fourth

On Sunday, Americans from sea to shining sea mark Independence Day, commemorating the 4 July, 1776 declaration of independence from the British Empire. On the anniversary of the holiday, Sputnik explores some of the iconic symbols which the modern world commonly associates with the United States.

pillage

The United States and its Syrian Kurdish allies have taken control of wide swathes of eastern Syria, which contains the vast majority of the country’s oil and gas resources, and is its traditional breadbasket. The theft of these resources has forced Syria’s Russian and Iranian allies to provide the country with emergency fuel and food aid.

fire

Canada: Firefighters battle 170 wildfires amid heat wave

Fires have devastated towns in British Columbia, with the military on standby to respond to the threat.

Over 170 wildfires were raging in the western Canadian province of British Columbia (BC) on Saturday, as the region experiences a record heat wave.

The Canadian military was put on standby to help fight the blazes and evacuate citizens from affected towns.

Many of the fires were caused by lightning strikes. 

swimming

Trump Holds Rally in Florida, Across State From Building Disaster

Aides to Gov. Ron DeSantis questioned Trump associates about whether the event on Saturday night in Sarasota should proceed given the scope of the tragedy in Surfside.

bender

I have it under no authority that Bender the robot of Futurama is based on Остап Бендер  — a Russian character otherwise know as Ostap Bender, or Ostap-Suleyman-Berta-Maria-Bender-Bey or even Bender-Zadunaysky, until his name settled on Ostap Ibragimovich Bender.

diana

If the British royal family wished to underline their status as an antiquated institution, out of touch with the present day, they could hardly do better than commission a larger-than-life-size bronze statue of Diana, Princess of Wales.

space cadets

Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos is now ready to take people into space.

The US entrepreneur's Blue Origin company says it will launch a crew aboard its New Shepard rocket and capsule system on 20 July.

The astronauts are likely to include company personnel, but one seat is being auctioned online.
New Shepard's flights are sub-orbital. They're designed to take passengers on a straight up-and-down trip that briefly goes above 100km (62 miles).

aliens...

blink

We owe a debt to the most intelligent humans on the planet. 

skies

nato

Sea Breeze 2021 manoeuvres will take place involving:

• about 4,000 military personnel,
• 40 warships,
• 30 planes and helicopters,
• more than 100 automotive and armoured military vehicles.

The arrival of warships in the area of the exercises did not go without an incident, suffice it to recall the recent scandal with British destroyer HMS Defender.

boot

Was Benjamin Netanyahu involved in dirty deals in the purchase of submarines from German defense company ThyssenKrupp? Israeli lawyer Eliad Shraga accuses the German judiciary and politicians of not helping to resolve the issue.

DER SPIEGEL: Mr. Shraga, you have been fighting for years to hold longtime Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accountable for corruption in the submarine scandal. Are you happy that he is now out of office?

on the bench

Former President Donald Trump will be getting a portrait in the Smithsonian. At some point.

In April, the Smithsonian Institute said it was "pursuing commissioned portraits of former President Trump and Mrs. Trump," but did not have any further details to share at the time. 

woke

There is “nothing wrong with being woke” but it is “important to stick up for your history,” Boris Johnson has asserted as he was asked about a description of the new US president, Joe Biden.

more...

A week after voting to approve a “Document on the Meaning of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church,” the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has clarified that their vote will not lead to a blanket ban preventing pro-abortion politicians from receiving communion.