LA BISEXUALITE DE PARIS JACKSON

PAS ACCEPTEE PAR SA FAMILLE

Paris Jackson a levé le voile sur sa vie privée dans l’émission « Red Table Talk », le podcast de Jada Pinkett Smith. Alors qu’elle dévoilait de nouveaux détails sur son enfance en avril dernier, face à Naomi Campbell, la fille de Michael Jackson reprend la parole ce mercredi 16 juin 2021, dans l’émission de Jada Pinkett Smith « Red Table Talk ».Pour l’occasion, c’est la fille de Will Smith, Willow Smith, qui a mené l’interview avec son amie. Elles partagent de nombreux points communs : des parents très connus et exposés, leur amour pour la musique et la mode, et leur bisexualité dont elles parlent ouvertement.

Seule et exclue

A ce sujet, Paris Jackson a révélé qu’elle ne bénéficiait pas du soutien de sa famille. En effet, les Jackson sont très religieux, proches des Témoins de Jéhovah et l’homosexualité est un sujet tabou. « Ils n’aiment pas parler de ça, ce n’est vraiment pas accepté. J’en suis arrivée à un point où je les respecte, je les aime, je respecte leurs croyances, leur religion. Mais maintenant cela voudrait dire que je m’attendrais à ce qu’ils mettent leur culture et leur religion de côté. Ce que pensent les gens de moi n’est pas mon problème ».

La sœur de Prince et Blanket Jackson, a fait son coming-out bisexuel à l’adolescence. Et si la jeune femme de 23 ans affirme avoir pu compter sur le soutien de ses frères après son coming-out, elle confie néanmoins se sentir parfois « exclue ». « Il y a des moments où c’était vraiment difficile. On se sent seul. On se sent exclu », explique-t-elle.

Un coming out  dés 14 ans

Plus d’une fois, Paris Jackson s’est exprimée publiquement sur sa sexualité qu’elle refuse de nommer. À seulement 14 ans, la jeune femme a fait son coming out en affirmant son appartenance à la communauté LGBTQ+. Alors quand un journaliste lui demande en 2018 si elle est bisexuelle, elle lui répond sans détour : « C'est comme ça que vous le dites, donc je suppose que oui, mais qui a besoin d'étiquette ? » Sur son compte Instagram, la jeune femme a alors tenu à faire une mise au point : « J'ai déjà publiquement parlé de la communauté LGBT + comme étant la mienne. J'ai parlé de mes coups de cœur envers des filles dans mon interview pour Rolling Stone. On trouve sur Internet des photos de moi embrassant des filles. Pourquoi est-ce que les gens disent aujourd'hui que c'est une information ? Avant de poursuivre : « Et je ne suis pas bisexuelle. J'aime juste les gens pour ce qu'ils sont. Je ne m'appose pas une étiquette, donc s'il vous plaît ne me collez pas d'étiquette. Merci ! »

Malgré cela, la fille de Michael Jackson travaille à son bien-être. Elle est d’ailleurs revenue sur ses tentatives de suicide. « Qu’est-ce qui a provoqué cette spirale émotionnelle selon toi  »?" lui demande Willow. « Un peu de tout. Ne pas savoir qui j’étais, être une jeune fille qui traversait la puberté, pas mal de choses liées à ma situation. La pression était difficile et j’étais dépressive. Mais, des années plus tard, je peux dire que je suis très reconnaissante de ne pas y être parvenue. Les choses se sont améliorées ».

Les années ont passé et la fille de Michael Jackson et Debbie Rowe s’épanouit tout en restant fidèle à sa personnalité. « Aujourd’hui je peux m’habiller et agir comme je le veux, cela ne change pas ce que je ressens à l’intérieur.

Tant que je suis moi, je peux être plus féminine, je peux être un garçon manqué. Je peux faire n’importe quoi tant que cela me ressemble », conclut-elle.

L'ULTRACONSERVATEUR RAISSI

NOUVEAU PRESIDENT EN IRAN

L'ultraconservateur Ebrahim Raïssi a remporté la présidentielle iranienne dès le premier tour avec 62% des voix, selon des résultats partiels officiels publiés samedi en fin de matinée. Sur 28,6 millions de bulletins dépouillés, Ebrahim Raïssi a obtenu «plus de 17.800.000» voix, a déclaré Jamal Orf, président de la Commission nationale électorale lors d'une conférence de presse à Téhéran.

La «nation iranienne» a démontré à l'occasion de la présidentielle qu'elle avait vaincu «une fois de plus» la «propagande des médias mercenaires de l'ennemi», a déclaré ce samedi le guide suprême iranien Ali Khamenei au lendemain du scrutin. Avant l'élection, Ali Khamenei avait exhorté à de nombreuses reprises ses compatriotes à faire échouer une campagne d'appels au boycottage du scrutin relayée par l'opposition en exil.

Dans son discours du 6 juin 2021, prononcé à l'occasion du 22e anniversaire de la mort du fondateur de la République Islamique d'Iran Ruhollah Khomeiny, l'actuel Guide Suprême, Ali Khamenei avait ainsi considéré que l'abstention aux élections présidentielles qui se tiendront les 18 et 25 juin est un « grand pêché », équivalent au pêché de meurtre en Islam. Dans sa deuxième fatwa, il a même interdit le vote blanc. L'Ayatollah Ahmad Alam al-Hoda, un grand ayatollah proche à Ali Khamenei, avait également affirmé que quiconque s'abstient au vote n'est pas musulman.

Chef de l'Autorité judiciaire, Ebrahim Raïssi, 60 ans, faisait figure d'archifavori, faute de concurrence réelle après la disqualification de ses principaux adversaires. La campagne électorale a été fade, sur fond de ras-le-bol général face à la crise, dans un pays riche en hydrocarbures mais soumis à des sanctions américaines. Se présentant comme le champion de la lutte anticorruption et le défenseur des classes populaires au pouvoir d'achat miné par l'inflation, Ebrahim Raïssi est le seul des quatre candidats à avoir véritablement fait campagne.

Un membre du clergé détesté

Il est très largement détesté parce qu'il était l'un des grands acteurs de la purge du début de la République islamique [durant l'été 1988, le régime a exécuté des centaines d'opposants politiques]. Cet ultraconservateur de 60 ans est le chef de l'autorité judiciaire depuis 2019. Il avait déjà obtenu 38% des voix lors de la présidentielle de 2017.  C'est un membre du clergé, présent depuis le début de la révolution islamique, très puissant.

Pour l'opposition en exil et des défenseurs des droits humains, Ebrahim Raïssi est l'incarnation de la répression et son nom associé aux exécutions massives de détenus de gauche en 1988, drame dans lequel l'intéressé nie toute participation. Il figure sur la liste noire des responsables iraniens sanctionnés par Washington pour «complicité de graves violations des droits humains». Face à des appels au boycottage lancés par l'opposition en exil, et par quelques dissidents en Iran, le guide suprême Ali Khamenei a multiplié les appels à participer en masse au scrutin. Sans appeler à l'abstention, l'ancien président Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, populiste qui avait vu sa candidature invalidée en mai, a dénoncé une élection organisée «contre les intérêts du pays» et annoncé sa décision, à titre personnel, de ne pas participer à «ce péché».

Des promesses électorales

L'homme fort du régime a cependant promis, lors d'un débat organisé à la télévision publique samedi 5 juin, « une lutte incessante contre la pauvreté et la corruption ». Comme tous les autres candidats, il est pour la poursuite des négociations avec les puissances occidentales sur la question du nucléaire, une position d'ailleurs partagée par le Guide suprême. Mais c'est surtout l'économie qui est au cœur de la présidentielle. L'Iran a grandement souffert des nouvelles sanctions imposées par les Etats-Unis à la suite du retrait du pays des accords sur le nucléaire en 2018. Le PIB iranien a ainsi chuté de 6% en 2018, et de 6,8% en 2019 avant de se stabiliser, selon le Fonds monétaire international.

Prérogatives limitée

Le président a cependant des prérogatives limitées en Iran, où l'essentiel du pouvoir est aux mains du guide suprême. Le bilan de Hassan Rohani est entaché par l'échec de sa politique d'ouverture après le retrait des États-Unis, en 2018, de l'accord sur le nucléaire iranien conclu avec les grandes puissances. Ce retrait et le rétablissement de sanctions américaines punitives qui a suivi ont plongé le pays dans une violente récession en privant notamment le gouvernement de ses recettes pétrolières à l'exportation. En décembre et janvier 2017-2018 et en novembre 2019, deux vagues de contestation ont été violemment réprimées.

Sur la question du nécessaire redressement de l'économie, la solution passe par la levée des sanctions américaines, actuellement objet de négociations pour sauver l'accord de Vienne en y réintégrant les États-Unis.

A MEETING BETWEEN BIDEN AND POUTINE

TO SET THE CLOCK ON TIME

The meeting in Geneva between the President of the United States, Joe Biden, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Poutine, lasted nearly four hours.

The two leaders were to evoke nothing less than Ukraine, Belarus, disinformation, computer attacks, not to mention the Russian opponent Alexeï Navalny.

At the end of their meeting, they each joined their delegation for two separate press conferences, unlike the joint press conference that followed the meeting between the Russian President and former US President Donald Trump in 2018, in Helsinki, Finland.

"It was important to meet in person," pleaded Joe Biden.

The 78-year-old leader stressed that foreign policy was for him "the logical extension of personal relations".

"He spoke of his family, of what his mother told him (...), that says a lot about his moral values, it's quite attractive", moreover slipped the Russian about the American . The meeting, which lasted more than three hours, was "informal", admitted the latter with almost fun.

And on both sides, the same satisfecit on talks with a "positive" (Biden), "constructive" tone and without "any animosity" (Poutine).

We are far from the spikes of the last few months, when the new American president estimated, in response to a journalist, that Vladimir Putin was "a killer", causing the beginning of a diplomatic crisis between two rival powers whose relations were already at their lowest. since the end of the Cold War., by saying that his interlocutor is "an adversary who must be recognized at his fair value, and that Russia is a great power", meant "to say things which Putin can then seize on to restore the status of Russia ”.

Will this translate into a real improvement ?

Focus of Vladimir Putin

Mr. Poutine, who was the first to speak, blew hot and cold. The Russian president described the mood of the meeting: "There was no animosity," adding that, "on many issues, [their] assessments diverge, but the two sides have demonstrated a desire to understand each other. one another and to seek ways of reconciling positions ”.

The Russian president announced that the two countries had agreed to a return of their respective ambassadors, recalled by Moscow and then Washington in March and April. They agreed to start negotiations on nuclear in order to replace the New Start treaty, which limits nuclear weapons after its expiration, in 2026. He also assured that the United States should not worry about militarization Russian Federation in the Arctic, a strategic region where Russia does not hide its ambitions.

He added that the two countries had agreed on a dialogue on "cybersecurity", adding however that "the greatest number of cyberattacks in the world come from the American space" and criticizing the lack of cooperation on the subject. subject from Washington.

Asked about Alexei Navalny, Mr. Putin immediately embarked on a long diatribe against the United States on this subject, evoking the attack on Congress on January 6, the bombing of civilians in Afghanistan or the police violence against the United States. African-American minority, before declaring that the Russian opponent "knew he was breaking the law" by not respecting the conditions of a suspended sentence while being treated in Germany.

Joe Biden's tune-ups

For his part, Mr. Biden confirmed that the meeting took place in a "positive" atmosphere, acknowledging that there were high expectations. "Nothing replaces a tête-à-tête", he declared, pragmatically, recalling that the two countries have common interests

Mr Biden cautioned against interference in the US election. . Asked about computer attacks, the 46th President of the United States reminded his counterpart that "certain critical infrastructures should be untouchable, whether by cybernetic or other means". "I gave him a list" of sixteen specific entities, "ranging from the energy sector to our water distribution systems," he said. Russia, because of its common border with China, a major economic and military power, "is not looking for a cold war" with the United States, Mr. Biden said. Finally, he warned that the consequences for Russia would be "devastating" if Mr. Navalny, imprisoned, were to die.

Many areas of disagreement

Ahead of their meeting, the two leaders expressed their hope for a more stable and predictable relationship, while their differences are numerous and concern a range of issues. Monday, at the end of the summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Brussels, Mr. Biden had promised to tell Mr. Putin what were "his red lines": "We are not looking for a conflict with Russia, but we will respond if Russia continues its activities, ”he said. In Brussels, Mr Biden had issued a very clear warning about Mr Navalny, saying his death "would be a tragedy" which "would only deteriorate relations with the rest of the world. And with [him] ”.

For his part, the Russian president, who has already rubbed shoulders with four other American presidents since coming to power at the end of 1999, obtained what he wanted: the holding of the summit as an illustration of the importance of Russia on the world stage. In an interview with the American channel NBC, he said he hoped the Democratic president would be less impulsive than his Republican predecessor. But he also took the opportunity to underline how much Mr. Trump was, according to him, a "talented" man.

Despite a handshake for the camera and a courteous attitude between the two presidents, concrete results are almost non-existent.

"Missed opportunity"

THE FAUCIGATE IN THE UNITED STATES

WHAT DID DOCTOR FAUCI REALLY KNOW ?

Also, elected Republican members of the US Congress called on Tuesday to dismiss White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci, Donald Trump's pet peeve, for his management of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Dr Fauci was not elected by the Americans. He was not chosen to run our economy.

He was not chosen to decide on the education of the children by ignoring the parents and yet, Dr Fauci has practically controlled our life for a year, ”accused Trumpist parliamentarian Marjorie Taylor Green, presenting a bill. calling for his dismissal.

“Fauci lied. People have died, ”proclaimed a sign adorned with a photo of the respected immunologist, who served under seven presidents of both parties, but had become Donald Trump's pet peeve at the end of his term.

This text has no chance of being approved in a Congress controlled by the Democrats, but a half-dozen Republican elected representatives of the House of Representatives took advantage of their presentation to hammer out that the scientist had deceived the country, in s 'tapping recently posted emails.

"Dr Fauci lied for months about the origins of the Wuhan virus," accused Paul Gosar, speaking of the gigantic city of Wuhan, China, where the virus first appeared in late 2019.

He "gave conflicting advice on the source of the virus, the transmission of the virus, the virulence of the virus, the effectiveness of masks and vaccines, the effectiveness of social distancing," continued the Republican.

The group of conservatives also repeated its accusations against the Wuhan Institute of Virology, particularly targeting so-called "gain of function" research, which consists in deliberately modifying the genetic code of a molecule.

The director of one of the laboratories of this Institute, Shi Zhengli, rejected these accusations of dangerous genetic manipulation, in an interview published Monday by the New York Times.

"There's a word for it: a biological weapon,” said Marjorie Taylor Greene.

“Have we all been victims of a biological weapon ? We demand answers and Dr Fauci must give them".

BIDEN-POUTINE SUMMIT

A MEETING WITHOUT ILLUSION

From accusations of computer attacks and human rights violations to military tensions between the two countries,

the Russian and American presidents will have a lot to discuss when they meet this Wednesday, June 16, 2021, in Geneva, Switzerland, for the first time since the arrival of the former vice-president of Barack Obama at the White House.

Proof that tensions are high, since the spring, Moscow and Washington have recalled their respective ambassadors.

But basically what should we expect from the Geneva summit ? Not much, if anything.

What can we hope for from a meeting between two men who respectively called each other "killer" and "spoiled" ?

In fact the two men know each other and hardly appreciate each other. They first met in 2011 when Biden was Obama's vice president and Putin was Medvedev's prime minister. Today they're both officially number one.

Like Moscow, Washington expects nothing tangible from this meeting, except perhaps on the admittedly central issue of nuclear arms control.

It will be a meeting without illusion, given the scale of the tensions and the list of American grievances against Moscow (cyberattacks, electoral interference, imprisonment of the opponent Alexeï Navalny, elimination of the opposition from the political game. ), officials from both camps have also minimized the expectations.

In the big leagues

The Russian president has already had what he wanted with the holding of the summit as an illustration of the importance of Russia, of the recognition of his country's power, the leitmotif of this Russian autocrat for two decades in power:

"One of the absolutely crucial engines of its foreign policy is the feeling of having to give Russia back its rightful place in the world and this kind of event plays absolutely in this direction", assures Mark Galeotti, professor of studies. Russians at University College London.

And it is the American president who took the initiative of the meeting, while Russia was flexing its muscles by placing tens of thousands of soldiers on the borders of Ukraine.

"The summit shows that Russia is playing in the big leagues", adds Alexander Shumilin, of the Russian Academy of Sciences, "The Kremlin sees it that way, and the West too".

Moscow is under no illusion, Washington wants to put aside the Russian file. "We are not looking for a conflict" with Russia, in any case assured, Sunday, Joe Biden to the press in Newquay (England) at the end of the G7 summit.

The head of the Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, affirmed him that Moscow had "no illusions" about the meeting and hoped, at best, for progress on the questions of "strategic stability". If Biden has agreed to give Putin the gift of a bilateral meeting, it is because he intends to send him a message of firmness directly.

Russian military build-up worries

This is probably the hottest topic among NATO members. The Russia of Vladimir Putin continues to show muscles both outside, towards Ukraine (candidate for attachment to NATO) and other former satellites of the Soviet Union, and inside, where the repression against opponents, including Alexeï Navalny, hit the headlines, earning Moscow several warnings from Europe.

"Russia's growing military reinforcement, its more assertive posture, its new innovative military capabilities and its provocative activities, especially near NATO borders (...) constitute a growing threat to the security of the euro zone." the Atlantic and contribute to instability along NATO's borders and beyond, ”the allies also wrote about Russia, expressing concern about its“ its comprehensive program of modernization, diversification and development. 'expansion of its nuclear weapons systems'.

Terrorism and new threats in cyberspace

The issue of cybersecurity, raised for Russia, finally constitutes a serious threat for NATO.

“We are increasingly confronted with cybernetic, hybrid and other asymmetric threats, including disinformation campaigns, and the malicious use of increasingly sophisticated emerging and disruptive technologies. Rapid advances in space are affecting our security, "says the Alliance, which is thinking of responding more firmly by invoking" Article 5 of the Treaty "which requires them to come to the aid of the attacked country.

But Monday, June 14, 2021 Vladimir Poutine considered "grotesque" to consider that Moscow was waging a computer war against the United States, in an interview with the NBC channel (in English).

"We have been accused of all kinds of things," including "interference in elections" or "cyber attacks," said the Russian president, two days before the summit, saying that "not once have they took the trouble to produce the slightest proof ”...

This meeting will therefore be an opportunity for them to discuss the pile of disputes between their two countries, the President of the United States preparing this Wednesday in Geneva, to say his "red lines" to Vladimir Poutine, "this head of 'Russian state determined to push back with all its might, for its immense country, Western-style democracy.

KIM JONG-UN RECOGNIZES

A " TENDER FOOD SITUATION "

The North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has acknowledged that the country faced a "tight food situation," said Wednesday the official media. The North, whose economy is weighed down by multiple international sanctions imposed in response to its banned military programs, has long been plagued by severe food shortages.

Last year, the coronavirus pandemic as well as typhoons and floods ended a serious blow to its economy.

At a plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party, Kim said the economic situation has improved, with industrial production increasing by 2% over the previous year, reported the official North Korean agency KCNA on Wednesday.

The leader, however, admitted to having encountered a "series of difficulties" due to many "challenges" to be overcome.

"The food situation is now tense as the agricultural sector has not been able to meet its cereal production target due to damage caused by typhoons last year," Kim said.

During the summer of 2020, thousands of homes and farmland were destroyed by typhoons which were accompanied by flooding.

Kim called for action to minimize the consequences of these natural disasters, saying ensuring "good harvests" was a "top priority".

During this meeting, the "enduring situation" of the coronavirus pandemic was raised, according to KCNA.

The North was one of the first countries to impose strict health restrictions, including the decision, very early on, to close its borders and in particular with its Chinese neighbor to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The regime maintains that the epidemic did not arrive on its soil, which many experts doubt.

Trade with Beijing, the regime's first economic and diplomatic support, has been reduced to heartache.

But this isolation came at a high economic cost, so much so that Kim acknowledged in April the difficulties his country was facing. He thus called on his lieutenants to “lead a new“ forced march ”, even harder, in order to help the population face the difficulties, if only a little”.

The “Forced March” is the expression used in the North to designate the famine of the 1990s which left hundreds of thousands of people dead, following the reduction in aid from Moscow after the Soviet collapse.

UNITED NATO LEADERS

FACED WITH CHINA'S SYSTEMIC CHALLENGE ?

Malmenés during the presidency of Donald Trump who called NATO " to obsolete," members of the European Treaty Organization of the North Atlantic (NATO) have regained their valuable ally and wanted to give an impression of unity and common front.

As soon as he arrived, the American president set the tone for the meeting: the search for appeasement after four years of tears. "I want all of Europe to know that the United States is there," he said, stressing that NATO is "of crucial importance" for America.

NATO leaders thus expressed on June 14, 2021 their desire to strengthen their defense "in the face of all threats, wherever they come from", in a press release published at the end of the summit which brought them together in Brussels.

The press release refers in particular to the concerns of the Atlantic Alliance with regard to a country which is developing its nuclear arsenal at high speed and cooperating militarily with Russia, indicating that China now represents a

"Systemic challenge" for the world order and security of the Atlantic Alliance.

“China's stated ambitions and determined behavior represent systemic challenges to the rules-based international order and in areas of importance to the security of the Alliance,” the allies said.

An eye on China's ambitions

"China is rapidly increasing its nuclear arsenal, equipping itself with a larger number of warheads and sophisticated vectors to establish a nuclear triad," said the statement made Monday in Brussels.

"It also cooperates militarily with Russia, in particular by participating in Russian exercises in the Euro-Atlantic area".

The Atlantic Alliance notably warned that it would react to the diversification of the nuclear arsenal and said that it considered that "China's growing influence and international policies may present challenges, to which" it had to respond.

"Russia and China seek to divide us, but our alliance is solid," even welcomed US President Joe Biden at a press conference.

China's entry into Europe was at the heart of the summit discussions. The Allies, however, want to maintain a "constructive dialogue" with Beijing "when possible" and call on China to "respect its international commitments and act responsibly in the space, cyber and maritime sectors, in accordance with its role as a major power ".

Exaggeration of "the theory of the Chinese threat"

Words that were criticized immediately by Beijing in a statement released after the summit. The Chinese embassy to the EU has indeed accused NATO of showing a “cold war mentality” and of seeking to “artificially create confrontations”. According to her, NATO exaggerates "the theory of the Chinese threat". The expression of systemic challenge "slanders the peaceful development" of the country, which has 20 times fewer nuclear warheads than the members of NATO.

On Monday, the Secretary General of NATO, the Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg, then sought to soften the scope of the summit's final declaration. "China is not our adversary, our enemy," he said. "But we have to face the challenges posed by China for our security."

If the European leaders did not want to disturb the very positive atmosphere of the reunion with an American partner who had returned to good intentions towards them, they undoubtedly had some reservations: and among the sticking points is of course the China, which the United States would like to see identified as the new common enemy.

Sticking points with the United States

China an economic and strategic partner of Europe

Certain Europeans have indeed been reluctant to consider China as an adversary. On Monday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel was indeed cautious, urging not to give up a "balanced" position with regard to Beijing.

During his final press conference, Emmanuel Macron called on NATO not to turn away from its essential missions, not to “confuse the objectives”, not to “skew” the relationship with China.

Last week he stressed, ironically, that China was not, a priori, within the radius of action of an Alliance called to defend European territory.

"NATO is an organization which concerns the North Atlantic, China has little to do with the North Atlantic", insisted President Emmanuel Macron during his press conference.

“It is very important not to disperse ourselves and not to bias the relationship with China. It is much broader than the military subject: it is economic, it is strategic, ”he added.

SAFRAN AND GENERAL ELECTRIC'S GREEN ENGINE

FOR AEROSPACE

The June 14, 2021 will be one of the great dates of aeronautics in its race to decarbonisation.

Barely six years after the entry into service of the LEAP engine, which brought about a 16% gain in fuel consumption, General Electric and Safran plan to launch an engine within the next fifteen years or so, with a complete technological breakthrough with the architectures. observed so far, which would further reduce fuel consumption by more than 20%. A key element for the decarbonisation of aviation, while this sector is singled out by part of the population for the CO2 emissions it generates, which are between 2 and 3% of global emissions.

The aircraft of the future will not fly at best before 2035, but it already has its engine. In this race for decarbonization, the French Safran and the American General Electric (GE), united in the partnership at 50-50 CFM International, announced, Monday, June 14, the launch of a program to develop new technologies for equip a new generation engine that is much less polluting and more fuel-intensive than current models.

Rise, the big bet of the green engine of Safran and GE

This is the bet that the boss of Safran Olivier Andriès and that of GE Aviation John Slattery are taking with an ultra-sober aircraft engine, running on 100% biofuel or hydrogen in 2035. Called “Rise” (Revolutionary Innovation for Sustainable Engines), this program should develop an engine 20% more fuel-efficient than current reactors, and capable of running on liquid hydrogen or 100% biofuels. According to Olivier Andriès, CEO of Safran, and John Slattery, CEO of GE Aviation, the future propellant is expected to consume 20% less fuel and reduce its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions accordingly. A low estimate, because at Safran, we expect a technological breakthrough

"15-year journey"

“Despite the crisis, the time to invest is now,” says Olivier Andriès. We are embarking on a fifteen year journey. We know it will take billions to invest, but it is our responsibility to be at the forefront of this battle. "

The two partners are not at their first attempt. Created in 1974 in the wake of a meeting between Presidents Richard Nixon and Georges Pompidou in Reykjavik, their CFM joint venture has established itself as one of the greatest success stories in aeronautics. Owned 50-50 by the two manufacturers, it has developed the best-selling aircraft engine in history, the CFM56 (nearly 34,000 units delivered), on board the Airbus A320 and the Boeing 737. It now surfs on the commercial carton of the Leap engine, which, since 2016, powers the Chinese A320neo, 737MAX and C919. With 18,000 copies sold, and very few cancellations during the crisis, its order book is estimated at 270 billion dollars.

Revolutionary motor

The Rise program is intended to be the third stage of the CFM rocket. “New design, new materials, hybridization… We want this engine to be a revolution,” says John Slattery. GE and Safran are considering a so-called “open fan” design, ie an engine without a fairing. This technical choice allows blowers of larger diameter, and therefore an engine with better energy efficiency.

Beyond the greening of aviation, the objective of this technological bet is also to keep a distance from formidable competition (Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce and the new Chinese entrant Aero Engine Corporation of China).

THE MOVING TESTIMONY OF MILA

"I WILL NECESSARILY NOT STAY ALIVE"

“You were taken prisoner in your own country,” her scorners point out to her. She admits that the individual, alas, “is right on this point. "

“Who will say the opposite? »She blurted out in the interview on the show. “Even when I'm outside I'm in jail. In prison in layers of clothes, different make-up ... (...) When I look like a fly with the big coat when it's hot, the mask, the sunglasses and the rotten hat ... No, I'm not Inspector Gadget! I am a woman, I walk in the street, I need to live, ”she says.

"Nobody does anything"

She assures us in this interview that “the Nation is fragile and cowardly”: “I see cowardice everywhere see cowardice everywhere around me. nobody does anything, because people are afraid, ”says Mila. “Yet I was convinced that my country was not like that. If we don't stick together, let it be even the silent majority, which 'supports' me but which will never do anything. They are people that I appreciate, thank you for supporting me. "Nobody does anything because people are afraid". Despite everything, even "with a knife to her throat", she does not intend to be silent. "On the other hand, I'm still a young woman who doesn't even know what to think of her future at the present time," she admits blasé.

"When people ask me how I see myself in five years ..."

When the journalist asks her how she sees herself in five years, the teenager paints a rather tragic picture. "I see myself maybe burnt up, maybe with a torn leg or maybe dead… Maybe I'll be dead in five years." And to add: "I am not necessarily going to stay alive and I tell you that in the greatest calm, and I know that it is not normal. And that's when I start to cry. Because I am not able to see my future like the others. "

Mila has been the target of death threats and insults since early 2020 and controversial statements about Islam. She recounts her life since that date in a book to be published on June 16, Je suis le prix de votre liberté (ed. Grasset). Mila promises: "I will never stop talking".

COVID-19 THE CAPITAL OF CHILE RECONFINES

DESPITE 60% OF THE POPULATION VACCINATED

The intensive care units are saturated with patients and the number of cases has been on the rise for at least two weeks. The authorities ended up ordering a new re-containment for the entire Santiago region from Saturday, June 12. More than eight million inhabitants living in and around the capital are affected.

For several days, the Order of Physicians has been alerting and asking for more restrictions, especially in the capital where the situation is critical, as explained by its regional president, Francisca Crispi, in a video: “The intensive care beds are busy. 99%, that is to say 2,500 beds today. Unheard of in the country's history. "

These are mostly unvaccinated patients. Jeanette Vega, former Secretary of State for Health and consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO), explains one of the reasons for the current health situation: “The vaccine which is used here in majority, Sinovac , is very effective against severe cases and death, but less effective against contagion itself. And nearly half of the population still needs to be vaccinated. "

In downtown Santiago, the re-containment does not surprise anyone: a significant part of the capital was already confined.

At the beginning of April 2021 the capital had been deconfined but already on Thursday, April 29, 2021, Chile had recorded more than 6,800 new cases for 19 million inhabitants. The Head of State then announced that he wanted to set up a vaccination passport to allow residents who have already received their two doses of vaccine to have access to cultural places, for example..

THE NEW ISRAELIAN PRIME MINISTER

NAFTALI BENNETT

MARKS THE END OF THE NETANYAHU ERA

A majority hanging by a thread.

Of the 119 MPs present (120 in Parliament) voted 60 in favor of the new coalition, ranging from the right to the left, through the support of a party arabe.Une wobbly alliance of eight parties of the left , center, right and radical right with the participation of Raam, an Islamist movement.

Fifty-nine MPs, mostly from Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, the far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties, opposed it. Their unity is cemented by the desire to get rid of Benjamin Netanyahu who becomes the leader of the opposition.

N. Bennett, figure of the Israeli far right

this Sunday evening became the new Prime Minister of his country. A consecration for this atypical character who, at only 49 years old, already seems to have several lives.

Son of American immigrants, this native of Haifa began his career in the prestigious military unit "Sayeret Matkal".

He will remain six years in uniform. After the army, law degree in hand, he took a first 180 degree turn and embarked on new technologies. With some success: with his cybersecurity company Cyotta, he became a figure of the "start-up nation" "in Israel before selling his company for 145 million dollars in 2005. The following year, he decided to move back to zero and made the leap into politics.

He joins Likud, the party for which his family has always voted and where he becomes the right-hand man of a certain Benjamin Netanyahu. Very close, the two men quickly distance themselves

Naftali Bennett, the leader of the Yamina party, will lead the government for the first two years before giving way to centrist Yair Lapid for an equivalent period, under a rotation agreement. After the last legislative elections in March, the opposition gradually united against Benjamin Netanyahu and - an extremely rare event in Israeli history - rallied the Arab Israeli formation Raam, led by the Islamist Mansour Abbas.

Ex-Minister of Education of "Bibi", the nickname of the deposed prime minister, Naftali Bennett is considered a modernist cleric. This former businessman in the high-tech is prime minister while Yamina does not, following of a defection, that six deputies to the Parliament but that the right and the religious of which he is one of the standard bearers occupy more than half of the bays. He embodies after four legislative elections in two years, without real winners or losers, the “Everything Except Bibi.

End of the Netanyahu era

Almost immediately acknowledging his defeat just before the vote of confidence, Benjamin Netanyahu, the most lasting prime minister in Israel's history, assured Parliament that he would remain in politics, leading the opposition, in order to "bring down" the new government, and that it would "return soon" to power. He may also have to face, in addition to his trial, a wave of protest within his party, the Likud, elected officials already seeking to turn the Netanyahu page internally.

The priorities of the new government

Before him, the leader of the radical right Naftali Bennett presented the members and the priorities of the future government which is to take office on Sunday evening. The government will work for "the whole" of the Israeli population including the Arab minority, but also the ultra-Orthodox Jews who have no elected members in this coalition, Naftali Bennett said in a speech constantly interrupted by supporters of Benjamin Netanyahu. “Citizens of Israel! This is a critical political moment and I call on everyone to show restraint, ”said Naftali Bennett, who should in principle succeed Benjamin Netanyahu.

On foreign policy, he kept the same tone as the outgoing Prime Minister on the nuclear issue of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel's sworn enemy. The new coalition "will not let Iran acquire nuclear weapons," warned Neftali Bennett.

"The agreement, however, sets aside sensitive issues such as the colonization of the West Bank or the creation of a Palestinian state, but they could resurface in the event of tensions in East Jerusalem, violence in the West Bank or war with Hamas. societal issues such as the place of religion or that of LGBTQ, the relationship between politics and justice, between conservative and reformed Jews, require great differences. "

"The subjects of friction should not be missing as the team is heterogeneous!", Concludes a French colleague from Le Figaro.

GENERAL LECOINTRE HEAD OF STATE-MAJOR

FRENCH ARMIES TAKES ITS REVERENCE

“General François Lecointre submitted to the President of the Republic several months ago his request to leave active service after July 14, 2021.

The President of the Republic wishes to salute in him the great soldier, the military leader and the servant of the State ”, indicated the presidency.

The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces commands all of France's military operations and ensures the proper functioning of the institution. General Lecointre could still have been kept at his post. He did not want it even if the president "asked him to stay longer".

"Preserving the armies"

"It is not good that a chief of staff of the armed forces can be exactly aligned with a presidential mandate", estimated for his part François Lecointre. "We must at all costs protect the armies from the risk of suspicion about their absolute political neutrality."

"I did not want a Chief of Staff of the armed forces to be associated with a politician (...) Tiling guarantees continuity", he added.

"You do not know the heart of the armies (...) The President of the Republic, by definition, no more than anyone of his generation", continued François Lecointre.

Words that come when two military forums caused a small political storm a few weeks ago, sparing no party and pushing the Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly to intervene to recall, too, the requirement of neutrality of the soldier . In the second forum, anonymous senior executives denounced what they perceive as "the civil war (which) is brewing" in the country.

"That a soldier goes to take advantage of his rank and engage the armies in a position that can be assimilated to political activism, it is not acceptable", reacted François Lecointre, still on the set of the Grand Jury ( RTL / LeFigaro / LCI) this Sunday, June 13, 2021.

A high function "difficult, trying"

General Lecointre succeeded Pierre de Villiers in July 2017, who resigned with a bang against the backdrop of abrupt budget cuts and stepped-up reforms.

His high office, which he describes as a "pivotal post between the politician and the military" is "difficult, trying: she forces you to be very honest with respect to politicians on the consequences of decisions, which you must then implement by fully adhering to it, ”he confided.

Rwanda, ex-Yugoslavia, Matignon: he has a career that combines brilliant service in the field and solid experience behind the hushed scenes of power. Aged 59, this Saint-Cyrien pepper and salt with an athletic profile was notably chief of the military cabinet of the Prime Minister, where he had served the socialists Manuel Valls and Bernard Cazeneuve, then Édouard Philippe.

From the marine infantry, he served in Iraq during the first Gulf War (1991), in Djibouti (1991-93), in Somalia (1992) as well as in Rwanda, in the midst of genocide, as part of Operation Turquoise (1994) then during the Yugoslavian War (1995).

Hero of the battle of Vrbanja in Bosnia in May 1995, where the young captain fought with the bayonet to regain the bridge from the Serbian forces and defend the honor of France, General Lecointre will have spent 4 years accompanying the " revival of the armies ”.

Means that do not allow a rise in power

At the head of the French armies, he experienced a Military Programming Law (LPM) which breathed new life into the troops after years of very severe budget restrictions.

However, disagreements persisted between the armies and the Elysee. Military resources remain limited compared to the threats described in the Strategic Review. General Lecointre never ceases to raise the specter of the return of a “high intensity” conflict facing an adversary with means as efficient as those of France.

"The current military programming law today aims to consolidate this model of a complete army," he confided recently. With this "complete" model, the armies retain, sometimes at a minimum, all the skills. "It is not aimed at a rise in power or the acquisition of a mass that would allow the army to engage in a major state conflict," he added.

He is also leaving when the Head of State has just announced, after more than eight years of massive engagement, a reduction of the French military presence in the Sahel, marked by the closure of bases and a re-articulation of the anti-jihadist struggle around of an “international alliance” bringing together Europeans.

His successor Thierry Burkhard will also have to orchestrate a major strategic upheaval. "It has been more than ten years that the military has focused on the threat of militarized terrorism at the moment," he explained in November. "The Army must change scale and prepare for harsher, high intensity conflicts."

A shift which imposes in particular a rejuvenation of the armored fleet and artillery, but also in particular of aviation, ground-to-air defenses, information warfare and drones.

“A departure which is not, officially at least, linked to the end of Operation Barkhane in the Sahel, nor to the recent publication of military forums with a factious tone. ". , according to the daily Le Parisien.

WHY KIM KARDASHIAN LEFT KANYE WEST

Indeed last February, the American press announced the separation between Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, after seven years of marriage and four children.

The reality TV star is said to have applied for joint custody of her children, and is expected to keep their residence located in Hidden Hills in Los Angeles.

The conversation between the star and her mother Kris Jenner, filmed by the cameras of the show in the final episode which ends 20 seasons of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians", is very illuminating on this subject.

Kim Kardashian explained that she is seeing a psychologist to deal with her divorce from Kanye West.

“I didn't think I felt alone.

When I turned 40 this year I was like 'no I don't want a husband who lives in a different state'. "

The loneliness felt in her relationship with the rapper got the better of their marriage.

"These are the times we got along best, and I find that sad.

I want someone who I can watch shows with, someone who wants to play sports with me.

It's the little things that I don't have. "

I have all the great things [...] But I think I'm ready for the smaller experiences, ”she explained to her mother, Kris Jenner.

NEW IDYLL BETWEEN KANYE WEST AND RUSSIAN MODEL IRINA SHAYK

A rather unexpected announcement, but confirmed by photos of the two stars taken during a Provencal getaway.

So the rumors phase is over, the relationship between Irina Shayk, the ex of Bradley Cooper, then Cristiano Ronaldo, and rapper Kanye West is confirmed.

The artist, who recently divorced Kim Kardashian, celebrated his 44th birthday with a trip to France, but he was not alone.

He was accompanied by the Russian model, now his new love.

Last Sunday, Kanye West and Irina Shayk boarded a private jet for a romantic getaway in the south of France, in Aix-en-Provence.

A short stay, organized for the rapper's 44th birthday, which above all revealed to the world their budding romance.

However, this relationship between Kanye West and Irina Shayk should not be 'a total surprise since the two stars have known each other for years.

Better yet, they would have dated shortly before Kanye West and Kim Kardashian were in a relationship.

A first romance which dates from more than ten years ago, but which has obviously left traces.

According to the TMZ and People sites, this new romance between Kanye West and Irina Shayk is serious and the two stars have been dating for several months, probably since last March.

So everything seems to be going for the best between the two stars, all with the blessing of Kim Kardashian?

“Happy birthday, I love you forever,” she wrote to him on Instagram on June 8, 2021, on the occasion of his 44th birthday. Very tender resilient words to which the rapper however did not respond.

YES !! TAX PARADISE

AGAINST THE GLUTTER STATES

Never have tax havens been so good despite the crusade launched in 2009 by the leaders of the developed countries. If we look at the geographical origin of direct investment in France or in other advanced countries, the role of the hub of paradise is obvious:

49% of investments in France are held by entities located in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. And 47% of the stock of foreign investment in France is held by investors located in tax havens, the Netherlands, always them, representing a third of the total, followed by the United Kingdom, Luxembourg and Switzerland.

The European Union is its own tax haven. Tax havens are now a vital part of our economy . The tax lawyer Edouard Chambost, specialist of the subject gives eloquent figures: "55% of the international trade or 35% of the financial flows transit by them".

Why do they attract such appeal ?

It is already necessary to know the few characteristics of tax havens even if the OECD indicates that it is difficult to define them. And that the French General Tax Code employs to this end a mild euphemism, that of "country with privileged tax system" :. These offer unquestionably economic and especially fiscal stability with a very low level of taxation and exchange freedom in a highly developed and efficient financial sector. The Isle of Man employs almost a third of employees in finance. Banking and commercial secrecy is unshakeable. And in a globalized competition tax havens compete with each other at least-tax. Example:

The region of offshore centers such as Mauritius, offers a level of taxation of 1.5% The race to zero tax is launched - Jersey already offers the possibility. Some countries even practice as a "negative tax" to attract foreign investors.

How can France compete? She lost in advance and became the laughing stock of the world. Remember the red carpet rolled out by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the shattering output of Gerard Depardieu. Not wrong.

France is now the country where taxation and corporate social security are the heaviest . To name only the corporate tax

33.33% of retained earnings and wage expenses of 1/3 paid by employees and 2/3 by employers. There are no withholding taxes for income tax. A tax hell for a greedy state and bad manager.

The confiscatory state prefers to return the pockets of its citizens and let the great fortunes slip away . He prefers to let the CAC40 companies benefit from these off-shore places with a shortfall of 10 billion Euros and kill our SMEs .. All in the name of a hypocritical ideology, the struggle of the poor against the rich.

The ideological blindness leads our leaders to ignore even what is happening on our doorstep in Europe itself. No need to join the ten overseas territories or British Crown Dependencies, which make up one-fifth of the world's tax havens like Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar, Anguilla, Montserrat, the islands Turks and Caicos, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. In the European Union, a number of states have adopted very mild taxes, based on Flat Tax , and sometimes with very strict legislation on banking secrecy. Thus Estonia and its Baltic neighbors, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Tax havens are currently a sting in the global economy.

Indeed the funds deposited in the tax havens, countries not having enough assets to place the latter, return to invest in the real economy of the fiscally gluttonous countries by games of electronic writing cleverly orchestrated in financial montages . The work of Haward's Desai researcher shows that the presence of easy-to-access tax havens near greedy states encourages investment decisions in these countries by increasing the return on investment for investors.

If the countries of old Europe, and especially France, did not stick to these outmoded principles of state welfare, investors would not run away with their legs.

That France, in turn, adopts a soft taxation close to the Flat Tax and our flagships, our banks would remain fiscally in France in the best interests of all. Let us bet then that BNP Paribas - whose State is the first shareholder, with 17% - capital would no longer have 189 offshore subsidiaries in tax havens, Banques Populaires 90, Crédit Agricole 115, LVMH 140 (including 33 in Guernsey), Schneider Group 131 ...

The economic impact of such a reform would be very positive. Let's go even further: why not find harmonization in this sense within the European Union instead of wanting to adopt retaliatory measures against these tax havens ?

Has Ireland not already partly based its development on this tax competition by lowering its corporate tax rate to 12.5% ​​to attract large companies ?

Let's go a little courage gentlemen and ladies policies !!

COVID THEORY OF CHINESE LABORATORY ACCIDENT RESURRECTS IN THE UNITED STATES

Long brushed aside by most experts, deemed highly improbable if not far-fetched, the theory of the laboratory accident to explain the origin of Covid-19 has come back in force in recent weeks in the world. American debate.

The animal "intermediate host" has not yet been discovered

“The list of people supporting the thesis of an animal origin has not changed. And that of people suggesting that (the virus) may have come out of a laboratory continued to lengthen, ”summarized Monday, May 24, 2021 on CNBC Scott Gottlieb, a former respected boss of the United States Medicines Agency (FDA). "A year ago," supporting the thesis of a natural origin "made a lot of sense because it was the most likely scenario," he explained. But what is called "the intermediate host", that is, the animal from which the virus was transmitted to humans, has still not been discovered. “And it's not for lack of looking. ""

Wuhan researchers sick from November 2019 ?

On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal claimed to have had access to unpublished information from American intelligence, reporting that three researchers from the Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China, had suffered as early as November 2019 from "symptoms compatible with both those of Covid-19 and a seasonal infection ”, requiring hospital treatment. Beijing has denied the Wall Street Journal information, calling it "totally false".

"We must get to the bottom of it, whatever the answer, and it is a priority for us", hammered Monday Andy Slavitt, adviser to the White House for the fight against the Covid-19. “We need a completely transparent process from China, and the WHO to help on this. "

China's lack of transparency criticized

After a four-week stay in Wuhan earlier this year, a joint study by experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) and China ruled in March "extremely unlikely" a laboratory accident. But the boss of the WHO himself, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, had called for a new investigation into the hypothesis of the laboratory leak.

Several countries, including the United States, had expressed their "concerns" and called on China to give "full access" to its data. A request renewed on Monday on the occasion of the 74th World Health Assembly.

"Need more research"

And calls for further investigation are growing, including within the scientific community. In mid-May, around fifteen experts published an article in the prestigious journal Science: "We need more research to determine the origin of the pandemic", they claimed. Theories of animal or accidental origin in the laboratory "both remain viable", they wrote, but "they have not been given fair consideration."

Both hypotheses "must be seriously considered until we have enough data," they said, asking "public health agencies and research laboratories to open their data to the public."

In the United States, the hypothesis of a leak of the virus from the Chinese laboratory had so far mainly been fueled by the administration of Donald Trump. “Now everyone recognizes that I was right when I declared Wuhan very early on as the source of Covid-19,” the former US president triumphed in a statement Monday. “For me it was obvious from the start. "

Experts remain cautious

However, many experts remain more cautious. "Many of us think that it is more likely that it is a natural event (...) but we do not have a 100% answer to this question," Anthony Fauci said on Tuesday. , eminent immunologist and adviser to the White House. "We are all convinced that we should continue the investigation," he added.

But for Scott Gottlieb, the answer is likely to never come out clearly:

"In the event that (the virus) did indeed come out of a Chinese laboratory - and I am not saying that it is - we will never know without a whistleblower or a change of regime in China, ”he said. Joe Biden on Wednesday called on US intelligence services to "redouble their efforts" to explain the origin of Covid-19 and demanded a report within 90 days.

Joe Biden wants to go back to the origins of the Covid-19

It is in a press release that the American president unveiled his request. The opportunity to recall that the work of American intelligence, which focuses on two hypotheses - animal original or leakage from a laboratory - have so far not made it possible to reach "a definitive conclusion".

China has always fiercely fought the theory that Covid-19 could have escaped from one of its laboratories, in particular the Wuhan Institute of Virology, singled out by the former Trump administration. .

"The United States will continue to work with its partners around the world to pressure China to participate in a full, transparent and evidence-based international investigation," added the US president, lamenting the attitude of Beijing on this file.

A few hours before the release of Joe Biden's press release, Beijing had accused Washington of disseminating "conspiracy" theories on the origins of the pandemic.

 " DON'T COME ! " THE VICE-PRESIDENT

KAMALA HARRIS URGES ILLEGAL MIGRANTS

TO BE WAIVED IN THE UNITED STATES

“Don't come. Don't come. The United States will continue to enforce its laws and secure its borders… ”

"If you come to our border, you will be sent back," she added during a press conference alongside Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei.

US Vice President Kamala Harris said on Monday she had had "robust" talks with Guatemalan Alejandro Giammattei on fighting corruption to deter immigration from Central America and bluntly warned migrants not to surrender. in the USA.

Since Joe Biden took office at the White House in January, the number of illegal migrants arrested each month at the U.S.-Mexico border has peaked in 20 years.

Flows that lead to a multiplication of tragic accidents.

Fight against poverty ... and corruption

In the eyes of the Biden administration, corruption is the underlying cause of the poverty and violence that drives large numbers of Central Americans to the United States.

"Most people do not want to leave their homes", but do so because "they cannot meet their basic needs", assured the American vice president calling on Guatemala to work together to tackle the causes of the illegal emigration to the United States.

"It is in our collective interest that we work together where we can find the opportunity to resolve long-standing issues," Harris said at a panel discussion, stressing the need to give "a sense of hope, that help is on the way ”in a region hard hit by Covid-19, violence and poverty exacerbated in 2020 by the passage of two hurricanes.

She also announced the creation of a joint working group on smuggling and trafficking in human beings, the establishment of a program to increase economic opportunities for women, as well as an anti-trafficking working group. corruption aimed at training Guatemalan prosecutors to trace the route of foreign bribery money.

"We talked about the importance of fighting corruption and having an independent judicial system," said Ms. Harris, also announcing the shipment by the United States of 500,000 doses of vaccines against Covid-19 to Guatemala.

Expected in Mexico on Wednesday

In a country where nearly 60% of the 17 million inhabitants live in poverty, Giammattei stressed the "need to build walls of prosperity, especially in the departments close to the border with Mexico", by creating jobs .

The number of undocumented migrants arrested at the border between Mexico and the United States reached in April its highest level in 15 years. Among these more than 178,600 migrants, including minors who arrived alone, 82% came from Mexico and the “northern triangle” of Central America - Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

The Vice-President then traveled to Mexico to meet with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

FINALLY THE THIRD STAGE OF DECONFINEMENT

IN FRANCE

While the health situation is improving in France, the country must enter a new phase of deconfinement this Wednesday, June 9. Curfew shifted to 11pm, reopening of restaurants with reduced capacity or even health passes .....

This new step promises to be important, both for the French, but also for the government.

Finally, good news on the eve of this third stage of deconfinement.

"The situation is contained and is going in the right direction, it is true in France and in all European countries", rejoiced on RTL Jean-François Delfraissy, president of the Scientific Council, Tuesday 8 June.

“We have figures that have fallen faster than we had imagined. ";

The reason ?

“The dynamics of vaccination (…), there should be 35-38 million vaccinated [with at least one dose] by June 30, so this is the right way out. "

"We should, with this dynamic of vaccination, have a summer that should go in rather satisfactory conditions", therefore believes the President of the Scientific Council.

The immunologist nevertheless calls for caution during this new phase of deconfinement:

“Until now, we were outside and we are now going to open inside and that's where it will play out,” explains Jean-François Delfraissy.

May 19, 2021 finally presents the beginning of a return to normal life..

G7 FOR A GLOBAL TAX

ON COMPANIES MINIMUM OF 15%

In doing so :

The members of the G7 notably agreed on the principle of a “world minimum tax on companies” for large companies, at the rate set at a minimum of 15%.

The latter is certainly less important than the 21% proposed by the White House a few weeks ago, but it should help to establish a more level playing field for British companies by fighting against tax havens.

"We have reached an agreement on the international taxation of the 21st century", greeted Bruno Le Maire at the end of the meeting.

Meeting in London since yesterday, the G7 finance ministers announced that they had reached an agreement on a tax reform targeting multinationals and the establishment of a global minimum tax on companies.

Objective: to continue the work initiated within the framework of the OECD on this file blocked by the previous American administration, and to fight against tax evasion by large companies, foremost among which are the Gafa.

Bruno Le Maire French Minister in a video posted on Twitter said:

"We have reached an agreement on the international taxation of the 21st century".

"France can be proud of this step, which should allow in particular a fair taxation of the digital giants and a minimum taxation of corporate tax, to avoid tax avoidance and optimization which rightly revolt our compatriots. ".

The minimum corporate tax rate is set "at a minimum of 15%," said Bruno Le Maire, who intends to "fight" to increase it as much as possible during the next meetings scheduled on this file.

Some would have liked the G7 to go further, by establishing a higher minimum corporate tax rate.

This is particularly the case of Oxfam, which described the agreement as a "discount compromise".

"The rate retained of 15% is simply too low", considers the organization, which denounced

the “lack of ambition” of Europeans in this fight.

Same observation for Attac France, which criticizes a "historical non-advance" and a "missed opportunity".

The association defended a much higher rate, established at 25%. Bruno Le Maire emphasizes that the 15% rate is only a "starting point" for future negotiations to revise it upwards.

G7 members, including France, Germany and the UK, also hailed constructive meetings and a promising multilateralism victory for the future.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen noted "unprecedented commitment" from G7 ministers. The minimum corporate tax rate "would put an end to the race to the bottom of corporate taxation," she said.

“There is still important work to be done, but today's decision creates a large-scale dynamic for the discussions that will take place soon,” noted OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann.

The reactions :

As the first Gafa to react, Google said it supports "strongly the work in progress [...] We hope that the countries will continue to work together, to ensure that a balanced and lasting agreement will be finalized soon," the firm said.

Shortly after, Facebook also welcomed "the important progress made in the G7", through its head of public affairs, Nick Clegg.

“We want the international tax reform process to be successful, and we recognize that this could mean that Facebook will pay more taxes, in different places,” the representative wrote.

For its part, Amazon hailed "a welcome step forward in the effort" to stabilize the international tax system.

At the same time, the taxation weighing on the largest groups must also be reviewed.

"We are committed to reaching a fair solution on the distribution of taxing rights, with market countries being granted taxing rights on at least 20% of profits exceeding a 10% margin for the most multinational companies. large and most profitable, ”the press release read.

In short, part of the profits exceeding the 10% margin will therefore be "reallocated, then subject to tax, in the countries where they make sales," said Rishi Sunak.

The idea is, once again, to avoid tax evasion by large companies and "to meet the tax challenges arising from globalization and the digitization of the economy".

The analysis of all this :

It has to be said that the States of a large part of the world are in tow and no longer know how to "Rackete" companies to finance their civil servants, the state of life, their armies, their secret services, and so much. of things…., not to mention their policies which are too often questionable when they are not simply inadmissible or even intolerable…. !

But why not a global fixed rate tax, ie a rate which would be both the minimum but also the maximum, since the single rate !!

A reasonable single rate and reason of course, because it must be understood that denouncing tax evasion, or tax havens, is just a nasty scam !!!

Indeed if the taxation of certain countries were not so intolerable, tax havens will not exist, tax havens are a valve in the face of tax madness!

In the hypothesis of a rate so high that the companies, the humans who compose them (work), the humans who finance (with the risk of losing what they have invested) no longer earn anything, then we could say that the States will have succeeded in re-establishing a new form of slavery version 2.0 !!

Another important point, tax competition has long been a state sport to attract companies to settle in their country to the detriment of others !!!

In conclusion :

Before seeing an agreement on taxation on a global scale, it would still be necessary to be able to convince the 138 countries of the OECD of the validity of the G7 proposals.

The members of the G20 will meet next July in Venice to continue the work started at the G7, so no excessive enthusiasm, in a few words.

An announced fiscal Big Bang which is likely to turn into an Arlésienne comparable to that of the "end of tax havens" proclaimed for years without Jersey, Guernsey and other "paradisiac" islands really suffering from it!

ISAAC HERZOG ELECTED PRESIDENT OF ISRAEL

On June 2, 2021, he becomes the eleventh president of the Hebrew state and replaces Reuven Rivlin, whose seven-year term ends on July 9, 2021, in this largely honorary function.

Labor worker Isaac Herzog, 60, was elected president of the State of Israel by MPs.

He garnered the support of 87 Knesset MPs, 26 having preferred the other candidate, Miriam Peretz, a former teacher.

Mr. Herzog, nicknamed "Bouji", spent several years in the United States, depending on the positions held by his father, before serving as an officer in military intelligence, then studying law at the University of Tel Aviv. Aviv.

He was first elected to parliament in 2003 and then served as secretary of Ehoud Barak's Labor government, before holding several ministerial portfolios between 2005 and 2011.

He took over as head of a Labor Party in crisis in November 2013.

For the resolution of the conflict with the Palestinians

Barely ten days after taking office, in 2013, he met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.

During the 2015 campaign, he promised to relaunch the peace process, interrupted in April 2014, and even said he was ready to “evacuate” Israeli settlements if necessary.

During his most recent assignment, he was the head of the Jewish Agency, a para-governmental organization that deals in particular with Jewish immigration and relations with the diaspora.

He left this post, which he had held since 2018, to run for president.

The new president of the State of Israel, born in 1960, he is the heir to one of the greatest Israeli families.

He follows in the footsteps of his father, Chaïm Herzog, head of state from 1983 to 1993.

"Herzog carries on his shoulders the heavy weight of his family heritage", wrote in 2015 the daily Haaretz, speaking of an Israeli version of the Kennedys.

His father, of Irish origin, was chief of intelligence in the army, before becoming ambassador to the United Nations, then the sixth president of Israel.

His uncle, Abba Eban, is a renowned diplomat in the country.

He served in Washington and at the United Nations, then assumed the costume of head of Israeli diplomacy, a post he held during the Six Day War in 1967.

As for his grandfather, Isaac Halevi Herzog, he was the first Ashkenazi rabbi of the State of Israel.

While Isaac Herzog was defeated by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the 2015 legislative elections, Isaac Herzog took the presidency while his former rival could be overthrown by a motley coalition. Married to a lawyer and father of three, he lives in Tel Aviv, his hometown.

VAST SPYING OF THE UNITED STATES IN EUROPE

How far do Americans go when it comes to intelligence ?

Obviously, where they want, if we are to believe a recent survey carried out by Danish journalists for the Danish public television channel Danmarks Radio (DR), the conclusions of which were reported to us by Le Monde on Sunday, May 30.

The accusations are all the more serious this time because they also concern a country of the European Union. From 2012 to 2014, the United States spied on politicians in Europe, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with the help of Danish intelligence services, European media reported Sunday.

The DR thus indicated that the American National Security Agency (NSA) had connected to Danish telecommunications cables to spy on officials in Germany, Sweden, Norway and France. An access that the American agency had thanks to agreements with Operation "Dunhammer". The US agency would have been able to access text messages, phone calls and Internet traffic, including searches, chats and messaging services.

During and after the Snowden affair

This spy case, if it is confirmed, occurred during and after the Snowden affair, in 2013. NSA employee turned whistleblower, Edward Snowden then revealed the existence of a surveillance system global communications and internet campaign targeting Germans in particular and the Chancellor's cell phone in particular. In addition, in November 2020, DR previously reported that the United States used Danish cables to spy on Danish and European defense industries from 2012 to 2015.

However, it has not been established that Denmark knew that the United States was using its surveillance system to spy on its neighbors.

THE EUROPEAN UNION'S RECOVERY PLAN

CAN START ITS COMMON DEBT PROCESS

The European body, which represents the Member States, announced that it had "formally received the approval notifications from all the 27, which allows the Commission to borrow on behalf of the EU on the markets of capital ”. The recovery plan, dubbed “Next Generation EU”, “starts tomorrow [Tuesday, June 1, 2021]! The European Union is now in a position to obtain the necessary funding, ”said Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, whose country has held the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU since January.

France will receive 40 billion euros

In total, 672 billion euros in grants and loans will be granted to EU member countries, as part of a global recovery plan of 750 billion euros called "Next Generation EU". This plan is financed by a joint recourse to the loan, unprecedented, which embodies European solidarity in the face of the Covid-19 crisis. Spain and Italy should be the main beneficiaries with nearly 70 billion euros each, ahead of France with nearly 40 billion euros.

"Concretely, the Commission is launching the debt issuance process on June 1 by bringing together major international and European banks, and the issuance of securities will take place this month", for his part, declared the secretary of French state in charge of European affairs, Clément Beaune, in an interview with Les Echos. The amount of the first issue of European debt will be "around 10 billion euros", he said, assuring that "the appetite of the market should be very important and very favorable interest rates".

Spain and Italy, the main beneficiaries

The parliaments of Austria and Poland approved the common debt mechanism on Thursday, allowing its ratification process to be concluded. The implementation of the plan, concluded in July 2020 after difficult negotiations, has often been criticized for its slowness. The first payments are scheduled for next July. These will be pre-financing representing 13% of the total grants. The disbursements will be spread over several years.

EU countries began to submit their national investment plans associated with structural reforms in Brussels at the end of April, in order to solicit funding. Twenty-two states out of twenty-seven have already submitted their draft to the Commission, which has two months to examine and approve them. The European Council, which represents the member states, will then have a month to give the green light. Spain and Italy should be the main beneficiaries with nearly 70 billion euros each, ahead of France (nearly 40 billion).

The money should be used to finance the thermal renovation of buildings, railway projects, charging stations for electric vehicles, high-speed telecommunications networks or even data storage infrastructures.

COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT IVAN DUQUE USES ARMY IN STREETS OF CALI

Epicenter of the demonstrations which left three more dead in the same day!

"From this night begins the maximum deployment of military assistance to the national police in the city of Cali", announced the president in this city of 2.2 million inhabitants, the third in the country, where he has chaired a security council.

New protests left at least three people dead in the city on Friday, including an investigator from the Cali prosecutor's office who shot at the crowd, killing a civilian, before being lynched by protesters.

This violence comes exactly one month after the uprising of April 28, 2021 against a quickly abandoned tax reform project led by right-wing President Ivan Duque, which aimed to increase VAT and broaden the income tax base. .

These three new deaths bring the number of deaths to 49, including 2 police officers, listed by the authorities.

Some 2,000 people were injured and 123 are missing. Human Rights Watch reports up to 63 deaths.

"The situation in Cali is very serious," tweeted José Miguel Vivanco, director for the Americas at Human Rights Watch, who urged President Duque to take "urgent de-escalation measures, including a specific order to ban the use of firearms by state agents. Colombia cannot deplore more deaths ”.

The wrath of the youth

For the past month, the scenario has almost always been the same:

by day, the demonstrations are peaceful and hyper-creative, by night the rebellion turns into riots where fireworks mortars and Molotov cocktails mix with live ammunition.

This unprecedented revolt shakes the big cities, where barricades are erected and road blockages are causing shortages and exasperating part of the population. The government, despite mediators responsible for negotiating with the National Strike Committee, initiator of the movement, is unable to deactivate a crisis which, for the moment, does not threaten to overthrow it.

This sudden crisis has above all revealed, according to analysts, the dull anger of a politicized youth, impoverished by the epidemic, who no longer wants to be silent.

A neglected social demand

For half a century, the conflict with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) obscured a reality that had become too glaring:

according to the World Bank, Colombia ranks among the most unequal countries in terms of income and has the most informal labor market in Latin America.

The State concentrated in its fight against the guerrillas - losing that against the ELN and the dissidents of the Farc - and completely abandoned the social demand.

The backlash is all the stronger, with poverty which has accelerated to reach 42.5% of the 50 million inhabitants, the pandemic plunging the most vulnerable into poverty.

"At least a decade of the fight against poverty has been lost," said political scientist Sandra Borda.

The 2016 peace agreement, which disarmed what was once the most powerful guerrilla on the American continent, ended an outdated conflict, far from the new generation of city dwellers "who are discovering politics," explains academic Hernando Gomez Buendia, author of the book “Between independence and the pandemic”.

While a third of young people aged 14 to 28 do not work or study, "Colombia is becoming", according to him, "a country of urban conflicts".

“There is an active part of society that has long been excluded from politics, from the world of work and now from the education system, and who are tired of being excluded. It is the one who is demonstrating in the streets today, ”explains Sandra Borda.

Unlike the social upheavals in Chile, where the social uprising led to constitutional reform, or in Ecuador, which has just organized elections, Colombians have not yet had a "valve" to vent their many frustrations and suffering !!

TECH IS REVOLUTIONIZING OUR SEXUALITY

Sextech is already establishing itself as a reality in our daily lives, rewarding a sex toy in a salon historically dedicated to televisions and smartphones, we had to dare.

In January 2019, the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas thus panicked the tech market by awarding the Robotics Innovation of the Year Award (robotics and drones category) to Osé, a sextoy designed by the young start-up Lora DiCarlo. By observing it through a purely technological prism, Osé is indeed a concentrate of technology and innovation.

Designed to reproduce "all the sensations of the human mouth, tongue and fingers", the sex toy is the subject of eight pending patents, and constitutes a "technical feat in biomimicry and robotics" considers its founder Lora Haddock. The presence of Osé in a show devoted to new technologies raises a questioning: have sex toys at this point become technological objects like any other.

When sex is inspired by tech

Far from the realistic and garish sextoys of the 2000s, the design of toys for adults has undergone a real revolution in recent years, to the point that certain devices no longer have much to envy the sacrosanct iPhone. In addition to their design worthy of a connected speaker, the sex toys now incorporate a real concentrate of technology. Whether it is the biomimicry of Lora Di Carlo, or the low frequency vibration of the London brand Je Joue, nothing is too good to satisfy its users, and to initiate the sexual revolution of tomorrow. Since 2014, contactless (stimulation of the clitoris thanks to “waves” of pulsed air) has been on the rise. Invented in 2014 by the Womanizer company, the concept quickly became a worldwide bestseller.

"It's crazy to say that on masturbation, which is something that has existed since the dawn of time, we still manage to innovate with this kind of technology that will revolutionize the sector", analyzes Patrick Pruvo. Innovation calls for innovation. After Womanizer, other brands of adult toys are now establishing themselves in the “sextech” sector. Founded in 2003 by Swedish engineers, including one from Ericsson, the Lelo brand is now one of the most popular premium brands. His selling points?

The SenSonic Wave, an in-house technology that will make it possible to "make sound waves resonate at 360 ° to propagate in the body", explains Amandine Ranson, marketing and communications manager for France at Lelo. For her part, Lora DiCarlo continues to be a pioneer. This year, the brand launched Warming, a new range of vibrators with a thermally conductive nylon coating. Capable of reaching a temperature of 40 ° C, they would make it possible to "stimulate the blood microcirculation of the erogenous zones, relax external muscular tensions and increase general pleasure", just that.

5G and AI at the service of orgasm

In addition to offering its users technologies directly designed to increase their enjoyment, sextech has not escaped the birth of IoT and artificial intelligence. A sector still in its infancy, believes Patrick Pruvot, but which is beginning to prove its worth, especially during a period of confinement when sales of connected toys are exploding:

"The idea of ​​being able to control the pleasure of his or her partner from a distance is something attractive, especially at a time when the sextoy is mainly used as a couple," said the CEO of PassageduDésir.fr. (Re) connecting people in the midst of a pandemic, the idea is attractive.

With the deployment of 5G, connected objects (and in particular those linked to our sexuality) could thus experience unprecedented development prospects, believes Hugues Mariton, director of digital operations for the Dorcel brand: “This could bring enormous responsiveness to connected sextoys, and more generally on everything related to the IoT. If 5G keeps its promises, there will be a real comfort gap. This could, for example, make it possible to control a connected sex toy from anywhere in the world without any latency ”.

Personalizing the masturbatory experience of its clients is precisely the gamble recently made by the giant Dorcel. Last February, the brand launched its interactive platform Dorcel Podcast, designed in partnership with the Vokode agency.

The concept ? Immerse the Internet user in a tailor-made pornographic audio experience thanks to artificial intelligence. Designed as an “assembly of technological bricks”, the project integrates voice recognition as well as a complex decision-making tree intended to make the interlocutor interact with a conversational AI.

Technology, ambassador of "sexpositivism"?

In addition to spicing up our intimacy with increasingly intelligent toys, sextech has also been investing for a few years in a new vocation: that of allowing users to reclaim their own sexuality. Whether it is to strengthen your perineum with Kegel balls, or to cope with your illness better, sex toys now take on the role of "objects of well-being" explains sex therapist and couple therapist Céline Vendé: C 'this is where certain sextoy technologies, such as clitoral stimulators for example, can have a real therapeutic aspect. ”Beyond the sextoy market, the appearance of new technologies also makes it possible to highlight the idea of a positive, fulfilling and above all plural sexuality.

On YouTube and Instagram in particular, accounts sharing the idea of ​​inclusive and benevolent sexuality far from the clichés conveyed by mainstream pornography are increasingly popular.

New technologies have changed our interactions, especially on the romantic and sexual level. As long as you don't go overboard, this can be very positive. Especially in times of confinement, because people can get closer together more easily.

PANDEMIC YELLOW VESTS

"WE REVIEW VERY AVERAGE TIMES"

ACCORDING TO EMMANUEL MACRON

In an interview with the magazine Zadig , the Head of State expands on the health crisis experienced by all for a year and a half and comparable, according to him, to the period of the Middle Ages. One year before the presidential election, Emmanuel Macron says he is "very confident" for the future.

If a year and a half after its appearance, the epidemic is still not absorbed, vaccination gives a glimmer of hope and allows politicians to draw the first lessons. In an interview with the magazine Zadig, the president also spoke about this epidemic and its consequences on French society. “This pandemic is the metaphor of our time.

We relive times with a very medieval background: the great jacqueries, the great epidemics, the great fears ... ", considers Emmanuel Macron, going further:" It was the time of great fears, of phenomena which forged a people, I would even say of the reinvention of a civilization. It is also a time of tensions that are affecting the country ”.

With the "yellow vests", "we rediscovered violence

Speaking of returning to a medieval era, the president also alludes to the yellow vests crisis, which preceded that of the Covid and which gave rise to demonstrations for several months on roundabouts and in the big cities of France. According to him, the social movement marked “a return of violence in society”, “one of the fundamentals of our old country, made up of jacqueries.” “We have rediscovered violence. Political and militant violence had existed for several years in our democracy, with the return of the black blocks in European demonstrations and then in France in 2016. With the 'yellow vests', it is a return of violence in society . We find one of the fundamentals of our return of violence in society. We find one of the fundamentals of our old country,made of jacqueries. "If no politician has been able to anticipate the formation of this protest movement, which will last nearly a year, Emmanuel Macron explains that he was not" surprised at what was happening ", seeing in the French" a very resistant ”but which“ flares up with anger ”.

France is not "an addition of minorities or resentments".

"France is a daily will, it is not a fixed identity", affirms Emmanuel Macron about "African immigration". "We must say to these men and women: you who are there by the cruelties of history, by the will of your grandparents, your parents or your own, you are a chance for our country" . In Seine-Saint-Denis, “all that's missing is the sea to make California”. And to praise the merits of 93: "I am going to describe to you, asking you to close your eyes, the youngest department in France, with two international airports, the most important French sports stadium and the largest number of start-ups. -up per capita. The only thing missing is the sea to make California… ”, assures the President of the Republic. According to him,Seine-Saint-Denis is at the same time "a lung", "a unique space of economic and social transformation" is a department where "all the French weaknesses are concentrated". It is in particular “the only place where we have assumed to be a country of immigration, which integrates, which raises the children born here as elsewhere.” “Our country needs, to live serenely, to build a story common and to take actions recognizing all these lives, all these memories ”, assures the President of the Republic.to build a common narrative and to take actions recognizing all these lives, all these memories ”, assures the President of the Republic.to build a common narrative and to take actions recognizing all these lives, all these memories ”, assures the President of the Republic.

The reform of the ENA is also mentioned, the Head of State defending it at all costs: “France's disease is not bureaucracy or centralism but corporatism. That is to say, interests that protect the inter-self. The ENA has allowed corporatisms to reconstitute themselves. ”According to him, it is necessary to“ select differently ”for the senior civil service because“ when one comes from a working-class background, and even more when one comes from the immigration, it takes five to six generations to reach even the middle of the social scale. It is enormous and, to be honest, discouraging. ”An ordinance must come to ratify the reform this Wednesday, May 26, replacing prestigious school ofadministration by the Public Service Institute (ISP) on January 1, 2022 while providing guarantees of independence to outgoing senior officials.

Emmanuel Macron also underlines the urgency to respond to the feeling of “dropping out” of a part of the population who expresses “the same concern about deindustrialisation, a feeling of injustice, an impression of democratic betrayal”.

In this long interview of twenty pages, devoted to "his vision of France" and the "carnal relationship" he maintains with the country, the Head of State assures him of having confidence in the future and the ability to recover. after a health and social crisis of this magnitude. “If we have collective energy and a vision, we will move forward. I think that we have the possibility of it ", estimates it, evoking" the capacity to embrace the future, to project (...) then decisive for the rebound which the country takes ". One year before the presidential election, Emmanuel Macron therefore displays a certain optimism, saying he has "the foreknowledge that we have this strength and this inspiration in us" and believes "a lot in the inspiration of the French people".

THE OPPONENT ROMAN PROTASSEVITCH

"CONSTRAINT TO CONFIRM"

IN BELARUS

Arrested in Minsk after the hijacking of an airliner by the authorities, Belarusian dissident Roman Protassevich claimed to collaborate with investigators in a video broadcast on public television. For the opposition, there is no doubt that his remarks were recorded under duress.

In this video posted on Monday, May 24, Belarusian activist Roman Protassevich, arrested when a Ryanair flight was forced to land in Minsk, claims to be in good health and admits to having played a role in the organization of protests in Minsk last year.

"The staff behave with me in a completely adequate way and by respecting the law, I continue to collaborate with the investigators and made confessions concerning the organization of massive disturbances", affirms Roman Protassevich in this video in which he s 'expressed seated at a table, facing the camera. He appears there in a dark sweatshirt, tired, waving his crossed hands, while a pack of cigarettes and a box of matches are placed on the table. In the recording, undated, the activist says he is in the House of stop N ° 1, located in the center of Minsk. But the room where he is filmed gives no indication of his whereabouts.

A staging according to the opposition

His allies immediately denounced a staging, believing that his statements had been made under duress. The opposition media claim that Roman Protassevich has traces on his face, which they believe suggests possible ill-treatment.

“This is what Roman looks like under physical and moral duress. I call for the immediate release of Roman and all political prisoners, ”said Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya, one of the Belarusian opposition leaders, speaking on Twitter in English. Appearing on several Telegram messaging conversations, Roman Protassevich says he is in a detention center for people awaiting trial and denies having heart problems as mentioned by some sources on social networks.

In power since 1994, Alexander Lukashenko, 66, has faced unprecedented mistrust with protests following his contested re-election last summer.

Around 35,000 people have been arrested since the start of the protest movement. Alexander Lukashenko refutes any electoral fraud and accuses Western countries of being behind the demonstrations.

26-year-old opposition journalist Roman Protassevich and his partner Sofia Sapéga were on board a Ryanair Boeing from Athens to Vilnius. The latter was baffled on Sunday in Minsk after a bomb threat which turned out to be false. They were arrested at the airport.

Placed on the list of individuals involved in terrorist activities

Western countries and the opposition strongly denounced this incident, accusing Minsk of "piracy" or even state "terrorism" to arrest an activist.

Living in exile in Lithuania, Roman Protassevich is being prosecuted in Belarus for "organizing massive disturbances", a crime punishable by 15 years in prison. The Belarusian security services (KGB), inherited from the Soviet period, also placed him on a list of "individuals involved in terrorist activities".

A QUIET SUMMER WITHOUT COVID

ACCORDING TO THE PASTEUR INSTITUTE

If the figures for transmission and hospitalization continue to drop and the vaccination accelerates even further, we may be able to go a summer without an epidemic recovery from Covid-19. It is, in any case, a hypothesis of the Pasteur Institute.

Keep up the pace until June 9

"If we manage to maintain the current rate of decline in infections and hospitalizations until June 9 while maintaining or increasing the rate of vaccination, we do not expect to observe this summer of significant resumption of the epidemic linked to variant B.1.1.7 (the English variant, Editor's note) ”, explains the Institut Pasteur. But beware, if the decline observed in hospitals is stopped after the reopening of terraces, shops and cinemas, a rebound cannot be ruled out.

“The size of this rebound would depend in particular on the transmission rates in the second half of May and in June, the vaccination rate and the hypotheses on the increase in transmission of the B.1.1.7 variant.

But the Institute wants to be reassuring all the same: “In all the scenarios explored, this rebound would remain smaller than the third wave. "

Maintain the vaccination effort this summer

“Shifting from the rate of 500,000 doses to 700,000 doses of vaccines distributed per day could significantly reduce the intensity of the recovery,” the researchers write. Currently, the vaccination campaign is experiencing a real acceleration but the bar of 700,000 daily injections has not yet been reached. The Institut Pasteur wishes to emphasize that “these scenarios are not forecasts”. For example, a new vaccine-insensitive variant could reshuffle the cards.

NYIRAGONGO ERUPTION

AFRICA'S MOST DANGEROUS VOLCANO

Located near Goma, in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Nyiragongo, which erupted on Saturday May 22, is the most active volcano in Africa and is considered by specialists as one of the most dangerous.

This strato-volcano which has fascinated entire generations of volcanologists is, with Nyamuragira, one of the two volcanoes still active in the Virunga range, in this central African country. It is located in the densely populated region of Goma and poses a threat to around 1.5 million people.

Culminating at 3,470 meters, it is known to be home to the largest almost permanent lava lake in the world, the level of which rises and falls from time to time. Its dangerousness is due to the fact that its lava flows are extremely fast, being able to descend a slope at 100 km / h.

Deadly lava flows

A previous eruption, in January 1977, had been even more deadly. The lava had also reached Goma and caused the death of several hundred people (the balance sheets vary from 600 to 2,000) in the northern outskirts of the city. It is the deadliest lava flow known, as well as the largest flow (about 20 million cubic meters in half an hour).

In 1982, a new lava lake reappeared. And in 1994, when the genocide in Rwanda brought refugees into the area, a new activity in Nyiragongo had caused great concern, as nearly 800,000 people were camping between Goma and the volcano. An eruption comparable to that of 1977 would then have provoked an unprecedented catastrophe.

THE ITALIAN AND FRENCH WINNERS

FROM EUROVISION 2021

The French Barbara Pravi was beaten on Saturday evening by the Italian group Maneskin, winner of the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam (Netherlands).

Often compared to

Edith Piaf, the 28-year-old singer could allow France to win its first victory since 1977 with her title Voilà.

But she had to bow, despite a moving performance and despite the support of many international media, after a vote full of suspense (499 points against 524), to Maneskin, an Italian rock formation. which was also one of the favorites of the competition.

Right after the ceremony, Maneskin had to face a controversy.

His singer firmly denied having taken drugs, after images were posted on social networks showing him leaning over a table during the final.

Tuesday, May 24, 2021, the organizers of the competition announced that the singer who had submitted "voluntarily to a screening" had not consumed drugs.

BELIORUSSIA MAKES A BOEING RUN

TO ARREST AN OPPONENT

Belarus sent a fighter to intercept a Ryanair airliner coming from Athens and going to Vilnius (Lithuania) on board which was Roman Protassevich, opposition activist and former editor of the media Nexta. As soon as he arrived, he was arrested by the security services of the Alexander Lukashenko regime.

It all started on Sunday with the alert of a "potential threat to safety on board" the Boeing 737 of the Irish company Ryanair. The information is transmitted by Belarusian air traffic controllers to the crew of the plane connecting Athens to Vilnius, the respective capitals of Greece and Lithuania.

It is almost one o'clock. The Boeing flies over Belarusian territory and prepares to cross the Lithuanian border when President Alexander Lukashenko, according to his press service, decides to send a Mig-29 fighter to intercept the commercial plane and force it to land in Minsk 26-year-old Roman Protassevich is the former editor-in-chief of opposition media Nexta.

Activist, journalist and photographer, exiled in Lithuania since 2019, he started working for Nexta at the end of 2019, before leaving in October 2020 to join Golovnogo Mozga, another Belarusian news outlet. Since November 2020, his name has appeared on the list, drawn up by the Belarusian security services (KGB), of "individuals involved in terrorist activities".

Relentless crackdown on local opposition

Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko won a sixth term in elections in August. The ballot, deemed fraudulent, was widely criticized by the international community and the opposition. The authorities responded to the large protests with a brutal crackdown that resulted in the arrest of thousands of people, the imprisonment or forced exile of opposition leaders.

MUCORMYCOSIS, THIS "BLACK MUSHROOM",

THAT KILLS COVID VICTIMS IN INDIA

Authorities were unable to determine the number of deaths from mucormycosis since the start of the second wave of coronavirus, however, six weeks ago.

Creation of specialized centers

The head of government of the capital, Arvind Kejriwal, announced the creation of specialized centers within three hospitals in Delhi to prevent the spread of the fungus, promising to ensure that the sick receive the appropriate treatment.

The press reported that more than 200 mucormycosis patients are being treated in New Delhi hospitals and dozens are waiting for bed.

The states of Rajasthan and Telegana have said they have faced a black fungus epidemic, and that of Maharashtra alone has reported more than 2,000 cases.

Some doctors claim that this black yeast infection particularly affects Covid-19 convalescents who have been treated with steroids.

The opportunistic infection kills more than 50% of those affected within a few days.

THE DRAMA OF CEUTA'S MINOR MIGRANTS

The photograph of a baby in striped pajamas being pulled out of the water at the last minute by a Spanish Civil Guard diver grabbed national headlines. In another video, a mother gives a Red Cross volunteer her infant across the border fence. Because among the 8,000 migrants who crossed the Spanish-Moroccan border on May 17 and 18, there are between 2,000 and 3,000 minors, according to the Spanish executive. If the adults were quickly returned to the border, the youngest find themselves stuck in migratory limbo, neither welcomed nor deported.

Difficult, for an 18km2 enclave like Ceuta, to cope with such a human avalanche. Some 750 young people were urgently taken care of by the authorities in a military hangar in Tarajal, in the south, where NGOs denounce summary reception conditions. 250 others were transferred to a reception center. As for the majority of the remaining minors, they wander around Ceuta aimlessly. “We slept on the street, in a wooded area and also in an abandoned house. It was so cold at night ”, confide two teenagers

Government officials had estimated that among the migrants who arrived, around 1,500 were under the age of 18, but Ms. Deu assured that the municipality could not confirm this figure. In addition, there is the difficulty, in this type of situation, of determining the exact age of young migrants. Almost all have no money and do not speak a word of Spanish. Some came alone, while others crossed the border with friends or older brothers. Almost all are boys, adolescents or young people in their twenties. Sometimes desperation wins out. A young migrant, whose age is not known, tried on Friday to hang himself with a metal cable on the promenade in Ceuta. He was resuscitated extremely narrowly by the police,alerted by a passer-by.

"We can't do it"

The authorities of this small town of 84,000 inhabitants admitted that they were overwhelmed by the situation and called on the 17 regions of the country to show solidarity.

"We can't do it, there are too many children," said another member of the local government, Carlos Rontomé Romero, during the week. “We are the border, we are the dyke, but our capacities are limited. We are a small town of 19 km2 ”, it is very difficult“ to absorb all these people ”, he declared in an interview with Spanish national radio.

The government called for help from the other autonomous provinces, calling on them to take care of at least 250 unaccompanied young people who were in Ceuta before the migration crisis. "Young people whose legal, educational and health situation has been taken care of and regularized by the local autonomous government," said Minister of Social Rights, Ione Belarra, who met with the Spanish Territorial Council on Friday, according to La Razon. Several autonomous regions, such as Madrid, Andalusia and Murcia have expressed their reservations. Since then, 200 unaccompanied minors who were already accommodated in Ceuta have been distributed in various regions of Spain in order to make room for the new arrivals.

Wanted and panicked parents

Many of these young people say that their parents do not know where they are. "My mother must be very worried now, because I was the only one who brought money to allow the family to eat," says Omar Luriaghri, who says he is 16 years old. He can't even call her because she doesn't have a phone. His dream, he says, is “to work here as a sweeper”.

The city's priority is to find the parents. She therefore opened a "hotline" Thursday, which received "more than 4,400 calls" in 24 hours, said Ms. Deu. “Our teams are working tirelessly to find the families and ensure the immediate return of the child, because that is what parents and children want,” she said. "Many cry and want to go home since their arrival."

But things are not so simple, because the law prohibits a minor being returned to the country from which he comes without having his situation assessed carefully. "Returning children is not legal and cannot be tolerated", warns Ricardo Ibarra, head of an association which brings together NGOs in the field of the defense of children's rights. He says he fears that some young people will be turned away without benefiting from the protections provided by law.

Because the case of each minor must be examined individually to determine "if it is preferable to send him back or that he remains in Spain", specified the lawyer Albert Pares Casanova.

It is the Spanish government "who ultimately decides whether they should leave or can stay," he added.

THE BIGGEST ICEBERG IN THE WORLD

DETACHED FROM THE ANTARCTIC BANQUISE

Until then, the record for the largest iceberg in the world was held by A-23A, an iceberg of more than 3,300 km². This new block of ice, dubbed A-76, has an area of 4,320 km². The largest iceberg in the world, half the size of Corsica, broke off on Wednesday 19 May from the Ronne sea ice in Antarctica, according to images from a satellite of the European program Copernicus. The huge chunk of ice has since been adrift in the Weddell Sea.

It was originally spotted by the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), a British polar research organization, which has a base nearby.

According to the English-language journal LiveScience, this event should not have an impact on sea level, because the pack ice from which A-76 detached was already floating. The U.S. Center for Information in Support of Polar Research (NSIDC) also explained that the continent of Antarctica, which is warming at a faster rate than the rest of the planet, contains enough ice to raise the overall sea level of 60 meters.

Its scientists believe that climate change, caused by human activity, had not triggered the detachment of the iceberg, nor that of its predecessor, A-74, which broke away in February. "A-76 and A-74 are part of the natural cycle of the ice floes, from which no large piece has detached in decades, ”said Laura Gerrish, researcher at BAS on Twitter. "It is important to monitor the frequency of iceberg formation, but these [A-76 and A-74] were expected," she also said.

Until A-76, the record for the largest iceberg in the world was held by the A-23A, a 3,880 km² iceberg drifting in the Weddell Sea, according to the European Space Agency.

RECAP 'PEOPLE

IN DECONFINEMENT WEEK MAY 2021

It was time to deconfin: living as a couple and with the covid threat is sometimes a miracle. Confining yourself 24 hours a day requires a dose of superhuman patience and even (or even more?) For people.

Hence small crises among famous couples, between Sophie Marceau and Richard, or between Charlotte Gainsbourg and Yvan Attal. In Here, the theater director Richard Caillat, companion of the star of the Boom, would have slammed the door and we see the actress on the front page of the celebrity magazine all upset by this incident.

Another emblematic couple Yvan Attal and Charlotte Gainsbourg. In Public it is the turn of Yvan Attal and Charlotte Gainsbourg that we see in the Parisian streets of 6 ° arguing ... But surely nothing serious in a couple that has lasted for 30 years!

Across the Atlantic we are getting tough: and yes nothing is going well between Bill and Mélinda Gates who have announced their divorce.

And we are learning more this week. Reason for separation:

the relationship between the founder of Microsoft and the American pedophile Jeffrey Epstein from 2019, on business.

When it's not with your partner that you tear your hair out, it's with your kids.

What does mom Celine Dion think of her René-Charles who plays badass and rapper! tattoo, beard, baggy pants, collector's sneakers, the whole outfit without forgetting “a huge car at 280.00 euros.

BITCOIN'S VIOLENT DIVING

CLARA MORGANE A DU COEUR

LADY GAGA

"Je me suis engagée pour la cause des sans-abri, qui, alors que nous nous apprêtons à passer un Noël chaleureux aux côtés de nos proches, font face au froid glacial des pavés.

J'aimerais que nous puissions les aider tous ensemble. cette cagnotte.

Ainsi nourriture, vêtements et couvertures pourront être achetées."

Suite ......

LE STRESS POST-TRAUMATIQUE DE LA CHANTEUSE

" Quand je sors de chez moi et qu'un étranger me touche ou veut simplement me faire part de son enthousiasme concernant ma musique",dit-elle sur le site de sa fondation Born This Way.

FACING THE INFLOW OF MIGRANTS IN CEUTA

SPAIN STRIKING A FIST

The Spanish government has banged its fist on the table.

While more than 8,000 migrants from Morocco have arrived in Ceuta since Monday, Madrid summoned the Moroccan ambassador on Tuesday to express his "dissatisfaction".

"I reminded him that border control has been and must remain the shared responsibility of Spain and Morocco," Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya told reporters.

In Rabat, the Moroccan Foreign Ministry announced the immediate recall "for consultation" of its ambassador.

Faced with the gravity of the situation, Spain's Prime Minister, Socialist Pedro Sanchez, traveled this afternoon to Ceuta, where he was greeted by boos from a few dozen residents, according to images uploaded by the local newspaper. He then had to go to Melilla, the other Spanish enclave located on the Mediterranean coast of Morocco.

Earlier, the head of the Spanish government described as "serious crisis for Spain and also for Europe" the record wave of migrants who arrived in the last 24 hours in Ceuta. "We will restore order in (the) city and at our borders as quickly as possible," Pedro Sanchez promised.

More than 8,000 migrants have entered Ceuta illegally since Monday, Spanish authorities said, and 4,000 have already been returned to Morocco. Pedro Sanchez assured that all adult migrants who entered illegally would be deported, "under the agreements signed with Morocco for years". "Morocco is a friendly country of Spain and must remain so," insisted the socialist leader.

The European Parliament is sounding the alarm

MEPs held a plenary session on Tuesday, May 18, on the rescue at sea of ​​migrants who flock to the European Union on makeshift boats. Above all, the debate underlined the deep divisions between EU countries and political families.

On the one hand, the most right-wing parties who are calling for a complete Australian-style border closure. On the other, the left, which demands real solidarity with asylum seekers and a European mission dedicated to rescue at sea. “667 dead, that's the number of people who perished this year in the Mediterranean. How many more debates do we have to demand from the European Parliament? », Denounces Saskia Bricmont, Belgian environmentalist deputy.

The European Commissioner for Home Affairs called on Morocco to prevent further tragedies and to prevent migrants from trying to reach Ceuta.

Before MEPs, Ylva Johansson stressed that the recurring dramas of migrant shipwrecks are one of the priorities of her proposal for an asylum and migration pact.

But for the French centrist MP Fabienne Keller, the EU could start by using the tools already available: “The countries of first entry cannot manage the large arrivals of migrants through the Mediterranean on their own. I first call on the States to re-establish the Malta declaration to relieve the countries of first entry ”.

The situation in Ceuta and Melilla is unusual, not to say abnormal. These Spanish enclaves on Moroccan territory are entry points into the European Union. And as they benefit from favorable taxation, trade with Morocco, called smuggling on the Moroccan side, had developed considerably.

The Moroccan population around Ceuta and Mellila has increased tenfold over the past 20 years, but the brutal end of this traffic a year ago by the Moroccan authorities has plunged the region into crisis.

MANIFESTATION OF THE FRENCH POLICE

BEFORE THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY IN PARIS

The police, unions and politicians of several sensibilities met on Wednesday, May 19, 2021 in front of the French National Assembly in Paris.

After a minute of silence which was observed in tribute to members of the police who died on mission.

Gérald Darmanin to explain his presence in the police demonstration:

"It's a way of telling them that I love them and that I support them!"

It is a gathering heavy with meaning, two weeks after the murder of Brigadier Eric Masson in Avignon and with the approach of important electoral deadlines.

All the unions are unanimous, thousands of police officers but also the Minister of the Interior and politicians of all stripes gathered in front of the National Assembly.

According to the organizers, 35,000 people gathered.

Thus, even Gérald Darmanin went there, shortly before 1 p.m., a first in police memory for a Minister of the Interior.

The minister took the opportunity to discuss with the police officers on the spot.

"We have to help us […] the job is very difficult, we need you, we need to be protected […] We go to work and we don't know how we are going to get back, in what state ...", one of them threw him, obviously very moved.

Minister Gérald Darmanin replied:

“Every morning I think of you […]. There is no doubt about my support for you ”.

“You send wood! », Congratulated another policeman.

"I came like all French people to support the police, that's all," commented only for the media Gerald Darmanin, in the middle of the crowd and accompanied by the Paris police chief Didier Lallemant.

"You need recognition, recognition and support when they are attacked"

"The problem of the police is justice", also rebelled a representative of Alliance, while Minister and Keeper of the Seals, Eric Dupond-Moretti indicated that he was considering going to the demonstration. .

The mention of his name was hissed by several of the participants. He ended up answering in the hemicycle, during questions to the government.

“As a citizen I could have found myself in this demonstration to support the police services,” he begins.

What seems to me dangerous for our democracy, however, is that we oppose permanently and for electoral purposes and therefore with a certain cynicism, the justice and the police.

The police officers, the magistrates of this country are in the same republican boat (...) I affirm that on the ground magistrates and police officers work together. "

Some demonstrators appeared in the demonstration with their faces masked, with tears of blood, carrying a coffin.

Then, a little later in the early afternoon, a minute of silence was observed, again in tribute to their colleagues who died on duty, followed by applause.

The event ended with a performance of the national anthem by lyric singer Chloé Chaume.

"It's my job, my way of supporting them, to be with them," says Gérald Darmanin!

"I bring my support to the police and gendarmes every day since I was Minister of the Interior and even before, as mayor of Tourcoing, the Minister of the Interior was justified on Wednesday on France Inter as to his presence at the event. I had the opportunity to see that these are courageous people, […] who are particularly the victims of an increasingly violent society ”.

For Minister Gérald Darmanin, who evokes the “two assassinations” of Stéphanie Montfeture in Rambouillet and Eric Masson in Avignon, the police officers

“Are marked by mourning, emotion and anger. "

“I'm going to tell them that we love them,” he also proclaimed, adding:

“It's my job, my job, my way of supporting them to be with them”.

Before 11 a.m. on Wednesday, the first demonstrators gathered in front of the National Assembly. The trade unions have erected a podium, where several non-political interlocutors will follow one another, in front of a large banner on which is affixed the inscription "Paid to serve, not to die".

By 1 p.m., the crowd had grown considerably, with many union flags flying in the middle.

Unions demand "the implementation of minimum sentences"

The unions have decided to organize this rally two weeks to the day after the murder of Eric Masson, killed at a deal point in Avignon.

A drama that shook the police, already marked by the assassination on April 23 of Stéphanie Monfeture, administrative officer at the Rambouillet police station (Yvelines), by a Tunisian who would have become radicalized.

According to union officials, many “angry” and “disgusted” police officers see the death of the sergeant during this banal intervention as a symbol of repeated violence against them, which requires a firmer “criminal response”.

Prime Minister Jean Castex in particular pledged to extend the safety period to thirty years for people sentenced to life imprisonment for a crime against a police officer or a gendarme.

And to strictly limit the possibilities of reducing sentences for those who attack the police.

But the unions deplore that their "most important demand", "the implementation of minimum sentences" (also called floor sentences) for "attackers of the police", has not been "taken into account" .

LEFT AND INDEPENDENT LEADERSHIP TO REFORM THE CONSTITUTION IN CHILE

The ballot to appoint the drafters of the new Chilean Constitution favored left-wing candidates and independents, to the detriment of the ruling right, according to the first results published Sunday evening.

The parties of the left wishing to rewrite in depth the Chilean constitution inherited from the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) were ahead, Sunday May 16, those of the conservative right, but the independent parties came out on top of the ballot to designate the drafters of the new fundamental law.

The two lists which bring together candidates ranging from the center-left to the Communist Party, who intend to propose a new model for the country with various guaranteed social rights, such as education, health or housing, collect 33% of the vote, after the counting of 64% of the ballots.

With 21% of the vote, the right in power defending the current system, which would have favored the economic growth of the country, does not have the control of the decisions of the Constituent Assembly which will be composed of 155 members elected on a parity basis, including 17 seats are reserved for the 10 indigenous peoples.

Independent candidates - actors, writers, professors, social workers, lawyers - many of whom had participated in the biggest social uprising in decades, which began in October 2019 to demand a more egalitarian society, supplant traditional parties and win the rest of the votes .

"Outsiders"

According to Marcelo Mella, a political scientist at the University of Santiago, "most (of the independent candidates) are outsiders, without party membership and critical of traditional parties".

Despite the absence of polls and difficult election forecasts, no analyst had anticipated such a raid on independent candidates or the dismal outcome of the ruling right, united with the far right on one list, as looming in November presidential election.

The results clearly show "that the electoral strength of independents is much greater than previously thought and this confirms that citizens are fed up with traditional parties," said Mireya Davila, of the Institute of Public Affairs of the University of Chile. According to her, "the political system is being reconfigured, there is an air of change in Chile, but it is also complex because it will be necessary to negotiate with each of the independents and to deal with each of their positions within the 'Constituent Assembly".

A world first

Another major lesson from this ballot spread over two days due to the Covid-19 epidemic: the disaffection of voters who were only 37% to travel over the two voting days. The participation rate was 20.44% of the 14.9 million registered, at the end of the day Saturday, according to data from the electoral service.

Rewriting the Constitution was one of the demands resulting from the violent social uprising of October 2019. It will replace the one drafted in 1980 under the military regime of Augusto Pinochet.

The change in the current fundamental law, which severely limits state action and promotes private activity in all sectors, including education, health and pensions, is seen as the removal of a key obstacle to profound social reforms in one of the most unequal countries in Latin America.

This electoral process is also the first in the world to elect a Constituent Assembly on a parity basis, with an equal number of men and women. The new Constitution must be drafted within nine months, extendable only once by three additional months.

FANTASMES DES HOMMES

A VOUS MONSIEUR !

QU'EST-CE QU'ELLE A MA PETITE POITRINE ?

NABILLA CREE

L'EMEUTE AU SALON DU LIVRE !

Refoulés ou non vous en avez.Des jeux coquins que l'on adore. Après enquête auprès de vous et de la pratique perso.....

Tu affiches un plantureux 75A !

.Avoir une petite poitrine est-il complexant ? Non: fais-en une force et assume ! Les points positifs et négatifs :Pour les premiers, tu ne souffres pas de .......

Un rendez-vous incontournable de la littérature que le Salon du livre de Paris :

Trois mille auteurs pendant quatre jours avec d'immenses auteurs, de grands poètes ........

VICTORIA'S SECRET OU LE DEFILE LE PLUS HOT DE LA

LE CALENDRIER PIRELLI OU L'HOMMAGE AUX FEMMES

PARADIS  FISCAUX contre

ÉTATS GLOUTONS

C'est Lady Gaga qui animera avec Bruno Mars et The Weeknd le grand show de Victoria's Secret et ses anges dans la Ville lumière.

L'événement se tient demain, au Grand Palais, pour être retransmis à la télévision américaine ..........

Jamais les paradis fiscaux ne se sont aussi bien portés malgré la croisade lancée en 2009 par les dirigeants des pays développés.

Si l'on regarde l'origine géographique des investissements directs .....

COVID THE WORLD AFTER

Dreaming of a happy reunion with freedom ?

And even imagine that the crisis would lead to a better future. No, Europeans are no longer delusional when the hope of a more normal life is emerging in several countries, at the cost, however, of heated debates in the United States on the lifting of the recommendation to wear the mask for the vaccinated.

One thing is certain, however: normal life will not be completely like life before.

The forecasting and analysis offices are also starting to imagine what life will be like after the Covid, pointing to two main categories of changes.

On the one hand, certain changes, immediate because they respond to a reality or simply to reactions of common sense. Changes that were germinating and whose lasting emergence was precipitated by the Covid.

On the other hand, probable changes, plausible but not certain.

The reinforced individual behaviors that the pandemic and its management have brought to light, namely that each individual will have to take responsibility for his own protection against health dangers, but not only health. This feeling, which is new in a country with a culture of assistantship, will go through:

- acceptance of the use of masks, screening and tracing of positive cases despite the disappearance of the pandemic. We will live masked most of the time like the Asians;

-the acceptance of vaccination almost annually or can be multiannual, because vaccination is the only way to protect yourself and others.

- the obligation of a health pass or a vaccination record (digital no doubt) to travel, go to the show or come to work.

All of its measures, previously considered as liberticidal, have gradually become public health measures under individual responsibility.

Technical changes that will eventually impose themselves completely, impacting daily and professional life.

- the digitization of all the functions of the company which is undoubtedly the first factor of productivity today;

- e-commerce, which already represents 20% of the total, is bound to grow very quickly.

- a fully digitalized bank.

Important changes linked to mobility prevented by the Covid, which we do not know if they will continue or not.

Teleworking, for example, could be more often requested by employees or business leaders, but professional relations in Visio, via Skype or Zoom, will not be abandoned to return to face-to-face. Digital will remain the master of the game for economic and financial reasons.

The policies deployed to deal with the health crisis have accelerated the underlying trends that are crossing societies and worrying populations: uncertainty, precariousness, devouring machinery, disembodiment of human relationships. Hadn't the Observatory for Society and Consumption predicted that a crisis always has a "powerful effect of accelerating the trends that we observed before it erupted " ?

Houellebecq had he not sensed the fact that “we will not wake up, after confinement, in a new world; it will be the same, but a little worse ” ?

CHINA LETS THE ZHURONG ROBOT ON MARS

Mars has proven to be an elusive goal, with most missions since 1960 from Russia, Europe, Japan and India failing. And yet China has just achieved it again.

The remote-controlled robot "Zhurong" has indeed landed successfully on the red planet, according to a Chinese state media. A flawless: China succeeded on Saturday in landing a small remote-controlled robot on the surface of Mars, a first for the Asian country during a particularly delicate mission.

"The Tianwen-1 lander successfully landed in the predefined area" on Mars with the robot "Zhurong" on board, state television CCTV reported, which broadcast a special edition titled "Nihao Huoxing" (Hello Mars ), and specified that a "signal" had been received on Earth. The landing took place in an area of ​​the red planet called "Utopia Planitia", a vast plain located in the northern hemisphere of Mars.

Landing on the Red Planet is far from easy: in the past, many European, Soviet and American missions have failed. In 2011, China did try to send a probe to Mars, during a joint mission with Russia. But the attempt had collapsed and Beijing has since resolved to continue the adventure alone.

The Chinese thus launched in July 2020 from Earth their uninhabited mission "Tianwen-1", named after the probe sent into space. This is made up of three elements: an orbiter (which revolves around Mars), a lander (which has landed on the red planet) and on board a remote-controlled robot, "Zhurong".

In February, "Tianwen-1" had moved into Martian orbit and managed to take pictures of the red planet. Early Saturday, China managed to land the lander, which should allow the robot "Zhurong" to come out. Carrying out these three operations during an inaugural mission to Mars is a world first.

Radar, lasers and solar panels

For this first attempt alone, the ambitious Chinese wanted to do everything the Americans have achieved in several Martian missions since the 1960s.

Weighing around 240 kg, "Zhurong" is to conduct soil and atmosphere analyzes, take photos and map the red planet. China already has experience in this area: it rolled two small robots on the Moon, the “Jade Rabbits” 1 and 2 - deposited in 2013 and 2019 respectively.

The mission to Mars must also look for possible signs of past life. "Zhurong" is equipped with solar panels for its power supply and is supposed to be operational for three months. The robot is also equipped with cameras, radar and lasers which will allow it in particular to study its environment and analyze the composition of Martian rocks.

He arrived on the Red Planet a few months after Perseverance, the rover from NASA, the US space agency, which landed on Mars on February 18 with the mission of looking for proof of past life.

The name "Zhurong" was chosen after an online survey and refers to the god of fire in Chinese mythology. A symbolism justified by the name in Chinese of Mars: "huoxing", literally "the planet of fire".

All-round space ambitions

China is investing billions of euros in its space program, in order to catch up with Europe, Russia and the United States. It sent its first astronaut into space in 2003. China is also launching satellites for itself or on behalf of other countries. And in 2019, she landed a device on the far side of the Moon - a world first. Last year, samples of the Moon were brought back to Earth.

TAX THE OECD RECOMMENDS TAXING

MORE SUCCESSIONS

To fight against the widening gaps in wealth, the OECD recommends increasing the tax on inheritance or donations, whose revenues are very low due to exemptions and allowances, rather than reinstating the wealth tax. (ISF), wealth inequalities being more marked than income inequalities, especially in France.

The Organization starts from an observation: "Household wealth is highly concentrated at the top of the distribution" and "the share of wealth held by the richest has increased" since the end of the twentieth century, underlines the report published Tuesday. May 12.

Out of a panel of 27 OECD countries that provided their data, the richest 10% own half of total wealth, with 18% even being concentrated in the hands of the richest 1%. France is in the OECD average with 10% of the wealthiest households owning half of the total wealth. But the variations from one country to another can be considerable. In the United States, the richest 10% thus own 79% of the country's total wealth, and 1% of them even own 42% of this wealth. Conversely, in Slovakia, this distribution is much more equitable, with the richest 10% owning 34% of national wealth (including 1% holding 9%).

Faced with this, "the inheritance or gift tax represents only 0.5% on average of budgetary revenue because the tax bases are extremely small", underlined Pascal Saint-Amans, director of the Center for Fiscal Policy and Administration. of the OECD. While France is one of the countries where the share of tax revenue from inheritance or endowment taxes is the highest at 1.38%, in the United States it represents less than 0.25%.

Numerous exemptions

The narrowness of the tax bases is explained by the numerous exemptions - life insurance, principal residence, business transfers, etc. - but also by the consequent reductions applied to transfers of assets to children. However, these exemptions, which promote optimization and tax evasion, have "regressive effects: the more wealth increases, the more the effective tax rate is reduced", contributing to undermine equity and reinforce inequalities, according to Pascal - Amans. As a result, in France, only 35% of inheritances are taxable, according to PS MP Christine Pires-Beaune, who had tabled a bill to reform this tax system.

Recommendations for greater equity

The OECD therefore recommends taxing beneficiaries on donations and inheritances they receive throughout their lives rather than piecemeal. It also recommends reviewing a French particularity, that of "applying a single rate of 60% to non-parent heirs when the rate can be 5% for a direct line inheritance raises a question of society". This place given to the bond of kinship is one of the points regularly criticized. The deputy PS also recommended to “defamiliarize” taxation and to establish it on an individual basis.

The tax treatment of life insurance is also in the spotlight. Pascal Saint-Amans thus considers that the abolition of preferential tax treatment would be justified “economically and on the basis of its regressive effects”.

The OECD also recommends more widely the taxation of capital: "the introduction of well-designed taxes on capital income, in particular on capital gains, must also be a priority".

THE CHAOTIC PRIVATE LIFE OF ELON MUSK

And yet the boss of Tesla and SpaceX, over the years, has opened up here and there about his childhood, his parents and his relationships.

Elon Musk made some confidences in particular in an in-depth interview in Rolling Stone, published in November 2017 evoking his painful break-up with his ex-girlfriend Amber Heard, or his estranged relationship with his father Errol, calling him a "terrible human being" .

Already from his childhood Elon Musk struggled against loneliness "'When I was a child, there is one thing that I said", he says. 'I never want to be alone.' ".

A student at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada where he met his first wife, Justine Wilson, then at Wharton School, in the United States, the boss of Tesla started working on his first startup and Justine has started working on her first novel after graduation.

She said Elon Musk wooed her by giving her her credit card so she could buy as many books as she wanted.

The couple married in 2000. Then moved to Los Angeles where they had a son named Nevada, who died suddenly after birth and eventually twins and triplets - five sons in total. In 2010, Elon Musk said his children were 'the love of his life'. The couple separated in 2008.

The tech mogul then married actress Talulah Riley in 2010 to divorce two years later. Elon Musk tweeted to Talulah Riley: 'It was four amazing years. I will always love you. You will make someone very happy one day. ' Today he loves Canadian singer Grimes for her 'wild artistic creativity and super intense work ethic'.

On May 4, 2020, Elon Musk announced the birth of their son, whom he and Grimes named 'X Æ A-Xii Musk', apparently pronounced 'X Ash A-12..

FRANCE

A NEW FORUM OF MILITARY

TO DENOUNCE THE THREAT OF CIVIL WAR

“Our elders are right on the substance of their text, in its entirety. We see violence in our towns and villages. We see communitarianism taking hold in public space, in public debate. We see hatred for France and its history becoming the norm. The first text had caused much ink to flow, the second risks driving the point home. "

“Take action, ladies and gentlemen. This time, it is not about custom emotion, ready-made formulas or media coverage. It is not a question of extending your mandates or conquering others. It is about the survival of our country, of your country ”, write the authors in this text addressed to the President of the Republic, to ministers, parliamentarians and general officers.

A first shocking platform on April 21

Current Values ​​had published, on April 21, a first shocking platform in which "twenty generals, a hundred high-ranking officers and more than a thousand other soldiers" called on President Emmanuel Macron to defend patriotism and said " willing to support policies which will take into consideration the safeguard of the nation ”. This text had triggered a lively controversy in the political class.

Seized by parliamentarians from rebellious France, the Paris prosecutor Rémy Heitz rejected the request to initiate proceedings against the authors and broadcasters of the platform because “no criminal offense” appears there. According to the Harris Interactive poll conducted for LCI, 64% of people questioned about the first forum had heard of this forum denouncing the "disintegration" of France due to "a certain anti-racism", "the Islamism and suburban hordes ”. In total, 58% of those questioned supported the soldiers who signed the platform, according to the poll, carried out on a sample of 1,613 people.

Still according to the same survey, 84% of French people questioned think that violence is increasing day by day and 73% of them believe that the country is crumbling. The supporters of the right and the far right seem more in agreement with the ideas of the signatories. In particular on the issue of security: for example, 93% of Republicans and 94% of supporters of the National Rally think that the laws of the Republic do not apply in some cities. And two-thirds of the panel believe that the signatories of the platform should not be punished.

"The generation of fire"

The authors of the second column say they have “recently entered the quarry” and specify that they cannot “legally” express themselves “with their face uncovered.” “We are from what the newspapers have called“ the generation of fire ”. ". Men and women, active soldiers, of all armies and of all ranks, of all sensibilities, we love our country. These are our only claims to fame, ”they write to introduce themselves.

“Afghanistan, Mali, Central African Republic or elsewhere, a number of us have experienced enemy fire. Some have left comrades there. They offered their skin to destroy Islamism to which you are making concessions on our soil, ”say the authors. “Almost all of us have known Operation Sentinel. We saw with our own eyes the abandoned suburbs, the accommodation with delinquency. We have undergone the attempts to instrumentalize several religious communities, for whom France means nothing - nothing but an object of sarcasm, contempt and even hatred ”.

While Emmanuel Macron appeared, as a sign of unity, with the chiefs of staff of the armies on Saturday, May 8 during the commemorations of the German surrender in 1945, the soldiers, confronted with the realities on the ground, continue to denounce "forfeiture", "communitarianism" and "Islamism" to which the executive would make "concessions."

According to the signatories, who rely on their experience of Operation Sentinel to justify their assessment of the situation in France, the civil war is "brewing.

AGAINST THE WAIVER OF PATENTS

ANTI-COVID-19 VACCINES ?

According to the CEO of Moderna, Stéphane Bancel, who has himself already opened his patent, the lifting of the patents "will not improve the supply of messenger RNA vaccines in the world neither in 2021 nor in 2022". This project is also globally rejected by pharmaceutical companies. German industry has indeed lined up like one man behind its national champion. Raising a patent will create a precedent to "the devastating effect on research and innovation in our country and not only in the pharmaceutical sector", immediately warned the president of the chemical federation, Wolfgang Grosse Entrup. "The impact on the long term is dangerous", also argued the CEO of Moderna, Stéphane Bancel while the boss of Pfizer, Albert Bourla added, saying noto be "not at all" in favor of such a decision.

However, the profits of the pharmaceutical industry would not be affected "especially in the months to come", assures Ian Gendler, of the research firm Value Line. So why do vaccine manufacturers oppose this suspension of their intellectual property rights ?

Vaccine manufacturers would lose their monopoly

For the time being, the patents on vaccines against Covid-19 are held by a few laboratories, especially Americans, which have discovered them or which have joined forces with laboratories which have discovered them. If these patents were lifted, it would mean that other manufacturers around the world could produce and market these vaccines, without the companies that developed them being able to do anything about it. Manufacturers are therefore afraid of being deprived of the return on the significant investment they had to make during the research phase.

No production acceleration

First, because producing messenger RNA vaccines is more complex than using a recipe book. The lifting of patents would indeed have no effect "in the short and medium term", argued the German laboratory BioNTech, because patent protection is not the factor limiting the production and supply of its vaccine. developed with the American Pfizer. "Giving countries that need it a cookbook without the ingredients, guarantees and skilled labor will not help people waiting for the vaccine," said Michelle McMurry-Heath, patron of the corporate lobby. of BIO biotechnology. Factories with the right equipment and know-how are saturated; it is not enough to give the authorization and the recipe to others for them to become capable of making it overnight.

Indeed, mastering the messenger RNA technology, which is the basis of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, buying the machines, carrying out clinical trials, launching large-scale manufacturing, "does not happen in 6, 12 or 18 months. », Defended the CEO of Moderna, Stéphane Bancel. The novel messenger RNA technology requires a "very long" process and a sharp "technical expertise" to set up a manufacturing site, says Albert Bourla. As these vaccines “had never been produced before, the problem is that there are no such factories in the world apart from the ones we have built,” he says.

In addition, the complexity of the production and supply processes for raw materials further explains the current bottlenecks. Vaccines require 289 components, from 86 suppliers in 19 countries, argues Pfizer. The real problem is production capacity in developing countries, as well as the transfer of technology and know-how necessary to be able to manufacture these vaccines. vaccines of an extremely innovative model. India, for example, has a large pharmaceutical industry and manufactures its version of the Astra zeneca vaccine under license, but lacks the technology to produce the messenger RNA vaccines.

Raw materials are already on the brink of scarcity

Pfizer also highlights the bottleneck for raw materials of vaccine components. “Currently, every gram of raw material produced in the world arrives directly at our factories, and does not stay a day in the warehouse before being transformed into a vaccine - and each dose, once the quality has been checked, is not stored. one day before being delivered, ”pleads Albert Bourla, the boss of Pfizer. "This means that if other places start ordering raw material as well, it may remain in their warehouses until they find a way to convert it into doses of vaccine," he warns.

Stephen Ubl, president of the Federation of American Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (PhRMA), also argues that such a decision could "further weaken already strained supply chains and encourage the proliferation of counterfeit vaccines."

A limited legal advantage

The specialist lawyer, Tim Reinhard, partner of the commercial law firm Osborne Clarke, recalls in an interview with “Echoes”, that there is “no precedent for raising a patent in this way”. "The only existing legal provision is the possibility for the government to impose a license, against the payment of 'adequate' fees," he notes. This provision of the World Trade Organization on licenses has already been used twice by India in 2006 for a Novartis treatment for AIDS and in 2012 as part of a Bayer treatment for cancer, he recalls. Raising a patent would also have a limited geographic impact, says Claudia Milbradt, a lawyer at Clifford Chance, specializing in technology transfer and technology transfer.t patent law: “As patents are national, revocation of patent rights in the United States would only allow unlicensed production and distribution in the United States. "

A precedent has the devastating effect ”

For the boss of the New York biotech Acorda Therapeutics, Ron Cohen, in supporting the temporary lifting of patents, "Joe Biden is entering a dangerous and slippery slope." "What will be the next patents on the list to no longer be protected once this precedent has been set ?" ", He warns on Twitter, noting that cancer or Alzheimer's disease can also be considered" global crises ".

"Where will the ideas come from during the next pandemics and who will finance them if the inventors know that they will be stripped of their patents anyway ?" ", Continues Jan Steufel, president of the German pharmaceutical association VfA in an interview with" Handelsblatt ".

Above all, raising patents could have a catastrophic effect: diverting research capital. Who will still take the risk of investing hundreds of millions in the development of a molecule, if it is to be deprived of any return in the event of success (outcome less frequent than failure)? Raising patents for Covid-19 "sets a precedent for future health crises," says Farasat Bokhari, an economist specializing in competition and health issues at the British University of East Anglia. Pharmaceutical companies, helped or not by public funds, "would no longer have any incentive to invest the next time there is an emergency".

For technology transfers and targeted licensing

As an alternative to the lifting of patents, Pfizer-BioNTech favors technology transfers and the issuance of targeted licenses to increase the production of its vaccine. He emphasizes being in close collaboration with more than 15 partners, including Merck, Novartis, Sanofi and Baxter. Associated with Pfizer for the production of one of the first mRNA vaccines, the boss of BioNTech, Ugur Sahin, has already indicated that he does not rule out granting licenses to producers, if he is sure that the drug would be produced with the required quality.

If it is a question of helping poor countries, with a double aim of solidarity and effectiveness against the pandemic, the richest can offer them more doses. And we note a certain hypocrisy of the United States which, not long ago, blocked the exports of a vaccine which they did not even use...

FINALLY THE OWN PLATFORM

FROM DONALD TRUMP TO TWITTER

"From Donald J. Trump's office". The portal is hosted on a site called "Save America", dedicated to Donald Trump,

which notably offers derivative products bearing its image. Despite the resemblance of the new platform to a thread

Twitter, no interaction is possible between Donald Trump and Internet users. At the end of March, those close to Donald Trump

had mentioned his "return to social networks" with his own platform. In fact, the site is a simple blog where

the former president expresses himself in a few lines, as he did on Twitter.

If the publications can, as on many sites, be shared on social networks (Twitter and Facebook),

no one can answer it.

A button with a heart logo identical to Twitter's "like" button frames the posts, though it doesn't appear to be tied to any specific action. Interested parties can however register to receive an alert each time Donald Trump is published.

FINALLY THE ANTI COVID VACCINATION

OPEN TO ALL FROM MAY 12, 2021

“We don't want to waste any dose,” so “from Wednesday the 12th you will be able to look the day before on the site if there are any doses available the next day where you are and appointments. you who are not taken "and these available appointments will be open" without age limit ", explained the Head of State by inaugurating the first large Paris vaccine park, Porte de Versailles in Paris.

So far in Paris "there has been no mess, all the doses have been used in the centers, but we want to optimize and be sure that all the doses are fully used", he added, specifying that “it is an exceptional device.” When people over 50, for whom the opening date for vaccination has been brought forward by 5 days, they can make an appointment as of Friday, May 7.

"The objective, of course, is to continue to march forward," insisted Emmanuel Macron, reaffirming the objective of reaching 30 million vaccinated on June 15. The government has set itself the goal of reaching the 20 million mark for the first doses injected by May 15, then 30 million a month later. As of Tuesday, 16.4 million people had received at least one dose and 7.3 million received two doses.

France expects more vials of the four vaccines authorized in May (4.5 million doses per week) and June (6.9 million weekly).

7° CIA REPORT ON THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD

It is published every four years, usually when the US president takes office in the White House.

The book highlights the challenges ahead in a world that promises to be "extremely complex".

We are really witnessing a kind of acceleration of time, a compression of time with lightning technological progress, but also dark clouds that are accumulating.

Connected objects and artificial intelligence will be absolutely everywhere around us. In 2018, there were 10 billion connected objects, which is already not bad, but we are moving towards trillions of connected objects. a kind of huge network that will be formed with all these devices.

Whoever controls this technology may be whoever controls the planet. The two key words in this report are adaptation and innovation.

The CIA has also estimated the cost of mental illnesses on the planet. $ 16 trillion over the next 20 years. First of all, there are the consequences of the current epidemic, which should not be minimized at all.

But there is also going to be a kind of new industrial revolution, with the automation of a certain number of jobs, which will leave a lot of people behind ... to link with demographics..

THE BICENTENARY OF THE DEATH OF NAPOLEON

On May 5, 1821, at 5:49 p.m., Napoleon Bonaparte breathed his last on Sainte-Hélène, an island located in the heart of the South Atlantic. The ex-emperor of the French dies after a long night of agony and delirium, during which a storm sweeps this territory at the end of the world.

The next day, an autopsy is performed, following the requests of the deceased. Antomarchi, Napoleon's personal physician, assisted by seven English colleagues, study the bowels of the winner of Austerlitz.

All agree in affirming that the death of Napoleon is of natural origin, he would have died of the consequences of a perforated ulcer in the stomach.

Two hundred years later, Emmanuel Macron will lay a wreath on Wednesday afternoon at the foot of his tomb, under the majestic dome of the Invalides. Just before, the Head of State will deliver a speech at the Institut de France to "look in the face" this "complex being" that was Napoleon, by being "neither in hagiography, nor in denial, nor in repentance ”, indicates the Elysee.

This “major figure in history” has been “contested for a long time”, recalls the Institute. And it continues to ignite the debates between its defenders, who celebrate the military strategist and the initiator of the "modern state", and its critics, who accuse him of having caused hundreds of thousands of deaths during his campaigns. military and to have re-established slavery driven by the economic and political pressures of his time.

The Head of State should salute Napoleon as the organizer of the modern State with the creation of the Civil Code, high schools, the Court of Auditors, the Council of State or the prefects ... Faced with a legacy too controversial, the heads of state have refrained from taking a position on Napoleon since Georges Pompidou celebrated in 1969 the bicentenary of his birth in Ajaccio, his birthplace .

“There is no name more glorious than that of Napoleon. Starting from nothing, stripped of everything, he obtained everything, ”summed up the Gaullist president.

BILL GATES AND MELINDA DIVORCENT

"After a lot of thought and work on our relationship, we made the decision to end our marriage," they announce in the signed publication of their two names. The couple have three children and together founded the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which oversees the charities to which the billionaire philanthropic couple have devoted their fortunes.

“We continue to share our faith in this mission and will continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe that we can progress together as a couple in the next stage of our lives,” they explained.

Bill Gates, 65, announced last year that he was stepping down from the boards of Berkshire Hathaway and Microsoft, the computer company he founded in 1975 with his childhood friend Paul Allen.

Bill Gates made Microsoft one of the dominant forces in the then emerging personal computing industry.

In 2000, he ceded his role as CEO to his longtime collaborator Steve Ballmer.

Bill Gates' stake in Microsoft is valued at around $ 26 billion, according to FactSet.

Within the foundation, Melinda Gates, née Melinda French, played an important public role, comparable to that of her husband. She has represented the organization in remote areas as well as in centers of political power.

The foundation aims to fight against poverty, disease and inequalities. It donates billions of dollars in direct grants each year. It has pledged more than $ 1.75 billion in support of the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including initiatives to produce 100 million doses of vaccines for poor countries.

Forbes says it is the world's largest private charity.

Melinda Gates also created in 2015 Pivotal Ventures, an investment company independent of the foundation, which works to advance social progress in the United States.

In 2010, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett launched the Giving Pledge campaign to encourage wealthy Americans to donate while they are alive, at an age when they are able to get involved in deciding what to fund. consecrated. Giving Pledge has grown and now has more than 200 signatories in 25 countries.

Melinda Gates, 56, grew up in Dallas and received an MBA from Duke University before joining Microsoft, where she worked in multimedia product development, according to the foundation's website. Four months after arriving at Microsoft, she met Bill Gates, then CEO of the company, at a dinner party while on a business trip to New York. He offered her a date when they crossed paths in the Microsoft parking lot.

Bill Gates is ranked by Forbes as the fourth richest person in the world, with a net worth of $ 130.5 billion. The world's top three fortunes are Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, French luxury giant Bernard Arnault and his family, and Tesla boss Elon Musk.

Most of the Gates family estate is held by a personal investment company called Cascade Investment LLC.

Melinda Gates could get half of the couple's fortune if they divorce in a state where the community property system is in effect such as Washington, where Microsoft is headquartered, or California, where the couple own property there. In the same vein Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie Scott divorced in 2019 after 25 years of marriage, during which Jeff Bezos built one of the most valuable companies in the world.

FRANCE DECONFINEMENT ACTS THREE

WHERE TO LIVE WITH COVID-19

While a little over a year ago, Emmanuel Macron declared "war" on Covid-19, the Head of State has finally resolved to "live with" his "enemy", without the 'eradicate altogether.

The president assumed this strategy aimed at letting the virus circulate at a relatively high level, while hoping that respect for barrier gestures and the progress of vaccination will avoid a situation that is out of control.

"The choice of reason"

Precautions have been taken and "brakes" can be activated in areas where the virus circulates too much, but the slight drop observed in recent days, both in the incidence rate of the disease and in the occupancy rate of the health services. resuscitation, clear the horizon. “It's all a mixture of humility, pragmatism and determination. We will have to see in two weeks whether the decline has continued and in what proportion. It is also necessary that the acceleration of vaccination is maintained or even accentuated ”, indicates a relative of the Head of State. On this last point, "we will keep our objectives", assured the spokesperson of the government, Gabriel Attal.

Possible "emergency brakes"

"It is a timetable which is prudent and pragmatic, which is made with common sense and above all which takes into account the fact that the French want to resume an increasingly normal life, and that must be understood" after "More than a year with restrictions", already argued Gabriel Attal Friday, during a press point.

Referring to the “emergency brakes” cited by Emmanuel Macron in the event of a resumption of the epidemic locally, he explained that reaching one of the three criteria (more than 400 infections per 100,000 inhabitants, a “very sudden” increase in this rate, "threat of saturation of intensive care services") will trigger a "discussion at the local level with elected officials, representatives of the State - prefect, ARS)". "We will look and if we consider that there is a risk, we will pull on the brake."

While the opposition accuses the executive of making a new health "bet", Gabriel Attal again defended Sunday, May 2, 2021, on Europe 1, the deconfinement promised by Emmanuel Macron.

However, the figures for the epidemic are not looking good. For Raphaël Haddad, political communication specialist and founder of the Mots-Clés agency, having put forward a precise date for deconfinement is “an unprecedented blunder since the start of the crisis.” In November, the executive had set 5,000 new daily cases the condition of deconfinement. At the end of April, more than 25,000 cases are recorded per day and yet the restrictions will begin to be lifted.

A blind deconfinement or a new health challenge ?

“There is no figure announced because we know that they will not be kept. "

To lift the restrictions, this time, therefore, no target in terms of viral circulation. This decision is contested by epidemiologist Dominique Costagliola. “Taking measures without explaining which determinants we are basing ourselves on is not rational.

This makes it possible to decide anything, no matter how ", she annoys This absence of epidemiological objectives testifies to a desire of the executive" to simultaneously optimize the impacts of confinement on the health situation and socio-economic, ”says Mircea Sofonea, lecturer in epidemiology and evolution of infectious diseases at the University of Montpellier.

“By freeing itself from deconfinement objectives, the executive makes a compromise between the effectiveness and the duration of the confinement. Yet this is the whole point of the objectives: to say where we want to go. Without it, containment no longer plays its role of controlling the epidemic in the long term. "

"Set arbitrarily", this figure of 5,000 daily contaminations was to allow "efficient tracing" of patients, explains to "Obs" Benjamin Davido, infectious disease specialist at the Raymond-Poincaré hospital in Garches. “Today, there is no figure announced because we know that they will not be required,” he adds. Another reason according to him: “We have drawn the line on tracing, impossible if the number of cases is too high and it is not automated. "

So would not displaying a quantifiable objective be a way of getting rid of epidemiological indicators ?

If no figure has been given, it is a sign that the executive is not counting on this confinement to make the virus disappear. In his last speech, on March 31, Emmanuel Macron himself explained that "the way out of the crisis is finally taking shape thanks to vaccination".

Hospital saturation, the dominant criterion

Indeed, Benjamin Davido believes that it is this other objective which has taken control: “I do not believe that this leaves the government a very important margin of maneuver. If the hospital tension does not go in the right direction, the executive will not be able to deconfin as planned. "

Lifting restrictions in mid-May, a realistic goal ?

If the objective were to return to 5,000 new daily contaminations by May 15, "it would not be reached", explains Pascal Crépey, epidemiologist and biostatistician at the School of Advanced Public Health Studies. According to him, during this period, we will certainly still be on a high plateau, “which will reduce the government's room for maneuver”. Similarly, Mircea Sofonea believes that reopening the country is possible, "if the curfew is maintained: we can afford some reopening, but not all".

The deconfinement of France may seem insane to some with regard to health indicators. But it would not only be health in life ... contrary to what we believed a year ago.

"From May 19, successive stages will lead us together to define a new model of growth and prosperity," said Emmanuel Macron, Saturday, May 1, 2021, during the traditional lily of the valley ceremony at the Elysee Palace.

GERMANY DISMANTLING OF A LARGE PEDOPORNOGRAPHY INTERNET NETWORK

The German judicial police announced on Monday the dismantling of a child pornography network on the Darknet presented as one "of the largest in the world" and with more than 400,000 members. The dismantling of the "BOYSTOWN" platform, which had existed since 2019, took place in mid-April, according to a police statement.

Three Germans were arrested after a months-long investigation by a special German police unit coordinated by Europol and with the collaboration of Dutch, Swedish, Australian, American and Canadian police. in Paraguay, is the subject of an international arrest warrant on the basis of which he should be delivered to the German authorities. The police did not reveal their identity ... Eva Kühne-Hörmann, Minister of Justice of the Land of Hesse, where Frankfurt is located, called the operation "a fantastic success in the fight against sexual violence against minors".

A platform of "international scope"

"The platform had an international reach and was used for the exchange of pornography of minors between its members", mainly photos or videos of abuse perpetrated on boys.

Among them were "images of serious sexual abuse of very young children," said the police.

Four suspects

Three of the suspects, aged 40, 49 and 58, respectively, are suspected of "having been the administrators of the child pornography platform". In addition to taking care of network management, they were responsible for "monitoring customers," said the police.

The fourth, a 64-year-old man, is believed to have been one of the platform's most active users, and to have posted more than 3,500 messages.

Germany has dismantled several of these networks in recent years. In March 2019, four Germans accused of having managed such a platform called “Elysium” were sentenced to prison terms ranging from three years and ten months to nine years and nine months.

GEORGE CLOONEY MOVES TO BRIGNOLES

ON THE AZURE COAST

Clooney has always appreciated France, its culture and its art of living just like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who still own Château Miraval in Correns.

The signing for the acquisition of the domain of several hectares of vines and olive trees would take place in the first half of May for a price that we do not know.

In a splendid shaded park hides an 18th century country house completely renovated, with classic facade, an area of ​​900 square meters for the main house, formal gardens, caretaker's house, 170 hectare estate including a lake with pontoon, a swimming pool, a tennis court and pétanque ...

Married since 2014 to Amal Alamuddin, of Lebanese origin, he recently said that his twins speak not only English, but also Italian and French.

COVID-19 PRESENCE OF THE INDIAN VARIANT

AT LEAST IN 17 COUNTRIES

The B.1.617 variant, more commonly known as the Indian variant because of its first occurrence in India, has been detected in more than 1,200 genome sequences in "at least 17 countries", the World Health Organization (WHO ) overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.

Most of the samples "come from India, the United Kingdom, the United States and Singapore," "said the WHO in its weekly report on the Covid-19 pandemic. In recent days, the variant has also been reported in several European countries (Belgium, Switzerland, Greece, Italy). "B.1.617 has a higher growth rate than the other variants in circulation in India, which suggests greater contagiousness", also assures WHO, even if it left it in the category of “variants of interest” and not of “variants of concern”.

All over the world, the “Indian” variant still raises questions. According to the WHO, it is not yet known whether "the reports of high mortality are due to the increased severity of the variant, to the straining of the capacities of the health system due to the rapid increase in the rate of death. number of cases, or both ”.

India overwhelmed by the B.1.617 variant

India, the fourth most bereaved country (behind the United States, Brazil and Mexico), has now passed 200,000 deaths. She again experienced an impressive new total of infections (350,000) for one day on Tuesday.

The crematoriums know no truce, their chimneys crack and the metal frames of the ovens melt under the intensity of the heat. Wood is also starting to run out in some establishments, and families are asked to bring their own fuel. Many crematoriums and cemeteries say the official death toll from the virus falls short of reality, given the reality. influx of bodies that they see parading.

The world is closed to the "Indian" variant

The first shipment of British medical aid, including 100 ventilators and 95 oxygen concentrators, landed in Delhi on Tuesday. France, Canada, the United States and even Germany have announced that they will also provide assistance to India.

Air cuts with India are increasing. Australia decided on Tuesday to suspend flights from India until May 15, while Canada, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and New Zealand have already suspended or restricted their flights.

Belgium has announced the closure of its borders to India but also to Brazil and South Africa, where two other variants are rife. Iceland for its part has banned entry to travelers from sixteen countries considered to be "high risk" areas, such as France.

The presence of the Indian variant worries in Europe at a time when the Old Continent is breathing a little better after long months of restrictions.

RECORD PROFITS FOR GOOGLE

WITH ADVERTISING

At a time when part of the world is partly frozen by the Covid-19 pandemic, advertising, Google's real engine, has been running at full speed, with a "titanic quarter" from January to March 2021, according to experts .

Google therefore records record profits thanks to advertising.

Also thanks to its ability to capitalize on the new habits of its users, the search engine seems to ensure an equally favorable exit from the health crisis.

The online search giant thus achieved

55.31 billion in turnover from January to March, or 34% more than a year ago, when the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic had caused drop the spending of some advertisers, particularly in the travel sector, at the end of the first quarter.

On the search engine, advertising revenue rose from $ 25 billion to $ 32 billion in one year, well beyond expectations, and it grew 50% on YouTube, to $ 6 billion.

In 2020, as consumers deserted physical stores, Google and Facebook accelerated the development of ad formats that make shopping easier, with buttons directly in ads or videos to redirect users to brands.

"Google makes money"

"The line between digital and physical is blurring and we are innovating on all channels" of distribution, detailed Mr. Schindler. “It's not just online, it's not just offline. It's a mix. And that is our strong point, at the conjunction of Search (the search engine), Maps and YouTube. "

The Californian group manages in any case to ride the wave of recovery. It is "well on its way to generating 130.15 billion in net advertising revenue in 2021, an increase of 25% over one year", estimates the firm E-Marketer, which attributes 28.6% of the market share to it, just ahead of Facebook.

“Basically Google makes money, the company is pretty much all about ads,” commented analyst Rob Enderle. "There is no risk of declining revenues unless regulators intervene."

Abuse of dominant position

It seems it is the only cloud on the horizon for Alphabet, the parent company.

The current year could indeed be marked by developments in the fight against certain practices of technological leaders, deemed anti-competitive by more and more governments, including that of Joe Biden in the United States.

Facebook and Google are already facing lawsuits from the authorities on the competition law front. Several digital platforms, such as Amazon, TripAdvisor or Yelp, complain that Google promotes its own offers in search results.

COVID-19 THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO THE RESCUE OF INDIA

Saturated hospitals, lack of oxygen, open-air crematoriums: India and its capital New Delhi are overwhelmed by the coronavirus epidemic. Made harder by the variant.

Every day, the toll falls like a hammer blow. Sunday April 25 was no exception. While a large number of testing centers were closed, India set a new record of infections: 352,991 new cases of Covid-19 and 2,812 deaths were recorded in twenty-four hours. Unheard of globally, the giant of 1.3 billion people is failing to stem the epidemic outbreak. In an India hit by an epidemic tsunami, thousands of sick people are victims of a lack of hospital beds, oxygen and life-saving medicines. 16.9 million people have been infected there since the start of the pandemic, and more than 192,000 have died.

Faced with this "storm", according to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, local authorities have extended the confinement in force in the capital New Delhi by one week.

Demand for oxygen

The progression of the epidemic is such, the health system is so strangled, that we now know that the country will not be able to cope alone.

The international community has taken the measure of the drama that is playing out in the subcontinent. The United States was the first to pledge aid on Sunday, followed by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Russia. Even Pakistan, the enemy brother, offered to provide ventilators and affirmed its solidarity with the Indian people.

The controversy over the issue of vaccines and the embargo

The issue of vaccines had been controversial for several weeks. The largest manufacturer in the world, the Serum Institute of India, based in Pune, India, warned in mid-April of its restricted access to certain components from the United States and necessary for manufacturing. The head of the institute had launched a public appeal to the US president to lift the embargoes on exports of raw materials.

The White House will "immediately" send components for vaccine production as well as medical equipment, drugs, rapid diagnostic tests, respirators and protective equipment. "Just as India sent aid to the United States when our hospitals were strained at the start of the pandemic, we are determined to help India in these difficult times," said Sunday. Joe Biden on Twitter. And the United States will "rapidly deploy additional support to the people of India and to the heroes of the Indian health system," said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The Americans will also dispatch experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

European countries have pledged emergency equipment and respirators. "To the Indian people, I want to express my sympathy for the terrible suffering that the Covid-19 is inflicting again on the population," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Yesterday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel also announced that her government was preparing to provide emergency assistance. “Vital medical equipment, including hundreds of oxygen concentrators and respirators, is now on its way from the UK to India,” UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said.France will provide "significant support in oxygen capacity" to India which is facing an outbreak of coronavirus cases, by sending "respirators from next week by plane", announced the Elysee yesterday.

The European Union has pledged to provide "assistance" to India, through its European Civil Protection Mechanism

Several days delay

The measures taken by Narendra Modi's government to try to ensure the supply of oxygen to the country's hospitals will take several days to take effect. Indian trains and special flights from abroad, notably from Singapore and Saudi Arabia, are on the way, loaded with equipment. In the meantime, healthcare establishments continue to send heartbreaking SOSs to warn here and there that they only have three, two, sometimes an hour of oxygen left for their patients in intensive care.

The world closes to the Indian variant

At the same time, several countries are closing their doors to India. Neighboring Bangladesh will suspend land crossings for two weeks. The United States is advising against travel there, while Canada suspended flights from India and Pakistan for 30 days on Friday.

THE GENERAL TRIBUNE "FOR A RETURN OF THE HONOR OF OUR GOVERNORS"

"For a return of the honor of our rulers". This column was featured on Wednesday April 21 in Current values ​​but was published on April 8. This forum calls on the political class to fight against “the disintegration” of France. "It is no longer time to procrastinate, otherwise, tomorrow, the civil war will put an end to this growing chaos, and the deaths, for which you will bear the responsibility, will number in the thousands", we can read. The letter from the soldiers, undated, is addressed to the "president", to the government and to parliamentarians, that is to say to all the representatives of the Republic.

"The hour is serious, France is in danger, several mortal dangers threaten it, write the generals. Our honor today lies in the denunciation of the disintegration which strikes our homeland. "This disintegration is based on three points:" a certain anti-racism ", which intends" to create on our soil a malaise, even a hatred between the communities ", but" it is the racial war that these hateful and fanatic partisans want " . Then disintegration "with Islamism and the suburban hordes", then finally with these "demonstrations where the power uses the police as auxiliary agents and scapegoats in the face of French people in yellow vests expressing their despair", "then that infiltrated and hooded individuals ransack businesses and threaten these same police forces ”.

The text had an echo and caused a stir in the political space. This platform calls out to the country's leaders one year before the presidential election. "Do not waste time and know that we are ready to support policies which will take into consideration the safeguard of the nation", they say in this forum of April 21.

Marine Le Pen quickly replied that she shared their analyzes and invited them to join the National Rally (RN). "I subscribe to your analyzes and share your grief," replied the president of the National Rally. The left rebels against this forum of soldiers and the appeal of Marine Le Pen. On Franceinfo Monday April 26, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, Minister Delegate in charge of Industry, "unreservedly condemned this platform of a quarteron of generals in Charente who call for an uprising". An “irresponsible” politicization of the armed forces, retorts Florence Parly, the Minister of the Armed Forces. At the Ministry of the Armed Forces, we are analyzing the list of signatories. If active soldiers appear there, they will be punished , they say.

The pre-campaign has indeed started. Let us not forget the bookstore success achieved last year by General de Villiers' latest book.