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Ecuador Protests: Govt. Reaches Deal With Indigenous Leaders
On Thurs. evening, thousands of indigenous protesters left the Ecuadorian capital of Quito after 18 days, following a Catholic church-brokered agreement between the government and the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE).
Pres. Guillermo Lasso has agreed to make a 15-cent cut per gallon in petrol prices among other concessions, while the CONAIE vowed to end mobilizations for 90 days to allow the government to comply with its demands.
This comes as the leftist opposition Revolución Ciudadana party failed to gather support to oust Lasso from office. The motion was approved by 80 lawmakers on Tues., falling short by 12 votes.
Pro-establishment narrative
The protests - which, ironically, have been costly to the Ecuadorian economy - were held under the pretext of calls for economic reforms, but in reality, they were an attempt to promote instability and force Lasso out of power.
Establishment-critical narrative
Demonstrators had been urging for dialogue while the government was focused on repressing Ecuadorian voices, even if it cost lives. This massacre could've been avoided if Pres. Lasso had been open to meeting the people's demands sooner.
Oslo Shooting: 2 Killed, 21 Injured
On Sat., Norwegian police announced that at least two were killed and 21 injured after a man opened fire outside a popular gay bar, a jazz club, and a takeout food joint in the country's capital Oslo.
According to Norway's PST intelligence service, the gunman is a 42-year-old Norwegian citizen of Iranian origin and had been known to security services since 2015.
The shooting occurred hours before Oslo's annual Pride celebrations, after which organizers canceled all Pride events following advice from the police.
Right narrative
In an attempt at seeming tolerant, European countries have continued to ignore the problems arising from mass immigration. Countries have frequently turned a blind eye to violent Islamic extremists within their borders, which ironically is a sure way to induce the anti-Muslim backlash it's trying to prevent.
Left narrative
The perpetrator may belong to an Islamist environment, but it's currently unclear if this is an act of Islamic terrorism. What is clear, however, is that nobody other than the person or people behind this atrocious attack is responsible. The investigation is ongoing and the Muslim population who may be in fear of an Islamophobic backlash must be protected.
Hackers Steal $100M in Crypto From Harmony Blockchain Bridge
A hacker has stolen $100M from Harmony's Horizon Bridge - which allows users to transfer crypto assets from one blockchain to another - in what Harmony has described as a "malicious attack."
Harmony didn't provide specific details surrounding the asset heist but stated that it believed a single individual account was responsible.
The company said that it was working with the FBI and forensic experts to "identify the culprits and retrieve the stolen funds." Harmony has also notified Horizon Bridge to stop further transactions.
Narrative A
Despite continued worries surrounding the security of crypto bridges, the market has managed to shrug off the impact of another attack. This is a positive sign for the crypto market more broadly, despite its struggles with security and demand in recent months.
Narrative B
This heist has once again revealed the severity of security issues in the crypto market. The absence of a strong regulatory framework has allowed hackers to turn crypto markets into their playground and their attacks could drag the market to a complete halt.
Nerd narrative
There is a 50% chance that Bitcoin will make up at least 31.6% of the total crypto market in 2025, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Day 124 Roundup: 11 Killed, 50 Wounded in Shopping Mall Strike; Troops Turn Sights to Lysychansk
At least 11 people were killed and 50 more injured after a crowded shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk was hit by Russian missiles on Mon., according to Ukrainian officials. Elsewhere, at least eight civilians were reportedly killed and 21 wounded in strikes on the Luhansk city of Lysychansk, and five were killed and at least 22 wounded in Kharkiv.
Meanwhile, as leaders of the G7 countries met for the second day of a three-day summit in Germany on Mon., Russia has turned its sights to Lysychansk – the last city under Ukrainian control in the region following the fall of Severodonetsk on Saturday.
A military source from the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic, who are fighting alongside Russian troops in the region, claimed pro-Russia forces have entered Lysychansk from five directions and are attempting to encircle the last remaining Ukrainian fighters in the city.
Anti-Russia narrative
This invasion is an egregious violation of international law. Putin's ultimate aim is to restore the Soviet empire, even if it takes massive bloodshed and false pretexts such as calling the 2014 Ukrainian revolution after a fraudulent election a "coup". This unprovoked attack is the latest chapter in Putin's Orwellian attempt to rewrite history.
Pro-Russia narrative
NATO and the US have ignored Russia's security concerns by breaking its promise not to expand eastward in return for German reunification. These concerns are legitimate and taking them seriously would have avoided the Ukraine tragedy.
Nerd narrative
There's a 66% chance that more than 100,000 people will be killed in the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2022, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
​Iran Launches Satellite as Nuclear Talks Set to Restart
Iran announced on Sun. that it has tested its Zuljanah satellite launcher for a second time with a sub-orbital target, confirming weeks of speculation that it was preparing for a launch.
This comes months after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) put its second military satellite, the Noor 2, into orbit.
In response, the US expressed its commitment against the Iranian ballistic missile program, stating the launches violate a UN Security Council resolution and promising measures to tackle advances.
Republican narrative
The Biden administration is threatening the stability in the Middle East achieved under Trump as it seeks to restore the Iran nuclear deal. Salvaging this insane pact doesn't ensure Tehran will stick to it and might cause US allies to lose confidence in the White House.
Democratic narrative
If Iran is now in a position to make demands it's because Trump withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, allowing Tehran to develop its nuclear program and damaging the US' ability to negotiate. The Biden administration faces a difficult situation and restoring the deal is the best of the bad options they face.
Nerd narrative
There's a 23% chance that the US will rejoin the Iran Nuclear Deal by 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Report: Russia in Historic Foreign Debt Default
In a historic move, Russia has defaulted on its foreign debt obligations, according to some bondholders. Official confirmation is expected from bond rating agencies.
After a 30-day grace period expired on Sun., Russia allegedly missed the deadline to repay its interest of $100M on two Eurobonds. The default was seen as largely inevitable after the US Treasury Dept.'s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said it wouldn't renew a license allowing Russia to repay debt in US dollars on May 25.
In absence of the OFAC license, Russia said it would make repayments on dollar-denominated loans in rubles. On Jun. 22, Russian Pres. Putin issued a decree, the wording of which implied Moscow considers its obligations completed "if they are fulfilled in rubles in an amount equivalent to the value of obligations in foreign currency."
Anti-Russia narrative
Even if Russia moved the money to some escrow account as it claims, the obligations of the bonds aren't met until the funds have been released and bondholders confirm receipt. Russia cannot claim it had no other choice – it chose to wage its invasion into Ukraine and hasn't backed down in the face of sanctions.
Pro-Russia narrative
Russia's foreign debts amount to $57B, but it has foreign reserves of nearly $600B. America and the EU are putting up false barriers to prevent Russia from repaying its loan obligations, which is giving the appearance of a default. Anyone who looks can see this isn't a default at all.
Nerd narrative
There is a 92% chance that Russia will be the world's most sanctioned country by Feb. 22, 2023, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Colombia: 6 Dead and Hundreds Injured in Bullfighting Accident
At least six people are dead, including one child, and hundreds were injured after a wooden spectator section collapsed at a bullfighting festival in El Espinal, Colombia on Sunday.
During the popular event known as "corraleja," video footage shows three levels of the stands collapse, trapping the spectators. Nearby spectators were seen running to remove debris.
At a press conference on Sun. night, the health authorities announced that 322 people involved in the collapse had sought medical attention at area hospitals.
Establishment-critical narrative
In 2020, Colombia finally put wheels in motion to end the barbaric spectacle of bullfighting. The draft law passed in Bogota to ban the practice will hopefully spread nationwide. This cruel practice endangers both animals and spectators and must come to an end.
Pro-establishment narrative
Bullfighting has a long history in Colombia and is a cultural and artistic institution, especially among elder members of the establishment with conservative viewpoints. Laws should uphold this expression of the nation's rich history.
UN Forced to Slash Food Aid to Yemen
On Sun., the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) said it has been forced to ration food supplies as a result of not receiving enough funding due to global economic conditions and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The WFP feeds 13M Yemenis, but the rationing means they will only be able to feed 5M with 50% of their daily food requirements, and the remaining 8M will only receive 25%.
The number of people living in near-famine conditions - in a country of 30M - is expected to rise from 5M to 7M in the second half of 2022.
Establishment-critical narrative
While the West sanctions and cuts off trade with Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, it has no issues continuing relations with Saudi Arabia – no doubt for oil. It reeks of hypocrisy.
Pro-establishment narrative
The conflict can only be resolved when the Houthis are forced back to the negotiating table. The US, its Gulf allies, and UN are working together closely to try to bring the fighting to a halt. The Iran-backed rebels are the aggressor in this catastrophe.
Cynical narrative
The war in Yemen, now in its eighth year, is every bit as brutal as what's taking place in Ukraine. The West's failure to address this humanitarian disaster or cover it in the media with any sort of urgency says a lot about its inherent bias and who it considers worthy and unworthy victims.
SCOTUS Backs Football Coach Over Prayers
SCOTUS ruled in favor of high school football coach Joseph Kennedy on Mon. when it defended his right to pray at the 50-yard line following his team's games. Kennedy lost his job in 2015 over kneeling in prayer at midfield.
The justices ruled 6-3 against Kennedy's former employer, Bremerton (WA) High School, which argued his prayers violated the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, overturning a strong legal precedent of the clause being used to limit prayer in public schools.
Kennedy challenged the school's assertion that he utilized the school's field to promote his faith, and that his style coerced students into taking part in religious expression, thereby violating school policy.
Right narrative
This is a win for the religious liberty of all Americans. Kennedy was targeted for expressing his Christian beliefs, and the school district violated his First Amendment rights by suspending him from work. It's also a victory for the Constitution and the rule of law, upholding the original meaning of both freedom of speech and freedom of religion.
Left narrative
This is the latest instance of the Roberts Court being overly protective of religious rights. SCOTUS is continuing to overturn decades of jurisprudence and is now prioritizing individual rights over the Constitution's prohibition on government endorsement of religion. This is a political move, not a legal one.
Man Arrested After Allegedly Slapping Giuliani on Back
Rudy Giuliani, a former lawyer for Donald Trump and NYC mayor, was allegedly slapped on the back by a ShopRite worker Sun. while campaigning in Staten Island for his son Andrew who is a candidate for the GOP nomination for governor.
39-year-old suspect Daniel Gill, who was on duty at the time, was arrested for the incident and charged with second-degree assault involving a person over age 65.
The elder Giuliani said Gill called him an expletive and made remarks about Giuliani's anti-abortion position.
Republican narrative
This attack is just further proof that the Left has determined violence should be the answer to everyone and everything they disagree with. Attacking "America's Mayor" is crazy, but even crazier is the Left's contempt for civility and peaceful discourse.
Democratic narrative
It's not shocking that someone who's still trying to sell the lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen is exaggerating what took place here. Surveillance video shows Giuliani receiving a light tap on the back. This isn't an attack by a political opponent, just an opportunity by Giuliani and his son to create an overblown viral incident to fit their "tough on crime" narrative.
Prince Charles to Stop Accepting Large Cash Donations for Charity
According to a royal source, Prince Charles' charity will no longer accept large cash donations following a report that he accepted millions in cash from a Qatari politician.
The prince reportedly received a suitcase containing 1M euros ($1.05M) in cash, which is said to have been one of three allotments totaling 3M euros ($3.14M) from former Qatari PM Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani between 2011 and 2015.
The payments were deposited into the accounts of the Prince of Wales' Charitable Fund (PWCF), and there's no suggestion they were illegal. The fund said that its trustees concluded the donor was legitimate and that its auditors had signed off on the donation.
Establishment-critical narrative
Prince Charles accepted money from a foreign official with a shady financial history who has been widely reported in both the Panama and Pandora papers for holding his money in offshore tax havens. As a public figure, he shouldn't have accepted this money, especially following the recent embarrassing scandals facing his charities and the allegations of cash for access.
Pro-establishment narrative
Prince Charles has done nothing wrong and all the money given to him was immediately deposited into his charities. He followed the law and, although the situation could come across as a bit suspicious, all the correct processes were followed and the donation was legitimate.