Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has been accused of promoting an “anti-wokeness” platform which downplays the importance of race in his drive to win the Republican nomination for New York’s mayoral race next year. Critics have accused the tech industry fintech guru of a series of anti-Asian jokes as well as of struggling to understand topics of diversity and equity. Yang voiced his support for the HR-40 bill, which looks to examine the potential implications of slavery repatriations payments made by the US government to Black Americans. However, Yang has not escaped a recent barrage of online criticism over previous statements he made about Asian Americans during his presidential bid to secure the Democratic nomination nor for dressing up as a beefcake in the 2014 issue of New York magazine.
A new documentary, The Fire That Took Her, recounts the story of Judy Malinowski, who helped create new Ohio state law and testified in court following her own death. Malinowski suffered burns to over 90% of her body following an attack by her boyfriend, Michael Slager, who doused her in gasoline and set her alight outside an Ohio petrol station in 2015. Malinowski survived for almost two years before eventually succumbing to her injuries. Ohio’s new law provides sentences six years longer for offenders who attack and disfigure victims with accelerants, including gasoline.
China is trying to counter a US-dominated world order by hosting an inaugural summit with leaders of five former Soviet republics such as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. The high-profile event, which began on Thursday in Beijing, is taking place as G7 leaders, whose meeting also starts on Friday, are expected to address what the US sees as China’s growing assertiveness. China sees economic prosperity in Central Asia as a way of further stabilising its region of Xinjiang, which shares a border with Central Asian countries and is a source of concern. Series of attacks in the region have left at least a thousand people dead in recent years, which China blames on Islamic extremists and separatists. Experts say that by hosting the summit, China is also trying to fill some of the void left by Russia in Central Asia with Moscow's influence having weakened due to the war in Ukraine.
A Chicago man and his lawyers are suing Buffalo Wild Wings, claiming that they were misled into ordering boneless wings, which Halim says are not meat from the wings of a chicken. Halim claims that if he had known about the use of breast meat, he would have paid less for them or not purchased them at all. He is seeking financial compensation for false advertising through a class-action lawsuit. Lawyers often benefit more than the consumers they represent in class-action lawsuits, with one Consumer Financial Protection Bureau analysis showing that lawyers received almost $500m whilst the average consumer received only $30.
Illegal fentanyl has significantly contributed to overdose deaths and remains a concern. Derek Maltz, a veteran of the Drug Enforcement Administration, stated that the Chinese began manufacturing and selling illegal fentanyl to Americans in 2012, and Mexican cartels became involved in tangibly propagating it wider in 2014. Synthetic opioids are viewed as particularly lethal because the drugs are frequently devised in illict and unsanitary conditions and they are substantially more powerful than naturally occurring opioids such as heroin. Fentanyl has predominantly been marketed to individuals who use heroin, but it has also been added to various other street drugs, including cocaine and methamphetamine, as well as counterfeit pills that are thought to be legitimate medication. Fentanyl has also been mixed with marijuana in counterfeit counterfeit pills, known as "M30s".
Additionally, fentanyl has been sold through illegal online marketplaces. Some well-designed marketplaces can sometimes be reached only through the dark web, necessitating the use of specific software or settings, such as the Tor browser and a VPN, to mask users’ identities and locations. Cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, are frequently used to buy and sell fentanyl on these forums. When illicit prescriptions are shipped to a location in the mail, it is frequently mixed with other drugs to avoid detection.
For Maltz, efforts combatting the illicit fentanyl crisis should include both diplomatic discussion and regulatory reform to stimulate cooperation between China and the United States. By supporting less incursion in Afghanistan’s opiate trade, the United States can concentrate on decreasing Mexican cartels’ illicit drug trades profit margins. Additionally, opioid messaging must be revamped in order to reach a historically non-addicted, younger audience.
The leaders of Alberta’s two dominant political parties sparred over health care, the economy and education in a debate Thursday evening, but rather than focus on their respective plans for the future, the pair frequently attacked each other’s history. Voters go to the polls May 29 and the race is too close to predict. The provincial Ethics Commissioner, in a damning report released Thursday morning, ruled that Ms. Smith interfered in the justice system by trying to influence the Minister of Justice regarding criminal charges tied to the Coutts border blockade.
Reports of crimes by young people working odd jobs, known as “yami baito” or “dark part-time jobs" in Japan, have risen in the country, prompting higher police alert levels and calls for further preventative action. The jobs are advertised through social media, promising high rates of pay and no requirement for the applicant to undergo any background checks. Once employed, however, jobholders are often asked to participate in illegal scams such as carrying out robberies or becoming couriers for money obtained through fraud. Young people looking for easy money and who believe that they can take advantage of juvenile law are particularly vulnerable to recruitment. Looking to escape difficulties in life is also a common reason that people end up trapped in “yami baito” jobs. Those caught can face major legal and social penalties, including ostracism from local communities. Recruitment adverts for “yami baito” typically do not overtly ask the applicant to undertake illegal actions.
Australia’s media watchdog, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), has said that footage of a violent dispute between neighbours, posted on social media platform TikTok, was a breach of privacy and should not have been shown by network A Current Affair. The segment showed footage from 19-year-old Jack Stokes, who captured a fight with a neighbour and posted it on the site, in which the neighbour’s face is seen. Nine Network aired the footage in March 2019. ACMA said Stokes had not obtained consent from the neighbour and that there was no public interest in the material.
Robert Moran writes for the Sydney Morning Herald about the sad reality of losing a friendship of 25 years because of a trivial argument through social media. The ending of this long-standing friendship was particularly devastating because these two people used to communicate through the dial-up ether of Internet Relay Chat in the 90s, before meeting up in person. They had reunited in the US in 2001, around the same time as 9/11. The author’s Facebook friend, Stu, was someone that he had admired and respected as a musician and therefore to lose him entirely from his life is painful. Moran believes that the terrible finality of ending a friendship should never be done from a position of pique, because neither party gets the chance to explain their feelings. A little pause could have done instead of a full stop to the relationship. In a world where most of us are content to let old friendships simply shrivel and wither on the vine, it is important to cherish and value the people that are in our lives, because we don’t know if one day they will vanish completely from it.
Stephanie Louise Bennett, who stole the identity of a pilot killed in a helicopter crash in a bid to dodge a traffic ticket, has had her fine increased in court. Bennett pleaded guilty to fraud by dishonestly inducing a person to act along with obtaining or dealing with another’s identity to commit an indictable offence. The mother of two had been caught using her mobile phone while driving and she could not afford the $1,078 fine she faced and the four demerit points, which would leave her without a licence. Bennett scoured obituaries to find details to use to pay the fine and after several failed attempts, she chose the identity of Ashley Jenkinson, who was killed in a helicopter collision on 2 January.
A new book by London-based podcaster, television presenter and infectious disease doctor Chris van Tulleken examines the role of synthetic food additives in mass-produced food. In "Ultra-Processed People", van Tulleken looks into “the modern nutritional landscape in which 'most of our calories come from food products containing novel, synthetic molecules, never found in nature’”. According to the author, UK citizens ingest four times as much additive weight on average each year than they do flour. While the additives themselves are not regarded as any kind of threat, their relationship with diets high in ultra-processed foods are considered deeply harmful. Van Tulleken also points out that, whilst extending shelf life and reducing production costs, synthetic additives also encourage excessive consumption. Though the additives have been in use for many years, the book calls for food companies to remove conflict of interest in science research on the subject as well as in the policy-making processes which surround them.
An Australian boy has set up his own free library at his home in Melbourne's north-west. Seth Chirau has loaned out part of his collection of 570 books to his neighbours and friends since February, under the venture "A library in Aintree". Orders can be placed online and members can access the service within walking distance from their homes. Membership and borrowing are free, but new members pay a one-time AUD20 ($14) bond that is returned when they leave the group. Wendy Rapee, chair of the Children’s Book Council of Australia, praised Seth's initiative as a "gold-star model".
The Postman of Abruzzo is a novella from French-Lebanese author Venus Khoury-Ghata, published by an English-language press based in Kolkata. The novel is the story of Laure, a Parisian widow, who travels to a remote Albanian village in Southern Italy, seeking to understand her late husband, a celebrated geneticist who had spent time studying the community. The villagers are intriguing, from the baker “who proposes marriage to every woman who enters his shop,” to the Muslim bookseller who resents his neighbours for preferring “coffee grounds and palms” to his “treasures” displayed in his window. However, the postman, Yussuf, is Laure’s guide to the customs of this hinterland. It is Yussuf who confides in Laure that one of the locals plans to kill the man who raped her daughter, who is preparing to return to the village.
Born in Bsharri in Lebanon, Khoury-Ghata has lived in France for half a century and has been named a Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur. The Postman of Abruzzo draws on Khoury-Ghata’s poetic skill, with its collection of “glancing moments…a lyrical and pictorial style” that communicates a sense of unease. Khoury-Ghata captures an “irrevocably odd atmosphere,” the village is “more Twin Peaks than Italian idyll.” The central irony of the novel is that the characters are in a small, isolated environment, but Laure’s story is that of exiles and departures.
Private prosecutions have become a burgeoning industry in England and Wales, filling a gap left by a retreating state. While once little-known, the concept of private prosecutions was given a significant boost in 1985 with the creation of the Crown Prosecution Service. Today, people and companies can bring private prosecutions for offences including shoplifting and counterfeiting, and the government will pay at least some of the expenses afterwards. Private prosecutions do have critics, however, who say that most shoplifters are drug addicts and need help that will deal with the root cause of their behaviour.
David McKelvey, a retired police officer and CEO of TM Eye, is enjoying his second career in law enforcement, this time in private practice. McKelvey’s company, which initially specialised in corporate investigations, now prosecutes counterfeit cases for big brands, and focuses heavily on private prosecutions for prolific crimes. The company’s clients have included Apple, Louis Vuitton and Fortnum & Mason, with its targets ranging from organised crime operatives to young women on benefits hawking fake designer jewellery and tracksuits on Facebook.
TM Eye is at the forefront of a growing wave of private prosecutions in England and Wales. The company’s move into prosecuting counterfeit cases came after the authorities became less interested in the types of crime uncovered by McKelvey’s investigations. At the same time, austerity measures in the UK have meant that the wheels of justice have ground almost to a halt for a broad swathe of crimes, allowing people with money to buy their day in court.
Singer Sam Fender has shared a tearful photo on Instagram after he met Bruce Springsteen. Fender named Springsteen as his hero and his music has drawn comparison to that of the "Born to Run" artist. Fender is currently opening shows for Springsteen in Italy and took to social media to discuss the "insane" encounter, calling it a "full circle moment". The concert took place despite the surrounding area being hit by heavy rain and flooding, leading to several deaths and mass evacuations.
The final episode of “The Billionaire Murders: The hunt for the killers of Honey and Barry Sherman” podcast deals with the couple’s estate and the power struggle between their four children. The siblings disagree on how to move forward, with only two wanting power. The possibility of Honey leaving a will that could take precedence over the estate also hangs over the squabble. Kevin Donovan, the reporter covering the case for the Toronto Star, has written a book titled "The Billionaire Murders" based on his extensive investigation.
Republicans in North Carolina have passed a 12-week abortion ban despite the governor's veto. The law also extends the waiting period for abortions to 72 hours on top of the newly placed strict rules on clinics, severely restricting access to abortions and other reproductive health services to only those with the resources to leave the state. Republicans across the US are implementing and passing laws that restrict or ban access to bodily autonomy, including abortion and gender-affirming healthcare for transgender individuals. The net result of these laws is the marginalisation of access to healthcare for those who are already economically and socially disenfranchised. The broader aim of these anti-abortion and anti-gender affirmation laws is to restore and bolster traditional hierarchies of gender and sexuality. In this sense, the actions of Republican-led states provide the best insight into the Republican Party's priorities and the society it is trying to construct, which is one of domination and domination building on the freedom to censor and menace.
Baidu’s head of metaverse operations, Ma Jie, has left the company. The departure comes after Baidu made a pivot to investing in generative AI. Ma’s position at the company could not be located on the internal computer system as of Friday, indicating a recent change in employment. As well as overseeing Baidu’s metaverse arm, Ma also headed cybersecurity for the tech giant. The recent shift in Baidu’s approach to AI came just 18 months after they of their virtual environment and user community XiRang. Although it launched to attention, XiRang did not gain significant traction.
After a year of using BeReal, a photo app pitched as an anti-Instagram venture, novelty has worn off, indicating that people are more interested in the highlights of their lives and not the mundane detail. It is difficult to know whether to embrace or resist generative artificial intelligence, which is akin to Photoshop on steroids, enabling chatbots to hold conversations on a human level as well as manipulate videos and photographs. Some gen Zs are reportedly re-evaluating their relationships with technology, but Microsoft-backed OpenAI's chatbot and image generator DALL-E 2 suggests the commercializing of artificial intelligence shows no sign of slowing down.
UK chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Sarah Cardell, is proving an irritant to Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. The CMA has been trying to block the video gaming company's acquisition by Microsoft in a similar fashion to US Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan. Both the UK and US are taking an approach to antitrust enforcement that is less willing to accept the traditional behavioural recoveries and more interested in preventing companies from extending their existing monopolies. Regulators are believed to be worried that large pharma and tech firms are locking out smaller competitors.
