[WXII 12] Targeted killing
The CEO of UnitedHealthcare was shot and killed in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday morning, a law enforcement official tells CNN.
Brian Thompson was walking toward the New York Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, dressed in a suit and tie, to attend UnitedHealthcare’s annual investor conference being held in the ballroom.
A gunman, who investigators tell CNN was masked in the sub-freezing temperatures, waited for about 10 minutes before Thompson’s arrival, before opening fire from 20 feet away shooting multiple times, striking Thompson.
The gunman fled, cutting through an alleyway and hopping on to a bicycle, the official told CNN. Investigators are continuing to canvas the area. Police currently believe that the suspect fled into Central Park.
The 50-year-old executive was shot in the chest. Responding emergency workers took him to Mount Sinai West in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead, according to the NYPD.
“We are deeply saddened by this morning’s events in the area and our thoughts are with all affected by the tragedy. Additional questions should be directed to the New York Police Department,” a New York Hilton Midtown spokesperson told CNN.
Details on the circumstances are not immediately clear, but investigators say it appears to be a targeted shooting. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing, the NYPD said. Police are expected to provide a briefing on the incident later this morning.
CNN has reached out to UnitedHealthcare for comment.
Thompson was named chief executive officer for UnitedHealthcare in April 2021. UnitedHealthcare is part of UnitedHealth Group, ranked fifth in the Fortune 500, according to the company.
UnitedHealthcare’s parent company, UnitedHealth Group, abruptly ended its scheduled conference Wednesday morning, citing “a very serious medical situation with one of our team members.” The company did not comment further.
The suspect was described as a white male wearing a cream-colored jacket, black face mask, and black and white sneakers. Officials said he was carrying a gray backpack.
Witnesses told The Post the suspect had been spotted near the vicinity of the hotel, on 6th Avenue, milling around.
Sources said the shooter wasn’t a guest at the hotel but it is unclear if he had other business there.
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/04/2024 09:56 ||
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#1
Strange target for an assassination. Maybe a jealous husband? Somehow I have a feeling this is going an a Netflix crime show.
#7
"Reminder: The Medicare Open Enrollment period ends December 7th. This is what can happen to you without a Medicare Advantage Plan"
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/04/2024 12:20 Comments ||
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#8
Someone overreacting to a health insurance claim or proposed treatment being denied?
That would be my first guess. But then, some of the investors might be unhappy about the way the company is being run and chose this option instead of a proxy battle. It does sound like a cold, calculated hit and not just random New York street crime.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
12/04/2024 12:41 Comments ||
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#13
1 media report said there were 3 spent casings and 3 live rounds found at the scene. It appears the gun malfunctioned and shooter had to tap rack bang a few times. Prolly due to suppressor and wrong ammo. Lowers likelihood of a pro hit IMHO. Committed - yes. Professional - ugh...
Posted by: Bangkok Billy ||
12/04/2024 14:42 Comments ||
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#16
#13
reduced backpressure caused cyclic failure, meaning he shooter didn't have experience shooting that specific weapon silenced, not the mark of a professional hitter.
#21
Someone overreacting to a health insurance claim or proposed treatment being denied
Well, I’m the past five years over two million Americans were killed by mandated substandard medical practice and withholding of treatment. I think it’s kind of obvious they want to send a message to everyone in the enabling bureaucracy to keep their mouth shut.
BREAKING: Federal authorities will announce charges today against a Chinese illegal immigrant living in Southern California who they allege was shipping large amounts of weapons, ammunition, and military tech to North Korea at the direction of North Korean government officials.… pic.twitter.com/PDCbdHZexM
According to the now unsealed federal affidavit, SHENGHUA WEN, who has been living in Ontario, California, successfully exported at least two shipments of firearms and ammunition to North Korea by concealing the items in shipping containers that were shipped from Long Beach, CA, through Hong Kong, China, to North Korea.
In August, federal agents also seized from his home a Serstech Arx mkII Pharma device (chemical threat identification device) and an ANDRE Deluxe Near-Field Detection device (a handheld broadband receiver that detects known, unknown, illegal, disruptive, or interfering transmissions, used for locating hidden eavesdropping devices. Feds say he admitted he planned to send both to the North Korean military.
In September, federal agents seized from a van outside his home 50,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition that he admitted he planned to send to NK at the direction of NK officials. Feds say as an illegal immigrant, WEN is prohibited from having any guns or ammo.
Feds say WEN used encrypted messaging app Wickr to communicate w/ the North Korean government officials, and that they wired him $2 million to purchase weapons for them.
WEN told Feds he purchased most of the firearms he sent to NK in Texas and then drove them to California on three separate trips.
Feds say WEN also stated that NK government officials directed him to buy U.S. civilian plane engines for the NK military, which would be used to help develop the NK military drone program, and that the NK officials wanted him to obtain military uniforms for the NK military which would be used to disguise their soldiers in a surprise attack on South Korea.
Agents also recovered images from WEN’s phone sent between him and other co conspirators, regarding weapons and items he intended to ship to North Korea, including a STAR SAFIRE, (FLIR product).
More details to come at DOJ/US Attorney press conference in LA at 12:30ET.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] The FBI has launched an investigation into mysterious glowing lights that have been spotted over New Jersey for the last few weeks. "We're planning on a raid on Mar-A-Lago"
Eyewitnesses reported unexplained 'car-sized' drones over the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster and the Picatinny Arsenal Military Base in Rockaway, among other locations throughout northern New Jersey.
Video footage revealed the drones featured green and red lights on their wings and multiple eyewitness described them as large as a small car.
However, the flying objects are larger than drones used by hobbyists, raising questions about their proximity to those specific locations.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was first alerted about the strange activity in Morris County, where the military base is located, on November 18, but sights also surfaced in nearby Menham, Chester and Morristown.
The drone flights have alarmed residents throughout northern New Jersey, who said that they only appear at night and hover above their homes daily, remaining active for hours at a time.
The sightings have gained attention on social media, prompting speculation about where the drones came from and what they are doing.
'False flag alien invasion. That’s what they want, to induce fear,' one person posted on X.
Others suggested the drones are being used to spy on President-elect Donald Trump, who has been known to vacation at his Bedminster golf club and typically flies into Morristown Airport.
Trump was the target of a failed Iranian assassination attempt in November.
Farhad Shakeri, 51, was revealed to have admitted to orchestrating the terrifying scheme which was thwarted by the FBI and involved three alleged hitmen who were hired by the feared Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to carry out a hit on the president-elect.
And earlier last month, Chinese spies were said to have hacked the smartphones of Trumps' lawyer and campaign staff.
The attacks have raised concerns about America's adversaries spying on the president-elect.
On November 22, the FAA banned drone flights over the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster until December 6, and the Picatinny Arsenal Military Base in Rockaway until December 26.
'We look into all reports of unauthorized drone operations and investigate when appropriate,' the FAA said in a statement.
The agency also noted that drone operators who endanger aircraft of pedestrians could be fined up to $75,000 and lose their drone operators' pilot certificates.
Days later, the FBI confirmed they were investigating the drone activity.
The digital news site NJ.com spoke with Eric Kowal, a spokesman for Picatinny Arsenal, who said it is illegal to fly drones over the base without prior authorization. But he does not believe the drones pose an immediate threat.
'From our standpoint we're not alarming our residents and employees,' he said.
'The FBI are the experts on the threat. We don't believe there to be a threat at this juncture.'
New Jersians are 'unnerved' by the incidents, telling reporters that they have seen drones hovering near their homes for hours at a time, sometimes in groups.
Walsh stated that he has seen up to eight drones at once.
#5
There's a lot of man carrying drones being developed. a quick search resulted in too many different drones being developed to serve as 'air taxi' and people/cargo carriers ti list.
My guess id that the golf course is an ideal place to test when it's closed.
[Epoch Times] The Chinese communist regime’s infiltration of Korean politics and culture is extensive, deep, and not well known, according to experts.
A martial law order from South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has again put communist influence in the country under the spotlight.
For the first time in nearly four decades, the South Korean leader invoked the authority, accusing the opposing Democratic Party of aligning with communist North Korea. He revoked martial law hours later after parliament voted to lift the order.
"I declare martial law to protect the free Republic of Korea from the threat of North Korean communist forces, to eradicate the despicable pro-North Korean anti-state forces that are plundering the freedom and happiness of our people, and to protect the free constitutional order," Yoon said in a late-night address on Dec. 3.
He said the political opposition, which dominates the national assembly, was "paralyzing the judiciary by intimidating judges and impeaching a large number of prosecutors" and causing dysfunction in other government sectors as well.
Lee Jae-myung, who has likened himself to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and leads the opposition party, has taken a more friendly stance toward the Chinese regime even as Yoon has tried to steer his country closer to the United States and reverse the country’s yearslong trend of appeasing Beijing.
[ALJAZEERA] President Yoon Suk-yeol says he will lift a martial law order after the South Korean parliament passed a motion requiring it be lifted.
In an unannounced live address earlier, Yoon said the imposition of martial law was aimed at safeguarding a ''liberal South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea's communist forces and to eliminate antistate elements''.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/04/2024 02:03 ||
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[ZeroHedge] In the old ranchlands of South Texas, dormant uranium mines are coming back online. A collection of new ones hope to start production soon, extracting radioactive fuel from the region's shallow aquifers. Many more may follow.
These mines are the leading edge of what government and industry leaders in Texas hope will be a nuclear renaissance, as America's latent nuclear sector begins to stir again.
Texas is currently developing a host of high-tech industries that require enormous amounts of electricity, from crypto-currency mines and artificial intelligence to hydrogen production and seawater desalination. Now, powerful interests in the state are pushing to power it with next-generation nuclear reactors.
"We can make Texas the nuclear capital of the world," said Reed Clay, president of the Texas Nuclear Alliance, former chief operating officer for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office and former senior counsel to the Texas Office of Attorney General. "There's a huge opportunity."
Clay owns a lobbying firm with heavyweight clients that include SpaceX, Dow Chemical and the Texas Blockchain Council, among many others. He launched the Texas Nuclear Association in 2022 and formed the Texas Nuclear Caucus during the 2023 state legislative session to advance bills supportive of the nuclear industry.
The efforts come amid a national resurgence of interest in nuclear power, which can provide large amounts of energy without the carbon emissions that warm the planet. And it can do so with reliable consistency that wind and solar power generation lack. But it carries a small risk of catastrophic failure and requires uranium from mines that can threaten rural aquifers.
In South Texas, groundwater management officials have fought for almost 15 years against a planned uranium mine. Administrative law judges have ruled in their favor twice, finding potential for groundwater contamination. But in both cases those judges were overruled by the state's main environmental regulator, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Now local leaders fear mining at the site appears poised to begin soon as momentum gathers behind America's nuclear resurgence.
In October, Google announced the purchase of six small nuclear reactors to power its data centers by 2035. Amazon did the same shortly thereafter, and Microsoft has said it will pay to restart the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania to power its facilities. Last month, President Joe Biden announced a goal to triple U.S. nuclear capacity by 2050. American companies are racing to license and manufacture new models of nuclear reactors.
"It's kind of an unprecedented time in nuclear," said James Walker, a nuclear physicist and co-founder of New York-based NANO Nuclear Energy Inc., a startup developing small-scale "microreactors" for commercial deployment around 2031.
The industry's re-emergence stems from two main causes, he said: towering tech industry energy demands and the war in Ukraine.
Previously, the U.S. relied on enriched uranium from decommissioned Russian weapons to fuel its existing power plants and military vessels. When war interrupted that supply in 2022, American authorities urgently began to rekindle domestic uranium mining and enrichment.
"The Department of Energy at the moment is trying to build back a lot of the infrastructure that atrophied," Walker said. "A lot of those uranium deposits in Texas have become very economical, which means a lot of investment will go back into those sites."
In May, the White House created a working group to develop guidelines for deployment of new nuclear power projects. In June, the Department of Energy announced $900 million in funding for small, next-generation reactors. And in September, it announced a $1.5 billion loan to restart a nuclear power plant in Michigan, which it called "a first of a kind effort."
"There's an urgent desire to find zero-carbon energy sources that aren't intermittent like renewables," said Colin Leyden, Texas state director of the Environmental Defense Fund. "There aren't a lot of options, and nuclear is one."
Wind and solar will remain the cheapest energy sources, Leyden said, and a buildout of nuclear power would likely accelerate the retirement of coal plants.
The U.S. hasn't built a nuclear reactor in 30 years, spooked by a handful of disasters. In contrast, China has grown its nuclear power generation capacity almost 900 percent in the last 20 years, according to the World Nuclear Association, and currently has 30 reactors under construction.
Last year, Abbott ordered the state's Public Utility Commission to produce a report "outlining how Texas will become the national leader in using advanced nuclear energy." According to the report, which was issued in November, new nuclear reactors would most likely be built in ports and industrial complexes to power large industrial operations and enable further expansion.
"The Ports and their associated industries, like Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), carbon capture facilities, hydrogen facilities and cruise terminals, need additional generation sources," the report said. Advanced nuclear reactors "offer Texas' Ports a unique opportunity to enable continued growth."
In the Permian Basin, the report said, reactors could power oil production as well as purification of oilfield wastewater "for useful purposes." Or they could power clusters of data centers in Central and North Texas.
Already, Dow Chemical has announced plans to install four small reactors at its Seadrift plastics and chemical plant on a rural stretch of the middle Texas coast, which it calls the first grid-scale nuclear reactor for an industrial site in North America.
"I think the vast majority of these nuclear power plants are going to be for things like industrial use," said Cyrus Reed, a longtime environmental lobbyist in the Texas Capitol and conservation director for the state's Sierra Club chapter. "A lot of large industries have corporate goals of being low carbon or no carbon, so this could fill in a niche for them."
The PUC report made seven recommendations for the creation of public entities, programs and funds to support the development of a Texas nuclear industry. During next year's state legislative session, legislators in the Nuclear Caucus will seek to make them law.
"It's going to be a great opportunity for energy investment in Texas," said Stephen Perkins, Texas-based chief operating officer of the American Conservation Coalition, a conservative environmental policy group. "We're really going to be pushing hard for [state legislators] to take that seriously."
However, Texas won't likely see its first new commercial reactor come online for at least five years. Before a buildout of power plants, there will be a boom at the uranium mines, as the U.S. seeks to reestablish domestic production and enrichment of uranium for nuclear fuel.
#1
If we close all the coal plants, where will we get fly ash for concrete?
Fly ash makes concrete resistant to penetration by road salts, which destroys reinforcing steel. A dose of fly ash reduces concrete permeability many-fold.
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/04/2024 12:39 Comments ||
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#2
You'll get the fly ash from steel mills, who will still have to use coked coal in steel production. Usually anthracite (it's cleaner).
Posted by: ed in texas ||
12/04/2024 15:44 Comments ||
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#3
^ There are many coal waste dumpsites around the country. I don't know if there has been a good census of them but I suspect the amount of coal ash in them is huge.
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
12/04/2024 15:44 Comments ||
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Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] Two skyscraper-sized asteroids will fly past Earth on December 3 and 4, and NASA is monitoring their approach, Newsweek reports.
Asteroids 447 755 (2007 JX2) and (2020 XR) formed in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Although they are classified as potentially hazardous by NASA, they pose no threat to the planet.
According to experts, the size of the first asteroid is 402.3 meters, the second - 387.7 meters. The celestial bodies are comparable in size to the Empire State Building in New York, the height of which, without taking into account the spire, is 381 meters.
The object 2007 JX2 will approach the Earth at a distance of 5.5 million kilometers, and 2020 XR at a distance of 2.2 million kilometers, the material says.
As reported by IA Regnum, asteroid 2024 PT5, nicknamed the second Moon, will continue to approach the Earth until January. It follows the planet for several months. At the beginning of 2025, the distance to it will decrease to 1.8 million kilometers, after which the celestial body, under the influence of the Sun's gravity, will begin to move deeper into the Solar System. The asteroid will approach the Earth again in 2055.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[WXII 12] 
For the first time in nearly four decades, the South Korean leader invoked the authority, accusing the opposing Democratic Party of aligning with communist North Korea. He revoked martial law hours later after parliament voted to lift the order.
