Washington is bracing for the start of a possible trade war between the United States and its closest allies and biggest commercial partners and a radical departure from America’s trading posture of the last seven decades. VOA’s Michael Bowman reports, the Trump administration is not backing down from last week’s announcement of looming tariffs on foreign-made steel and aluminum, with further details expected in coming days
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From: MeNeedIt
Social media users like to have friends and followers on various platforms. But how many accounts are real and how many are generated by computers? Two university students in California say they have a way of detecting if you’re communicating with a human or a “bot”. Michelle Quinn reports.
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From: MeNeedIt
A graphic medicine exhibit has opened at the U.S. National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health, showcasing comics that show the medical journeys experienced by patients and caregivers. Organizers hope this ‘new language’ will give clinicians and policy makers a more personalized way of understanding the issues faced by them both. From Washington, VOA’s Jill Craig has more.
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From: MeNeedIt
President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday to impose a tax on European cars if the European Union chooses to retaliate against his plans to place tariffs on imported steel and aluminum.
In a tweet Saturday morning, Trump said the U.S. had an “$800 Billion Dollar Yearly” trade imbalance because of “very stupid” trade deals and policies. He warned that if the EU increased “tariffs and barriers” against American-made products, “we will simply add a Tax on their Cars.”
Presently, the U.S. imposes a 2.5 percent tariff on European-built cars and Europe imposes a 10 percent tariff on U.S.-built cars.
Earlier this week, Trump announced that he plans sometime in the coming week to impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum imports. He said the tariffs would be in effect for a long period of time.
Trump’s tweet Saturday appeared to be in response to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s warning that the EU could respond by taxing quintessentially American-made products, such as bourbon whiskey, blue jeans and Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
Juncker told German media Friday that he does not like the words “trade war.” “But I can’t see how this isn’t part of warlike behavior,” he said.
Trump had tweeted earlier in the day: “Trade wars are good, and easy to win.”
Trump’s announcement, made during a meeting with steel and aluminum industry executives at the White House, led a sharp drop in the U.S. markets and sparked concerns of a trade war Friday.
China, Canada respond
Later Friday, China warned about the “huge impact” on global trading if Trump proceeds with his tariff plans.
Wang Hejun, head of China’s commerce ministry’s trade remedy and investigation bureau, said in a statement the tariffs would “seriously damage multilateral trade mechanisms represented by the World Trade Organization and will surely have huge impact on normal international trade order.”
The Chinese official added, “If the final measures of the United States hurt Chinese interests, China will work with other affected countries in taking measures to safeguard its own rights and interests.”
China ranks 11th among the countries that export steel to the U.S.
Canada is the United States’ biggest foreign source of both materials.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that Trump’s tariff plans were “absolutely unacceptable.” He said he is prepared to “defend Canadian industry” and warned the tariffs would also hurt U.S. consumers and businesses by driving up prices.
The director of the World Trade Organization, Roberto Azevedo, responded coolly, saying, “A trade war is in no one’s interests.”
Trump spent Friday defending his threat to impose the tariffs, saying potential trade conflicts can be beneficial to the United States.
“When a country (USA) is losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with, trade wars are good, and easy to win,” Trump wrote in a post on the social media site Twitter. “Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade anymore – we win big. It’s easy!”
A Japanese government official told VOA that Tokyo “has explained several times to the U.S. government our concerns,” but declined to comment further on any ongoing discussions with Washington.
“While we are aware of the president’s statement, we understand that the official decision has not been made yet,” the Japanese official said. “If the U.S. is going to implement any measures, we expect the measures be WTO-rules consistent.”
China on Friday expressed “grave concern” about the matter.
Trump said Thursday the tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum imports will be in effect for a long period of time. He said the measure will be signed “sometime next week.”
In 2017, Canada, Brazil, South Korea and Mexico accounted for nearly half of all U.S. steel imports. That year, Chinese steel accounted for less than 2 percent of overall U.S. imports.
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From: MeNeedIt
Hollywood crowns its best and its worst this weekend. On Saturday, the Golden Raspberry Awards (or Razzies) were “awarded” to the worst movies while another, more serious fete recognized achievement in independent film. On Sunday the 90th Annual Academy Awards – better known as the Oscars – will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.
“The Emoji Movie” took top honors with the Worst Picture prize at the Razzie awards on Saturday, a gag award given by a group of Hollywood industry insiders known as the Golden Raspberry Foundation. The first full-length animation film to win the Worst Picture award, “The Emoji Movie” also scored wins for worst screenplay, worst director, and worst screen combo.
Watch the Golden Raspberry Awards:
Tom Cruise was selected as Worst Actor for his work in “The Mummy,” while Tyler Perry – a male actor whose most famous character is a woman named Madea – got Best Actress for “Boo 2! A Madea Halloween.” Hollywood long-timers Mel Gibson and Kim Basinger took the Razzies for supporting roles in “Daddy’s Home 2” and “Fifty Shades Darker.”
A new Razzie category debuted this year: The Razzie Nominee So Rotten You Loved It. The winner was “Baywatch,” a movie about Los Angeles County lifeguards. The winner is selected by the general public through an online poll.
The Golden Raspberry Foundation also posted a tongue-in-cheek “In Memoriam” video – a parody of the Academy Awards’ annual remembrance of those who died in the past year – that highlighted men in the entertainment industry accused of sexual harassment. While suggesting their careers have died because of the allegations, the video ends by saying “We Won’t Be Missing You.”
Also Saturday, the independent film industry took its awards ceremony to the beach, in a free-wheeling afternoon party meant to contrast sharply with the pomp of the Oscars ceremony the following night.
The Film Independent Spirit Awards gave top directing honors to comedian Jordan Peele for “Get Out,” a horror comedy exploring relations between blacks and whites in modern-day America.
Best International Film went to director Sebastian Lelio of Chile, for “A Fantastic Woman,” a murder mystery centered on a transgender woman.
Greta Gerwig won Best Screenplay for the coming-of-age story “Lady Bird,” which features a mother and daughter at odds with each other. Gerwig also directed the film.
And the award for Best First Screenplay, a separate category, went to Pakistani-American comic Kumail Nanjiani for “The Big Sick,” a semi-autobiographical romance.
On Sunday, the red carpets will be out for Hollywood’s biggest night, the Academy Awards. Among the frontrunners for Best Picture are Spanish director Guillermo del Toro’s fantasy “The Shape of Water,” Christopher Nolan’s historical picture “Dunkirk,” and Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” Peele’s “Get Out” and Gerwig’s “Lady Bird” are also among the contenders.
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From: MeNeedIt
About half a million people are expected to line Sydney’s streets Saturday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, the first time the annual parade has taken place since Australia legalized same-sex marriage.
The event started in 1978 as a protest march for gay rights and the decriminalization of homosexuality but has since grown into a major tourist spectacle featuring leather, sequins, glitter, lasers and dance music. It is now Sydney’s biggest street party and a major focal point for Australia’s gay and lesbian community.
This year’s procession includes 200 floats and groups of street dancers and will be headed by Dykes on Bikes, a motorcycle club.
Pop superstar Cher will headline the parade’s official party.
Same-sex marriage legalized
Australians overwhelmingly endorsed legalizing same-sex marriage in a postal survey in a country where sodomy laws were still in place in some states until as recently as the 1990s.
This year’s Mardi Gras will honor the 78ers, a group of people involved in the original protest, which took place June 24, 1978, as a peaceful march for gay rights that sparked the annual parade.
That protest was marred by police brutality with 53 people arrested in subsequent scuffles. Police have since apologized for the events of 1978 and now march each year in the parade alongside other emergency services.
Changing attitudes
Bruce Pollack, a Mardi Gras volunteer since 1984, said the parade has played a major role in changing attitudes toward the LGBT community over the decades.
“I was involved in the gay and lesbian counseling service … you would always hear young gays, and older gays, and much older gays say ‘it’s OK to come out because I saw people like me in the parade enjoying themselves — and there were spectators,’” Pollack told Reuters. “It was Mardi Gras that made it OK to be gay and lesbian and bisexual and transgender.”
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From: MeNeedIt
The tiny Marshall Islands is creating its own digital currency in order to raise some hard cash to pay bills and boost the economy.
The Pacific island nation said it became the first country in the world to recognize a cryptocurrency as its legal tender when it passed a law this week to create the digital “Sovereign,” or SOV. In the nation of 60,000, the cryptocurrency will have equal status with the U.S. dollar as a form of payment.
Venezuela last month became the first country to launch its own cryptocurrency when it launched the virtual Petro, backed by crude oil reserves. The Marshall Islands said the SOV will be different because it will be recognized in law as legal tender, effectively backed by the government.
Israeli partners
The Marshall Islands is partnering with Israeli company Neema to launch the SOV. It plans to sell some of the currency to international investors and spend the proceeds.
The Marshall Islands says the SOV will require users to identify themselves, thus avoiding the anonymity that has kept bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies from gaining support from governments.
“This is a historic moment for our people, finally issuing and using our own currency, alongside the USD (U.S. dollar),” said President Hilda Heine in a statement. “It is another step of manifesting our national liberty.”
The Marshall Islands is closely aligned with the U.S. under a Compact of Free Association and uses the dollar as its currency. Under the compact, the U.S. provides the Marshall Islands with about $70 million each year in assistance. The U.S. runs a military base on Kwajalein Atoll.
Lawmakers passed the cryptocurrency measure Monday following five days of heated debate. It’s unclear when the nation will issue the currency.
Leaders hope the SOV will one day be used by residents for everything from paying taxes to buying groceries.
Initial offering: 24 million
The law states that the Marshall Islands will issue 24 million SOVs in what it calls an Initial Currency Offering. Half of those will go to the government and half to Neema.
The Marshall Islands intends to initially sell 6 million SOVs to international investors. It says it will use the money to help pay the budget, invest in projects to mitigate the effects of global warming, and support those people still affected by U.S. nuclear testing.
The country also intends to hand out 2.4 million SOVs to residents.
Neema Chief Executive Barak Ben-Ezer said the SOV marked a new era for cryptocurrency.
“SOV is about getting rid of the excuses” for not shifting to digital assets, he said in a statement. He said it solved a huge problem with cryptocurrencies, which haven’t previously been recognized as “real” money by banks, regulators and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.
Some lawmakers expressed concern about the large amount of the new currency that would go to the Israeli company, while others argued the country had urgent needs and the cash would help.
Jehan Chu, the Hong Kong-based co-founder of blockchain platform Kenetic, said he thought it was an amazing move by the Marshall Islands and was the way of the future.
“Physical currency is going by the wayside as an antiquated, obsolete form of transacting,” he said.
But Chu added that he didn’t think the currency would hold much appeal for international investors or be particularly valuable outside the Marshall Islands.
And many people in the Marshall Islands and beyond remain skeptical of cryptocurrencies.
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney this week said a global speculative mania had encouraged a proliferation of the currencies, and that they needed to be held to the same standards as the rest of the financial system.
“The prices of many cryptocurrencies have exhibited the classic hallmarks of bubbles … reliant in part on finding the greater fool,” Carney said in a speech to the Scottish Economics conference in Edinburgh.
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From: MeNeedIt
In agitating for a trade war, President Donald Trump may have forgotten William Tecumseh Sherman’s adage that “war is hell.”
The Civil War general’s observation can be apt for trade wars, which may create conditions for a shooting war.
A look at Trump’s spoiling-for-a-fight tweet Friday:
TRUMP: “When a country (USA) is losing many billions of dollars on trade with virtually every country it does business with, trade wars are good, and easy to win. Example, when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade anymore-we win big. It’s easy!”
THE FACTS: History suggests that trade wars are not easy.
The president’s argument, in essence, is that high tariffs will force other countries to relent quickly on what he sees as unfair trading practices, and that will wipe out the trade gap and create factory jobs. That’s his motivation for announcing that the U.S. will impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminum imports.
The record shows that tariffs, while they may help certain domestic manufacturers, can come at a broad cost. They can raise prices for consumers and businesses because companies pass on at least some of the higher costs of imported materials to their customers. Winning and losing isn’t as simple a matter as tracking the trade gap.
The State Department’s office of the historian looked at tariffs passed in the 1920s and 1930s to protect farms and other industries that were losing their markets in Europe as the continent recovered from World War I. The U.S. duties hurt Europe and made it harder for those countries to repay their war debts, while exposing farmers and consumers in the U.S. to higher prices. European nations responded by raising their tariffs and the volume of world trade predictably slowed by 1934.
The State Department says the tariffs exacerbated the global effects of the Great Depression while doing nothing to foster political or economic cooperation among countries. This was a diplomatic way of saying that the economic struggles helped embolden extremist politics and geopolitical rivalries before World War II.
Nor have past protectionist measures saved the steel industry, as Trump says his tariffs would.
The United States first became a net importer of steel in 1959, when steelworkers staged a 116-day strike, according to research by Michael O. Moore, a George Washington University economist. After that, U.S. administrations imposed protectionist policies, only to see global competitors adapt and the U.S. share of global steel production decline.
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From: MeNeedIt
China has warned about the “huge impact” on global trading, if U.S. President Donald Trump proceeds with his plans to impose 25 percent tariffs on imported steel and 10 percent on imported aluminum products.
Wang Hejun, head of China’s commerce ministry’s trade remedy and investigation bureau, said in a statement late Friday the tariffs would “seriously damage multilateral trade mechanisms represented by the World Trade Organization and will surely have huge impact on normal international trade order.”
The Chinese official added, “If the final measures of the United States hurt Chinese interests, China will work with other affected countries in taking measures to safeguard its own rights and interests.”
Allies weigh in
Meanwhile earlier Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Trump’s tariff plans were “absolutely unacceptable.”
Trudeau said Friday he is prepared to “defend Canadian industry.” Canada is the United States’ biggest foreign source of both materials. He warned that the tariffs would also hurt U.S. consumers and businesses by driving up prices.
The European Union was also stung by Trump’s plan, as evidenced by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s warning that the EU could respond by taxing quintessentially American-made products, such as bourbon whiskey, blue jeans and Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
Juncker told German media Friday that he does not like the words “trade war.”
“But I can’t see how this isn’t part of warlike behavior,” he said.
Trump had tweeted earlier in the day: “Trade wars are good, and easy to win.”
The director of the World Trade Organization, Roberto Azevedo, responded coolly, saying, “A trade war is in no one’s interests.”
Currency markets
The currency market responded with a drop in the value of the U.S. dollar against most other major currencies. It ended the day at its lowest level against the yen in two years. The euro gained a half-percent against the dollar Friday.
And the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the trading week with its fourth decline in as many days, ending at 24,538.06. The Nasdaq and S&P 500, however, rose slightly after a three-day losing streak.
Trump spent Friday defending his threat to impose the tariffs, saying potential trade conflicts can be beneficial to the United States.
A Japanese government official told VOA that Tokyo “has explained several times to the U.S. government our concerns,” but declined to comment further on any ongoing discussions with Washington.
“While we are aware of the president’s statement, we understand that the official decision has not been made yet,” the Japanese official said. “If the U.S. is going to implement any measures, we expect the measures be WTO-rules consistent.”
Trump said Thursday the tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum imports will be in effect for a long period of time. He said the measure will be signed “sometime next week.”
In 2017, Canada, Brazil, South Korea and Mexico accounted for nearly half of all U.S. steel imports. That year, Chinese steel accounted for less than 2 percent of overall U.S. imports.
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From: MeNeedIt
The 46th running of Alaska’s famed Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race kicks off Saturday amid the most turbulent year ever for the annual long-distance contest that spans mountain ranges, the frozen Yukon River and dangerous sea ice along the Bering Sea coast.
Among the multiple problems: a champion’s dog doping scandal, the loss of major sponsor Wells Fargo, discontent among mushers and escalating pressure from animal rights activists, who say the dogs are run to death or left with serious injuries. The Iditarod has had its ups and downs over the decades, but the current storm of troubles is raising questions about the future of the 1,000-mile (1,600-kilometer) race that for many symbolizes the contest between mortals and Alaska’s unforgiving nature.
Leo Rasmussen, one of the race’s founders, predicted the Iditarod is heading for extinction within the next few years, given an “extreme lack of organization” from its leadership.
“You can only burn so many stumps, you know, and you’re done,” he says.
Iditarod CEO Stan Hooley acknowledged organizers have weathered a dark time but disagreed the race faces an uncertain future.
“There’s always going to be an Iditarod,” he said. “I consider this more of a growing process than anything else.”
The Iditarod’s governing board disclosed in October that four dogs belonging to four-time winner Dallas Seavey tested positive for a banned substance, the opioid painkiller tramadol, after his second-place finish last March behind his father, Mitch Seavey. It faced criticism for not releasing the information sooner.
The Iditarod said it couldn’t prove Dallas Seavey administered the drugs to his dogs, and didn’t punish him. Since then, the rules have been changed to hold mushers liable for any positive drug test unless they can show something beyond their control happened.
The younger Seavey, who denied administering tramadol to his dogs, also came under scrutiny when the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, a longtime race critic, complained about a kennel operated by the musher based on allegations of sick, injured or dead dogs. Local investigators said they found no evidence of animal cruelty in the matter.
Dallas Seavey is sitting out this year’s race in protest over the handling of the doping investigation. Instead, he is in Norway to participate in another sled dog race, the Finnmarkslopet, which begins March 9.
PETA protest
The deaths of five dogs connected to last year’s race also played a role in increasing pressure from animal rights activists. Three of the deaths occurred during the race, and two dogs died after being dropped from the competition. One got loose from a handler and was hit by a car, and another died as it was flown to Anchorage, likely from hyperthermia. The race went without dog deaths in several recent years.
PETA says that for the first time, about a dozen of its members will protest the race in person at the ceremonial and competitive starts and at the finish line, in the remote coastal town of Nome. They plan to bring five headstones with the names of the dogs that died in 2017.
By PETA’s count, the dog deaths bring the total to more than 150 over the Iditarod’s history. Race officials dispute those numbers but have not provided their own despite numerous requests from The Associated Press.
“If the human participants want to race to Nome, have at it,” PETA spokeswoman Colleen O’Brien said. “But don’t force these dogs to run until their paws are bloody and they die on the trail.”
Race officials blame activists for using manipulative information to pressure corporate sponsors like Wells Fargo, a longtime backer that severed ties to the Iditarod last spring.
Mitch Seavey, who is seeking a fourth Iditarod championship, said his son is the happiest he’s seen him in months, and is reveling in heavy snow in Norway. The elder Seavey said he himself is not going to be distracted by “all the noise,” but is focusing on his dogs and the race ahead.
“There’s been a lot of craziness, but it’s the people who are insane,” he said. “The dogs aren’t crazy.”
Climate change
There’s one bright spot for organizers: Optimal trail conditions. A warming climate in recent years has caused significant disruptions, including the rerouting of the 2017 and 2015 races hundreds of miles to the north because of dangerous conditions. As always, the race will begin with the customary ceremonial start in Anchorage, but the competitive portion beginning Sunday north of Anchorage will follow a southern route for the first time since 2013. Traditionally, southern and northern routes are alternated every year.
The late timing of the Iditarod Trail Committee’s disclosure of the doping matter prompted the race’s major sponsors to commission an independent consultant late last year. The consultant’s report said the committee took months to release the information, causing concerns among many about a lack of transparency.
The consultant called on organizers to develop a plan to rebuild trust with mushers and sponsors.
“Both of these partner groups are on the verge of withdrawing their support for this race as a result of their distrust in this board,” the report states.
More recently, a group of mushers named the Iditarod Official Finishers Club has called for the resignation of the Iditarod board president and other board leaders it says have conflicts. It also has criticized the board in its handling of the doping scandal. Hooley, the race CEO, said conversations are under way to replace some members.
Four-time winner Jeff King said he sees room for improvements after the doping controversy caught organizers “flat-footed,” and he is ready for a significant change in the board leadership. But he doesn’t believe the Iditarod is nearing the end of its lifespan, and laughs when asked about it.
“You can count on from me, and many mushers that I would bet my life on, that we will continue to do the best we can for our dogs and the event,” he said.
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From: MeNeedIt
President Donald Trump isn’t pleased with Alec Baldwin’s latest comment that impersonating the president is “agony,” and is suggesting Saturday Night Live replace the comedian.
“Alec Baldwin, whose dying mediocre career was saved by his terrible impersonation of me on SNL, now says playing me was agony. Alec, it was agony for those who were forced to watch. Bring back Darrell Hammond, funnier and a far greater talent!” Trump tweeted.
Baldwin responded in a series of tweets.
“Agony though it may be, I’d like to hang in there for the impeachment hearings, the resignation speech, the farewell helicopter ride to Mara-A-Lago [sic]. You know. The Good Stuff. That we’ve all been waiting for.”
Baldwin also tweeted that he was “Looking forward to the Trump Presidential Library” and suggested that it would contain a live Twitter feed and “a little black book w the phone numbers of porn stars.” In a third tweet, he asked that first lady Melania Trump stop calling him to ask for tickets to “Saturday Night Live.”
Baldwin, a Democratic activist, received an Emmy award for his running parody last year on Saturday Night Live, or SNL. But he tells The Hollywood Reporter that he doesn’t enjoy it: “Every time I do it now, it’s like agony. Agony. I can’t.”
The comedian joked that if Trump wins in 2020 he might “host a game show in Spain.”
From: MeNeedIt