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The holders can boast seven major winners in their side but it's been 30 years since they won a contest on European soilAmericans call them road games. The label might as well be pain games. Three decades have elapsed since a United States team lifted the Ryder Cup in Europe. Paul Azinger, Fred Couples, Tom Kite, Lee Janzen, Corey Pavin, Payne Stewart, John Cook, Davis Love, Chip Beck, Jim Gallagher, Raymond Floyd, Lanny Wadkins; a decent enough collective but unlikely history makers.Success for the United States in the last Ryder Cup was so emphatic that giddy onlookers pointed towards a decade of dominance. Since Europe retained the trophy at The Belfry in 1989, the US have only actually prevailed half a dozen times. Bold predictions about reducing Europe - and, in fact, the Ryder Cup itself - to an irrelevance were precisely that. Timing can be everything in this competition; in 2021, it was an undeniable fact that umpteen European golfers arrived at Whistling Straits in questionable form. Continue reading...

Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez accused Republicans of fabricating evidence in the first hearing of Biden's impeachment inquiry on Thursday. Ocasio-Cortez said: 'Earlier today, one of our colleagues, the gentleman from Florida, presented up on the screen something that looked, appeared, to be a screenshot of a text message containing or insinuating an explosive allegation. That screenshot of what appeared to be a text message was a fabricated image'In a blistering attack on the GOP-led inquiry Ocasio-Cortez continued: 'This is an embarrassment. An embarrassment to the time and people of this country'

Spectators started singing Sweet Caroline but there was no place for spontaneity at the cliche-ridden opening ceremonyFrom the deckchairs and beanbags of the spectator village, through parched and fraying voices, came the strains of a song. They had come from all over Europe, taken holiday leave and emptied bank accounts, to join the party. And as they waited patiently in the baking Roman heat, they struck up - organically and quite unbidden - a chorus of Sweet Caroline. It was quite nice. Still, it was nothing that couldn't be drowned out by an industrial-strength sound system, some synthetic drum beats downloaded straight off Uppbeat and a woman spewing banal platitudes for an hour. Little people of the 44th Ryder Cup: shush. We will decide how you will be entertained.And so from the eternal city came the eternal opening ceremony: an inexorable treadmill of pumping music and glossy video montages and speeches so incoherent they verged on crimes against language. Was this sport? Clearly not. But by the same token it was evidently the stuff of which modern sport seems to be made these days: a kind of hydrogenised sport-adjacent substance, the fatty tissue of sport, the bit we now have to wade through to get to the thing itself. There was something good that we lost along the way," the singer-songwriter and celebrity golf fan Tom Grennan sang from the stage. Know how you feel, mate. Know how you feel. Continue reading...

LIV rebels deserve to have their past contributions recognised, even if wounds from golf's civil war still lingerThe walk into Marco Simone Golf and Country Club takes you past a series of giant posters of the European team's greatest moments: Darren Clarke's chip at the 16th to beat Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk in the four-balls at the K Club in 2006, Jamie Donaldson in the seconds after Keegan Bradley had conceded on the Sunday at Gleneagles in 2014, Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari hugging after winning their fourth point together at Le Golf National. It's a long way, and they run on and on and on, Seve at the Belfry, Woosie at Muirfield, Ollie tearing up in the aftermath of the Miracle at Medinah.There are, you'll eventually twig, three people who are very conspicuously missing from the gallery. You'll have to walk a lot longer again before you find any photos of Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, the three men who have come to be most closely associated with the European team in this century. In fact, if you're looking for one you can walk right across the course's 350 acres and carry on going off it back into the city again. Continue reading...

Madeline-Michelle Carthen was added to a death master file by SSA in error' but to this day she cannot revive herselfMadeline-Michelle Carthen was declared dead in the summer of 2007. The only problem? She was still very much alive.Carthen, 52, learned she died while studying at university. A business technology student at Webster University, Carthen was accepted into an international internship program. But when she applied for financial aid to assist with expenses, the financial aid office told her that her social security number was associated with a deceased person and that she would have to withdraw immediately. Continue reading...

Jason Billingsley charged with first-degree murder after Pava LaPere, 26, found dead in apartment complex on MondayA suspect has been arrested over the murder of a Baltimore tech chief executive, following a citywide manhunt.Jason Billingsley, 32, was arrested on charges of first-degree murder on Wednesday by Baltimore police over the killing of 26-year-old Pava LaPere. Billingsley was reportedly apprehended at a Maryland train station, ending a day-long manhunt for the suspect. Continue reading...

Failed far-right gubernatorial candidate is also a possible pick for Trump's running mate in the 2024 presidential electionThe far-right Trump supporter Kari Lake still refuses to accept her defeat in the 2022 race for Arizona governor but will nonetheless run for US Senate next year.We need to get a senator in there who is going to fight back and put America first," the Republican told the Wall Street Journal. Continue reading...

Elsewhere, Europe's youngsters claim first blood on the course while Italy's transport unions are dealt a blow off itThe official gala dinner on Wednesday night was a prime opportunity to engage in some of the Ryder Cup's more stubbornly enduring traditions: golf-themed desserts (this time a lavish coconut cream effort called Hole In One"), bad music (the singer-songwriter Phillip Phillips, who I'm sure played in the singles at Celtic Manor in 2010), and of course putting women in expensive dresses and making them stand silently while other people photograph them. As the European players and their wives descended the famous Spanish Steps, two of their number were conspicuously unaccompanied: Viktor Hovland and the vice-captain Jose Maria Olazabal. And so, in an arrestingly tender gesture, Olazabal and Hovland decided to couple up, posing hand-in-hand as they entered the Piazza di Spagna. A powerful stand against the heteronormativity and innate conservatism of professional golf? Or a piece of quite cringey banter? Probably depends how the rest of the evening panned out, to be honest. Continue reading...

Whatever the outcome of this battle between developer and local authority, high-rise blocks should not be the futureThe demolition of two new apartment buildings at Woolwich's Mast Quay would be daft. The claimed reason - 26 deviations from the development's 2012 planning permission - cannot justify planners pulling down the 36m high-rise blocks, embodied carbon and all. The developer, Comer Homes, seems to have slashed the proposed roof garden and playground, and pulled back on balconies, disabled access and overall quality. But that does not make the towers uninhabitable. I am sure you can see a dozen worse towers from its top floor.More than a third of Mast Quay's 204 units have reportedly now been rented - a two-bedroom flat is around 2,000 a month - with 126 still empty. Like towers across London, the block could well lie mostly empty as an asset on a company's books until the market improves. But what Greenwich may have envisaged as a luxury riverside hub for young urban professionals is now plainly not what it expected. The council is understandably eager to put things right. It is furious and wants the mutant" blocks to come down. The developers are appealing the decision, suggesting the council's public statements were inaccurate".Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

The FBI is investigating alleged civil rights violations at Baton Rouge's unmarked Brave Cave' torture warehouseThree Baton Rogue, Louisiana, police officers are on administrative leave after a series of federal lawsuits exposing the abuse and sexual humiliation taking place at an unmarked torture warehouse known as the Brave Cave" that was operated by members of the Baton Rouge police department (BRPD).Baton Rouge's police chief, Murphy Paul, told city councilors on Wednesday night that the department would hold itself accountable as the FBI investigates alleged civil rights violations at the agency stemming from the allegations that members of the department may have abused their authority". Continue reading...

At least two people holding signs saying union members for Trump' and auto workers for Trump' turned out to be neitherWhen Donald Trump gave a speech in Michigan on Wednesday, seeking to capitalise on the United Auto Workers strike, at least two crowd members holding signs saying union members for Trump" and auto workers for Trump" turned out to be neither.The Detroit News reported: One individual in the crowd who held a sign that said union members for Trump' acknowledged that she wasn't a union member when approached by a reporter after the event. Continue reading...

Trainers say president is ultimately responsible for German shepherd's behaviour after 11th biting incident in two yearsPerhaps the name didn't help in establishing who's boss. When Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, were given a three-month-old German shepherd puppy in December 2021, they decided to call the very adorable" new pet Commander.With his in chief" suffix, Biden may technically outrank him - but it seems nobody told the dog. On Monday Commander (dog not president) bit a Secret Service agent, leaving him requiring medical treatment - and this was not a first offence. The dog has bitten or attacked Secret Service personnel at least 11 times, which among Biden's security team has earned it the less polite code names of that stupid dog" and freaking clown". Continue reading...

The perennial All-Star is heading to Milwaukee to form a formidable duo with Giannis Antetokounmpo. But Phoenix and Portland have done well tooWhat a time to be alive - and be Jrue Holiday.One morning, the sports world is reporting on your hope to retire with the Milwaukee Bucks. A few hours later, you're a member of the Portland Trail Blazers. Continue reading...

Thanks to self-described slob John Fetterman, standards are slipping for US politicians. If only the rest of society could follow suitIt was John Fetterman, the Democratic senator for Pennsylvania with a penchant for unapologetically wearing shorts" while on duty in the Senate, who seems to have broken the system. Last week, when the majority leader, Chuck Schumer, announced a relaxing of the dress code on the Senate floor, he didn't mention Fetterman. But nobody was fooled. For weeks, Fetterman has been attracting attention in his baggy shorts, shapeless hoodie and massive, scruffy trainers - and now look what he's done. Stepping up to provide journalists with the mandatory quote on these sorts of occasions, Republican senator Roger Marshall observed gravely that it was a sad day in the Senate".When questioned on the matter, Fetterman remarked that the clothes, which he started wearing after a spell in hospital for depression earlier this year, made him more comfortable. There's probably a pandemic hangover at work here, too - and possibly, given the state of the world, some fiddling-while-Rome-burns displacement. Traditionally, the Senate's sergeant-at-arms would pull up male senators for appearing tieless on the floor, and out of respect they would vote from the doorways. The understanding is that, from now on, they may be emboldened to take their place alongside colleagues in something more casual.Emma Brockes is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

The 36-year-old was unfit to play in Miami's defeat to Houston on Wednesday night. The club should consider calling time on his epic, remarkable seasonLionel Messi reached his breaking point. At least for now. The Argentinian has been remarkably durable throughout his club and international career. However, at 36, 12 spellbinding games in two months for his new club - after a season with PSG sandwiched by the World Cup triumph where he played every single minute - has proved too much.As such, Inter Miami were without their blockbuster acquisition for arguably the biggest game in the club's history. In the US Open Cup final on Wednesday night a fatigued squad lost 2-1 to Houston Dynamo in Fort Lauderdale. Messi could only watch from the stands. Continue reading...

Trump and seven other Republicans face the same challenge - US support for unions is at a high but the GOP historically doesn't condone themIn a bid to recapture the favor of blue-collar rust belt voters, Donald Trump traveled to Michigan on Wednesday to address a crowd of autoworkers at a rally near Detroit. The former president billed his prime-time speech as a gesture of solidarity with striking autoworkers.The event doubled as a distraction from the night's Republican primary debate, where other candidates discussed how they would help striking autoworkers. Continue reading...

Anonymous urban life has left many of us millennials struggling with loneliness. I went looking for a solutionAs a child, I knew that the inner-city, activist community I grew up among in Cleveland, Ohio, was quirky (and as a high schooler who just wanted to be normal, I was even embarrassed by parts of it). People left their doors unlocked, popping in with a knock to announce themselves while out running errands or walking the dog; we spontaneously gathered for potluck dinners in someone's backyard; loud conversations about counter-cultural movements like pacifism and leftwing Catholic liberation theology" seemed, to me, just the way of the world.Now community" is something my generation, the millennials, are increasingly seeking out. Some of us have long felt we belonged to each other within a virtual village. Others encountered the same reassurance on residential campuses during university. Others still may be drawn to the idea of something unfamiliar precisely because they have felt its lack as they move, too often alone", through the unmoored period that psychologist Satya Doyle Byock calls quarterlife".Alexander Hurst is a France-based writer and an adjunct lecturer at Sciences Po, the Paris Institute of Political Studies

Five of the current USA team were not even born the last time the country triumphed on European soilBy Steven Pye for That 1980s Sports BlogWelcome to 1993. Take That have teamed up with Lulu. There are four terrestrial TV channels in the UK. England are preparing for a crucial World Cup qualifier in the Netherlands. The internet is still a thing of the future. Five players who will represent the USA in the 2023 Ryder Cup have not been born. And Prince Andrew is allowed to present the Ryder Cup to the winning captain.As Tom Watson lifted up the Ryder Cup at the Belfry on 26 September 1993, you would have been given long odds on the American team having to wait at least 30 years to triumph again on European soil. But since that Sunday in the Midlands, six USA captains - including Watson again in 2014 - have tried and failed to take the trophy back across the Atlantic. Thirty years of hurt. Continue reading...

Seven candidates faced off at the Ronald Reagan library in California, with frontrunner Trump again choosing to skip. Plus, how New York is breaking free of Airbnb's clutches Don't already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up hereGood morning.The absence of Donald Trump played a central role in the second Republican primary debate of the 2024 election season, as seven White House hopefuls tried and mostly failed to shake up a race in which the former president remains the clear frontrunner.What were the key takeaways from the debate? Amid the squabble of the seven candidates, all of whom trail Trump significantly, Americans were left to parse which direction the Republican party plans to take in 2024. Here are the main takeaways from the two-hour debate that aired on Fox Business.Did the candidates tell the truth? The seven Republican presidential candidates offered an array of dubious data and claims to prop up their talking points. Here are six factchecks from the night.Who won the Republican debate? Our panel responds.Do shutdowns pay off politically? Past shutdowns - most recently in 2013, 2018 and 2019 - have been stoked by Republican hardliners in Congress but have not paid off politically. The most recent closure was prompted by Donald Trump, then president, over immigration policy. The Congressional Budget Office put the cost of the 35-day shutdown at about $18bn and said $3bn was wiped off US GDP. Continue reading...

Travis King arrived on US military flight and will undergo medical review and reintegration processTravis King, the American soldier who fled across the border from South Korea to North Korea in July, has landed at a US military base in Texas after being taken back into US custody.CNN reported that King arrived at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston on a US military flight in the early hours of Thursday morning. Continue reading...

House hearing marks an escalation even as Republicans fail to produce substantive evidence of president's alleged corruptionThe House oversight committee will hold its first hearing in the impeachment inquiry of Joe Biden on Thursday, marking an escalation of Republicans' investigative work even as they fail to produce substantive evidence of the president's alleged corruption.The hearing, scheduled for 10am ET on Thursday, comes two weeks after the House speaker, Kevin McCarthy, launched the inquiry in response to demands from hard-right members of the House Republican conference. Continue reading...

Angel Almeida's alarming social media posts led authorities to 764, a group that abuses minors and circulates violent videosAn arrest on gun possession charges in Queens, New York, in November 2021 has led the Federal Bureau of Investigation to a pedophilic, Satanist extortion cult that has victimized dozens if not hundreds of minors, according to law enforcement documents, court records and sources with knowledge of the investigation.Law enforcement discovered the organization, known as 764 and a range of aliases, while investigating alarming social media posts made by Angel Almeida, a 23-year-old resident of Astoria, Queens. Continue reading...

Nikki Haley's barb directed at Vivek Ramaswamy summed up the whole spectacle rendered meaningless by Trump's absenceEvery time I hear you I feel a little bit dumber," Nikki Haley said onstage at the second Republican presidential primary debate last night. She was talking to Vivek Ramaswamy, the businessman currently polling at an average of about 6% among likely Republican voters. But she could have been talking about any one of the seven candidates onstage: Haley, Ramaswamy, the Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, South Carolina senator Tim Scott, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former vice-president Mike Pence and the North Dakota governor, Doug Burgum. The debate was rancorous, chaotic and punctured by statements so hateful, outlandish and extreme that they made an impression even by the current Republican party's very low standards.Worst of all, the whole thing was pointless: Donald Trump, who is leading in the polls by more than 40 points, was not there. The candidates onstage, wannabes, also-rans and cynical self-promoters, spent much of the evening attacking each other. But for the most part, they did not attack him.Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

Candidates name-called and insulted, made policy proposals and denied history - but not enough to distinguish themselvesIt's hard to pick the low point of a debate that dissolved frequently into incoherent crosstalk and included former vice-president Mike Pence, a Christian conservative who has famously said he would never dine alone with a woman other than his wife, attempting to make a joke about his sex life. (My wife isn't a member of the teachers union, but I gotta admit I've been sleeping with a teacher for 38 years," he said.)In a debate conducted not far from Ronald Reagan's grave, seven GOP presidential candidates shouted and sniped at each other for two hours without producing a single standout moment. Continue reading...

The absence of Donald Trump played a central role in the second Republican primary debate of the 2024 election season, as seven White House hopefuls tried and mostly failed to shake up a race in which the former president remains the clear frontrunner. Two of Trump's rivals, Chris Christie and Ron DeSantis, attempted to capitalise on his absence by criticising him for skipping the debate, held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in Simi Valley, California

The quarterback has struggled this season but his team have an awful defense, off-field troubles and the general air of dysfunctionTimes are tough on Justin Fields Island. Property prices have plummeted. Supplies are running low. The true believers have turned feral. By this time next week, Wilson may have drifted away.Time doesn't function normally in the NFL. Three months feels like a generation. The preseason excitement about what the Bears might be and what their quarterback, Fields, could do has already made way for the grim reality.32nd in EPA/play32nd in dropback EPA/play32nd in pressure rate32nd in pressure rate with a four-man rush32nd in sacks per game32nd in yards conceded per coverage snap Continue reading...

While the US and Europe fight it out on the course, there will also be a battle for hearts and minds in a country where golf is rarely in the headlinesAmid a truculently chaotic Roman rush hour, the taxi driver is ranking the sports that are more popular than golf in Italy. It is a long journey. Which is just as well, because he has a lengthy list. Football, tennis, formula uno, Moto GP," he begins, before the language barrier intervenes and we veer sharply towards mime. Finally, after performing the actions for swimming and - possibly - volleyball, he concludes: E il golf!"Welcome to Ryder Cup week in the Eternal City, and a fresh battle for hearts and souls. More than 150,000 fans are expected over the next three days at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, 10 miles east of Rome, for the biannual contest between Europe and the US. It is expected to again be a huge sporting and financial success. Yet one great imponderable remains: will it also be a gamechanger for golf in Italy? Continue reading...

Republican candidates made misleading, dubious and outright false claims on a variety of issuesSeven Republican presidential candidates participated in a Wednesday night debate in California, offering up an array of dubious data and claims to prop up their talking points.Here are six fact-checks from the night. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed. You can read our latest pieces on the Republican debate here:

From a foray into Mike Pence's sex life and extreme yet vague proposals on gun control, candidates competed for an edgeThe second Republican presidential debate - once again without frontrunner Donald Trump - took place on Wednesday evening at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.Amid the squabble of the seven candidates, all of whom trail Trump significantly, Americans were left to parse which direction the Republican party plans to take in 2024. Trump, meanwhile, gave a speech in Michigan, where autoworkers have been striking for better work conditions and pay. Continue reading...

The ex-president gave a rambling speech at a car parts firm but it was unclear how many of the small crowd were autoworkersAs the rain came down a small crowd was still left outside Drake Enterprises, a non-union automotive manufacturing plant in Clinton Township, Michigan, on Wednesday night waiting for former president Donald Trump.We want to take our country back! Let Biden sleep in his hospital bed! We want guns! We want Trump!" shouted one of the 50 or so people still waiting as Trump's motorcade pulled away from the sodden event. He declined to give his name. Continue reading...

Frontrunner in Republican primary speaks at Michigan car parts firm one day after Biden joined autoworkers' picket lineDonald Trump tried to woo US autoworkers in a rambling speech in Michigan on Wednesday night that took potshots at Joe Biden, electric vehicles and Barack Obama while pushing culture war issues and fell far short of supporting the core issues that have many car workers currently on strike.The speech came a day after Joe Biden spoke to striking United Auto Workers members on a picket line nearby. Biden's historic appearance was the first time that a sitting president has walked a picket line. Continue reading...

Donald Trump again skipped the second debate of the 2024 primary season, as candidates vie to present policy agendasRepublicans vying for the 2024 party nomination were set to take the stage in Simi Valley, California , on Wednesday night for the second debate of the primary season.The candidates will once again throw punches at each other and at Donald Trump, who has a significant lead in polls but is skipping the debate. But it's also a chance for each candidate to present their policy agenda and voice their stance on key voter issues such as abortion and aid to Ukraine. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. We're covering the Republican second debate - once again minus Trump - in a standalone live blog, which you can follow here:

DoJ says Washington Trust engaged in redlining, the racist policy of banks blocking people of color from getting mortgagesWashington Trust, the oldest community bank in the US, has agreed to pay $9m to resolve allegations that it engaged in lending discrimination against homebuyers in majority Black and Latino neighborhoods, the Department of Justice has announced.Since the company was founded in 1800 in Rhode Island, the bank has never offered its home loan services at a branch location in a majority-Black or Latino neighborhood throughout the state, including in the state capital of Providence, where the vast majority of the state's Black and Latino population live. Continue reading...

Small parcel of land beneath a Hawaiin Electric Co power line could be the site where the devastating fire reignitedMelted remains of an old car tire. Two burned trees. A stump of an abandoned utility pole.These are among the pieces of evidence investigators are examining as they seek to solve the mystery of last month's Maui wildfire: how did a small fire sparked by downed power lines and declared extinguished flare up again hours later into a devastating inferno? Continue reading...

Trump is effectively out of business' in New York, Michael Cohen says, after judge rules business fortune built on rampant fraud

Seven candidates faced off at Ronald Reagan library in Simi Valley, California, with Republican frontrunner again choosing to skipThe absence of Donald Trump played a central role in the second Republican primary debate of the 2024 election season, as seven White House hopefuls tried and mostly failed to shake up a race in which the former president remains the clear frontrunner.Two of Trump's rivals attempted to capitalize on his absence by criticizing him for skipping the debate, held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in Simi Valley, California. DeSantis mocked Trump as missing in action", saying, He should be on this stage tonight. He owes it to you to defend his record." Continue reading...

Senate majority leader says fellow Democrat has fallen way short' of senatorial standards but stops short of calling for resignationThe Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, said on Wednesday he was disturbed" by the fraud indictment against his fellow Democratic Senator, Bob Menendez, and that the New Jersey lawmaker has fallen way short" of senatorial standards.Menendez pleaded not guilty earlier in the day to charges of taking bribes from three New Jersey businessmen, as calls for his resignation from his fellow Democrats escalated. Continue reading...

Moderate New York Republican Mike Lawler said members of the GOP blocking efforts to keep the federal government from going into shutdown before a Saturday deadline are stuck on stupid' in an interview with CNN.Criticising members of his party, Lawler said: Some of my colleagues have, frankly, been stuck on stupid and refused to do what we were elected to do, against the vast majority of the conference, who have been working to avoid a shutdown'

While far from universally loved, the American is a guaranteed attention-grabber in a sport which finds itself in turmoilBrooks Koepka doesn't like you. Perhaps Brooks Koepka doesn't strictly know you yet, but for a man of Koepka's unbendable principles this point would be a mere formality. Perhaps at this early stage of your enmity it is more correct to say he disapproves of you. You are the autograph hunter hassling him after practice. You are the person who left the irritating comment on Instagram. You are the driver who cut him up on I-95. Maybe not you specifically, but someone like you. And let's be real, it probably will be you one day. Best give him a wide berth just to be safe.You don't even need to interact directly with Koepka to get on his wrong side. Earlier this year he was at a Florida Panthers ice hockey game when he became exasperated at one of the home team's defenders. Ekblad, you suck!" Koepka shouted from the stands in a video that was lighting up the internet within minutes. Fucking traffic cone!" Continue reading...

Canadian researchers show unhoused people don't waste money on temptation goods' - and hope to alter public opinionIn 2002, the then San Francisco supervisor Gavin Newsom proposed legislation to cut welfare assistance to nearly 3,000 homeless people living in the city from $395 a month to $59 a month, and divert the budgetary savings toward shelters and other services. It was promoted with the name Care Not Cash".

Several senior officials have conspicuously vanished. But it is ordinary people, especially Uyghurs, who are most vulnerableIn 1971, Lin Biao, hailed by China as Mao Zedong's successor, fell from grace, fled the country and was killed in an aircrash in Mongolia. Despite his prominence, it was weeks before the public was told of his death, and months before any explanation was offered. The recent spate of disappearances from China's top echelons is hardly as seismic. They have happened in calmer political waters, far from the Cultural Revolution's turmoil. But they speak to the way that politics still operates in Beijing. The glaring absences of senior officials are eventually followed by a belated narrative of their downfall in the rumour mill and then state media.When Qin Gang, the foreign minister, vanished from public view in June, it was particularly conspicuous given his diplomatic role. It was almost a month before authorities confirmed that he had been removed from his post. A few weeks later, China's defence minister, Li Shangfu, also failed to appear at scheduled meetings with foreign officials. Reuters has reported that he is being investigated over corruption in military procurement. The two most senior generals overseeing nuclear and conventional land-based missiles had already been replaced at the beginning of August. One was reportedly taken away by corruption investigators. Continue reading...

Two-thirds say news about Black people is more negative than news about other racial and ethnic groups, Pew survey findsA majority of Black Americans say that their communities are unfairly depicted in news coverage, according to a sweeping new survey on Wednesday.Nearly two-thirds of respondents observed that their community received more negative coverage than other racial and ethnic groups, the Pew Research Center survey found. Roughly four in 10 surveyed said that the media not only stereotyped Black people but also felt that they saw racist and racially insensitive coverage sometimes or fairly often. Continue reading...

Many say US failed to prevent crisis, which has left 120,000 ethnic Armenians in limbo as Azerbaijan moves to take control of Nagorno-Karabakh regionThe night before the Republican presidential debate, hundreds of Armenian Americans demonstrated outside of the California debate location, calling on GOP candidates to speak out about what they called a current genocide happening in Nagorno-Karabakh.Across southern California, which has one of the largest Armenian diaspora populations in the world, residents expressed heartbreak and anger over what they saw as the failure of the US and Europe to prevent the current crisis, which has left the futures of an estimated 120,000 ethnic Armenians in limbo as Azerbaijan moves to take full control of the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Continue reading...

Mike Lawler, New York Republican, says colleagues refuse to do what we were elected to do' as shutdown loomsRepublicans pushing for a federal government shutdown are stuck on stupid", a party moderate said shortly before one rightwinger reported that the House speaker, Kevin McCarthy, would not hold a vote on a bipartisan Senate plan advanced as a way to keep the government open.The American people elected a House Republican majority to serve as a check and balance and be able to govern," Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York, a heavily Democratic state, told CNN. Continue reading...

Prisoners are bigger due to steroids. Spice turns inmates into zombies. And with social media they might know where we liveWorking in a prison is like going through a meat grinder. You come out at the end of a shift with your head feeling completely mashed. One of the first incidents I remember is a prisoner sitting in his cell cutting his arm because he wanted me to get him a cigarette. He knew exactly what to do without putting his life at risk.Things in prisons have changed a lot since then. Prisoners are much bigger than they were 30 years ago due to use of steroids inside. And they are more likely to be in gangs.In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...

Request also made for four dress shirts, three ties, one belt, four pairs of socks, two pairs of shoes and appropriate undergarments'Sam Bankman-Fried, the jailed former cryptocurrency billionaire known for his casual appearance, has asked a US judge for permission to dress up for his forthcoming fraud trial.In a Tuesday night court filing, Bankman-Fried's lawyers asked a judge to order US marshals and Brooklyn jail officials to provide their client with three suit jackets and pairs of slacks to wear in the courtroom. Continue reading...