A remote-controlled robot has safely returned with a tiny piece of melted fuel it collected from inside one of three damaged reactors at the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant for the first time since the 2011 meltdown. The Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which manages the plant, said Saturday that the extendable fishing rod-like robot successfully clipped a gravel as big as 5 millimeters (2 inches), the size of a tiny granola bit, from the top surface of a mound of molten fuel debris that sits on the bottom of the No. 2 reactor’s primary containment vessel. The “telesco” robot, with its frontal tongs still holding the melted fuel bit, returned to the enclosed container for safe storage after workers in full hazmat gear pulled it out of the containment vessel earlier Saturday. The sample return marks the first time the melted fuel is retrieved out of the containment vessel. But the mission is not over until it’s certain that the sample’s radioactivity is below a set standard and safely placed into a container. If the radioactivity exceeds the limit, the robot must go back inside the reactor to find another piece. TEPCO officials said they expect the piece is small enough to meet the requirement. The mission initially started in August for what was supposed to be a two-week round trip but had been suspended twice due to mishaps. First one was the procedural mistake at the beginning that held up the work for nearly three weeks, then the robot’s two cameras designed to transmit views of the target areas for its operators in the remote control room failed. The camera problem required the robot to be pulled out all the way for replacement before the mission resumed Monday. Fukushima Daiichi lost its key cooling systems during the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, causing meltdowns in its three reactors. An estimated 880 tons of fatally radioactive molten fuel remains in them, and TEPCO has carried out a number of robotic probes to figure out how to decommission the plant. Telesco on Wednesday successfully clipped a piece presumably measuring less than 3 grams (0.1 ounce) from the planned area right underneath the Unit 2 reactor core, from which large amounts of melted fuel fell during the meltdown 13 years ago, TEPCO said. Plant chief Akira Ono said only the tiny spec can provide key data to plan decommissioning strategy, develop necessary technology and robots and retroactively learn how the accident had developed. The government and TEPCO have set a 30-to-40-year target for the cleanup, which experts say is overly optimistic and should be updated. No specific plans for the full removal of the fuel debris or its final disposal have been decided. (AP)
Former President Donald Trump is reportedly feeling the pressure as Election Day approaches, grappling with anxiety and sleepless nights as he monitors polling numbers in his bid to reclaim the White House. According to a campaign official who spoke with Axios, Trump has been more hands-on than ever, frequently questioning his staff and urging them to ramp up efforts to secure victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. “Trump’s anxiety is evident in his late-night and early morning calls to aides, peppering them with questions on how things are going—and whether they think he’ll win,” reported Axios. The former president’s concerns were slightly eased after his chief pollster, Tony Fabrizio, circulated a memo suggesting that Trump is in a stronger position to win than in his past three campaigns. However, some political analysts caution against overreliance on polling data. Polling expert Nate Silver recently warned that bias can affect poll interpretations, depending on who conducts them, and that “someone could be putting their finger on the scale.” Trump isn’t the only one voicing concern. Key conservative figures are emphasizing the need for strong voter turnout, particularly among male voters. “If men don’t show up to vote, ‘Kamala is president,’” tweeted Turning Point USA’s Charlie Kirk. Gavin Wax, president of the New York Young Republican Club, echoed this sentiment, telling Axios, “Men need to swamp the polls on Election Day and prior to help Trump win.” Meanwhile, Harris’s campaign team is also preparing for a close race, with her advisors predicting a narrow win on Tuesday. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
The remains of two aviators who died when their jet crashed during a training flight in Washington state last month will return home from Dover Air Force base in the coming days, the Navy said. The remains of Lt. Serena Wileman, a California native, were due to return on Monday, Whidbey Island Naval Air Station said. Lt. Cmdr. Lyndsay Evans’ remains will return later during the week in a private affair in accordance with her family’s wishes. The two died when their EA-18G Growler jet from the Electronic Attack Squadron, known as “Zappers,” crashed east of Mount Rainier on Oct. 15. The crash occurred at about 6,000 feet (1,828 meters) in a remote, steep and heavily wooded area. The cause of the crash is under investigation. Evans, a naval flight officer from Palmdale, California, made history as part of a team of female pilots who conducted the first-ever all-female flyover of Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12, 2023, to celebrate 50 years of women flying in the Navy. The first female candidates entered the U.S. Navy flight school in 1973. Wileman, a naval aviator, was commissioned in 2018 and joined the Zapper squadron on Washington state’s Whidbey Island in 2021. She earned the National Defense Service Medal, Navy Unit Commendation Medal and a Combat Action Ribbon. The EA-18G Growler is a variant of the F/A-18F Super Hornet and provides tactical jamming and electronic protection to U.S. forces and allies, according to Boeing, its manufacturer. The first Growler was delivered to Whidbey Island in 2008. (AP)
The IDF’s operation to dismantle Hamas strongholds in northern Gaza could take at least six more months, IDF officials told Ynet on Sunday, as they work to clear the area of terrorists and secure the region. Key progress has been made in Jabaliya, a major Hamas stronghold just 2.5 miles from Gaza City, where Israeli forces have taken control, allowing civilians to evacuate and cutting off the area from further infiltration. To prevent terrorists from escaping among civilians, Israeli forces have employed facial recognition technology at checkpoints, identifying and detaining around 600 suspected Hamas operatives to date. Tens of thousands of civilians have left Jabaliya, but some still remain, prompting the IDF to increase artillery use as it moves to eliminate hundreds of remaining terrorists in the area. The operation forms part of a strategic military plan, initially aimed at restricting humanitarian aid to weaken Hamas’s control. “In the first week of the assault, Jabaliya was surrounded while the military urged civilians to leave,” wrote Ynet military correspondent Yoav Zitun, explaining that international pressure later led to aid being allowed back in. Despite these challenges, the IDF has continued efforts to capture or eliminate Hamas operatives in the city. “We found an exhausted population, hungry and weak, arriving at our gates of passage, and without civilians, Hamas cannot exist,” IDF officials said. Interrogations of captured terrorists have reportedly yielded useful intelligence on Hamas’s weapon storage and explosive placements. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Warren Buffett is now sitting on more than $325 billion cash after continuing to unload billions of dollars worth of Apple and Bank of America shares this year and continuing to collect a steady stream of profits from all of Berkshire Hathaway’s assorted businesses without finding any major acquisitions. Berkshire said it sold off about 100 million more Apple shares in the third quarter after halving its massive investment in the iPhone maker last quarter. The remaining stake of roughly 300 million shares was valued at $69.9 billion at the end of September remains Berkshire’s biggest single investment, but it has been cut drastically since the end of last year when it was worth $174.3 billion. Investors will also be disappointed to learn that Berkshire didn’t repurchase any of its own shares in the quarter. CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said shareholders will wonder why Buffett is continuing to accumulate so much cash. “Are they more pessimistic about the future economic and market picture than perhaps others are?” she said. Buffett said at the annual meeting in May that part of why he started selling some of his Apple shares is that he expects tax rates to go higher in the future. But Edward Jones analyst Jim Shanahan said he wonders if part of the reason Buffett started selling Apple is tied to last year’s death of Vice Chairman Charlie Munger because the sales started shortly after Munger’s death. Shanahan said Buffett has never been as comfortable with technology businesses as his longtime partner was. “If Charlie Munger were still alive, perhaps he wouldn’t have sold down the position quite as aggressively — maybe at all,” Shanahan said. Berkshire said Saturday that investment gains again drove its third quarter profits skyward to $26.25 billion, or $18,272 per Class A share. A year ago, unrealized paper investment losses dragged the Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate’s earnings down to a loss of $12.77 billion, or $8,824 per Class A share. Buffett has long recommended that investors pay more attention to Berkshire’s operating earnings if they want to get a good sense of how the businesses it owns are doing because those numbers exclude investments. Berkshire’s bottom-line profit figures can vary widely from quarter to quarter along with the value of its investments regardless of whether the company bought or sold anything. By that measure, Berkshire said its operating earnings were only down about 6% at $10.09 billion, or $7,023.01 per Class A share. That compares to last year’s $10.8 billion, or $7,437.15 per Class A share. The four analysts surveyed by FactSet Research predicted that Berkshire would report operating earnings of $7,335.11 per Class A share. Berkshire’s revenue didn’t change much at $92.995 billion. A year ago, it reported $93.21 billion revenue. That number was ahead of the $92.231 billion revenue that three analysts surveyed by FactSet predicted. Berkshire owns an assortment of insurance businesses, including Geico, along with BNSF railroad, several major utilities and a varied collection of retail and manufacturing businesses, including brands like Dairy Queen and See’s Candy. One of Berkshire’s insurers, Guard, reported some additional losses on previous years after managers reassessed its policies. Berkshire did resolve one mystery from the quarter by spelling out how much it paid to acquire the rest of the shares in its utility business […]
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PRESIDENT TRUMP: The day I take the oath of office, the migrant invasion ENDS, and the restoration of our country BEGINS. When you vote on Tuesday, vote in honor of Jocelyn, and Laken Riley, and Rachel Morin, and every American who has been stolen from us.
JD VANCE: “So here’s my message to Kamala Harris: We are not garbage for thinking that you’ve done a bad job. But in two days, we’re going to take out the trash in Washington, DC.”
With two days left until the U.S. election, Rosh Yeshiva Kisei Rchamaim, Hagaon HaRav Meeir Mazuz called during his weekly Shiur for Tefillos that former President Donald Trump would win another term. “He has good Midos, and he loves Israel,” Rav Mazuz said. “This Tuesday, there’s an election in America….. We should pray that Trump wins this election. Even though Trump is originally from Germany, he has good qualities, and he loves Israel.” “He has a grandson and granddaughter who is Jewish. There’s a picture of him taking his grandson to Shul on Shabbos before Mincha, encouraging him and blessing him. This is good! Even from the Germans, who were enemies of Israel, something good can come.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
A shark bit a Maui surfer Friday and severed his leg, authorities said. The man, 61, was surfing off Waiehu Beach Park Friday morning when a shark bit him. Police officers who arrived to the scene first tried to control the bleeding with tourniquets. His right leg was “completely severed just below the knee,” Maui County said in a news release. The man was alert while being treated on shore and then taken to Maui Memorial Medical Center in critical condition. The man said he did not see the shark approach, authorities reported. The incident prompted officials to close the beach park. Officials warned people to stay out of the water in the area. The public warning to stay out of the water for a mile in each direction of the incident will be in effect until at least noon Saturday. The warning will be extended if there is a shark sighting in the area. Maui fire and ocean safety officials were patrolling the waters using rescue watercraft and a drone. State officials provided shark warning signs and helped with cordoning off the area. There were no details provided on what kind of shark was involved. In June, well-known surfer Tamayo Perry was killed in a shark attack while surfing off Oahu’s North Shore. (AP)
Iran has the technical capability to produce nuclear weapons if it chooses, an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei revealed on Friday. In an interview with the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Mayadeen outlet, Kamal Kharrazi said Iran is ready to develop nuclear arms, but is currently restrained by a religious decree. “We now have the technical capabilities necessary to produce nuclear weapons,” Kharrazi said. “Only the supreme leader’s fatwa currently prohibits it,” he added, referencing a religious ruling issued by Khamenei in the mid-1990s against the use of nuclear arms. However, Kharrazi hinted that the policy might shift if Iran’s security were significantly threatened. “If the survival of Iran comes under serious threat, we reserve the right to reconsider,” he warned. Kharrazi’s comments follow a statement he made in May, where he cautioned that any attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities by Israel would result in a shift in Iran’s deterrence strategy. “If the Zionist regime dares to damage Iran’s nuclear facilities, our level of deterrence will be different,” he told ISNA news agency. He clarified that while Iran has no current intention to produce a nuclear bomb, “if the existence of Iran is threatened, we will have to change our nuclear doctrine.” Concerns over Iran’s nuclear ambitions have escalated amid reports that the Islamic Republic has made advances in its secret nuclear program. In August, Iran International, a London-based opposition media outlet, reported that Iran was progressing toward a nuclear weapon by reorganizing its Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), retaining Mohammad Eslami as head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, and resuming tests on nuclear bomb detonators. The Biden administration reportedly issued a private warning to Tehran in June over its research and development activities, Axios reported in July, citing Israeli and U.S. officials. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Former Obama Campaign manager sounds the alarm for Kamala “The early vote numbers are scary.” “Republicans didn’t do what they did last time.” “Republicans do have an advantage in early vote numbers. When the early vote come in… that’s scary.”
An Israeli official stated that a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon could be achieved within 10 to 14 days, according to a report on Channel 12 news. The United States has been actively advocating for a truce to bring stability to the Israel-Lebanon border, over a year after Hezbollah began launching frequent missile and drone attacks on Israel. On Wednesday, the Kan public broadcaster reported details of a proposed ceasefire agreement, said to be drafted by the United States. This plan reportedly includes the enforcement of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which prohibits Hezbollah from maintaining forces south of the Litani River. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Mossad Director David Barnea recently informed the families of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza that prospects for an agreement remain low, according to a report by Channel 12 news. In the meeting, Barnea reportedly explained that intermediaries have not yet received a response from Hamas on recent proposals. Hamas continues to insist on ending the war in exchange for releasing hostages, Channel 12 stated. When asked if the government would consider ending the war, Barnea reportedly replied, “The negotiating team has no mandate from the prime minister to advance a total deal and the end of the war.” Two proposals are currently under discussion: an Egyptian plan for a two-day ceasefire involving the release of four hostages, and a phased Qatari-American proposal aiming for a full hostage release and an end to the conflict. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Japan has grounded its fleet of V-22 Osprey aircraft again after an incident last Sunday where one of the hybrid helicopter-aircraft tilted unexpectedly and hit the ground while trying to take off. The V-22 was taking part in the joint U.S. military exercise Keen Sword and carrying 16 passengers, including three U.S. service members. During takeoff it “became unstable as it swayed from side to side, and the left wing, the lower part of the aircraft came into contact with the ground and part of the aircraft was damaged, so the flight was aborted,” Japan’s Ground Self Defense Forces said in a statement. It was the first major incident for Japan’s V-22 fleet since an Osprey crash last November killed eight Air Force Special Operations Command service members and led to a months long grounding of the entire fleet in both Japan and the U.S. The aircraft resumed flight operations earlier this year, but the Osprey’s use remains controversial particularly in Okinawa, where residents have questioned its safety record. The Osprey in last Sunday’s incident was able to land and no one was injured, however Japan will keep its fleet of more than a dozen V-22s grounded while it investigates the incident, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani told reporters last week. “We believe there is no safety problem with Ospreys, although ensuring flight safety is a prerequisite for aircraft operations,” Nakatani said. The Pentagon’s V-22 joint program office is supporting Japan’s investigation into the incident, spokesman Neil Lobeda said Saturday. The V-22 was operating on the Japanese island of Yonaguni during the joint exercise Keen Sword. Yonaguni is only 100 kilometers (62 miles) east of Taiwan. (AP)
Kamala was just asked how she voted on California’s Proposition 36, which would increase criminal penalties for shoplifters and drug traffickers: “I am not gonna talk about the vote on that because, honestly, it’s the Sunday before the election.”
Nvidia is replacing Intel on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, ending a 25-year-run for a pioneering semiconductor company that has fallen behind as Nvidia cornered the market for chips that run artificial intelligence systems. Paint-maker Sherwin-Williams will also replace chemical company Dow Inc. among the companies that make up the 30-stock average. S&P Dow Jones Indices said Friday that the changes that take effect Nov. 7 “were initiated to ensure a more representative exposure to the semiconductors industry and the materials sector respectively.” It added that because the Dow is price-weighted, “persistently lower priced stocks have a minimal impact.” Dow Inc., a major producer of chemicals and plastics and unrelated to the similarly named company behind the index, has also been the smallest company on the Dow in terms of market capitalization. Intel’s share price has dropped more than 50% so far this year to $23.20. On Thursday, the California chipmaker reported third-quarter revenue of $13.3 billion, down 6% from the same period last year. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said at the time that the company is “acting with urgency” on a plan to reduce costs and simplify its portfolio. By contrast, Nvidia’s shares have risen more than 173% this year to a price of $135.40. Unlike Intel, Nvidia designs but doesn’t manufacture its own chips, relying heavily on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, an Intel rival. In another index, the Dow Jones Utility Average, Texas-based energy company Vistra will replace Virginia-based AES Corp. (AP)
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Florida drivers will soon be able to display their support for Israel on their vehicles, as the “Florida Stands with Israel” specialty license plates have met the required threshold of 3,000 pre-sales, allowing the plates to move into production, the Israeli-American Council (IAC) announced. The new plates, featuring a design by Florida State University graduate Daniel Ackerman, are expected to be available for purchase in early 2025. The specialty plates will be priced at $66.90, which includes registration fees. A portion of the proceeds—$25 from each plate sold—will benefit Hatzalah South Florida, a nonprofit emergency medical services organization. Governor Ron DeSantis expressed his enthusiasm for the project, saying, “I’m pleased to announce that the ‘Florida Stands with Israel’ license plate has reached the threshold for production. Florida and Israel share a special bond and lasting friendship.” The initiative to create the plate was championed by the Israeli-American Coalition for Action, which organized a public design contest that attracted over 100 entries. Ackerman’s winning design features the Florida state flower, an orange blossom, along with the Israeli flag, symbolizing the connection between the state and Israel. “This license plate is a testament to the enduring friendship between Florida and Israel,” said Elan Carr, CEO of the IAC. “As these plates begin to appear on vehicles across Florida, they will serve as mobile reminders of the strong ties and shared values that unite our communities.” For those who pre-ordered the plate, an additional fee of $36.90 will be required at pickup. The state has temporarily halted new pre-orders while it completes the initial batch, but additional plates will be made available based on public demand. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
