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Chile has become the first South American country to legally ban the widespread commercial use of plastic bags.
Link: http://www.orrazz.com/2018/08/chile-has-become-first-south-american.html
The new legislation, approved by Congress and enacted by President Sebastián Piñera, gives small shops two years to adapt to a total ban.
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Scientists say plastic pollution has a devastating impact on marine wildlife and affects the health of humans.
Mr Piñera said the new rules were a great step for a cleaner Chile.
"We want to go from a throwaway culture, where everything is used and chucked away, to the healthy culture of recycling," he said.
"There are 7.6 billion inhabitants in the world. We can't continue polluting as if each one of us owned the Earth."
The legislation was proposed by his predecessor, Michelle Bachelet, who banned the use of plastic bags in Chile's Patagonia region.
Several other countries have also been taking steps to combat plastic pollution.
In January, Panama approved legislation curbing the commercial use of plastic bags.
American ship carrying $20mn in soybeans in sea limbo, a victim of US-China trade war
Link: https://www.rt.com/news/435687-us-cargo-ship-soybeans-china/
. A US cargo ship carrying $20 million worth of soybeans has been circling in the ocean for a month because it was unlucky to arrive a few hours after tariffs kicked in.
The Peak Pegasus cargo ship, owned by JPMorgan Asset Management, left Seattle for China June 8. arriving five hours after Beijing's tariffs on US goods kicked in on July 6. As a result, it has now found itself drifting in circles in the Yellow Sea costing the owner of the cargo – agricultural commodity trading house Louis Dreyfus $12,500 a day to charter the ship; $400,000 in extra costs.
The soybean saga comes after Beijing imposed duties on $34 billion in US goods, in response to Trump's imposing of tariffs on Chinese goods. The dispute escalated Wednesday, with Washington announcing new $16 billion wave of tariffs would take effect August 23. Responding to that announcement, China imposed 25 percent tariffs on another 333 US products, scheduled to take effect August 23. If the ship were to offload the soybeans now, it would face a 25 percent tariff, adding $6 million to the cost of bringing them into China. Another soybean ship, the Star Jennifer, has also been hanging around the waters for a fortnight.
More Than 100 Large Wildfires in US as New Blazes Erupt
Link: https://www.theepochtimes.com/more-than-100-large-wildfires-in-us-as-new-blazes-erupt_2621909.html
Six large new wildfires erupted in the United States, pushing the number of major active blazes nationwide to over 100, with more expected to break out sparked by lightning strikes on bone-dry terrain, authorities said on Aug. 11.
More than 30,000 personnel, including firefighters from across the United States and nearly 140 from Australia and New Zealand, were battling the blazes that have consumed more than 1.6 million acres. The fires have scorched states from Washington to New Mexico, with California among the hardest hit. 3,500 firefighters are battling the Mendocino Complex Fire, which has burned 328,226 acres (132,828 hectares) as of Aug. 11, and was the largest fire on record in California.
In Furious Rant Erdogan Lashes Out At Trump: "We See The Game You're Playing, We Dare You"
In the wake of the U.S. doubling tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminum on Friday which sent the Turkish lira and capital markets into free fall, Erdogan wrote a Friday New York Times op-ed cataloging his grievances and threatening to walk away from the decades-old alliance. "Failure to reverse this trend of unilateralism and disrespect will require us to start looking for new friends and allies," he wrote. Trump tweeted his "analysis" of the situation: "Our relations with Turkey are not good at this time!"
Ibrahim Kalin, Erdogan’s spokesman, said that the U.S. is "facing the risk of completely losing Turkey."
ERDOGAN: THEY'RE TRYING W/ MONEY WHAT THEY COULDN'T DO IN COUP
Turkey can "respond to those who started a trade war against the entire world and included our country in it by gravitating towards new co-operations, new alliances" i.e. China and Russia (which earlier today said it was considering dropping the US dollar altogether in oil trade
Ecuador Declares State of Emergency in 3 Regions Over Venezuelan Refugee Influx
Link: https://sputniknews.com/latam/201808091067063791-ecuador-emergency-venezuela-refugees/
The government of Ecuador on Wednesday introduced a state of emergency in three provinces of the country due to the influx of refugees from Venezuela, the Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry said. According to the European Parliament, over 2 million people have left Venezuela since 2014.
FBI Warns of ‘Unlimited’ ATM Cashout Blitz
Link: https://www.blacklistednews.com/article/67719/fbi-warns-of-unlimited-atm-cashout.html
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is warning banks that cybercriminals are preparing to carry out a highly choreographed, global fraud scheme known as an “ATM cash-out,” in which crooks hack a bank or payment card processor and use cloned cards at cash machines around the world to fraudulently withdraw millions of dollars in just a few hours.
Russia to sell off more US Treasuries in retaliation against sanctions
Link: https://www.rt.com/business/435817-russia-sell-us-treasuries-sanctions/
Moscow will continue selling off its holdings of US Treasury securities in response to the new penalties Washington is ready to introduce against Russia in the near future, according to Russia’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov.
The minister added that the government will stick to the plan of moving away from the US dollar for international trade, as it recently proved to be a “risky” payment method. In 2010, Russia was among the top-10 holders of US debt at over $176 billion. Central Bank of Russia dumped 84 percent of its remaining holdings of US Treasury securities due to concerns about a wide range of risks, including financial, economic and geopolitical. The country’s holdings declined from $96.1 billion in March to just $14.9 billion in May.
‘Product of chemical synthesis’: Russian lawmaker targets artificial food additives in new bill
Link: https://www.rt.com/politics/435818-product-chemical-synthesis-russian/
A Russian lawmaker has proposed banning the naming of foodstuffs made with excessive artificial components after traditional products such as “sausage” or “lemonade.”
MP Vitaly Milonov of the majority United Russia party addressed the Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov in an open letter, insisting the state must toughen rules on product naming in the food industry to prevent false advertising and cheating of customers by dishonest producers. The MP claimed Russian stores were offering customers “processed meat products” that have no relation to actual meat; the soft drink and fruit juice industry with “ imported brands of drinks that are pure chemically-synthesized products that inflict heavy damage to human health.
To rectify the situation, the government must introduce new, stricter rules on product naming, the lawmaker said.If some so-called sausage has less than 50 percent of meat in it, this product cannot be named sausage and must be called ‘imitation of a sausage product,’ he wrote.
“It is not correct when a cocktail of harmful chemicals is called lemonade. This product should also be named in line with its composition – a chemically synthesized drink – and we must mention the possible harmful effects of such drinks on their labels.” Milonov stated. Russian lawmakers have previously proposed to restrict the sales of potentially-harmful foods, especially the so-called junk food promoted by major international corporations.
Bank of America Freezes Kansas Family's Bank Account After Demanding Citizenship
An American-born Kansas family had their bank account frozen after Bank of America demanded to know their citizenship status, reports the Kansas City Star. BofA said that it's standard practice to ask about citizenship status when opening a new account or updating customer information. Bank of America spokeswoman Diane Wagner blamed the Collins family for failing to return the questionnaire.
News Feed Trump lambasts prosecution team as ‘gang of 13 angry Democrats’
Link: http://tass.com/world/1015084
Trump:"Arrived back in Washington last night from a very emotional reopening of a major U.S. Steel plant in Granite City, Illinois, only to be greeted with the ridiculous news that the highly conflicted Robert Mueller and his gang of 13 Angry Democrats obviously cannot find Collusion."
Unknown Man Blows Himself up at Football Field in Belgium - Reports
Link: https://sputniknews.com/europe/201807311066821764-man-blows-himself-up/
A man, wearing a belt of explosives, blew himself up at 8:40 a.m. local time at Stembert, on the heights of Verviers, on the Linaigrettes football pitch.
As specified by the broadcaster RTB, it could be a man approximately 50-60 years old, who at the time of the incident was alone in the center of the field.
Call to break up Russia by Latvian MP proof of NATO’s hostile plans – senior lawmaker
Link: https://www.rt.com/politics/434618-russia-nato-split-plan/
MP Leonid Kalashnikov (Communist Party) told RIA Novosti on Monday that the statement by the Latvian MP Aleksandrs Kirsteins clearly demonstrated that Russian concern over NATO bases in Baltic countries was justified. The comments came shortly after Kirsteins wrote on his Twitter feed that the end of military conflicts and the guarantee of a peaceful life in Europe was possible only if Russia is divided into several small countries.
Two Ukrainians Given 180 Year Prison Sentences for Refugee Smuggling in Greece
Link: https://sputniknews.com/europe/201807241066626605-Ukrainians-180-Year-Prison-Sentences-Refugee/
Two Ukrainian nationals were sentenced to 180 years in prison each on Friday after they were convicted by a Greek court of charges relating to smuggling refugees.
Serhiy Shvayuk and Petro Lytvynchuk were convicted in Piraeus, Greece, after they were arrested onboard a yacht transporting 63 migrants.
The offenses included illegally crossing into a European Union country's border, endangering the lives of of passengers (as the boat was overcrowded), lacking emergency equipment and lacking a license to command the ship. Lytvynchuk's mother told the outlet that they traveled there to legally work as captain's mates on a tourist boat but were forced into transporting the migrants under threats of violence.
Facial Recognition Toll Booths Identify Drivers and Passengers, Notify Police Within Seconds
The state of New York is using facial recognition cameras to identify drivers and passengers at toll booths.
A recent article in the New York Post revealed that toll booths use facial recognition to identify everyone. Police are also testing facial recognition cameras that can identify people based on the shape of their ears!
Currently there are at least thirty-one states that allow police to use facial recognition to identify people from drivers licenses and state IDs.
Roughly one in every two American adults—117 million people—are in the facial recognition networks used by law enforcement
Russia Dumps Massive Amount of U.S. Treasury Holdings—Becomes World’s Largest Holder of Gold
The Russian government has drastically reduced their holdings of United States Treasury bonds, with Russian ownership of U.S. bonds declining from $96.1 billion in March to $48.7 billion in April—and then further reducing their holdings to just $14.9 billion in May; an 11-year low. In 2010, Russia was among the top 10 holders of US Treasuries at $176.3 billion. Russia has been buying large amounts of gold during its gradual sell-off of U.S. Treasury bonds, and it recently overtook China as the world’s biggest holder of gold with $80.5 billion worth.
Trade War: Billions Of Pounds Of Meat In US Warehouses Have Nowhere To Go
There are now billions of pounds of chicken meat in warehouses in the United States with nowhere to go.
More than 2.5 billion pounds of meat and poultry produced by US farmers have been stockpiled in cold-storage warehouses with the amount expected to grow further, according to the latest federal data as reported by RT. The good news is that this could drive down the prices of this meat for American consumers, but it also means other goods could become vastly more expensive in response.
Earlier this year, China and Mexico, the largest foreign buyers of US meat, taxed American pork products in response to the tariffs imposed by the White House on steel, aluminum and some other goods. The measure made prices for US hams, chops and livers in those markets shoot upwards, reports Wall Street Journal.
The US Department of Agriculture expects the American meat industry to produce a record 102.7 billion pounds of meat in 2018. Plunging exports thanks to the trade war, along with increasing domestic stockpiles puts profits at risk for US meat processors, livestock and poultry producers.
Putin warns of consequences should Georgia and Ukraine become NATO members
Link: http://www.pravdareport.com/news/russia/politics/17-07-2018/141229-nato_georgia_ukraine-0/
Russia "is forced to react to everything that is happening around" the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said commenting on recent reports about Georgia's and Ukraine's possible accession to NATO. Moscow would have an "extremely negative" reaction to the continued expansion of the Alliance towards the borders of the Russian Federation. This is a threat to the security of the state, Putin said in an interview with Fox News.
When the USSR left the German territory, it was promised that NATO would not move to the east beyond German borders. However, NATO troops had subsequently appeared in many countries afterwards.
Bavarian Police to Patrol German Border Preventing Illegal Migration - Ministry
Link: https://sputniknews.com/europe/201807151066370971-bavaria-germany-austria-police-migrants/
According to Germany's interior ministry, Bavarian state police will patrol the border in order to check for migrants entering the country. In a statement issued Sunday, the ministry said that Bavarian police will be able to conduct checks along the country's southern border with Austria "at the request or with the consent of federal police."Since 2015, Europe has been facing a migration crisis, triggered by armed conflicts and economic hardships in Africa and the Middle East. The EU has been struggling to accommodate hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing war-torn countries, with a major part of them heading to Germany.
China expands surveillance of sewage to police illegal drug use
Dozens of cities across China are applying an unusual forensic technique to monitor illegal drug use: chemically analysing sewage for traces of drugs, or their metabolites, excreted in urine.
One southern city, Zhongshan, a drug hotspot, is also monitoring waste water to evaluate the effectiveness of its drug-reduction programmes, says Li Xiqing, an environmental chemist at Peking University in Beijing who is working with police in these cities.
Li says Zhongshan police have already used the technique to help track down and arrest a drug manufacturer. He says a handful of cities are planning to use data from waste water to set targets for police arrests of drug users..
Although illegal drug use has been monitored through wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) in other countries, including Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Germany, most studies have collected data for epidemiological research rather than for setting policies.
As Bezos Becomes Richest Man in Recorded History, Amazon Workers Go on Strike
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has just become the richest man in recorded history—surpassing $150 billion in net worth, earns around $275 million each day. Tuesday Amazon workers throughout Europe are marking "Prime Day" by walking off the job.
In addition to walkouts by an estimated 80 percent of the workers at Amazon's largest distribution center in Spain—nearly 1,800 workers—employees of the retailer are also reportedly launching strikes in Germany, France, Italy, Poland, and the United Kingdom to demand higher wages
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