FORMULA 1 ETIHAD AIRWAYS ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX 2022 - Top 15 Qualifying Results
0 Comments
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky could be “lying on purpose to get us into a war,” Fox News host Tucker Carlson declared on Wednesday night. Zelensky’s refusal to admit that a Ukrainian missile caused a fatal explosion in Poland makes him “not worth supporting,” Carlson suggested. Zelensky “was commanding the US to lead the Third World War immediately” after the blast, Carlson told his viewers. “The only problem is that it was completely and utterly wrong.”
The Ukrainian leader described the explosion, which killed two people, as a Russian attack on NATO territory and called on the West to put Russia “in its place” in response. Anonymous US intelligence officials seconded his claims in statements to the press. Moscow argued that debris at the blast site showed that it was caused by a missile from the S-300 air defense system, a piece of Soviet-era kit fielded by Ukraine. Within hours, the leadership of the US, NATO, and Poland had all publicly stated that the explosion was caused by a Ukrainian anti-air missile. Zelensky doubled down. “I have no doubt that this is not our missile,” he said in a video address. “I believe that it was a Russian missile, based on our military reports.” “That’s not only untrue,” Carlson said. “It’s a lie that could get millions of Americans killed. So you have to ask yourself, is it time to stop backing this guy? Could the risk be too high? He’s lying on purpose to get us into a war?” “Maybe he’s not worth supporting in the first place. Maybe he’s just another corrupt Eastern European strongman in a tracksuit, getting as rich as he can on American handouts.” Carlson has been a long-time critic of the US’ support for Zelensky, arguing that Ukraine is not democratic, and that intervening in its conflict with Russia is not in the US’ national security interest. Zelensky has since walked back his claims, saying on Thursday that Kiev doesn’t “know for 100%” what happened. British rock star Roger Waters has hit out against the US for profiting off of the ongoing military conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which he says Washington allowed to happen because it was beneficial to American interests. Discussing US foreign policy on the Bad Faith podcast on YouTube, the Pink Floyd co-founder stated that the conflict in Ukraine was “the best thing to happen to them in the last 10 years,” because it was “really good for business.”. “Part of their business is making money from the war through making weapons and selling them to the people and taking the profits from it,” Waters explained, adding that this money never goes to ordinary people. “It’s not you or me, not ordinary people who invest in the war industry. It’s people with tons of cash, and they get very well paid when there’s war.”
Another benefit of the war for the political establishment, according to Waters, is that it allows it to convince people who struggle to make ends meet and end up homeless that their woes are the fault of the Russians and Putin, who is compared to Hitler and accused of being responsible for “destroying everyone’s lives.” Roger says he has now been banned from performing in Poland for openly criticizing the West’s military meddling and calling for peace between Russia and Ukraine. Previously, the musician had written letters personally addressed to presidents Vladimir Putin, Zelensky and Joe Biden, calling for diplomatic talks to end the conflict, stating it is “the worst possible thing that can be happening,” due to the potential of an all-out nuclear war. Former US President Donald Trump has declared a run in the 2024 presidential race, saying President Joe Biden has “embarrassed, humiliated and weakened” the United States. He vowed to bring “glory” and “greatness” to the country. Speaking to a packed crowd at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday night, Trump outlined a list of problems facing citizens and the nation at large, claiming Biden and the Democratic Party were responsible for the “decline of America” after two years in power. “In order to make America great and glorious again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States,” Trump said, prompting cheers from supporters. “I will ensure Joe Biden does not receive four more years.” "Together we will be taking on the most corrupt forces and entrenched interests imaginable. Our country is in a horrible state; we’re in grave trouble. This is not a task for a politician or a conventional candidate. This is a task for a great movement that embodies the courage, confidence, and the spirit of the American people." The announcement followed a previous statement from Trump last week that he had “big” news to share in the coming days, prompting widespread speculation he would declare another presidential run. He filed papers with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday night to formally register his candidacy and created a new campaign committee. Trump, who was president from 2016 to 2020, launched blistering attacks on the Democrats, saying they have made the US a “failing nation” and that two years under the Biden administration have been a “time of pain and hardship, anxiety and despair” for millions of Americans.
“The United States has been embarrassed, humiliated and weakened for all to see,” he continued, citing the “disasters in Afghanistan,” as well as record-high inflation and soaring gas prices. He went on to argue that Biden is “leading us to the brink of nuclear war” with Russia, claiming the conflict in Ukraine “would have never happened were I your president,” though offered no elaboration beyond stating that America’s adversaries were kept “in check” while he was in office. Trump preceded Tuesday’s announcement with attacks on prospective Republican primary rivals, issuing separate statements against Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis – who is highly popular among conservatives for his less authoritarian Covid-19 policies – as well as Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. According to recent polling, DeSantis, who is fresh off a landslide victory in Florida’s gubernatorial race, is an early frontrunner for GOP voters. Russia wants its main agricultural lender Rosselkhozbank to be reconnected to the SWIFT financial network, in order to free up grain and fertilizer exports, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin said on Saturday.
“This is not the first time we are discussing this because, from my perspective, reconnecting Rosselkhozbank, which provides the majority of agricultural transactions, is a key issue… We have discussed this issue and received assurances again from the UN representatives that they also consider this issue to be vital,” Vershinin told reporters. His comments follow a meeting with senior UN officials on Friday, addressing the deal guaranteeing safe passage to Ukraine’s grain exports via the Black Sea. Under the pact, brokered in July by the UN and Türkiye, Russia sought a sanctions reprieve for its own agricultural trade, but has since voiced discontent with UN efforts to lift Western restrictions affecting the sector. While the sanctions do not directly target Russia’s agriculture, they affect payments, insurance and shipping. Many Russian banks were disconnected from the SWIFT financial messaging system earlier this year, making it difficult to carry out direct settlements for exports. According to Vershinin, one way to ease the problem would be to open correspondent accounts in foreign banks, such as Citibank and JPMorgan, to facilitate payments for Russian exports. “This option, if anything, can only be temporary, because the real solution is a full reconnection to the SWIFT financial messaging system of Rosselkhozbank,” he stressed, adding that the issue needs to be resolved before the grain deal expires on November 19. Vershinin noted that Moscow has not yet agreed to extend its participation in the deal. Previously, a number of top Russian top officials warned that the country could choose to exit the agreement, if the UN does not fulfil its pledges regarding Russian exports.
2022 FORMULA 1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CONSTRUCTOR STANDINGS
Last July, Dusty Hill, ZZ Top's longtime bass guitar player, died at the age of 72. Hill's place in the band, as per the late bassist's wishes, was taken by the band's longtime guitar tech, Elwood Francis. Now, even though ZZ Top have famously used some rather colorful guitars over the course of their lengthy career, fans at the band's recent (November 5) gig (opens in new tab) at the Mark C. Smith Concert Hall in Huntsville, Alabama were probably a bit taken aback by what they saw when Francis first stepped onstage with the group. The bass in Francis's hands wasn't a four-string or a 5-string bass guitar, nor was it a six-string model. No, readers, this yellow-finished low-end behemoth was a (by our count, at least) 17-string bass. You can see it in action in the fan-filmed footage of the band's opening number that night (Got Me Under Pressure) below. Now, not to be a kill-joy, but a spin of the video does seem to show Francis only using three or four of the beast's strings. Still, the skill involved from swinging from the low notes at the very top of the bass (fretted, of course, over the top of the neck) to the middle and higher notes all the way at the bottom is pretty impressive. The Little Ol' Band From Texas has always known how to take simple elements (in this case a steady-grooving bass line) and put on a show with them, after all. Now, all we need is for Billy Gibbons to invite Jared Dines and his 20-string Mountain Dew Meme Guitar onstage with the band for the djentiest ZZ Top show ever... Also of note at this particular gig were the purple "fuzz" guitars the band used for Legs.
2022 Formula 1 World Championship Drivers' Standings
FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN GRANDE PRÊMIO DE SÃO PAULO 2022 - Race Results
Failing cryptocurrency exchange FTX has begun moving assets offline, after more than $600 million in tokens was allegedly pilfered from the digital wallets on its platform. After filing for bankruptcy protection from creditors on Friday, FTX “initiated precautionary steps to move all digital assets to cold storage,” said Ryne Miller, general counsel for the firm’s US arm. “Process was expedited this evening to mitigate damage upon observing unauthorized transactions.”
However, considerable damage had already been done. According to an estimate by blockchain research firm Nansen, $662 million flowed out of FTX’s US and international exchanges. The firm’s main wallet, which was used to process withdrawals, was drained of its entire balance of 45.8 million FTT tokens, worth an estimated $97.2 million, Nansen said. A separate review by another analytics firm, Elliptic Connect, pegged the thefts at $473 million. The FTX community administrator on Telegram said the exchange had been hacked. FTX applications are infected with malware, according to the administrator, which also warned followers against loading the exchange’s website. The Bahamas-based FTX and about 130 affiliated companies commenced Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings on Friday in Delaware. The firm also announced that Democratic Party donor Sam Bankman-Fried had resigned as CEO. Bankman-Fried, who reportedly ranked behind only billionaire political activist George Soros in 2022 pledges to Democratic Party candidates, saw his entire $16 billion fortune wiped out this week, according to Bloomberg, which called the collapse “one of history’s greatest-ever destructions of wealth.” Miller, the general counsel, said the exchange was “investigating abnormalities with wallet movements related to consolidation of FTX balances across exchanges.” The financial troubles of major cryptocurrency hub FXT threaten to wreak havoc on crypto firms and transform how they’re run, JPMorgan strategists warned on Wednesday. According to a research note cited by Business Insider, the analysts believe this will likely send the price of Bitcoin down 25% to $13,000 a coin. Crypto players are likely facing demands from lenders to put up more collateral, and some may collapse under the pressure, the Wall Street strategists wrote. “It looks likely that a new cascade of margin calls, deleveraging and crypto company/platform failures is starting,” they said. The JPMorgan team pointed out to the close links between FTX and its boss Sam Bankman-Fried’s trading firm Alameda Research, and the wider crypto space. According to the report, Bankman-Fried, who had been heralded as the white knight of crypto, and even compared to Warren Buffett, now appears to be the one in need of rescue. “The number of entities with stronger balance sheets able to rescue those with low capital and high leverage is shrinking within the crypto ecosystem,” the strategists said. They indicated that the whole situation “creates a confidence crisis and reduces the appetite of other crypto companies to come to the rescue.” It could take several weeks for the crypto turmoil to settle down, unless FTX is quickly rescued, the experts suggested. “With the crypto market cap standing at just above $1 trillion before the FTX/Alameda Research collapse, our guess is that the crypto market will find a floor above $500 billion in the current deleveraging phase,” they said. On Wednesday, Bitcoin dropped to its lowest level in nearly two years on news of the potential bankruptcy of Bankman-Fried's company after the world’s largest crypto trading platform Binance abandoned plans to acquire FTX. Expanding on the innovations of Cort’s original 8-string multiscale, the KX508 Multi-Scale II features an updated okoume body and a specially designed Fishman Fluence Modern Humbucker.
The KX508 Multi-Scale II is the second iteration of the eight-string KX508, Cort’s first multi-scale 8-string guitar introduced in 2020. Like its predecessor, the KX508 Multi-Scale II has a visually stunning poplar burl top in a Mariana Blue Burst finish. Beyond its visual appeal, the poplar burl is an ideal tonal complement to Cort’s newly introduced okoume body. Okoume is known for its light weight and ability to improve tonal clarity. It has a tight low-end and highly articulate high-end, which matches the overall sonic characteristics of the KX508 Multi-Scale II. The multi-scale, measuring 26.5 to 28 inches, offers a punchy low end while maintaining a familiar feel and tension on the treble strings, which allows for speedy runs and string-bending. Players have unhindered access to the high frets thanks to the low-scooped heel. The 5-piece maple and purple heart neck not only provides strength and stability, aided by a spoke nut hotrod truss rod, but a strong and focused sound. The Macassar ebony fingerboard (15.75-inch radius) offers smooth playability along the 24 frets with teardrop inlays. Macassar is an ideal tonewood for high-gain applications because of its ability to cut through a dense mix. At the top of the neck, the 2 7/32-inch nut width (56.5 mm) is surprisingly comfortable for an 8-string guitar and is even suitable for players with smaller hands. The individual hardtail bridge with string-thru-body design results in greatly improved sustain, superb string separation for enhanced articulation, and precise intonation. Deluxe locking machine heads offer reliable tuning as well as easier and quicker string changes.
FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN GRANDE PRÊMIO DE SÃO PAULO 2022 - Sprint Race Results
Hollywood star Alec Baldwin has accused several crew members on the set of the film ‘Rust’ of negligence, which led to the death of Halyna Hutchins. He filed a lawsuit in the Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday hoping to “clear his name.”
The tragic incident took place a year ago during the production of the film at a ranch in New Mexico. Baldwin fired a live round from a prop revolver, fatally shooting cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. The actor claimed he had been assured that it was a ‘cold’ gun, meaning it was either empty or loaded with dummy rounds. No one has been charged with a crime so far. Baldwin’s suit names the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was in charge of handling guns and ammunition on set, and first assistant director Dave Halls, who handed him the gun that day and said it was safe. The two other co-defendants are Sarah Zachry, who was in charge of props, and Seth Kenney, the owner of a firm that supplied weapons and ammunition to the set. Baldwin’s lawyer, Luke Nikas, alleges that the “tragedy happened because live bullets were delivered to the set and loaded into the gun.” He claims that crew members broke the safety rules when handling the firearm, which led to Hutchins’ death. The suit further alleges that Kenney kept his firm in “disarray” and stored ammunition “haphazardly.” According to the suit, the actor “must live with the immense grief, and the resulting emotional, physical, and financial toll, caused by the fact that cross-defendants’ negligent conduct, assurances, and supervision put a loaded weapon in his hand and led him, Hutchins, and everyone else on set to believe that his directed use of the weapon was safe.” Baldwin’s counter-complaint came after Mamie Mitchell, the film’s script supervisor, sued Baldwin, Gutierrez-Reed, Halls, and other production members last year, seeking damages for the “physical and emotional harm” she has suffered as a result of Hutchins’ death. In January, Gutierrez-Reed sued Kenney, claiming that he provided an ammunition box to the set, which contained a mix of dummy and live rounds. Hutchins’ family settled a wrongful death lawsuit with the production company last month. “I have no interest in engaging in recriminations or attribution of blame,” Halyna Hutchins’ husband, Matthew Hutchins, said.
FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN GRANDE PRÊMIO DE SÃO PAULO 2022 - Top 10 Qualifying Results
¹ Grid penalty
A deal for major cryptocurrency exchange FTX collapsed on Wednesday as bigger rival Binance said it was pulling out after doing due diligence on the proposed acquisition. Binance signed a non-binding agreement on Tuesday to buy FTX's non-U.S. unit to help cover a "liquidity crunch" at the rival exchange, but the deal was subject to further due diligence.
"As a result of corporate due diligence, as well as the latest news reports regarding mishandled customer funds and alleged US agency investigations, we have decided that we will not pursue the potential acquisition of FTX.com," Binance said in a statement. A representative for FTX did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Chief Executive Officer Sam Bankman-Fried told employees in a Slack message viewed by Reuters that Binance had not previously expressed reservations about the deal. The turmoil over FTX has hit crypto prices. Bitcoin, the biggest cryptocurrency by market value, was last down 13% on the day at $16,277. FTX.com is also facing scrutiny from U.S. regulators over its handling of customer funds, as well as its crypto-lending activities. |
Thank you for choosing to make a difference through your donation. We appreciate your support.
This website uses marketing and tracking technologies. Opting out of this will opt you out of all cookies, except for those needed to run the website. Note that some products may not work as well without tracking cookies. Opt Out of CookiesCategories
All
Archives
April 2024
|