Something in space has been lighting up every 20 minutes since 1988 Ars Technica
Half of U.S. beaches are contaminated with poop ZME Science
Climate/Environment
New blazes bring number of active wildfire fronts to 79 Kathimerini. Greece, roughly the size of Alabama.
Mini tornado and giant hailstones hit northern Italy as heatwave breaks The Local
Video from Milan:
A Milano un #Tornado in Brianza Nella mia città fiumi di ghiaccio per le strade. Dopotutto Gigi d’Alessio cantava “le domeniche d’agosto quanta neve che cadrà”, quindi non serve preoccuparsi del #CambiamentoClimatico è tutto normale…. pic.twitter.com/80b9fZ6j9F
— emmy (@_addictedtolou_) July 21, 2023
For those who don’t like that the y-axis keeps changing, I made this version: pic.twitter.com/2zTDrTDiFy
— Leon Simons (@LeonSimons8) July 20, 2023
Water
Rising seawater in Senegal about to swallow ‘Venice of Africa’ Anadolu Agency
#COVID-19
‘Brain fog’ of long Covid comparable to ageing 10 years, study finds The Guardian. Full study.
More than 220K people kicked off Medi-Cal in its first checkup since COVID ABC10. By “since Covid,” they mean first of the month.
Japan sees COVID patients rising for 9th straight week The Mainichi
Solar Car Challenge cut off, mid-race, because of COVID-19 outbreak The Orange County Register
India
What is happening in India’s Manipur? Al Jazeera
DIGGING INTO INDIA’S CRITICAL MINERALS DASH Carbon Copy
China?
If China fails to intervene in North Korea, US will take action, says Antony Blinken South China Morning Post.
Washington reacts to Kissinger’s China reception with ‘sour grapes’ mentality Global Times
Relationship between China and Gulf is widening into areas well beyond oil purchases Modern Diplomacy
New Not-So-Cold War
Ukraine’s counter-offensive is failing, with no easy fixes The Telegraph
Ukraine is in ruins. Its latest counteroffensive achieved nothing.
In the last three weeks, an estimated 26,000 Ukrainian soldiers died in pointless attacks against world-class Russian defenses.
— Douglas Macgregor (@DougAMacgregor) July 21, 2023
Need better drone defense? The US military may have an app for that. Defense News
***
Storm clouds gathering in the Black Sea Indian Punchline
Any Polish aggression on Belarus is attack on Russia, Putin says Al Jazeera
Russia armed Belarus to the teeth: S-400s, Tor-M2s, Su-35s, Mi-35s Bulgarian Military
***
From Stalinism to the ‘Most Avoidable War in History’ Consortium News. An interview with Geoffrey Roberts. For more, read “Stalin: History and Criticism of a Black Legend.” Needs a better translation though.
Biden names CIA Director William Burns to his cabinet Reuters
CIA chief: Russia’s elite are questioning Putin’s judgment Politico
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Energy poverty on the rise in Europe, statistics show Euractiv
US hits Kyrgyzstan with war sanctions. Intellinews
War with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh ‘very likely’: Armenia PM Al Mayadeen. If a peace treaty is not signed.
Washington-Paris-London Calling The Polycrisis
Syraqistan
The waning days of the ‘special relationship’ 972 Magazine
Israel: Former intelligence chief says Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul could cause civil war Middle East Eye
South of the Border
Venezuela: President Maduro Delivers House Number 4.6 Million Telesur. Public housing “despite the problems caused by the U.S. blockade.”
O Canada
More Unoccupied Toronto Homes Are Catching Fire The Deep Dive
Imperial Collapse Watch
“We’re done with the cover up”: House UFO hearing set, Rep. Burchett to chair Salon
The military-industrial complex enters orbit Nonzero Newsletter
If you’re this guy’s commander or 1SG, you suck pic.twitter.com/Ke5EW6VAAV
— ex-Lethality Jane🌻 (@LethalityJane) July 21, 2023
Spook Country
The CIA Opposes JFK Record Releases Because Each One Is More Damning Than the Last Jacobin
Biden Administration
TSMC delays U.S. chip plant start to 2025 due to labor shortages Nikkei Asia
2024
Donald Trump’s trial to go ahead in the middle of 2024 election campaign The Daily Telegraph
Ron DeSantis threatens Anheuser-Busch over Bud Light marketing campaign with Dylan Mulvaney CBS News
Tim Scott closes in on Ron DeSantis in Iowa Washington Examiner
Democrats en déshabillé
‘This Is a Really Big Deal’: How College Towns Are Decimating the GOP Politico. The new coalition of the ascendant?
The Supremes
SCOTUS CONVICTION RULING ALREADY HARMING INNOCENT PEOPLE, LAWYERS SAY The Appeal
Healthcare
FTC Pulls Back From Prior Support for Pharmacy Benefit Middlemen Bloomberg Law. Nobody can ever quite get rid of these guys. Drunks with a ton of cash?
Police State Watch
He was making a documentary about police brutality. Then the LAPD tased him in his home Los Angeles Times
Big Brother Is Watching You Watch
AFP under investigation over its use of Auror surveillance technology Crikey. AFP=Australian Federal Police.
Digital Watch
OpenAI, Google will watermark AI-generated content to hinder deepfakes, misinfo Ars Technica. “Voluntary.” “Hinder.” Problem solved….
This free watermark removal tool is surprisingly effective against stock images The Verge. An AI-powered watermark remover. From Jan. 26.
And what about adding watermarks to “misinfo”?
***
The workers at the frontlines of the AI revolution Rest of World
Rural America is the new hotbed in the AI race as tech giants spend billions to turn farms into data centers Business Insider
The Bezzle
Mark Zuckerberg’s Threads traffic is now down 70% from its peak—just 2 weeks ago Yahoo!finance
Turkish prosecutor seeks up to 40,000 years in jail for crypto exchange founder Duvar
Class Warfare
Fighting eviction to build class power Canadian Dimension
Leaked messages show Amazon will force a ‘voluntary resignation’ on employees failing to relocate near their team ‘hubs’ Business Insider
Working from home: employers love flexibility… except when it benefits workers Crikey
Risk and Revolution The Baffler
Two-faced star with helium and hydrogen sides baffles astronomers The Guardian
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
