Let’s take a walk and see what is happening.
The mad mullahs in Iran are upset about an IDF attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria and retaliated. It seized a cargo ship with connections to Israel and dispatched over 300 weaponized drones. Israel, with help from the UK, France, Jordan & US, shot 99% of them down. The US has sent two warships to the Straits of Hormuz to support Israel. President Biden and the UN Secretary-General have both urged Iran not to continue to retaliate. Iran is unlikely to heed their request. While some see Iran as engaging in war theatre, the mullahs will not be happy until casualties are counted and infrastructure weakened. The war is escalating.
In an act of obscene violence, a 40-year-old male ran through a shopping mall in Bondi, Australia, stabbing people, including a baby. One male and five females are dead, and a baby is in critical condition. Eight others were injured. A fast-thinking policewoman, Inspector Amy Scott, the first police officer on the scene, shot the man dead and is seen as a hero. The man was known to police. Truly shocking. The perpetrator – Joel Cauchi – was a former teacher and male escort who was rough sleeping and very disturbed.
A second stabbing took place the day after the Bondi Junction killings. This time a Bishop was attached in the middle of a live-streamed church service.
In Copenhagen (Denmark), the 17th Century Børsen (stock exchange) was engulfed in flames and was significantly damaged. The fire destroyed many of the 400 years of cultural artifacts the building contained, including valuable paintings. The building was undergoing restoration at the time. Many compare this fire to the one that almost destroyed Notre Dame.
In the UAE, extreme flooding followed a massive rainstorm, not helped by the fact that the Emirate had “seeded” clouds to encourage rain. Twenty people have died, the Dubai airport was flooded out and closed, and schools, colleges, and universities, as well as many government buildings, are closed as a safety measure. 256mm of rain fell in twenty-four hours in Dubai. The average annual rainfall in Dubai is 97mm.
As Trump’s lead in polls for the November election shrinks to just 1% and his media company bleeds on the stock market, the Republicans in the House continue to support Russia in its war in Ukraine. They do so by refusing to support new aid and resources. Historically, the GOP was fervently anti-Moscow and against dictatorship. But as they prepare to dismantle democracy and embrace dictatorship within the US via a Trump fascist Presidency, supporting another despot doesn’t seem that difficult.
Trump’s media company, which trades on the NASDAQ as DJT, is down $4.5 billion from its heady start. Stock began trading around $76 and is now trading at around $26-$27. The stock isn’t helped by the fact that two cofounders have pleaded guilty to insider trading. Just proves that Trump has the reverse Midas touch.
The right-wing political party Reform in the UK has apologized after publicly firing one of its election candidates for being ‘inactive’ - the candidate had died. A party spokesman told a local news outlet: “We can’t afford to have people doing nothing in an election year.” Rishi Sunak is doing nothing, though Borish Johnson and Liz Trussedup are playing spoilers as if anyone cares what they think. Liz Trussedup is to politics what mosquitos are to grizzly bears.
OJ Simpson – the man who couldn’t get a pair of gloves to fit him – died of cancer at the age of 76. He caught the attention of the world after his wife and her “friend” were found murdered, and he led the police in a slow car chase – he was their #1 suspect. He managed not to be convicted on that occasion but did serve time (9 years) for kidnapping and theft a few years later. Not born with a full bag of hammers, he was a defining character of his time.
At the Venice Biennale, the wonderful festival of arts held across Venice, the Israeli pavilion remains firmly closed. The curators and artists have all agreed that it will remain closed until Israel announces a cease-fire in Gaza and the hostages are returned. One of the curators said, “There is no end in sight, only the promise of more pain, loss and devastation. The exhibition is up and the pavilion is waiting to be opened. The art can wait but the women, children and people living through hell cannot.”
In Vatican news, the former personal secretary and confidant of Benedict XVI, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, is slated to become a Papal Nuncio (Ambassador). Where Pope Francis might send him is still a mystery. The two don’t get on. Gänswein was required to leave Rome on Benedict’s death and is now a canon in the cathedral at Freiburg in Baden-Württemberg in southwestern Germany – 985 km from Rome.
Gordon Ramsey owns a pub called the York & Albany, near Regent’s Park – well, he leases the space. Squatters have taken it over and want to run it as a soup kitchen. Ramsey wants them out, but since this is a civil matter and not a criminal one, the police can’t help. He is calling it a kitchen nightmare! (His former boss’s – Marco Pierre White – disused restaurant in London’s west end has also been taken over by squatters. It’s clearly becoming “a thing!”).
The Duke of Kent (88) is stepping down as the Colonel in Chief of the Scot’s Guard – a position he has held for forty years. The new CoC is Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh. Duke of Kent was cousin to the late Queen Elizabeth and patron of the All-England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club (host of Wimbledon) a position now held by the Princess of Wales. Excitement never ends in the royal household. The Duke of Kent served with the armed forces for more than 21 years, starting his career as a second lieutenant with the Royal Scots Greys and retiring in 1976 as a lieutenant colonel. In 1993, he was promoted to field marshal - the highest rank in the Army.