News of the World

[DerVVulfman]

IRAN PLANS TO USE THE $6BILLION
PRISONER CASH "WHEREVER WE NEED IT"

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi declared that Tehran will deploy the $6 billion in funds the US recently moved to unfreeze “wherever we need it.”

On Monday, the US announced it issued a blanked waiver for sanctions on $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets as part of a broader agreement to secure the release of five American detainees.

“This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money,” Raisi told NBC.

A chorus of Republican critics blasted the deal, insinuating that Iran could find a way to use the unfrozen funds for nefarious purposes.

Really? Ya think?

I remain deeply concerned that the administration’s decision to waive sanctions to facilitate the transfer of $6 billion in funds for Iran, the world’s top state sponsor of terrorism, creates a direct incentive for America’s adversaries to conduct future hostage-taking.
...
The administration is demonstrating weakness that only further endangers Americans and freedom-loving people around the world.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who signed the sanctions waiver last week to pave the way for the deal, stressed the funds could only be used for humanitarian purposes.

Raisi was somewhat coy when pressed if the funds would be used for something other than humanitarian needs.

“Humanitarian means whatever the Iranian people needs, so this money will be budgeted for those needs and the needs of the Iranian people will be decided and determined by the Iranian government,” he told the broadcast network.

The $6 billion in question derived from oil sale revenue and had been held up in South Korea in compliance with US sanctions.

As part of the broader deal, the US will receive five American citizens being detained in Iran and will give Tehran back five Iranians being held in the US.

Notably, the sanctions waiver announced coincided with the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack, something GOP detractors bemoaned.

Raisi assured NBC News’ Lester Holt that the five American detainees were kept in good condition.

The Biden administration is rumored to be seeking to revive elements of the now-defunct Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action JCPOA — also known as the Iran nuclear deal.

That deal was brokered under the Obama administration and provided sanctions relief in exchange for Iran imposing temporary limits on its nuclear program.

Then-President Donald Trump unilaterally balked on the agreement and re-imposed sanctions in 2018.

Of course. Iran broke the agreement made in 2015 the following year in October/November 2016 by testing ballistic missiles capable of carrying nukes. And again the following March... this a clear violation. But then again, they refused Inspectors at their Nuclear sites unilaterally in 2015 and 2017.

THREADS (META'S VERSION OF TWITTER)
BLOCKING COVID-RELATED SEARCHERS

Some experts believe it will be harder for public health to get the facts out to who needs it.

Mark Zuckerberg’s purported “Twitter killer” app rolled out its search function last week for US-based users as well as those in Canada, Mexico, India and the United Kingdom.

“The search functionality temporarily doesn’t provide results for keywords that may show potentially sensitive content,” a Meta spokesperson confirmed to The Post on Tuesday.

“People will be able to search for keywords such as “COVID” in future updates once we are confident in the quality of the results.”

A search for COVID-related terms generated a pop-up link to the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Public health officials lamented the move to censor search terms related to COVID, particularly as a new variant has fueled a recent uptick in cases and hospitalizations, according to the Washington Post.

“The decision to censor searches about COVID will make it harder for public health experts and people who work in public health to get out important info to the public about how they can protect themselves,” Lucky Tran, director of science communication at Columbia University, told the outlet.

Julia Doubleday, who heads outreach at World Health Network, told the news site: “Social media is a lifeline for patients, literally.”

“Long Covid patients have died of organ failure, infections, cardiac events, and more, and social media is one place they can share information,” Doubleday told The Washington Post.

“Cutting off communication between suffering and disabled patients is cruel in the extreme. It’s indefensible.”

Meta Platforms has not specified the extent to which it plans to moderate content on its platform.

The company has stated that its safety policies will mirror that of Instagram, the photo-sharing app through which users can automatically log in to Threads.

Washington Post journalist Taylor Lorenz, who wrote the article for the publication, slammed Meta’s decision.

Sure, stop permitting discourse about Covid like before, and silence other opinions. So much for getting a second opinion. And some of those silenced last time were found correct.

LARGEST LITHIUM DEPOSITS
IN THE WORLD FOUND
IN A U.S. VOLCANO

A possible game changer for the US electric vehicle industry

What just happened? What is likely to be the world's largest deposit of lithium has been discovered in a volcano crater along the Nevada-Oregon border. It's estimated that the McDermitt Caldera holds between 20 million and 40 million metric tons, which would be larger than the current 21-million-ton record-holding deposit beneath the salt flats of Bolivia.

Located in the 28-mile-long and 22-mile-wide McDermitt Caldera, the discovery of the deposit will be a massive boost to the United States' lithium reserves, which have been estimated at just one million metric tons. Most of the world's major deposits are in countries outside of North America, such as Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, China and Australia. It could also encourage more US investment in electric cars and will alleviate fears over lithium shortages – it's thought that a million metric tons of lithium will be needed by 2024.

"It could change the dynamics of lithium globally, in terms of price, security of supply and geopolitics," Belgian geologist Anouk Borst told Chemistry World. "The US would have its own supply of lithium and industries would be less scared about supply shortages."

The size of the deposit still has to be confirmed, but Lithium Americas Corporation says it expects to start mining the supply in 2026.

Experts from Lithium Nevada, the University of Oregon, and New Zealand research institute GNS Science have said that when the supervolcano erupted around 16 million years ago, the magma that burst through the ground enriched the clay soil with lithium.

A type of clay, called illite, was found near the southern side of the caldera that is highly concentrated with lithium. It's likely the result of another resurgence of magma after the caldera's ancient lake had dried out, replacing lithium-smectite in lake sediment with an even richer lithium-illite claybed, writes Science Alert.

Not everyone is celebrating the discovery, especially the Native American tribes who say the land is sacred. There are also potential dangers to native wildlife, and researchers are worried that the project will cause groundwater levels to drop to dangerous levels. Even NASA has spoken out against mining in the area. The space agency has been using Nevada's Railroad Valley lakebed since 1993 to accurately gauge the time it takes for satellite signals to travel to Earth and back, allowing it to calibrate the satellites.

YOUNKIN PARDONS LOUDOUN COUNTY FATHER
CONVICTED IN SCHOOL BOARD MEETING INCIDENT
Father was outraged that the school board covered up his daughter's rape!

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has pardoned a Loudoun County father arrested during an incident at a Loudoun County School Board meeting in 2021, according to a statement released on Sunday.

A 14-year-old student sexually assaulted a female student at Stone Bridge High School in May 2021, but was allowed to transfer to Broad Run High School, where he abducted and sexually assaulted another female student in October of 2021. The teen was later convicted in juvenile court.

Scott Smith, the father of the second teenager sexually assaulted at a Loudoun County high school, criticized school officials before his arrest at the Loudoun County School Board meeting. He was charged with obstruction of justice and disorderly conduct.

One of the charges was dropped on appeal, and the other was set to go to trial in about two weeks.

“Scott Smith is a dedicated parent who’s faced unwarranted charges in his pursuit to protect his daughter. Scott’s commitment to his child despite the immense obstacles is emblematic of the parental empowerment movement that started in Virginia,” Youngkin’s statement read. “In Virginia, parents matter and my resolve to empower parents in unwavering. A parent’s fundamental right to be involved in their child’s education, upbringing, and care should never be undermined by bureaucracy, school divisions or the state. I am pleased to grant Scott Smith this pardon and help him and his family put this injustice behind them once and for all.”

Following Smith's legal process, he was critical of both Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares. Smith said he hadn't heard from either of the politicians since they won their elections; both of whom used his name and story feverishly during their respective campaigns.

In an interview with "Fox News Sunday" this morning, Youngkin said he spoke to Smith on Friday — just days ahead of Youngkin's latest "Parents Matter Conversation" Tuesday in Leesburg.

The attorneys of the Loudoun County father addressed the pardon in a release that included Smith's statement, which reads in part:

"My family has been living a nightmare that no family in America should have to endure. But rather than sit quietly and take it, I decided to stand up against the government - and for that I was branded a "domestic terrorist" and charged with crimes that I did not commit. I want to thank Governor Youngkin for his declaration that I am innocent, and for his absolute and unconditional pardon."

Smith also spoke to reporters on Sunday.

"My wife, she's exhausted. She's the brains behind the whole operation. I'm the muscle; she's the brains. My daughter, you know, she's been constantly bullied and berated by her peers," he said. "But she's as strong as I am. She has her good weeks and has a couple bad days in between, but you know, she graduated from high school. She's looking forward to the future."

A grand jury issued a scathing report in December about the school system's handling of the sexual assaults, saying that the second assault could have been avoided.

The report indicated there wasn't any evidence the school district's administration or board engaged in an organized cover-up of the sexual assaults, as some had speculated.

The grand jury brought indictments against former Superintendent Scott Ziegler and spokesman Wayde Byard. Byard was acquitted of the charge against him, Ziegler's cases go to trial later this month.

This is a follow-up for those that remember...

STUDENTS WALK OUT OVER SEXUAL ASSAULTS!

Hundreds of Student in Loudoun County, Virginia walked out to protest on-campus rapes!

and

OBAMA SAYS PARENTS RAPE AND PORN
CONCERNS ARE FAKE OUTRAGE

...
This statement by Obama just before the fore-mentioned sexual assaults which found that the school board attempted to cover it up.