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India's current account deficit of 4%- with imports exceeding exports of goods and services- and its small foreign exchange reserves of $293 billion as of April 14, 2012, place serious constraints on building a sizable energy fund to support additional imports of coal and other energy supplies. India is facing severe shortages of coal for the power industry. This places constraints on the country's growth rate. Finance Ministry officials and members of the Planning Commission are looking at setting up a $10 billion energy fund for securing additional supplies of crude oil and coal. Energy imports are placing a strain on India's finances and even the relatively small fund will need money from energy companies in the private sector.

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As both Harris and Trump focus on increasing Border Security and fighting transnational gangs at the Border, Mexico's new president Claudia Sheinbaum has a strategy for the first 100 days to tackle the 10 cities with the highest homicide rates that include Acapulco, Guanajuato.

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$150,000 or $250,000 income a year does not go far in 2026 when college costs $100,000 per child a year, housing is costly, hotels cost $300 a night and car rentals $100 a day, restaurants $50 a meal. A lot changed over the last 5 years with cost of living taking a sharp turn.

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The former commander of the NATO US forces in Europe 2014-2018, Gen. Ben Hodges, says the war could end in 2023 with air support to Ukraine. Hodges tells DW.com's Ines Pohl, that the only red line for Washington's support in Ukraine is "boots on the ground." Hodges says Ukraine must retake Crimea to maintain the international rules based order and the UN Charter.

About the Russian offensive in Feb 2023 Hodges says Russia was attempting to "surge" a new offensive but it does not have the capability to launch a "major' one. "They don't have the armored forces, the ability to break through," and that it will not change the "overall operational environment in Ukraine." This is the first serious assessment of the new phase in the war on an overall basis looking at the larger picture of Russian and Ukraine plus outside support capabilities. 

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This report confirms in a fact check that 15% of the global greenhouse gas emissions worldwide come from livestock farming. This includes dairy and meat.

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Ben Gvir's Religious Zionism party sees a surge of support in Israeli elections to come in third place. Mr. Netanyahu's Likud bloc party leads with a majority of seats in parliament in Israeli elections.

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Germany is introducing a 49 euro monthly transport ticket for this winter as a followup to the 9 euro transport scheme that was used in the summer months. This will enable users to travel at lower cost on short and long distance public transportation. A one-off payment for gas bills will be introduced for households and businesses in December.

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BRICS is becoming an obsolete concept as Brazil, India and South Africa are essentially looking for ways in which they can increase opportunities for growth. It was a concept started by a Goldman Sachs investment banker Mr. O'Neill at a different time in 2010. The world has gone through the 2009 financial crisis, the pandemic, and the supply chain crisis with overconcentration of EU and US supply chain in China. These events are leading to a shift under the Biden administration to bring India  into the G7 into a new G8 that includes India. Only Russia, China and South Africa remain from the original BRICS. Russia because of the war in Ukraine now depends on Chinese support and trade. Brazil will gradually shift back to its position as part of the US alliance in Latin America with Mexico, Argentina and Chile. India with its plans for rapid growth to build the modern third largest economy by 2040 seeks supply chain integration with the US and EU in the position that China holds today.   ...

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The ICC inducts Vinoo Mankad, one of India's most famous batsmen into its Hall of Fame. Mankad scored 72 and 184 at Lord's and bowled 97 overs in 1952. Vinoo Mankad was mentor for another cricketer Sunil Gavaskar.

Gavaskar says one of the lessons he got from Vinoo Mankad was that technique alone was not enough, "you have to be hanging in there and have that self-belief."

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Efforts by Special Counsel Jack Smith to keep the case on the US election on schedule on March 4, 2024, by taking it to the US Supreme Court.

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A teary Theresa May resigns as prime minister of Britain. Headlines in The Times say she had commitment but lacked flexibility. Other headlines say her attempts to pass her Brexit deals were doomed to fail from the beginning as she lacked a consensus in her own party. The Conservative party is badly divided.

This also stiffens European resolve not to negotiate further with a no-deal Brexit supporter, Mr. Boris Johnson, likely to be the new prime minister. Mr. Johnson has said the only problem with Britain going ahead and leaving the European Union without any deal negotiated is that there could be a shortage of Mars chocolate bars.

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The British Energy Institute shows how countries are doing in fighting climate change by reducing fossil fuel use. 

Poland is poor at 88% fossil fuels in energy mix. Algeria, Singapore, Bangladesh, Oman at 98%.

In Europe Norway leads at 72% for renewqble energy in the mix. Brazil at 50% keads SOuth America, Nw Zealand 43% and Vietnam at 23% in Asia Pacific. 

Of 6525 coal fired power plants China has 3168, India 845 plants and US 408. Older plants are being retired.

Planned construction of new coal power plants 707 in China, 165 in India, 2 in the US, 23 in eastern Europe, 0 in Northern Europe and 4 in Southern Europe, 0 in Western Europe, Latin America is 6.

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Awesome, awesome advice from Diana Nyad- who did the 110 mile swim from Cuba to Florida when she was 60 years- on getting older and staying younger all the time. A better cognitive function and physical fitness is within reach after 40 years, after 65 years says Diana Nyad than when we were younger. All that is needed is a positive attitude, about not being self-absorbed and selfish like when we were in our twenties. Magggie Penman of the Washington Post interviews Diana Nyad, who says she is fitter, stronger at 76 than before. Part of this, says Nyad, comes from being nicer, more forgiving of people. One thing as you get older your connection with people around you means everything. You want to "embrace the chaos", says Nyad. It means getting to know the person next to you wherever you are, what is their life story. For Nyad even if you are an atheist like she is, be an atheist in awe at the sheer wonder of nature and the world. That gives you energy and gratitude that fills up your life. ...