World AM News Briefs For Tuesday, 13 August 2019
Hello Australia!! - Russia's deadly nuclear accident - Will Hong Kong airport get back to normal today? - Argentinaian voters reject austerity, but the markets strike back - And more in your CareerSpot Global News Briefs:
Russia buried five nuclear scientists after last week's failure of a new weapon that has Western military and scientists so concerned that they're calling it Moscow's worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. NATO identifies the nuclear-powered cruise missile that exploded as the SSC-X-9 Skyfall, which would have the ability to fly around the entire world before zeroing in on its target. The scientists were apparently part of a total of seven people killed by the explosion in at the navy's Nenoksa Missile Test Site in the northwestern Arkhangelsk region on Thursday. Russia at first admitted that there was some sort of nuclear leak, but pulled back that report; Norway has since said it had detected radiation.
As envisioned in an announcement by Russian President Vladimir Putin last year, the missile would completely evade US defenses with its ability to fly an unpredictable path at low altitudes and at hyper-sonic speed. At present, US military officials aren't sure what the failure means: It could mean that the missile is further along the development path than the Pentagon realized, or that Vladimir Putin's dream of a super-weapon straight out of science fiction exploded last week. "Our further work on new weapons that we will certainly complete will be the best tribute to them," Alexei Likhachev, director of the Russian state-owned nuclear power company said during the funeral in the closed city of Sarov. "We will fulfill the Motherland's orders and fully protect its security."
Anyway...
It's not clear how many flights will resume at Hong Kong's airport on Tuesday (seriously, check with your airline if you're flying) after authorities canceled all flights at one of the world's busiest airports on Monday because of the pro-democracy protests. Thousands of demonstrators occupied the main terminal building in the biggest disruption yet to the city’s economy since demonstrations escalated in June. Many wore bandages around their heads and an eye patch in solidarity with a female demonstrator who was gravely injured over the weekend by a police officer who fired a projectile at her at point-blank range.
The Canadian teens who murdered NSW man Lucas Fowler and his girlfriend on a remote road in British Columbia last month killed themselves a number of days before their bodies were found in northern Manitoba. The motives of 19-year old Kam McLeod and 18-year old Bryer Schmegelsky may never be determined.
Argentina's Merval stock market plunged 31 percent and the Peso is at the lowest point against the Dollar following conservative capitalist President Mauricio Marci's stunning failure in the weekend primary election. Center-Left opposition leader Alberto Fernandez obtained 47.22 percent of the vote, while the incumbent Macri scored below 33 percent - ironically, just about the number of Argentinians who live in poverty under his austerity-loving regime. Alberto Fernandez' running mate is Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the progressive former president, but the two aren't related by family - just politics and economics.
Authorities in Ohio arrested a friend of the gunman in the Dayton Mass Shooting. Cops say Ethan Kollie purchased body armor, parts of an assault weapon, and a double-drum ammo magazine for Connor Betts using Bett's money prior to the killings of nine people walking outside in an entertainment district. Betts wanted to conceal his weapons purchase from his parents. None of that is illegal in the shooting gallery we call America, but Mr. Kollie allegedly admitted he was a daily user of Cannabis and "magic mushrooms", after denying drug use on his federal gun owner's papers. 'Can't lie on federal forms.
The man who tried and failed to shoot up a mosque in Norway smirked his way through his first court appearance, his eyes blackened and face still swollen from the beat-down delivered by worshippers who tackled him and held him for police. 21-year old Philip Manshaus was allegedly inspired by the Australian white nationalist terrorist who murdered 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, NZ earlier this year.
New Zealand Police say more than 10,000 guns were turned in during the first month of a government buy-back scheme inspired by the Christchurch terrorist murders.
How about a pair of white lion cubs at a big cat rescue in northern France?