Link: https://sputniknews.com/latam/201710031057892727-ecuador-vice-president-arrest/

Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas, who is suspected of taking bribes from the Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht, has been arrested at his residence in Guayaquil and transferred to the nation's capital Quito. The probe into Odebrecht has become one of the biggest corruption scandals in Latin America. The company is accused of paying millions of dollars in bribes to politicians to secure lucrative contracts.

Link: http://www.thedailysheeple.com/companies-donate-40k-worth-of-marijuana-to-people-displaced-by-california-fires_102017

California’s largest medical cannabis manufacturer, CannaCraft Inc., is temporarily donating 12,000 square feet of its office space in Santa Rosa, as well as phone and internet service, to the American Red Cross to use as its Regional Headquarters for Northern California fire relief. There, more than 200 volunteers from the American Red Cross will coordinate 24-hour relief efforts for those displaced by the fires.

Cannacraft said Wednesday they will donate $40,000 in medical marijuana to California residents who do not have access to their medication due to the horrific wildfires that have left at least 31 dead, approximately 400 missing, and destroyed more than 3,500 homes and structures. An estimated 25,000 people have been evacuated.

Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/406899-senator-menendez-corruption-trial/

The judge overseeing the corruption case involving US Senator Bob Menendez said he won’t dismiss any of the charges against the New Jersey Democrat. Menendez is facing 12 federal charges, including bribery, conspiracy and fraud.

Link: https://www.rt.com/news/406916-malta-corruption-journalist-car-bomb/

One of Malta’s most prominent investigative journalists, Daphne Caruana Galizia, has been killed in a presumed car bomb attack. She was most recently known for exposing the Maltese prime minister's offshore dealings in the Panama Papers scandal. The 53-year-old was killed when the car she was driving exploded near her home in Bidnija, near Mosta in northern Malta, the Times of Malta reports.

Caruana Galizia ran the hugely popular ‘Running Commentary’ blog, which had a track record of highlighting scandals in the Mediterranean country.

One such prominent scandal came about earlier this year, when Caruana Galizia accused Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, his wife and members of his government, of owning offshore companies in Panama – all part of the long-running Panama Papers leak.

Link: https://www.rt.com/news/406874-storm-ophelia-ireland-deaths/

Three people have been killed in Ireland as hurricane-force winds batter the country. Ex-hurricane Ophelia is wreaking havoc across the island, leaving 385,000 homes and businesses without power.

Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/406657-earthquake-wildfires-northern-california/

An earthquake has hit Northern California, where wildfires continue to affect the region, bringing the death toll to at least 34. An estimated 5,700 structures have also succumbed to the fast-moving flames. On Friday afternoon, a 4.0 magnitude earthquake struck California’s Mendocino County, north of Napa County, according to the US Geological Survey. 1,485 missing persons have been reported, with 1,250 of them being located safe, leaving 235 outstanding cases.

Link: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-california-fires-20171014-story.html

More than 10,000 firefighters from California and other states are fighting the fires in Northern California, said Dave Teter of the California Dpeartment of Forestry and Fire Protection, and officials are readying more crews in Southern California, where red flag warnings are in place through Sunday.

Firefighting efforts include 880 fire engines, 134 bulldozers, 224 hand crews and 138 water tenders, At first light Saturday, 14 helicopters were in the air conducting water drops.

Link: http://www.france24.com/en/20171007-polish-catholics-pray-borders-save-country

Thousands of Polish Catholics formed human chains on the country's borders Saturday, begging God "to save Poland and the world" in an event many viewed as a spiritual weapon against the "Islamisation" of Europe. Krakow archbishop Marek Jedraszewski called on believers to pray "for the other European nations to make them understand it is necessary to return to Christian roots so that Europe would remain Europe."Many Poles see Islam as a threat. The conservative government, which enjoys the backing of a sizeable portion of the population, refuses to welcome migrants to Poland, which has very few Muslims of its own.

Link: http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2017/10/16/538740/Portugal-Spain-Wildfires-

Six people killed in Portugal as the country was hit by a record number of forest fires, and three more died in Spain where authorities were blaming arson for some 17 fires which caused three deaths. Portugal, Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced a state of public calamity, as 3,700 firefighters battled 26 major fires stretching across the centre and north of the country four months after 64 people were killed and more than 250 injured on June 17, in the deadliest fire in the country's history.

Link: http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2017/10/16/538735/austria-elections-kurz-eu

The leader of Austria’s conservative People’s Party has declared victory in the country’s general elections, setting him up to become the world’s youngest head of government. The 31-year-old will be the world's youngest leader after Vanessa D'Ambrosio, 28, regent of San Marino, completes her rotating co-leadership arrangement at the end of October. Kurz is two years younger than North Korea's Kim Jong-un and eight years younger than France's Emmanuel Macron.

Link: http://www.pravdareport.com/news/society/stories/13-10-2017/138916-most_dangerous_cities-0/

The most dangerous city in the world is Karachi, Pakistan, a study conducted by The Economist magazine said.

The list of the world's most dangerous cities was based on such parameters as personal security, digital security, absence of health hazards and safe infrastructure.

The second place belongs to the city of Yangon in Myanmar (46.47 points), and the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, comes third with 47.37 points.

In addition, the list of most dangerous cities in the world includes Jakarta, Ho Chi Minh City, Manila, Caracas, Quito, Tehran and Cairo.

Link: https://sputniknews.com/europe/201710141058241275-swiss-sewers-see-lost-millions/

Researchers testing the waters at sewage treatment plants in Switzerland have discovered salvageable amounts of precious metals, including silver and gold, as well as rare-earth minerals that are continuously flushed into the wealthy country's wastewater networks. 95 pounds of gold — the equivalent of about $1.8 million at current exchange rates — are tossed down the drain annually, particularly in areas where the country's legacy watch-making and refinery industries are located.

Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/406741-tillerson-nkorea-bomb-drops/

Washington will continue its diplomatic efforts to solve the North Korean crisis only "until first bomb drops,” US State Secretary Rex Tillerson told CNN.

Tillerson appeared on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday, where he told host Jake Tapper that President Donald Trump wants to resolve the Korean Peninsula crisis “diplomatically.”

“He is not seeking to go to war [with North Korea],” Tillerson stated. “He made it clear… that he will continue diplomatic efforts.”

Link: http://www.thedailysheeple.com/bitcoin-dash-can-now-be-spent-at-40-million-stores-worldwide_102017

“[Bitcoin] essentially rolls gold, cash, and our credit card system into one. It takes the strengths of each and leaves the weaknesses behind. It has the limited supply quality of gold, but can be used to purchase everyday items. It has the speed of a credit card, but respects and protects your privacy. Transactions are settled instantly like cash, but are recorded on a public ledger.”

Link: http://www.governing.com/topics/finance/gov-states-withhold-pot-revenue-cities-ban-marijuana.html

Oregon has already started keeping marijuana tax revenue from localities that effectively ban the substance. California plans to withhold pot-funded law enforcement and health grants from places with a commercial marijuana ban. And now, an effort is underway in Massachusetts to reduce the amount of money that cities and towns with bans and other restrictions on operations get from the state’s 17 percent tax on marijuana sales. Massachusetts was one of four states that legalized recreational marijuana by popular vote last year. The 2016 election season doubled the number of states with legal weed to eight plus the District of Columbia. The drug is now legal in Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon and Washington state.

Link: http://govtslaves.info/2017/10/broke-more-americans-are-getting-their-electricity-cut-off/

More than 900,000 homes went dark in Texas last summer because of unpaid bills, almost triple the number 10 years ago. In California last year, it was 714,000, the most on record. The tally across the country is in the millions.

Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/406729-assange-wikileaks-bitcoin-investment/

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange posted a sardonic ‘thank you’ note addressing US authorities who forced the whistleblowing website into investing in Bitcoin in 2010. Julian Assange: My deepest thanks to the US government, Senator McCain and Senator Lieberman for pushing Visa, MasterCard, Payal, AmEx, Mooneybookers, et al, into erecting an illegal banking blockade against @WikiLeaks starting in 2010. It caused us to invest in Bitcoin -- with > 50000% return.

Link: https://www.rt.com/news/406767-drone-hit-plane-quebec/

A Canadian passenger plane hit a drone while descending on Quebec City’s Jean Lesage International Airport, a minister has said, raising concerns about aviation safety. The incident with the Skyjet flight occurred around 3km from the airport at an altitude of 450 meters on October 12.

Link: http://www.blacklistednews.com/5.4_magnitude_earthquake_strikes_Mexico_%E2%80%93_USGS/61261/0/38/38/Y/M.html

An earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale has struck the southern coast of Mexico, some 7.8km (4.8 miles) from San Dionisio del Mar. The quake had a depth of 59.5km, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). It comes less than a month after Mexico was hit by a destructive 7.1 magnitude quake which killed at least 337 people. In early September, an 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck the country, killing at least 98 people and producing more than 5,400 aftershocks. Mexico sits atop five tectonic plates, the movement of which making it one of the most seismically-active countries in the world.

Link: https://www.rt.com/business/406490-bitcoin-all-time-high/

The world's most popular cryptocurrency bitcoin has seen another surge, pushing its value to a record $5,220 on Thursday. Bitcoin started the year trading at $966 per token and has soared over 750 percent in the last 12 months. It is now worth four times more than an ounce of gold.