USA - Research shows that microplastics can be found anywhere — including in heart plaque buildup, which significantly increases risk of heart-related adverse events. Plastic is a crucial product in industrial production and is deeply intertwined with daily life. When plastic products break down, they become microplastics or even smaller nanoplastics. Microplastics are plastic pieces smaller than 5 millimeters, while nanoplastics measure below 1 micron (1,000 nanometers). Lin Xiaoxu, a US virology expert with a doctorate in microbiology, explained what microplastics and nanoplastics are on New Tang Dynasty TV’s “Health 1+1” program and how to reduce exposure to them.

USA - Nearly 1.7 million people in Texas are entering a third day without power in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl. The acting governor, Dan Patrick, said in a statement that bringing back power will be a “multi-day restoration event”. Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas on Monday, taking down power lines that left nearly 3 million people without electricity at the peak of the outages. Much of south-east Texas including Houston is enduring dangerously high temperatures with no air conditioning amid an ongoing heatwave. “With power outages continuing across south-east Texas, the lack of air-conditioning will aggravate the risk for heat-related illnesses as high temperatures warm into the lower and mid-90s,” warns National Weather Service in Houston, where the heat index reached 106F (41C) yesterday and is expected to reach 105F today. At least 10 people in the US died in the wake of the category 5 hurricane.

USA - Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to the fatal 737 Max crashes, the Justice Department announced on Sunday. This comes months after US prosecutors accused the aerospace giant of violating a 2021 settlement that protected it from prosecution. As part of the deal, Boeing will pay a $243.6 million fine. Additionally, an independent compliance monitor will oversee Boeing’s adherence to compliance standards for three years during a probationary period. The company must also invest at least $455 million in compliance and safety programs, according to a court filing by US prosecutors late Sunday. This plea deal is pending approval by a federal judge. The agreement also stipulates that Boeing’s board of directors must meet with the families of the crash victims.

ITALY - Pope Francis warned Sunday democracy is in “crisis” around the world, likely with an eye to a rise in right-wing parties across Italy, Austria, Argentina, Netherlands, and Germany. It is evident that in today’s world, democracy “is not in good health,” the pontiff told a group of 900 participants in the 50th annual Social Week, celebrated in the northern Italian city of Trieste. The pope went on to compare the modern “crisis of democracy” to a wounded heart that has suffered a heart attack, manifested by “various forms of social exclusion” that “limit participation.”

GERMANY - Not a single German national appears to be fully satisfied with their government, the latest ARD-Deutschland TREND survey has revealed. The country is currently governed by the so-called traffic light coalition, which consists of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the Free Democrats (FDP), and the Greens. According to the survey, conducted on July 1-3, zero percent of Germans said they were “fully satisfied” with the ruling coalition’s work, with just 19% saying they were somewhat “satisfied.” The overall dissatisfaction rate with the government’s policies rose to 81%, with 38% saying they were “not satisfied at all.” After the EU push to eliminate Russian energy imports as part of the sanctions, the German economy has taken several major hits, with many energy-intensive businesses either leaving the country or shutting down entirely.

USA - The Biden administration has warned China against continuing to conduct armed attacks on the Philippines, but China has blatantly ignored the warning, repeatedly harassing Philippine naval vessels and severely injuring its sailors over the past several months. Beijing, for its part, has accused Washington of using the Philippines as a pawn and seems to have every intention of continuing to escalate the dispute. That dispute centers on the Second Thomas Shoal, a disputed reef within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, but also within China’s illegal “nine-dash line” maritime claim in the South China Sea.

USA - ‘It’s Going to Be Catastrophic’: Why the Next Pandemic Will Be Worse Than COVID. The former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning Americans to prepare for the next pandemic, which he fears will be more catastrophic than COVID-19. Dr Robert Redfield, a virologist who continues to treat patients suffering from COVID, oversaw the CDC’s initial response to the pandemic and served as a member of the White House’s Coronavirus Task Force under former President Donald Trump.

USA - Government censorship of people’s ideas, statements and thoughts is flourishing not only in the United States, according to a new report from the Foundation for Freedom Online. In America, the Supreme Court essentially gave such First Amendment-trashing operations a pass, in the recent Murthy lawsuit, by claiming that states and individuals weren’t being injured by the instructions from the Joe Biden administration to social media companies on what ideas to suppress. That ruling, killing the case because the plaintiffs didn’t have “standing,” allows Biden administration officials to continue to give censorship instructions to social media, to even coerce and threaten them, so they shut down ideas Biden dislikes.

CANADA - World-renowned psychologist and culture war crusader Dr Jordan Peterson is not afraid to voice his opinions — however unpopular they may be. The Canadian academic has been both praised and criticized for his take on trans medical issues, COVID-19 travel restrictions and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But his latest claim might be the most contrarian yet. In a podcast with UK politician Nigel Farage this week, Dr Peterson said burning fossil fuels was good for the environment. 'The influx of carbon dioxide from the fossil fuel industry into the atmosphere,' he said, 'is actually a net ecological good.'

USA - Gun owners in three US states can now buy bullets from vending machines in grocery shops, after a company launched automated kiosks to make ammunition “more available”. Some shops in Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas now allow customers to scan their ID on a device similar to a drinks vending machine, and walk away with rounds for their weapons. American Rounds, the company that manufactures the machines, says they are as easy to use as an ATM. “Our automated ammo dispensers are accessible 24/7, ensuring that you can buy ammunition on your own schedule, free from the constraints of store hours and long lines,” it says on its website. The machines use “built-in AI technology, card scanning capability and facial recognition software” to match a buyer’s ID to their face and ensure they are over 18 years old.

USA - In a civilized society, authorities are able to maintain at least a basic level of law and order in the streets most of the time. Unfortunately, at this point it is up for debate whether the United States is still a “civilized society” or not. The chaos in our streets never seems to end, and those that are in charge of running things don’t seem to be able to regain control. The theft, violence and mayhem that we are witnessing in our major cities is being fueled by the worst homelessness crisis in our entire history, the worst drug crisis in our entire history, and the worst migration crisis in our entire history. If authorities cannot control our streets now, what is going to happen once our societal collapse reaches a much more advanced stage?

EUROPE - Shortly before German Economy Minister Robert Habeck’s trip to South Korea and China, there is another twist in the downward spiral of a trade war between the EU and the People’s Republic of China. At the beginning of the week, Beijing launched an anti-dumping investigation into EU pork exports to China. Punitive tariffs are likely to follow. This product group has an annual value of 2.5 billion euros. It will be China’s response to the European Commission announcement that it will impose punitive tariffs ranging from 17.4 to 38.1 per cent on imports of Chinese-made electric vehicles from 4 July. These tariff hikes come on top of the regular import 10 per cent duties. This move by Brussels is highly controversial in Germany.

CHINA - China's latest stunt in the South China Sea has triggered fresh horrifying "open war" fears. Beijing deployed a monster 541-feet Coast Guard ship within 200 nautical miles of the Philippines in its latest bid to intimidate the top US ally in the Indo-Pacific. China has been embroiled in a bitter dispute with Manila for months as it seeks to assert its sovereignty over the contested body of water. Xi Jinping's navy has ramped up its aggressive stance - despite repeated warnings from Washington it would intervene should the Philippines come under attack. But China has so far shown no sign it plans to listen to demands from other countries with a stake in the South China Sea to stand down.

FRANCE - As votes continue to be counted following France's shock election poll, riots break out sparking scenes of chaos amid celebrations for The New Popular Front. As the votes continue to be counted following France’s hard fought election, pockets of civil unrest have dampened the victory celebrations of The New Popular Front (NFP), a left-wing alliance formed at the last minute to fight the election, who exit polls predict have won the most seats. No party appears to have won a majority, but Marine Le Pen, the co-leader of the National Rally with Jordan Bardella, has refused to admit defeat, as she defiantly told reporters her party's "victory has only been delayed", and she "sees the seeds of tomorrow's victory in today's result”.

USA - South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham added his voice on Sunday to a chorus calling for cognitive and physical evaluations for Joe Biden – but also called for the same for Donald Trump and others. The Republican lawmaker recommended such tests for all future presidential nominees as well as those who may take over from a president or a nominee. “All nominees for president going into the future should have neurological exams as part of an overall physical exam… Let’s test Trump. Let’s test Biden. Let’s test the line of succession”, the 68-year-old Graham told CBS’ Face the Nation on Sunday. “This is a wake-up call for the country,” he added. “We need to make sure that the people who are going to be in the line of succession are capable of being commander-in-chief under dire circumstances.”