAware indicates that N254TH launched from Dangel Airport in South Dakota on Monday and has since traversed the eastern half of the US, now making its way into Delaware and soon New Jersey

  

  Zooming in…

  

  Balloon website Stratocat provided more details about the balloon under Loon’s prior ownership: 

  Project Loon was an initiative to establish a network of high altitude unmanned balloons to provide Internet connectivity in underserved parts of the world or during disaster recovery efforts. The project started in 2011 and became public in 2013 as part of Google’s research and development of new technologies carried out through X Development LLC.

  

  Loon, formerly an Alphabet subsidiary, was shuttered in 2021—the project aimed to provide high-speed internet to remote parts of the world. However, Elon Musk’s Starlink has largely taken over that role with its low Earth orbit satellites. 

  Meanwhile, on X…

  Oh JFC…

  HBAL714 is registered in the US to Raven Aerostar as N254TH.

  It’s not a fucking Chinese balloon. pic.twitter.com/C5xyhY61ea

  — TheIntelFrog (@TheIntelFrog) December 18, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  This is not a Chinese balloon.

  Do some fucking research.

  This is a Raven Aerostar balloon registered in the US as N254TH. They’re a DoD contractor researching the uses of balloons.

  — TheIntelFrog (@TheIntelFrog) December 18, 2024

  https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

  In addition to drones, residents of New Jersey will now have a giant balloon to speculate about.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 17:05

• Russia Airlifting Air Defense Systems From Syria To Libya
  Russia Airlifting Air Defense Systems From Syria To Libya

  Recent satellite imaging has shown that for the past several days Russia is rapidly packing up heavy equipment at its Khmeimim airbase in Latakia and evacuating it in the wake of the collapse of the Assad government on December 8. This is happening even as Moscow is in contact with new governing HTS rulers in Damascus concerning the future fate of the bases, which also includes the strategic naval base at Tartous.

  Concerning the packed up equipment, including anti-air missile systems, the only question is what’s the next destination? Western officials are now saying Libya. Moscow is putting pressure on Libyan warlord and rival to the Tripoli government, Khalifa Haftar, to secure a larger Russian military presence at a port in Benghazi.

  

  CNN has cited two unnamed US officials who say intelligence has observed the transfer of naval and other assets from Syria to Libya. Flight tracking has also confirmed the same.

  “Flight data show at least three Russian military cargo planes have flown from Belarus to Libya since Dec 8, the day the Russian-allied Assad regime in Syria was toppled by Islamist-led rebels,” The Telegraph writes. More have reportedly followed this week.

  The report continues, “Experts believe that Russia is moving defense materials stockpiled in Belarus, its closest ally, to Libya, where it is rapidly increasing its military presence in response to the rebel seizure of Damascus.”

  The Wall Street Journal in a fresh Wednesday report also observers:

  Russian cargo planes have flown air-defense equipment, including radars for S-400 and S-300 interceptor systems, from Syria to bases in eastern Libya controlled by Moscow-backed Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar, the officials said.

  Russia has also flown troops, military aircraft and weaponry out of Syria in a significant drawdown of its presence there. For years, Moscow has operated important naval bases and air bases in exchange for the support it provided to prop up Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian dictator who fled to Moscow last week. 

  Libya’s Haftar, interestingly enough, maintains positive relations with both Moscow and Washington, but is generally seen as more in alignment with Russia. He has long requested that his part of eastern Libya under his control come under the protection of Russian air defenses.

  Given events in Syria, he may actually get his wish. The WSJ notes, “But Haftar will likely face pressure from the West to not allow Russia to expand its presence in Libya. The U.S., including during a visit by CIA director William Burns last year, has repeatedly warned Haftar to expel Russian forces—to no avail.”

  

  Since the 2011 overthrow of the Gaddafi government via US-NATO military intervention, Libya has remained in a state of chaos with three and at times four competing governments and swathes of the country controlled by warlords and Islamist factions. But the mainstream media has by and large moved on, unconcerned with the chaos left in the wake of the Obama-Hillary Iraq-style regime change operation.

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 16:45

• Trump's Attorneys Allege Juror Misconduct In New York Case
  Trump’s Attorneys Allege Juror Misconduct In New York Case

  Authored by Sam Dorman via The Epoch Times,

  President-Elect Donald Trump’s attorneys have alleged evidence of “grave juror misconduct” in his falsified business records case that has been playing out in New York.

  

  A heavily redacted letter from Dec. 3 and published by the court on Dec. 17 showed Trump’s attorneys stating that the misconduct “violated President Trump’s rights under the federal Constitution and New York law.”

  The specific allegations are unclear, and recently released correspondence showed Trump’s attorneys disagreeing with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office over how much information to release.

  The correspondence was published by the court after the judge, New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, issued an order and letter rejecting multiple arguments the president-elect had made about immunity.

  In a Dec. 16 letter, Merchan said that the court made additional redactions following redactions made by the different parties. He noted, however, that the allegations were unsworn and that unless a claim of juror misconduct was properly filed under New York law, “this Court cannot allow the public filing of unsworn, and admittedly contested statements.”

  “To do so,” Merchan said, “would threaten the safety of the jurors. … Should a properly filed claim be submitted, these redactions will be revisited.”

  He also indicated a hearing was needed to evaluate the claims but said that the defense opposed having a hearing. “Allegations of juror misconduct should be thoroughly investigated,” Merchan said. “However, this Court is prohibited from deciding such claims on the basis of mere hearsay and conjecture.”

  Trump’s attorneys argued in their Dec. 3 letter that their client couldn’t pursue appropriate remedies until the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit had ruled on Trump’s request to remove the case to federal court.

  In a letter to Merchan on Dec. 5, Bragg’s office requested that the Dec. 3 letter and related correspondence be kept under seal.

  His office seemed to suggest that Trump’s attorneys had misrepresented the alleged misconduct.

  “[T]he excerpts of the communications that counsel did share included a communication from [redacted] in which [redacted] plainly stated that counsel’s recitation of the purported juror misconduct—the same misconduct chronicled in the Dec. 3 letter—‘contains inaccuracies and does not contain additional information that I never shared,’” the letter stated.

  It added that “[a]ccording to counsel’s own recitation of events, [redacted] rejected several attempts to get [redacted] to endorse the factual allegations that serve as the basis of the Dec. 3 letter.”

  The letter went on to accuse Trump of failing to provide an adequate record.

  “Had defendant provided the sworn allegations required to make a proper motion … a hearing at which [redacted] allegations could be fully explored in a public forum might indeed be warranted,” it read.

  “What he seeks instead is to inject his unsworn, untested, and at least partially inaccurate allegations into the public domain while simultaneously opposing any endeavor to properly evaluate them.”

  A series of successive letters from the defense and prosecution followed with Trump’s attorneys accusing Bragg’s office of trying to keep important information secret. While his attorneys favored certain redactions, they indicated they thought the prosecution’s requests went too far and said that the public had a right of access to criminal proceedings.

  “These rights of public access to criminal proceedings serve important interests in advancing the fair administration of justice, promoting public confidence in the judiciary, permitting public scrutiny of matters of great public interest, and defending the fundamental rights of the accused,” his attorneys said in a Dec. 9 letter to Merchan.

  Merchan’s Dec. 16 letter stated that the court “must balance the competing interests of the public’s right to transparency of these proceedings against the very real need to protect the privacy and safety of the jurors.”

  Bragg’s office also accused Trump on Dec. 9 of trying to undermine public confidence in the verdict. In May, a jury found Trump guilty on 34 felony counts. Trump has denied wrongdoing.

  In a post to TruthSocial on Dec. 17, Trump criticized Merchan’s decisions on the immunity arguments. Merchan had “completely disrespected the United States Supreme Court, and its Historic Decision on Immunity,” he said.

  The president-elect said the case itself is illegitimate, and the opinion written by Merchan “goes against our Constitution, and, if allowed to stand, would be the end of the Presidency as we know it.”

  Merchan said that Trump waited too long or failed to preserve objections to evidence and that information related to both preserved and unpreserved arguments did not receive protection under the doctrine of presidential immunity.

  The controversy came as the Supreme Court declined on Dec. 16 a podcaster’s request to lift gag orders Trump faced in New York. Podcaster Joseph Nieman argued that his rights as a member of the media were violated by the orders.

  On TruthSocial, Trump said that “Merchan has so little respect for the Constitution that he is keeping in place an illegal gag order on me.”

  Earlier this year, the New York Supreme Court’s First Appellate Division upheld a gag order on Trump while stating that Merchan “properly determined that petitioner’s public statements posed a significant threat to the integrity of the testimony of witnesses and potential witnesses in this case as well.”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 16:20

• Russia Detains Suspect In Assassination Of Chemical Weapons Top Military Chief
  Russia Detains Suspect In Assassination Of Chemical Weapons Top Military Chief

  Russia on Wednesday has detained a suspect in the killing of a senior Russian general and his assistant in Moscow, which happened when a scooter bomb detonated outside the general’s apartment on Tuesday.

  Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, who headed Russia’s radiological, biological and chemical protection forces, is the highest ranking Russian official to have been assassinated since the Ukraine war began. A man from Uzbekistan has been arrested and is being questioned, the Russia’s Investigative Committee has announced.

  

  Authorities further allege the 29-year-old Uzbek suspect was acting at the direction of Ukrainian intelligence, the SBU. Russian sources further say the man was offered $100,000 cash and the chance of resettlement in Europe.

  “The detainee received a homemade explosive device and placed it on an electric scooter which he parked at the entrance to the residential building where Igor Kirillov lived,” the Russian Investigative Committee said.

  The statement described that the assassin had rented a car and parked it nearby, so that a fitted surveillance camera would monitor and record the bombing for Ukrainian intelligence handlers. The bomb was then detonated remotely when Gen. Kirillov and his assistant exited the residential building.

  The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has been openly boasting to being behind the killing and Ukrainian sources have acknowledged this to American media.

  “Kirillov was a war criminal and an entirely legitimate target, as he issued orders to use prohibited chemical weapons against Ukrainian troops,” an SBU source told ABC. “Such an inglorious end awaits all those who kill Ukrainians. Retribution for war crimes is inevitable.”

  “By order of Kirillov, more than 4,800 cases of the enemy’s use of chemical munitions have been recorded since the beginning of the full-scale war,” the SBU added, but only cited that grenades equipped with substances like CS and other riot control type irritants have been used.

  

  Below is the full statement from Russian authorities:

  “The terrorist confessed to being recruited by Ukrainian intelligence. He was sent to Moscow on their orders, where he received a powerful improvised explosive device and placed it on an electric scooter, which he parked near the entrance to Kirillov’s residence. To monitor the address, he rented a car-sharing vehicle and installed a Wi-Fi video camera, which broadcasted live to organizers in Dnepr (formerly Dnepropetrovsk),” the FSB explained.

  After receiving a video feed showing the officers leaving the building, the explosive device was remotely detonated.

  “The Ukrainian intelligence services promised the Uzbek citizen $100,000 and a trip to a European Union country for the assassination of the Russian defense official,” the press office added.

  Moscow is vowing that Ukraine will pay dearly, with Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and former president Dmitry Medvedev having warning on Tuesday, “Attempts to intimidate our nation, stop the Russian offensive or sow fear are doomed. Certain punishment awaits Banderite Nazis, including the top military and political leaders of a crumbling country.”

  Tyler Durden
  Wed, 12/18/2024 – 15:45

Digest powered by RSS Digest