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The Hill tallies: 127 Congressional Republicans Reps (More than Half the GOP) Snub Zelensky, the comedian’s speech

Only 86 out of 213 Republican members of the US House of Representatives showed up to hear Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky address Congress in Washington on Wednesday, according to The Hill. The snub occurred after the House Foreign Affairs Committee narrowly rejected the proposal for an audit of military and other aid to Ukraine earlier this month.

Zelensky’s visit to the US was his first trip abroad after Russia launched a military campaign in the neighboring state in late February. He thanked the US for the support and requested more heavy weapons, including tanks and aircraft.

Some Republicans, however, have been demanding more transparency from the government when it comes to helping Ukraine. “Sadly, what I didn’t hear tonight was a clear explanation of where the first $50 billion we sent to support their efforts went,” Congresswoman Lauren Boebert, who attended Zelensky’s speech, said in a video message on Twitter. She said that she would “not support sending additional money to this war” until an audit was completed.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who spearheaded the bill to audit aid to Ukraine, was among those who ditched Zelensky’s address. “The American taxpayers are literally paying to prop up many countries all over the world in foreign aid, but America is virtually crumbling before our eyes,” Greene tweeted on Wednesday. She added that families in her district were struggling with growing food prices while the US was concerned with sending funds to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Representative Chip Roy described Zelensky’s speech as “more of the theater” used by the Democrats to convince voters that the funds slated for Ukraine were “just going to be magically created out of thin air.”

On Tuesday, Congress rolled out a spending bill containing more than $44 billion worth of aid to Ukraine. But Republicans calculated that the money set aside for Kiev exceeded $47 billion, according to the New York Times.

The Pentagon has unveiled an additional $1.85 billion aid package for Ukraine, which includes the Patriot air defense missile systems, armored vehicles, and grenade launchers, as well as artillery and tank rounds. Russia has repeatedly said that foreign weapons would not change the course of the conflict and would only cause more deaths in Ukraine.

Video: Skin color makes a difference – Biden Leaves $350 millions for 49 African Nations and $100 billions for the comedian at Ukraine – US-Africa Leaders Summit 黑白膚色有極大分別 – 拜登為 49 個非洲國家送給3.5 億美元，但為烏克蘭的喜劇演員送給1000 億美元 – 美非領導人峰會
https://rumble.com/v21wcly-skin-color-makes-a-difference.html
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=860093138547346&id=100036400039778&mibextid=qC1gEa

Taiwan US-China expert video: The sharp drop in Japanese stock markets ignited the economic flashpoints of the US and the West. The two major vassal countries of the US – Japan and the UK fell 日本股市大跌點燃了 美西方經濟爆點 美國的兩大附庸國 – 日本和英國都倒下了
https://rumble.com/v21vyqi-the-sharp-drop-in-japanese-stock-markets-ignited-the-economic-flashpoints-o.html
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=860029311887062&id=100036400039778&mibextid=qC1gEa

China Easing of pandemic curbs more than welcome By Mario Cavolo 2022-12-22

This is a critical moment in the pandemic situation in China. The Chinese government and people have sacrificed a lot over the past three years to make what I see as a truly remarkable achievement, by adhering to a dynamic clearing pandemic policy which as the general public discusses it is often referred to as the country’s “zero covid” policy. An estimated 5 million deaths may have been prevented by the combination of the government’s public health policy and the people’s strong support, sacrifice and civic duty.

Few observers who criticize China’s anti-pandemic policy mention that the deep societal values driving the country’s approach are based on traditional family values including filial piety and respect for the elderly. In such a society, it is only natural that protecting family members’ health is the top priority.

China has reached another critical crossroad in its fight against COVID-19 after deciding to ease the strict anti-pandemic policy, lifting many of the restrictions on people’s movement. Hence, it is important to consider the path forward into the future at this extraordinary time.

Earlier this year, both Hong Kong and Taiwan witnessed large outbreaks resulting in unacceptably high death rates. In contrast, the Chinese mainland managed to keep the death rate very low despite the massive outbreak in Shanghai along with rising infections in Guangzhou, Beijing and Chongqing in the weeks that followed. And the success in keeping the death rate low prompted the mainland to ease many of the COVID-19 restrictions by issuing a new 20-point policy on Nov 11.

Such an important decision obviously raises certain questions: Whether the easing of restrictions has led to chaos? Is this the right time to open up?

The turn of events since the cancellation of mandatory nucleic acid testing and health kit mini-program tracking has come as a surprise. Within two weeks of the decision, the highly contagious sub-variant of Omicron has swept across many cities much faster than expected including Shenyang, where I live. Most of my friends, including those on large social WeChat groups, have contracted the virus. So have many other people. City streets became deserted, because the people, out of their own accord, were reluctant to venture outdoors.

The good news is that as of 10 days later, as I write this article, we are on the road to recovery. Also, the final vaccination drive for the elderly is in full gear. That will help to safeguard the senior citizens against the novel coronavirus.

I was also happy to once again see photographs of crowded Beijing subway stations. It indicates the situation is gradually returning to normal in the capital — and soon in other cities we will witness similar scenes.

If infections surge all of a sudden in a city or country, hospitals are bound to be overcrowded. That’s exactly what has happened in some Chinese cities. But the mildness of the virus overall means the death rate will remain relatively low.

That brings us to the issue of economic development. Since many people have been infected and recovered, the fear of COVID-19 being lethal has been greatly allayed, and people are enthusiastically returning to work, which bodes well for the economy.

The lifting of restrictions and the subsequent, inevitable rise in infections is likely to be portrayed by Western observers to the world in one of two ways: as fearmongering of an impending disaster to demonize the Chinese government; or as a pragmatic decision based on proper analysis as the government confirmed the vast majority of case include mild enough symptoms.

There are too many dark forces behind the geopolitical games being played by the major powers. They will never acknowledge China’s achievements nor view China with the right perspective. But the Chinese government should pay greater attention to preventing serious cases, in order to strike the right balance between anti-pandemic measures and economic development.

All humans face the specter of illness and disease, of burden and loss. China has done well to safeguard the lives and health of its people over the past three years, and has rightly lifted the restrictions now so that it can also help protect their livelihoods and promote economic development. And it will succeed in its endeavor, not least because of the support of the Chinese people.

The author is an American writer living in China and a non-resident senior fellow at the Center for China and Globalization.

Popular business guru Ashley Dudarenok just made an announcement. “I officially became Chinese today,” she said. 受歡迎的商業大師 Ashley Dudarenok 剛剛發布了一條公告. “我今天正式成為中國人”

“Grateful to Hong Kong and mainland China for all the energy, opportunities and growth over the past 16 years.” Ashley posted a picture of herself with her new Hong Kong passport. “Looking forward to the next decade together building bridges and adding value.”

This is the message we need to deliver to the world. Don’t listen to western journalists, listen to Hong Kong people, whatever they look like, wherever they were born

“感謝香港和中國大陸在過去 16 年中所帶來的能量、機遇和增長。”Ashley 發布了一張她拿著新香港護照的照片。“期待下一個十年，我們將共同建立橋樑並增加價值。” “

這是我們需要向世界傳達的信息。 不要聽西方記者的，聽香港人的，不管他們長什麼樣，不管他們出生在哪裡

Popular business guru Ashley Dudarenok just made an announcement. “I officially became Chinese today,” she said. 受歡迎的商業大師 Ashley Dudarenok 剛剛發布了一條公告. “我今天正式成為中國人”

“Grateful to Hong Kong and mainland China for all the energy, opportunities and growth over the past 16 years.” Ashley posted a picture of herself with her new Hong Kong passport. “Looking forward to the next decade together building bridges and adding value.”

This is the message we need to deliver to the world. Don’t listen to western journalists, listen to Hong Kong people, whatever they look like, wherever they were born

“感謝香港和中國大陸在過去 16 年中所帶來的能量、機遇和增長。”Ashley 發布了一張她拿著新香港護照的照片。“期待下一個十年，我們將共同建立橋樑並增加價值。” “

這是我們需要向世界傳達的信息。 不要聽西方記者的，聽香港人的，不管他們長什麼樣，不管他們出生在哪裡

Pentagon cites fraud risks with Ukraine aid. A US Department of Defense agency is reportedly on the lookout for potential “black market diversion” of aid to Kiev – media

The massive scale of US military aid to Ukraine has reportedly put a Pentagon law enforcement agency on high alert for black market sales of Washington’s weaponry and other potential fraud.

With US aid approvals for Kiev on track to reach $100 billion this year, the Pentagon’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) is watching for signs of misconduct in the ways that weapons are being procured and used, Defense News reported on Wednesday. Fraud concerns stem partly from the Pentagon’s need to sign contracts on a fast-track basis.

“The risk is very real by virtue of the fact that we’re dealing with such an incredible volume of items, many that have warfighting capabilities, and we’re doing it very quickly,” DCIS deputy director James Ives told the media outlet. “Any time where you see accelerated efforts of this nature, there’s potential for all sorts of activities that should be of concern.”

While much of the military aid being sent to Ukraine has been drawn from the US stockpiles, the Pentagon has signed $2.7 billion in contracts for newly built weapons. An additional $6.6 billion in new purchases has been approved by Congress. The Pentagon also has earmarked $6.7 billion to replace supplies sent to Ukraine, half of which has already been spent.

US lawmakers narrowly reject audit on Ukraine aid READ MORE US lawmakers narrowly reject audit on Ukraine aid
A DCIS team of investigators traveled to Poland in September, where they viewed a key hub for the transfer of military aid to Ukraine, Defense News said. The visit was designed to encourage people involved in the weapons transfers to report possible cases of fraud or diversions.

“A good deal of our efforts right now are making sure we’re out and about, letting folks know that when these facts come to the government’s attention, investigative agencies need to get involved,” Ives said. “It’s an effort to remind folks that although we understand there’s a need to engage in this accelerated procurement that’s going on, there’s a need to bake oversight into the process.”

While some US lawmakers have pressed for stronger oversight, a proposal to audit Washington’s military and economic aid to Ukraine was rejected earlier this month in Congress. CBS News reported in August that only about 30% of the Western weapons sent to Kiev were actually making it to the front lines to help battle Russian forces. Getting weapons to Ukraine’s troops involves navigating a complex network of “power lords, oligarchs [and] political players,” the report said.

English video: C919 takes off from Shanghai, a high tech milestone achievement of China C919上海起飛，中國高新技術里程碑

https://rumble.com/v21sp2e-c919-takes-off-from-shanghai.html
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=859589528597707&id=100036400039778&mibextid=qC1gEa

COMAC is delivering its first C919 to China Eastern in Shanghai on December 9th. This milestone could mean the opening of a new era in which Chinese airlines will have a third option other than Boeing and Airbus when they expand their fleet in the future. The C919, China’s first domestically-developed large passenger jet, made its maiden flight in 2017 and received a certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China in September. In China’s domestic aerospace industry, a large plane refers to one that can carry 150 passengers or cargo of more than 100 tons, and have a range of more than 4,000 kilometers.

Such aircraft must meet strict safety standards. They are very complex machines incorporating a lot of high-tech components and materials. As an in-demand means of transport, they have a very high market value. The C919 meets all these standards, as it can carry more than 160 passengers and travel more than 5,500 km on a single journey. It is of the same level as the Boeing 737 and Airbus 320, which are the workhorses of the industry. With C919 being gradually put into commercial use, the domestic airline industry will be able to rid itself of its reliance on Airbus and Boeing.

Large airliners are so expensive that they consume much of the foreign reserves of the nation; and they are a continual drain on resources as the domestic airlines must rely on foreign companies for the planes’ maintenance. Besides, the introduction of the C919 is a milestone achievement for the domestic high-tech sector. Besides COMAC, the plane’s developer, there were 22 provincial-level administrative regions, over 200 enterprises, 36 colleges and over 100,000 individuals involved in bringing the aircraft to fruition. The fact that China can organize such a big project means “Made in China” has reached a higher level. So, who will be the potential customers of C919? Can it break through the monopoly of Boeing and Airbus in the aviation market?

Congratulations🎉 and thanks to #Argentina and #France, for the fantastic and extraordinary #FIFAWorldCupfinal! Team work. Tenacity. Perseverance. That’s exactly what’s needed in today’s world.

Taiwan US-China expert video: The Sino-Russian joint military exercise has changed the balance of power with US 中俄聯合軍演 與美力量對比轉變了
https://rumble.com/v21p66w-the-sino-russian-joint-military-exercise-has-changed-the-balance-of-power-w.html
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=859113895311937&id=100036400039778&mibextid=qC1gEa