GERMANY - A network of right-wing extremists inside the German military has drawn up a list of targets including several politicians, MPs were told. The armed forces have discharged almost 200 soldiers over the past decade for holding far-right beliefs. Prosecutors believe, however, that at least one extremist network with ambitions to build a “state within a state” has infiltrated the military.

UK - It sounds like the stuff of eschatological literature, but the idea of companies forcibly implanting their employees with microchips is making waves in Britain – although the government says it doubts the practice would be legal. In recent years, companies marketing microchip implants have touted them as a convenient shortcut to many routine tasks. Employing the same technology used in contactless credit cards, the tiny device is generally implanted in a worker’s hand and can be used for such things as opening doors or turning on devices. But groups in Britain ranging from the Confederation of Business Industry to the Trades Union Congress (TUC) have spoken out against the prospect of companies forcing implants on employees, a step that could facilitate constant monitoring.

ITALY - Campi Flegrei in Naples is showing “signs of unrest”, which has sparked concern it may be about to erupt. But could the volcano destroy Naples? The volcano is one of the few active super volcanoes in the world. This means it could potentially erupt at the highest level measured by the Volcanic Explosive Index. Camp Flegrei is an almost 13 kilometre wide volcanic crater, home to more than 1.5 million people. Volcano hazard expert Dr Christopher Kilburn, a professor the University College London has warned Campi Flegrei is “active and will erupt again”.

USA - Welfare pays more than a minimum-wage job in 35 states, creating little incentive for Americans to take entry-level work and likely increasing their long-term dependency on government help, according to a new study by the libertarian think tank Cato Institute. “Welfare benefits continue to outpace the income that most recipients can expect to earn from an entry-level job,” the study authors said. “And the balance between welfare and work may actually have grown worse in recent years.” Among the other findings is that welfare in 13 states pays more than $15 an hour, compared with the federal hourly minimum wage of $7.25.

UK - Nigel Farage warned that the European Union have made a shock U-turn in their Brexit strategy and will now work to make Prime Minister Theresa May’s deal fail in order to force Britain to have a second referendum. “Barnier’s strategy at the very beginning was, he didn’t think there was a chance of reversing Brexit. He didn’t believe a second referendum was even possible. But what he did want to do was try and keep us tied to the EU single market and customs union rules – that was his ambition from the start.“But they have changed their mind. They now think that a second referendum is possible.” Mr Farage said the EU was aware of Mrs May’s struggle to sell the deal to MPs, adding: “It suits Brussels now for Mrs May’s deal to fail.”

UK - The Euro is the “most substantial manifestation of the design to create a fully-fledged superstate” and it is bound to fail, Margaret Thatcher stated in her pioneering treatise Statecraft. But proposals for a central budget have been resisted by Germany and other European countries, concerned that they will be put on the hook for the less fiscally disciplined member states.

USA - Global earth changes appear to be accelerating once again, but the mainstream media in the United States is not talking about it, and so most Americans have absolutely no idea what is happening.  Within the last 24 hours, we have seen close to 40 significant earthquakes of at least magnitude 2.5 along the Ring of Fire, but even more alarming are the two major volcanic eruptions which just took place.  Mount Soputan is one of the most dangerous volcanoes in Indonesia, and it erupted twice on Sunday morning.  According to the Daily Mail, authorities are reporting that hot volcanic ash was shot 25,000 feet into the sky…

USA - With lame-duck leaders in the UK and Germany, President Emmanuel Macron humbled by the Gilets Jaunes revolt in France and the US profoundly divided over its role in the world, an emerging leadership vacuum in the world’s wealthy democracies has grown suddenly acute. That allows Russian President Vladimir Putin or China’s President Xi Jinping “room for maneuver”. It also raises the question of whether “the West” is still a meaningful entity.

UK - School children will be taught that "all genders" can have periods in new sex education lessons, in a victory for transgender rights campaigners. The advice to teachers was approved by Brighton & Hove City Council as they try to tackle stigma around menstruation. The new advice follows a council report which said: "Trans boys and men and non-binary people may have periods", adding that "menstruation must be inclusive of all genders". Bins used for menstruation products will be provided in all toilets for children, according to the report. Tory MP David Davies told The Mail on Sunday that it was "insanity" for teachers to tell pupils that transgender boys can have periods. He said: "Learning about periods is already a difficult subject for children that age, so to throw in the idea girls who believe they are boys also have periods will leave them completely confused."

USA - Is it coincidence or contagion, this malady that seems to have suddenly induced paralysis in the leading nations of the West? With lawyer-fixer Michael Cohen’s confession that he colluded with Donald Trump in making hush money payoffs to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, America’s stage is set for a play that will run two years. As Democrats test the waters for a presidential run by savaging Trump, the establishment Trump detests and defeated in 2016 will use every weapon in its considerable arsenal to break and bring him down, as it did half a century ago to Richard Nixon.

UK - London's government crisis escalated yesterday under the pressure of Berlin and the EU’s unaccomplishable Brexit requirements. Prime Minster Theresa May has barely survived a vote of confidence, which was ultimately triggered by the so-called backstop. Brussels insists on a regulation, which could indefinitely subjugate Great Britain to a customs union, without an option for a unilateral withdrawal and erect a trade border between two areas of the United Kingdom. These provisions are in Germany's interests, but they will plunge Great Britain into chaos. The current government crisis in France is largely due to the austerity programs imposed by Berlin on Paris - while refusing to make any concessions at the EU level. In France and Great Britain, the extreme right is profiting, like in Italy, where Berlin’s drastic austerity dictates, have already crushed the traditional political establishment.

UK - The British government has seemingly rejected an official petition for the United Kingdom to make a clean break from the European Union on World Trade Organization (WTO) terms — “No Deal” — despite Theresa May’s previous warning to the EU that she believes “No deal is better than a bad deal”.

USA - Since US President Donald Trump weaponised the term "fake news" during the 2016 presidential election campaign, the phrase has gone viral. Increasingly it is used by politicians around the world to denounce or dismiss news reports that do not fit their version of the truth. But as news outlets defend their work, false information is saturating the political debate worldwide and undermining an already weak level of trust in the media and institutions. The term has come to mean anything from a mistake to a parody or a deliberate misinterpretation of facts. At the same time, misinformation online is increasingly visible in attempts to manipulate elections. As president, Trump still denounces any information that displeases him as "fake news". Experts say his aides, meanwhile, have offered a mixture of truth and distortions, sometimes described as "alternative facts".

DENMARK - Chief physician Allan M Lund at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen warns that vegan food can have severe consequences, such as epilepsy and ultimately developmental disorders. In Denmark, there is now a debate about the suitability of an increasing number of families giving their children only vegan food. Critics are opposed to scrapping all animal products in small children’s diet.

USA - Have you gotten your flu shot this year? If the answer is no – and I’m not getting one! – you’re not alone. A new study finds more than 40 percent of Americans have not been vaccinated and, in fact, don’t plan on it either. This is despite the warnings, potential dangers, and last year’s record-number of flu deaths. The survey was done by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. The top three reasons why they didn’t want the shot were: bad side effects; thinking they’ll get the flu from the shot; or thinking it doesn’t work.