The Daily Dose Recap is our way of providing to you an overview of everything that was covered during the show. Here you will have easy access to all of the news that was talked about that day.
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US commerce secretary to visit China next week for talks
US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo will visit China next week, Beijing and Washington said Tuesday, adding to a slew of US officials dispatched in recent months to ease tensions between the world’s largest economies.
Washington says it is seeking to better manage its frosty relations with China, with the two powers at loggerheads over everything from trade to human rights and Taiwan.
“Secretary Raimondo looks forward to constructive discussions on issues relating to the US-China commercial relationship, challenges faced by US businesses, and areas for potential cooperation,” the US Department of Commerce said in a statement.
She will travel to both Beijing and Shanghai during the August 27 to 30 trip, Washington said.
Beijing also confirmed the visit, adding that Raimondo has been invited by her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao.
Her visit will build on an agreement between Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden in Bali last year “to deepen communication between the US and the PRC on a range of issues,” Washington said.
Relations between Washington and Beijing have plummeted to some of their worst levels in decades, with Washington’s trade curbs among the top of the laundry list of disagreements.
Washington says its restrictions are crucial to safeguarding national security, while Beijing sees them as hampering its economic rise.
This month, Biden issued an executive order aimed at restricting certain American investments in sensitive high-tech areas in China — a move Beijing blasted as being “anti-globalization”.
The long-anticipated rules, expected to be implemented next year, target sectors like semiconductors and artificial intelligence.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had sought to reassure Chinese officials about the expected curbs during a visit to Beijing last month, promising any new moves would be implemented in a transparent way.
She stressed the need for healthy economic competition and improved communication and urged cooperation on the grave threat posed by climate change.
But she also said she had raised serious concerns over what she called unfair economic practices by Beijing as well as issues around the protection of intellectual property.
– Steadying ties –
In June, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken travelled to Beijing, where he met Xi and said progress had been made on a number of key sources of contention.
Neither Yellen’s nor Blinken’s visit led to major breakthroughs, and a recent Camp David summit and statement between the US, South Korea and Japan aimed, in part, at countering Beijing sparked condemnation from China.
Following that summit, President Biden said he still expects to meet Chinese leader Xi again this year.
Biden is inviting Xi in November to San Francisco when the United States holds a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, which includes China.
The two leaders could potentially also meet next month in New Delhi on the sidelines of a summit of the Group of 20 major economies.
-Insider Paper
'Bread And Water': Bankman-Fried Denied Vegan Meals, Adderall -- And Is Running Out Of Anti-Depressant
Image Credit: Erika P. Rodriquez for the New York Times. Sam Bankman-Fried in the Bahamas in April.
FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who was tossed in pre-trial detention until his Oct. 2 trial after he showed a journalist from the NY Times private writings from his ex-girlfriend and business partner, Caroline Ellison, and used a VPN in violation of a previous order not to, has been denied vegan meals and adderall, and has been subsisting on 'bread and water,' like many crypto bros who trusted their life savings to FTX before SBF and pals allegedly used those funds to try and stave off oblivion.
Appearing before a Manhattan federal court on Tuesday to plead for a narrower indictment on securities fraud, wire fraud and other charges, attorneys for the embattled 31-year-old, who was never going to do well in prison, says he's "literally subsisting on bread and water" and a scant amount of peanut butter.
The hearing was the first since a judge revoked SBF's $250 million bail, tossing him into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York.
SBF lawyer Mark Cohen says that the FTX founder hasn't been given any Adderall since he was jailed, and has only a few doses left of antidepressant, Emsam. Cohen also argued that the legal team was struggling to cobble together SBF's defense without access to their client.
At Tuesday's hearing, his lawyers said the jail's failure to provide him with the medication Adderall to treat attention deficit hyperactive disorder - despite a court order for the facility to do so - and serve him vegan food would hinder his ability to participate in preparing his defense case. -Reuters
SBF was led into court wearing leg restraints and a beige-colored uniform to appear in front of US Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn, where he pleaded "Not guilty" to seven new criminal charges related to making some $100 million in political campaign contributions using stolen customer funds, federal prosecutors allege, after dropping similar charges related to violating US campaign finance laws because the Bahamas threw a fit and 'did not intend to extradite the defendant on the campaign contributions count.'
According to Christian Everdell, another lawyer for the former billionaire, SBF hasn't been allowed to review any of the millions of pages of evidence against him, a violation of his Sixth Amendment right to counsel.
His lawyers also rejected a plan to allow SBF to use a laptop in the cell block of the courthouse to review the evidence with his lawyers two days a week from 9am to 3pm, which Everdell said was inadequate.
"It means he cannot help prepare his defense," he said.
Bankman entered his 'Not guilty' plea in response to seven counts of fraud and money laundering contained in a revised US indictment. According to prosecutors, SBF's alleged fraud scheme cost customers and investors billions of dollars.
The case is US v. Bankman-Fried, 22-cr-673, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).
-Tyler Durden, ZeroHedge
Bud Light Backlash "Shows Little Signs Of Abating", Citi Warns
The Bud Light backlash shows no signs of stopping: AB InBev's US volumes tanked 15.2% this past month, according to Citi, citing new data from Nielsen. The brewer has not apologized to its base drinkers for its tone-deaf transgender TikTok campaign in April.
Here are the main points of Citi analyst Simon Hales' note to clients about "the ongoing backlash to Bud Light's social media campaign":
ABInBev beer volumes dropped by 15.2% in 4 weeks.
Market average decrease: 2.8%.
Beer price/mix increased by 4.1%.
Total dollar sales for beer fell by 11.7%.
ABInBev's total value share decreased by 484bps.
Beer value share dropped by 555bps.
Bud Light backlash persists.
Bud Light contributes to ~30% of the group's US revenues (about 8% of the group).
Bud Light volumes: -29.7%; previously -29.9%.
Budweiser volumes: -25.3%; previously -26.2%.
In the US beer, flavored malt beverage, cider, and seltzer markets, AB InBev is the only major brewer experiencing widespread declines in total value share and volumes in the last four weeks.
AB InBev's brand portfolio is suffering at a time when US beer, flavored malt beverage, cider, and seltzer markets are marginally growing.
Citi's Hales shows AB InBev's sales are at a critical low -- where either the brewer can revive demand through proper marketing -- maybe an apology might work -- or face a second exodus wave as drinkers switch to other beers.
An in-depth view of AB InBev's declines by brand.
Hales shows Molson Coors has been one of the biggest winners following Bud Light Marketing VP Alissa Heinerscheid's move to 'nuke' the brand with 'woke' transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. She was eventually fired.
In a separate report, Deutsche Bank analyst Mitch Collett warned Bud Light faced a 25% permanent loss of its business.
Billy Busch, the heir to the Anheuser-Busch dynasty, made a few recent television appearances, telling AB InBev that he would like to buy back the ailing brand to "make the brand great again" (free from woke).
Bud Light's PR nightmare, combined with its summertime marketing flop, has failed to revive the brand (for now). Could consumers have finally seen through the façade and realized Bud Light has been handing them 'piss water masquerading as beer' for years?
Meanwhile, the new top-selling beer in the US is Modelo Especial. Epoch Times explained more:
Modelo Especial is now the top-selling beer in the United States, surpassing Bud Light, whose popularity has plummeted in the midst of a lengthy boycott.
Data from Nielsen IQ shows Modelo Especial's sales at beer and grocery stores surpassed Bud Light's for the entire year, according to CNN. Modelo got 8.34 percent share of dollars spent on beer, as compared to 8.28 percent for Bud Light from the start of 2023 to Aug. 12.
"The fact that we became the number-one beer in America due to a competitor's moves is not accurate," Jim Sabia, executive vice president and managing director of Constellation Brands, said in a recent statement.
Several brewers in the Mid-Atlantic region told us they've increased light beer production and expanded portfolios to take market share away from AB InBev. For those seeking a real American-owned beer, ditch the Belgian brewer in favor of local brewers.
-Tyler Durden, ZeroHedge
Discover Financial CEO Roger Hochschild steps down
Aug 14 (Reuters) - Digital banking firm Discover Financial Services (DFS.N) said on Monday Roger Hochschild would step down as chief executive officer and a member of the board.
The company, whose shares fell 5.5% in extended trading, also named board member John Owen as interim CEO and president, effective immediately.
In late July, Discover's shares tanked after it disclosed a regulatory review over some incorrectly classified credit card accounts from around mid-2007. The company decided to pause share repurchases as well citing a pending internal review of compliance, risk management and corporate governance.
At the time, Discover also revealed that it had received a proposed consent order from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in connection with consumer compliance that does not include the card product classification matter.
The stock has fallen nearly 16% since the disclosures and buyback pause, through previous close.
-Manya Saini, Reuters
Global Rice Crisis Worsens As India Mulls Over New Export Restrictions
Buckle up, world – the rice crisis is just getting started.
As India, the world's biggest rice exporter, wrestles with soaring food inflation and the damaging effects of the El Nino weather phenomenon on farmlands, Bloomberg reports Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is mulling whether to restrict even more exports of the grain that is causing global tightening on an alarming scale.
The first round of export restrictions was applied to shipments of non-basmati white rice last month. Now the government is considering an export tax on parboiled rice to deter shipments abroad to ensure domestic supplies are ample to prevent a hyperinflationary spike in food prices that would ultimately spark social unrest.
People briefed on the government's review of the possible export tax said, "There's no certainty deliberations will lead to the implementation of duties."
None of this should be a surprise to readers. We provided readers with enough understanding that rice, which is critical to the diets of billions of people worldwide, was headed for a shortage:
Aug. 2022: "Situation Is Really Precarious": World's Largest Rice Exporter Faces Output Decline Amid Heatwave
Sept. 2022: Top Rice-Exporter India Curbs Shipments, Adds To Fresh Food Inflation Fears
Sept. 2022: The Stage Is Being Set For A Massive Global Rice Shortage
May 2023: Global Rice Shortage Looms, Set To Be The Biggest In Decades
May 2023: Thai Rice Crop In Crosshairs Of El Nino As Farmers Are Warned About Water Shortages
... and this is what happened right after India announced the first round of rice export restrictions in July:
Soon after, Thai white rice 5% hit its highest level since 2008.
Meanwhile, the latest report on global food prices from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations showed the global food index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of globally-traded food commodities, jumped the most in 18 months.
-Tyler Durden, ZeroHedge
Watch here:
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US says Ukraine war not a stalemate
A top US official said Tuesday that the war in Ukraine has not bogged down into a stalemate, amid increasing concerns about the slow territorial gains of Kyiv’s counteroffensive.
“No, we do not assess that the conflict is a stalemate,” White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in reply to a reporter’s question.
He called the situation “dynamic,” with both Russian and Ukrainian forces on the defensive and offensive at the same time, depending on the location on the lengthy battlefront.
“Russia will attack in places and they are attacking. But of course Ukraine is also attacking, Ukraine is also making gains,” he said, notably in the south.
He described Ukraine’s counteroffensive as methodical and adapting to challenges, and said Kyiv’s generals also need to fight “sustainably” to be able to pressure Russian forces over the longer run.
Sullivan said the United States remains fully committed to supporting Kyiv’s fight, even as he would not predict how the most recent efforts will unfold.
“We need to continue to move the fundamental elements of both defence and offence, in particular the artillery ammunition and the mobility that Ukraine needs to be able to both hold ground and take ground,” he said.
“I cannot handicap or predict how things will end up unfolding in the course of this war,” Sullivan added.
“But we are continuing to support Ukraine in its counteroffensive efforts.”
-Insider Paper
Germany says drone attacks on Moscow covered by international law
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Tuesday defended Ukrainian drone attacks against the Russian capital Moscow as being in line with international law.
Drone strikes that Russia said were carried out by Ukraine have repeatedly targeted the capital.
“Russia attacked Ukraine, therefore Ukraine has a legal right to defend its country,” Baerbock said at a press conference in response to a question on the drone attacks.
Russia “incessantly” targeted civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, including grain silos, hospitals and churches, Baerbock said.
“Ukraine is defending itself within the boundaries of international law,” she said at the press conference alongside her Estonian counterpart Margus Tsahkna.
Moscow and Kyiv have reported regular drone incursions during the conflict, with strikes on Russian territory becoming increasingly regular.
Another two drones aimed at Moscow were downed by Russian air defence overnight, Russian officials said Tuesday, in the fifth consecutive night of strikes on the capital region.
The strike briefly halted traffic at Moscow’s Vnukovo, Sheremetyevo and Domodedovo airports, and damaged a high-rise residential building in the area of Krasnogorsk.
In May, drones were shot down near the Kremlin.
-Insider Paper
North Korea Warns US, South Korean Military Drills Could Trigger ‘Thermonuclear War’
Image Credit: ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images
North Korean state media warned U.S. Military officials on Monday that “thermonuclear war” could break out after denouncing the U.S. and South Korea joint military drills test-firing strategic cruise missiles on the Korean Peninsula.
U.S. and South Korean militaries began their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield computer-simulated command post exercise, which Navy officials said is designed to ensure the Alliance is ready to defend the Republic of Korea and promote security and stability in Northeast Asia. But North Korea has long viewed the drills as a potential war simulation.
“A thermo-nuclear war, the first ever in history, is more than likely on the Korean peninsula,” KCNA news agency reported.
The warning comes days after leaders of the U.S., South Korea, and Japan met at Camp David in Maryland last week to form their first stand-alone trilateral agreements dubbed the “Camp David Principles,” as threats from China and North Korea increase in the Pacific.
“The purpose of our trilateral security cooperation is and will remain to promote and enhance peace and stability throughout the region,” U.S. President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reportedly said in a joint statement.
The allied nations consented to ramp up ballistic missile defenses to counter North Korea’s nuclear missile threat.
North Korean state media reported authorities said the summit between allied nations aimed at formulating a “nuclear war provocation.”
“If the agreements fabricated at the Camp David Resort are additionally put into practice in the war drill … the possibility of outbreak of a thermonuclear war on the Korean peninsula will become more realistic,” KCNA news agency said.
According to NBC, North Korea has conducted over 100 weapons tests, including nuclear-capable missiles designed to attack the U.S., South Korea, and Japan since the beginning of last year.
The state-run commentary also said the armed forces of North Korea “will wait for a chance” to “punish the hostile forces threatening the sovereignty of our state and our people’s right to live century after century is waiting for the moment of flush.”
According to Reuters, the Japanese Coast Guard said North Korean officials plan to launch a satellite between Aug. 24 and Aug. 31 in the direction of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea.
South Korean lawmakers reportedly said the North could protest the joint military drills and last week’s summit with the United States and Japan by showing force of military strength by test-firing an intercontinental ballistic missile.
-Brandon Drey, Daily Wire
North Korea restarts international flights after 3 years
North Korea‘s first international commercial flight in three years landed in Beijing on Tuesday, as Pyongyang shows tentative signs of easing its prolonged Covid isolation.
North Korea shut its borders in early 2020 in response to the coronavirus pandemic, but there are increasing signals the country may be moving towards reopening.
Chinese and Russian officials attended a military parade in Pyongyang last month — the first foreign dignitaries to visit the country in years.
And last week a delegation of athletes was allowed to attend a taekwondo competition in Kazakhstan.
On Tuesday, state-run Air Koryo flight JS151 arrived at Beijing’s Capital Airport at around 09:15 am (0115 GMT), an arrivals board showed, having taken off at 08:30 am Pyongyang time (2330 GMT).
AFP reporters at the airport saw only two North Koreans — recognisable by their distinctive badges bearing the faces of former leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il — come through the arrival gate.
One was identified by specialist website NK News analyst Colin Zwirko as General Kim Jin, who Chinese media say has served as a military attache in Beijing.
Neither spoke to media.
Another Air Koryo flight bound for Pyongyang departed just after 1:00 pm, a tracking website showed.
The Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency published photos of a number of North Koreans lining up to check in luggage for that flight.
Approached for comment at its office in Beijing on Tuesday, a representative of Air Koryo said he had “no information” to offer.
A previously scheduled North Korean flight to Beijing on Monday was abruptly cancelled, with no official reason given.
An Air Koryo representative on Monday referred AFP reporters to North Korean ruling party newspaper the Rodong Sinmun for “accurate” information.
Asked about the flights, China’s foreign ministry said that it had approved restarting commercial air travel between Beijing and Pyongyang.
“During the summer and autumn flight season… the Chinese side approved flight plans for passengers such as the Pyongyang-Beijing and Beijing-Pyongyang routes of Air Koryo,” foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing on Monday.
Reports from CNN and NK News said that Air Koryo was set to carry out two flights from Russia’s Vladivostok to Pyongyang on Friday and next Monday.
-Insider Paper
North Korea plans satellite launch as Seoul, US hold drills
North Korea is planning to launch another satellite just three months after its first attempt to put a military eye in the sky failed, prompting condemnation from Tokyo and Seoul on Tuesday and demands to call it off.
The launch is set to take place between August 24 and 31, Pyongyang told Japan’s coast guard Tuesday, with Tokyo mobilising ships and its PAC-3 missile defence system in case it lands in their territory.
Seoul said the launch would be “an illegal act” because it violates UN sanctions prohibiting the North from tests using ballistic technology, which is used for both space launches and missiles.
“North Korea’s so-called ‘satellite launch’ is a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions… No matter what excuses North Korea tries to make, it cannot justify this illegal act,” South Korea’s Unification Ministry said in a statement.
The foreign ministry said Seoul would “respond sternly to the North’s illicit provocation with close trilateral Korea-US-Japan cooperation”.
The United States echoed that statement.
“We urge the DPRK to refrain from further unlawful activity and call on Pyongyang to engage in serious and sustained diplomacy,” the State Department said in a statement, using the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
– Failed May attempt –
Pyongyang’s announcement came days after leaders from Washington, Seoul and Tokyo met at Camp David in the United States, with North Korea’s growing nuclear threats a key item on the agenda.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida urged Pyongyang to call off the launch, saying Japan was taking “all possible measures to prepare for any unforeseen eventuality”.
Japan’s Coast Guard said Pyongyang had informed it of three designated danger areas: the Yellow Sea, East China Sea and waters east of the Philippines’ Luzon island.
In May, Pyongyang launched what it described as its first military reconnaissance satellite, but the rocket carrying it, the “Chollima-1” — named after a mythical horse that often features in official propaganda — plunged into the sea minutes after takeoff.
Soon after, Kim Jong Un’s government vowed to successfully launch its spy satellite “in the near future”, saying it was a necessary counterbalance to the growing US military presence in the region.
– Military drills –
Pyongyang’s new launch plan follows Seoul and Washington kicking off their major annual joint military drills on Monday.
Known as Ulchi Freedom Shield, the exercises, which are aimed at countering growing threats from the nuclear-armed North, will run through August 31.
Pyongyang views all such drills as rehearsals for an invasion and has repeatedly warned it would take “overwhelming” action in response.
Suspected North Korean hackers have already targeted the exercises, with email attacks on South Korean contractors working at the allies’ combined exercise war simulation centre.
On Tuesday, North Korea’s state news agency condemned “the aggressive character” of the US-South Korea drills.
KCNA warned in a commentary that if the drills involve a “nuclear provocation”, the possibility “of a thermonuclear war on the Korean peninsula will become more realistic”.
South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers last week that Pyongyang could launch a reconnaissance satellite ahead of the 75th anniversary of the North’s founding on September 9, member of parliament Yoo Sang-bum told reporters after the briefing.
Choi Gi-il, professor of national security at Sangji University, told AFP: “Pyongyang appears to be timing its next satellite launch with the ongoing joint Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, having improved and supplemented technical aspects of the launch over the past three months.”
“Given the nature of the North Korean regime, three months seems sufficient enough to find flaws from its failed May launch and apply fixes — though we have to see whether it can pull it off this time,” he said.
Kim has made the development of a military spy satellite a top priority.
The crash of the satellite in May sparked a complex South Korean salvage operation. The government analyzed the retrieved parts and concluded the satellite had no military utility.
-Insider Paper
African Union Suspends Niger Over Coup as 12 Troops Die in New Attack
Image Credit: AFP - Nigerian soldiers near a French airbase in Niger
The African Union (AU) on Tuesday said it was suspending coup-hit Niger but called for a report into the implications of a threatened military operation to restore its ousted president, as Nigerien TV said 12 troops died in a new attack by suspected jihadists.
National guards carrying out an anti-jihadist operation in the southwestern region of Tillaberi were ambushed on Sunday night, Tele Sahel said, adding that the troops inflicted “heavy losses” on the enemy.
Niger’s armed forces, struggling with an eight-year jihadist campaign, have lost at least 29 men since officers toppled elected president Mohamed Bazoum on July 26.
The coup — justified by its leaders because of Bazoum’s perceived failure to stem the insurgents — triggered a bust-up with France, Niger’s staunchest ally, and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
ECOWAS has slapped trade sanctions on Niger and approved deployment of a “standby force to restore constitutional order” in Niamey.
The bloc is hazy about the plan but insists it would intervene if attempts at a diplomatic solution ultimately fail.
As the crisis neared the end of its fourth week, the AU on Tuesday said it was suspending Niger from its ranks but indicated caution on the ECOWAS threat following strong differences among its members.
The AU said its Peace and Security Council had asked the body’s Commission to carry out “an assessment of the economic, social and security implications” of deploying the force, and report back.
Troubled Sahel
The coup has heightened international worries over the Sahel, which faces growing jihadist insurgencies linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
Niger is the fourth ECOWAS nation since 2020 to suffer a coup, following Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Mali.
The new military ruler General Abdourahamane Tiani has proposed a three-year transition back to democracy, a call rejected by ECOWAS, which sent a delegation to visit Niger on the weekend in a final diplomatic push.
Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS commissioner for politics and security, described the proposal as “a joke” and said the bloc would “never accept it.”
“We want constitutional order to be restored as soon as possible,” he told Al Jazeera in an interview broadcast Monday.
“Military action is not off the table,” he warned.
Unlike a previous ECOWAS mission in early August, this time the delegation held talks with Tiani and also met Bazoum, who is being held with his family at the presidential palace and could be facing treason charges.
Images on Niger television showed Bazoum smiling and shaking hands with members of the delegation, as international concern grows over his conditions in detention.
Supplies Concern
The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) warned last week that sanctions and border closures were crimping vital food and medical supplies into Niger.
ECOWAS has imposed sanctions on Niger while Benin and Nigeria have closed their borders.
However, the juntas in neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali have said that any military intervention in Niger would be considered a “declaration of war” against their countries.
Around 300 trucks arrived in Niger’s capital of Niamey on Monday from Burkina Faso, most of them carrying food, the Nigerien authorities said.
The Sahel state ranks among the most turbulent and poorest countries in the world, often lying at the bottom of the UN’s Human Development Index, a benchmark of prosperity.
Bazoum’s election in 2021 was a landmark, opening the way to the country’s first peaceful transition of power.
He survived two attempted coups before finally being toppled. His ouster marks the fifth putsch since Niger gained independence from France in 1960.
-The Defense Post
Russian fighter jets scrambled near Crimea over reconnaissance drones – defense ministry
Image Credit: © Sergei Malgavko/TASS
MOSCOW, August 22. /TASS/. Two Russian fighter jets were scrambled to prevent the Russian air space violation by a MQ-9 Reaper and a TB2 Bayraktar drones, which were on a reconnaissance mission near Crimea, the Russian defense ministry said on Tuesday.
"On 22 August 2023, two unmanned aerial vehicles, MQ-9 Reaper and TB2 Bayraktar, conducting aerial reconnaissance over the waters of the Black Sea close to Crimean Peninsula, were detected by the airspace control means of the Russian Aerospace Forces," the ministry said.
To prevent a possible violation of the Russian border and counter reconnaissance activities, two Russian fighter jets were scrambled. "As a result of the actions, the UAVs changed their flight direction and left the areas where aerial reconnaissance was being conducted," the ministry added.
The Russian defense ministry reported on Tuesday morning that Ukraine has attempted a drone attack on facilities in Russia. The drones were jammed by electronic warfare and crashed into the Black Sea northwest of Crimea.
-TASS
Russian army officials in Libya after Haftar invite
Russian military officials including Moscow’s deputy defence minister arrived in Libya on Tuesday after receiving an invitation from pro-Moscow military strongman Khalifa Haftar.
Haftar, who backs the country’s eastern administration, is close to Russia’s private Wagner mercenary group, whose troops guard military and oil infrastructure in the divided country.
Libya is split between the United Nations-supported government of Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah in Tripoli, and a Haftar-backed administration in the east.
A UN report in 2020 said up to 1,200 Wagner fighters were backing Haftar, who at the time was trying to seize Tripoli. His offensive lasted more than a year but was unsuccessful.
Experts say hundreds of Wagner fighters remain in the north African country.
Tuesday’s visit came alongside a renewed focus on Russian activities in Africa, after Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin announced in a video published Monday that his group was making Africa “freer” and suggested he was on the continent.
“This is the first official visit of a Russian military delegation to Libya,” Moscow’s defence ministry said.
It said the visit, led by Deputy Defence Minister Yunus-bek Yevkurov, was organised after talks with Libya at the Army-2023 expo and Moscow Conference on International Security earlier this month.
“During the visit, it is planned to discuss prospects for cooperation in combating international terrorism and other issues of joint action,” Moscow’s defence ministry added.
According to a statement from Haftar’s spokesman, Ahmad al-Mesmari, the Russian delegation met senior officers in Haftar’s forces.
The two sides examined their “cooperation and coordination” regarding “training… and the maintenance of Russian weapons and equipment” which is the “vertebral column” of Haftar’s forces, the statement said.
Wagner maintains a strong military presence in Africa, where it has partnered with several nations, including Mali and the Central African Republic.
Prigozhin, a former Kremlin ally whose group rebelled against Russia’s military leadership in June, has made few public appearances since the mutiny.
-Insider Paper
14 US cities initiate new globalist climate plan in partnership with Soros and the Clintons
The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group is a globalist enterprise with at least 14 partners right here in the U.S., and, they have set an "ambitious target" to convince the masses to give up meat, dairy, and private car ownership, as well as almost all flights, to supposedly save the planet and control temperatures forever around the current level.
From RedState yesterday:
Fourteen major American cities are part of a globalist climate organization known as the 'C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group,' which has an 'ambitious target' by the year 2030 of '0 kg [of] meat consumption,' '0 kg [of] dairy consumption,' '3 new clothing items per person per year,' '0 private vehicles' owned, and '1 short-haul return flight (less than 1500 km) every 3 years per person.' ...
The organization is headed and largely funded by Democrat billionaire Michael Bloomberg. Nearly 100 cities across the world make up the organization, and its American members include Austin, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Seattle.
So 14 leftist cities in the U.S. have signed on to this commitment to take away freedom of choice from their citizens, while people suffer under rampant crime and children perform poorly in schools, but their priority is to take away milk, meat, and gas-powered cars. Got it.
Major funders and partners of the organization include George Soros's Open Society Foundations, the Clinton Foundation, and The World Bank.
Michael Bloomberg, the president of the group, is himself transported via gas-guzzling private jets and limousines, to his many mansions around the world. From Fox News:
Flight records show that Bloomberg's private jets took more than 1,700 trips and emitted at least 10,000 metric tons of CO2 from August 2016 to August 2020, a Business Insider analysis found. A typical car emits about 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide in one year.
Bloomberg has access to multiple private jets, but he wants to limit us to one short-haul flight every three years.
He probably pretends he cares about his carbon footprint by buying worthless pieces of paper called carbon credits. His real estate portfolio consists of "at least 11 homes," and he owns a fleet of luxury personal vehicles:
To suit his luxurious fortune, he owns a Mercedes-Benz Maybach sedan. His Audi R8 is the one that shows athletic personification. Like a mandated SUV in the home of every celeb, Cadillac Escalade is tuned in black color. After not getting satisfied with one, he owns another fullsize SUV from Chevrolet.
Bloomberg and other green pushers tell people their gas-powered cars are destroying the planet, yet he has a massive car collection of gas-guzzlers.
They want to outlaw milk; does that include breastfeeding? Pretty sure that's a dairy product, and women and babies breathe out that vicious CO2, a non-pollutant, clear gas that makes plants thrive.
These billionaires generate massive pollution and pollute people's minds with talking points to indoctrinate the people to fall for pure propaganda.
What you will never see in these articles or in these policies is scientific data that show a direct correlation between milk and temperature, cars and temperature, meat and temperature, the population and temperature, crude oil consumption and temperature, or CO2 and temperature. The temperature fluctuates no matter what the other variables do.
You will also not see any correlation between any of these variables and storm activity or sea levels.
When there is no correlation, you can't assume causation. It is all a scam.
The sole purpose of these big government policies by leftists is to control our lives.
These billionaires and other leftists pretend they care about the poor and middle classes and small business, but every day, they show that is a blatant lie. They are extremely dangerous to our survival as a great and prosperous country, as are all the journalists who regurgitate the talking points without asking questions or doing any research.
-Jack Hellner, American Thinker
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Father of Tennessee Titans Player Killed In Home Explosion, Another Injured
On Tuesday morning, the father of Tennessee Titans Cornerback Caleb Farley was killed following an apparent explosion that destroyed Farley’s home close to Lake Norman in Mooresville, North Carolina.
According to Iredell County Emergency Management, one individual lost their life early Tuesday morning, while another person sustained injuries. The incident occurred approximately at 12 a.m. along Barber Loop Road near Old Arborway Road.
As detailed in an official statement from the emergency management team, first responders were dispatched to the residence on Barber Loop after receiving reports of an explosion. Upon arrival, they discovered an individual who was in the process of leaving the house. This individual was transported to the hospital with injuries that were not deemed life-threatening.
Amidst the debris, 61-year-old Robert Farley, the father of Caleb Farley, was discovered deceased.
The NFL player was in Nashville at the time of the incident. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the blast.
-Breaking 911 News
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Texans Asked to Cut Electricity Use, As Wind Power Drops Off
What a surprise!!
Fortunately, Texas still has plenty of gas generation:
-What’s Up With That? News
Lionsgate Reinstates Mask Mandate In Parts Of Santa Monica Office Following Covid Outbreak
Amid rising Covid cases in Los Angeles, Lionsgate has brought back the mask mandate for nearly half of the company’s employees at its flagship office at 2700 Colorado Ave. in Santa Monica.
The policy change was announced internally by Sommer McElroy, Response Manager for Lionsgate/Starz, in an email, a copy of which was obtained by Deadline. Implemented in response to several employees recently testing positive for Covid, it involves a mandatory mask mandate effective immediately and until further notice for the 3rd and 5th floors of the five-story building, the email said.
“Employees must wear a medical grade face covering (surgical mask, KN95 or N95) when indoors except when alone in an office with the door closed, actively eating, actively drinking at their desk or workstation, or if they are the only individual present in a large open workspace,” McElroy said in the memo.
In another throwback to the early years of the pandemic, every Lionsgate employee is required to perform a daily self-screening prior to coming to the office each day and must notify McElroy and stay home if exhibiting any symptoms or have traveled internationally in the last 10 days. The latter would impact a number of a people, coming in the middle of summer vacation season.
Lionsgate also is conducting contact tracing and providing at-home Covid test kits upon request.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reported recently “small increases in COVID-19 indicators over the past four weeks indicating increased transmission,” though the statement also stressed that “overall metrics remain at a low level of concern.”
Still, there has been a noticeable rise in local cases recently, with a number of people reporting infections — including some who had attended Taylor Swift’s six sold-out concerts at So-Fi Stadium and some who had returned from overseas — so Lionsgate’s example might be followed by other entertainment companies.
Hollywood studios instituted strict Covid mandates as they started bringing employees to the offices in 2021. Lionsgate started the phased process in October 2021; the company expanded the in-person requirement to four days a week in January of this year.
-Nellie Andreeva, Deadline
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Jeffrey Epstein's New Mexico ranch where he sexually assaulted young girls finds buyer after two years on market
The former New Mexico estate of pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has sold after more than two years on the market, seemingly with a massive price reduction.
Zorro Ranch - the home where Epstein sexually assaulted young girls - has found a buyer months after the price was slashed by nearly $10 million.
'We confirm sale by the Epstein Estate of the New Mexico property known as 'Zorro Ranch,' with the proceeds to be used for Estate administration, including payment of creditors,' said Daniel Weiner, an attorney representing Epstein's estate.
The new owner's name and the final price paid for the property has not been released as of August 22. The last listing price was $18 million.
'While details of that sale (including the purchase price and buyer) are confidential, the Estate will disclose the sale in its next quarterly accounting to be filed in the St. Thomas, USVI probate court,' Weiner said in a statement to one outlet.
Epstein had reportedly hoped to turn the sprawling 33,000 square foot property into a 'baby making factory,' and that several women reported having been raped and assaulted there when they were underage.
According to a statement released to the New York Post, the property entered contract in July. Proceeds will be used for taxes and payments to creditors.
In May 2022, DailyMail.com exclusively revealed photos of the home, purchased through the millionaires holding company Cypress Inc. The Stanley, New Mexico, estate sits on nearly 8,000 acres and first went on the market in July 2021.
The estate has a massive three-story, four-bedroom main house as well as a caretaker's residence, according to a previous listing.
Several women reported being sexually abused by Epstein at the estate, though the New York financier was never charged in the state with any crimes.
Epstein committed suicide in his New York prison cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal charges for sex trafficking.
Just days before his death, two women provided accounts in front of a courtroom detailing their experience of assault at the Zorro Ranch in 2004.
One woman, identified as Jane Doe, told the court she was brought there at 15 years old and Epstein abused her for hours and took her virginity.
Property records indicate he purchased the ranch from Gary King in 1993.
King served as New Mexico's Attorney General at the time and the deal included private and leased federal lands.
At the time, Virginia Giuffre also said she had been trafficked to the Santa Fe County ranch, while Maria Farmer claimed her sister Annie was assaulted at the home in 1996 by the millionaire and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, 60.
Epstein guarded the property to ensure it was secluded from the world.
The property came with its own firehouse with working engine and fire retention water tanks in case of a blaze.
The financier used the 8,000-acre ranch as a playground for his VIP guests, who he brought to the secluded estate a few times a year.
Just inside the main ranch entrance Ranch Central is a 'small village of residences and working buildings' where Epstein housed his staff.
The Blue House, located near the property's boundary was where Epstein's private pilot Larry Visoki lived.
Visoki's home when on the ground and in New Mexico was the 1,650 square foot, two-bedroom, two-bathroom 'Blue house.'
That home came with a two-vehicle garage, tennis court and basketball hoops.
Sales from Epstein's other estates have been used to fund the Epstein Victims' Compensation Program, which was created in June 2020.
The perv's townhouse in Manhattan sold for $51 million in 2021, while his home in Palm Beach, Florida, was sold for $18.5 million.
Weiner said in 2021 the compensation program has been funded with over $140 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.
-Hope Sloop, Daily Mail