News Archives - Page 32 of 81

Samsung CEO is Released from Prison for Being Too Important

10Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Technology, Business, News

Samsung CEO is Released from Prison for Being Too Important

Jay Y. Lee, vice president of Samsung, will be released on bail on Friday. Politicians, public opinion and businesses alike fear that Samsung will miss out on opportunities if the CEO cannot manage. Jay Y. Lee is currently serving a prison sentence for, among other things, bribery and embezzlement. He bribed a good friend of the former Korean president. Getting and keeping Lee in jail proves difficult. In August 2017, the man was given a five-year sentence, of which he served one year before the sentence itself was suspended and subsequently reduced. He has been behind bars since January but is now released on bail. The reason for this is remarkable. Lee has repaid the embezzled amounts but can also count on broad public and political support. For example, Reuters says that lobb...

From Boris Johnson to Greta Thunberg: World Responds to UN Climate Report

9Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

News

From Boris Johnson to Greta Thunberg: World Responds to UN Climate Report

After the UN climate panel, IPCC released its report on Monday morning, and the first reactions poured in. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and climate activist Greta Thunberg, among others, have already expressed their concern and called for action. Most are already focusing on Glasgow, where a 'crucial' climate summit will occur this autumn. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the climate working group of the United Nations, is making no bones about it. It's 'code red for humanity'. If greenhouse gas emissions fall sharply in the coming decades, global warming is limited to two degrees. The report says a 1.5-degree increase by 2030 is irreversible. The consequences - including rising sea levels, melting ice caps, heavy rainfall, and extreme drought - will...

Boris Johnson Under Fire for Outrageous Joke about Thatcher and the Coal Mines

6Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

UK, News

Boris Johnson Under Fire for Outrageous Joke about Thatcher and the Coal Mines

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is under fire after a visit to Scotland Thursday. Johnson made a joke that has gone down the wrong way with many compatriots. "Shameful", Scottish politicians call it. Johnson had just visited a wind farm in Scotland's Moray East on Thursday when some journalists asked him about the energy transition in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister replied that a lot of progress had already been made, adding a joke. "Thanks to Margaret Thatcher, who has closed a large number of coal mines across the country, we have started early and are now getting rid of that coal quickly," he said with a laugh. But the closure of the coal mines is not something to be laughed at by the Scots. It was the UK's main industrial sector, and when Thatcher decided to clos...

China Reopens Coal Mines Due to Rising Energy Demand

5Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

China, Business, News

China Reopens Coal Mines Due to Rising Energy Demand

China is reopening 15 more coal mines to meet rising energy demand in the country, in the Xinjiang and Shanxi regions. The Chinese thus prefer economic interests over climate targets. For the northern region of Inner Mongolia, the reopening of 38 coal mines was already announced last week. With this, the Asian country is also trying to push down the prices of coal. So far this year, they have risen by a third to a record high due to the enormous demand. The government of President Xi Jinping continues to look for a balance between reducing greenhouse gas emissions and meeting the energy demand, partly caused by the recovery of the industry. Chinese policymakers last month advised slowing down the pace of cutting emissions in the country. Otherwise, it could stand in the way of ...

Dead and Injured in Head-on Train Collision in the Czech Republic

4Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Czech Republic, News

Dead and Injured in Head-on Train Collision in the Czech Republic

Authorities said that a head-on collision between two passenger trains in the southwestern Czech Republic had left two dead and dozens injured. At least seven injured are in severe condition, the Czech state broadcaster said. The trains collided at Domazlice, near the German border. Czech Transport Minister Karel Havlicek called the incident very seriously and went to the site of the accident. One of the two trains was an express train from Munich to Prague. Rescue workers said they have found numerous victims at the accident site and evacuated the injured and other travellers. According to German media, a rescue helicopter from Regensburg is also active in the Federal Republic. The Czech railway network is considered outdated in many places. According to the first reports, the ...

China is Now Also Attacking the Gaming Sector: Technological Drugs

3Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

China, News, Technology

China is Now Also Attacking the Gaming Sector: Technological Drugs

Chinese state media has launched an attack on the computer games industry in the country. The Economic Daily newspaper talked about 'spiritual opium' and 'electronic drugs'. Tencent, the market leader in China for video games, plunged 11 percent lower on the stock market due to the news. Investors seem to fear that Beijing will now want to take a stricter look at online entertainment after e-commerce, taxi services and online education. In addition to Tencent, game developers NetEase and XD were also hit on the stock market. Economic Daily, affiliated with the Xinhua state news agency, quoted a student as saying that his classmates play Tencent's Honor of Kings game for up to eight hours a day. Internet addiction is common among minors, and video games have a significant impact ...

Israeli Supreme Court Proposes Not to Evict Palestinians from Their Homes

2Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Israel, News

Israeli Supreme Court Proposes Not to Evict Palestinians from Their Homes

Several dozen Palestinians would not be evicted from their homes in East Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood "in the next few years." That is what the Israeli Supreme Court proposed today. The Palestinians will have to recognize the ownership of a Jewish organization over their land and pay a "small rent", but the matter is not entirely settled yet. A few months ago, the dispute in Sheikh Jarrah led to severe riots and to a war between Israel and the radical group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli Supreme Court now wants to throw a kind of "Solomon verdict" on the table with a compromise proposal. Fourteen Palestinian families from East Jerusalem had gone to the Supreme Court to overturn an eviction order from their homes by lower courts. That would now partly work, at lea...

Max Verstappen Fastest in Budapest in First Free Practice

30Jul

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Sports, News

Max Verstappen Fastest in Budapest in First Free Practice

Max Verstappen set the fastest time in the first free practice of the Hungarian Grand Prix in Formula 1. In his Red Bull, the leader in the battle for the world title in Budapest came to 1.17.555. At the Hungaroring, Valtteri Bottas came second in his Mercedes, at 0.061 from Verstappen. World champion Lewis Hamilton, also in a Mercedes, followed at 0.167. In the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the previous Grand Prix, Verstappen, crashed heavily after Hamilton touched his car from behind. Although the Dutchman was unable to continue the race, the British world champion won. Verstappen's car was heavily damaged. The Hungarian Grand Prix is Sunday afternoon.

German Court Imposes Rules on Facebook Account Blocking

29Jul

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Technology, Germany, News

German Court Imposes Rules on Facebook Account Blocking

Facebook has the right to remove specific posts and block users, although it must adhere to certain rules. That is what a German court decided today. For example, users should be warned in advance that their account will be deleted, and they should be allowed to explain their contributions. Furthermore, if a message is deleted, the users must be informed at least afterwards. The ruling concerns the terms of use on which Facebook relies to remove discriminatory or inappropriate content. However, not all contributions banned by Facebook are illegal under German law. In the two cases before the court, a man and a woman had made derogatory comments about Muslims and immigrants. According to the court, however, those statements fall under the freedom of expression. The court ruled t...

Sydney Extends Lockdown by One Month, Until August 28

28Jul

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Australia, News

Sydney Extends Lockdown by One Month, Until August 28

Authorities in the Australian state of New South Wales extended the lockdown in the capital Sydney for another month on Wednesday. The lockdown of the past five weeks turned out not to be enough to contain an outbreak of the contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus. The lockdown was initially supposed to end on Friday, but the restrictions are now in place until August 28, State Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney. Last Saturday, thousands of people in Sydney protested against the corona measures, and there were clashes with the police. However, the huge majority of protesters were not wearing face masks. A total of 177 new locally acquired infections were discovered in New South Wales on Tuesday, compared to 172 the day before.