Netanyahu's far-right government's only agenda is to destroy Israel's democratic institutions, cripple judicial independence, foster corruption, and curtail freedom of speech and dissent. In a nutshell, the proposed reforms are a ploy to allow ultra-Orthodox lawmakers to abuse their authority and help Netanyahu — on trial for fraud, breach of trust, and bribery charges since 2019 — evade conviction.
Netanyahu's government is carrying out the people's will to strengthen democracy by restoring the balance between the judiciary, executive, and legislature. Contrary to the democracy doomsdayers' assertions, the proposed legal reforms would make Israel's judicial apparatus the most powerful in the world and ensure the country's radically democratic political culture remains healthy and vibrant.
Sunday's accident, unfortunately, highlights Nepal's worrying aviation safety record — particularly for its domestic services, which has experienced 17 plane crashes and 273 deaths since 2000. Remote runways and outdated radars are potentially major factors for pilots navigating challenging terrain.
Nepal's rocky and treacherous topography makes it challenging for even the most experienced and accomplished pilots. The cause of Sunday's crash has not been ascertained yet, and it's unfair to blame all of Nepal's air tragedies solely on its infrastructure. The aviation industry and pilots must cope with extraordinary challenges in this terrain, which must always be kept in mind.
As more documents are found, it’s looking like Biden finds himself in the same predicament as Trump, and the president’s protectors in the media have less room to differentiate the two situations. The GOP-controlled House will get to the bottom of this — including how much access Hunter Biden had to the documents — meaning Biden’s presidency could be in peril.
The Biden administration is being forthcoming about what it has found and cooperated with authorities. Clearly, Biden doesn’t want to have this hanging over his head the way a similar situation hampered Hillary Clinton in 2016. Every effort is being made to be transparent here, and any comparisons to Trump’s situation are false equivalencies.
There is a 15% chance that Biden will not complete his first term, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Russia's indiscriminate missile attack on a residential building in Dnipro targeted civilians in close quarters — violating fundamental tenants of international humanitarian law. This is a war crime.
Russia's attack on Dnipro did not target civilians. Legitimate military targets were struck in the attack and the residential block was damaged by Ukrainian air defenses.
There is a 3% chance that the regions surrounding the Dnipro River (Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kherson) will be under Russian control by June 1, 2023, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
The growing gap between the rich and poor, in wealth and income, is bad for everyone. When power and wealth are concentrated in a few hands, it usually leads to corruption, exploitation of the masses, and loss of faith in political and economic systems. The first step to reducing racial, social, and economic inequality is to pour more money into the hands of those who need it most.
While many have hit the panic button on widening income inequality reports, taxing the super-rich is not the solution to alleviate poverty, hunger, illiteracy, or unemployment. A wealth tax would do nothing to help low- and middle-income earners. Penalizing high-net-worth individuals, however, would drive out the wealth creators, bring in less revenue, and weaken the economy over time.
There's a 50% chance that the world will create the first Trillionaire by Jun 21, 2031, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Even after 30 years of evading capture, Matteo Messina Denaro still has a healthy following of devoted fans. To his cohort of followers, he is a Robin Hood who works for the poor and corrects mistakes. In his eyes, he is a philosopher and even a folk hero. As one of the world's most wanted men, he continued to live lavishly and serve his "family." He carried no shame and no remorse for his actions, in fact, he continued the family business while in hiding. This arrest is the first step towards justice for his victims.
This arrest is a turning point in Italy's decades-long battle against organized crime as the alleged Cosa Nostra crime syndicate chief Messina Denaro had been on the country's most wanted list since the early 1990s. Myths about his ability to dodge authorities and theories that he was receiving protection from state officials had emerged during his 30 years of evading capture. Hopefully, it will not take another 30 years to bring the next Mafia leader to justice.
Yes, Messina Denaro was arrested but the Italian law is not up to snuff in holding mafia members accountable for their violent and heinous crimes. Despite protests across the political divide, Cosa Nostra's key operator Giovanni Brusca has been on a four-year probation after serving a year sentence for his role in attacks including the one that killed anti-mafia prosecutor Giovanni Falcone and the murder of Di Matteo, while the truth about these crimes remains unknown. The law seems to be working against the victims.
Lambrecht was evidently the wrong person for the job. She did not take the Ukraine war seriously enough and used a helicopter for personal use. Now that she has resigned, Chancellor Scholz may appoint a qualified minister that will help to revert decades of neglect for the German armed forces.
While Lambrecht has reportedly committed several gaffes during her term in the Scholz government, the main reason she came under fire was her hesitancy to ramp up defense aid to Ukraine as Berlin faces pressure from other NATO allies. Lambrecht was simply under immense political pressure from this simmering geopolitical conflict.
There's a 50% chance that Germany will elect a new Chancellor by May 2026, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
As healthcare workers and community organizers fight to eradicate polio, they must also fight for their lives. More than 50 workers have died at the hands of violent religious extremists, who threaten and kill people due to unmerited conspiracy theories regarding vaccines. Since the death of Osama bin Laden in 2011, these conspiracy theories have grown more prominent and dangerous. Extremist violence is a major factor hindering Pakistan's polio eradication efforts.
The government of Pakistan and its contributors recognize that the most vulnerable areas are the areas that are the most difficult to reach due to security, and are doing their best to address this. The people of Pakistan also understand that polio is not the singular concern; other basic services are needed from the government to ensure the well-being of people no matter if they live in rural issues or have migrated. Polio is a consequence of the need for rural development.
There's a 50% chance that the WHO will certify the worldwide eradication of Polio by early July 2032, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
McCarthy is right that the US cannot just spend into oblivion and recklessly raise its credit limit. This country wastes so much money in ways that the American people don’t even see, and the GOP was elected to its majority on a mandate to bring fiscal responsibility back to Washington.
Republicans are using the US economy as a pawn in an extortion scheme to get whatever they want. The US is risking its reputation because the Republican Party does not care if it crashes the economy. If the GOP wants to cut public spending, it can do it the legislative way.
There is a 5% chance that the US will default on its sovereign debt by 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
This is great news because electric vehicle sales are outperforming projections, and a path to net zero carbon emissions is at least visible, if not guaranteed. More must be done to encourage the transition from fossil fuels and to address issues with the EV industry, including inequality of access to EVs and sourcing of materials for batteries.
EVs are going to bankrupt states and countries that rely on the oil and gas industry for their citizens’ livelihood. Sales of new EVs should be highly curtailed in desolate areas like Wyoming because there’s no charging infrastructure in these places. Also, critical minerals needed for batteries could lead to excess pollution. These vehicles are not silver bullets.
Adams is now pleading for help because his city cannot handle the effects of the Democratic Party’s policies. Yet he continues to incentivize mass illegal migration by opening more and more shelters. He doesn't truly care about stopping the border crisis — he just wants to shift the financial burden onto the federal government.
Adams, and other mayors of major cities across the US, are doing their best to find a solution to a problem that is being exacerbated by Republican governors. Migrants are being shipped without any coordination as GOP politicians pull shameless political stunts without any regard for the well-being of migrants and the cities receiving them.