Tuesday saw a possible monumental twist in the Hunter Biden saga as Biden said he would be willing to comply with a House Oversight Committee subpoena and testify publicly (even though the committee currently wanted a private deposition) about his life of ruin‚ corruption‚ and allegations of malfeasance involving his father‚ the current President.  But like most Biden scandals‚ it barely received any attention on the flagship morning and evening news programs on ABC‚ CBS‚ and NBC‚ with only 31 seconds on Tuesday’s CBS Evening News.     There wasn’t officially anything either on all three networks during their lead Wednesday morning shows‚ minus a 14-second nod on CBS Mornings during the Eye Opener (which‚ given its mostly teases‚ was almost never used in official NewsBusters time counts). The 31 seconds on the CBS Evening News was tacked onto the end of a larger segment obsessing over the soap opera that is the life and times of Congressman George Santos (R-NY). Anchor Norah O’Donnell cued up congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane: “Scott‚ I understand there’s also some news tonight on a different matter‚ the House investigation into Hunter Biden‚ the President’s son offering to testify publicly. What can you tell us about that?” MacFarlane then explained: “[T]he House Oversight Committee‚ which has been investigating the President’s son all year and subpoenaed him last month‚ has rejected that offer‚ saying they want him behind closed doors for a deposition first‚ as others have gone.” He added that‚ instead‚ “Biden’s attorneys told the committee they want this public” so “all Americans” can “see” that “it’s a baseless probe”. Along with the non-mention on CBS Mornings (which was tied to a so-called joke from ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel the night before)‚ CBS stashed 21 seconds of Biden coverage on its little-watched‚ early-morning program‚ CBS Morning News with host Anne-Marie Green: Hunter Biden is offering to testify publicly before Congress. The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed president Biden’s son last month amid an impeachment inquiry into his father. But Committee Chairman James Comer says the testimony should be behind closed doors like other depositions. Hunter Biden says he wants to appear in public to prevent his testimony from being manipulated. ABC did the same with a 15-second brief on its own late-overnight/early-morning show America This Morning via co-host Andrew Dymburt: The President’s son‚ Hunter Biden‚ is now offering to testify before Congress‚ but only in public. He’s been subpoenaed to give testimony to a House Committee about his business practices and whether he profited from his family connections. The Committee wants the testimony behind closed doors. Instead of even a news brief on Wednesday‚ ABC’s Good Morning America had a full segment touting a TikTok video of a user finding a prayer mantis in their Christmas tree‚ CBS Mornings promoted co-host and Democratic donor Gayle King’s CNN show premiering‚ and NBC’s Today highlighted Spotify’s most-streamed songs in 2023.

NewsNation continued to flaunt its moral compass on Monday‚ with primetime host Dan Abrams taking to his eponymous show to call out “far-left media” organizations like MSNBC and The New York Times because they were trying to draw a parody between Hamas releasing the women and children they kidnapped with Israel releasing convicted terrorists‚ who were women and young adults. He called their arguments “disgusting” and “so dumb.” He opened his monologue by decrying how‚ “so many in the media around the world seem to be falsely equating innocent civilians‚ toddlers‚ grade-schoolers taken hostage often from or with their parents on October‚ 7th – if those parents are still alive – with the accused and in most cases convicted Palestinian criminals they're being traded for.” Noting that many of the people Israel was releasing were women and young adults‚ Abrams pointed out that‚ “so many are choosing to ignore...that the Palestinians have all been convicted or charged with violent‚ even terror-related‚ attacks. So‚ yeah‚ they’re ‘women and children‚’ but it is not the same.” The first to get called out by name was model Gigi Hadid‚ who claimed: “Israel is the only country in the world that keeps children as prisoners of war” alongside an image of Ahmed Mansara. Abrams played a video of Mansara and his cousin attempting to murder “a 13-year-old Jewish boy and a 20-year-old security guard” with knives‚ for which he was convicted in court. “Here in the United States‚ teenagers charged with violent offenses are often prosecuted as adults. I don't know what Gigi Hadid is talking about‚” Abrams would later scoff at her.     Pro-Hamas MSNBC host Ayman Mohyeldin was also called out by name for trying to draw false equivalencies between innocent Israeli civilians and the Palestinian terrorists he had an affinity for. “See‚ he doesn’t want to distinguish between them because the reality is hard for apologists of Hamas to accept‚” Abrams said of Mohyeldin (emphasis his). “It’s really not hard to distinguish between a 4-year-old kidnapped from the arms of her murdered parents and a 16-year-old‚ at the very least accused of if not convicted of a serious crime.” There was also the case of The New York Times‚ which tried to put a sympathetic spin on a female Palestinian terrorist (again‚ the emphasis comes from Abrams): Or 38-year-old Israa Jaabis‚ a Palestinian woman who attempted to set off a car bomb that wounded an Israeli police officer. She was disfigured in the explosion and her homecoming this weekend was covered extensively; with The New York Times headline from this weekend reading‚ quote‚ “A disfigured woman whose cases become well known is among the Palestinians released‚” not “convicted suicide bomber.” And completely ignoring that she became disfigured when she tried to blow herself up with gas canisters at a West Bank checkpoint. Abrams also gave a rundown of some of the other terrorists getting released. You can check that out in the transcript below. European media has been some of the worst in terms of siding with Hamas terrorists over civilized Israelis. As an example of that‚ Abrams highlighted U.K.-based‚ Sky News anchor Kay Burley‚ who disgustingly suggested that Israel didn’t put equal value on Palestinian lives: I was speaking to a hostage negotiator this morning. He made the comparison between the 50 hostages that Hamas has promised to release as opposed to the 150 prisoners that are Palestinians‚ that Israel has said that it will release; and he made the comparison between the numbers and the fact that does Israel not think that Palestinian lives are valued as highly as Israeli lives. “It's not really just disgusting‚ it's just so dumb!” he told her off. Adding: “Of course‚ they're trading three-for-one because they have to! This has got to be a tough pill for Israel to swallow to see Hamas succeeding in many ways‚ seeing Hamas getting exactly what it wanted when it murdered and then kidnapped hundreds. It speaks to some degree to how much Israel values the lives that they're willing to agree to that kind of terrible deal!” The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: NewsNation’s Dan Abrams Live November 27‚ 2023 9:04:39 p.m. Eastern DAN ABRAMS: As Israel and Hamas extend that truce for 2 more days with the promise of more hostages released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners‚ so many in the media around the world seem to be falsely equating innocent civilians‚ toddlers‚ grade-schoolers taken hostage often from or with their parents on October‚ 7th – if those parents are still alive – with the accused and in most cases convicted Palestinian criminals they're being traded for. You see‚ both the Israeli hostages and the Palestinian prisoners being released are “women and children” [uses air quotes]. In the case of the Palestinians‚ they're teenagers almost all 16 or older. The comparisons just don’t work. And yet what so many are choosing to ignore is that the Palestinians have all been convicted or charged with violent‚ even terror-related‚ attacks. So‚ yeah‚ they’re “women and children” [uses air quotes]‚ but it is not the same. That didn’t stop model Gigi Hadid from posting to her nearly 80 million followers‚ 80 million‚ 8-0 on social media‚ quote: “Israel is the only country in the world that keeps children as prisoners of war.” She posts that alongside the story of Ahmed Mansara‚ a Palestinian who when he was 13‚ along with his cousin‚ stabbed and severely injured a 13-year-old Jewish boy and a 20-year-old security guard. In fact‚ the attack was caught on video. You can see Mansara and his cousin running after people with knives on surveillance footage. You want to compare that now-21-year-old with‚ I don’t know‚ 4-year-old Abigail Idan‚ who saw her parents killed right in front of her before she was taken hostage and swept away to Gaza? She turned 4 while being held hostage. Or 9-year-old Emily Hand‚ whose father prayed she was dead because the alternative was torture at the hands of terrorists? It’s not just celebrities‚ either. You see it too often in the far-left media. MSNBC host Ayman Mohyeldin tweeting on the first day of the truce and hostage release‚ quote: “You’re about to see in real time over the next four days how the media can choose who it humanizes and who it villainizes‚ who is a child and who is a minor‚ who is a mother and who is an accomplice. Who is a hostage and who is a prisoner. In short who is innocent and who is not.” See‚ he doesn’t want to distinguish between them because the reality is hard for apologists of Hamas to accept. Remember‚ this is from a guy who the day of the attack said on the air that the October 7 murders were the‚ quote‚ “deadly consequences” of failed policies on the American administration’s part and the Israelis. It’s really not hard to distinguish between a 4-year-old kidnapped from the arms of her murdered parents and a 16-year-old‚ at the very least accused of if not convicted of a serious crime. Here in the United States‚ teenagers charged with violent offenses are often prosecuted as adults. I don't know what Gigi Hadid is talking about. But children stolen from their parents‚ they're called crime victims. Here are some of the so-called women and children released by Israel. 17 year-old Mohammed Abu Katish‚ who stabbed him paralyzed a 20-year-old Jewish man. Nourhan Awad‚ who was 17 when she was arrested in 2017 for attempting to stab an Israeli soldier with a pair of scissors. Sixteen-year-old Nafod Hamed who stabbed an Israeli woman nearly death in front of her five children. Or 38-year-old Israa Jaabis‚ a Palestinian woman who attempted to set off a car bomb that wounded an Israeli police officer. She was disfigured in the explosion and her homecoming this weekend was covered extensively; with The New York Times headline from this weekend reading‚ quote‚ “A disfigured woman whose cases become well known is among the Palestinians released‚” not “convicted suicide bomber.” And completely ignoring that she became disfigured when she tried to blow herself up with gas canisters at a West Bank checkpoint. There was widespread celebration of the release of now-23-year-old Marah Bakir who was 16 when she was sentence for attempting to stab an Israeli border police officer. The list goes on and on and on. Look. It is true. There is controversy around the judicial proceedings surrounding some of those arrested in the West Bank and Gaza because they face military courts with higher conviction rates that in the typical Israeli civilian justice system. And you can absolutely question that. I have questions about that. But I'll tell you this: That system as a whole‚ it's still more democratic by far than any of the systems in any of the Arab countries‚ which neighbor Israel. And the evidence against the vast majority of these women and “children” [uses air quotes] is overwhelmed. But so many in the media insist on giving equal weight to the word of Hamas terrorists about the innocence of those arrest. Think about this. On Sky News‚ one of the best known anchors on the network and perhaps in all of Europe‚ asked this question of an Israeli spokesperson regarding Israel agreeing to release three Palestinians in exchange for every Israeli stage. [Cuts to video] KAY BURLEY: I was speaking to a hostage negotiator this morning. He made the comparison between the 50 hostages that Hamas has promised to release as opposed to the 150 prisoners that are Palestinians‚ that Israel has said that it will release; and he made the comparison between the numbers and the fact that does Israel not think that Palestinian lives are valued as highly as Israeli lives. EYLON LEVY: That is an astonishing accusation. If we could release one prisoner for every one hostage‚ we would obviously do that. We are operating in horrific circumstances. We not choosing to release these prisoners who have blood on hands. We are talking about people who have been convicted of stabbing and shooting attacks. [Transition] But really it is outrageous to suggest that the fact that we all willing to release prisoners who are convicted of terrorism offenses‚ more of them than we are getting our own innocent children back somehow suggest that we don't care about Palestinian lives. Really? That's a disgusting accusation. [Cuts back to live] ABRAMS: It's not really just disgusting‚ it's just so dumb! Of course‚ they're trading three-for-one because they have to! This has got to be a tough pill for Israel to swallow to see Hamas succeeding in many ways‚ seeing Hamas getting exactly what it wanted when it murdered and then kidnapped hundreds. It speaks to some degree to how much Israel values the lives that they're willing to agree to that kind of terrible deal! Most importantly‚ it just seems so patently absurd to compare the babies and elderly who were taken hostage and now released to the Palestinians in Israeli custody‚ some for attempting to kill. (…)

CNN senior international correspondent Ivan Watson joined Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday’s CNN News Central to discuss the latest news surrounding the Israel-Hamas War when he spread fake news about Palestinian casualty estimates and used the same “slaughter” verb to describe October 7 and Israel’s response to it. Blitzer asked‚ “if an agreement doesn't materialize in the coming hours‚ and we all hope there is an agreement to extend this truce‚ what actually would begin to happen on the ground? What could it look like when military operations resume?”     Watson replied that‚ “I think it would look a lot like it did before six days ago and potentially‚ much‚ much worse. I mean‚ as Oren has pointed out‚ the Israeli government has made it clear it wants to destroy Hamas in Gaza. And as part of six-and-a-half weeks of fighting there‚ the death toll‚ according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the West Bank‚ has been more than 14‚800 Palestinian civilians killed.” First of all‚ the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the West Bank is just regurgitating whatever numbers the Hamas-controlled Gaza feeds them. Second‚ nowhere in those reports does it say every death is a civilian. That is implied because Hamas assumes people like Watson will dutifully repeat it‚ but it is not actually true. Moving right along‚ Watson declared‚ “So if the fighting resumes again‚ that slaughter of Palestinian civilians will likely resume again.” Watson wrapped up his thoughts by adding‚ “It’ll be complicated by the fact that 1.2 million of those Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced due to bad sanitation‚ sewage‚ and destroyed infrastructure‚ many of them are suffering‚ the World Health Organization‚ from disease that may kill‚ the WHO says‚ more people than the actual fighting will kill as well. And all of these military operations‚ of course‚ in retaliation for the initial Hamas slaughter of more than 1‚200 people on October 7th. Wolf?” With that Watson used the same word to describe the deliberate murder of Israeli civilians including babies and the elderly and Israel’s right to defend itself. If Israel wanted to slaughter Palestinian civilians‚ it would’ve turned every Hamas-utilized hospital into a hole in the ground‚ but it didn’t. As for Blitzer‚ he concurred‚ “That's why it is so important to extend this temporary truce and allow more hostages to leave‚ to delay any Israeli military action. To allow more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza at the same time. Lots at stake right now.” Including what’s left of CNN’s integrity‚ if they even had any left to begin with. Here is a transcript for the November 29 show: CNN News Central 11/29/2023 1:08 PM ET WOLF BLITZER: So Ivan‚ if an agreement doesn't materialize in the coming hours‚ and we all hope there is an agreement to extend this truce‚ what actually would begin to happen on the ground? What could it look like when military operations resume?  IVAN WATSON: Well‚ I think it would look a lot like it did before six days ago and potentially‚ much‚ much worse. I mean‚ as Oren has pointed out‚ the Israeli government has made it clear it wants to destroy Hamas in Gaza. And as part of six-and-a-half weeks of fighting there‚ the death toll‚ according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the West Bank‚ has been more than 14‚800 Palestinian civilians killed. So if the fighting resumes again‚ that slaughter of Palestinian civilians will likely resume again.  It’ll be complicated by the fact that 1.2 million of those Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced due to bad sanitation‚ sewage‚ and destroyed infrastructure‚ many of them are suffering‚ the World Health Organization‚ from disease that may kill‚ the WHO says‚ more people than the actual fighting will kill as well. And all of these military operations‚ of course‚ in retaliation for the initial Hamas slaughter of more than 1‚200 people on October 7th. Wolf?  BLITZER: That's why it is so important to extend this temporary truce and allow more hostages to leave‚ to delay any Israeli military action. To allow more humanitarian aid to get into Gaza at the same time. Lots at stake right now.

An organization funded by a leftist billionaire recently published a report smearing donors to political and media groups on the right.  The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) Research Director David Armiak published an article on Nov. 17 classifying the financial backers of the DonorTrust non-profit as people fueling so-called “culture wars and spreading climate misinformation‚ Trump’s big lie‚ and hate.” Armiak listed a large number of political‚ media and non-profit organizations including the Media Research Center‚ which he said received $160‚600 from DonorTrust. The CMD sought to target donors to DonorTrust‚ in an alleged effort to combat dark money in politics and limit the influence of billionaire Charles Koch. Despite this stance‚ the CMD has hypocritically taken money from leftist groups like billionaire George Soros’ Foundation to Promote Open Society and from the Soros-funded Tides Foundation in order to complete its “opposition research” and left-wing “agitation” work‚ according to Influence Watch.  According to the Open Society Foundations (OSF) website‚ Soros has given at least $15‚013‚960 to the Tides Foundation and $14‚235‚421 to the Tides Center from 2016 to 2022. Additionally‚ Soros gave at least $34‚780‚000 to Tides Advocacy from 2017 to 2022.  In the article‚ the CMD mentioned that DonorTrust gave money to The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). The CMD frequently goes after ALEC‚ taking a seemingly activist approach to name and shame its donors. On its website‚ the CMD bragged that “since CMD first exposed ALEC in 2011‚ more than 100 corporations have dropped ALEC‚ including Verizon‚ Ford‚ Coca-Cola‚ Wal-Mart‚ General Electric‚ and Google.” The CMD has also embraced radical positions on energy. In 2022‚ the CMD published an article that referred to ESG disclosures and divesting from “waning” fossil fuels as “routine practices.” The CMD has even positioned itself to the left of leftist billionaire Michael Bloomberg‚ who has bragged about shutting down coal plants and pushing states to adopt net-zero policies. A 2020 CMD article scolded Bloomberg for being unwilling to immediately get rid of natural gas and further cripple American energy.  Moreover‚ Armiak wrote about the alleged “manufactured crisis around so-called ‘woke’ capitalism‚ which demonizes companies that embrace environmental‚ social‚ and governance factors (ESG) in their business and investing practices.” Concerns about ESG investing are not a “manufactured crisis.” According to state officials who testified before Congress‚ large anti-energy organizations such as Climate Action 100+ and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero are using “tens of trillions in assets” to pressure companies.  Utah State Treasurer Marlo Oaks has referred to ESG as the “greatest threat to our freedoms in America today without question.” In an interview with MRC Business‚ Oaks highlighted the dangers of slapping ESG scores on states‚ saying‚ “It is incredibly dangerous‚ even in the corporate world‚ because then you're driving groupthink; you’ve destroyed the capital markets; you are bypassing our legislative process.” .” Aside from environmentalist pressure campaigns‚ organizations such as the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) impose their own ESG scores to pressure companies. The HRC’s “Corporate Equality Index” judges companies based on factors such as whether they included “gender identity” and “sexual orientation” in their nondiscrimination policies‚ have “trans-inclusive” bathrooms and “health coverage for transgender individuals without exclusion for medically necessary care.”  Conservatives are under attack! Contact ABC News (818) 460-7477‚ CBS News (212) 975-3247 and NBC News (212) 664-6192 and demand they report on the harm done to American energy and unity by ESG Investing!

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police conducted a massive sting operation that resulted in the arrest of over 70 individuals reportedly attempting to meet minors for sex.During the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix‚ a busy weekend for the city‚ LVMPD conducted an anti-sex-trafficking operation that yielded impressive results for one of the department's highest priorities.According to KTNV Las Vegas‚ law enforcement revealed that 36 individuals were arrested for alleged pandering (also known as trafficking)‚ with another 31 arrested for allegedly soliciting services. Seven were arrested for allegedly luring a child.Disturbingly‚ LVMPD Officer Hector Cintron said that all of the suspects who were taken into custody believed they were "meeting a child for sex."Deputy Chief Nicholas Farese said five juveniles were recovered and identified as potential victims of trafficking. "The reality is that sex trafficking happens in our city every day‚ and big events bring more people to our city — as well as more awareness‚" Farese said."Though my bureau is relentless in pursuing predators ... we cannot do this alone‚" Officer Cintron added. Cintron is the captain of the Gang‚ Vice‚ and Special Investigations Bureau.Department officials said that Sheriff Kevin McMahill has made sex and human trafficking a top issue for the Las Vegas police and took it upon the department to educate more than 100 casino workers on how spot potential victims of human trafficking.Police also set up a 24-hour resource center for victims of trafficking. While immediate resources were provided to the victims of the latest sting — which includes financial assistance‚ emergency housing‚ and protection — only 21 victims accepted the offer from police. Deputy Chief Farese noted that it's "not uncommon" for victims to reject assistance."Most victims do not see themselves as victims‚ and it's important to address the psychological component of this crime‚ whether it's sexual abuse at a young age or a predator targeting an emotionally vulnerable person‚" Cintron explained."It often takes multiple contacts with these victims before they decide they are ready for help‚" he said.The LVMPD also announced that the department would be working with the NFL to combat potential human trafficking during the Super Bowl in early 2024.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The political right has been literally right about a lot‚ and Obamacare is no exception. When it first became a household name‚ Republicans believed it was going to make health care worse‚ prices would only continue to go up‚ and you weren’t going to be able to keep your insurance. The right has also been known to notice patterns — one of which is Americans being incentivized to depend on the government. “If they get a giant program that shovels money at them‚ eventually it becomes part of the culture and they depend on it‚ and they will never turn on it‚” Stu Burguiere explains‚ calling Obamacare a “fat piece of junk on our system.” While Republicans were initially right to reject Obamacare‚ it’s become so ingrained in our system at this point that Republicans are hardly voicing opposition any more. Donald Trump is one of the few who is continuing to speak out against Obamacare‚ recently posting to Truth Social that “the cost of Obamacare is out of control‚ plus‚ it’s not good Healthcare.” Trump continued that he is “seriously looking at alternatives‚” before calling out Republican senators who once opposed Obamacare and now disagree with terminating it. “It was a low point for the Republican Party‚ but we should never give up!” Trump added. President Joe Biden responded to Trump’s Truth Social post‚ telling America that Trump is threatening to “rip away health insurance for tens of millions of Americans on Medicaid.” “Joe Biden has always been an idiot. Joe Biden has always been bad at this‚” Stu comments. “If he’s on Obamacare‚ it ain't working.” Want more from Stu?To enjoy more of Stu's lethal wit‚ wisdom‚ and mockery‚ subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America‚ defend the Constitution‚ and live the American dream.

The United Nations wants Americans and other Westerners to eat less meat. Although the alleged purpose of the internationally requested diet is to futilely attempt to arrest global weather patterns‚ there appears to be more at play than just so-called distributive justice and climate alarmism. After all‚ the director-general of the specific U.N. agency expected to issue this demand during the COP28 summit next month happens to be a top Chinese Communist Party member whose nation‚ the number-one source of greenhouse gas emissions in the world‚ will likely be among the so-called developing nations exempted from the guidance.What's the background? Last November‚ the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization indicated it would develop a plan to make the world's food system more sustainable‚ telling sovereign nations how to change their respective food and farming industries in order to align with internationalists' goal of halting global weather patterns and somehow keeping warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius. Bloomberg reported that the FAO's guidelines‚ set to be published at the COP28 summit in December‚ will instruct developed nations whose populations allegedly consume too much meat — according to foreign metrics — to limit their intake. According the FAO‚ the average American reportedly consumes around 279 pounds of meat a year. By way of contrast‚ the average Nigerian reportedly eats 15 pounds of meat annually and the average Chinese resident consumes 133.6 pounds of meat‚ as of 2020. Under the guidance‚ developing countries‚ including the country with the world's second-biggest economy‚ will apparently be encouraged to improve their livestock farming. Not only does the forthcoming recommendation seem to be punitive for Western nations‚ it may also be counterproductive. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson (R-Pa.) told Fox News Digital‚ "Regulating producers out of business in the U.S. will not effectively address global climate change‚ but export production to foreign countries with hostile regimes and worse emissions profiles while harming food security and affordability. Simply put‚ the world needs American farmers and ranchers more than the U.N." Guidelines for thee‚ but not for Xi China‚ which has all but indicated it will not live up to its Paris climate accord commitments‚ continues to claim it is a developing country. Chinese dictator Xi Jinping's nominal second in command‚ Han Zheng‚ claimed at the U.N. general assembly in September that despite its $18 trillion GDP at the time‚ China is "the largest developing country" and "will remain a member of the big family of developing nations." While it's presently unclear whether this self-categorization alone — which the U.N. entertains despite American criticism — would exempt China from the dietary recommendation‚ the director general of the FAO is unlikely to cross Beijing with his agency's road map. Qu Dongyu has previously been accused of using his position to advance the merciless Chinese regime's foreign policy agenda. Beijing has also been accused of bribing officials to get Qu the gig. Qu formerly served as vice minister of agriculture and rural affairs for the CCP. As FAO director‚ he has continued to cheerlead Chinese initiatives such as the communist regime's Global Development Initiative. "Nobody actually takes him seriously: It's not him; it's China‚" a former U.N. official told Politico. "I'm not convinced he would make a single decision without first checking it with the capital." Concerning Qu's promotion of the U.N.'s so-called sustainable development goals‚ Francesca Ghiretti‚ an analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies‚ said‚ "You need to be aware that these are policies that first and foremost are thought to advance China‚ either materially or in terms of international reputation‚ or in terms of diplomacy." The Washington Free Beacon reported that a reduction in global meat production could greatly benefit China‚ which is the world's largest meat importer. China's foreign supply could conceivably become more stable and secure if American producers find themselves facing less domestic demand. Such security would undoubtedly be welcome after last year's large-scale food shortages and the regime's promise of material improvement in living year over year.Concerning Qu's 2019 election to head of the FAO‚ Kristine Lee of the Center for a New American Security told Foreign Policy‚ "Chinese officials report back to Beijing and first and foremost serve the narrow interests of the [Chinese Communist Party]‚ rather than truly advancing multilateralism and strengthening transparency and accountability at the U.N." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

NewsGuard‚ a for-profit company that provides news websites with "reliability ratings‚" is selling its "Misinformation Fingerprints" tool to Microsoft and other private companies after it was awarded a grant from the federal government to develop the technology.The company developed its rating system to rank various media outlets based on nine allegedly "apolitical criteria‚" providing a score of zero to 100. NewsGuard's website states that it aims to help readers "counter misinformation" using its "transparent tools."Critics have accused the company of attempting to censor and undermine the credibility of conservative-leaning news outlets while masquerading as a so-called independent fact-checker.According to the Federalist‚ NewsGuard previously received $750‚000 in taxpayer funding in the form of a federal grant through the Small Business Innovation and Research program to help with the development of its Misinformation Fingerprints technology. The tool is "the most comprehensive dataset of provably false narratives online‚" the company's website states."NewsGuard's global team of misinformation analysts maintains the internet's most complete‚ machine-readable catalog of top false claims circulating online‚" it adds. The company notes that the tool can be used to "search for content containing mis- and disinformation‚" "understand mis- and disinformation risks‚" "help government agencies and intelligence teams evaluate real-time disinformation narratives‚" and "keep abreast of the evolving landscape of brand-related misinformation that could harm client reputation."It is unclear how the company determines whether the content contains disinformation.NewsGuard explains that the "misinformation" tool is "different from fact-checking" because it generates machine-readable formats that can be "ingested by large language models." The tool also assesses the "risk of harm" level of the so-called "false claim" while providing information about how the information is spreading online. The tool is now being sold to a number of private companies‚ the Federalist reported. Microsoft purchased the Misinformation Fingerprints "to train Bing Chat.""Microsoft trusts the fingerprints as ethically reported‚ responsible‚ and unbiased data to train Bing Chat's large-language models (LLMs) to provide accurate responses to prompts on topics in the news and reduce their propensity to spread false claims‚" NewsGuard stated.Social media app Ethos Network is using the tool to allow "users to verify the content of their posts before publishing them." Giphy has integrated the tool into its online search engine "to quickly identify and address content that risks spreading misinformation through its platform."In 2020‚ the company won a Pentagon and Department of State contest for "detecting COVID-19 misinformation and disinformation."In a statement to the New York Post‚ NewsGuard stated‚ "Our ratings are based on apolitical journalistic criteria‚ and we publish them transparently and publicly.""For example‚ this is why the New York Post and FoxNews.com get a higher rating than MSNBC.com‚" NewsGuard continued. "We also contact publishers being rated to provide a chance for them to comment or rectify any issues we've raised. And our ratings are designed to equip users with added context about source reliability – without blocking any access to content."NewsGuard's general manager‚ Matt Skibinski‚ confirmed to the Post that its Misinformation Fingerprints tool had been sold to private companies."Like most businesses‚ we don't comment on the specifics of our agreements with our licensees‚" Skibinski said.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Make a pot of coffee. Get yourself a nice‚ straight-backed chair with no cushioning -- something you might find at the DMV. Keep the lights on‚ fluorescent if possible. Play some machine gun sounds on a loop at maximum volume. Take a seat‚ close your eyes‚ and relax. That's how legendary sprinting coach Bud Winter taught a bunch of Navy pilots to fall asleep during World War 2. It took them six weeks of practice to get to this level‚ but once they did‚ it worked every time. And Winter's technique is something we can apply in situations even more hostile to peaceful slumber than combat. Flying coach from Philadelphia to Tampa‚ for example. Here's the technique‚ often called the "Military Method‚" as described in Winter's book "Relax and Win." It has two parts: relaxing the body‚ followed by relaxing the mind. Relaxing the body Start in a chair (no need for coffee and sound effects). Feet flat on the floor‚ knees apart‚ hands limp in your lap. Close your eyes and drop your chin until it rests on your chest. Keep breathing‚ slowly and deeply. Relax your forehead and your scalp. Relax your jaw. Let your mouth go slack. Relax your face‚ your lips‚ your tongue. "Get that brook trout look on your face‚" writes Winters. Relax your eyes. They're controlled by eight muscles — try to feel each go limp. (Winters claims this can improve vision and that he once saw a Finnish Olympic coach throw out his glasses after mastering eye relaxation. Not sure about that.) Drop your shoulders as low as you can. This is important‚ as it relaxes the back of the neck‚ which Winter calls "one of the headquarters for tension for your whole body ... a saboteur of your strength and energy." Relax your chest: Take a deep breath‚ hold it‚ then exhale. Feel your chest collapse. Repeat this‚ each time feeling more and more tension release. Imagine you are a blob sinking into your chair. Relax your arms (the key to getting your whole upper body to relax). Start with your right bicep. Tell it to relax. Then the forearm‚ followed by the hand and the fingers. Repeat on the left side. If you feel a tingling in your hands‚ that's good — it means your capillaries are dilated and easing blood flow. Your entire upper body should now be relaxed. With this should come a sense of secure‚ confident well-being. Associate this state with the word "calm." Now the same process for the lower body: thigh‚ calf‚ ankle‚ foot. One side‚ then the other. Imagine your legs without bones — just heavy‚ dead weight. You should be fully relaxed. Just to make sure‚ take three deep breaths and exhale‚ feeling any remaining tension leave your body. The first few times you do this‚ it might take longer than you want‚ maybe up to ten minutes. That's fine. With practice you'll become more efficient. And once you perfect this technique‚ you should be about ten seconds from falling asleep. Mental relaxation If you can clear your mind of active thoughts for ten seconds‚ you should fall asleep. Winter has three different tricks to achieve this (just see whichever works best for you): 1. Imagine you are lying in the bottom of canoe floating on a very calm lake on a warm spring day‚ looking up at the blue sky. Hold this picture for ten seconds‚ or 2. Imagine you are in a big‚ black velvet hammock‚ and everywhere you look is black. Hold this picture for ten seconds‚ or 3. Simply repeat the phrase "don't think" for ten seconds. You could easily substitute your own scenario for either of the above images. The key is to avoid any movement in the image — you shouldn't be running or skiing or bouncing a ball‚ as just picturing activities can cause the relevant muscles to contract. Willing yourself to sleep requires a certain paradoxical concentrated relaxation — anyone who plays golf or tennis knows the disastrous results that can come from trying to "kill" the ball. Butler's larger theme is how to apply this effortless effort to all aspects of our life: sports‚ work‚ even courtship. As befits the topic‚ Winter's tone is casual and chatty‚ while packing in much useful information. Best of all‚ his techniques don't require a yoga mat or a ponytailed hipster shaman to guide you.

The Velvets’ original recordings are definitive‚ but this CD manages to be the next best thing: a new live album from the original band. The post The Feelies Cover the Velvet Underground: Review appeared first on Best Classic Bands.