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Category: News

Amazon
September 26, 2023
News

Amazon Sued by FTC, 17 States for ‘Exploiting Its Monopoly Power’

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 17 state attorneys general have filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Amazon, alleging it uses its dominant position in the marketplace to inflate prices on other platforms, overcharge sellers, and stifle competition.

FTC chairwoman Lina Khan accuses Amazon, whose owner Jeff Bezos also controls The Washington Post, of using “punitive and coercive tactics to unlawfully maintain its monopolies.”

“Amazon is exploiting its monopoly power to enrich itself while raising prices and degrading services for its customers,” she added.

The FTC and participating states are seeking a permanent injunction from the court to stop Amazon’s alleged unlawful conduct and restore competition.

While there had been speculation about the possibility of a forced break-up of the retail giant, Khan did not directly address this in a briefing with reporters, emphasizing that the focus is primarily on liability at this stage.

This anti-trust lawsuit marks one of the most significant legal challenges brought against Amazon in its nearly three-decade history. The outcome of the case could have far-reaching implications for the company, which holds a dominant position not only in e-commerce but also in cloud computing, groceries, and health care.

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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 17 state attorneys general have filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Amazon, alleging it uses its dominant position in the marketplace to inflate prices on other platforms, overcharge sellers, and stifle competition. show more
September 26, 2023
Jack Montgomery
Health
News

Wuhan ‘Bat Lady’ Says Another Pandemic ‘Almost Certain’.

Wuhan Institute of Virology scientist Shi Zhengli has published a paper assessing 40 strains of coronavirus and estimating half of them are “highly risky” to humans, with nine known to have crossed from one species to another and six known to have already infected people.

“It is almost certain that there will be future disease emergence and it is highly likely a [coronavirus] disease again,” wrote the scientist, dubbed the ‘bat woman’ or ‘bat lady’ for her work on coronavirus strains in bats.

Bats were identified as one vector for a new coronavirus to jump to humans, along with rodents, pigs, pangolins, camels, and civets.

While it was initially suggested that bat soup or infected pangolin meat at a Wuhan wet market was the original source of the COVID-19 pandemic, the idea it actually leaked from the Wuhan lab, popularized by The National Pulse, is increasingly gaining traction after years of resistance.

Shi is not the first person to warn another pandemic may be around the corner, with the British government also having put the chances of a “catastrophic” disease outbreak over the next five years at one in four – causing some to fear the authorities are priming people to get ready for another round of lockdowns and state-backed vaccination drives.

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Wuhan Institute of Virology scientist Shi Zhengli has published a paper assessing 40 strains of coronavirus and estimating half of them are "highly risky" to humans, with nine known to have crossed from one species to another and six known to have already infected people. show more
iran biden
September 26, 2023
William Upton
NatSec
News

REPORT: Iranian Regime-Backed ‘Experts’ Worked for Obama/Biden, Got U.S. Govt Clearance.

Several individuals with ties to the Iran Experts Initiative (IEI) – a foreign influence operation controlled by the Iranian regime’s Foreign Ministry – managed to effectively infiltrate the United States government and even become aides to President Biden’s own special envoy on Iran, Robert Malley. The explosive revelations from Semafor come after Malley himself was placed on leave, having had his security clearance suspended pending an investigation.

The nearly unprecedented breach of national security, at least since the Cold War, was discovered after a trove of emails and documents belonging to Iranian regime officials were made public. Academics and other individuals with ties to the IEI regularly communicated with Iran’s Foreign Ministry. In one instance, a German academic even offered to ghost-write opinion editorials for the Iranian regime’s leaders.

The primary goal of the IEI members was to promote compromise between the West and Iran on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions. To push this aim, the Iranian Foreign Ministry recruited and helped position IEI members at top Western think tanks and eventually within Western governments.

At least two of the members of the IEI influence operation who worked for Robert Malley were able to penetrate the U.S. government’s fairly extensive and thorough background check system – especially for those who work in sensitive national security positions. One of the individuals, Ariane Tabatabai, was even able to work under Malley at the U.S. State Department, while Ali Vaez served as an unofficial advisor after failing to attain a security clearance. The third IEI member worked for Malley outside government at a think tank called the International Crisis Group.

Matt Miller, a spokesman for President Biden’s State Department, said Tabatabai was appointed “because of her expertise on nuclear and other foreign policy issues” and that Biden was “honored to have her serve.”

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Several individuals with ties to the Iran Experts Initiative (IEI) – a foreign influence operation controlled by the Iranian regime's Foreign Ministry – managed to effectively infiltrate the United States government and even become aides to President Biden's own special envoy on Iran, Robert Malley. The explosive revelations from Semafor come after Malley himself was placed on leave, having had his security clearance suspended pending an investigation. show more
September 26, 2023
Jake Welch
News
TECH
UK

Rumble Could Be Forced Out of the UK.

The free speech social media platform Rumble could be forced out of operations in the United Kingdom if it fails to comply with the country’s stringent new “online safety” laws.

Rumble, which hosts a number of commentators including Donald Trump Jr., Russell Brand, and even The National Pulse, will have to operate within the tight restrictions contained in the recently passed the so-called “Online Safety Bill” if it does not want to have its content either disrupted or blocked in the UK.

The bill allows the British government to censor any news or content considered violent or “harmful to health,” including questioning the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine. It also claims to monitor content that promotes “self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders.”

Failure to comply with the restrictions could even leave the social media platform’s executives open to arrest if they visit the UK. Notably, these laws were overseen, enacted, and widely supported by the UK’s “Conservative” Party.

“Their whole philosophy is freedom of expression…So when they get a letter from Ofcom saying, ‘Here are all the things you’re going to have to do’, it seems to me the most likely reaction is going to be they’re going to say, ‘Well, we won’t operate in the UK any more,’” states British peer Lord Allan of Hallam.

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The free speech social media platform Rumble could be forced out of operations in the United Kingdom if it fails to comply with the country's stringent new "online safety" laws. show more
zelensky
September 26, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics
World

Ukraine’s First Lady Unsure If Husband Zelensky Will Run For Re-Election.

Olena Zelenska, the wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, appeared unsure during an interview if her husband would run for re-election in 2024 as the country continues to fight a war with Russia. Zelenska also indicated that she hasn’t always been as supportive of her husbands political aspirations.

“Even when he ran for the first time, I didn’t fully endorse it,” Ukraine’s First Lady told Margaret Brennan on CBS’s ‘Face the Nation’. “But if he runs again, if he runs for the second time, if he decided it is necessary — well, we have some experience, we’ve been there.” Zelenska’s emphasis on ‘if’ seemed to suggest that her husband was still weighing weather to seek re-election as leader of the war-torn country. She added that if Ukrainians “…no longer wish him to be the president, he will probably not run.”

The First Lady of Ukraine also seemed to suggest the 2024 elections in the country might not occur at all.

Western leaders like Dutch head of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly, Tiny Knox, have encouraged Ukraine to move forward with their 2024 elections despite the country being under martial law. U.S. lawmakers like Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) have also pushed for Ukrainian elections next year.

Ukrainian officials have said they believe holding open elections in the midst of the ongoing war may be impossible. At least one security official said in an interview that they believed the push for elections by Western leaders was a Russian conspiracy, adding, “There is no situation in which it is possible to have a democratic election during the war.”

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Olena Zelenska, the wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, appeared unsure during an interview if her husband would run for re-election in 2024 as the country continues to fight a war with Russia. Zelenska also indicated that she hasn't always been as supportive of her husbands political aspirations. show more
September 26, 2023
Jake Welch
News
Politics

Hunter Biden Sues Rudy Giuliani for ‘Totally Annihilating’ Him.

Hunter Biden is suing Rudy Giuliani and the former New York Mayor’s attorney, alleging the pair violated his digital privacy and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by attempting to hack his personal devices.

Hunter’s legal team filed the civil lawsuit with a California District Court on Tuesday afternoon, accusing Giuliani and Robert Costello of “hacking into, tampering with, manipulating, copying, disseminating, and generally obsessing over data that they were given that was taken or stolen from” the son of the President’s devices.

The claim also argues the “[d]efendants are among those who have been primarily responsible for what has been described as the “total annihilation” of [the] Plaintiff’s digital privacy.” Hunter’s lawyers now demand a jury trial on the matter.

Giuliani and his team have long disputed the claim that they violated Hunter’s privacy on the grounds that the laptop was obtained only after he abandoned it, and could therefore be released to the public.

This is not the first instance of Hunter Biden filing a lawsuit over an alleged violation of his privacy after he sued the owner of a Delaware computer repair shop earlier this year.

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Hunter Biden is suing Rudy Giuliani and the former New York Mayor's attorney, alleging the pair violated his digital privacy and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by attempting to hack his personal devices. show more
September 25, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

Schiff Secured Funds for Defense Giants While They Funded His Campaigns.

Adam Schiff, a U.S. Senate hopeful and powerful Democrat member of the House of Representatives, directed millions in taxpayer dollars to major defense firms who backed his Congressional campaigns. The discovery of Schiff’s questionable use of earmarks came after the Congressman attacked his Senate primary opponent Katie Porter (D-CA) for opposing pork-barrel spending, while bragging he had secured critical funding for drug recovery and homeless programs through earmark spending.

Members of Congress often use earmarks to bring taxpayer dollars back to their district and fund local projects to improve communities. Some, however, abuse the process and end up using taxpayer dollars as a kick-back to companies who contribute to their election campaigns.

In 2010 the Republican majority in control the House of Representatives enacted sweeping reforms, including to the earmark process. Several earmarks requested by Schiff prior to 2010 would now be barred under the rules today.

Lobbying firm the PMA Group, for example, represented many of the defense firms Schiff secured funds for, while they contributed thousands to his Congressional campaigns. Owner Paul Magliocchetti was sentenced to 27 months in prison in 2011 for his role in one of the largest schemes to avoid campaign contribution limits in U.S. history.

Schiff was one of the central figures in the Russiagate hoax, and pushed for former President Trump’s removal from office.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) filed a motion to fine Schiff $16 million (half of the cost of the faux investigation launched by Democrats) and expel him from Congress. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) – a leading Ron DeSantis surrogate – opposed Rep. Luna’s move against Schiff, the expulsion motion ultimately failing.

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Adam Schiff, a U.S. Senate hopeful and powerful Democrat member of the House of Representatives, directed millions in taxpayer dollars to major defense firms who backed his Congressional campaigns. The discovery of Schiff's questionable use of earmarks came after the Congressman attacked his Senate primary opponent Katie Porter (D-CA) for opposing pork-barrel spending, while bragging he had secured critical funding for drug recovery and homeless programs through earmark spending. show more
September 25, 2023
William Upton
Immigration
News

11,000 Illegals Crossed U.S. Border In Last 24 Hours Alone.

The U.S. border was overrun by 11,000 illegal immigrants over the past 24 hours according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The surge in crossings over the last day is the highest in recent memory.

Late last Friday, the CBP announced that 7.6 million illegal immigrants have entered the country since President Biden took office in January of 2021. Nearly 20 million illegals now reside in the U.S., costing taxpayers $150.6 billion per year – a $35 billion increase from 2017’s $116 billion estimate.

The surge in border crossings continues, unabated, despite the Biden White House insisting the their immigration plan is working and stymieing the flow of illegal immigrants. Biden has declared the U.S. southern border is “safe, orderly, and humane.” Alejandro Mayorkas, Biden’s Secretary of Homeland Security, has repeatedly insisted “the border is secure” when confronted by Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has avoided questions about the record breaking number of illegal aliens cross the U.S. southern border.

The National Pulse has previously reported an estimated 100,000 illegal immigrants are released into the U.S. every month by Biden’s Department of Homeland Security. Andrew Arthur, a former U.S. immigration judge, believes the Biden government has withheld important data from the American people in an effort “to hide the fact that it is releasing more than 100,000 aliens per month.” Given the recent spike in illegal crossings, however, the number of illegals released may be much higher.

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The U.S. border was overrun by 11,000 illegal immigrants over the past 24 hours according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The surge in crossings over the last day is the highest in recent memory. show more
republicans covid
September 25, 2023
William Upton
Health
News

Republicans Have Moved on From COVID Politics, Even If DeSantis Hasn’t.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has centered much of his presidential campaign’s messaging on contrasting his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic with that of former President Donald Trump. DeSantis and his campaign surrogates have repeatedly tried to convince Republican voters that Trump was beholden to the 82-year old immunologist, Anthony Fauci. The pro-DeSantis SuperPAC, Never Back Down, dumped half-a-million into ads attacking Fauci – and in conjunction Trump – in the early days of the primary campaign.

But COVID-19 has almost entirely faded from the electorates conscious, according to data in an ABC survey which found a majority of primary voters saw inflation as the top concern in 2024. Immigration came in a modest second place with 35 percent saying it was the most important election issue. The response of lawmakers to the pandemic didn’t even register as statistically significant, i.e. not even one percent.

Nearly a year ago, when FiveThirtyEight asked Republican voters what issue was most important to them, 50 percent said inflation. COVID-19 and its response, even then, didn’t register. The pandemic has so faded from the American political mind that a July Siena/NYT survey didn’t even bother asking voters about it anymore.

Despite the lack of interest amongst Republicans in re-litigating the pandemic, the DeSantis campaign is showing no signs of changing course. Even if they did, it may be too-little-too-late. The Florida Governor slipped to fifth place in a recent New Hampshire poll. In Iowa, a state DeSantis admits his campaign’s future hinges on winning, the Trump campaign recently announced it had secured twice the number of signed Iowa caucus pledge cards as the DeSantis campaign. In FiveThirtyEight’s running poll average, Trump leads DeSantis nationally by over 40 points.

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has centered much of his presidential campaign's messaging on contrasting his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic with that of former President Donald Trump. DeSantis and his campaign surrogates have repeatedly tried to convince Republican voters that Trump was beholden to the 82-year old immunologist, Anthony Fauci. The pro-DeSantis SuperPAC, Never Back Down, dumped half-a-million into ads attacking Fauci – and in conjunction Trump – in the early days of the primary campaign. show more
September 25, 2023
Jake Welch
Culture
News

Washington National Cathedral Replaces Robert E Lee With Racial Justice Stained-Glass.

Washington National Cathedral unveiled its new racial-justice-themed stained glass windows over the weekend to replace the previous depictions honoring Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, which were removed in 2017.

The Cathedral argues the new windows, entitled “Now and Forever,” depict protestors holding placards that read “no foul play” and “fairness” and were introduced to signify a “new chapter” in the monument’s artistic and architectural legacy.

The previous stained glass windows of generals Lee and Jackson were described by the Cathedral as “offensive” and “a barrier to the ministry of this cathedral,” according to the Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, explained during Saturday’s unveiling.

“[T]oday is an opportunity to recommit ourselves, and to recommit this Cathedral, to join that march toward fairness for all Americans, but especially for African Americans,” Rev. Hollerith continued.

“There is a lot of work yet to be done to confront systemic racism, to foster racial reconciliation and to be repairers of the breach, both in the past, the present and in our future,” he added.

The “artist” responsible for the windows, Kerry James Marshall, unveiled his work in a similarly racially-charged speech by comparing the Biblical fall of humanity with the creation of America and stated the event highlighted “one instance where a change of symbolism is meant to repair a breach of America’s creation promise of liberty and justice for all.”

Those funding and supporting the project included the Ford Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and Steven Spielberg’s Heartland Foundation.

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Washington National Cathedral unveiled its new racial-justice-themed stained glass windows over the weekend to replace the previous depictions honoring Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, which were removed in 2017. show more