Month: June 2023

Wednesday, June 21, 2023: Epoch Sudoku Hard


Australian Energy Giant Approves $10.6 Billion Oil Project Offshore Mexico

Australia’s largest oil producer will proceed with a US$7.2 billion (AU$10.6 billion) project offshore Mexico that will deliver hundreds of millions of oil barrels in the next decade. On June 20, Woodside Energy announced that it would invest in the Trion project, a joint venture with Mexican state-owned oil company Pemex. The project is located…


No Major Trading Partners Named as Currency Manipulators by US Treasury but China and Others Being Monitored

The U.S. Treasury Department confirmed in a new foreign-exchange report that no major trading partner met the criteria to be labeled a currency manipulator in the four quarters through December 2022. The Treasury regularly publishes a report that reviews and assesses the policies of major trading partners to determine if they are attempting to influence…


The Coalition Calls for Gambling Ads Ban During Live Sports to Protect Families

The coalition is moving to protect families from gambling ads with Coalition frontbencher Senator Sarah Henderson introducing a private senator’s bill to ban gambling ads during live sport and one hour on either side of the match. “Footy time is family time, and family time is precious, too precious, to have it swamped by a rising…


Former CNN Producer John Griffin Sentenced to 19 Years in Prison for Child Sex Charges

A federal judge has sentenced former CNN television producer John Griffin to 19 years in prison for his involvement in luring a 9-year-old girl into illegal sexual acts in Vermont. Griffin, a resident of Stamford, Connecticut, had previously pleaded not guilty in 2021 but changed his plea to guilty in December of last year. The…


US Industrial Production Unexpectedly Falls in May After 2 Months of Gains

U.S. industrial production unexpectedly slipped in May, after two months of gains. Factories in the mid-Atlantic region saw a decline in activity for the first time since 2021 in June, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. Production fell 0.2 percent last month, as manufacturing struggled under the weight of higher interest rates, after…


‘Over 50 Percent’ of New FBI Form on Biden Bribe Allegations Redacted: Rep. Comer

House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) said “over 50 percent” of a new form regarding allegations about President Joe Biden’s family business dealings and potential bribes was redacted. The FD-1023 form is a type of document used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recording allegations about potential criminal activity from the…


Nearly 80 Percent of Australians Want PwC Banned From Government Contracts: Survey

A majority of Australians want consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to be banned from government contracts following the revelations the company used confidential government information to create products that allegedly allowed clients to not pay tax. According to research released on June 20 by the Australia Institute, 79 percent or four in five Australians want the consulting…


Teacher’s Registration Cancelled for Refusing to Call Student by Preferred Pronouns

A New Zealand high school maths teacher has had his teaching license cancelled for refusing to call his Year 10 student by her preferred name and pronouns. The New Zealand teaching council’s Complaints Assessment Committee charged the teacher with serious misconduct for not calling the student by a male name and he/him pronouns, a charge…


Pentagon Admits $6.2 Billion ‘Accounting Error’ in Military Aid for Ukraine

The U.S. Department of Defense on Tuesday said it has overcounted the value of the weapons it sent to Ukraine over the past two years by $6.2 billion. This error occurred because U.S. military officials didn’t count the actual value of what was pulled from the Pentagon’s weapons stockpile and sent to Ukraine but instead…