The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a new set of draconian US-drafted sanctions on North Korea that will further strangle its energy supplies and tighten restrictions on smuggling and the use of North Korean workers overseas.
Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, claimed that the new sanctions, levied in response to Pyongyang’s November 29 ballistic missile test, went even further than sanctions passed in September that, at the time, were called the toughest yet.
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“Today, we cut deeper,” Haley said. She said the UN had repeatedly offered Pyongyang a choice and repeatedly, in its continued missile tests, the regime had “chosen the path of isolation.”
One of 2017’s defining geopolitical slugfests was between heavyweight personalities President Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
It was an international standoff that descended into personal name-calling, with Trump labeling Kim “little rocket man” and the U.S. president being described as an “old lunatic” and a “dotard” in return.
If the past year were one round in a boxing match, most analysts say there’s only one winner.
“No question, Kim Jong Un won 2017,” according to Jeffrey Lewis at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey.
In January, Trump used his Twitter pulpit to vow he would never let North Korea develop a nuclear weapon capable of hitting the United States.
Bioluminescence, the ability to produce light, is a common feature among many marine animals, and is well represented in jellyfish.Jellies are free- swimming organisms that belong to the phylum Cnidaria, consisting of many different species, and the term also loosely encompasses the phylum Ctenophora, the comb jellies. Many jellyfish have the ability to bioluminescence, especially comb jellies, where more than 90% of planktonic species are known to produce light (Haddock and Case 1995). Arguably, the most famous of all bioluminescent invertebrates is the Aequorea victoria, which is the first species from which GFP was isolated, a discovery which went on to win the Nobel prize. Bioluminescence is used predominantly as a form of communication between animals, and can be used for defense, offense, and intraspecific communication. Many animals use bioluminescence in multiple ways, though jellyfish use it primarily for defense. It is important to note, however, that the different ways in which jellyfish use bioluminescence are still being discovered. This chart illustrates the many different ways in which marine mammals, including jellyfish, use bioluminescence.
When it comes to your health, there is no better time to prepare for the future than now. We know that when you are dealing with a busy day-to-day it can be hard to think ahead an hour, let alone a decade, but adopting a few healthy practices can help prevent health issues later down the line. The new year is great opportunity to refresh your routine, so we’ve partnered with KeVitato put together a list of healthy habits your future self will thank you for.
The Thomas fire burning in Southern California is on the verge of becoming the largest blaze on state record, accomplishing a shocking feat for this time of year.
The relentless wildfire burning in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties has burned a total of 272,000 acres and remains 60 percent contained as of Wednesday, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, also known as Cal Fire, said in a release.
While the fire’s growth has slowed since igniting on Dec. 4, it’s on track to claim the title of the state’s largest fire on record from the 2003 Cedar Fire, which burned more than 280,000 acres in San Diego County. The data is based on records dating back to 1932.
While good weather conditions in recent days have allowed firefighters to make progress in fighting the blaze, wind gusts of up to 70 mph are expected to pick up tonight or tomorrow and could challenge firefighters working on the Thomas fire, Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant said in a Wednesday update.
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Gene Blevins / Reuters
Firefighters attack the Thomas fire’s north flank with backfires near Ojai, Dec. 9, 2017.
A sport utility vehicle driven by an Australian man of Afghan descent with a history of mental illness plowed into pedestrians in Melbourne on Thursday, injuring at least 19 people, four of them critically, officials said.
While the incident bore similarities to recent terrorist attacks in Europe and the United States, and police described the ramming as a “deliberate act,” authorities said there was no evidence of terrorist links.
“We don’t have any intelligence or evidence to indicate there is a connection to terrorism,” said Shane Patton, the acting police commissioner of Victoria state, of which Melbourne is the capital. “Having said that, we continue to support this investigation with the Counter Terrorism Command to ensure there isn’t that connection and there is no ongoing threat.”
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A car plowed into pedestrians at a crowded intersection on Dec. 21 in Melbourne, Australia, injuring at least 19 people.(The Washington Post)
Congress’ failure to renew a program that provides health care to low-income children by year’s end could cause almost 2 million kids to lose their coverage as soon as next month.
That’s according to a report published Wednesday by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. Federal funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which is jointly run and financed by the federal government and the states, expired nearly two months ago. The program covers about 9 million children in the U.S.
But the GOP-controlled Congress, which made time to pass a sweeping tax bill that largely benefits corporations and the rich, didn’t get around to reauthorizing CHIP ― and now millions of children are in jeopardy.
States are rapidly running out of money to pay these children’s medical bills, and several have started notifying parents that their kids’ health care is poised to disappear. At least 14 states plan to terminate CHIP by the end of January, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
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Andrew Montoya
Audrey, Katrina and Scarlett Montoya of Longmont, Colorado, could lose their health care next month because Congress failed to pass legislation renewing the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Countless human-made troubles in the Indonesian capital pose an imminent threat to the city’s survival. And it has to deal with mounting threats from climate change.
The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday overwhelmingly passed a measure rejecting the Trump administration’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which was repeatedly criticized as undermining the prospects for peace.
Despite blunt warnings of U.S. funding cuts, 128 countries voted in favor of the nonbinding resolution and only nine voted against it. Another 35 countries abstained.
“The United States will remember this day in which it was singled out in this assembly for the very act of exercising our right as a sovereign nation,” said Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. “We will remember it when, once again, we are called up to make the world’s largest contribution to the U.N., and we will remember it when many countries come calling on us to pay even more and to use our influence for their benefit.”
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On Dec. 21, the United Nations voted 128-9 in favor of rejecting President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.(Reuters)
‘What are we doing to defend our best selves?’ ‘What are we doing to defend our best selves and those timeless values that should transcend party?’ — Obama warning us that the rise of someone like Hitler could happen here.
Film and Writing Festival for Comedy. Showcasing best of comedy short films at the FEEDBACK Film Festival. Plus, showcasing best of comedy novels, short stories, poems, screenplays (TV, short, feature) at the festival performed by professional actors.
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Jellyfish
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