Biden Can Still Counter the Bogus Right-Wing Student Loan Lawsuits

Maybe you are one of the 26 million people who have applied to have their student debt reduced or eliminated entirely. You probably breathed a sigh of relief when you hit “Submit,” knowing that, in the new year, you’ll have an easier time paying rent, buying food, or maybe saving to buy a home or for retirement.

Biden Can Still Counter the Bogus Right-Wing Student Loan Lawsuits

Musk Agrees to Restore Twitter Content-Moderation Tools This Week

Musk Agrees to Restore Twitter Content-Moderation Tools This Week

Musk made the commitment during a Zoom meeting with the heads of some of the country’s leading racial justice organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Color of Change, and the Anti-Defamation League.

Musk also asked the civil rights leaders to join his content-moderation council focused on handling speech and users on the platform, they said.

Eisenstadt, ADL’s vice president, said her group will likely accept the invitation, though several attendees said they will hold off until they get more information about what the council will look like, how it will operate and who else will serve on it.

Related:

Anti-Defamation League Promises a War Against Palestine and Civil Liberties

Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt equates anti-Zionism to white supremacy, claiming that “anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism”

Judge O’Connor Rules that the Boeing 737 MAX Crashes Victims’ Families Represent Protected “Crime Victims” and Can Seek Boeing’s Prosecution

“In sum, but for Boeing’s criminal conspiracy to defraud the FAA, 346 people would not have lost their lives in the crashes.”

Judge O’Connor Rules that the Boeing 737 MAX Crashes Victims’ Families Represent Protected “Crime Victims” and Can Seek Boeing’s Prosecution

H/T: Steve Lehto

Starlink, Ukraine and Musk’s Payment Request

Starlink, Ukraine and Musk’s Payment Request

The Ukrainians are now asking SpaceX for an additional 6,200 terminals and around 500 new terminals every month to replace those which on average the Russians manage to destroy in that time.

Related:

Elon Musk Says Starlink, SpaceX Faced ‘Relentless Jamming, Cyberwar,’ Courtesy Russia

Musk also confirmed that some Starlink terminals were active in Iran — a country rocked by protests in recent days.

Pentagon considers funding Musk’s Starlink network for Ukraine – Politico

The Pentagon is considering paying for Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite network in war-torn Ukraine, Politico reported on Monday, citing two U.S. officials involved in the discussions.

EU weighs paying for Musk’s donated Starlink internet service in Ukraine

But the EU is evaluating whether to negotiate a formal contract with SpaceX and set up a joint fund to pay for the Starlink terminals the company donated. EU officials will also explore alternative satellite options, they said.

Proponents of a fund say that it would allow them to take Musk to court if he suspended the service, rather than relying simply on his personal decision to keep providing it.

Saudis say US sought 1 month delay of OPEC+ production cuts

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia said Thursday that the U.S. had urged it to postpone a decision by OPEC and its allies — including Russia — to cut oil production by a month. Such a delay could have helped reduce the risk of a spike in gas prices ahead of the U.S. midterm elections next month.

Saudis say US sought 1 month delay of OPEC+ production cuts

Related:

Saudi Arabia Defied U.S. Warnings Ahead of OPEC+ Production Cut

The one-month delay requested by Washington would have meant a production cut made in the days before the election, too late to have much effect on consumers’ wallets ahead of the vote.

To entice the Saudis to delay their decision, U.S. officials told the kingdom they would buy oil on the market to replenish Washington’s strategic stockpiles if the price of Brent, the main international benchmark, fell to $75 a barrel, according to U.S. officials and people inside the Saudi government.

Quid pro quo, huh?! 🧐💭

Health Insurance Whistleblower: Medicare Advantage Is “Heist” by Private Firms to Defraud the Public

Many of the nation’s largest health insurance companies have made billions of dollars in profits by overbilling the U.S. government’s Medicare Advantage program. A New York Times investigation has revealed that under the Advantage program, health insurance companies are incentivized to make patients appear more ill than they actually are. Some estimates find it has cost the government between $12 billion and $25 billion in 2020 alone. We speak with former healthcare insurance executive Wendell Potter, now president of the Center for Health and Democracy, who says Medicare Advantage will be recognized in years to come as the “biggest transfer of wealth” from taxpayers to corporate shareholders, and blames the lack of regulation over the program on the “revolving door between private industry and government.”

Health Insurance Whistleblower: Medicare Advantage Is “Heist” by Private Firms to Defraud the Public

Related:

‘The Cash Monster Was Insatiable’: How Insurers Exploited Medicare for Billions (archived)