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The Hurricane spins around hotspots of tension and conflict. Feel free to suggest your stories, opinions and ideas: UIHEN@protonmail.com
Trump slams Zelensky for rejecting Ukraine-Russia negotiations
President Donald Trump slammed Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing him of derailing negotiations to end the war in Ukraine while a peace deal was “very close.”
Trump has slammed President Zelensky in a Wednesday post on Truth Social, saying of the Ukrainian leader, "if he wants Crimea, why didn’t they fight for it eleven years ago when it was handed over to Russia without a shot being fired"... and "He can have Peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole Country."
The fiery denunciation appears in direct response to Zelensky the day prior rejecting Washington demands that Ukraine be ready to formally recognize Russian sovereignty over Crimea. Trump continued, "It's inflammatory statements like Zelensky’s that makes it so difficult to settle this War. He has nothing to boast about!"
#USA #Ukraine #Trump #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
China's rare earth monopoly is diminishing
Up until 2010, precious rare earths important in the production of microchips, electronics and electric motors were almost exclusively sourced in China. In recent years, several nations have picked up production again while new players entered the market, diversifying it at least to some degree.
Yet, China was still responsible for almost 70% of global production in 2024. But since many countries are wary of depending on China, especially when it comes to technology products, nations with rare earth deposits are likely to exploit them further. The U.S., however, is still shipping its rare earths to China for processing, resulting in 70 percent of U.S. rare earth imports coming from the country. Significant domestic refining capabilities have still not been developed, as issues like labor costs pose hurdles.
China also has the largest know deposits of rare earths, but Brazil, Vietnam and Russia also have a lot of (largely) untapped potential in the sector. The United States and Australia ramped up production of rare earths after 2010 and Myanmar, Thailand and most recently Nigeria also started to mine considerable amounts.
#USA #China #RareEarth #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Sweden moves to criminalize virginity testing and certificates
The Government and the Sweden Democrats are now taking the next step to criminalize virginity testing.
Those who perform a virginity control or intervention are proposed to be sentenced to imprisonment for up to one year, and those who issue a virginity certificate can be punished with fines or imprisonment for up to six months.
The controls are performed despite it being impossible to determine whether a girl or woman has had sexual intercourse through a medical examination. However, the consequences of these "examinations" can be significant.
The governing parties believe that one should be punishable even if there is consent from the girl or woman. They assess that the risk is high that the girl or woman has agreed to it due to fear or concern about the consequences of saying no.
The controls can be performed, for example, prior to a marriage. They are carried out by healthcare professionals, relatives, religious leaders, or others with a special position within their own group. The abuses can occur in Sweden, but also in connection with visits abroad.
#Sweden #Health #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Klaus Schwab steps down from WEF board amid globalist retreat
Klaus Schwab, the architect of the World Economic Forum's dystopian agenda, announced he was stepping down from the WEF board. It marks the end of an era for Schwab, who championed radical wokeness, bug eating, mass vaccination campaigns, population control, and climate de-growth policies through what often resembled digital communism—social credit scores, central bank digital currencies, and many more China-like policies.
Meanwhile, cultural shifts across the Americas signal a rising movement toward traditional values, sending the WEF's ideological woke grip on governments, non-government organizations, corporations, the church, and society into disarray.
"Following my recent announcement, and as I enter my 88th year, I have decided to step down from the position of Chair and as a member of the Board of Trustees, with immediate effect," Schwab wrote in a statement.
Schwab stepped down as executive chairman one year ago, with former Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende taking over daily operations. WEF said Vice Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe was appointed board chairman in the interim and that a search committee for replacement had been appointed.
#WEF #Schwab #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump now says China tariffs will come down
President Donald Trump on Tuesday conceded that the 145% tax Americans currently pay for most imported goods from China will come down as a result of trade talks between Washington and Beijing.
Speaking in the Oval Office after a brief swearing-in ceremony for Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins, Trump said talks with China were “doing fine” because “everybody wants to have involvement” in American markets. He also claimed that both he and Chinese representatives would be “very nice” in any upcoming talks but maintained that Beijing would ultimately be forced to come to some sort of agreement to bring down the massive tariffs.
“Ultimately, they have to make a deal, because otherwise they're not going to be able to deal in the United States, and we want them involved, but they have to, and other countries have to make a deal, and if they don't make a deal, we'll set the deal,” he said.
#USA #China #TradeWar #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
China plastic plants face closure risk as tariffs hit US ethane
Chinese plastics factories that depend on a gas they mainly import from the US are contending with the prospect of shutdowns as the world’s two largest economies bunker down for a prolonged trade war.
The world’s dominant plastics manufacturer gets almost all its ethane, a petrochemical feedstock that is also a component of natural gas, from the US, according to analysts. Eye-watering tariffs on American goods mean plants that cannot process substitute raw materials will bleed money.
“The situation is dire for China’s ethane crackers as they have no alternative to US supply,” said Manish Sejwal, an analyst at Rystad Energy, using an industry term for such facilities. “Unless they are granted tariff exemptions, they may have to stop production or close shop.”
Most so-called crackers in China use naphtha as a feedstock, with processors that solely use ethane as raw material for petrochemicals making up is less than 10% of the total at about four million tonnes, according to Rystad. China is by far the biggest buyer of American supply.
#USA #China #TradeWar #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Sahara. Arab smugglers lead through the desert Africans who want to get to Europe
On the video - the moment of a rest stop, half-obscured by the sand sleeping, they are still alive. Those who reach the shores of the Mediterranean Sea will end up in Spain or Italy. Then everywhere else.
The Arabs themselves ride in jeeps, the “tourists” walk.
#Africa #Migrants #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
US forges ahead with plans for steep port fees on China-built vessels
The Trump administration is forging ahead with plans to charge steep fees on Chinese-built ships for stopping at US ports in an effort to revive its shipbuilding industry, but scaled back the penalties after warnings about the impact on consumers.
The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) significantly watered down original plans from February, under which vessels built in China would be charged $3.5m each time they docked at a US port.
Those proposals prompted a backlash from US domestic industries, which warned the port charges would increase prices for American consumers, and sent a wave of concern through the global shipping industry.
The USTR said it would start charging port fees in 180 days, and they would rise incrementally over the coming years.
Under the new rules, Chinese-linked ships will be charged fees linked to the weight of their cargo or the number of containers on board, rather than according to how many US ports they call at.
#USA #China #Ships #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump “stands strongly” behind Hegseth amid new Signal chat report
President Donald Trump defended Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday, a day after a report again scrutinized Hegseth’s use of group messaging to discuss sensitive military attack plans. “He is doing a great job,” Trump told reporters at the annual Easter Egg Roll at the White House, shortly after his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said on television that the president “stands strongly behind” Hegseth.
“Ask the Houthis how he’s doing,” Trump told reporters, referring to the U.S. strikes on rebels in Yemen. He blamed the latest reports on “fake news” and “disgruntled employees.”
Speaking to reporters at the White House Easter Egg Roll, which he attended with his family, Hegseth attacked those he said were "disgruntled" former employees and the media for what he said was "anonymous smears."
"I have spoken with the president and we are going to continue fighting. On the same page all the way," Hegseth said.
#USA #Trump #Hegseth #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Trump's ultimatum brings Ukraine to its knees before Russia
▪️Ukraine has received a confidential document from the US containing the terms of a peace deal with Russia. The response is due Thursday at a meeting of representatives of the US, Ukraine and Europe in London, the The Wall Street Journal has stated
▪️The document includes “concessions to Russia” categorically rejected by Ukraine, such as recognizing Crimea as Russian and Russia's control over new regions, as well as ruling out the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO
▪️US President Donald Trump has reiterated his position that the US will stop trying to resolve the Ukrainian crisis if it sees that one of the parties is not interested in joining Russia.
#USA #Russia #Ukraine #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
After attacking underground: Berlin decides on a knife ban in local transport
Knives are to be banned on all public transport in Berlin. This was agreed on Thursday morning by representatives of BVG, Deutsche Bahn, the police and the Senate Transport Administration. The video conference was hosted by Interior Senator Iris Spranger.
The Berlin Senate had already established three no-knife zones by decree in mid-February. Anyone caught with a knife during police checks in these zones will face severe fines. The knife will be confiscated. “We are now extending this to all local public transport,” a spokesperson for the Senate Department of the Interior told the Berliner Zeitung.
The ban will apply in all vehicles as well as in buildings that are part of the transport facilities. According to the spokesperson, the ban applies to buses, trams, subway trains and ferries belonging to BVG. It also applies to partner companies that travel to Berlin on buses from the surrounding area, as well as to regional and suburban trains.
#EU #Berlin #Migrants #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Breakthrough quantum phase observed, paving the way for advanced computing and sensing
Scientists have finally observed a quantum phase predicted over 50 years ago, marking a breakthrough that could revolutionize quantum computing, sensors and communication technology. In separate experiments published in Science Advances and Nature Communications, researchers at Rice University and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland demonstrated stable manipulation of a superradiant phase transition (SRPT) and dissipative phase transitions (DPTs)—states of matter that behave collectively at quantum extremes. These discoveries address longstanding theoretical challenges while unlocking pathways to build quantum systems that are more precise, stable and resilient.
The experiment’s success relied on pushing materials to their quantum limits. By cooling the crystal near absolute zero and applying a 7-tesla magnetic field, the team stabilized the system long enough to observe the phase transition. “Ultrastrong coupling between these spin systems allowed us to overcome constraints,” noted Kim.
As physicists reconcile half-century-old theories with modern tools, the doors to ultra-sensitive sensors, fault-tolerant quantum networks and even quantum bioengineering swing wider. With both SRPTs and DPTs offering pathways to control quantum noise, a future where quantum tech is as mainstream as semiconductors becomes tangible.
#Science #Switzerland #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
FDA removing pharmaceutical representatives from advisory panels
The Food and Drug Administration will remove industry representatives from advisory committees and replace them with patients and caregivers, Commissioner Marty Makary announced last Thursday.
The FDA said in a press release that the move is intended “to boost public trust in its decisions and improve how its advisory committees operate.”
Exceptions may be made in rare circumstances when a particular expertise is needed or when pharma reps are required by statute to serve on committees, the agency said.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. claimed he planned to replace members of HHS advisory committees who have conflicts of interest as part of his broader effort to intervene in Big Pharma’s undue influence over regulatory agencies.
However, many members of advisory committees at the FDA and other agencies under HHS still have major conflicts of interest, even if they are not directly employed by industry. For example, Dr. Paul Offit, who invented a rotavirus vaccine later developed by the pharmaceutical giant Merck, sits on the FDA’s vaccine advisory committee. His hospital, which owns the patent, licenses it to Merck.
#USA #FDA #RFKJr #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Japan considers easing car safety standards as part of potential new trade deal
Japan is considering relaxing automobile safety rules for imports as part of its tariff negotiations with the United States.
Japan has been hit with 24% levies on its exports to the U.S. although these rates have, like most of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, been paused for 90 days. A 10% universal rate remains in place, as does a 25% duty on cars, a mainstay of Japan's export-reliant economy.
As Japan and the U.S. use different safety standards, Tokyo sees room for easing rules on crash tests as a bargaining chip in trade talks.
With Trump's trade offensive roiling markets and stoking recession fears, Japan is seeking to walk back his "reciprocal" tariffs and other duties imposed on Japan, along with dozens of countries.
#Japan #USA #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Hating Trump is more important than helping sick and poor people?
The university’s president, Alan Garber, on Monday published an open letter announcing that the institution would not be accepting the money under the Trump administration’s terms, laid out in the government’s own letter last week. “The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights,” wrote Garber.
Supporting Garber, former President Obama wrote on X: “Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions — rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom.”
But as we’ve seen before, it’s often more important to Democrats and institutions like Harvard to pick a losing fight, so long as it puts them at odds with the president. They claim to oppose government waste and then devote every fiber of their being to ensuring not one dollar is cut from the federal bureaucracy.
They pretend to support sensible immigration enforcement and then spend what has now been a month demanding foreign nationals with deportation orders be brought back to the U.S. Now Harvard says it will forego money supposedly crucial to its academic research and global advancement, and Democrats applaud it as an act of brave defiance.
#USA #Trump #Democrats #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
New 3500% tariffs on solar panels and related equipment
The U.S. Department of Commerce slapped high tariffs on solar panels and their related products coming from four Southeast Asian countries, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia, accusing manufacturers there of dumping products on the U.S. market.
Tariff levels varied wildly between different countries and manufacturers. Solar cells made in Malaysia by Korean company Hanwha only got a tariff of 14.64%, the lowest imposed.
In contrast, four manufacturers in Cambodia—Hounen Solar, Jintek Photovoltaic, ISC Cambodia, and Solar Long PV Tech—got tariffs of 3,521.14%. The Southeast Asian country stopped cooperating with the U.S. probe, leading to such high penalties. While Cambodia is still primarily an agrarian economy, solar panels were the Southeast Asian country’s top export to the U.S. last year.
Chinese-owned solar manufacturing facilities have popped up across Southeast Asia as companies sought to navigate U.S.-China trade frictions. In total, the U.S. imported $12.9 billion worth of solar equipment from the four countries targeted by Monday’s tariffs, representing about 77% of module imports.
U.S. solar manufacturers lobbied for antidumping tariffs on Southeast Asian manufacturers, accusing them of pricing their products below production cost. The American Alliance for Solar Manufacturing Trade Committee also argued that Southeast Asian companies received an unfair level of subsidies, making U.S.-made solar panels uncompetitive.
#USA #TradeWar #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Criticism of Bundestag President Klöckner from SPD and Greens
In recent discussions, members of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Greens have voiced strong objections to the remarks made by Bundestag President Julia Klöckner regarding the political involvement of churches in Germany. Klöckner's comments, which accused religious institutions of issuing politicized statements, have sparked significant backlash.
Greens' parliamentary leader emphasized the importance of the church's voice in addressing pressing global issues, including social justice and humanitarian concerns.
Furthermore, Ralf Stegner from the SPD criticized Klöckner's approach, interpreting it as a form of authoritarian reprimand aimed at the churches.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser also joined the chorus of criticism, underscoring the need for an inclusive dialogue that allows religious groups to contribute to important societal discussions.
The tension surrounding this issue highlights a broader debate in Germany about the intersection of religion and politics, particularly in a democratic society where the voices of various stakeholders, including religious ones, are essential for comprehensive discourse.
#Germany #Bundestag #SPD #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Chinese humanoid robots get reality check in half-marathon debut
Six out of 21 Chinese robots completed the world’s first half marathon (21.1 kilometres) for humanoid robots in Beijing on April 19, with the winner setting a record time of 2 hours and 40 minutes.
Over 12,000 people participated in the marathon on the same day, and the human winner reached the endpoint in 1 hour and 2 minutes.
The Tien Kung Ultra robot, developed by X-Humanoid, a Beijing-based state-owned enterprise, won the race for humanoid robots. It is 1.8 meters tall and weighs 52 kilograms.
The first runner-up, Noetix Robotics’ N2, finished the half-marathon in 3 hours 37 minutes. It is 1.2 meters tall, weighs 29 kilograms, and wears children’s trainers.
The second runner-up, DroidUp’s X02, finished the race in 4 hours and 50 minutes. It wears boxing gloves.
An unofficial team entered the competition using a Unitree G2 robot, but the robot fell at the starting point and became a talking point of the event.
#China #Robots #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Tesla stock pops after-hours as Musk's promise to cut DOGE time
Tesla, Inc.'s (TSLA) stock jumped over 5% after the closing bell on Tuesday despite a big quarterly earnings miss as investor hopes were rekindled by CEO Elon Musk’s promise to refocus on his business.
Musk, who has been spending more time as part of President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in Washington, D.C., said his work outside of Tesla remained “critical.”
“Because if the ship of America goes down, we all go down with it, including Tesla and everyone else,” he said. However, he added that starting "probably next month ... my time allocation at DOGE will drop significantly."
Musk's comments overshadowed the company's disappointing Q1 print that revealed a 71% plunge in profit to $0.27 per share and a 9% drop in revenue to $19.34 billion, both missing Wall Street estimates by a wide margin.
Looking ahead, Tesla reaffirmed plans to launch a robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, by June and volume production starting next year.
#Tesla #Musk #DOGE #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Nearly 300 scientists apply for French academic program to study gender and history amid Trump cuts in U.S.
A French university courting U.S.-based academics said it has already received nearly 300 applications for researchers seeking "refugee status" amid President Trump's elimination of funding for several scientific programs.
Last month, Aix-Marseille University, one of the country's oldest and largest universities, announced it was accepting applications for its Safe Place For Science program, which it said offers "a safe and stimulating environment for scientists wishing to pursue their research in complete freedom."
Last week, Aix-Marseille said it had received 298 applications, and 242 of them are eligible and currently up for review. Of the eligible applicants, 135 are American, 45 have a dual nationality, 17 are French and 45 are from other countries, the university said. Of the 298 scientists who applied to the University of Marseille most were specialized in gender and history.
#USA #France #Gender #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Germany cuts economic growth forecast to zero for 2025
Germany's outgoing government has cut its economic growth forecast for 2025 to 0%, down from 0.3% in January - Handelsblatt
If the data is confirmed, it will be the third consecutive year without growth - the first in Germany's modern history.
#Germany #Economy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Call for French university chief to go after professor targeted by ‘anti-racist students’
Academics have called for the resignation of the president of France’s University of Lyon 2, Isabelle von Bueltzingsloewen, over her treatment of a professor targeted by “anti-racist and anti colonial students”.
“Fabrice Balanche, a senior lecturer and recognised specialist in Syria and the geopolitical dynamics of the Middle East, has been the target of a violent smear campaign orchestrated by a group of students calling themselves anti-racist activists,” claimed the academics in an open letter published on April 18 by Le Figaro, signatories of which included former French education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer.
“Criticising him for his alleged support of the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad, as well as his allegedly ‘Islamophobic’ positions, these students demanded his eviction from the university, going so far as to publish defamatory visuals and disrupt his teaching,” they added.
“The president of Lyon-2 University cannot remain in office after such a denial of the fundamental principles of the University Republic. We demand her resignation,” they wrote.
At the beginning of April, masked activists, members of the the student-led group autonome Lyon 2, burst into a lecture hall where Balanche was giving a class, forcing him to leave the premises amid cries of “Zionist”, “racist” and “Islamophobe”.
#France #University #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Mississippi Supreme Court shuts down teen's bid for masculine name amid gender transition
The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled this week that a 16-year-old biological female undergoing gender transition procedures cannot legally change her name to a more masculine one.
In an 8–1 decision issued April 17, the state’s highest court sided with a lower court judge who previously denied the teen's request, concluding that Mississippi law gives judges discretion over name changes for minors and that such changes must clearly serve the best interests of the child.
The minor, identified in court documents as S.M.-B., first petitioned for a name change through her mother in July 2023. The request, which was uncontested and had the support of the teen’s father as well, was part of her gender transition.
“She identified as a male, and would like to be known as a male … through school, through college, preparing for college and so forth,” the attorney stated during the hearing, according to the Supreme Court’s opinion.
But Judge Tametrice Hodges denied the request later that month, ruling the teen should “mature” further before the court considers such a change. She dismissed the petition without prejudice, meaning it could be refiled later.
#USA #Trans #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Who will be the next pope?
Pope Francis' death on Monday, the day after Easter Sunday, started off a series of traditions that in a few weeks will culminate in a vote for the next pope.
Francis' successor will be decided by the Catholic Church's Cardinal Electors, a group of about 135 cardinals under the age of 80, who are expected to begin their conclave in early to mid-May to hold a secretive election for the next pontiff.
Here is look at some of the cardinals considered possible contenders to become pope:
Cardinal Peter Erdo, archbishop of Budapest, Hungary. A 72-year-old canon lawyer, is the highest ranking Catholic leader in a country that is 80% Christian. He is known for his support of the pope's outreach to Orthodox Christians.
Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, archbishop of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, president of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar. He grew global attention for leading African bishops in unanimous rejection of "Fiducia Supplicans," a declaration the Vatican issued in 2023 that included guidelines on the blessings of people in same-sex relationships.
Cardinal Mario Grech, 68, secretary general for the Synod of Bishops. A canon lawyer who has major influence on how synods in the church are run. Supporters have praised him for leading the charge in implementing a more consultative and inclusive approach to church governance.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, 70, the Vatican's secretary of state. A second-in-command at the Vatican and a career diplomat who has consistently risen above any turbulence marking the pontificate.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, 60, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, a pastoral candidate who has spoken out amid the Israel-Hamas war and visited Gaza during the conflict.
Cardinal Luis Tagle of the Philippines. 67-year old, a pro-prefect for the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, is known as the "Asian Francis" for his missionary spirit as well as his emphasis on caring for the poor and welcoming of LGBTQ and divorced and remarried Catholics.
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, 69, archbishop of Bologna, Italy. The president of the Italian bishops conference. He is known as a "street priest" and missionary and wants a church that listens to the faithful and is willing to modernize. Zuppi is inclusive of same-sex couples, as well as people of different religions.
Cardinal Anders Arborelius, 75,archbishop of Stockholm. Raised Lutheran and converted to Catholicism at the age of 20. He is the first ever cardinal from Scandinavia.
Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix, Metropolitan Archbishop of Quebec, Canada, is 67 years old. Earlier in his career he spent years as a missionary and seminary professor in Colombia.
#Catholic #Pope #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
A trans-activist temper tantrum
Rejoice! For the They / Thems have risen. After being legally crucified by the Supreme Court last Wednesday, the trans faithful marched from Parliament Square in London yesterday in a display of devotion and defiance. It was a tantrum disguised as a protest over the court’s heresy – that the word ‘woman’ refers to a biological category, not a personal sense of gender.
Chanting ‘Fuck JK Rowling’ and ‘Fuck Wes Streeting’, the mob wailed over the apparent injustice of women having legally defined boundaries. Banners held included ‘The only good TERF is a dead one’; as legal commentator Dennis Kavanagh pointed out, there are currently people in prison for saying less.
Unlike previous protests, no celebrities or politicians dared take the stage. Childish graffiti, limp placards and discarded leaflets are all that remain to prove anything happened at all. The activists, full of rage but empty of reason, still can’t say what rights they’ve actually lost.
One day, we might well laugh at the collective lunacy that gripped the early 21st century. But not yet. First, we need to ask the people who indulged it: what the hell were you thinking?
#UK #Trans #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Asylum seekers in Vienna ‘better off on welfare than Austrian workers’, ministry data suggests
New data has revealed that asylum seeker families in Vienna could receive almost €50,000 a year in benefits, sparking a debate about what some saw as overly generous welfare payments.
According to calculations by the Ministry of Integration published on April 17, a family of five – father, mother and three children – received more than €48,000 in welfare payments annually in the Austrian capital.
That did not include other financial advantages for welfare recipients such as exemptions from television taxes (€200 per year), medicine prescription fees and reduced prices for public transport and museums entry.
Meanwhile, according to a calculation by the Ministry of Integration, a couple with asylum with three children in Vienna would receive "alone through the minimum security", almost 50,000 euros per year.
#EU #Austria #Migrants #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
China tests non-nuclear hydrogen bomb
Chinese researchers have successfully detonated a hydrogen-based explosive device in a controlled field test, triggering devastating chemical chain reactions without using any nuclear materials, according to a study published last month in the Chinese-language Journal of Projectiles, Rockets, Missiles and Guidance.
The 2kg (4.4lbs) bomb generated a fireball exceeding 1,000 degrees Celsius (1,832 degrees Fahrenheit) for more than two seconds – 15 times longer than equivalent TNT blasts – without using any nuclear materials, it said.
Developed by the China State Shipbuilding Corporation’s (CSSC) 705 Research Institute, the device uses a magnesium-based solid-state hydrogen storage material. Triggered by conventional explosives, the material underwent rapid thermal decomposition, releasing hydrogen gas that ignited into a prolonged, high-temperature fireball.
“This combination allows precise control over blast intensity, easily achieving uniform destruction of targets across vast areas.”
The research noted that the hydrogen bomb can cause extended thermal damage due to its white-hot fireball, capable of melting aluminum alloys. By comparison, TNT explosions typically produce a flash that lasts only about 0.12 seconds.
#China #Military #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Boston mayor's campaign allegedly funded by fundriser linked to China
Boston Democratic Mayor Michelle Wu’s 2021 campaign received hundreds of thousands of dollars from a fundraiser who is listed by a Chinese intelligence agency as an official, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation discovered.
Gary Yu, the founder of Boston International Media Consulting, helped raise over $300,000 for Wu with the help of a Chinese civic association he leads. However, Yu — whose Chinese name is Yu Guoliang — is listed as an official by an agency of a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence and intelligence service called the United Front Work Department (UFWD), and also operates as a recruiter for the Chinese government, according to reports from the CCP, Chinese state media and civic associations led by Yu.
“The Communist Party’s UFWD never rests,” author and China expert Gordon Chang told the DCNF. “There is no ethnic Chinese official in America who is not targeted. It’s time for law enforcement to investigate the CCP’s ties to Gary Yu and Yu’s ties to Mayor Michelle Wu.”
Wu has risen to national prominence as a central figure in the Democratic resistance to Trump’s border and deportation policies. Wu recently defended her city’s refusal to cooperate with immigration officials during her March 19, 2025 “State of the City” address, during which she criticized “presidents who think they are kings,” prompting the White House to fire back the next day with a press release labeling Wu a “radical mayor” who “puts violent criminal illegal aliens first.”
#USA #China #Boston #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Even with subsidies, solar panels and other green home upgrades take years to pay off
Solar panels, one of the most popular retrofits, typically require more than eight years to offset their upfront cost despite existing federal and state incentives that cut their price by more than half.
The academic findings come as the Trump administration moves to roll back the Biden administration's climate agenda, including the Inflation Reduction Act. President signed an executive order on Inauguration Day freezing the $8.8 billion in home energy rebates authorized by the act.
Heat pumps—touted as greener alternatives to gas furnaces—are even slower to break even. A basic heat pump, priced at $12,000 after rebates, may save only $252 a year and will not yield financial returns for 48 years. A higher-efficiency heat pump can save around $755 annually but still needs 8 years just to recoup initial costs.
Insulation and air sealing upgrades, which cost around $9,187 after rebates, would take homeowners nearly 29 years to cover installation fees.
#USA #Energy #FindTruth
@uinhurricane
Digital marketing’s stealthy assault on childhood nutrition fuels global obesity crisis
Social media platforms and algorithms aggressively target children with ads for ultra-processed foods, often disguised as organic content (e.g., influencer posts, games and quizzes). Over 70% of children encounter such ads within minutes of logging in.
Outdated regulations and voluntary corporate measures fail to curb harmful marketing. WHO warns that self-regulation has not worked, urging mandatory restrictions on unhealthy food ads targeting youth.
Children worldwide—from the U.S. to Australia—face relentless exposure via smartphones and apps. Teens see up to 189 junk food ads weekly, with tactics varying by gender (e.g., athleticism-themed ads for boys, diet quizzes for girls).
Childhood obesity linked to digital marketing increases risks for chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. Experts compare unchecked food marketing to tobacco—urging governments to prioritize public health over corporate profits.
#WHO #Children #Health #FindTruth
@uinhurricane