The legal team representing high-powered insurers Lloyd’s and Arch says that since the Nord Stream explosions were “more likely than not to have been inflicted by… a government,” they have no responsibility to pay for damages to the pipelines. To succeed with that defense, the companies will presumably be compelled to prove, in court, who carried out those attacks. 

 

WYATT REED — GRAYZONE

 

British insurers are arguing that they have no obligation to honor their coverage of the Nord Stream pipelines, which were blown up in September 2022, because the unprecedented act of industrial sabotage was likely carried out by a national government.

Australia’s carbon offset scheme costs a lot and captures almost no carbon but provides a fig leaf for continuing emissions. Technology-based Carbon Dioxide Removal is still a distant dream. Distributed energy resources can be the Swiss Army knife of the electricity system.

 

Environment: Expert calls Australia’s carbon offset scheme a scam    By Peter Sainsbury

 

Australia’s carbon offset scheme exposed as a scam

The House of Representatives held a rare Saturday session to vote on $95 billion in proposed aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, with the vote, desperately sought after by the White House, Democrats and neocon Republicans since October, coming after months of efforts by pro-MAGA lawmakers to focus resources on the crisis at the US’ southern border.

The House approved nearly $100 billion in assistance to Washington’s overseas allies, partners and client states on Saturday, with supporters of the aid managing to overcome opposition after a six-month deadlock in the chamber.

The New York Times coverage of the Israeli carnage in Gaza, like that of other mainstream U.S. media, is a disgrace to journalism. 

This assertion should not surprise anyone. U.S. media is driven neither by facts nor morality, but by agendas, calculating and power hunger. 

 

Ramzy Baroud responds to revelations about The New York Times “guidance” on language about the Israeli mass slaughter in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.

 

The humanity of 120 thousand dead and wounded Palestinians because of the Israeli genocide in Gaza is simply not part of that agenda. 

In a dramatic break from his party’s hardline conservative base, US House Speaker MIke Johnson this week praised the country’s deep state, named Russia, China, and Iran as an “axis of evil,” and vowed to put his job on the line to funnel more than $60 billion to Kiev.

For months, Johnson has resisted bringing a $95 billion foreign aid bill to a vote, arguing that neither he nor his fellow Republicans could support such a bill – which would give $14 billion in military aid to Israel and $60 billion to Ukraine – without it being tied to an overhaul of US border security.

However, after a series of recent meetings with US intelligence chiefs, Johnson has changed his tune.

Two articles discussing how state terrorism is applied against environmental activists. The first article from Reporterre tells how state terrorism is used against environmentalists, as in any self-respecting dictatorship, sequestration and torture (beating). The second article is Contre Attaque analyzes the situation and its purpose: to terrorize.

In the basement of anti-terrorism, the hell of environmental activists

Reporterre

Brutal arrests, endless police custody. 17 people were arrested on April 8 as part of an action against Lafarge in 2023, with “disproportionate” anti-terrorism resources. They tell.

In the latest Reuters/Ipsos Core Political poll, Americans continue to report political extremism or threats to democracy as their top issue facing the country, followed by the economy and immigration.

 

When it comes to political extremism and threats to democracy, more Americans now say they prefer Biden’s approach to the issue over Trump’s. Americans are still divided, however, on whether Trump or Biden has a better plan for improving the economy. At the macro level, most Americans still say that, generally, things in the U.S. are headed off on the wrong track, and Biden’s approval rating is relatively unchanged, now reading at 40%, from the start of 2024.

I don’t want to appall the diplomats present by using a vulgarism, but Pillar two [of AUKUS] is fragrant methane-wrapped bullshit. Australia and New Zealand are beautifully placed to nurture and defend a different model of relationships between the prevailing power [the US] and the rising power [China]: A different approach from the one that says war is inevitable, says former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxfgMhFxkTw&t=2976s

 

https://johnmenadue.com/fragrant-methane-wrapped-bullshit-nz-should-steer-clear-of-aukus/

 

 

When she introduced the first NDIS legislation to the House of Representatives in 2012 Prime Minister Julia Gillard said it was to replace “A system that metes out support rationed by arbitrary budget allocations, not real human needs”. It was a radical break with other forms of welfare assistance because it put the human rights of people with disabilities first and foremost – not the budget. It was not subject to asset or income tests. It was effectively unique. It was intended to meet Australia’s obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.

 

NDIS and Aged Care; from rights first to budget firstBy Roger Beale

 

The Russians are coming — or coming back, better put. 

As the November elections draw near, let us brace for another barrage of preposterous propaganda to the effect Russians are poisoning our minds with “disinformation,” “false narratives,” and all the other misnomers deployed when facts contradict liberal authoritarian orthodoxies.

 

PATRICK LAWRENCE: Could the Russians Seize Congress?

 

Government media funding supports the failing mainstream media (MSM) and right-wing advocacy groups like the Institute of Public Affairs.

The News Media Bargaining Code gifts $1b over four years from Google and Facebook mainly to Nine Network, Seven West Media, Guardian, and News Corp. The last two are foreign owned.

 

Supporting independent public interest media     By John Menadue

 

US President Joe Biden told an interviewer that he’d warned the Israeli government against attacking itself, in what appears to be the aging leader’s latest gaffe, and one that has again raised concerns over his mental state.

Speaking with Nexstar Media’s Reshad Hudson in an interview published on Wednesday, the 81-year-old president detailed his plans to win back pro-Palestinian voters, despite his ongoing support for Israel in its conflict with Hamas.

Biden claimed that, aside from meeting with pro-Palestinian activists, he had also “made it clear to the Israelis: don’t move on Haifa,” a renowned port city in northern Israel. 

The president then appeared to lose his train of thought, before going on to speak about the weekend’s Iranian attack.

US-backed proposals to seize frozen Russian assets could undermine the international order, European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde has cautioned. Her comments came during a meeting in Washington on Wednesday, where the G7 finance ministers and central bank governors were discussing the issue of using the immobilized assets of the Russian central bank to support Ukraine.

In a joint statement, the finance ministers and regulators said they would continue working on “all possible avenues” to make use of Russian sovereign assets, according to Reuters. The push to seize Moscow’s money has been led by the US and has caused a rift among the G7 and the EU political elite.

Björn Höcke, the chair of the far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD) in the eastern state of Thuringia, stands accused of intentionally deploying a slogan used by the Nazi party's paramilitary wing in a speech at a campaign rally.

His trial begins on April 18 at the Halle Regional Court. It will deal with Höcke's election campaign appearance on December 12, 2023 in the Thuringian city of Gera. At the time, the Waldhaus restaurant there was packed with AfD supporters. 

Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson announced on Wednesday that he is sticking with his plan to send a series of foreign aid bills to the floor, including those for funding for Ukraine and Israel. Johnson said in a note to legislators that they'll vote on these on Saturday evening.

Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, has faced mounting pressure to act on President Joe Biden’s long-delayed request for billions of dollars in security assistance. It’s been more than two months since the Senate passed a $95-billion aid package, which includes $14 billion for Israel and $60 billion for Ukraine.