IRS Says Millionaires Can Keep Estate Tax Benefits After 2025
(Bloomberg) — Taxpayers can benefit from higher thresholds for U.S. estate and gift taxes even if they don’t die until after the tax overhaul expires in 2026, the Internal Revenue Service said. The 2017 Republican tax law approximately doubled the estate and gift tax exemption. That means individuals this year can pass on, tax-free, $11.4…
Through the wire — Palestinians risk all to work in Israel
Mitar Checkpoint (Israel) (AFP) – It is well before dawn when the first work deprived Palestinians arrive to sneak through a two-metre hole cut in the metal fence that is supposed to keep them out of Israel. The men are among the thousands of Palestinians working in Israel illegally, risking bad working conditions, exploitation and…
'Absolute fearlessness': women take impeachment spotlight and speak truth as Trump fumes
Hours into the final public hearing of the House’s historic impeachment inquiry on Thursday, the congresswoman Jackie Speier, a Democrat from California, asked the witness to verify a story she had heard about her. Related: Trump suggests he wants to be impeached and says ‘I want a trial’ – live Fiona Hill, the former top…
Harris hopes to make ‘magic’ with black women in SC
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Aside a wall of 2-foot-tall letters spelling out “Black Women Lead,” behind a podium bearing a “Black Women for Kamala” sign, Kamala Harris made an appeal Saturday to black women in South Carolina, a contingency whose support she sees as crucial to the viability of her presidential candidacy. “When we talk…
German soldier who posed as Syrian refugee to face new terror trial
A German soldier who lived a double life posing as a Syrian refugee is to face a new trial on charges of planning a far-Right terror attack. Lieutenant Franco Albrecht spent more than a year posing as a Christian refugee from Syria, and was given a place in a German government refugee shelter. Prosecutors allege…
‘Ghost guns’ are untraceable, easy to make, more prevalent
For a few hundred dollars, tools and some elbow grease, you can make your own rifle or handgun. It’s all perfectly legal — and it can be done without leaving anything behind for the government to trace. These “ghost guns” have long been popular among hobbyists or gun enthusiasts. But gun control advocates say they…
The Saugus High School Shooter Used an Illegal 'Ghost Gun.' Authorities Warn More Criminals Are Using Untraceable Weapons to Get Around Gun Laws
Los Angeles authorities have confirmed that a teen who killed two students, and himself, in a mass shooting at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, Calif., on Nov. 14 was armed with a “ghost gun,” a weapon which is becoming more popular in spite of the state’s tough gun laws. “[The Saugus High shooter’s gun]…
Japan Wants To Fly F-35s From Its Own Aircraft Carriers, Here Is How It Could Get Them
Key point: Transforming the two helicopter carriers into aircraft carriers won’t be easy. The British company that built the Royal Navy’s two new Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers wants to help Japan modify some of its own ships into carriers. The Japanese government in November 2018 announced that it plans to enhance its two Izumo-class helicopter carriers…
This Is Why The Navy Wouldn't Let Its Midway-Class Aircraft Carriers Die
On March 20, 1945 the shipyard in Newport News, Virginia launched what would remain for a decade the largest warship on the planet. Named USS Midway after the decisive World War II carrier battle, she would be commissioned September 8 just a few weeks after the Japanese surrender. Few of the over four-thousand-man complement departing…
Iran's internet blackout: What is happening, and why did the government turn it off?
What caused the internet shutdown in Iran? The Iranian government implemented a near-total shutdown of internet services after protests began on November 15. The uprisings were sparked by the announcement of hikes in petrol prices across the country of at least 50 per cent. They quickly spread to cities and towns across the country and turned political, with protestors demanding high-ranking officials step down.…