• 4 Posts
  • 32 Comments
Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: October 11th, 2024
  • Maeve @lemmygrad.mlOPtoScience@hexbear.net•Scientists discover a hydraulic link between the abdomen and the brainEnglish
    4·
    29 days ago

    I wouldn’t be surprised if the vagus somehow works in conjunction, somehow. I do remember listening to talk radio one morning and a local MD was talking about the significance of the vagus, and how the weight-equivalence of a US dime could cause excruciating back pain and muscle spasms. He told the audience to consider how highly processed foods, a lack of fiber, hydration, and movement causes long-term constipation, with several (imperial) pounds of waste in the gut, and how a lot of back pain would be easily remedied by addressing the aforementioned.

  • Maeve @lemmygrad.mltonews@hexbear.net•CW animal abuse/deathEnglish
    2·
    2 months ago

    The young horse, just days from his seventh birthday, struggled through the final fence of a long and gruelling race, but jockey Paul Townend continued to ride him until the finish line, even hitting Gold Dancer with his whip. It was announced shortly after that Gold Dancer had suffered a broken back and had been killed.

  • Maeve @lemmygrad.mltonews@hexbear.net•US bypasses Swiss anti-aircraft system Patriot payment freezeEnglish
    3·
    2 months ago

    Switzerland stopped payments for the Patriot air defence system in the autumn. This is because the delivery is delayed by years. Now research by SRF shows: The payment freeze is ineffective. The US is diverting Swiss fighter jet money on a large scale and using it for Patriot. It was intended as a means of exerting pressure: In September, Switzerland stopped payments for the Patriot air defence system. It didn’t help. Since then, the US has simply tapped into the money that Switzerland transfers for the F-35 fighter jet. Armaments chief Urs Loher confirms the research. He also told SRF the exact sum that the US has already diverted from the fighter jet to the Patriot. But under pressure from the US authorities, he is no longer allowed to name the amount. “It’s a low three-digit million amount,” Loher says simply. This means well over 100 million francs. The “small print” makes it possible So the US is circumventing the payment freeze by diverting fighter jet money to Patriot. How is this possible? In the USA, arms deals with foreign countries always go through the state – specifically via the Foreign Military Sales Program (FMS). The USA runs a fund for all Swiss arms purchases within the framework of FMS. Be it for the F-35 or for Patriot: All Swiss payments end up in this fund. If one project lacks money, the US is allowed to access funds for other projects. That’s exactly what the U.S. authorities are doing now: fighter jet money is flowing to Patriot. DDPS must inject additional money “From my point of view, this is very unsatisfactory,” says Armaments Chief Urs Loher. The diversion of funds from the F-35 to Patriot puts pressure on the Department of Defense (DDPS). Because this creates gaps in the F-35. At the end of the year, the DDPS had to transfer several tens of millions of francs for the F-35 to the USA ahead of schedule in order to plug these gaps. The early payments exacerbate existing financial problems: The DDPS currently lacks the money to tackle arms procurements that have already been decided. This year, the US is likely to continue diverting money to Patriot. The payment freeze is ineffective. Armaments chief Loher defends him anyway: It was a political signal. And thanks to the stop, the US would have informed Switzerland more transparently about the years of delays. “Trust in the US suffers” “It’s annoying when we stop payments and then the money is simply reversed,” says SVP Council of States member and security politician Werner Salzmann. The DDPS was apparently not aware that this bypass was possible, criticises his liberal council colleague Josef Dittli. SP National Councillor Priska Seiler-Graf, on the other hand, feels confirmed in her previous demand for a termination of the Patriot procurement. The SP wants to avoid arms purchases in the USA as far as possible. SVP politician Salzmann also says his trust in the US has suffered: “There are more and more problems with the interpretation of FMS contracts. We have to think carefully about whether we want to conclude such contracts at all.” Balance of power speaks against Switzerland Meanwhile, the DDPS is continuing talks with the USA. Armaments chief Loher wants the US to postpone the Patriot payments until later. After all, the delivery is also delayed. The outcome is uncertain, says Loher – but he also says: “The balance of power is pretty clear.”