Author: Alfred Davenport

It doesn’t feel like we have quite as many “pic facs” or “photo ops” as we once did around Parliament House. They are those staged moments set up for TV cameras that capture some formal moment in the nation’s life or politics. Greeting a foreign dignitary, a meeting of the national cabinet — that sort of thing. It’s all smiles and shaking hands and a few jolly japes exchanged but no formal media questions. Just something to ensure the event is captured for the evening news. On Tuesday afternoon in the prime minister’s office, after Question Time, there was a “Pic-Fac Only”…

It fell in the exclusive economic zone of Japan. The rocket flew about 900 kilometers. What will be the reaction to the incident? North Korea has launched a ballistic missile that could reach the United States, according to the Japanese Ministry of Defense. According to the agency, the rocket spent a little more than an hour in the air and fell into the water in the economic zone of Japan. At the same time, if it were not aimed at the sky, then in theory it could well cover a distance of 14 thousand kilometers. And this, as noted by the Japanese military, is enough to…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet with US President Joe Biden in Poland soon, unless something “extraordinary” happens. The Polish newspaper Dziennik Gazeta Prawna writes about this. According to her sources, Zelensky at this meeting, and later at the UN forum, may present his peace plan. Poland does not comment on this issue for security reasons. Recall that earlier Zelensky said that he had not received an invitation to Poland to meet with Biden. The White House officially announced Biden’s visit to Poland, he should arrive in the country on the 20th of February. The war in Ukraine continues for…

Washington, D.C. – U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in rankings and consumer advice, today announced the 2023 Best Jobs. The rankings offer a look at the best jobs across 17 categories – from sectors such as business, health care and technology – to help job seekers at every level achieve their career goals. Outcomes take into account the most important aspects of a job, including growth potential, work-life balance and salary. While nearly 40% of the top 100 Best Jobs are in health care or health care support roles, a technology job – software developer – captured…

LONDON (AP) — People worldwide are more gloomy about their economic prospects than ever before and trust business far more than other institutions like governments, nonprofits and the media in an increasingly divided world, according to a survey from public relations firm Edelman. Released late Sunday to coincide with the World Economic Forum’s gathering of business elites and government leaders this week in Davos, Switzerland, the online survey conducted in 28 countries shows that fewer people believe their family will be better off in five years. Those who believe they’ll be better off dropped to 40% from 50% last year…

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Education funding, property tax relief and a tug of war over how best to use Idaho’s whopping budget surplus will be a focus for lawmakers as they gather in Boise on Monday for the start of the 2023 legislative session. As usual, Republicans hold a supermajority in the Idaho Statehouse. But this year, there are a lot of new faces: Roughly 40 out of 105 lawmakers are newly elected. “They all come with new ideas about how to make Idaho a better place,” Speaker of the House Mike Moyle, a Republican from Star, said Thursday during…

Wang Yi accuses the US of ‘salami slicing’ tactics and ‘bullying’ in a call with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The United States must stop its “old routine of unilateral bullying”, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a telephone call. Wang on Friday accused the US of trying to suppress China’s development. Washington must pay attention to Beijing’s legitimate concerns, he said, warning the US against trying to challenge China’s red lines using “salami slicing” tactics. He was referring to the practice of using a series of small actions to achieve a…