Free Republic

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin is tarnished as a result of Russia’s unprovoked invasion and occupation of Ukraine. Xi has been distancing China from Putin’s predations gradually — out of deference to his two biggest customers, the United States and European Union. But on Sept. 15 his displeasure about the war became public. Putin himself admitted at a press conference following a meeting with Xi that China had “concerns” about his war in Ukraine. So did India. But there is one more elephant in the room: Siberia, a region bigger and richer than any place...

Protesters are causing major traffic issues across the Bay Area, including in Oakland and on the Golden Gate Bridge, as part of a worldwide economic blockade in solidarity with Palestine.Northbound I-880 in OaklandThe first protest Monday morning happened on northbound I-880 in Oakland at 5th Ave., where protesters brought barrels filled with concrete onto the highway and chained themselves to the barrels. Law enforcement had to cut through the barrels before they could arrest the protesters. Two lanes have been reopened.

BEIJING—The extent of China's soil pollution, long guarded as a state secret, was laid out in an official report that confirmed deep-seated fears about contaminated farmland and the viability of the country's food supply. Nearly one-fifth of the country's arable land is polluted, officials said in the report, shedding unexpected light on the scale of the problem—a legacy of China's three decades of breakneck economic growth and industrial expansion.

Water insecurity. China is home to about 20 percent of the world’s population but only 7 percent of its freshwater sources. Overuse has led to severe shortages, and industry along China’s major water sources has polluted supplies. Construction of hydropower dams along major rivers has also damaged ecosystems. The government released a plan in 2015 for preventing water pollution that included placing controls on polluting industries. The quality of surface waters—bodies such as lakes, rivers, and streams—has since improved. However, groundwater continues to fall short of targets, with more than 80 percent categorized as “bad to very bad.” Desertification. More...

China has increased its reliance on food imports over the past two decades, prompting concerns among officials who worry that disruptions to food supply chains could trigger domestic unrest. In particular, this reliance has heightened China’s sensitivity to food supply disruptions caused by geopolitical tensions, such as Russia’s war in Ukraine. What is China’s current food security situation? With less than 10 percent of the planet’s arable land, China produces one-fourth of the world’s grain and feeds one-fifth of the world’s population. Data from the country’s National Bureau of Statistics showed that in 2022, China’s grain output reached a record...

Unemployment may be low, jobs plentiful, and consumer spending holding up. However, consumers are still struggling with the rising cost of credit card debt, housing, and automobiles—expenses that defy easy solutions. However, managing the cost of groceries and other essentials, the leading expense for half the respondents in a recent TD Bank survey, is just a click or short drive away. As consumers pull back on discretionary spending, major retailers in the grocery business are doubling down on the power of private-label brands to build traffic and loyalty. The boom is on. Amazon, which owns Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh,...

Psychopathy signs in women tend to be more related to sex than in men Dr Clive Boddy, an expert at Anglia Ruskin University, says female psychopaths are 'more common than we think' because studies have long failed to identify them. According to Dr Boddy, female psychopaths use deceit and sexually seductive behaviour to gain social and financial advantage more than male psychopaths do. 'Psychopaths are driven by a need to have power over and control other people via whatever resources they have available to them,' he told MailOnline. 'For female psychopaths this may veer towards manipulation through seduction, relational aggression,...

The nation’s top public health agency did not send an alert on COVID-19 vaccines and heart inflammation because officials were concerned they would cause panic, according to an email obtained by The Epoch Times. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2021 drafted an alert for heart inflammation, or myocarditis, and the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. Officials prepared to release it to the public, taking steps including having the agency’s director review the language, internal documents show. “The pros and cons of an official HAN are what the main discussion are right now,” Dr. Sara Oliver,...

There has been an alarming amount of cardiovascular-related deaths — reversing a 10-year downward trend — in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Northwestern University.“We were concerned about the emerging evidence that chronic disease outcomes worsened during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Rebecca C. Woodruff“This was unfortunately the case with heart disease and stroke, which had been improving before the pandemic.”Researchers observed that the span of cardiovascular (CVD) deaths between 2020 and 2022 had increased trend expectations by 228,000 across all demographics.That...

Bloodhound, a cocktail bar in San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood, closed for good on Jan. 18, the owner said. | Source:Courtesy BloodhoundA San Francisco bar has permanently shut its doors after the pandemic slashed business in the neighborhood and emptied out Downtown offices, the owner said.The SoMa watering hole Bloodhound shut its doors for good on Thursday, according to co-owner Mike Goebel.Goebel said that since reopening after a one-year closure during the pandemic from March 2020 to March 2021, sales have been down 70% compared with before the pandemic."The business wasn't making money," Goebel said. "The neighborhood is just so...

mSharePea Soup Andersen's, a landmark roadside attraction, has closed its Buellton location. The Santa Nella location, seen here, will remain open. | Source:Smith Collection/Gado via Getty ImagesRoad trippers leaving San Francisco for Southern California know that there are two places to stop for excellent split pea soup and even better fried chicken: the Pea Soup Andersen’s on U.S. 101 near Solvang, and the other Pea Soup Andersen’s on Interstate 5 in Santa Nella.A year shy of its centennial, the 101 location—in the Central Coast town of Buellton, technically—has closed, as SFGate first reported. An icon of kitschy Danish culture recognizable...

One of San Francisco's last remaining toy stores may have to close its doors if business doesn't pick up soon. The beloved Jeffrey's Toys in Union Square, which has been family-owned and operated since 1938, has been hit with hard times. "We all know, the pandemic has been hard on people, the uptick in crime. I look around me right now and see so many buildings that are closed and shuttered. Why are we here? We love San Francisco, we love toys, and we're the type of family that doesn't give up," said co-owner Matthew Luhn. Luhn says this week...

Given the compressed timeframe, the novel constitutional questions involved, the importance of this case, and impending ballot preparation deadlines, Secretary Bellows has suspended the effect of her decision until the Superior Court rules on any appeal, or the time to appeal has expired. A copy of the decision is here: https://www.maine.gov/sos/news/2023/Decision%20in%20Challenge%20to%20Trump%20Presidential%20Primary%20Petitions.pdf

The government’s action in imposing CAFE standards, which was intended to curb oil consumption, helped prompt the creation of the SUV and subsequent “gas guzzling.” Oil exploration in Alaska’s Artic National Wildlife Refuge has once again become possible, if not probable, after the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a major energy bill. Environmentalists reacted by renewing their call for raising Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards in order to lower American consumption of oil and decrease fuel emissions. But CAFE has proven itself a failure.The Energy Policy Conservation Act of 1975 established CAFE standards as a reaction to the...

SAN FRANCISCO — The Port of San Francisco and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are planning on raising the iconic, historic Ferry Building by as much as seven feet. The daring plan is an attempt to combat the impacts of sea level rise and extreme weather, both triggered by the climate change, and our warming planet. The project will break ground in about a decade. The U.S. Corps will pick up 65% of the cost. San Francisco's Prop A -- which was passed by 82.7% of voters in 2018 -- authorized $425 million general obligation bonds that will partially...

...a United Nations program that, unknown to most Americans, has been showering millions of dollars in cash to help foreign nationals on their way to cross the U.S. southern border. In late 2021 and early 2022, the UN program drew outrage among advocates of regular immigration law enforcement, including congressional Republicans of border states, after they learned, in part from Center for Immigration Studies video, photos, and analysis, that UN debit cards and vouchers for transportation, shelter, and medical and legal advice to gain asylum “protection” all along Latin America’s migration trails were easing travel in the most voluminous ongoing...

Authorities are looking for two suspects who stole a wallet from an elderly woman at a Safeway, the Gilroy Police Department said on social media. The alleged theft happened Thursday when the suspects stole the victim’s wallet from her shopping cart.Police said the male suspect distracted the woman by having a conversation with her. The female suspect then allegedly walked to the victim’s shopping cart and stole a purse that contained the wallet. (Giroy Police Department) (Giroy Police Department) The suspects tried using the elderly woman’s credit cards to make purchases at Walmart, according to Gilroy police. Police say anyone...

EXCLUSIVE The air hostess, the trainee vet and the restaurant manager dreaming of running her own brasserie in London who are among the thousands of Israeli volunteer soldiers poised for battle with Hamas in GazaAn air hostess and a research scientist are among the hundreds of thousands of volunteer soldiers who are braced for Israel's battle with Hamas fanatics in Gazahttps://youtu.be/fsR4jCAFfq8

Saleh al-Arouri bragged of Hamas’ ability to capture Israeli military personnel in a Saturday interview with Al-Jazeera. “We managed to kill and capture many Israeli soldiers. The fighting is still on.” 4 dead IDF Soldiers https://twitter.com/Zagonel85/status/1710739882262319614 Woman and children carted into Gaza https://twitter.com/i/status/1710733300988313866 More horrid deeds at link...

Israel IDF’s Major General Ghasan Alyan “Hamas has opened the gates of hell into the Gaza Strip. Hamas made the decision and Hamas will bear the responsibility and pay for its deeds.”