Author: Stephanie Gauthier

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this weekend confirmed the very first case of Clade I mpox, a severe form of MPox, in the USA, in a patient from California.

The United States' first known case of a more severe strain of mpox was confirmed in California, the CDC says.

— CNN (@cnn.com) 2024-11-16T19:57:14.447Z

Cases of Clade II MPox have been circulating in the US since 2022, but according to the CDC, this is the first case of Clade I, the most severe form of the disease, to have been detected in the country.

The infected person had recently returned from East Africa, where a major MPox outbreak is underway, and was diagnosed with the severe Clade I form of the disease.

According to the CDC, the patient was treated at a local medical facility and is now recovering in home isolation.

Since 2022, the MPox epidemic has been causing global concern, with cases reported in several countries.

According to WHO, from the start of MPox surveillance to July 31, 2024, more than 100,000 confirmed cases of MPox linked to MPox clades I and II, including more than 200 deaths, have been reported from over 120 countries.

The Democratic Republic of Congo, still considered the epicenter, as well as Burundi and other East African countries, remain particularly affected.

However, the subtype responsible for the majority of the current spread of Clade I, Clade Ib, is relatively new. Most of the travel-related cases reported concern this subtype, which is far less lethal than Clade I.

The mortality rate for Clade Ib is less than 1%, whereas for previous cases of Clade I, it was between 3% and 11%.

InfoWars, the media empire of infamous conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, put up for auction as part of bankruptcy proceedings to compensate the families of Sandy Hook victims harassed by Jones through his network, has finally been acquired, and the new owners reportedly ceased operations immediately.

Both supporters and detractors of Alex Jones had expressed interest in buying InfoWars, but in the end it was satirical newspaper The Onion that won the auction, to everyone’s surprise.

BREAKING: The Onion buys Alex Jones' Infowars in bankruptcy auction.https://t.co/2Y5IIHKqGM

— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 14, 2024

Bryce P. Tetraeder, CEO of Global Tetrahedron, the parent company of The Onion, attempted to provide “explanations” in a satirical statement published on November 14. He claimed that Global Tetrahedron’s acquisition of InfoWars was a logical decision, given their expertise in humorous fake news, unlike InfoWars, which specialized in conspiracy theories that caused harm to many people, including the families of the Sandy Hook victims.

According to CNN, The Onion’s acquisition of InfoWars was supported by the families of the Sandy Hook victims.

Via our parent company @GlobTetrahedron
CEO @BryceTetraeder: https://t.co/c3yFESwUKU pic.twitter.com/LdTXKDNLnQ

— The Onion (@TheOnion) November 14, 2024

In 2022, the parents of the victims of the Sandy Hook shooting won a lawsuit against Alex Jones and InfoWars for defamation. Jones had called the tragedy a “hoax”, prompting years of harassment, threats and intimidation of the victims’ families by his supporters.

Parents of Sandy Hook victims were awarded $1.5 billion in compensation after enduring years of harassment fueled by Alex Jones’ lies.

This compensation played a direct role in the InfoWars auction.

Bryce P. Tetraeder concludes his statement with The Onion’s typical satirical humor, though without revealing what InfoWars’ future direction will be.

Recall that the Sandy Hook tragedy, which occurred on December 14, 2012 at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, claimed the lives of 20 children and 6 staff members.

The victims’ families were overwhelmed by deep grief, exacerbated by years of harassment fueled by Alex Jones’ false conspiracy theories broadcast on InfoWars.

British daily The Guardian has announced that it is discontinuing all posts about X… on X.

U.K. publication The Guardian will no longer post on X.

“This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racism. The U.S. presidential election campaign… pic.twitter.com/shnbiFkQnd

— Variety (@Variety) November 13, 2024

A platform that the well-known newspaper describes as toxic.

The Guardian’s X account has been archived following the announcement of its departure from the platform, formerly Twitter. The media company said it was ceasing to publish from its official editorial accounts, while specifying that X users could still share their articles.

The reasons for this decision are numerous, as The Guardian explains in an article detailing its choice. The daily now considers that the disadvantages of being on X outweigh the advantages, and that its resources would be better invested in promoting its journalism elsewhere… nothing less!

In a carefully considered decision, the daily asserts that X is a toxic media platform that has used its influence to shape political discourse, often disseminating disturbing content, far-right conspiracy theories and racism, all backed by its owner, Elon Musk.

The Guardian says that while social networks are an important tool for news organizations to reach new audiences, X now plays a limited role in promoting its content, according to the daily.

The daily says it is privileged to be able to make this choice, as its business model is directly supported by its readers.

The Guardian points out that it operates within a media ecosystem dominated by billionaires, where malicious actors spread misinformation online, supported by lawyers of the powerful who seek to prevent the posting of articles they wish to conceal… not to mention authoritarian states that flout press freedom.

To support The Guardian, readers can go directly to the newspaper’s website or download its app.

Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies have enjoyed an impressive rise since the presidential elections.

In particular, Bitcoin has recorded a 39.5% increase in recent weeks, peaking at 88,571.78 USD on November 11.

Enthusiasm in the crypto world is surging this November, with the continued rise of Bitcoin, but also lesser-known cryptocurrencies such as Dogecoin (largely and solely driven by Musk, in fact) and Litecoin, have also recorded notable increases.

However, it was Bitcoin that dominated the race, reaching a record high by surpassing $88,000 for the first time.

Bitcoin’s value rose impressively after Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election, from $68,000 before the November 5 results to much higher levels.

A former cryptoskeptic, Trump had expressed doubts about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in 2019, calling them “insecure” and “speculative”.

He had declared himself not a fan of Bitcoin, preferring the traditional currency, the US dollar, and highlighted the associated risks, including fraud and illegal activity.

Trump recently performed a complete reversal of his positions on cryptocurrencies, stating at a crypto conference that he wanted to transform the United States into the “crypto capital of the world”, no less!

We can better understand investors’ enthusiasm following his victory and imminent return to the White House…

Among the announcements regarding the composition of his cabinet, Donald Trump’s choice for Secretary of Defense surprised many, as the president appointed a Fox & Friends host to this key position.

Pete Hegseth, ex-military and host of Fox & Friends Weekend since 2017, has been appointed by Donald Trump to one of the most important positions for US defense.

Upon taking office, Hegseth will become the president’s top national defense advisor.

He will oversee the Department of Defense, coordinate military strategies, manage the armed forces and be responsible for national security.

He plays a key role in American defense, but his appointment has raised questions. Although a former member of the Minnesota National Guard, Hegseth has no direct experience in national defense management or high-level military command, qualifications generally required for this position.

This isn’t the first time Donald Trump has appointed someone deemed underqualified to such a crucial position. Mark Esper, appointed Secretary of Defense in 2019 by Trump, was considered by many to be one of the least qualified in history for the role due to his lack of military experience or direct leadership in the defense field.

Donald Trump has appointed Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to head the Department of Government Efficiency to dismantle government bureaucracy, reduce excessive regulation, eliminate wasteful spending and restructure federal agencies.

President-elect Donald Trump announced in a statement that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new Department of Government Efficiency.

The president-elect did not detail how this new department would be funded. https://t.co/JTbhk2MFMI

— ABC News (@ABC) November 13, 2024

The appointment of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, two loyal Trump allies, to reform the federal bureaucracy with a focus on efficiency raises concerns among many experts, who fear significant cuts in government staffing and services.

Donald Trump announced that this department would be unofficial, however, specifying that it “will not be a federal agency of the U.S. government”, but that it would provide advice and guidance aimed at driving structural reform of the government.

Following this announcement, Elon Musk quickly took to his social network X to clarify that all decisions and actions of this new Department of Government Efficiency, would be published on X to ensure maximum transparency.

Elon Musk said it would be both deeply tragic and particularly entertaining, noting that he intended to poke fun at the most absurd tax-funded expenditures, with a ranking to back it up.

Joe Rogan revealed on his podcast that Elon Musk would have developed a special app that would have allowed him to find out election results hours before anyone else.

#JoeRogan just spilled some serious next-level insider info … saying #ElonMusk knew hours before the official results dropped that #DonaldTrump had already won the election. Full story in bio!

📷 : The Joe Rogan Experience pic.twitter.com/2GwIPGgf6I

— TMZ (@TMZ) November 12, 2024

Elon Musk, present at the election night party at Mar-a-Lago with several guests, including UFC CEO Dana White, was said by sources to have had real-time access to the voting results thanks to a private, customized app, according to Joe Rogan.

The billionaire, also a loyal financial backer of Trump’s campaign, would thus have been able to obtain this information before its public release.

He would therefore have known four hours in advance that Donald Trump had won, even before many votes had been counted, because his app would have given him the information before anyone else announced it.

Many wonder how this app could have worked. It could have had access to real-time data from official sources, which could have led to a discrepancy with the public results, as the latter are usually centralized to prevent leaks.

Another possibility is that the app was using algorithms and AI to estimate results from premature data, but this would only have been an estimate, not an official result, even if, in the end, Trump actually won.

That said, there is no concrete evidence that such an app was actually developed or used by Elon Musk.

Almost a week after their escape from a South Carolina research laboratory the day after the presidential elections, 18 of the 42 escaped monkeys are still being actively sought by the authorities.

Police have warned the public not to approach the animals under any circumstances.

25 of the 42 monkeys that escaped from the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in South Carolina on Wednesday were finally captured in good health after undergoing a health check by a team of veterinarians.

The monkeys, rhesus macaques, escaped when an Alpha Genesis employee failed to properly close a door after feeding them, according to authorities.

The Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center, located in Yemassee, South Carolina, is a facility dedicated to the study of primates. The center focuses primarily on biomedical research and the study of primate behavior, while providing subjects for scientific research related to medicine and biology.

The search continues for the 18 macaques still at large.

Although Joe Biden promised a peaceful transfer of power and invited President-elect Donald Trump to the White House on Wednesday, an invitation he accepted, Melania Trump, for her part, chose not to respond to First Lady Jill Biden’s invitation to visit the White House.

Melania Trump chose not to follow this tradition, citing a scheduling conflict to justify her refusal.

By contrast, during her husband’s first term in office, she accepted former First Lady Michelle Obama’s invitation to share a moment of tea.

In 2020, after Donald Trump’s defeat in the election, no invitation was extended by the Trumps to the Bidens, breaking a long-standing tradition between the incumbent and the president-elect.