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As cases mount during the second wave Sweden abandons its response of voluntary actions by the public,  experimenting some say with herd immunity in mind. Ban on large gatherings, school closures, as the toll reaches a level of per capita deaths taht are among the highest in the world. There is now fear of the health system being overwhelmed just as in the rest of Europe. There has been heated debate on the voluntary response and critics charged the government with abandoning the less vulnerable in the population.

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The ruling party LDP's defense committee has decided Japan needs to strike North Korean missiles on the ground. There is a growing consensus on this. Another consensus is developing over the issue of protecting the Senkaku islands adminstered by Japan and claimed by China. 

Earlier in 2020 T12 missiles with 100 kilometres range were deployed on Miyako island between Kyushu and Taiwan. Now these missiles range will be increased to 300 kilometres to reach the Senkaku islands. China has sent patrol planes and ships near the Senkaku islands. Other cruise missile range is planned for 1000 kilometres as Japan Self Defense Forces expand their capabilities to take on more of the responsibility for defending the Japanese islands. In alliance with India and Australia this capability is being expanded to the entire Indian Ocean region to counter an expansionist China.

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Career changes through music, fashion furniture, leads to interior design for Brigette Romanek in Los Angeles. She remembers women who were strong in her life as she moved to different cities, her aunt, her grandmother. She says she learned from herself that she would not give up. she also learned she was creative. An episode in which she designed hand bags led to her realizing how important it was for people to feel good, feel confident. 

She says she likes to work late at night when it is really quiet. Romanek loves design from the 60's and 70's  and classics from that period, shapes from that period that were simple but fun. She talks about a large olive tree in a room, for calm and grounding. The indoors going outdoors as concept. Bringing positive moods in people's minds through objects of beauty.

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The campaign rhetoric for renegotiating NAFTA and building a wall at the border has had a sharply negative effect on growth in Mexico. Growth slowed in 2016 and is expected to be close to zero in 2017 with declining foreign investment in the economy. The uncertainty is leading to sharp decline in foreign direct investment of 24% in the first 9 months of 2016, according to the Bank of Mexico. Further declines can be expected in 2017. The decline in the value of the peso of 16% since May 2016 has led to 6 interest rate increases in the past year. Inflation on annual basis was at 4.72% in Jan. 2017 and is rising. As Mexico depends on exports for one third of its output growth, and 80% is sent to the U.S., there is a need to diversify with trade agreements made with the European Union and other countries. Mexicans now question the value of NAFTA trade agreement as average growth of 2.6 since NAFTA was signed is below the 4.6% in the 2 decades prior to that. And poverty level is the same with about 60% of people in the underground economy. In addition crime, drug trade, a weak education system, weak rule of law, political corruption, show that Mexico has not made the progress since NAFTA that it should have made. ...

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Long flights of over 15 hours without a stop are becoming niche business with selective routes with strong traffic at both ends and some special characteristics needed to make the profitable. Such is the Continental flights from Newark to Mumbai and Delhi and the Singapore Airlines flights from newark to Singapore. Routes like those to places like Australia of Quanta and Guangzhou of Northwest and United are not looking to be profitable. The reason for the higher fuel cost of long haul flights is that the plane essentially becomes a fuel tanker carrying a lot of fuel and a few people and it takes a lot of fuel to transport all that fuel long distances.

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Reducing income inequality and increasing farm incomes would increase consumption spending and investment for further growth in the Indian economy. Investment in infrastructure development is another source of growth. Higher oil prices and the bad loans in the banking system are barriers to increasing growth of the Indian economy. The problems during the last 2 years of the Congress led UPA government, including the bad loans in the banking system and the uncertainty after corruption cases including the telecom auctions, required that the Modi government take strong action in the first year. 

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Pep Guardiola and Valverde on the Manchester City loss to Real Madrid 3-0 and Valverde's hat trick. The Uruguay midfielder said: “We’d put some emphasis on training the long ball from goal kicks. City like to press high – they like to go one-v-one, and that means we might have space in behind them to exploit.” Courtois long goal kick gave Valverde his first goal. Manchester City missed Norwegian Haaland in this game.

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Experts say lengthy antitrust investigations in which companies are required to follow the rules set by regulators leads to legal experts being consulted at each step in the product development process. The effect is stifling on the corporate culture and creates an effect on employees over time. Microsoft product development slowed down in the period following the EU investigation. This could happen at Google as it faces EU charges in 2015, say experts.

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Zeit Online takes a look at German chancellor Angela Merkel's statement made in a beer tent in the Muich suburb of Trudering- "The times in which we can completely rely on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days." Zeit Online says the words "ein Stuck" in German were meant to say a bit or somewhat, but the essence of the statement that the depending on the trans-Atlantic alliance was now over comes right through.

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Aramco Saudi pipeline to Yanbu to get 7 million b/d out from the east to western Saudi Arabia on Red Sea- 700 miles long as long as Trans Alaska pipeline. It was built with help from Mobil Oil in 1983 during the Iran Iraq War to get oil away from the volatile Gulf region. Another pipeline gets about 2 million b/d from UAE to Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman. This is not the first time the Saudis have faced such a volatile Gulf region.

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Where EU gets LNG in 2024- Qatar 12% US 43% Russia 21% other 24%. EU's gas pipeline supplies increased in 2025 from Norway by 6% to 52.6%. Norway is also increasing its LNG supplies from Hammerfest. US under the Trade Agreement with EU US plans to send $750 billion in LNG exports to the EU. A Sustainability directive by EU for climate goals puts Qatar at risk of penalty of 2.43 billion euros according to DW.com. Qatar has said it may discontinue exports of LNG to EU in response and shift to Asian buyers. Since the Ukraine war and shift away from Russian gas pipeline supplies German economy Minister Habeck negotiated the deal with Qatar for LNG.