Author: Horace Hines

Rome (9/07 – 66.7) Fortune-telling is now a criminal act in the Central Asian states of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, amidst the teetering economies. The Economist Intelligence Unit, for instance, says “the risk of sovereign default” in Kyrgyzstan is high, while adding that “poverty, unemployment, austerity, power shortages and political oppression are possible sources of destabilization in 2024-25” in Tajikistan. Despite the two countries’ myriad economic challenges, lawmakers and law-enforcers in both Central Asian states are making time to crack down on sorcery and fortune-telling. In Tajikistan, authorities literally went on a witch hunt, resulting in the arrest of more than 50 alleged practitioners…

The European Union announced on Friday that it will begin accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova to join the 27-member political and economic bloc starting next week. All 27 members agreed to the Ukraine and Moldova joining the European Union. Negotiations will begin for both countries on Tuesday in Luxembourg, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union said on X. The move comes at a critical time for both nations with Ukraine in the middle of an invasion by Russia and Moldova facing a Russian-led insurgence by a breakaway state. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the European Union for its “robust political…

London (20/5 – 20)One academic was asked about the internet eating their young. This triggered a heated debate about the use of the internet the freedom in presents, the dangers of unfettered go for it all to the public, the rise of the left, the response by the right, and AI, or Artificial Intelligence. The seriousness of the debate can be seen at the UK sponsored conference on AI at Bletchley Park. Following this was the adaptation of the European law on Artificial Intelligence. 28 countries at the summit, including the United States, China, and the European Union, have issued…

Berlin/London/Brussels (29/2 – 33.33). Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn’t really want a conflict with NATO because in that scenario Russia would quickly lose, the head of the UK’s armed forces said on Tuesday. Speaking at an event in London, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said that “the inescapable fact is that any Russian assault or incursion against NATO would prompt an overwhelming response.” He said that “the biggest reason that Putin doesn’t want a conflict with NATO is because Russia will lose. And lose quickly.” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sparked new security concerns across Europe, prompting countries to spend more on defense…

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has deployed two of its vessels in the South China Sea after monitoring an “alarming” increase in the number of Chinese maritime militia vessels at a reef within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The number of Chinese boats believed to be manned by militia personnel has increased to more than 135 from 111 in November, scattered within the Whitsun Reef, which Manila calls the Julian Felipe Reef, the PCG said in a statement. “The PCG maintains its unwavering commitment to safeguarding maritime security, safety and the marine environment in the course of protecting the…

A series of murders over the weekend have propelled the United States to a grisly new record: the most recorded mass shootings in a year. Two attacks on Sunday occurring within a couple of hours of each other in Texas and Washington state were the year’s 37th and 38th mass shootings. Authorities believe a murder-suicide was responsible for the death of five family members in Vancouver, a suburb of Portland, Oregon, just across the border in Washington, while in Dallas a 21-year-old with a previous aggravated assault charge shot five people in a house, including a toddler. It is the highest number of…

Vivian Silver, a Canadian Israeli peace activist whose family said they believed was taken hostage from her home in southern Israel when Hamas-led militants carried out a surprise assault on Oct. 7, was killed in the initial attacks, her family confirms. Silver’s son, Yonatan Zeigen, confirmed his mother’s death, telling CBC News on Monday that the 74-year-old’s remains had been found earlier at Kibbutz Be’eri, where she resided, but were only identified now, more than five weeks after the attacks. At least 120 other men, women and children were killed in the community of about 1,100 people located just kilometres from the Israel-Gaza border.…

Heavy snow throughout Southcentral Alaska created dangerous conditions on many of the major roadways across the region, prompting some closures that had been lifted by Thursday afternoon. The Seward Highway was closed for much of Thursday from near Summit Lake through Moose Pass to Crown Point because heavy snow was making it impassable in places from Seward to the Hope Cutoff, the Alaska Department of Transportation said. Deep snow covered the road and disabled vehicles added to the hazardous conditions, Alaska State Troopers said. Snow ranged from 7 to 22 inches across the region, they said. By Thursday afternoon, after…

If critters with lots of legs make your skin crawl, the video that Lake Clark National Park and Preserve posted to their Facebook page on Halloween probably looked like a nightmare come alive. In the 45-second clip, a silent camper shines their light around the interior of their tent; through the translucent fabric, you can see hundreds of spider-like creatures crawling across the exterior and gathering in huge clumps. In the comments, the park’s followers debated what they would do if they woke up to a similar midnight surprise; answers included “die of a heart attack,” throw the tent away,”…

A camper in an Alaskan national park awoke with a fright when an invasion of what looked like spiders crawled and clustered on the roof of their tent. The Lake Clark National Park and Preserve in Alaska shared the footage from the camper to Facebook on Halloween with the eerie caption: “In the remote depths of Lake Clark’s vast, wild landscape, a weary backpacker settles in for a night at camp after a long day of exploring. “Little do they know, creatures of the night lurk in the woods, waiting for the opportune moment to strike fear. “Snuggled into their…