We are not going anywhere – the head of Tik Tok on the US decision to block Tik Tok if the company is not sold to American owners

“The Constitution is on our side and we expect to win,” Shaw Tzu Chiu said.

https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/u-s-takes-aim-at-chinese-banks-aiding-russia-war-effort-fcf76dcc?st=2hbnx4gcsgzpgve&reflink=article_copyURL_share

George Gammon (see his RebelCapitalist YouTube channel) has recently done an experiment traveling in Argentina trying to use only gold, BTC and silver. To the surprise of many (me included), he was able to sell gold only by taking a ~50% haircut, BTC was accepted by tech bros only. Silver worked just fine, but it’s heavy, so bring sufficient quantities of SLV ain’t practical. So gold and BTC is a storage of value, but not a medium of exchange (liquidity sucks) at least in Argentina. USD ($100 bills) was the preferred money.

AI can predict political orientations from blank faces – and researchers fear ‘serious’ privacy challenges
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ai-can-predict-political-orientations-blank-faces-researchers-fear-serious-privacy-challenges
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Researchers are warning about privacy concerns after a study found that AI facial recognition technology is able to predict people’s political orientations from images of blank faces.

Does the Decline of U.S. Power Matter For the Middle East?
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https://carnegieendowment.org/2019/03/19/does-decline-of-u.s.-power-matter-for-middle-east-pub-78645
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As priorities diverge and the United States is dragged into peripheral battles, the deterioration of its Middle East alliance system can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu confirmed in a briefing Tuesday that Russia’s Air Defense Forces would be getting additional S-500 air and missile defense systems in two modifications. Here’s what we know about these fearsome weapons.

????The S-500 Prometey (lit. ‘Prometheus’ – as in the ancient Greek god of fire) is a road-mobile air and missile defense system developed by Russian weapon manufacturer Almaz-Antey.

????The system has a range of up to 600 km, and the ability to detect targets at up to 800 km away.

????The S-500 can simultaneously target up to 10 ballistic supersonic targets flying at speeds up to 7 km/s.

????It can also attack targets flying at hypersonic speeds (up to Mach 10, or 12,348 km per hour).

????The S-500’s range is sufficient to disable enemy missiles, spacecraft, and orbital weapons platforms in space at low-Earth orbits.

????The system’s interceptor missiles maneuver in flight, and feature independent onboard radar components enabling them to engage in kinetic attacks.

????The S-500 can be incorporated into a single air and missile defense network alongside the S-400, S-300VM4, S-350 Vityaz and other platforms.

????Along with launchers, the S-500 comes with command post vehicle, target acquisition and battle management radar, reloader vehicles, and an array of optional radar, air and missile defense control systems, depending on mission.

????The missile system comes with 77N6-N and 77N6-N1 interceptors for missile defense and anti-satellite/spacecraft purposes, and 40N6M anti-aircraft missiles.

Venezuela Hires Rothschild as Adviser on Defaulted Debt Pile
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-04-23/venezuela-hires-rothschild-as-adviser-on-defaulted-debt-pile
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Venezuela’s government has hired Rothschild & Co. as a financial adviser to provide an overview of its foreign debt obligations, according to people familiar with the matter.

Saudi Aramco is going to invest over 10 billion yuan to purchase a 10% equity stake in Chinese company Hengli Petrochemical. This is another collaboration after Saudi Aramco and Rongsheng Petrochemical, Dongfang Shenghong, and Baosteel, indicating the interest of Middle Eastern.

North Korea officials visit Iran in a rare public trip
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https://m.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/north-korea-officials-visit-iran-in-a-rare-public-trip-798381#798381
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North Korea and Iran have long been suspected of cooperating on ballistic missile programs, possibly exchanging technical expertise and components that went into their manufacture.

Why Indonesia Is China’s New Best Friend in Southeast Asia
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https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-04-21/indonesia-is-china-s-new-best-friend-in-southeast-asia
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Beijing is courting Jakarta with promises of investments. Meanwhile, the US is losing sway the longer it dithers over Gaza.

America’s fight to save handwriting from extinction
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https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13273363/handwriting-extinction-IQs-begin-fall.html
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Handwriting is less prevalent than it once was, with a third of Americans reporting that they haven’t written a personal letter or note in more than five years. Experts warn that history could be lost.

Ukraiński minister rolnictwa podejrzany o bezprawne przejmowanie państwowych gruntów – Rynki wschodnie
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https://www.farmer.pl/fakty/ukrainski-minister-rolnictwa-podejrzany-o-bezprawne-przejmowanie-panstwowych-gruntow,145092.html
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Obecny minister polityki agrarnej i żywnościowej Ukrainy  Mykoła Solsky jest podejrzany o zagarnięcie państwowych gruntów i próbę przejęcia kolejnych działek – potwierdziły ukraińskie służby.

Germany, Poland and France: Recasting a Green Weimar Triangle
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https://www.euractiv.com/section/central-europe/opinion/germany-poland-and-france-recasting-a-green-weimar-triangle/
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Służby chcą wiedzieć, kto z kim pisze. Minister domaga się zmian w ustawie
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https://serwisy.gazetaprawna.pl/nowe-technologie/artykuly/9493819,sluzby-chca-wiedziec-kto-z-kim-pisze-minister-domaga-sie-zmian-w-ust.html
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Kiedy nowa władza była w opozycji, krytykowała PiS za inwigilację. Dziś służby chcą mieć dostęp do informacji, kto z kim rozmawia przez e-maile i szyfrowane komunikatory.

Rząd szykuje zmiany dla kierowców. Seniorom się upiekło, młodzi trafią pod lupę
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https://moto.pl/MotoPL/7,88389,30908934,wazne-zmiany-dla-kierowcow-seniorom-sie-upieklo-ale-mlodzi.html
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Rząd szykuje rozporządzenie dotyczące polskich kierowców. Wprowadzi ono wiele zmian, które dotyczą osób w każdym wieku. Czekają nas obowiązkowe i droższe badania psychologiczne oraz różne zakazy. Wszystko w imię bezpieczeństwa.

https://www.unz.com/mwhitney/trump-sold-out-his-base-to-shovel-95-billion-to-ukraine-and-israel/

Wild scenes from spring break gathering along Savannah beach
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https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13334391/Orange-Crush-Tybee-Island-Savannah-Georgia-party-spring-rbeak-video.html
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Video from this year’s Orange Crush event showed the moment a vicious fight broke out on the Savannah beach’s boardwalk. Other video revealed how much litter had been left on the shore.

Germany: Nearly Half of Young Muslims Want Islamic Theocracy
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https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2024/04/22/germany-nearly-half-of-young-muslims-want-islamic-theocracy-third-understand-violent-retribution-for-insulting-mohammed/
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A study on juvenile delinquency in Lower Saxony found that radical ideology is widely prevalent among the Muslim youth population in Germany.

WHO official testifies: Vaccine Passports were a scam to promote global vaccination agenda – Daily Telegraph NZ
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https://dailytelegraph.co.nz/world/who-official-testifies-vaccine-passports-were-a-scam-to-promote-global-vaccination-agenda/
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Dr. Nohynek said despite her warnings to both the WHO and her government against the vaccine passports, her concerns were disregarded.

New Boston Dynamics robot is pure nightmare fuel
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https://mashable.com/video/new-boston-dynamics-robot-electric-atlas
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With new robot debut, Boston Dynamics clearly welcomes your ‘Terminator’ jokes.

https://www.wsj.com/tech/u-s-china-internet-war-intensifies-as-house-passes-tiktok-ban-7d19ff05

Iran-Pakistan Gas pipeline powerplay
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https://english.almayadeen.net/articles/blog/iran-pakistan-gas-pipeline-powerplay
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The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project represents more than just an energy agreement—it symbolizes Pakistan’s autonomy, resilience, and determination to pursue its national interests despite external pressures.

Iran, Pakistan sign 8 MoUs, documents to push trade to $10bln
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https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iran–pakistan-sign-8-mous–documents-to-push-trade-to–10bl
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The Iranian President was received by the Pakistani Prime Minister on Monday, and the two discussed high-level issues.

US Senator assumes long-range ATACMS missiles might be sent to Ukraine by end of next week
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https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/04/21/7452282/
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Mark Warner, Chair of the US Senate Intelligence Committee, has assumed that the ATACMS long-range ballistic missiles might be sent to Ukraine shortly.

https://www.rt.com/russia/596430-ukraine-draft-consular-service/

Türkiye and Iraq sign an agreement on the Development Road Project.

????️ The project, which will connect the Persian Gulf to Europe via Türkiye, will be completed in 2028.

????️ It is expected to cost 17 billion dollars.

????️ Qatar and the UAE also signed memorandum of understanding on cooperation for the Development Road Project.

https://www.reuters.com/world/blinken-says-genocide-xinjiang-is-ongoing-report-ahead-china-visit-2024-04-22/#:~:text=WASHINGTON%2C%20April%2022%20(Reuters),visit%20to%20China%20this%20week

Was Pepe Escobar Duped By A Foreign Spy Agency Into Spreading Fake News About Russia & Israel?
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https://korybko.substack.com/p/was-pepe-escobar-duped-by-a-foreign
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There are reasons to suspect that Pepe’s Asian source might either be Iranian or under Iranian influence, with the goal behind his fake news – both his viral tweet and all that came before it – being to discredit Russia’s balancing faction in order to aid the pro-BRI one with a view towards influencing its foreign policy formulation.

The White House Has a New Trade Weapon Against China
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https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-04-18/the-us-s-new-trade-weapon-against-china-is-carbon
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Biden’s climate envoy just foreshadowed the end of the WTO as the US rewrites international rules to limit both carbon emissions and Chinese dominance of key industries.

https://www.rt.com/russia/596391-peskov-confiscation-russian-assets/