Author: Hector Hoffman

Kiev (8/6 – 17). The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense’s announcement about the personnel losses suffered by Moscow in May underscores the toll the conflict has taken on the Russian side. The reported figure of 38,940 personnel losses for Moscow as stated by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, indicates a significant escalation in the conflict’s intensity. Such a high monthly casualty count underscores the severity of the situation and the toll it’s taking on the Russian side. Ellie Cook’s report in Newsweek highlights a critical aspect of conflict reporting the difficulty in accurately determining battlefield casualties. Analysts often caution against…

While climate change is in general increasing the ferocity and frequency of severe weather events, the same effects may not apply to the massive snow dumps that occasionally pummel the U.S. West. The quantity of snow that falls during so-called “snow deluge” years — such as the big 2023 snow season in California — is on the decline, according to a new study, published Monday in the Proceedings for the National Academy of Sciences. “There’s a common narrative with climate change that extreme weather events are getting more extreme,” lead author Adrienne Marshall, an assistant professor of geology and geological engineering…

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on Saturday urged lawmakers, Silicon Valley and US allies to stop China from getting semiconductors and cutting-edge technologies key to national security. Speaking at an annual national defense forum in Simi Valley, California, Raimondo called Beijing “the biggest threat we’ve ever had” and stressed “China is not our friend.” The world’s top two economies are locked in a fierce commercial and geopolitical rivalry, in which her department plays a leading role. In October, Raimondo unveiled a series of restrictions on the export of advanced chips to China, including those used in the development of artificial…

Many different opinions, motivations, thoughts on Israel, ways to be Jewish came together in the 290,000-strong crowd in the National Mall It was 7 a.m., and on a bus traveling from Brooklyn to Washington, DC, passengers were already engaging in heated political discussions about the details of the Hamas-Israel war. This bus — filled with members from a New York Reform synagogue and Orthodox synagogue — was one of hundreds like it that brought an unprecedented 290,000 to the March for Israel rally at the National Mall on Tuesday. Congregants from the Orthodox synagogue said the morning shacharit prayers while Reform congregant…

Frankfurt (3/12 – 12) The relatively rapid cohesion of disparate nations, historically competitive or even at war with one another, into the European Union came about in part because of the ongoing threat from the Soviet Union. The specter of a tank invasion from Warsaw Pact nations, today forgotten, was such a reality that the German government kept a major portion of its gold bullion across the Atlantic. The USSR, an ally in World War II after being double-crossed by Hitler – remember the “Non-Aggression Pact signed in Moscow by von Ribbentrop and Molotov – was soon appraised as a…

Former US vice president Mike Pence dropped out of the 2024 presidential race on Saturday, saying it was not “his time” — and underlining his scandal-embroiled previous boss Donald Trump’s total dominance of the Republican Party. The timing was a surprise. Pence got a warm reception when he stepped up to speak at the annual meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, only to cause a shock by using the occasion to become the first major 2024 candidate to suspend his campaign. “It’s become clear to me: this is not my time,” Pence said. “After much prayer and…

Images of provocative pro-Palestinian messages projected onto the wall of a George Washington University (GWU) building have led to an outcry. Pictures posted online by anti-hate watchdog StopAntisemitism on Tuesday showed phrases including “Glory to our martyrs,” “Divestment from Zionist genocide now” and “Free Palestine from the river to the sea” projected onto the side of the Gelman Library in the Washington D.C. university’s Foggy Bottom campus. The watchdog said the stunt had been conducted by students, and that the “horrifying” messages were “glorifying Hamas terrorists.” It called on GWU president Ellen Granberg to “immediately expel those involved.” In a statement on…

The Biden administration thought painstaking diplomacy could contain Iran and, by extension, its proxies in Yemen, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. But by papering over the Palestinian question, Washington handed its adversary a strategic opportunity. Short of a nuclear-armed standoff, the stakes arguably couldn’t be higher across the Middle East right now. The Pentagon — faced with the prospect of getting dragged into a broad regional war that would likely collapse Washington’s entire Middle East strategy — has dispatched veteran commanders of the defeat-ISIS campaign to Tel Aviv in a bid to temper and channel the Israeli resolve. But as Prime Minister Benjamin…

Actor who played Chandler Bing in the beloved sitcom remembered as ‘incredibly gifted’, after reportedly drowning at his Los Angeles home Matthew Perry, best known for playing Chandler Bing in the hit TV sitcom Friends, has died at 54. Perry died in an apparent drowning at his home in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, sources including a representative for the actor and law enforcement told NBC News. An official cause of death has yet to be released. Warner Bros Television Group, which produced all 10 seasons of Friends from 1994 until 2004, paid tribute to “our dear friend” and “an incredibly gifted actor”. “The impact of…

Former vice-presidential nominee condemns prosecutors over ‘travesty’ and says ‘we’re not going to keep putting up with this’ A second US civil war is “going to happen” if state and federal authorities continue to prosecute Donald Trump, the former Alaska governor and Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin said. “Those who are conducting this travesty and creating this two-tier system of justice, I want to ask them what the heck, do you want us to be in civil war? Because that’s what’s going to happen,” Palin told Newsmax on Thursday night. “We’re not going to keep putting up with this.” Palin was speaking to…