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** Deere has clarified that they have had manufacturing in Mexico since 1952 and only 4% of its products are "Made in Mexico" - 75% of all sales in the US are made in the US.
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Overnight massive air raid destroyed over 150 Hezbollah rocket launchers and weapons depots with over 1,000 rockets in Southern Lebanon - usually, occasional raid destroys, at most, a few dozen rockets.

This, and recent destruction of Iranian missile factory in Syria, should significantly impact on ability of Hezbollah to strike Israel in next few months, thus "cooling off" potential hostilities.

In the West Bank, the vehicle loaded with weapons and explosives and carrying 3 terrorists, was subject of air strike, killing all three, including group leader Shadi Sami Zakarneh, responsible for masterminding and carrying out a number of attacks in northern Israel.
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... that it's healthy to hold on to a decades old grudge?

No, decades of grudges are un-healthy... but for Israel it's not about "grudges," it's been about survival since Day 1.

Because, as the founding leaders of Hamas declared in 1988 - and put in Hamas Covenant (charter) - it's about unabated religious Jihad / "Holy Struggle" for one side only - "Article 8: Jihad is its path, and death for the sake of Allah is the loftiest of its wishes.":

|-------
Hamas has called on all Jews and Christians to accept Islamic rule in the Middle East. "It is the duty of the followers of other religions to stop disputing the sovereignty of Islam in this region..."

Hamas also rejected any prospect of peace or coexistence with the state of Israel. "Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time..."

Since its creation in December 1987, Hamas has invoked militant Islam to spearhead a Sunni movement committed to destroying Israel.

The Hamas Covenant was largely crafted by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, a quadriplegic and partially blind cleric who was the founder and spiritual leader of the militant militia in Gaza.

From the Hamas Covenant (1988, 2017):

"Palestine is the land of the Arab Palestinian people, from it they originate, to it they adhere and belong... Palestine is a land whose status has been elevated by Islam, a faith that holds it in high esteem, that breathes through it its spirit and just values and that lays the foundation for the doctrine of defending and protecting it. ...

Palestine, which extends from the River Jordan in the east to the Mediterranean in the west and from Ras Al-Naqurah in the north to Umm Al-Rashrash in the south, is an integral territorial unit. ..."

Khaled Mashal, a leader in exile, reflected the traditional Hamas hardline position in 2012: "The state will come from resistance, not negotiation. Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north. We will never recognize the legitimacy of the Israeli occupation, and therefore there is no legitimacy for Israel..."

{Recently "departed"} Ismail Haniyeh on Oct. 7, 2023 after Hamas attack on Israel: "We want to liberate our land, our holy sites, our Al-Aqsa mosque ... Al-Qassam Brigades made the enemy lose its balance ... with this grand and blessed incursion; with this epic presence of men who write history with their blood and their guns ... And we say to all countries, including our beloved Arab countries: you must know that this entity [Israel] ... is incapable of providing you with security or protection. All the normalization and recognition processes, all the agreements that have been signed [with Israel] can never put an end to this battle."

Hamas rejected 1993 Oslo Accords and deployed suicide bombers against Israeli civilian and military targets. In 2004, Israel assassinated Yassin in a missile strike. The Second Intifada ended in 2005, and Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza.

Islamic Republic of Iran has armed, trained and funded Hamas since the late 1980s, due to its stated ideology and common goal of destroying Israel. ...
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www.americanprogress.org
equitablegrowth.org
www.ietp.org
jacobin.com

Same good old progressive orgs extolling the virtue of high taxes as panacea to "inequality" and deficits.

"Ultimately, ITEP's corporate tax work helped secure critical provisions in the Tax Reform Act of 1986 that closed corporate tax loopholes and raised the corporate tax rate to ensure companies were paying their fair share."

Their own chart disproves their "conclusions."

"The deficit also grew after Trump cut taxes..."

And "the deficit also grew after Obama increased tax rates..." - that's exactky one of those "non-causational non-correlations" that I pointed to in the article - it's all about spending and Congress + Presidents (Dems + Reps) wanting to "invest record amounts for infrastructure, manufacturing, moonshots... whatever" and spending beyond budgetary means - as I've already proved in my post that the level of marginal taxes doesn't much affect the percentage of revenue to GDP the government collects, even in the 60s - tax rates do affect the economic growth and inflation - Econ-101.

Basically, same "non-partisan" left-wing orgs, presenting exactly same anecdotes that have nothing to do with actual supply-side economics and everything to do with spending ("deficits") and "Kansas" - which was exercise not in "supply-side" but in political idiocy, because in already high-spending low-tax state bill was uniquely designed to fail and had no chance to "stimulate" the economy, as he was warned by supply-side economists at the time (it actually violated the lower band of "Laffer curve") - that was actually Bartlett's problem with Laffer - promise of "unconditional magic pill" - it stopped at ~20%.

For every mention of "Kansas" I can show you a broke high-tax high-spending high-unemployment high-poverty state - e.g.. look at California's boom-bust surplus-and-deficits economy that depends on high earners - should they increase tax rates after turning $100B in surplus into $65B deficit in a year, even absent down business cycle ?

"Along with fellow neo-Keynesian economist James Meade in 1977, Tobin proposed nominal GDP targeting as a monetary policy rule in 1980."

Paul Spahn debunked it in 1995: "Analysis has shown that the Tobin tax ... is not viable and should be laid aside for good. ... If the tax is generally applied... it will severely impair financial operations and create international liquidity problems..."

Yes, we and many other countries have just experienced high inflation and deficits of that "monetary policy rule" and Keynesian quick-fix policies - BTW, that included Trump.

"Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon" - Milton Friedman.

Many countries now have benefited from sound supply-side policies, several in South America are just starting to get on the right track after years of Keynesian government-run economies.

Please, stop recycling the same bias-confirming debunked anecdotes about "supply-side never worked" from progressive orgs that don't stand basic economic scrutiny and opinion pieces about "fair share, living wage / [always] higher minimum wages, [always] higher taxes on the rich" (which by the way, "trickle down" to lower quintiles and only exacerbate inequality, not panacea to deficits or business cycles), and read some Econ-101 facts about long-term policies that have been successfully adopted after disasters of all different Keynesianisms - you can start with the links I provided.

I wasted enough time on this, explaining - again - what should be obvious from the facts. People just want to keep getting high on their own juice.
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Looking at the state of the race today, it's going to be close again, peeps:

Was always going to be - the early "celebration dance" high is over, it's just yet another "anti-vote / vote against" the last candidate who will piss enough "undecided" off just before the vote:

She did not get a real post-convention bump in the polls, neither did Trump. "Kamala-mentum" is gone. Considering who she is running against, this should have been an EC blowout already.

Both have negative "favorable - unfavorable" opinion spread.

Economic conditions are deteriorating - that's the reason the Fed is going to cut Fed rate, despite core and headline inflation still above target, though August and September comparisons against 2023 s/b easy, so official headline annual rate should come down faster, as October data will be after elections. And oil and gas are low, so it should help official inflation readings.

Stock market's "AI bubble" is starting to deflate, in fits and starts, as usual - despite expected rate cut - and "zombie" companies' stocks that went up in the "everything bubble" of 2020-2021 have been sinking fast, so this may affect "consumer sentiment" about economy, but full-on crash is unlikely before elections. "Buffett indicator" is much higher than it was in 2007 (GFC) and even in 1999 (Y2K and "internet bubble).

Consumer spending has been growing much faster than income growth and debt is very high (not even counting "shadow debt" and BNPL), savings rate is low, after being flush from all the COVID "stimulus" packages and states' unemployment checks.

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Looking at the state of the race today, it's going to be close again, peeps:

Was always going to be - the early "celebration dance" high is over, it's just yet another "anti-vote / vote against" the last candidate who will piss enough "undecided" off just before the vote:

She did not get a real post-convention bump in the polls, neither did Trump. "Kamala-mentum" is gone. Considering who she is running against, this should have been an EC blowout already.

Both have negative "favorable - unfavorable" opinion spread.

Economic conditions are deteriorating - that's the reason the Fed is going to cut Fed rate, despite core and headline inflation still above target, though August and September comparisons against 2023 s/b easy, so official headline annual rate should come down faster, as October data will be after elections. And oil and gas are low, so it should help official inflation readings.

Stock market's "AI bubble" is starting to deflate, in fits and starts, as usual - despite expected rate cut - and "zombie" companies' stocks that went up in the "everything bubble" of 2020-2021 have been sinking fast, so this may affect "consumer sentiment" about economy, but full-on crash is unlikely before elections. "Buffett indicator" is much higher than it was in 2007 (GFC) and even in 1999 (Y2K and "internet bubble).

Consumer spending has been growing much faster than income growth and debt is very high (not even counting "shadow debt" and BNPL), savings rate is low, after being flush from all the COVID "stimulus" packages and states' unemployment checks.

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The real problems are neither the banks (it could have happened at any bank that allows "overdraft," either standalone or linked to a credit account like bank-issued credit card, CMA or HELOC - Chase was likely chosen by TikTok influencers because they have a large national network of ATMs) nor paper checks - they still have their uses, especially for many B2B and B2C companies (see "Catch Me If You Can" about Frank Abagnale and what he could've done much easier today with the account's routing and account number), or many people who can't or don't want to have their bank or P2P app on their phones or computers, it's:

1. Basic human greed - "I can get 'free' money AND screw the bank AND no one will be the wiser? Where is that nearest Chase ATM at?"

2. Basic human stupidity - the financial illiterates who seeking financial "advice" or a get-richer-quick scheme from TikTok or other "non-financial" sources - so, it's "the influencers leading the [financially] blind, and the [financially] blind willingly following the influencers."

|------ The technique involved depositing a check for a large amount of money the user didn't actually have and withdrawing a smaller but substantial amount before anything officially cleared. In reality, the "glitch" was better known as fraud. And now, JP Morgan Chase has confirmed the bank is reporting the people who committed the crimes to authorities.

Some videos on TikTok even showed people throwing money they'd ostensibly gotten through this method into the air in celebration. ... One video features a woman on the phone explaining to her mother that they're letting people get between $40,000 and $50,000 for nothing with this infinite money "glitch." The mother is rightly skeptical and says she doesn't want her bank account closed, while her daughter insists her account won't be closed since it's just a glitch.

Chase said they've frozen some accounts who tried it... And the bank is giving "surveillance footage and other information related to individuals" to police.
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Stupidity has (or should have) consequences.
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#10 | Posted by SpeakSoftly at 2024-09-05 05:07 PM
#9 | Posted by oneironaut : If Biden was really interested in bringing back Manufacturing, seems like this deal would be approved.

- - - You obviously didn't read the IRA bill or else you'd have no doubts about that.

First, it's a non sequitur, he was specifically referring to blocking the Nippon Steel's very generous bailout of US Steel, which lost money in 13 of the last 15 years, has a lot of debt so it's not capable to recapitalize, modernize and be competitive on its own with much larger and stronger companies, in the US or elsewhere. This kind of opportunity to help US manufacturer and save "good-paying" jobs doesn't come often, and not only doesn't even cost anything but brings capital to the US, so rejecting it says more about Biden (and Trump) caring more about union bosses (who are against buyout) than actual domestic manufacturing, jobs, or attracting FDI in the US. IRA has absolutely nothing to do with this case.

Second, spending $Billions of "other people's money" on what some may describe as "manufacturing" - as part of so-called "industrial policy" - doesn't, in and of itself, bring in or stimulate actual manufacturing. Lack of factories was not the reason for supposed lack of manufacturing in the US.

Even Paul Krugman of NYT acknowledged that IRA didn't fund actual manufacturing - it would require much more "additional" funding - IOW, building large empty structures/"factories" we didn't need with the money we don't have (and would have to borrow, thus increasing deficits and debt) with no obvious payout, doesn't address the costs and needs of the US manufacturing; i.e., it's simply a continuation of same inflationary "demand-side" economy that we've just experienced. That's why "industrial policy" spectacularly failed in the countries that tried it - most notably, Japan in the '80s and '90s, China's failing "Silk Road" and "ghost cities" since Xi Jinping came to power, Soviet Union's "5-year plans" etc. etc.

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EVs are not gaining the traction that many auto manufactorers had hoped for.

Make that : EVs are not gaining the traction that many politicians / governments demanded to be built (fleet fuel economy avg), mandated to be bought (Zero-emission / "Green Fleet" by 203x) and subsidized to be sold.
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Biden to Block Nippon Steel's Proposed Takeover of US Steel

Too bad, I was looking forward to getting me some US-made Hattori Hanzo 'steel' katana (jk).

This is just more of same reflexive "populist" protectionist thinking, and a play for union bosses and votes - Trump, of course, is also against the friendly merger.

The offer of $14B is way higher than the company is currently worth (~$6B, excluding debt) and could easily be worth less in its current sorry shape in a very competitive environment, because they don't have the capital to modernize and automate the plants.

For comparison, Indian company ArcelorMittal, registered and headquartered in Luxembourg, is worth only $17B with revenues 4x of US Steel.
Korean POSCO is worth only $19B with revenues of 3.5x of US Steel.

6 Chinese companies are in top 10; 3 of them in top 5, at #1, #3, #5 with combined production of 209 tonnes. Nippon Steel is at #4 with 44 tonnes, US Steel at #24 2ith 16 tonnes.

Two large (S&P500) US steel companies, Nucor and Steel Dynamics combined have 3x revenues of US Steel, and there is a number of slightly smaller and specialized US steel companies.

How are them steel and aluminum tariffs working?

|------- May 14, 2024: "President Biden Takes Action to Protect American Workers and Businesses
To encourage China to eliminate its unfair trade practices regarding technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation, the President is directing increases in tariffs across strategic sectors such as steel and aluminum, semiconductors, electric vehicles, batteries, critical minerals, solar cells, ship-to-shore cranes, and medical products.

Steel and Aluminum
The tariff rate on certain steel and aluminum products under Section 301 will increase from 0 - 7.5% to 25% in 2024. ...
-------|

At one point, very long time ago, US Steel was one of the most valued companies / stocks in the US, and was broadly owned by almost everyone who owned stocks and/or as part of pension funds. Today, it's not even in Russell 3000 index of companies (representing approximately 95% of US equity market).

If ever there have been any "wealthy owners" holding on to the stock (NYSE:X), they are much less "wealthy" today. **

Altogether, today US steel companies are producing more than double of total raw and processed material than 30 years ago, with smaller labor force, due to automation.

This is not some "national security crisis" both Trump and Biden/Harris are trying to portray. It's not even "outsourcing" - the plants stay here and would be revitalized. US Steel Corporation is a "legacy" company, not vital for US security or "steel independence," and Nippon Steel ownership would only strengthen financial and production viability of the company and therefore increase its relevance as a reliable supplier and partner to US security needs / MIC.

Nippon Steel also promised not to move the plants or lay off USS workers or cut benefits / pensions, as a direct result of acquisition - things that will certainly happen if it's blocked. Just look at the 'wonderful' results seen already amid ongoing closures and employment losses in two "American" industries in the aftermath of Shawn Fine's ("Detroit") and "Hollywood" strikes less than a year ago.

** "Hyman Roth" (Meyer Lansky): "Michael, we are bigger than US Steel!"
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Biden to Block Nippon Steel's Proposed Takeover of US Steel

Too bad, I was looking forward to getting me some US-made Hattori Hanzo 'steel' katana (jk).

This is just more of same reflexive "populist" protectionist thinking, and a play for union bosses and votes - Trump, of course, is also against the friendly merger.

The offer of $14B is way higher than the company is currently worth (~$6B, excluding debt) and could easily be worth less in its current sorry shape in a very competitive environment, because they don't have the capital to modernize and automate the plants.

For comparison, Indian company ArcelorMittal, registered and headquartered in Luxembourg, is worth only $17B with revenues 4x of US Steel.
Korean POSCO is worth only $19B with revenues of 3.5x of US Steel.

6 Chinese companies are in top 10; 3 of them in top 5, at #1, #3, #5 with combined production of 209 tonnes. Nippon Steel is at #4 with 44 tonnes, US Steel at #24 2ith 16 tonnes.

Two large (S&P500) US steel companies, Nucor and Steel Dynamics combined have 3x revenues of US Steel, and there is a number of slightly smaller and specialized US steel companies.

How are them steel and aluminum tariffs working?

|------- May 14, 2024: "President Biden Takes Action to Protect American Workers and Businesses
To encourage China to eliminate its unfair trade practices regarding technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation, the President is directing increases in tariffs across strategic sectors such as steel and aluminum, semiconductors, electric vehicles, batteries, critical minerals, solar cells, ship-to-shore cranes, and medical products.

Steel and Aluminum
The tariff rate on certain steel and aluminum products under Section 301 will increase from 0 " 7.5% to 25% in 2024. ...
-------|

At one point, very long time ago, US Steel was one of the most valued companies / stocks in the US, and was broadly owned by almost everyone who owned stocks and/or as part of pension funds. Today, it's not even in Russell 3000 index of companies (representing approximately 95% of US equity market).

If ever there have been any "wealthy owners" holding on to the stock (NYSE:X), they are much less "wealthy" today. **

Altogether, today US steel companies are producing more than double of total raw and processed material than 30 years ago, with smaller labor force, due to automation.

This is not some "national security crisis" both Trump and Biden/Harris are trying to portray. It's not even "outsourcing" - the plants stay here and would be revitalized. US Steel Corporation is a "legacy" company, not vital for US security or "steel independence," and Nippon Steel ownership would only strengthen financial and production viability of the company and therefore increase its relevance as a reliable supplier and partner to US security needs / MIC.

Nippon Steel also promised not to move the plants or lay off USS workers or cut benefits / pensions, as a direct result of acquisition - things that will certainly happen if it's blocked. Just look at the 'wonderful' results seen already amid ongoing closures and employment losses in two "American" industries in the aftermath of Shawn Fine's ("Detroit") and "Hollywood" strikes less than a year ago.

** "Hyman Roth" (Meyer Lansky): "Michael, we are bigger than US Steel!"
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#16: "Between the sea and the Jordan there will only be Israeli sovereignty." Likud 1977 Party Manifesto.

A bit of historical context - in 1977 this phrase referred to "One state, one people," (a One-State-Solution. which was "in critical condition" after start of First Intifada in 1987, and finally died when Arafat started Second Intifada) and before the occupation and annexation of "West Bank of Jordan" by Kingdom of Jordan ended in 1988 with surrendering claims on what became again "Palestinian territory," and the formal end of war and transfer of security arrangement from Jordan to Israel in 1994 (after Oslo accords) - well before the West's and UN's wet dream of "Two-state Solution (2SS)"

Not the first or last time Israelis freed Palestinians from occupation by Arab countries, but can't free them from their leaders and ingrained hate.

That's exactly opposite than "From the River to the Sea Palestine will be free [of Jews]" which was stated goal of PLO, adapted and codified in Hamas Charter, after taking over "self-government" of Gaza and throwing PA/Fatah families from the roofs of the buildings (even more impressive than Russian defenestrations!)

If the Jews in yarmulkes and masks (to hide their faces) will march shouting "From the River to the Sea no Arabs we can see" and occupy, vandalize institutions, campuses, statues, burn the US and Palestinian flags, then some sort of "equivalence" between the meaning of 1977 Israeli "state sovereignty" and 'Palestinian' terrorist groups' call for genocide of the Jews "from the River to the Sea."

Palestinians could've long had peace and state(s) if only they could free themselves from their "leaders" who treat them as "sacrifices" and "useful idiots," and care only about personal power and wealth, e.g.,:

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#72 | Posted by Sycophant at 2024-08-30 11:17 AM
Texan here. We already have food lines here every weekend at the free food bank. Welcome to a state with a poor safety net, sky high rental rates, sky high energy costs, dismal education, dismal healthcare, and low paying jobs. We've had these lines for years and years.

Take a drive along Pacific Coast through California, Oregon, Washington, "rich" states with supposedly "rich safety nets."

You will see long lines every day at the free food banks and other charities, druggies and homeless tents/encampments everywhere, "sky high rental rates, sky high energy costs, dismal education, dismal healthcare, and [high and] low paying jobs [and some of the highest unemployment and under-employment in the nation]." And they've had these [issues] for years and years, and they are not getting better.

We only see what we want to see where we want to see it - something about "confirmation bias" and particular form of "color blindness" when it comes to perception of "red" and "blue" colors.
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Kroger Egg Pricing Turns Merger Trial Into Inflation Fight

I don't think this merger should be approved, but for reasons very different than mythical "gouging" of their customers.

If all FTC lawyers have is that on a given day/week at a given location/region on a given food item (eggs) the prices haven't been lowered "enough," when Walmart lowered it by $0.14 [more], then they are only making Kroger's case for merger and should be laughed out of court... so I hope FTC will bring real, much better and less "populist, sensational" arguments. What about days/weeks when Kroger had average egg prices lower than this or other grocers in the area?

Kroger has more than 2,400 grocery stores which typically carry over 45,000 SKUs, over 40 manufacturing plants, and 17 regional retail divisions, with buyers guided by Kroger's Merchandising Group (KMG) in Cincinnati about regional demographics and preferences, to ensure that those products are always available in local stores.

Inflation always causes "record profits" in $ terms, not the other way around - don't need MBA to understand why:

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#12 | Posted by oneironaut at 2024-08-25 06:40 PM
BREAKING - Telegram announced that Apple will remove the Telegram app from their phones without their joint notice. Telegram announced that to prevent this, apply to mentioned settings.

Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov: "Moscow is ready and wants to support Pavel Durov in every way, but finds it complicated"
"Considering his Russian citizenship, we are ready to provide all necessary assistance and support, but the situation is complicated by the fact that he is also a citizen of France."

Soon after Durov's arrest Russian officials were ordered to delete their correspondence in their Telegram accounts. "No one is calling on anyone to clean anything," said Dmitry Peskov.

President of France Emmanuel Macron has been actively using Telegram since the beginning of his first presidential campaign. Members of the French government and politicians "of all ranks and parties," especially among Macron's supporters use the messenger service as well.

An unnamed French Justice Ministry official familiar with the background of the Durov case said that Telegram caused disappointment within the French authorities due to their unwillingness to cooperate "in dirty cases."
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#20 | Posted by sitzkrieg at 2024-08-27 02:03 PM
He fled Russia and purposefully selected to land in a country where he knew he'd be immediately arrested on landing.

Yep, he has a dual citizenship, Russian and French.

Spy games are afoot. Speculation is he gave the encryption keys for Telegram to NATO because he'd have been thrown out of a window in Russia.

"Defenestration! The only way to fly!"
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Wouldn't put too much importance on this.

Deripaska, and few others - called for "end to war" (as much and as far it was possible in Putin's Russia) from the very beginning of SMO.

Russian Oligarch Deripaska Calls For End Of War Against Ukraine - March 02, 2022 (less than 10 days after 'Putin's War' started)

|------- Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, known for his close ties with President Vladimir Putin, has called for an end to the war in Ukraine.
"Peace is very important! It is insane to prolong [peace] negotiations!" he wrote in a post on Telegram.

Deripaska warned of potential accidents at any of Ukraine's nuclear power plants, which might endanger Russia, Ukraine, and Europe.

"For those who do not understand - any incident involving those objects will be remembered by our successors in Russia, Ukraine, and Europe for some 200 years to come."

Deripaska is just one of several Russian oligarchs - who have been targeted by Western sanctions - to call on the authorities to stop the military attack against Ukraine. Mikhail Fridman, Pyotr Aven, Oleg Tinkov, and Aleksei Mordashov have already publicly called for a cessation of hostilities.
-------|

Two Russian oligarchs call for an end to Putin's war - March 1, 2022

|------- Russian billionaires Mikhail Fridman and Oleg Deripaska have broken ranks with the Kremlin and called for an end to Russia's war in Ukraine.

Fridman was born in western Ukraine. "My parents are Ukrainian citizens and live in Lviv, my favorite city. But I have also spent much of my life as a citizen of Russia, building and growing businesses. I am deeply attached to Ukrainian and Russian peoples and see the current conflict as a tragedy for them both," wrote Fridman.

Fridman has a net worth of $11.4 billion and is a Chairman of Alfa Group (with subsidiary Alfa Bank) a private conglomerate operating primarily in Russia and former Soviet states that spans banking, insurance, retail and mineral water production.
-------|

Deripaska also called SMO a "colossal mistake" few months later, and is a known critic of war.

Of course, it's not mutually exclusive for all of them to want the end of sanctions as well, even if "Putin's War" may actually help their businesses in the short term.

It's been understood long ago that the system of oligarchs serves Putin and his goals, not the other way around. He put not too fine a point on it when in 2003 he had then-richest oligarch in Russia - Mikhail Khodorkovsky of oil/gas company Yukos (which at one point paid about 5% of all taxes collected in Russia) - arrested for fraud and sentenced to 9 years, later extended his sentence to 2014, only to pardon him in 2013. Yukos was immediately declared bankrupt and sold in 2004 auction (which lasted 2 minutes) to an unknown company which was registered only two weeks before and had less than $300 in assets, but was loaned $9B by state-owned Rosneft, to outbid state-owned Gazprom which somehow "lost" its financing a few days before the auction. Rosneft later formally "acquired" the assets of new Yukos "owner" for debt. Oligarch Igor Sechin (aka "Darth Vader"), one of the top siloviki and until recently (before his son died in February 2024 of "blood clot" under "bizarre" circumstances) heir-apparent to Putin, is the CEO of Rosneft.
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Gaza's Doctors Face a New Battle: The War on Polio

AP: August 25, 2024 - Trucks deliver thousands of vials of polio vaccine into the Gaza Strip.

|------- The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) issued a statement that 25,100 vials of polio vaccine, delivered into the Gaza Strip via the Kerem Shalom Crossing on Sunday, are sufficient to vaccinate 1,255,000 people.

COGAT further noted that five trucks containing special refrigeration equipment for the transfer and depository of vaccines crossed into Gaza on Friday. WHO and UNICEF say their vaccination campaign will be carried out in every municipality in Gaza, with help from 2,700 workers.

According to COGAT, 282,126 vials of polio vaccine had been transferred to Gaza since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, and that nearly 90 percent of Gaza population have been vaccinated against polio.
-------|

Achtung! Achtung! (Ger.: Warning!): this comes from official international sources, so it must be "pro-Israel propaganda."
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