Miscellaneous News

[proelite]

One of my NASA engineer friends recently left to go full-time on OnlyFans. It's the only way to make it in this economy. Gotta get rich fast, and selling your body is fine and good in the West!


Funny countries doing funny things:

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Anadolu Agency

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EuroNews



View attachment 141760
They did the thing again haha

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Foreign Policy

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Bloomberg
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That's a rejecting state of affairs for female engineers in the US.

What's her profile.

 

[jiajia99]

So according to the US government and elites:

1.Indians are needed to keep USA on top to win the tech race.

2.China is clearly the biggest threat to the world and we must stop them winning the tech race by sanctions and export controls.

3.For some reason China is not importing millions of Indians to win the tech race.

Do these guys not realize how contradictory this looks?

Strategic think and long term thinking isn’t what India is known for to be honest about it. Also to consider, the USA is also not known for Long term planning especially in regards to long term consequences of such plans because if they did, their empire could’ve lasted centuries from 1945, not have the dishonor of fizzling out before the century is done at the rate it is going

 

[pmc]

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Iran’s FM Due in China for Talks​

Iran has some explaining to do.

I think its China needed to do the explaining why it bother to sign any agreement with Iran or even part of JCPOA.
Now Turkey is explaining the basics and Iran still not getting.

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Khamenei's adviser: Turkish officials warned Iran against angering Israel​

 

[Fatty]

I think its China needed to do the explaining why it bother to sign any agreement with Iran or even part of JCPOA.
Now Turkey is explaining the basics and Iran still not getting.

imo it is likely that in the future Saudi Arabia may be China’s main ally in the Middle East. Iran is seriously too incompetent. Saudi’s crown prince seems to at least understand geopolitics.

 

[iewgnem]

One of my NASA engineer friends recently left to go full-time on OnlyFans. It's the only way to make it in this economy. Gotta get rich fast, and selling your body is fine and good in the West!

Yeah I don't believe you, you need to provide more evidence for verification.

 

[supercat]

Apparently, it is an Temu 6th Gen Honda Civic.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1872358441400033302

This guy is a Lieutenant Colonel.

He probably has no clue about China's auto industry either. Such an ignoramus is a godsend for China.

Gaslighting title of the day:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1872219606754181599

 

[tokenanalyst]

MAGA claiming for attention civil war? LOL

 

[PandaAI]

So according to the US government and elites:

1.Indians are needed to keep USA on top to win the tech race.

2.China is clearly the biggest threat to the world and we must stop them winning the tech race by sanctions and export controls.

3.For some reason China is not importing millions of Indians to win the tech race.

Do these guys not realize how contradictory this looks?

If Indians were these genius tech people, why didn’t they create tech while living in India? Where are the Indian tech companies that challenge the US and China? If anything, importing thousands of Indians has diminished US tech companies.
Big difference between boasting and achieving results. Indian culture is a boasting culture whereas Chinese culture is a results-oriented culture. There is no way in hell India will be a more powerful country than China this century.

 

[ACuriousPLAFan]

Once a classic, always a classic.

 

[FriedButter]

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How to tax popcorn? India's formula sparks outrage against GST system​

NEW DELHI, Dec 23 (Reuters) - India's move to tax popcorn differently based on its sugar or spice content has drawn criticism from the opposition and sparked social media outrage, with two former government economic advisers questioning the tax system introduced in 2017.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, chaired by the finance minister and including state representatives, announced on Saturday that non-branded popcorn mixed with salt and spices would attract a 5% GST, pre-packaged and branded popcorn 12%, and caramel popcorn, categorised as a sugar confectionery, 18%.

The differential rates come into effect immediately, ending confusion over rates as popcorn was taxed differently across states.

Explaining the rationale behind the decision to tax caramel popcorn at 18%, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that any product with added sugar is taxed differently.

The announcement, however, sparked a social media storm on Sunday, with opposition politicians, economists and supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government criticising the move and others creating memes and poking fun at it.

"Complexity is a bureaucrat’s delight and citizens’ nightmare," India's previous Chief Economic Adviser K V Subramanian wrote on X. He questioned the rationale of the decision he said will contribute minimally to tax revenues, but inconvenience citizens.

His predecessor, Arvind Subramanian, said "the folly is compounded because instead of at least moving in the direction of simplicity we are veering to greater complexity, difficulty of enforcement and just irrationality".

One widely circulated post on X showed an image of a branded "salt caramel" popcorn packet and said how it would send the taxman into a tizzy calculating the tax rate on it.

Jairam Ramesh, leader and spokesman of the main opposition Congress party, said the "absurdity of three different tax slabs for popcorn under GST ... only brings to light a deeper issue that the growing complexity of a system that was supposed to be a Good and Simple Tax".

A finance ministry spokesperson and the GST Council Secretariat did not respond to requests for comment on the controversy.

Gopal Krishna Agarwal, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's spokesman on economic affairs, said the GST Council "clarification" on how popcorn is to be taxed was in reply to a specific query on the issue.

"It is normal when basic ingredients are same but finished products attract different GST rates," he said, adding that GST has become a very efficient and effective ecosystem for enhanced and transparent tax compliance through a corruption-free and smooth process.

The GST system has run into similar controversies for its tax classifications in the past and faced questions although not on this scale.

Previous controversies have involved taxing chapatis or unleavened Indian flatbread differently from layered flatbreads, different rates for curd and yogurt, and cream bun versus bun and cream served separately.

non-branded popcorn mixed with salt and spices would attract a 5% GST, pre-packaged and branded popcorn 12%, and caramel popcorn, categorised as a sugar confectionery, 18%.

Previous controversies have involved taxing chapatis or unleavened Indian flatbread differently from layered flatbreads, different rates for curd and yogurt, and cream bun versus bun and cream served separately.

Funny how the Indian GST tax system is so complicated. Different tax tiers for different flavors of popcorn including if they are packaged or not packaged. Leavened bread or unleavened bread. Whatever there is cream on the bun or cream off the bun.