October 31, 2019

Scientists Say a Quarter of Pigs Around the World Could Die of Swine Fever

Source: Time

(SYDNEY) — Around a quarter of the world’s pigs are expected to die from African swine fever as authorities grapple with a complex disease spreading rapidly in the globalization era, the World Organization for Animal Health’s president said Thursday.

A sharp reduction in the world’s pig population would lead to possible food shortages and high pork prices, and it might also cause shortfalls in the many products made from pigs, such as the blood-thinner heparin that’s used in people, said Dr. Mark Schipp, the organization’s president.

The disease’s spread in the past year to countries including China, which has half the world’s pigs, had inflamed a worldwide crisis, Schipp told reporters at a briefing in Sydney.

“I don’t think the species will be lost, but it’s the biggest threat to the commercial raising of pigs we’ve ever seen,” he said. “And it’s the biggest threat to any commercial livestock of our genera

Read more: https://time.com/5714688/swine-fever-global-pig-population/

October 30, 2019

North Korean malware found on Indian nuclear plant's network

Confirmed: North Korean malware found on Indian nuclear plant's network

The network of one of India's nuclear power plants was infected with malware created by North Korea's state-sponsored hackers, the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) confirmed today.

News that the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) might have been infected with a dangerous strain of malware first surfaced on Twitter on Monday.

(snip) The particular malware sample included hardcoded credentials for KNPP's internal network, suggesting the malware was specifically compiled to spread and operate inside the power plant's IT network.

Several security researchers identified the malware as a version of Dtrack, a backdoor trojan developed by the Lazarus Group, North Korea's elite hacking unit.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/confirmed-north-korean-malware-found-on-indian-nuclear-plants-network/

October 30, 2019

Impeachment: The Senate trial will take place in 2020.

Whenever it is, attendance will significantly disadvantage Senators Booker, Harris, Klobuchar, Sanders and Warren.

October 29, 2019

Johnson Wins Commons Support For Dec. 12 Election: Brexit Update

Source: Bloomberg

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is on course to get the general election he wants on his preferred date of December 12 after winning crucial votes in the House of Commons.

With Brexit on hold until the end of January, and Johnson unable to get his divorce deal through Parliament, the U.K.’s political leaders now believe a snap poll is the only way to resolve the crisis paralyzing the country. The vote is set to become a proxy referendum on European Union membership.

Key Developments:

Johnson won a vote in the House of Commons for a bill to set the date of the next election as Dec. 12 by 438 to 20.
MPs voted 315 to 295 to reject a Labour bid for the election to be held on Dec. 9
Election Bill now passes to the House of Lords

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-29/johnson-pushes-again-for-early-general-election-brexit-update

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Well that's that then

October 29, 2019

Tory Rebel MPs - "they have accepted the whip"

The Brits have a way with words.

Conservative party restores whip to 10 MPs

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/oct/29/brexit-latest-news-general-election-debate-boris-johnson-faces-backlash-from-tories-over-plan-to-hold-election-before-passing-withdrawal-bill-live-news

October 29, 2019

Chair Carolyn Maloney: Vindman's testimony "extremely, extremely, extremely disturbing"

Wow

'Extremely disturbing': Top Dems alarmed over Vindman's testimony on Trump-Ukraine call

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-impeachment-inquiry/extremely-disturbing-top-dems-alarmed-over-vindman-s-testimony-trump-n1073371

October 29, 2019

CNBC: Bernie Sanders on Political Revolution

Bernie Sanders: (snip) At this particular moment in history — where the average worker has not seen a real inflation accounted for wage increase in 45 years despite an explosion of technology and productivity, where you have a political system which is totally corrupt and owned by billionaires, where you have massive amounts of corporate corruption, I think the time is now, if we’re going to save this country, for a political revolution.

It’s not just more regulation. It’s about involving millions of people, working people, young people, people who believe in justice, in the political process, to tell the corporate elite that enough is enough. We’re going to change the system politically, economically. We’re going to change the value system of this country. We’re not going to worship corrupt billionaires anymore, we’re going to respect teachers and child care workers and cops and firefighters and small business people. That’s what our campaign, uniquely I believe, is about.

(snip) There was a guy who was head of Third Way, the corporate wing of the Democratic Party. He said, “Bernie Sanders is an existential threat to the Democratic Party.” I agree with him. I am. I want to convert the Democratic Party, to break its dependency on big money and corporate interests, and make it a party of working-class people, of young people, of all people who believe in justice.

(snip) You talk about the fact that nothing much really big ever happens. And there’s truth to that. But what you’re missing is that right now you have a Congress and a White House that are dominated by a corporate elite who have unbelievable amounts of money and influence over the political and economic life of this country. I’m not going to be dominated by those guys. I will take them on and I’ll beat them.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/28/bernie-sanders-lets-not-make-people-overly-nervous-about-socialism.html

October 29, 2019

CNBC: Bernie Sanders on Democratic Socialism

(snip) John Harwood: You identify as a democratic socialist. You got the endorsement of Representative Ocasio-Cortez over the weekend. How far do you think you can take the United States of America toward democratic socialism?

Bernie Sanders: It depends on what we mean by democratic socialism. What I am trying to do, in many ways, is pick up where Franklin Delano Roosevelt left off. In a not widely publicized State of The Union speech he gave in 1944, this is what he said in so many words: “We have political rights. You have freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion. All of that’s great, but what we don’t have are guaranteed economic rights.”

So you could vote, but you also have the privilege of sleeping out on the street. You can protest, but you also have the freedom to work 60 or 70 hours a week at starvation wages. You have the freedom not to have health insurance, not to be able to send your kids to college. What I’m trying to do in this campaign is say that economic rights must be considered as human rights.

(snip) John Harwood: The DSA website said, “We can’t eliminate private corporations in the short term, so we have to confront them.” Would it be your intention, in the medium or long term, not to have private corporations?

Bernie Sanders: No, that’s not my intention. What is my intention, though, is to make sure that workers have representation on those large corporations. We’ve presented the Corporate Accountability Act. Not terribly radical — it exists in one form or another in other countries, including Germany. Instead of just being a cog in the machine, what about giving that worker some power and responsibility in terms of the shaping of that corporation?

Should Wall Street and a handful of members of a board determine whether a factory remains in the United States or whether it goes to China? Should a handful of wealthy board members determine whether or not there is a stock buy-back, whether workers get decent wage increases and decent benefits?

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/28/bernie-sanders-lets-not-make-people-overly-nervous-about-socialism.html

October 29, 2019

trump Declassifies image of 'wonderful' dog that took part in Baghdadi raid

Trump tweets photo of 'wonderful' dog that took part in Baghdadi raid

On Sunday, the US president had hailed the dog as a “good boy”, “beautiful” and “talented”, who had chased down Baghdadi moments before he detonated his vest. The dog sustained minor injuries and was being treated by vets.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/29/zero-bark-thirty-dog-that-took-part-in-al-baghdadi-raid-sets-tongues-wagging

October 29, 2019

WaPo: Compares Obama's announcement of Bin Laden's death with trump's bit.