The Political Thread

[Barry Poppins]

Reminder that Apartheid was repealed in 1991. I guaran-dog-tee that a majority of those Afrikaner "refugees" are still white supremacists.

 

[Chris]

Hamas releases American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander

The release came the day before President Donald Trump is set to travel to the Middle East in a trip that is expected to intensify ceasefire efforts.

www.nbcnews.com

An American-Israeli soldier held hostage for more than 19 months in the Gaza Strip was released by Hamas on Monday.

Edan Alexander, who is believed to be the last living U.S. citizen held captive in Gaza, was handed over to Red Cross representatives in the enclave’s southern city of Khan Younis.

The 21-year-old was then transfered to to Israeli special forces inside the Gaza Strip, the country’s military said in a statement Monday. On his return to Israeli territory, “he will undergo an initial medical assessment and meet with his family,” the statement added.

 

[Samoa Looch]

Polish authorities confirm evidences of Russian sabotage behind the arson attack that destroyed most of the Marywilska 44 marketplace in Warsaw in 2024. As a reaction, the Russian consulate general in Kraków is ordered to close down.

Poland blames Russian intelligence for arson attack on Warsaw shopping center last year

Polish officials say a massive fire that destroyed a large shopping center in Warsaw last year was the result of arson ordered by Russian intelligence services.

apnews.com

 

[Samoa Looch]

 

[Chris]

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/05/13/cpi-inflation-april-2025.html

Inflation was slightly lower than expected in April as President Donald Trump’s tariffs just began hitting the slowing U.S. economy, according to a Labor Department report Tuesday.

The consumer price index, which measures the costs for a broad range of goods and services, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% for the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 2.3%, its lowest since February 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. The monthly reading was in line with the Dow Jones consensus estimate while the 12-month was a bit below the forecast for 2.4%.

Excluding volatile food and energy prices, core CPI also increased 0.2% for the month, while the year-over-year level was 2.8%. The forecast was for 0.3% and 2.8% respectively.

 

[Chris]

https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/13/middleeast/israel-strike-gaza-hospital-eslaiah-intl

Israel struck a hospital in Gaza early Tuesday, a day after briefly pausing military activity for the release of Israeli-American Edan Alexander by Hamas.

The Israeli military resumed strikes in Gaza about an hour after Alexander left the territory, hitting the Al Daraj neighborhood in northern Gaza on Monday evening, before striking the Nasser medical complex in southern Gaza on Tuesday, according to hospital officials.

The IDF strike targeted the surgical ward on the hospital’s third floor, which is now “completely out of service,” killing two patients and wounding medical staff, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) said.

The target of the strike appeared to be Hassan Eslaiah, a prominent Gaza photojournalist. He was being treated at the hospital after being wounded in an earlier targeted Israeli airstrike in April.

 

[Chris]

Trump administration announces $450 million in new Harvard funding cuts - The Boston Globe

The cuts add to the more than $2.2 billion in research funding for Harvard that the government had previously frozen.

www.bostonglobe.com

The Trump administration’s antisemitism task force announced Tuesday that federal agencies would cut an additional $450 million in funding to Harvard.

The announcement comes a day after Harvard president Alan Garber denounced the Trump administration’s funding cuts as “unlawful” government overreach.

The cuts add to the more than $2.2 billion in research funding for Harvard that the government had previously frozen after the university refused to comply with an extraordinary list of demands.

 

[Samoa Looch]

Sports betting could come directly to TVs sooner than you think

Sports betting technology has made gambling directly on TVs possible in Colombia. How soon before it comes to America?

awfulannouncing.com

Since 2018, when the Supreme Court lifted the ban on sports betting, legal gamblers have had two basic ways of placing a wager in the 39 states and the District of Columbia where wagering is legal: bet in person at a casino or on the sportsbooks’ apps (nine of these states allow only in-person betting).

Betting directly from the TV that’s showing the contest using the remote control or touchscreen has long been a holy grail of sorts in the sports and betting universes. However, it has not occurred for a host of reasons, from technology to the complications of winning approvals from betting regulators, broadcasters, and leagues.

But it is now no longer a fantasy. Tomorrow in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., at the SBC Summit, a major sports gambling conference, DirecTV, BetPlay, and technology company TAPPP will announce live in-game betting has been up and running since Saturday for DirecTV’s two million customers in Colombia.