“Brazil and India have signed an agreement to boost cooperation on critical minerals and rare earths, as the Indian government seeks new suppliers to curb its dependence on China. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Saturday and discussed boosting trade and investment opportunities. … China dominates the mining and processing of the world’s rare-earth and critical minerals, and has increased its grip on exports in recent months as the United States attempts to break its hold on the growing industry. Still, for Brazil, which follows China as the world’s second-largest holder of critical minerals, its resources are used across a range of fields, including electric vehicles, solar panels, smartphones, jet engines, and guided missiles.” (02/21/26)
“The former police chief in New Haven, Connecticut, was arrested Friday on larceny charges following allegations he stole $85,000 from two department accounts. Karl Jacobson, 56, who abruptly retired from the department in January, turned himself in on an arrest warrant. He was later released on a court-set bond of $150,000, a state prosecutor said in a news release. Jacobson faces two counts of larceny related to defrauding a public community. … The state prosecutor’s office said Friday the city of New Haven first reported the embezzlement allegations on Jan. 5, which prompted an investigation by the Connecticut State Police. The probe revealed $81,500 was unaccounted for or misappropriated from the New Haven Police Department Narcotic Enforcement Fund between Jan. 1, 2024, and Jan. 5, 2026. Money from the fund is used to pay confidential informants who help in narcotics investigations.” (02/20/26)
“The labor union pushing forward the highly controversial billionaire’s wealth tax is launching its first TV ad during the Olympics this weekend, SFGATE has learned. The 30-second ad, paid for by the Service Employees International Union, a health care union, will play during the men’s gold hockey game Sunday, the union confirmed. The commercial warns that California’s health care industry is under threat of collapse under looming federal health care cuts, and warns that more hospitals could close and that there are likely to be ‘longer wait times and overcrowded emergency rooms’ as a result. ‘Massive federal cuts will shut hospitals and emergency rooms forever because billionaires refuse to pay their fair share,’ the commercial says.” [editor’s note: And when the billionaires leave (and defeat the ex post facto part of the proposal in court)? How much tax revenue evaporates THEN? – TLK] (02/21/26)
“It looks like a March launch is no longer in the cards for Artemis II, NASA’s first crewed trip to the moon’s vicinity since the final Apollo mission over 50 years ago. While preparations were underway at the Kennedy Space Center for a launch as soon as March 6, the space agency says it ran into an issue with the flow of helium to its SLS rocket’s upper stage this weekend and it now has to roll the rocket from the launch pad back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) to figure out what’s wrong and fix it. A media briefing is planned for sometime this week to discuss the problem and what’s next.” (02/22/26)
“Former U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney, a Georgia Democrat who later became the Green Party’s 2008 presidential nominee, has declared her candidacy for Georgia’s 14th congressional district, seeking a return to Congress this November as a Green candidate. McKinney announced her bid this week, saying her campaign would prioritize healthcare and education, economic justice, and constitutional rights. … McKinney represented Georgia’s 11th congressional district as a Democrat from 1992 through 1996, and then its 4th district through 2002 after the Supreme Court ruled the former a racial gerrymander. While in office, she gained national attention for her frequent criticism of U.S. foreign policy and the Bush administration’s handling of Iraq following the September 11 attacks as well as her views on Israel and Palestine, factors that contributed to her defeat in the 2002 Democratic primary. She returned to Congress in 2004 for another term before losing in a Democratic primary runoff.” (02/20/26)
“A Pennsylvania high school senior is facing hundreds of felony charges after authorities reportedly accused him of operating a ‘large-scale criminal network’ involving sextortion and catfishing. Zachariah Abraham Meyers, 18, of McMurray — about 15 miles southwest of Pittsburgh — was arrested Friday and charged with more than 300 felonies, including trafficking in minors, sexual extortion, unlawful contact with a minor, distribution of child sexual abuse material, among other offenses, according to a court docket obtained by Fox News Digital. Police allege Meyers, a senior at Peters Township High School, used social media platforms, including TikTok and Snapchat, to lure the victims into communicating with him, according to local outlets WTAE and WPXI.” (02/22/26)
“Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Prime Minister of Greenland, on Sunday (February 22) rejected an offer by US President Donald Trump to send an American hospital ship to the Arctic territory, saying Greenland’s public healthcare system is sufficient and free for its citizens. … The response came a day after Trump announced on social media that he was coordinating with Jeff Landry, Governor of Louisiana and described as a special envoy to Greenland, to dispatch what he called a ‘great hospital boat’ to assist residents.” (02/22/26)
“Poland will use anti-personnel as well as anti-tank landmines to defend its eastern border against the growing threat from Russia, Poland’s deputy defence minister told The Associated Press on Friday, as the country officially left an international convention banning the use of the controversial weapons. The 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty, also known as the Ottawa Convention, prohibits signatories from keeping or using anti-personnel mines, which can last for years and are known for having caused large-scale suffering among civilians in former conflict zones in countries including Cambodia, Angola and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Poland, which ratified the document in 2012 and completed the destruction of its domestic anti-personnel mine stockpile in 2016, withdrew from the treaty on Friday and says it plans to renew manufacturing weapons.” (02/20/26)
“Pakistan has carried out multiple overnight air strikes on Afghanistan, which the Taliban has said killed at least 18 people, including women and children. Islamabad said the attacks targeted seven alleged militant camps and hideouts near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and that they had been launched after recent suicide bombings in Pakistan. Afghanistan condemned the attacks, saying they targeted multiple civilian homes and a religious school. The fresh strikes come after the two countries agreed to a fragile ceasefire in October following deadly cross-border clashes, though subsequent fighting has taken place.” (02/22/26)
“Nurses and hospitals in New York City have reached a tentative agreement to end the nurses strike after six weeks of picketing. About 15,000 nurses in the New York State Nurses Association went on strike on Jan. 12 from Mount Sinai Hospital, Mount Sinai Morningside, Mount Sinai West, Montefiore Einstein and New York-Presbyterian/Columbia. New York-Presbyterian/Columbia is the only hospital left with striking nurses as the others have all reached deals with the union. The 4,000 nurses at New York-Presbyterian held out for a better deal.” (02/20/26)
