WorldReutersPutin: Russia will respond if NATO sets up infrastructure in Finland, Sweden
MOSCOW (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia would respond in kind if NATO deployed troops and infrastructure in Finland and Sweden after they join the U.S.-led military alliance. "But they must understand there was no threat before, while now, if military contingents and infrastructure are deployed there, we will have to respond in kind and create the same threats for the territories from which threats towards us are created."
U.S.INSIDERR. Kelly funneled millions of dollars from music royalties through a childhood friend right before his sex-trafficking conviction, prosecutors allege
R. Kelly sold some of his music rights for $5 million around the time of his trial, prosecutors alleged. Prosecutors argued the proceeds should be considered when the judge issues a fine. R. Kelly secretly has access to millions of dollars from the sale of some of his music royalties and funneled them through a childhood friend around the time of his sex-trafficking trial last year, prosecutors said in court Wednesday.
- PoliticsThe Week
Trump, Secret Service agent confirmed main elements of bombshell Jan. 6 fight over driving to Capitol
But the most jaw-dropping — and most contested — part of Hutchinson's testimony was probably about Trump being so "irate" he couldn't go to the Capitol with his armed supporters that he grabbed at the steering wheel of his presidential SUV and assaulted his lead Secret Service agent, Bobby Engel. Hutchinson testified that she heard about the incident right afterward from a visibly shaken Tony Ornato, Trump's former lead Secret Service agent who controversially became his White House deputy chief of staff for operations in 2020.
U.S.Associated Press1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found, family seeks arrest
A team searching a Mississippi courthouse basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping, and relatives of the victim want authorities to finally arrest her nearly 70 years later. A warrant for the arrest of Carolyn Bryant Donham — identified as “Mrs. Roy Bryant” on the document — was discovered last week by searchers inside a file folder that had been placed in a box, Leflore County Circuit Clerk Elmus Stockstill told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The search group included members of the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation and two Till relatives: cousin Deborah Watts, head of the foundation; and her daughter, Teri Watts.
U.S.Cincinnati.com | The EnquirerPolice warn of rise in car thefts of two particular car brands. Is yours one of them?
The Forest Park Police Department is warning residents of a local increase in car thefts of Kia and Hyundai brand vehicles, similar to instances reported in other cities across the country. The thefts are mainly of Kia cars newer than 2011 and Hyundai cars newer than 2015. Forest Park police say there were six reported thefts of these vehicle brands since June 21 from large apartment complexes at night.
U.S.AfroTechTeen Founder Who Became The First Black Valedictorian At His High School Finishes First Year At Stanford With A 4.05 GPA
The Oakland teen who went viral after launching a science education business for kids has officially closed out his first year at Stanford with a 4.05 GPA. Previously, Muhammad touched the world when he became the first Black valedictorian to graduate from the Oakland Technical High School. What's more, he credits his most recent success to the skills he learned throughout high school.
BusinessYahoo MoneyHousing: ‘We’re at a tipping point’ for home prices, economist says
Higher mortgage rates are finally carving out early signs of a cooling housing market. According to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller report, U.S. home values increased 20.4% in April, down from the prior month's revised climb of 20.6%. While April posted the largest jump in home price growth since the start of the data series, the pace slowed for the first time since November 2021.
- WorldWTTG
Police activity on North Capitol Street NW
DC Police are on the scene on North Capitol St NW.
U.S.Fox NewsCornell University removes Gettysburg Address, Lincoln bust from library after alleged complaint
A bust of President Abraham Lincoln and a plaque of the Gettysburg address have been removed from a Cornell University library. "Someone complained, and it was gone," Cornell biology professor Randy Wayne told the College Fix of the matter. The bust of Lincoln and the bronzed plaque of the former president's historic 1863 address had been in the Kroch Library, where the university's Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections is located, since 2013.
WorldReutersPutin still wants most of Ukraine, war outlook grim -U.S. intelligence chief
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Russian President Vladimir Putin still wants to seize most of Ukraine, but his forces are so degraded by combat that they likely can only achieve incremental gains in the near term, the top U.S. intelligence officer said Wednesday. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, outlining the current U.S. intelligence assessment of the more than four-month war, said that the consensus of U.S. spy agencies is that it will grind on "for an extended period of time." "In short, the picture remains pretty grim and Russia's attitude toward the West is hardening," Haines told a Commerce Department conference.
HealthINSIDERTravis Barker reportedly hospitalized with pancreatitis after a colonoscopy. Gastroenterologists say it's extremely rare.
Travis Barker's hospitalization is reportedly due to pancreatitis after a colonoscopy. Complications from colonoscopies are rare, and pancreatitis after one is almost unheard of. Travis Barker was hospitalized Tuesday morning, but early reports didn't indicate the cause of his admission.
BusinessBenzinga'They Have So Much Power Over The White House' - Elon Musk Explains About One Particular Group
In a recent interview, Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO, Elon Musk said about the UAW “They have so much power over the Whitehouse, they can exclude Tesla from an EV (Electric Vehicle) summit.” The referenced EV summit was held in August of 2021, where President Joe Biden discussed the promising future of Electric Vehicles. While President Biden has now referenced Tesla when discussing the future of EVs, that wasn't always the case.
WorldReutersAfrica's dream of feeding China hits hard reality
THIKA, Kenya (Reuters) - Watching workers poke avocados from the treetops in an orchard owned by Kenyan agriculture firm Kakuzi, managing director Chris Flowers revels in the thought some might soon go to the crown jewel of emerging consumer markets: China. Taking advantage of Beijing's deeper focus on trade with African countries to help reduce gaping deficits, Kenya struck an export deal with China for fresh avocados in January after years of lobbying for market access. Six months later, no shipments have left, Kenya's avocado society, the East African country's plant health inspectorate and Kakuzi told Reuters.
U.S.WSB Cox articlesGeorgia man tricks car salesman into getting out of luxury sportscar, steals it, police say
A Greenville man was arrested Monday police say he stole a sports car mid-test drive. Police said, Nickloas Jermaine Render Jr., 19, took a yellow 2015 Corvette on a test drive at ALM Newman Used Car dealership in Coweta County. The employee riding along with Render, Robert Edens, told police he was doing a routine test drive when Render told him he wanted to “feel what riding in the passenger seat was like.”
WorldUkrayinska PravdaThe media receive copies of intercepted conversations between the Russian pilots who launched missiles on Ukraine on 25 June
DENYS KARLOVSKYI – TUESDAY, 28 JUNE 2022, 18:01 Belarusian journalist Anton Motolko has published the intercepted conversations between Russian military pilots and dispatchers on 25 June, when missiles were launched from the airspace of Belarus. Source: Motolko Help Telegram channel Details: The Russian pilots are discussing how they are launching missiles from their planes on the territory of Ukraine. They are also coordinating the missile launches and their course within the airspace of Belarus, first in the direction of the Ukrainian border, and then back to their bases at airfields in Russia.
PoliticsAssociated PressThe story behind AP report that caused Trump to throw lunch
The news story that reportedly caused former President Donald Trump to throw his lunch against a White House wall came from an exclusive interview that former Attorney General William Barr had arranged with The Associated Press. The scoop, which was published on Dec. 1, 2020, quoted Barr as saying that the U.S. Justice Department had uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that could change the outcome of the 2020 election. It was a bombshell that contradicted the concerted effort by Trump, his boss, to subvert the results of the election.
U.S.MarketWatchCalifornia is sending ‘inflation relief’ checks up to $1,050 — here’s who qualifies
If you're a California taxpayer being hurt by inflation, you may be getting some financial relief. The state is sending 23 million residents “inflation relief” checks of up to $1,050 this fall to help ease the financial burden that the highest inflation in 40 years has placed on Americans. “California's budget addresses the state's most pressing needs,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a joint statement with state lawmakers on Sunday, “and prioritizes getting dollars back into the pockets of millions of Californians who are grappling with global inflation and rising prices of everything from gas to groceries.”
PoliticsBusiness InsiderMichael Flynn pleaded the Fifth when Liz Cheney asked him if he believed in the peaceful transfer of power. He once called it the 'envy of the world.'
Flynn declined to answer when asked under oath whether he believes in the peaceful transition of power. It's a stunning reversal for the former National Security Advisor, who sought to help Trump overturn the election. The January 6 committee revealed on Tuesday that Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, who served briefly as former President Donald Trump's national security advisor, declined to say whether he believes in the peaceful transfer of power.
ScienceReutersChinese spacecraft acquires images of entire planet of Mars
An uncrewed Chinese spacecraft has acquired imagery data covering all of Mars, including visuals of its south pole, after circling the planet more than 1,300 times since early last year, state media reported on Wednesday. Among the images taken from space were China's first photographs of the Martian south pole, where almost all of the planet's water resources are locked. In 2018, an orbiting probe operated by the European Space Agency had discovered water under the ice of the planet's south pole.
WorldNational ReviewMacron Overheard Breaking Some Bad News to Biden on G7 Sidelines
French president Emmanuel Macron was caught revealing some bad news to President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the G7 summit Monday. Macron told Biden the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, informed him that OPEC's top oil exporters were already at their production maximum. “I had a call with MbZ,” Macron told Biden, referring to Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, Reuters reported.
U.S.Shadow and Act'The View' Says 'How Stupid Is She?' For Sarah Huckabee Sanders' Abortion Comments, Calls It 'Dumbest Statement Of The Day'
Monday's episode of The View deemed Sarah Huckabee Sanders's abortion comments as "the dumbest statement of the day." As reported by Decider, She made remarks after the Supreme Court voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. During a conversation about the SCOTUS decision, Joy Behar read Sanders' comments aloud during the segment.
WorldReutersRussia warns West: Don't take your assets in our country for granted
Russia hinted on Wednesday that it had not dropped the idea of seizing Western-owned assets and businesses in the country, as a top official sharply criticised governments that have hit Moscow with sanctions. In a combative media briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova warned that Russia was prepared to "act accordingly" if the West decided to use Russia's frozen state assets - chief among them being around $300 billion of central bank foreign currency reserves. The use of the funds "will be interpreted by us as an unlawful and defiantly unfriendly attack, giving us the right to take retaliatory actions to protect our interests," she said on Wednesday.
U.S.TheStreet.comMajor Theme Park Coming to a Sad End
Popular Theme Park's Days are Numbered The rare occurrence of a theme park closing will soon happen again as Cedar Fair , which owns California's Great America in the heart of the Silicon Valley in Santa Clara, Calif. said on June 27 that it has sold the land beneath that theme park to San Francisco Bay Area developer Prologis for $310 million, according to a company statement. The sale includes a lease agreement that allows Cedar Fair to operate Great America for up to 11 years and then close the park operations at the end of the lease.
U.S.NextSharkChinese father breaks down after son he tutored daily for a year scores a 6/100 on math exam
A Chinese father who reportedly tutored his son daily for a year went viral for bursting into tears after his son scored six out of 100 points on a math exam. The child's parents from Zhengzhou, Henan Province, received his test score on June 23. Upon learning that their son had only received six points for his final math test, the father burst into tears, as seen in a video posted to Weibo by Qilu Evening News.
WorldAssociated PressHong Kong burnishes China ties as luster as global hub fades
Every few generations, Hong Kong transforms itself, evolving from a swampy fishing village to 19th century colonial port, to capitalist outpost and factory after China's 1949 revolution, to 21st century financial center. As the former British colony marks the 25th anniversary of its return to China, reeling from pandemic curbs that devastated business and a crackdown on its pro-democracy movement, Hong Kong leaders say it is time to transform again. Chief Executive-elect John Lee's government is under pressure to generate new sources of economic growth, looking beyond COVID outbreaks and anti-virus controls that have devastated tourism and business and uncertainty about the legal climate after a crackdown on the city's pro-democracy movement.
“Left unchecked, if artificial intelligence reaches cognition … it will be fueled by some of the most inhumane impulses of humanity.”
“Now is the time to stop and think — before our technology outstrips us once again.”
“I don't want to talk about sentient robots, because at all ends of the spectrum there are humans harming other humans.”
“Minds can take different forms … We should avoid reducing questions about AIs to ‘Can AIs think and feel like us?’”
“To identify sentience, or consciousness, or even intelligence, we’re going to have to work out what they are.”