USA - In his first frantic week at the White House, Donald Trump is doing almost exactly what he promised to do during his campaign, stunning those who thought he'd adapt his style as president. Trump has signed an executive order to begin building a wall on the Mexican border and doubled down on his promises to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement and repeal ObamaCare.
USA - Vice President Pence assured anti-abortion protestors Friday that their cause has friends in the new administration, vowing that officials "will not rest" until the "pro-life" culture is restored in the US. Speaking at the annual March for Life in Washington, Pence proclaimed that "life is winning again in America" and outlined how the Trump administration would advance anti-abortion policies. "Be assured, along with you, we will not grow weary. We will not rest until we restore a culture of life in America, for ourselves and for our posterity," he said at the event. Pence, the first sitting vice president to attend the March for Life, vowed that the administration would work with Congress to defund Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers.
USA - The administration of new US President Donald Trump is reportedly preparing executive orders that aim to minimize the role the US plays in the UN and other international bodies, including organizations supporting the Palestinians or in which the Palestinian Authority has official representatives. According to a report published in the New York Times on Wednesday, the first of two draft orders calls for stopping US funding to any UN or other global agency according to a list of criteria. One of these criteria is giving the Palestinian Authority or the Palestinian Liberation Organization full membership, or any organization that “is controlled or substantially influenced by any state that sponsors terrorism” or is blamed for the persecution of marginalized groups or any other systematic violation of human rights.
USA - US President Donald Trump says relations between the United States and Israel were repaired once he took office, noting, however, that it’s too early to talk of moving the US embassy to Jerusalem or his reported freeze on money transfers to Palestinians.
UK – Banks are attempting to push people into a cashless society, the ATM industry has claimed, as it warned that rural areas will be worst hit by an attack on free cash points. Yesterday crisis talks between cash machine providers and banks, at least one of which wants to reduce the fees they pay for standalone cash points, failed to reach a resolution.
USA - The Dow Jones Industrial Average provides us with some pretty strong evidence that our “stock market boom” has been fueled by debt. On Wednesday, the Dow crossed the 20,000 mark for the first time ever, and this comes at a time when the US national debt is right on the verge of hitting 20 trillion dollars. Is this just a coincidence?
VATICAN - Pope Francis greeted former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Wednesday, just days after the film star’s name had been floated as a possible candidate for US Ambassador to the Holy See. Schwarzenegger, a Roman Catholic, has been repeatedly criticized by Church figures for his support for abortion and gay marriage, and for state funding of embryonic stem cell research. Nonetheless, his name began appearing recently in short lists of possible candidates for the office of US Ambassador to the Vatican, an important listening post for the American government.
ITALY - Etna (Italy) awakens after 8 months, Colima (Mexico), Ebeko (Russia) and Sabancaya (Peru) strongly erupt. There is no rest! On January 23, 2017, at sunset, small strombolian explosions were reported at the south-east crater. This is the first volcanic activity of Etna in the last 8 months.
USA - Vast ranges of volcanoes hidden under the oceans are presumed by scientists to be the gentle giants of the planet, oozing lava at slow, steady rates along mid-ocean ridges. But a new study shows that they flare up on strikingly regular cycles, ranging from two weeks to 100,000 years — and, that they erupt almost exclusively during the first six months of each year. The pulses — apparently tied to short- and long-term changes in earth’s orbit, and to sea level — may help trigger natural climate swings. Scientists have already speculated that volcanic cycles on land emitting large amounts of carbon dioxide might influence climate; but up to now there was no evidence from submarine volcanoes. The findings suggest that models of earth’s natural climate dynamics, and by extension human-influenced climate change, may have to be adjusted. The study appears this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
UK - As American allies across Europe and Asia brace for President Trump, Britain stands out for the degree to which it is proceeding as if little has changed. The country, consumed with managing “Brexit” and its associated domestic political dramas, appears to have taken relatively few steps to prepare for the geopolitical earthquakes that Mr Trump could bring to the international and European orders on which Britain relies, and that his proposals would undermine.
UK - Scientists say the world has edged closer to apocalypse in the past year amid a darkening security landscape and comments by Donald Trump. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BPA) moved the minute hand of the symbolic Doomsday Clock from three minutes to two-and-a-half minutes to midnight. It is the second closest it has been. BPA chief Rachel Bronson urged world leaders to "calm rather than stoke tensions that could lead to war". In a report, the BPA said President Trump's statements on climate change, expanding the US nuclear arsenal and the questioning of intelligence agencies had contributed to the heightened global risk.
USA - For too long now, the American people have allowed themselves to be persuaded that the government’s job is to take care of us: to feed us, clothe us, house us, educate us, raise our children, heal our infirmities, manage our finances, protect us from our enemies, guard us against all dangers (real and imaginary), and provide for our every need.
MIDDLE EAST - Relocating the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would amount to a “declaration of war against Islam” that would require the formation of an armed group to liberate the holy city, said prominent Shiite Iraqi cleric and powerful militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr.
USA - Former UN Ambassador John Bolton joined SiriusXM host Alex Marlow on Wednesday’s edition of Breitbart News Daily to discuss the prospective relocation of America’s Israel embassy to Jerusalem. Bolton said he was “concerned that the pace appears to have slowed down” on the subject of moving America’s embassy to Jerusalem.
USA - The new Trump administration will “discuss” and “have a conversation” with Israel regarding recently approved construction in the West Bank settlements, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said in a briefing on Tuesday. The tone of the comments marks a departure from the blanket condemnation of all construction in the settlements typical of all spokespeople from the previous administration. According to Spicer, new US President Donald Trump “wants to grow closer with Israel and make sure that it gets the full respect that it deserves in the Middle East.”
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The views expressed in this section are not our own, unless specifically stated, but are provided to highlight what may prove to be prophetically relevant material appearing in the media.