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The Internet Can’t Get Over This Moment From Trump’s Speech

Published

5 hours ago

September 30, 2024

The Internet Can't Get Over This Moment From Trump's Speech

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump delivers remarks at the Prairie du Chien Area Arts Center in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, on Sept. 28, 2024. Credit – Kamil Krazaczynski—AP

As the border continues to play an important policy role in the upcoming 2024 presidential election, former President and current Republican nominee Donald Trump criticized the government’s immigration process during a campaign speech on Saturday, Sept. 28, in Wisconsin.

He once again called out the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) app—a mobile application that hosts a single portal to multiple CBP services, including a space for immigrants to schedule appointments to present themselves at a port of entry and for carriers to request cargo inspections.

“They have a phone app so that people can come into our country… these are smart immigrants, I guess, because most people don’t have any idea what the hell a phone app is,” Trump said at the Prairie Du Chien Area Arts Center in Prairie Du Chien, a city of about 5,500 people along the Mississippi River.

The campaign for Vice President and Democratic nominee for President Kamala Harris posted a video of the moment on X (formerly Twitter), with a caption reciting Trump’s comments.

Some social media users have reacted to Trump’s comment, showing surprise that Trump believes many don’t know what apps are.

“I feel like most people know what a phone app is,” former tennis star Andy Roddick wrote on X. “It’s not 2004 any more. It’s 2024,” another person wrote, pointing out that Trump owns his own social media platform, Truth Social, which has an app component. Meanwhile, one commenter claimed: “How out of touch with reality do you have to be to believe most people don’t know what a phone app is?”

The post from Kamala HQ mirrors the campaign’s recent strategy of posting clips from Trump’s speeches, and letting the Internet’s virality culture do the work. The campaign’s X account posted other clips from Trump’s speech in Wisconsin, including comments Trump made about a fly on stage.

“Oh, there’s a fly. Oh, I wonder where the fly came from,” Trump said. “See, two years ago, I wouldn’t have had a fly up here. But they’re changing rapidly. We can’t take it any longer.”

Trump didn’t elaborate on his comments regarding the insect, which were made during a section of his speech whereby he discussed immigration. Responding to the moment, some social media users called back to the viral instance in 2020 when a fly landed on Mike Pence’s head during the vice-presidential debate against Kamala Harris.

This is not the first time Trump has targeted the CBP One App. Earlier this month, Trump posted about it on his Truth Social account, calling the service the “Kamala phone app for smuggling illegals” and vowing to close it.

According to the CBP website, the CBP One App was launched on Oct. 28, 2020—when Trump was still President. In January 2023, the Biden Administration announced that it would expand use of the app, at which point migrants began requesting appointments using CBP One. The app became particularly prominent once the Biden Administration put in place new asylum rules after the expiration of Title 42.

If a person does not seek asylum in the country they moved through to get to the U.S. or didn’t use the CBP One app, any asylum claim they make in the U.S. will likely be rejected. Yet, there is much criticism from immigration rights advocates that the CBP One App has been unable to keep up with the demand from migrants.

Trump’s Wisconsin speech, and its focus on immigration, follows Harris’ visit to the U.S.-Mexico border. It was Harris’ first appearance there since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee. After visiting the border on Friday, she made remarks in Arizona, putting forth a more visible “tough on immigration” image.

“I reject the false choice that suggests we must choose either between securing our border and creating a system that is orderly, safe, and humane,” Harris said. “We can and we must do both.”

Contact us at letters@time.com.

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Minimum price of alcohol in Scotland rises by 30%

Published

2 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

Minimum price of alcohol in Scotland rises by 30%

PA Media Alcohol for sale in an Edinburgh off-licence

The minimum price at which alcohol can be sold in Scotland has risen by 30% in an attempt to keep up with inflation over the past six years.

The minimum unit price has not changed since it was set at 50p per unit of alcohol when it was first introduced in May 2018.

It has now increased to 65p per unit, meaning a typical 12.5% bottle of wine cannot be sold for less than £6.09 and a can of lager will be at least £1.30.

Minimum unit pricing (MUP) is not a tax and does not generate income for the government.

Instead, it aims it to reduce the availability of cheap alcohol sold in shops and supermarkets by setting a minimum price.

For example, a bottle of vodka will now cost at least £17.06 in Scotland – about £5 more than many supermarkets are selling it for in England, where there is no minimum pricing.

A graphic showing the new prices of wine (up from £4.69 to £6.09), cider (up from £2.50 to £3.25), lager 9up from £1 to £1.30), vodka (up from £13.13 to £17.06) and whisky (up from £14 to £18.20)

Scotland was the first country in the world to set a minimum price at which alcoholic drinks can be sold when the policy was introduced in May 2018.

The policy was mainly aimed at strong cheap alcohol sold in shops and supermarkets.

Before it was introduced, super strength cider (7.5%) was sold in two litres bottles for as little as £1.99.

After the legislation was introduced that same two litre bottle could not be sold for less than £7.50. Under the new 65p minimum unit price it will now be £9.75.

A Public Health Scotland study published in June last year found the MUP scheme had helped to reduce alcohol-related health inequalities.

Based on comparisons with England, it estimated there were 13.4% fewer deaths related to alcohol than would have happened without the policy, as well as 4.1% fewer hospital admissions.

However, the number of people in Scotland whose death was caused by alcohol remains at a high level, with the figures for 2023 showing the largest number of deaths in 15 years.

In September last year, a study by Sheffield University suggested the policy had become less effective due to inflation.

The report found the original 50p price had been reduced by inflation to the equivalent of just 41p.

It also said heavier drinkers increased their alcohol consumption during the Covid pandemic, cancelling out some of the beneficial impacts.

The increase in the MUP was announced in February.

Alcohol harm

Some groups representing the off-licence trade have previously expressed opposition to any increase, but alcohol recovery charities have been supportive.

GMB Scotland, representing members across the drinks industry, warned that the policy was already risking jobs and investment and questioned its “unproven” health benefits.

The Federation of Independent Retailers warned that raising the minimum price could put retailers at an increased risk of alcohol being stolen.

Health Secretary Neil Gray said he was confident the scheme had saved hundreds of lives.

He said the price increase was due to inflation.

“Obviously by increasing it we would hope we would see a further improvement in the situation alongside the other aspects that we are looking at, including alcohol advertising and marketing,” Gray said.

Willie Rennie of the Scottish Liberal Democrats backed the move.

He said: “The original impact of minimum pricing has decreased over time as inflation has eaten away at the effectiveness of the policy.

“More than 20 people a week in Scotland die due to alcohol misuse. The opponents of minimum pricing need to explain what alternatives they are proposing to tackle the pressures that this imposes on our health and justice systems.”

Carol Mochan, Scottish Labour’s spokeswoman for Public Health, said frontline alcohol and drug services needed “proper resourcing” from the SNP to be effective.

She added: “Scottish Labour will consider any evidence-based plans to improve public health, but the SNP must acknowledge that there is no one silver bullet.”

Not a ‘miracle cure’

Scottish Greens health spokeswoman Gillian Mackay said MUP should be “an important part” of the nation’s health strategy but wider work was needed as it was not a “cure-all”.

However, Scottish Conservative health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said MUP was not a “miracle cure” and “simply punishes responsible drinkers”.

Graeme Callander, from the WithYou alcohol support group, said it was “unbelievable” that the money raised goes to retailers and the alcohol industry.

“This revenue could make a real difference if it was instead directed towards improving and increasing the availability of alcohol support services – because these services will ultimately help to save lives,” he said.

Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (Shaap) and Alcohol Focus Scotland (AFS) said the minimum unit price had to be uprated annually to prevent “cheaper alcohol that causes the most harm” becoming more affordable over time.

Both groups also said the government needed to do more than just MUP if it is to tackle the “public health emergency” of alcohol harms, and criticised it for “dragging its feet” over alcohol marketing reforms.

Alison Douglas, chief executive of AFS, said her charity was calling for an alcohol harm prevention levy on alcohol retailers, which she said the Fraser of Allander Institute estimated could raise as much as £57m a year to invest in alcohol treatment services.

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Business

IB Geography class

Published

3 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

This article is part of the Financial Times free schools access programme. Details/registration here.

Read our Charts that work: FT visual vocabulary guide and explore our teaching resources with the Royal Geographical Society.

Recommended FT articles and tasks picked by our teacher advisers to help improve study, exam and interview success.

Geographic themes

Global change

Unit 1 — Population distribution — changing population

Asia’s ageing population could deliver a ‘silver dividend’

South Korea bets on foreign housekeepers to ease women’s workloads and boost birth rate

Marriage holds key to Japan’s falling births

Pandemic blamed for falling birth rates across much of Europe

Unit 2 — Global climate — vulnerability and resilience

Europe must push for low CO₂ bread, says fertiliser group chief

Alarm raised on sea level rise and ocean warming as Pacific Islands leaders meet

Warmer, wetter, hotter, drier — February caps unending stretch of record temperatures

Ski industry navigates new terrain to fend off threat of climate change

Unit 3 — Global resource consumption and security

UAE’s Taqa seeks to shine with solar energy push

India’s energy demands to grow more than those of other countries, says IEA chief

Global interactions

Unit 4 — Power, places and networks

Christmas shipments rush risks deepening supply chain crisis, warns Maersk boss

Unit 5 — Human development and diversity

The far-right’s disturbing success in eastern Germany

Joe Biden to raise solar import tariffs in bid to protect US industry

Unit 6 — Global risks and resilience

North Korean hackers use AI for more sophisticated scams

Richard Allaway, International School of Geneva/geographyalltheway.com

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News

Terrifying moment smoke billows from burning chemical lab as massive fire sparks evacuations

Published

23 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

Terrifying moment smoke billows from burning chemical lab as massive fire sparks evacuations

THIS is the terrifying moment smoke billows from a burning chemical lab as a massive fire has sparked evacuations.

Footage shows a huge plume of multi-coloured smoke gushing into the air as the fire in Conyers, Georgia, ripped through the building.

Smoke erupted from the blaze as the chemicals burnedCredit: Facebook

The chemical plant burned in Conyers, GeorgiaCredit: Twitter

Evacuations and stay in place orders have been introducedCredit: Rockdale Government

Thousands of people have been evacuated and others given a shelter in place order as hazardous smoke drifts through the air.

The site, run by BioLab, is about 30 miles east of Atlanta and manufactures swimming pool and spa treatment products – including using chlorine, according to CNN.

Those chemicals have now been burning for hours with the fire still going 12 hours after it began.

The blaze started at around 5am EST when a sprinkler at the facility malfunctioned and sprayed water on a chemical that sparked an explosion, Atlanta News First reported.

Hazmat crews and other emergency services have respond to a the fire with the nearby highway also blocked off.

Rockdale County Sheriff, Eric Levett, said: “I want to strongly ask all of you to please spread the word to stay away from this area at this point.

“It’s burning pretty good. We’re trying to get that under control, but at the same time we’re also trying to get the traffic under control.”

The southwest wind is blowing the smoke across to Walton County.

Walton County Emergency Management director, Carl Morrow, has shared an alert for the county residents.

The alert stated: “Walton County EMA is aware of what is happening in our neighboring county of Rockdale.

Shocking moment 470mph fighter jet plummets into the ground and erupts in fireball killing two top gun pilots

“We are monitoring the situation and advise that if you smell a chlorine odour you should turn off your air conditioners, turn on your ceiling fans and if possible bring your outside animals indoors.”

A BioLab statement said: “Our employees are accounted for with no injuries reported. Our team is on the scene, working with first responders and local authorities to assess and contain the situation.”

“As always, the safety of our community remains our top priority.”

Conyers Mayor Vince Evans urged residents who choose not to evacuate to stay in place and not wander or drive around the city.

He said: “This is not the time to do any type of sightseeing. We are strongly encouraging everyone, no matter where you’re coming from, but especially Rockdale residents, to stay out of this area.”

Residents between Sigman Road and Interstate 20 have been asked to evacuate.

In September 2020, BioLab experienced a “thermal decomposition event” that also led to a fire that temporarily closed Interstate 20.

The smoke could be hazardous as chemicals are burningCredit: Rockdale Government

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Sudan becoming ‘fertile ground’ for jihadis, says ex-prime minister

Published

24 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

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Sudan’s last civilian prime minister warned that the country’s brutal civil war risks turning it into “fertile ground” for the spread of regional terrorism at a time when several African countries are struggling with an onslaught of jihadist violence.

Some 150,000 people have been killed and 10mn pushed out of their homes since military president General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy and paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemeti, went to war last year. About half of Sudan’s population of 49mn is now on the verge of famine.

Abdalla Hamdok, prime minister between 2019 and 2022 who now leads the Taqaddum — Progress — coalition of democratic forces, said Sudan’s descent into violence risks bolstering jihadis across the region.

“I really feel quite frightened about this,” he told the Financial Times. “With Sudan bordering seven countries, it will become fertile ground for terrorism in a region that is very fragile.”

The Sahel, the semi-arid strip of land below the Sahara that is home to some 400mn people, has become a haven for jihadis. They range from Boko Haram in Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad to Isis, which is most active in the border area between Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

Hamdok fears the descent into violence in Sudan, which hosted Osama bin Laden in the 1990s, could also connect groups allied to al-Qaeda in the Sahel to jihadis such as Somalia’s al-Shabaab in the Horn of Africa, which is linked to Yemeni Houthis.

Analysts and officials in neighbouring countries have echoed Hamdok’s concerns. The country was long on the US’s list of state sponsors of terrorism before it was removed under Hamdok in 2020.

Sudan’s war has already attracted a complex web of external actors. The United Arab Emirates is accused of backing Hemeti, claims Abu Dhabi denies, while Iran and Russia support Burhan. Mercenaries from Chad and pilots from Ukraine have also entered the fray.

Smoke billows during air strikes in central Khartoum — Some 150,000 people have been killed and 10mn pushed out of their homes since military president General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy and paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemeti, went to war last year © Almigdad Hassan/AFP/Getty Images

Burhan’s army this week launched a major assault to retake the capital city, Khartoum, from Hemeti’s Rapid Support Forces, which captured most of it last year.

Negotiations for a ceasefire to stop the fighting began in Geneva last month, led by the US and brokered by a range of countries — including Egypt, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia and the UAE — but without direct contact between warring parties.

Hamdok and members of Taqaddum criticised the process, saying that while it could help “put more pressure” on the warring parties there could not be a “sustainable” solution without including civilian politicians.

“There is a tendency to try to get a quick fix, to just bring in the belligerents. The fact is that all attempts have failed,” said Khaled Omar Youssef, a senior member of the Sudanese Congress party, which is part of Taqaddum, referring to previous unsuccessful talks in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

A western official involved said the focus of the Geneva negotiation was “to open up humanitarian access and ensure protection of civilians as well as trying to get ceasefires”. The official said “efforts to transition to the civilian government is outside of the realm” of the current talks.

A critical challenge for civilians is to unite Sudan’s array of political forces amid differences among groups who have competing views on how its political future should unfold. Many Sudanese see Taqaddum as aligned with Hemeti, something Hamdok labels as “propaganda” spread by the army.

Among other things, there is a sharp divide between those pressing for a purely civilian government and those who advocate power-sharing with the military. Sudan has suffered some 17 coups and a string of civil wars — including one that led to the creation of South Sudan — since independence from Britain and Egypt in 1956.

Hamdok took charge in 2019 following the ousting of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir in a putative transition government backed by Burhan and Hemeti. He was ousted in a coup in 2021 before being briefly reinstated.

“The only formula that would keep this country together is a government led by civilians,” said Hamdok. “The military has messed up the country for over 50 years. They cannot be entrusted with the future of the country.”

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Travel

RR Ranthambore: luxury SUV, limited to 12

Published

42 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

As a nod to conservation, Range Rover will donate a portion of the proceeds from each sale to the Wildlife Conservation Trust of India.

Continue reading RR Ranthambore: luxury SUV, limited to 12 at Business Traveller.

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Russian MiG-31s Possibly Strike Ukrainian Airbase Hosting F-16s

Published

45 mins ago

September 30, 2024

NewsAdmin

Russian MiG-31s Possibly Strike Ukrainian Airbase Hosting F-16s

Confirmed Strike of Military Targets

Top War, another Russian military outlet, claimed that the attack triggered widespread air raid alerts across Ukraine, including the capital, Kyiv.

There were also reports of explosions at the Starokostiantiniv airbase and in Khmelnytskyi, as well as in Kyiv. The Ukrainian Air Force later confirmed that Russian missiles, including hypersonic weapons, had struck various military targets in Ukraine, though they did not confirm any damage to the F-16s.

Some reports, including from Military Watch, suggested that four of the F-16 jets at the airbase may have been destroyed in the strike, but these claims remain unverified.

Despite the ongoing attacks, Ukrainian forces have continued to fortify their air defenses in response to Russia’s advanced missile capabilities.

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