USA - Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency over a bird flu outbreak in California. Mr Newsom, the California governor, said the move would allow the state to “expedite” its efforts to contain the outbreak and insisted the risk to the public was “low”. It comes shortly after an individual in Louisiana was sent to hospital with bird flu, marking the US’s first severe reaction to the H5N1 virus. California has recorded 32 of the 61 bird flu infections in the US, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). There are no signs that the virus has spread between humans in the state, which would be necessary for a pandemic to start. Currently, all cases have been linked to exposure to cattle or birds.

USA - Karl Marx and Henry Ford both understood the key pillar of an industrial economy: the workforce has to earn enough to buy the output of the economy. If the workforce doesn't earn enough to have surplus earnings to spend on the enormous output of an industrial economy, then the producers cannot sell their goods / services at a profit, except to the few at the top as luxury goods - and that's not an industrial economy, it's a feudal economy of very limited scope.

UK - A mental health crisis is unfolding in workplaces worldwide, with financial services emerging among the hardest-hit sectors, the Financial Times reported on Monday, citing recent research. Burnout, depression, and anxiety are the main issues that significantly undermine productivity, economists, business leaders, and health advocates have warned. A survey by global consultancy firm Deloitte revealed that 17% of finance and insurance workers in the UK experience exhaustion, declining performance, and mental distancing, compared to a 12% average across all sectors.

USA - Residents of New Jersey have been urged not to shoot down suspected drones in the sky, as the public takes matters into their own hands after days of hysteria over “UFOs”. The FBI released a statement warning the public that they risked blinding pilots of manned aircraft in their attempts to take down the mystery drones by shining lasers up at the sky, and urged them not to shoot them down by using guns. “FBI Newark and New Jersey State Police want to warn the public about an increase in pilots of manned aircraft being hit in the eyes with lasers because people on the ground think they see an Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS),” the agency said. “There is also a concern with people possibly firing weapons at what they believe to be a UAS but could be a manned aircraft.”

USA - The strange lights in the sky are real. The panic across America is real. But is it an alien invasion? A terrorist attack? A foreign spying mission? A sick hoax? Or is the US government deliberately spreading fear among its own citizens? And could Britain be next? There are more questions than answers as millions of Americans worry about the bright orbs and triangular objects that are increasingly swarming the night skies. It’s like a modern-day version of Orson Welles’ famed radio broadcast dramatising HG Wells’ sci-fi drama War of the Worlds, which in 1938 spread panic across America as many believed that a real alien invasion was under way. Except this time, the lights in the sky are not fictional.

ISRAEL - Israel has said that it will take “full security control” of the Gaza Strip once fighting has ended, as negotiators edged closer towards a deal to release the hostages still being held in the enclave. Hopes of a ceasefire have been rising for several days, with sources on both sides briefing that an agreement, which would halt the conflict in exchange for the release of hostages, was closer than ever before. This week, Israeli negotiators arrived in Qatar to work through the remaining impediments to a deal. Qatar, along with Egypt and the US, has been acting as a mediator throughout the talks. The two sides’ positions are said to have narrowed significantly over recent weeks, with Hamas having shown greater flexibility around Israel’s demand for its forces to remain in the Philadelphi corridor, a strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt, and the Netzarim corridor, which divides the enclave.

MAURITIUS - Mauritius has rejected the terms of the deal to hand over the Chagos Islands in a major blow to Sir Keir Starmer. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, the country’s new prime minister, told MPs that the agreement was not good enough and must be renegotiated. In a statement to the Mauritian parliament, he said it “would not produce the benefits that the nation could expect from such an agreement”. His announcement will come as a major embarrassment to Sir Keir, who made striking the deal one of his first major foreign policy moves. The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: “The Government inherited a situation where the long-term secure operation of the military base at Diego Garcia was under threat, with contested sovereignty and legal challenges. The agreement we’ve struck with Mauritius protects the long-term secure operation of the UK-US base, which plays such a crucial role in regional and international security."

Across the world, a wave of change is sweeping through established leaderships, and it’s thrilling to watch.

USA - President-elect Donald Trump said Monday “the government knows what is happening” concerning mysterious drones spotted flying over numerous states in recent weeks. At a news conference from his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Trump stated: “The government knows what is happening. Look, our military knows where they took off from. If it’s a garage, they can go right into that garage. They know where it came from and where it went. For some reason, they don’t want to comment. And I think they would be better off saying what it is. Our military knows and our president knows. For some reason, they want to keep people in suspense."

USA - Who Is Running the UAV Invasion, and Why? Here, the main hypothesis is that it’s a PSYOP, either being waged by the outgoing Biden Administration, or from other deep state elements, or else by foreign adversaries or enemies.

USA - Satanists set up their first ever ‘holiday’ display at the Minnesota Capitol Building. “Hail Satan!” the Minnesota Satanists said in celebration of their display. Last year veteran Michael Cassidy beheaded a satanic altar in the Iowa capital over the holidays. The altar to Baphomet was installed by the Satanic Temple, with approval from the Iowa Legislature. It featured a goat’s head on a red-caped mannequin holding a crimson pentagram wreath. Cassidy was later charged with a hate crime.

GERMANY - Early elections are now slated to be held on February 23. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz lost a confidence vote in parliament on Monday, paving the way for snap elections early next year. The outcome was expected after Scholz’s government coalition collapsed in November over a budget dispute. A total of 394 ballots were cast against Scholz, with 207 in his favor and 116 abstentions. Scholz, who will lead his Social Democratic Party (SPD) into the February election, reportedly smiled when the result was announced and shook the hand of Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck.

GERMANY - Germany must ask whether NATO membership “is still useful for us,” Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-leader Tino Chrupalla has said, arguing that the US-led military bloc forces Europe to act in America’s interests. ”Europe has been forced to implement America’s interests. We reject that,” Chrupalla told German daily Welt on Sunday. ”NATO is currently not a defense alliance,” he continued. “A defense community must accept and respect the interests of all European countries, including Russia’s interests. If NATO cannot ensure that, Germany must consider to what extent this alliance is still useful for us,” he explained.

CANADA - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is on the brink of resigning as his liberal government crumbles around him, according to CTV News. Trudeau, 52, is 'considering his options as leader', sources have told the broadcaster, while his Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland revealed she will quit. Freeland quit on Monday after clashing with Trudeau on issues including how to handle possible US tariffs, dealing a huge blow to an already unpopular government. In a stinging resignation letter, Freeland dismissed Trudeau's push for increased spending as a political gimmick that could hurt Ottawa's ability to deal with the 25 percent import tariffs US President-elect Donald Trump says he will impose. The resignation by Freeland, 56, who also served as deputy prime minister, is one of the biggest crises Trudeau has faced since taking power in November 2015. It also leaves him without a key ally when he is on track to lose the next election to the official opposition Conservatives.

UK - Glasgow’s fleet of high-tech electric buses may be helping the city reach its green targets but a change in climate has revealed an unfortunate glitch in the system. Passengers have complained about a spate of vehicle breakdowns caused by the battery-powered buses losing their charge in the recent cold snap. First Bus’s double-deckers ground to a halt mid-route as the recent sub-zero temperatures caused the batteries to drain more quickly than usual. A spokesman for First Bus said the company is “aware of challenges” relating to the range of its electric vehicles (EVs) when temperatures fall significantly below freezing.