Month: June 2023

China’s Factory, Service Sectors Stumble as Economic Malaise Broadens

BEIJING—China’s factory activity declined for a third straight month in June and weakness in other sectors deepened, official surveys showed on Friday, adding pressure for authorities to do more to shore up growth as demand falters at home and abroad. Services sector activity for June also recorded its weakest reading since the Chinese regime abandoned…


George Soros’ Foundation Slashing 40 Percent of Staff

George Soros’ foundation, which is now controlled by the billionaire activist’s son, plans to cut 40 percent of its workforce, according to reports and a statement from the Open Society Foundations (OSF) The board of directors of OSF, which George Soros founded in 1979 and personally led until about a month ago, has approved “significant…


‘Systems Failed’ in Australian Rheumatic Heart Disease Deaths

A coroner investigating the deaths of three Indigenous women with rheumatic heart disease has found health systems in a remote Queensland community failed. The deaths within 18 months of one another sparked an inquest into what would otherwise be considered natural cause deaths, coroner Nerida Wilson said in her findings handed down in Cairns on…


Trump Lauds SCOTUS, Makes Off-Script Call for Education Reform

Former president Donald Trump praised the U.S. Supreme Court for its historic back-to-back decisions affecting education and religious rights, drawing enthusiastic applause from a conservative parental-rights group’s annual conference. But after making those largely predictable remarks during his June 30 speech, Trump went off-script. He told the Joyful Warriors National Summit of Moms for Liberty,…


Newly Formed Hurricane Beatriz Sweeps Close to Mexico’s Southwest Pacific Coast

MEXICO CITY—Newly formed Hurricane Beatriz swept along Mexico’s southwestern Pacific coast late Friday, threatening heavy rain for several southern states. The storm was centered about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south-southeast of Manzanillo and had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kmh), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Beatriz was moving northwest at 12 mph…


Suspected Gunman in Texas Shooting That Killed 5 Neighbors Indicted on Capital Murder Charge

CLEVELAND, Texas—A man accused of killing five neighbors in Texas after some of them complained that gunfire was keeping a baby awake was indicted Friday for capital murder of multiple persons, which allows prosecutors to seek the death penalty. Prosecutors said they do not yet know whether they will seek the death penalty against Francisco…


6 Democrat and Republican 2024 Candidates Weigh In After SCOTUS Strikes Down Biden Student Debt Cancellation Plan

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision striking down President Joe Biden’s student debt cancellation attempt has elicited a range of celebrations from Biden’s 2024 presidential challengers. On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 that Biden could not excuse student debt repayments through the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003 (HEROES Act) or…


Texas Pastor Pleads Guilty to Enhanced Charge of Having Child Pornography

A Texas pastor recently pleaded guilty to an enhanced charge of possession of child pornography, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Texas announced on Thursday. David Lloyd Walther, 57, a Georgetown resident, pleaded guilty in a federal court in Austin on June 27 to “knowingly” having “searched for, downloaded, distributed and possessed child…


Changes Kicking in for New Financial Year in Australia

Households are facing a surge of up to 25 percent in their power bills, as the new financial year brings a raft of new changes. The Australian Energy Regulator will increase the cost of electricity between 20 and 25 percent, heaping more pressure on people managing soaring cost of living pressures, including persistent inflation and…


Newport Beach Votes to Ban Homeless Encamping, Increase Shelter Beds

The Newport Beach City Council voted unanimously June 27 to ban homeless encampments that block public access to such facilities as schools, daycare centers, and public restrooms, as well as “unpermitted structures”—such as those made of wood pallets or lean-tos—of any kind even if the city’s only shelter is full. Tents, tarps, and sleeping bags—as…