A top New York official was paid off by China with salted ducks, a job for her cousin, and millions to her husband’s business: DOJ

“Federal prosecutors have accused a former high-level aide to New York’s governor of secretly working for China in exchange for perks like orchestra tickets, millions in cash, and over a dozen Nanjing-style salted ducks.
Linda Sun, who worked for Gov. Kathy Hochul and her predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, was charged on Tuesday with over 10 criminal counts, including visa fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

Sun, 40, is accused of blocking Taiwanese officials’ access to the New York governor’s office and changing public messages from both governors to boost China’s talking points, among other acts.

According to the Justice Department, she also sent messages informing the Chinese consulate about Taiwan’s requests to the governor’s office.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/top-york-official-paid-off-053609747.html

World War War III May Already Have Started—in the Shadows

“Britain’s signals intelligence spy chief raised eyebrows this week with warnings that Russia is coordinating both cyberattacks and physical acts of sabotage against the West. There’s evidence to back her claims—and the West may be returning the favor. Coming soon after FBI Director Christopher Wray warned that China is targeting American infrastructure, it looks like the world is not only fracturing once again, but that the hostile blocs are engaged in covert warfare.”

https://reason.com/2024/05/17/world-war-war-iii-may-already-have-started-in-the-shadows/

Be Skeptical of That 60 Minutes Report on Havana Syndrome

“This noise was not produced by some kind of sonic weapon, however. It turned out to be crickets. Literal crickets.
And yet, this did not put Havana syndrome panic to rest, even though subsequent analysis by medical experts and U.S. intelligence suggests that the condition is not real. In 2022, the CIA concluded that the symptoms described by various officials were not caused by “a sustained global campaign by a hostile power.” The FBI’s analysis was that Havana syndrome is a “mass sociogenic illness,” which sounds pretty scary, but actually means that the symptoms are essentially caused by social contagion, under conditions of extreme stress, paranoia, and among members of an insular community. Writer Natalie Shure likened it to the “demonic fits” experienced by girls during the Salem witch trials.

“It means that the perceived diagnosis spreads socially, almost like an infectious pathogen would, with symptoms either triggered, exacerbated or wrongly ascribed to a phony cause,” she wrote in a November 2021 piece for Slow Boring. “People experience various maladies all the time and the cause is not always clear.””

https://reason.com/2024/04/04/be-skeptical-of-that-60-minutes-report-on-havana-syndrome/

4 Chinese citizens charged with helping Iran obtain U.S. technology for military use

“Four Chinese nationals have been charged with providing U.S. technology to Iran, according to the Justice Department.
“Baoxia Liu, aka Emily Liu; Yiu Wa Yung, aka Stephen Yung; Yongxin Li, aka Emma Lee; and Yanli Zhong, aka Sydney Chung, unlawfully exported and smuggled U.S. export-controlled items through China and Hong Kong,” the Justice Department said”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/4-chinese-citizens-charged-helping-203639055.html

Iran goes public with stark warning over suspected spy ship as U.S. refuses to rule out more strikes

Iran goes public with stark warning over suspected spy ship as U.S. refuses to rule out more strikes

https://www.yahoo.com/news/iran-goes-public-stark-warning-130042353.html

Why the balloon and UFO affairs are a Sputnik moment

“Balloons, it turns out, are already part of that US arsenal, with the Pentagon spending $3.8 billion over the past two years on them, according to Politico. As industry expert George Howell posted on LinkedIn, “High Altitude Balloons are actually a pretty smart thing to invest in, they’re cheap, easy to transport, can be fielded in large numbers and are payload agnostic,” meaning that while they’re most likely to be carrying cameras or radar, in certain situations balloons could field a weapon.”

Biden admin offers to brief Trump officials on past Chinese spy balloon incursions

“a senior Defense Department official said that Chinese spy balloons entered American airspace three times during Trump’s tenure and once before during the current administration.”

“the difference between past instances and the one from last week, Defense Department officials said, is that those balloons never stayed above U.S. territory for a significant period of time. When pressed for specifics, such as the date, location and duration of those instances, Biden administration officials refused to provide them to POLITICO, citing the classified nature of that information.”

Suspected Chinese spy balloon flying above U.S. shot down off Carolina coast

“Said to be around the size of three buses, the balloon flew over Canada and Alaska’s Aleutian Islands before being spotted in the continental United States. It then made its way eastward, being spotted across the country before it was shot down on the East Coast on Saturday afternoon.”