00 First Filter

Thousands evacuated in Hong Kong after 1,000-pound WWII bomb discovered– www.foxnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Thousands of people were forced to evacuate a bustling neighborhood of Hong Kong overnight while experts sweated through the delicate work of defusing an undetonated nearly 5-foot, 1,000-pound bomb left over from World War II.

The U.S.-made bomb was found at a construction site in Quarry Bay on Hong Kong’s west side overnight Friday, and it isn’t the first bomb from the war to be found on the island.

“We have confirmed this object to be a bomb dating back to World War II,” Andy Chan Tin-Chu, a police official, told reporters. He said because of “the exceptionally high risks associated with its disposal,” approximately 1,900 households involving 6,000 individuals were “urged to evacuate swiftly.”

TikTok’s Algorithm Will Soon Be “Controlled By America” – Mother Jones– www.motherjones.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

After years of bipartisan warnings about TikTok’s potential national security risks, users may soon confront a different kind of threat, perhaps even worse: an algorithm “controlled by America.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the detail on Saturday, a key aspect of the emerging agreement announced by the Trump administration last week between the United States and China. The deal could finally settle TikTok’s fate in the US following months of uncertainty with a brief ban, reversal by the Trump administration, and shifting, self-imposed deadlines for an agreement.

“There will be seven seats on the board that controls the app in the US, and six of those seats will be Americans,” Leavitt told Fox News. “The data and privacy will be led by one of America’s greatest tech companies, Oracle, and the algorithm will also be controlled by America.”

It’s unclear what exactly a US-controlled algorithm will involve. Right-wing conspiracy theories? Charlie Kirk memorials? Coupons for MAGA swag? Nor did Leavitt specify which American individuals would be involved in determining an algorithm. We also have little details on how Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, a Trump loyalist, intends to approach the responsibility for managing TikTok’s data and security while the Trump administration weaponizes everything from voting data to confidential Social Security records.

Abortion Pill Reversal Saved This Baby From Abortion– www.lifenews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

… Ashley, a young woman who found herself at a difficult crossroads, overwhelmed and uncertain as the father of her child pressured her to have an abortion against her will.

She was told by abortion facility staff that her decision to take the abortion pill was final—that there was no way to save her baby despite her immediate regret. “I felt trapped, like I had no options left,” Ashley later recalled.

Devastated but unwilling to accept this as the end of the story, she desperately searched the internet for answers. That’s when she found Heartbeat International’s Abortion Pill Reversal® Network.

With the guidance of their dedicated team, Ashley began the Abortion Pill Reversal protocol in a race against time to save her preborn child.

“[Their team] gave me hope when I thought all was lost,” she said.

Today, thanks to her courageous choice and the science-backed APR protocol, Ashley is the proud mother of a beautiful daughter, Thailynn, a living testament to the power of hope and the sanctity of life.

Reflecting on her experience, Ashley shared, “They saved not only my life, but my daughter’s life. I was given a second chance to choose life, and I’ll be forever grateful.”

Media’s Appeal To ‘Free Speech’ Over Jimmy Kimmel Is Fake– thefederalist.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Panel after panel Wednesday night on CNN pretended to have a debate over “free speech,” with every anchor and Democrat talking head asking whichever present right-winger or Republican guest why the principle didn’t apply to ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel. Yeah, going forward, they can miss me with the “free speech” and other appeals to American principles that I and everyone else know they only fake concern for when their money and power are threatened.

ABC announced Wednesday evening it was yanking Kimmel’s late-night talk therapy sessions — known by some as Jimmy Kimmel Live! — for an indefinite period from the airwaves. That move came after Kimmel delivered what he intended to be a comedic monologue centered on the public execution of Charlie Kirk, an innocent man, less than a week prior. It also came after, as Democrats on CNN hysterically repeated over and over, the Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said on a podcast in relation to that monologue that TV stations relying on broadcast licenses should recommit themselves to the public interest, as required by existing law, or otherwise potentially face government action.

Because Carr, a Trump appointee, suggested his agencies might do their job and ensure compliance with public broadcasting rules, Democrats are calling the Kimmel suspension a violation of the First Amendment. There’s no reason to take them seriously for it. That party has done nothing in the past five years to hint it cares about the Bill of Rights or any other American ideal. They don’t. It’s the opposite.

ICE offers big bucks — but California cops prove tough to poach– www.latimes.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

In the push to expand as quickly as possible, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aggressively wooing recruits with experience slapping handcuffs on suspects: sheriff’s deputies, state troopers and local cops.

The agency even shelled out for airtime during an NFL game with an ad explicitly targeting officers.

“In sanctuary cities, dangerous illegals walk free as police are forced to stand down,” the August recruitment ad warned over a sunset panorama of the Los Angeles skyline. “Join ICE and help us catch the worst of the worst.”

To meet its hiring goal, the Trump administration is offering hefty signing bonuses, student loan forgiveness and six-figure salaries to would-be deportation officers.

ICE has also broadened its pool of potential applicants by dropping age requirements, eliminating Spanish-language proficiency requirements and cutting back on training for new hires with law enforcement experience.

Pentagon official denies report of Charlie Kirk military recruitment drive | Gun Violence News– www.aljazeera.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

An NBC news report said the military planned to invoke the activist’s memory to recruit a ‘generation of warriors’.

US network NBC first reported the news on Thursday, citing two officials familiar with the matter, but a Pentagon spokesperson quickly dispelled the report to Fox News.

NBC said the Pentagon was debating slogans such as “Charlie has awakened a generation of warriors” as part of its campaign drive, although Kirk himself was not a military veteran.

The military also hoped to work with Kirk’s political organisation, Turning Point USA, as part of its recruitment drive, the story said.

Turning Point was credited with helping US President Donald Trump win at the polls in 2024 through its work with young voters on high school and university campuses.

“This is not happening,” Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson told Fox News later on Thursday.

Wilson blasted NBC for using anonymous sources to publish “false claims” that were “100 percent wrong”, according to the Fox News report.

The two unnamed Pentagon officials in the NBC report said the recruitment plan had been met with resistance from “some Pentagon leaders” who feared they would be seen as capitalising on Kirk’s murder.

Trump stopped Sadiq Khan from attending state banquet with King & slams London mayor as being one of the ‘world’s worst’– www.thesun.co.uk
Source Link
Excerpt:

DONALD Trump has claimed he stopped Sadiq Khan from coming to the royal banquet during his state visit this week.

Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One, the President said he had insisted that the London Mayor not attend.

CDC committee votes to change measles vaccine guidance for young children– www.livescience.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

An influential Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) committee has announced new recommendations for the combined measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMRV) vaccine.

The members of the committee, called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), was recently changed under the leadership of Department of Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. All 17 previous members were removed and then replaced with a new group, which includes several prominent anti-vaccine advocates.

Chaos on the streets of France as ‘900k’ refuse to go to work | World | News– www.express.co.uk
Source Link
Excerpt:

France has been rocked by day of chaos and disruption, with hundreds of thousands of people joining a nationwide strike. Trade unions in the country called for a day of protests against budget cuts, as France continues to be plagued by political turmoil.

Between 600,000 and 900,000 people are thought to have attended the anti-government demonstrations, according to France’s Interior Ministry. Officials said they deployed 80,000 police officers across the country in response to the protests. Police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators in Lyon and Nantes, as tensions reached boiling point.

Roads and streets have reportedly been blocked by protesters in other major cities across France.

Major disruptions to public transport have been reported, with many metro lines in Paris said to be closed.

Students also gathered in front of their schools and universities in the capital and beyond, chanting slogans and blocking entrances. Around a third of teachers joined their students in taking strike action, boycotting classes.

Video. Thousands march in Paris for recognition of Palestinian state– www.euronews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Demonstrators waved Palestinian flags ahead of France’s expected formal recognition of Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday.

In Malakoff, a suburb of Paris, the Palestinian flag has flown from the town hall since Friday despite government orders to remove it. Mayor Jacqueline Belhomme, who joined the Paris demonstration, said the display was a symbolic gesture of solidarity similar to the Ukrainian flag raised during Russia’s invasion.

Other towns have also raised flags, though some have taken them down following legal challenges. Socialist leader Olivier Faure has encouraged more municipalities to join the initiative despite warnings from the Interior Ministry. French leaders are expected to place the Gaza war and the wider conflict high on the agenda at the UN General Assembly this week.

Trump ‘grateful beyond words’ for second state visit to UK but key differences remain– www.euronews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

US President Donald Trump wrapped up his historic second state visit to the United Kingdom on Thursday saying he was “tremendously thankful” for the pomp and pageantry but some key differences between him and Prime Minister Keir Starmer remain.

When asked about the lack of progress in brokering a deal to end Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “let me down.”

Starmer said he and Trump had discussed how to “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” and that Trump had “led the way here.”

Trump has also not made good on threats to impose new sanctions on Russia and King Charles, in his state banquet speech Wednesday night, offered Trump a gentle nudge, noting “as tyranny once again threatens Europe, we and our allies stand together in support of Ukraine, to deter aggression and secure peace.”

While Starmer has played a major part in European efforts to shore up US support for Ukraine, Trump’s visit offered few major advancements,

The British government has also grown increasingly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the suffering of Palestinian civilians.

China’s Gap Between Rhetoric and Action Perpetuates Status Quo in Gaza– chinadigitaltimes.net
Source Link
Excerpt:

On Monday, Reuters reported on the story of a man who tried to flee Gaza by crossing the border into Egypt and then flying to China in order to seek asylum, only to be denied and sent back. As his case illustrates, China’s well-known rhetorical support for Gaza has in many ways not translated into concrete action. In fact, China has appeared to soften its stance towards Israel over the past year. Its criticism over what a U.N. Commission of Inquiry described this week as genocide is directed more at the U.S. and other Western states that undergird Israel’s campaign, rather than at Israel itself. This selectivity serves to undermine the U.S.’ standing relative to China in the eyes of some other countries, while preserving China’s interests in Israel. However, Israel’s increasingly aggressive actions—including recently bombing Qatar’s capital—risk finally pushing Beijing to adopt a more confrontational stance backed by material consequences.

UK, Canada and Australia formally recognise Palestine, backing two-state solution– www.arabianbusiness.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The UK, Canada and Australia have formally recognised the State of Palestine, moves framed by all three governments as essential to preserving the prospect of a two-state solution and lasting peace in the Middle East.

UK recognition

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed that the UK has officially recognised Palestine, calling the decision a historic one grounded in the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

Trump says Putin has “really let me down,” as he wraps up historic second state visit to U.K.– www.cbsnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

U.S. companies will be investing 150 billion pounds, the equivalent of over $200 billion, in the U.K. as part of a landmark package announced this week.

“I promised that my government would deliver jobs, growth and opportunity for working people. Today we have secured a historic £150bn of investment commitments from US companies into the UK. Creating 7,600 high quality jobs and driving growth across the country,” Starmer said in a social media post Thursday morning before he welcomed President Trump to his country house, Chequers.

The deal includes the equivalent of over $136 billion in investment in the U.K. from Blackstone over the next decade, according to the British government. It also includes investments from Prologis, Palantir, Amentum, Boeing and STAX.

Stefanik urges Bondi to investigate MSF over alleged Hamas propaganda ties– www.foxnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., requested that Attorney General Pam Bondi undertake an investigation into Doctors Without Borders under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

In a copy of Stefanik’s letter reviewed by Fox News Digital, she accuses Doctors Without Borders, often known by its French acronym MSF, of having gone on a media offensive against U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, accusing the organization of “orchestrated killing.”

Stefanik claimed the attacks “mirror propaganda continuously pushed by Hamas and threaten to undermine the only large-scale humanitarian food operation currently working in Gaza.”

Together For Palestine: ‘How can we live with ourselves and stand by and do nothing?’– www.glamourmagazine.co.uk
Source Link
Excerpt:

It was exactly 11 years ago that I first joined a protest in support of Palestine. In 2014, tens of thousands of ordinary people took to the streets of London to protest the Gaza War – a 50-day conflict during which 2,251 Palestinians, including 1,462 civilians and 551 children, as well as 66 Israeli soldiers and five civilians, including one child, were killed (per the UN).

Where many might not remember the 2014 conflict, few can escape the current horror in Gaza. Since the Hamas attack on Israel, on October 7th 2023, the Israeli military response has killed nearly 65,000 Palestinians (per the Palestinian Ministry of Health), although real figures could be much higher. Many human rights organisations, charities and genocide scholars have described the situation as a genocide.

But while there were politicians such as Diane Abbott speaking out at that first rally I attended back in 2014, many celebrities stayed silent. Those who did show support, such as Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Selena Gomez and Rihanna, were lambasted or ordered to backtrack by industry peers. Speaking out against the injustices in Palestine has always come at a price, but finally, more and more artists are stepping away from silence.

US Treasury sanctions Sinaloa cartel faction Los Mayos in Mexico– abcnews.go.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

MEXICO CITY — The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday sanctioned members of a Sinaloa cartel faction known as Los Mayos, one of the groups that has tormented Sinaloa’s capital in an ongoing war for control.

The move came on the same day that U.S. Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley is visiting Mexico, and after the Trump administration designated the Sinaloa cartel as a terrorist group earlier this year.

Hurley is meeting with Mexican authorities and business leaders to discuss strategies for combating drug trafficking, cartel operations and illicit financing. The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that the official’s main message will be that the department “will not allow Mexico-based drug cartels to access the U.S. financial system.”

It’s part of an ongoing effort by the Trump administration to crack down on cartels. In addition to pressuring Mexico’s government to more aggressively pursue the criminal groups, the administration has also doled out rounds of sanctions to cartel leaders, banks it alleged facilitated money transfers for cartels and a rapper accused of laundering money for the groups.

EXPLICIT DANGER: America Has Been Here Before, Right Before the Civil War– gellerreport.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

In the days since Charlie Kirk’s murder, many have expressed incredulity about the condition of the country. Our circumstances may be unique but the movements of political societies follow clear patterns. We have been deeply polarized before and the cause, now and then, is the same. Disagreement about the fundamental type of country we believe that we should be is what divides us.

In May, 1856 Charles Sumner of Massachusetts took to the floor of the U.S. Senate to denounce the use of force and fraud to plant slavery and its inevitable offspring, oligarchy, in the territory of Kansas. Southern statesmen who composed the inter-state oligarchy in the slave states sought to admit Kansas with slavery into the Union, expanding their power.

Since at least 1854 Sumner was among a few who had recognized that the fight over slavery had taken on a new character. Not only did the fate of slavery depend on the outcome of that fight, but also the future form of American government – whether all America would be republican, as the Founders intended and as the northern states were, or whether America would be converted to an oligarchy, the prevalent form of government in the South.

Sumner’s “Crime Against Kansas” speech was long, direct, and forceful. A few days later, Representative Preston Brooks of South Carolina entered the Senate chamber with his lieutenants, Representatives Laurence Keitt of South Carolina and Henry Edmundson of Virginia, and commenced caning Sumner, who was sitting, his legs locked beneath his desk.

Supporters hail Charlie Kirk as friend of Israel, dismiss false claims– www.foxnews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

In the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, some critics of Israel have sought to drive a wedge between the conservative activist and the Jewish state, mischaracterizing his recent statements and making wild, unfounded accusations.

Within hours of Kirk’s murder — and before a suspect was identified — unhinged conspiracies spread across social media. The Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism found thousands of posts containing the baseless claims.

Seemingly aware of the effort to co-opt Kirk’s legacy, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu eulogized him as a champion of “speaking truth and defending freedom. A lion-hearted friend of Israel, he fought the lies and stood tall for Judeo-Christian civilization.”

Hollywood Star John Cusack Reacts to Charlie Kirk Assassination by Calling Him ‘A Fascist’– conservativeroof.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Actor John Cusack reacted to the horrific and gruesome assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk by continuing to spread the very hateful rhetoric that likely got him murdered by a deranged lunatic, calling the 31-year-old husband and father or two a “fascist.”

“He was a demagogue — and a fascist,” Cusack wrote of Kirk on the left-wing echo chamber social media platform BlueSky.

As reported, Kirk assassin suspect Tyler Robinson, left behind a message for his transgender roommate and partner, in which he admitted shooting the Turning Point USA founder and said, “I had enough of his hatred.”

Utah County District Attorney Jeff Gray read the entire message during a live television broadcast.

Kirk, like many in the conservative space, has been falsely labeled a “fascist,” among other pejoratives, fueling the hate that more than likely led to his murder, resulting in what appears to be a targeted political assassination of a man who was only trying to have a conversation.

Some in society have reacted to Kirk’s assassination by doubling down on their hateful and violent rhetoric, celebrating the Turning Point USA founder’s murder and continuing to smear him.

Now That Planned Parenthood Has Been Defunded, 1/3 of its Abortion Centers Could Close– www.lifenews.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Pro-Life advocates have cause to celebrate: Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion business in the United States and the world, has officially been stripped of Medicaid reimbursements under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

This victory has been years in the making. Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act earlier this year, making history as the first federal budget to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood. Lawmakers boldly declared that taxpayer dollars should never prop up the abortion industry.

Yet, almost immediately, a federal judge in Boston, appointed by former President Barack Obama, blocked that part of the law from taking effect. That ruling gave Planned Parenthood temporary cover to continue distributing millions of taxpayer dollars while its lawsuit went through the courts.

This week, that shield crumbled. The First Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously lifted the rulings, allowing the defunding measure to take immediate effect. Remarkably, all three judges on the panel were appointed by President Joe Biden, showing that even jurists handpicked by an abortion-friendly administration could not justify Planned Parenthood’s baseless claims.

DOJ Asks SCOTUS To Stop ‘Interference’ With Fed Governor Firing– thefederalist.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The Justice Department asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to shut down lower courts’ “interference” with President Trump’s efforts to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

In its emergency application for stay, the Trump administration requested that the high court place a temporary pause on a preliminary injunction issued last week by Biden-appointed District Judge Jia Cobb. That order sought to block the president from removing Cook from her position with the agency.

Trump announced he was firing Cook “on Aug. 25 over allegations broached by one of his appointees that she committed mortgage fraud related to two properties she purchased in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Atlanta in 2021, before she joined the Federal Reserve,” according to a local Fox affiliate.

Cobbs’ ruling prompted the Trump administration to appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, asking the higher court to pause the Biden appointee’s injunction. A three-judge panel for the appellate court declined (2-1) to do so on Monday.

Writing on behalf of the administration, U.S. Solicitor General John Sauer asked the Supreme Court to place “an immediate administrative stay of [Cobbs’] preliminary injunction” while the merits of the case continue to proceed in the lower courts. He specifically argued that the government’s newest application “involves yet another case of improper judicial interference with the President’s removal authority — here, interference with the President’s authority to remove members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors for cause.”

“The Federal Reserve Act, ch. 6, 38 Stat. 251, broadly authorizes the President to dismiss members of the Board of Governors ‘for cause,’ without further restricting permissible types of cause,” Sauer wrote.

Charlie Kirk’s True Legacy: A Generation Unashamed– www.standingforfreedom.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

The statistics should terrify every Christian parent: 66 percent of young people who regularly attended Protestant churches as teenagers drop out for at least a year between the ages of 18 and 22. Lifeway Research confirms what pastors have witnessed for decades: 70 to 88 percent of youth from evangelical homes abandon their faith after just one year in secular college. By high school, nearly 30 percent of seniors completely dismiss religion as important to their lives.

This is the spiritual battlefield on which Charlie Kirk planted his flag at just 18 years old. While many churches retreated into entertainment and shallow programming, this young warrior marched onto hostile campuses with an arsenal of biblical truth.

In barely 13 years of public ministry, he built what would become the largest conservative youth organization in America, Turning Point U.S.A., and helped untold numbers of young people recognize that eternal truth, not cultural lies, were the key to creating a life of purpose and joy.

His assassination in Utah last week revealed something the secular world cannot comprehend: Charlie Kirk’s greatest victory was not political but spiritual. He reversed the tide of apostasy by raising a generation unashamed of the Gospel.

The world knew Kirk as a political provocateur. But those with eyes to see recognize his true mission. In a candid 2022 interview, Kirk revealed his heart: “Politics is moments in time… I’m more focused on educational, transformational, multi-decade change.”

This wasn’t campaign rhetoric. It was the battle cry of a man who understood that souls matter more than votes and that worldview transformation precedes political victory.

Meta AI Dings Kirk for Supposed Misinformation, Citing ‘Neutral’ Wikipedia– www.newsbusters.org
Source Link
Excerpt:

Meta AI went after Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk by relying on none other than Wikipedia, exposing the disturbing influence of the online encyclopedia on artificial intelligence.

On Wednesday, the chatbot was quick to accuse Kirk of promoting conspiracy theories and other purportedly false claims when asked, “Who is Charlie Kirk?” Worse still, Meta AI identified Wikipedia as its sole source, justifying its choice by stating it offers a “neutral point of view and comprehensive coverage of current events.”

 

The Download: AI-designed viruses, and bad news for the hydrogen industry– www.technologyreview.com
Source Link
Excerpt:

Artificial intelligence can draw cat pictures and write emails. Now the same technology can compose a working genome.

A research team in California says it used AI to propose new genetic codes for viruses—and managed to get several of them to replicate and kill bacteria.

The work, described in a preprint paper, has the potential to create new treatments and accelerate research into artificially engineered cells. But experts believe it is also an “impressive first step” toward AI-designed life forms. Read the full story.

—Antonio Regalado

Clean hydrogen is facing a big reality check

Hydrogen is sometimes held up as a master key for the energy transition. It can be made using several low-emissions methods and could play a role in cleaning up industries ranging from agriculture to aviation to shipping.

This moment is a complicated one for the green fuel, though, as a new report from the International Energy Agency lays out. A number of major projects face cancellations and delays. The US in particular is seeing a slowdown after changes to key tax credits and cuts in support for renewable energy.

Still, there are bright spots for the industry, including in China, and new markets could soon become crucial for growth. Here are three things to know about the state of hydrogen in 2025.

—Casey Crownhart