[Breitbart] The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has received 270,000 applications from purported homeowners in the recent L.A. fires — though only abut 13,000 homes were destroyed.
A FEMA official gave the staggering figure — more than twenty times the number of eligible applicants — as concerns about fraudulent applications continue to plague the agency, more than two months after the fire.
As Breitbart News has reported, many displaced residents had tried applying for FEMA relief, only to find that someone else had already applied in their name and with their address, locking them out of the system.
FEMA attempts to make relief funds easy to apply for, but the downside is that fraudsters can more easily take advantage of the system. A FEMA official said that problem was a major reason for closing applications at the end of the month, instead of extending them for a full year, as Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) requested.
Identity theft in natural disasters may seem shocking, but it is not uncommon — especially when maps of affected areas and addresses are easily available online. Several individuals have already been arrested for fraud in connection with FEMA grants in the L.A. fires — one of whom is suspected of having collected on similar fraudulent applications for two decades, going back to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005.
Newly-installed Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman had warned in January that fraudsters would descend on L.A. Victims have been asked to contact the FBI, at 1-800-CALL-FBI/.
[FoxNews] Ada Gallagher and McDaniel High School came under fire after beating her competition last year as well.
The same Oregon high school that came under fire last year for allowing a transgender athlete to compete against girls continues to blow away the competition one year later.
Ada Gallagher, running as a 10th-grader at McDaniel High School in Portland, finished in first place in 200M and 400M races during the 6A-1 Portland Interscholastic League Championship in 2024.
Now an 11th-grader, Gallagher was back on the track for a Portland Interscholastic League meet at her home track, where she was spotted blowing out the competition, especially in the 400M, where she finished more than seven seconds better than the rest of the field.
Both times for Gallagher were season records.
As the video of the races began to circulate on social media, commenters began to speak their piece.
"That experience must be so demoralizing for those girls," one X user said. "…You'll look back later and be much more infuriated, especially if you have children of your own." Another added, "The girls should all just start refusing to run and it will soon end."
The Oregon School Activities Association, the governing body for the Portland Interscholastic League, has a gender identity participation policy that "allows students to participate for the athletic or activity program of their consistently asserted gender identity while providing a fair and safe environment for all students."
"As with Rule 8.2 regarding Duration of Eligibility / Graduation, rules such as this one promote harmony and fair competition among member schools by maintaining equality of eligibility and increase the number of students who will have an opportunity to participate in interscholastic activities," the rulebook adds.
President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14201, better known as "Keeping Men out of Women’s Sports," was signed to "protect female student athletes, in the women’s category, from having to ‘compete with or against or having to appear unclothed before males.’"
When Trump signed the order last month, Oregon Republicans were delighted, with House Minority Leader Christine Drazan saying she would introduce a bill to rewrite policies in high school athletics.
"Women have fought for — and earned — respect and support for themselves in sports and have made incredible gains in doing so. We must defend that progress and stand up for fairness." Drazan said in a statement released on National Girls and Women’s in Sports Day, per Oregon Public Broadcasting.
#4
Kinda like living right in the middle of the enemy camp...Surrounded by idiots who vote in the queers and etc. to run the state!
Posted by: Oregon Dave ||
03/21/2025 19:47 Comments ||
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#5
Pretty good example of what mail in voting gets you.
Posted by: Oregon Dave ||
03/21/2025 19:53 Comments ||
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#6
Dude ran an under 60 400m (58). Would have smoked me back in the day, but would not have placed. Smoked being a win by 2+ seconds. My boring Ok Junior High track career, I would have had come in 2nd.
[FoxBusinessNews] One of the busiest airports in the world will be closed all day Friday after a fire caused a "significant" power outage.
London Heathrow Airport (LHR) said it is "experiencing a significant power outage across the airport due to a large fire at a nearby electrical substation."
"Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored. To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, we made the decision to close Heathrow until 23h59 on 21 March 2025," a spokesperson for the airport told Fox News.
"We expect significant disruption over the coming days and passengers should not travel to the airport under any circumstances until the airport reopens," the spokesperson added. "We will provide an update when more information on the resumption of operations is available. We know this will be disappointing for passengers and we want to reassure that we are working as hard as possible to resolve the situation."
The airport was anticipating up to 291,000 passengers on a total of 1,351 flights on Friday, Reuters reported.
The London Fire Brigade said approximately 70 firefighters and 10 engines responded to the fire just before midnight on Thursday at the electrical substation on Nestles Avenue in Hayes.
"This was a very visible and significant incident, and our firefighters worked tirelessly in challenging conditions to bring the fire under control as swiftly as possible," Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne said in a statement, adding that the fire was under control by 6:30 a.m.
Though there were no injuries, the brigade said 29 people were evacuated from neighboring properties and 150 others were evacuated from a 200-meter perimeter that was established out of precaution.
"The fire has caused a widespread power outage, affecting many homes, local businesses, and Heathrow Airport. While power has been restored to some properties, we continue to work closely with our partners to minimize disruption," Goulbourne said.
The fire brigade will remain at the scene throughout the day to assist the National Grid, which owns the high-voltage electricity transmission network in England and Wales.
Continued on Page 47
#5
I just listened to a podcast out of the UK that forecasts this sort of thing and more. Highly recommended.
The coming British civil war: Louise Perry and David Betz.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] Elon Musk has been summoned to the Pentagon for a top secret military briefing about potential war plans with China, sparking speculation about the growing power and access of the nation's 'First Buddy'.
Donald Trump disputed claims by the 'fake news' that Musk was being allowed a glimpse at plans for a hypothetical war with China, but the exact nature of Musk's visit was unclear.
Both the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal cited two U.S. officials who said that Musk was getting a look at 'top secret' war plans if America and China came into conflict.
Musk will allegedly be briefed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and two other key officials on the details, which WSJ said included 'maritime tactics and targeting plans.'
The briefing for the China war plan has about 20 to 30 slides that lay out how the United States would fight such a conflict, the Times reported.
They hypothesized that Musk - who has long had friendly relations with China - could need to know what the Pentagon was budgeting as his Department of Government Efficiency looks to trim government waste.
Trump led a chorus of administration voices in denying the 'Fake News' of 'the failing New York Times' report in a post to Truth Social.
'They said, incorrectly, that Elon Musk is going to the Pentagon tomorrow to be briefed on any potential 'war with China.' How ridiculous?' China will not even be mentioned or discussed. How disgraceful it is that the discredited media can make up such lies. Anyway, the story is completely untrue!!!'
Hegseth also denied it in a post to X, saying: 'We look forward to welcoming @elonmusk to the Pentagon tomorrow. But the fake news delivers again — this is NOT a meeting about 'top secret China war plans.'
The Pentagon head added that instead, they would be discussing 'innovation, efficiencies & smarter production.'
They confirmed that Musk will be visiting on Friday but did not share further details.
A senior defense official told reporters Tuesday that roughly 50,000 to 60,000 civilian jobs will be cut in the Defense Department .
Trump officially signed an executive order to heavily downsize the Department of Education Thursday.
Similar closures served as a precursor to shuttering the headquarters of the US Agency for International Development, the humanitarian aid agency, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which protects Americans against unscrupulous lenders.
So far, DOGE has cut more than 100,000 jobs across the 2.3 million-member federal civilian bureaucracy, frozen most foreign aid and canceled thousands of programs and contracts, despite dozens of lawsuits challenging the legality of those moves.
[BBC] India has usually turned to economic reforms in times of distress, with the most famous example being 1991, when the country embraced liberalisation in the face of a deep financial crisis.
Now, with US President Donald Trump's tit-for-tat tariff wars and the global trade upheaval that has followed, many believe that India finds itself at another crossroad.
Could this be a major opportunity for the world's fifth largest economy to shed its protectionism and further open up its economy? Will India seize the moment, just as it did more than three decades ago, or will it retreat further?
Trump has repeatedly branded India a "tariff king" and a "big abuser" of trade ties. The problem is that India's trade-weighted import duties - the average duty rate per imported product - are among the highest in the world. The US average tariff is 2.2%, China's is 3% and Japan's is 1.7%. India's stands at a whopping 12%, according to data from the World Trade Organization.
High tariffs increase costs for companies dependent on global value chains, hindering their ability to compete in international markets. They also mean that Indians pay more on imported goods than foreign consumers. Despite growing exports - primarily driven by services - India runs a significant trade deficit. However, with India's share of global exports at a mere 1.5%, the challenge becomes even more urgent.
The jury is out on whether Trump's tariff war will help India break free or double down on protectionism. Narendra Modi's government, often criticised for its protectionist stance, already seems to have shifted gears.
Getty Images India portGetty Images
Despite growing exports, India runs a significant trade deficit
Last month, ahead of Prime Minister Modi's meeting with Trump in Washington, India unilaterally lowered tariffs on Bourbon whiskey, motorcycles and some other US products.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has made two trips to the US to discuss a potential trade deal, following Trump's threatened retaliatory tariffs, looming on 2 April. (Citi Research analysts estimate India could lose up to $7bn annually from reciprocal tariffs, primarily affecting sectors like metals, chemicals and jewellery, with pharmaceuticals, automobiles and food products also at risk.)
Last week, Goyal urged Indian exporters to "come out of their protectionist mindset and encouraged them to be bold and ready to deal with the world from a position of strength and self-confidence", according to a statement from his ministry.
India is also actively pursuing free trade deals with several countries, including the UK and New Zealand, and the European Union.
In an interesting turn of events, homegrown telecoms giants Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel have teamed up with Trump ally Elon Musk's SpaceX to launch satellite internet services via Starlink in India. The move surprised analysts, especially after Musk's recent clashes with both companies, and came as US and Indian officials negotiate the trade deal.
India's rapid growth from the late 1990s to the 2000s - 8.1% between 2004-2009 and 7.46% from 2009-2014 - was in large part driven by its gradual integration into global markets, particularly in pharmaceuticals, software, autos, textiles and garments, alongside a steady reduction in tariffs. Since then, India has turned inwards.
Many economists believe that protectionist policies over the past decade have undermined Modi's Make in India initiative, which prioritised capital- and technology-intensive sectors over labour-intensive ones like textiles. As a result, it has struggled to boost manufacturing and exports.
High tariffs have also fostered protectionism in several Indian industries, discouraging investments in efficiency, according to Viral Acharya, a professor of economics at New York University Stern School of Business.
This has allowed "cosy incumbents" to gain market power by consolidating their positions without facing much competition. As Mr Acharya, a former central banker, noted in a paper by Brookings Institution, restoring industrial balance in India requires "reducing tariffs to increase the country's share of global goods trade and reduce protectionism".
With India's tariffs already higher than those of most countries, further increases could be especially damaging.
"We need to boost exports and a tit-for-tat tariff war won't help us. China can afford this strategy due to its massive export base, but we can't, as we hold only a small share of the global market," Rajeswari Sengupta, an associate professor of economics at Mumbai-based Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, said. "A trade conflict could hurt us more than others."
[FoxBusinessNews] Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said Wednesday that the leading artificial intelligence chipmaker will invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. supply chain over the next four years.
Huang made the announcement in an interview with the Financial Times. It follows moves by other technology companies, including Apple, which are unveiling multibillion-dollar investments in onshoring plans, as President Donald Trump's administration implements its "America First" policies, and following the Republican's Made in America campaign promise.
"Overall, we will procure, over the course of the next four years, probably half a trillion dollars worth of electronics in total," Huang reportedly told the FT. "And I think we can easily see ourselves manufacturing several hundred billion of it here in the US."
Huang said the increased U.S. production would be possible through suppliers such as the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Foxconn. Huawei in China poses a growing competitive threat, Huang told the FT, adding that he was confident in the Trump administration's ability to form policy to speed up the AI industry in the U.S.
[FoxNews] A new high-powered microwave system that can knock swarms of drones out of the sky at once is going to "touch every aspect of warfare," according to Epirus founder, Joe Lonsdale.
"It’s kind of like a Star Trek shield," Lonsdale, founder of Epirus and a co-founder of fast-rising defense technology company Palantir, explained of its Leonidas counter-drone system. "It’s able to turn them off from very far away."
"This is going to touch every aspect of warfare over the next decade," he told Fox News Digital. "We can knock down some pretty advanced drones."
Defense tech startup Epirus secured another $250 million in a Series D funding round, which was announced Wednesday, bringing its total venture funding to over $550 million.
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.
[FoxNews] Ada Gallagher and McDaniel High School came under fire after beating her competition last year as well.
