>>10193662

Beirut explosion reportedly caused by fertilizer seized from Russian businessman

The 2,700 tons of fertilizer believed to have caused the explosion that devastated Beirut had been confiscated from a Russian businessman — who “abandoned” his cargo ship after an unscheduled stop, according to reports.

Officials revealed Tuesday that the blast that killed at least 100 — and left up to 300,000 homeless — appeared to have been sparked by ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse since it was confiscated in 2014.

There were repeated warnings on the dangers of storing it — including one that it could “blow up all of Beirut” — but “nothing was done,” official sources told Reuters, calling it “negligence.”

The timeline and size of the cargo suggest it was taken from the MV Rhosus, according to the Associated Press, as well as Lebanon’s LBCI, citing sources at a Supreme Defense Council meeting.

The Rhosus is owned by Igor Grechushkin, a Russian national who now lives in Cyprus, according to the Moscow Times.

It had been traveling from Georgia to Mozambique in 2013 when it experienced an apparent malfunction and made an unscheduled stop in Beirut, the reports said.

Grechushkin then declared bankruptcy — and “abandoned” the ship in Lebanon, leaving its crew stranded on the vessel for months before the ammonium nitrate could be offloaded, the Moscow Times said.

The ammonium nitrate had been stored in a warehouse in the port of Beirut since then, the outlet said.

“Owing to the risks associated with retaining the ammonium nitrate on board the vessel, the port authorities discharged the cargo onto the port’s warehouses,” lawyers involved in the case previously wrote, according to the AP.

“The vessel and cargo remain to date in port awaiting auctioning and/or proper disposal,” the lawyers said in the 2015 article.

https://nypost.com/2020/08/05/beirut-explosion-caused-by-fertilizer-seized-from-russian-businessman-report/

Oregon Governor Brown Fooled by Russian Pranksters, Pledges Military Help for Ukraine

Oregon Governor Kate Brown (D-Portland) fell for a hoax call from Russian pranksters in a video released this week. In the video, Governor Brown says she will talk to her team about providing military assistance to Ukraine in response to the occupation by Russian forces.

Prank with Governor of Oregon Kate Brown:https://t.co/jm8HymnFYB

— Пранкер Вован (@evilprank) August 3, 2020

Пранк с губернатором штата Орегон США Kate Brown, где сейчас протестуют демонстранты.

Обсудили покупку дырявых кроссовок для армии, наркосамолет, встречу с мэром Спрингфилда из Симпсонов, а также скорую свадьбу губернатора и украинского президента. https://t.co/jm8Hym64A1

— Пранкер Вован (@evilprank) August 3, 2020

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/jeff-reynolds/2020/08/05/oregon-governor-brown-fooled-by-russian-pranksters-pledges-military-help-for-ukraine-n756376

Gov. Andrew Cuomo Worries That Wealthy New York City Residents Won't Return

Governor Andrew Cuomo really hates it when people leave New York, mostly because he can’t tax the heck out of them to pay for his progressive pet projects. Now he worries some of the wealthiest residents will never return to New York City. His concern is probably well-founded.

A little over a year ago, Cuomo was blaming Florida for wealthy residents fleeing his state. Darn that Florida weather and low tax rate. Because of the cap on the SALT deduction, wealthy residents who could afford it left for lower state and property taxes. Even President Trump changed his residence for tax purposes. The projected budget shortfall, as a result, was $2.3 billion.

Now Cuomo is worried because the second wave of New Yorkers is leaving:

Andrew Cuomo said he was extremely worried about New York City weathering the Covid-19 aftermath if too many of the well-heeled taxpayers who fled to second homes decide there is no need to move back.

“They are in their Hamptons homes, or Hudson Valley or Connecticut. I talk to them literally every day. I say. ‘When are you coming back? I’ll buy you a drink. I’ll cook,“ Mr Cuomo told MSNBC, naming popular getaways for the rich.

“They’re not coming back right now. And you know what else they’re thinking, if I stay there, they pay a lower income tax because they don’t pay the New York City surcharge. So, that would be a bad place if we had to go there.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/stacey-lennox/2020/08/05/gov-andrew-cuomo-worries-that-wealthy-new-york-city-residents-wont-return-n754621

U.S. Treasury Department says it expects to borrow $2 trillion in the remainder of 2020

The Department of the Treasury anticipates borrowing $2.16 trillion before the year ends, according to a press release put out Monday.

The release specifies that the department plans to borrow $947 billion in the third quarter of 2020 (July-September), plus $1.216 trillion in the year's final quarter (October-December). The figures "assume $1 trillion of additional borrowing need in anticipation of additional legislation being passed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak," the release reads.

The department borrowed $2.753 trillion from April through June of this year.

Congressionally authorized coronavirus relief packages for families and businesses have totaled about $3.6 trillion so far. Congress is currently debating another massive spending bill to help protect and stimulate the nation's economy, which has floundered since lockdown measures began this spring. Democrats have requested about $3.5 trillion in additional relief spending, while many Republicans are instead pushing to limit the next wave of relief spending to around $1 trillion.

https://disrn.com/news/us-treasury-department-says-it-expects-to-borrow-2-trillion-in-the-remainder-of-2020

The U.S. just posted its lowest number of new coronavirus cases in 4 weeks

After hitting an all-time high for new coronavirus cases in July, the United States recorded 48,646 new cases on Monday, marking the lowest figure in four weeks. The drop comes amid a mix of speculation and hope that some of the sunbelt states that have experienced a surge in infections this summer have plateaued and are beginning to decline.

The hardest-hit state, California, has climbed down from its peak of 12,000 new cases on July 21 to just over 5,100 on Monday. Florida, another state that has seen a surge of positive tests, dropped to 4,752 new cases from its peak of 15,300.

Though the United States is doing far more testing than any other country in the world, several other nations are seeing marked increases in positive diagnoses as well. Australia declared a state of disaster in Victoria state after finding 429 new cases. Hong Kong and China both have seen an uptick in positive tests, and India reported over 50,000 new cases for five straight days.

Despite the summer surge in infections across the United States, the death rate for coronavirus has not approached the levels seen in April and early May.

https://disrn.com/news/the-us-just-posted-its-lowest-number-of-new-coronavirus-cases-in-four-weeks

>>10194084

Wonder Why KEK

Bezos sells more than $3 billion in Amazon shares

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/05/bezos-sells-more-than-3-billion-in-amazon-shares.html

Mick Ronson with Ian Hunters Band performing "FBI" and "Slaughter on 10th Avenue" Germany 1980

U. Pennsylvania Can’t Explain Mysterious Donation From Chinese Company

For years, large donations have flowed into American higher education with no scrutiny. Those days are over.

The Washington Free Beacon reports:

UPenn Can’t Explain Mystery Donation From Chinese Company

The University of Pennsylvania pocketed a $3 million donation last year from a mysterious Hong Kong shell company that is owned by a Shanghai businessman with deep ties to Chinese government officials.

The donation from Xu Xeuqing, who has no apparent connection to the University of Pennsylvania and was previously embroiled in a Shanghai public corruption scandal, raises questions about the true source of the money. Documents reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon show Xeuqing has close ties to the Chinese Communist Party.

China has poured money into American universities in recent years, in part to buy influence on campuses, experts say. The donation comes as federal prosecutors have increased scrutiny on the Chinese government’s influence-buying and espionage operations at American universities.

“Unequivocally they’re using the money they’re providing the universities to garner influence there,” said Ben Freeman, the director of the Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative at the Center for International Policy. “It’s not the sole motive, but it’s one of a variety of motives.

https://legalinsurrection.com/2020/08/u-pennsylvania-cant-explain-mysterious-donation-from-chinese-company/

>>10194154

Exactly

Printing Money from Thin Air - How the Fed Reduces Purchasing Power and Makes You Poorer

Unless you have your head in the sand, you’ve probably realized that governments and central banks can print money out of thin air and in unlimited amounts. The United States and the Federal Reserve have been creating money from nothing for years because they had exhausted all their monetary policies. Despite the fact that many Americans will be happy to get a $1,200 check from the Treasury, the move will essentially debase the U.S. dollar, reduce it’s purchasing power, and make every citizen poorer

https://news.bitcoin.com/printing-money-from-thin-air-how-the-fed-reduces-purchasing-power-and-makes-you-poorer/

Must be Bidens friends KEK

Fears over political pressure as senior Ukrainian officials resign

A deputy governor at Ukraine’s central bank and at least one other senior official have resigned, raising fears of further political pressure on reform-minded officials.

The National Bank of Ukraine announced on July 31 that Serhiy Kholod had resigned before an “extraordinary meeting” of the NBU council. On August 3, the NBU announced that Natalia Bondarenko had resigned as its director of communications.

https://www.centralbanking.com/central-banks/governance/7663341/two-senior-ukrainian-officials-resign