Politicabest

LIVING THE DREAM He bought a movie star's home in France and paid $300,000 to fix the pool Finding himself at a loose end on a rainy day in France, triathlete Jeremy arranged to view some properties in the quaint neighborhood he'd been staying in. Originally from Wales, the father-of-two had been living in Paris for several years, but after going through a separation, he became set on the idea of moving to the French countryside. He realized he'd struck gold when he was given a tour of a home in Courgent, a town located in the Île-de-France region, about a 45-minute drive from the French capital. However, it wasn't just the house that had him brimming with excitement. It was the stunning, but heavily neglected swimming pool that came with it. While the pool had fallen into disrepair, it was clear that it had once been an impressive structure and could be again -- with a lot of work. "I was absolutely amazed," Jeremy, who has asked for h...

When she first started to shed some weight, Yvonne DeBurgo quipped that she could afford to lose it. But over the past three months, the 77-year-old widow from the southern English county of Oxfordshire has lost nearly 25 pounds, a result of eating just one cooked meal a day - with just a piece of fruit or a sandwich for dinner. DeBurgo lost the weight while trying to save money -- a sobering manifestation of the country's cataclysmic  cost of living crisis , one that appears to have no end in sight. In July, inflation rose above 10% for the first time in 40 years, driven by the  skyrocketing cost of energy , food and fuel. The Bank of England forecasts inflation will soar to 13% by the end of the year. Analysts say it could  go even higher  early next year. DeBurgo, who relies on her state pension and a supplementary Pension Credit benefit, says her grocery bills have already nearly doubled over the course of about a month, with the rising cost of fuel e...

  Ganesh Chaturthi 2022 LIVE Updates:  In a late-night hearing on Tuesday, the Karnataka High Court upheld an order of the Dharwad municipal commissioner allowing the Ganesh Chaturthi festival to be held at the Hubballi Idgah maidan. Justice Ashok S Kinagi held that the property belonged to the Dharwad municipality and Anjuman-e-Islam was only a leaseholder for a period of 999 years at a fee of Re 1 per year. The court had heard the issue earlier in the day. The municipal commissioner’s order was challenged in court by Anjuman-e-Islam. The court had allowed the commissioner’s order but at the same time, the Supreme Court was hearing the issue of the festival being allowed at the Chamrajpet Idgah maidan in Bengaluru. Anjuman-e-Islam had claimed that the property in question was protected under the Places of Worship Act, 1991, which says no religious place of worship can be converted. The high court said in the case of the property in question, it was not a religious place of wo...

US jobs openings and a consumer confidence gauge both topped forecasts, pointing to strength in household and labor demand that risks sustaining inflationary pressures and raises the prospects for a third straight 75 basis-point interest-rate hike by the Federal Reserve. The Conference Board’s August index of sentiment rose to a three-month high, and the report also showed firmer buying plans for appliances and cars. Job vacancies, meanwhile, unexpectedly increased to 11.2 million in July, close to a record and underscoring persistent tightness in the labor market. One job-market indicator scrutinized by Fed Chair Jerome Powell -- the number of jobs available per unemployed person in the country - rose to about 2 in July. Combined, the figures show rock-solid labor demand and resilient household demand even as US central bankers step harder on the monetary policy brakes. Without a commensurate slowdown in consumer spending and an easing of wage pressure, the Fed’s fight to bring inflat...

  Police in Baltimore has arrested a street vendor who allegedly threatened violence and tried to extort a crew member working on the Apple TV+ production of "Lady in the Lake." Baltimore Police say, Keith L. Brown, 43, verbally threatened violence against members of the production crew, brandished a gun, and demanded the crew pay him $50,000 in order to continue working at a downtown Baltimore location where they were filming. Detectives determined that Brown "was upset that he had not been compensated by the production for lost business, since he could not operate his clothing business while the crew was filming at that location," police said. Brown, who was arrested Monday on narcotics charges, told police that he spoke with a member of the film crew and a security manager and "was awaiting paperwork to receive compensation for lost business on Aug. 26," according to police. Security measures on the limited series, an adaptation of Laura Lippman's n...

  China's southern city of Shenzhen on Monday shut down the world's largest electronics market and suspended public transport nearby as authorities enforced neighborhood-wide lockdowns in response to a small number of Covid cases. Huaqiangbei, a busy shopping area home to thousands of stalls selling computer components, mobile phone parts and microchips, is among three neighborhoods placed under a mandatory four-day lockdown in Futian district, according the district government. Residents in those neighborhoods are forbidden to leave their homes except for Covid testing, which they are required to undergo daily until Thursday. All businesses in the affected areas are shut down through Thursday, except for supermarkets, pharmacies and hospitals. Restaurant dining is also suspended, with only takeaways allowed. China is one of the last places in the world still enforcing stringent zero-Covid measures, which rely on sweeping digital surveillance, mass testing, extensive quarantin...

  Asia's richest man has launched a hostile bid to take over an influential broadcaster in India and gain a firmer footing in the country's vibrant media space. AMG Media Networks, a unit of billionaire Gautam Adani's conglomerate, said in a statement late on Tuesday that it has acquired a 29% stake in New Delhi Television (NDTV) by buying one of the network's major shareholders for an undisclosed amount. It has also set in motion an offer to NDTV shareholders to buy another 26% stake in the broadcaster for $61.77 million, according to filings by the Adani Group to the Mumbai stock exchange. "This acquisition is a significant milestone" for AMG Media Networks, Sanjay Pugalia, the CEO of the company said in a statement. The firm "seeks to empower Indian citizens, consumers and those interested in India, with information and knowledge," he added. NDTV, which operates TV channels and websites, said that the move was carried out without its consent. Adan...

  One of Australia's longest-running cold cases has ended with the conviction of former high school teacher Chris Dawson for the murder of his wife Lynette in 1982, so he could start a new life with his then 16-year-old student. On Tuesday, Justice Ian Harrison found Dawson, 74, guilty following a three-month trial that heard evidence gathered over four decades by police investigating Lynette's disappearance. Dawson had long denied any allegations of wrongdoing, claiming his wife had walked out on him and their two young children when they were just two and four years old. But suspicion hung over Dawson for many years and allegations of his role in his wife's disappearance found a new audience with the 2018 release of the "Teacher's Pet" podcast by Australian investigative journalist Hedley Thomas. The podcast examined the police investigation and gathered new evidence including testimony that Dawson had been having sex with the student, known as JC, when his ...