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North Korea Launches Nuclear Sub That Carries 10 Nuclear Missiles

According to Naval News, North Korea has launched its first operational “tactical nuclear attack submarine” and deployed it to its fleet that patrols the waters between the Korean peninsula and Japan.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who attended the launch ceremony on Wednesday, said arming the navy with nuclear weapons was an important priority and promised to transfer more submarines and surface ships outfitted with tactical nuclear weapons to the naval forces, according to Naval News.

“The submarine-launching ceremony marked the start of a new chapter in strengthening the DPRK’s naval force,” KCNA stated, using the initials of the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

North Korea 841

Submarine No. 841, called Hero Kim Kun Ok after a North Korean historical figure, will serve as “one of the core underwater offensive means of the naval force” of North Korea, according to Kim.

North Korea intends to convert its existing boats into nuclear-armed assault submarines and to expedite its efforts to create nuclear-powered submarines, according to Kim.

“Achieving rapid development of our naval forces… is a priority that cannot be delayed given… the enemies’ recent aggressive moves and military acts,” North Korea’s Kim stated in a speech, presumably referring to the US and South Korea.

Analysts first noticed indicators that at least one new submarine was being developed in 2016, and state media in 2019 showed Kim examining a previously undisclosed submarine that was built with “his special attention” and would be operational in waters off the east coast.

State media did not identify the submarine’s weapons systems or disclose where or when the inspection took place at the time, but observers claimed the new vessel’s apparent size indicated it was built to carry missiles.

It was not immediately known what missiles the new submarine will carry. North Korea has tested a number of submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and cruise missiles.

North Korea Nuke Sub

It’s also uncertain whether North Korea has finished developing the miniaturized nuclear warheads required for such rockets. Analysts believe that if the North resumes nuclear testing, mastering smaller weapons will be a crucial priority.

Only the experimental ballistic missile submarine 8.24 Yongung (August 24th Hero) is known to have launched a missile.

“This is most likely intended to field the navalized version of the KN23, which they’ve acknowledged as a delivery system for their compact nuclear warhead,” said Ankit Panda of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, referring to the North’s test-fired short-range SLBM.

The submarine’s massive sail appears to have room for both ballistic and cruise missiles, according to Tal Inbar, a senior research fellow at the Missile Defence Advocacy Alliance.

“It won’t be long before we see it launch missiles,” he wrote on X, the formerly known as Twitter.

The launch ceremony coincides with North Korea’s 75th anniversary of its birth day on Saturday, and it follows reports that Kim planned to visit Russia this month to meet with President Vladimir Putin to discuss military shipments to Moscow.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Jakarta on Thursday, urging Beijing to do more as a member of the United Nations Security Council to confront North Korea’s nuclear threat.

North Korea, Russia

Meanwhile, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan warned North Korea on Tuesday against supplying Russia with armaments during its conflict with Ukraine, saying Pyongyang will “pay a price” if it follows through on a planned transaction.

Sullivan told reporters that conversations between North Korea and Russia about Pyongyang’s military backing are “actively advancing,” perhaps leading to top-level talks.

“The Russians have imbued them with increased intensity,” Sullivan said of the talks.

Sullivan also warned that if North Korea decides to transfer weapons to Russia, the international community will retaliate.

“Providing weapons to Russia for use on the battlefield to attack grain silos and the heating infrastructure of major cities as we head into winter, to try to conquer territory that belongs to another sovereign nation — this will not reflect well on North Korea, and they will pay a price in the international community,” he said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may fly to Russia to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to US officials.

Officials also stated that Russia would purchase weaponry from North Korea in exchange for food and crucial technology.

North Korea has a strong defence production base for artillery rounds, which might aid Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.

Concerns over the two countries’ burgeoning military cooperation have risen since Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu visited North Korea in July.

Sullivan stated on Tuesday that Shoigu requested military assistance during his July trip. He claimed that Russia has become desperate throughout the conflict and is looking for further cooperation to further its goals in Ukraine.

“We have continued to squeeze Russia’s defence industrial base, and they are now going about looking for whatever source they can find,” he said.

The United States has already sanctioned North Korean businesses that supplied weaponry and ammunition to Wagner Group, a mercenary firm that fought on Moscow’s side in Ukraine. However, there is no indication that Pyongyang has directly aided Russia’s armed forces.

Washington has begun to warn that this may alter in recent weeks. Sullivan promised that the US and its partners will continue to try to persuade North Korea not to make a deal, and that the White House would publicly report on developments.

“We will continue to call on North Korea to honour its public commitments not to supply Russia with weapons that will kill Ukrainians,” he said.

White House Warns North Korea Against Arms Sales to Russia Amid Ukraine Crisis

White House Warns North Korea Against Arms Sales to Russia Amid Ukraine Crisis

 

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding, But Still Accounting 48% Search Revenue

Google

Google is so closely associated with its key product that its name is a verb that signifies “search.” However, Google’s dominance in that sector is dwindling.

According to eMarketer, Google will lose control of the US search industry for the first time in decades next year.

Google will remain the dominant search player, accounting for 48% of American search advertising revenue. And, remarkably, Google is still increasing its sales in the field, despite being the dominating player in search since the early days of the George W. Bush administration. However, Amazon is growing at a quicker rate.

google

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

Amazon will hold over a quarter of US search ad dollars next year, rising to 27% by 2026, while Google will fall even more, according to eMarketer.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the forecast.

Lest you think you’ll have to switch to Bing or Yahoo, this isn’t the end of Google or anything really near.

Google is the fourth-most valued public firm in the world. Its market worth is $2.1 trillion, trailing just Apple, Microsoft, and the AI chip darling Nvidia. It also maintains its dominance in other industries, such as display advertisements, where it dominates alongside Facebook’s parent firm Meta, and video ads on YouTube.

To put those “other” firms in context, each is worth more than Delta Air Lines’ total market value. So, yeah, Google is not going anywhere.

Nonetheless, Google faces numerous dangers to its operations, particularly from antitrust regulators.

On Monday, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that Google must open up its Google Play Store to competitors, dealing a significant blow to the firm in its long-running battle with Fortnite creator Epic Games. Google announced that it would appeal the verdict.

In August, a federal judge ruled that Google has an illegal monopoly on search. That verdict could lead to the dissolution of the company’s search operation. Another antitrust lawsuit filed last month accuses Google of abusing its dominance in the online advertising business.

Meanwhile, European regulators have compelled Google to follow tough new standards, which have resulted in multiple $1 billion-plus fines.

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Pixa Bay

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

On top of that, the marketplace is becoming more difficult on its own.

TikTok, the fastest-growing social network, is expanding into the search market. And Amazon has accomplished something few other digital titans have done to date: it has established a habit.

When you want to buy anything, you usually go to Amazon, not Google. Amazon then buys adverts to push companies’ products to the top of your search results, increasing sales and earning Amazon a greater portion of the revenue. According to eMarketer, it is expected to generate $27.8 billion in search revenue in the United States next year, trailing only Google’s $62.9 billion total.

And then there’s AI, the technology that (supposedly) will change everything.

Why search in stilted language for “kendall jenner why bad bunny breakup” or “police moving violation driver rights no stop sign” when you can just ask OpenAI’s ChatGPT, “What’s going on with Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny?” in “I need help fighting a moving violation involving a stop sign that wasn’t visible.” Google is working on exactly this technology with its Gemini product, but its success is far from guaranteed, especially with Apple collaborating with OpenAI and other businesses rapidly joining the market.

A Google spokeswoman referred to a blog post from last week in which the company unveiled ads in its AI overviews (the AI-generated text that appears at the top of search results). It’s Google’s way of expressing its ability to profit on a changing marketplace while retaining its business, even as its consumers steadily transition to ask-and-answer AI and away from search.

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Google has long used a single catchphrase to defend itself against opponents who claim it is a monopoly abusing its power: competition is only a click away. Until recently, that seemed comically obtuse. Really? We are going to switch to Bing? Or Duck Duck Go? Give me a break.

But today, it feels more like reality.

Google is in no danger of disappearing. However, every highly dominating company faces some type of reckoning over time. GE, a Dow mainstay for more than a century, was broken up last year and is now a shell of its previous dominance. Sears declared bankruptcy in 2022 and is virtually out of business. US Steel, long the foundation of American manufacturing, is attempting to sell itself to a Japanese corporation.

Could we remember Google in the same way that we remember Yahoo or Ask Jeeves in decades? These next few years could be significant.

SOURCE | CNN

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2024 | Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

trump

Washington — Trump Media,  The Supreme Court announced Monday that it will not hear an appeal from social media platform X about a search warrant acquired by prosecutors in the election meddling case against former President Donald Trump.

The justices did not explain their rationale, and there were no recorded dissents.

The firm, which was known as Twitter before being purchased by billionaire Elon Musk, claims a nondisclosure order that prevented it from informing Trump about the warrant obtained by special counsel Jack Smith’s team violated its First Amendment rights.

The business also claims Trump should have had an opportunity to exercise executive privilege. If not reined in, the government may employ similar tactics to intercept additional privileged communications, their lawyers contended.

trump

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

Two neutral electronic privacy groups also joined in, urging the high court to hear the case on First Amendment grounds.

Prosecutors, however, claim that the corporation never shown that Trump utilized the account for official purposes, therefore executive privilege is not a problem. A lower court also determined that informing Trump could have compromised the current probe.

trump

Trump utilized his Twitter account in the weeks preceding up to his supporters’ attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to spread false assertions about the election, which prosecutors claim were intended to create doubt in the democratic process.

The indictment describes how Trump used his Twitter account to encourage his followers to travel to Washington on Jan. 6, pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to reject the certification, and falsely claiming that the Capitol crowd, which battered police officers and destroyed glass, was peaceful.

musk trump

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal From Elon Musk’s X Platform Over Warrant In Trump Case

That case is now moving forward following the Supreme Court’s verdict in July, which granted Trump full immunity from criminal prosecution as a former president.

The warrant arrived at Twitter amid quick changes implemented by Musk, who bought the company in 2022 and has since cut off most of its workforce, including those dedicated to combating disinformation and hate speech.

He also welcomed back a vast list of previously banned users, including Trump, and endorsed him for the 2024 presidential election.

SOURCE | AP

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The Supreme Court Turns Down Biden’s Government Appeal in a Texas Emergency Abortion Matter.

Supreme Court

(VOR News) – A ruling that prohibits emergency abortions that contravene the Supreme Court law in the state of Texas, which has one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the country, has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Supreme Court upheld this decision.

The justices did not provide any specifics regarding the underlying reasons for their decision to uphold an order from a lower court that declared hospitals cannot be legally obligated to administer abortions if doing so would violate the law in the state of Texas.

Institutions are not required to perform abortions, as stipulated in the decree. The common populace did not investigate any opposing viewpoints. The decision was made just weeks before a presidential election that brought abortion to the forefront of the political agenda.

This decision follows the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that ended abortion nationwide.

In response to a request from the administration of Vice President Joe Biden to overturn the lower court’s decision, the justices expressed their disapproval.

The government contends that hospitals are obligated to perform abortions in compliance with federal legislation when the health or life of an expectant patient is in an exceedingly precarious condition.

This is the case in regions where the procedure is prohibited. The difficulty hospitals in Texas and other states are experiencing in determining whether or not routine care could be in violation of stringent state laws that prohibit abortion has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints concerning pregnant women who are experiencing medical distress being turned away from emergency rooms.

The administration cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was presented to it in Idaho at the beginning of the year. The justices took a limited decision in that case to allow the continuation of emergency abortions without interruption while a lawsuit was still being heard.

In contrast, Texas has been a vocal proponent of the injunction’s continued enforcement. Texas has argued that its circumstances are distinct from those of Idaho, as the state does have an exemption for situations that pose a significant hazard to the health of an expectant patient.

According to the state, the discrepancy is the result of this exemption. The state of Idaho had a provision that safeguarded a woman’s life when the issue was first broached; however, it did not include protection for her health.

Certified medical practitioners are not obligated to wait until a woman’s life is in imminent peril before they are legally permitted to perform an abortion, as determined by the state supreme court.

The state of Texas highlighted this to the Supreme Court.

Nevertheless, medical professionals have criticized the Texas statute as being perilously ambiguous, and a medical board has declined to provide a list of all the disorders that are eligible for an exception. Furthermore, the statute has been criticized for its hazardous ambiguity.

For an extended period, termination of pregnancies has been a standard procedure in medical treatment for individuals who have been experiencing significant issues. It is implemented in this manner to prevent catastrophic outcomes, such as sepsis, organ failure, and other severe scenarios.

Nevertheless, medical professionals and hospitals in Texas and other states with strict abortion laws have noted that it is uncertain whether or not these terminations could be in violation of abortion prohibitions that include the possibility of a prison sentence. This is the case in regions where abortion prohibitions are exceedingly restrictive.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which resulted in restrictions on the rights of women to have abortions in several Republican-ruled states, the Texas case was revisited in 2022.

As per the orders that were disclosed by the administration of Vice President Joe Biden, hospitals are still required to provide abortions in cases that are classified as dire emergency.

As stipulated in a piece of health care legislation, the majority of hospitals are obligated to provide medical assistance to patients who are experiencing medical distress. This is in accordance with the law.

The state of Texas maintained that hospitals should not be obligated to provide abortions throughout the litigation, as doing so would violate the state’s constitutional prohibition on abortions. In its January judgment, the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals concurred with the state and acknowledged that the administration had exceeded its authority.

SOURCE: AP

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Scientists Awarded MicroRNA The Nobel Prize in Medicine.

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