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Russian Pregnant Women Seek New Passports To Argentina

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(CTN NEWS) – BUENOS AIRES – Alla Prigolovkina and Andrei Ushakov made the decision to leave their Sochi, Russia, home shortly after Vladimir Putin gave the order to invade Ukraine.

Ushakov was jailed for holding up a “Peace” sign, and Prigolovkina, a ski instructor who was expecting, was worried that he would soon be recruited and possibly killed, leaving their child fatherless.

Initially, they intended to remain in Europe, but anti-Russian sentiment dissuaded them.

Within the house her family is renting in Argentina’s western Mendoza area, Prigolovkina, 34, told The Associated Press,

“We chose Argentina because it has everything we needed: Beautiful nature, a vast country, magnificent mountains.” We thought it would be perfect for us. They were not by themselves.”

Russian nationals Alla Prigolovkina and her husband Andrei Ushakov, their Argentine-born son Lev Andres and their dogs Santa and Cometa, visit a park in Mendoza, Argentina, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023.(AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Scores Of Pregnant Russians Boarded Aircraft Last Year

The last year has seen scores of pregnant Russians board aircraft, according to Argentina immigration authorities.

But, while Prigolovkina said that her family intended to establish a life here at the foot of the Andes mountains, local authorities think that many of the other recent Russian tourists are only interested in obtaining an Argentine passport.

Having an Argentine child expedites the procedure for the parents to obtain residency cards and, after a few years, their own passports. All children born in Argentina automatically receive citizenship.

Importantly, the navy blue booklets permit admission to 171 nations without a visa, providing Russians with a backup plan that they hope will be useful in the ever-uncertain future.

An Argentine passport could help Russians who have had problems opening bank accounts abroad as a result of sanctions.

Official statistics show that 22,200 Russians entered Argentina in the previous year, including 10,777 women, many of them were quite far along in their pregnancies.

Russian national Alla Prigolovkina breastfeeds her Argentine-born son, Lev Andres, at their home in Mendoza, Argentina, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Russians Entered Argentina In Previous Years

4,523 Russians entered Argentina in January, more than four times the 1,037 who did so in the corresponding month the previous year.

Officials in Argentina came to the conclusion following an investigation that Russian women, typically from wealthy families, were coming to the country as tourists with the intention of having children, getting their paperwork, and then leaving.

13.134 Russians, including 6,400 women, who entered the country in the previous year have already left.

During a meeting with foreign journalists, Florencia Carignano, the national director for migration, stated, “We identified that they don’t come to do tourist, they come to have children.”

Despite having a generally lax immigration policy, Argentina was alarmed when two alleged Russian agents were recently apprehended in Slovenia while traveling on Argentine passports.

As a result, immigration procedures were tightened in the South American nation.

Parents-to-be Maxim Levoshin and Ekaterina Gordienko, pose for a picture in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Russian Women Participated In A Wave Of “birth tourists” In U.S

Carignano expressed concern that the Argentine “passport will cease to have the trust it has in all nations” and said, “We terminated residency of Russians who spent more time outdoors than inside.”

The court system has been urged by immigration authorities to look into organizations that are reportedly helping Russian women who want to give birth in Argentina.

Unknown numbers of women have left Russia to give birth in the past year, but the problem is significant enough that lawmakers in Moscow have asked whether those who choose to give birth abroad should lose their right to the so-called maternity fund that all Russian mothers receive.

Which amounts to a financial benefit of almost $8,000 for the first child and roughly $10,500 for the second.

According to Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, there are no plans to prevent Russian mothers who give birth overseas from receiving benefits from the maternity fund.

However, the occurrence is not entirely new. Russian women participated in a wave of “birth tourists” in the United States prior to the Russia-Ukraine war.

And many of them paid brokers tens of thousands of dollars to organize their travel documents, lodging, and hospital stays, frequently in Florida.

Andrei Ushakov nuzzles his Argentine-born son Lev Andres, at their home in Mendoza, Argentina, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Russians Struggles To Establish A new Life

Russians in Argentina stress that their desire to leave their homes goes beyond getting a new passport because setting out on a long journey during an advanced pregnancy might be particularly risky.

Notwithstanding what the government says, some people are willing to relocate to Argentina.

Since moving to Argentina in July, Prigolovkina and Ushakov have rapidly adapted to the country’s traditions despite the language barrier and the strange, oppressive summer weather.

Prigolovkina claimed that they particularly cherished spending time with their dogs in parks. The family may not have been soccer fans in Russia, but late last year, when their adopted nation won the World Cup, they enthusiastically applauded.

She does, however, acknowledge that getting Lev Andrés, their infant boy, a passport was a driving force for the relocation: “We wanted our baby to have the possibility to not simply be Russian and have a single passport.”

According to some experts, a nation whose immigrants formerly made up as much as 30% of the populace should be especially sympathetic to the struggle of Russians attempting to establish a new life.

Russian national Alla Prigolovkina lies on a bed with her Argentine-born son Lev Andres, at their home in Mendoza, Argentina, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

The entrance of millions of European immigrants, many of whom came from Italy and Spain, into the South American nation in the late 19th and early 20th centuries had a profound impact.

According to social scientist and migrations expert Natalia Debandi, a researcher at the publicly financed CONICET institute, “given our history of the movement, a society like ours should empathize more with the humanitarian dimension” of these new immigrants.

These are people; they are not terrorists.

According to research conducted by immigration officers based on interviews with 350 recently arrived Russians, the majority are married, financially secure professionals who either live off savings or work remotely in the financial and digital design industries.

Russian psychologist Ekaterina Gordienko, 30, spoke highly of her time in Argentina days before giving birth to a child called Leo.

Maxim Levoshin sits with his wife Ekaterina Gordienko as she breastfeeds their newborn baby named Leo, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Saturday, Feb. 18, 2023.(AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

She said, “The health care system is quite good, and people are very polite. The only issue I have is Spanish. I utilize (Google) Translate if the doctor can’t speak English.

Gordienko and her 38-year-old husband Maxim Levoshin came to Buenos Aires, the country’s capital, in December. Levoshin stated, “The first thing we want is for Leo to live in a safe nation, without a war in his future.

In Mendoza, Prigolovkina is looking forward to her family’s new life in Argentina and is confident they will be able to reciprocate the kindness shown to them by the nation.

“In order to live in peace, we have left everything behind. I hope Argentines see the value of Russians in various spheres of life, including business, the economy, and science, she remarked. They have the potential to improve Argentina.

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Trudeau’s Gun Grab Could Cost Taxpayers a Whopping $7 Billion

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Trudeau's Gun Grab
Trudeau plans to purchase 2,063 firearm from legal gun owners in Canada - Rebel News Image

A recent report indicates that since Trudeau’s announcement of his gun buyback program four years ago, almost none of the banned firearms have been surrendered.

The federal government plans to purchase 2,063 firearm models from retailers following the enactment of Bill C-21, which amends various Acts and introduces certain consequential changes related to firearms. It was granted royal assent on December 15 of last year.

This ban immediately criminalized the actions of federally-licensed firearms owners regarding the purchase, sale, transportation, importation, exportation, or use of hundreds of thousands of rifles and shotguns that were previously legal.

The gun ban focused on what it termed ‘assault-style weapons,’ which are, in reality, traditional semi-automatic rifles and shotguns that have enjoyed popularity among hunters and sport shooters for over a century.

In May 2020, the federal government enacted an Order-in-Council that prohibited 1,500 types of “assault-style” firearms and outlined specific components of the newly banned firearms. Property owners must adhere to the law by October 2023.

Trudeau’s Buyback Hasn’t Happened

“In the announcement regarding the ban, the prime minister stated that the government would seize the prohibited firearms, assuring that their lawful owners would be ‘grandfathered’ or compensated fairly.” “That hasn’t happened,” criminologist Gary Mauser told Rebel News.

Mauser projected expenses ranging from $2.6 billion to $6.7 billion. The figure reflects the compensation costs amounting to $756 million, as outlined by the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO).

“The projected expenses for gathering the illegal firearms are estimated to range from $1.6 billion to $7 billion.” “This range estimate increases to between $2.647 billion and $7 billion when compensation costs to owners are factored in,” Mauser stated.

Figures requested by Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs concerning firearms prohibited due to the May 1, 2020 Order In Council reveal that $72 million has been allocated to the firearm “buyback” program, yet not a single firearm has been confiscated to date.

In a recent revelation, Public Safety Canada disclosed that the federal government allocated a staggering $41,094,556, as prompted by an order paper question from Conservative Senator Don Plett last September, yet yielded no tangible outcomes.

An internal memo from late 2019 revealed that the Liberals projected their politically motivated harassment would incur a cost of $1.8 billion.

Enforcement efforts Questioned

By December 2023, estimates from TheGunBlog.ca indicate that the Liberals and RCMP had incurred or were responsible for approximately $30 million in personnel expenses related to the enforcement efforts. The union representing the police service previously stated that the effort to confiscate firearms is a “misdirected effort” aimed at ensuring public safety.

“This action diverts crucial personnel, resources, and funding from tackling the more pressing and escalating issue of criminal use of illegal firearms,” stated the National Police Federation (NPF).

The Canadian Sporting Arms & Ammunition Association (CSAAA), representing firearms retailers, has stated it will have “zero involvement” in the confiscation of these firearms. Even Canada Post held back from providing assistance due to safety concerns.

The consultant previously assessed that retailers are sitting on almost $1 billion worth of inventory that cannot be sold or returned to suppliers because of the Order-In-Council.

“Despite the ongoing confusion surrounding the ban, after four years, we ought to be able to address one crucial question.” Has the prohibition enhanced safety for Canadians? Mauser asks.

Illegally Obtained Firearms are the Problem

Statistics Canada reports a 10% increase in firearm-related violent crime between 2020 and 2022, rising from 12,614 incidents to 13,937 incidents. In that timeframe, the incidence of firearm-related violent crime increased from 33.7 incidents per 100,000 population in 2021 to 36.7 incidents the subsequent year.

“This marks the highest rate documented since the collection of comparable data began in 2009,” the criminologist explains.

Supplementary DataData indicates that firearm homicides have risen since 2020. “The issue lies not with lawfully-held firearms,” Mauser stated.

Firearms that have been banned under the Order-in-Council continue to be securely stored in the safes of their lawful owners. The individuals underwent a thorough vetting process by the RCMP and are subject to nightly monitoring to ensure there are no infractions that could pose a risk to public safety.

“The firearms involved in homicides were seldom legally owned weapons wielded by their rightful owners,” Mauser continues. The number of offenses linked to organized crime has surged from 4,810 in 2016 to a staggering 13,056 in 2020.

“If those in power … aim to diminish crime and enhance public safety, they ought to implement strategies that effectively focus on offenders and utilize our limited tax resources judiciously to reach these objectives,” he stated.

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding, But Still Accounting 48% Search Revenue

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Google is so closely associated with its key product that its name is a verb that signifies “search.” However, Google’s dominance in that sector is dwindling.

According to eMarketer, Google will lose control of the US search industry for the first time in decades next year.

Google will remain the dominant search player, accounting for 48% of American search advertising revenue. And, remarkably, Google is still increasing its sales in the field, despite being the dominating player in search since the early days of the George W. Bush administration. However, Amazon is growing at a quicker rate.

google

Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

Amazon will hold over a quarter of US search ad dollars next year, rising to 27% by 2026, while Google will fall even more, according to eMarketer.

The Wall Street Journal was first to report on the forecast.

Lest you think you’ll have to switch to Bing or Yahoo, this isn’t the end of Google or anything really near.

Google is the fourth-most valued public firm in the world. Its market worth is $2.1 trillion, trailing just Apple, Microsoft, and the AI chip darling Nvidia. It also maintains its dominance in other industries, such as display advertisements, where it dominates alongside Facebook’s parent firm Meta, and video ads on YouTube.

To put those “other” firms in context, each is worth more than Delta Air Lines’ total market value. So, yeah, Google is not going anywhere.

Nonetheless, Google faces numerous dangers to its operations, particularly from antitrust regulators.

On Monday, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that Google must open up its Google Play Store to competitors, dealing a significant blow to the firm in its long-running battle with Fortnite creator Epic Games. Google announced that it would appeal the verdict.

In August, a federal judge ruled that Google has an illegal monopoly on search. That verdict could lead to the dissolution of the company’s search operation. Another antitrust lawsuit filed last month accuses Google of abusing its dominance in the online advertising business.

Meanwhile, European regulators have compelled Google to follow tough new standards, which have resulted in multiple $1 billion-plus fines.

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Google’s Search Dominance Is Unwinding

On top of that, the marketplace is becoming more difficult on its own.

TikTok, the fastest-growing social network, is expanding into the search market. And Amazon has accomplished something few other digital titans have done to date: it has established a habit.

When you want to buy anything, you usually go to Amazon, not Google. Amazon then buys adverts to push companies’ products to the top of your search results, increasing sales and earning Amazon a greater portion of the revenue. According to eMarketer, it is expected to generate $27.8 billion in search revenue in the United States next year, trailing only Google’s $62.9 billion total.

And then there’s AI, the technology that (supposedly) will change everything.

Why search in stilted language for “kendall jenner why bad bunny breakup” or “police moving violation driver rights no stop sign” when you can just ask OpenAI’s ChatGPT, “What’s going on with Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny?” in “I need help fighting a moving violation involving a stop sign that wasn’t visible.” Google is working on exactly this technology with its Gemini product, but its success is far from guaranteed, especially with Apple collaborating with OpenAI and other businesses rapidly joining the market.

A Google spokeswoman referred to a blog post from last week in which the company unveiled ads in its AI overviews (the AI-generated text that appears at the top of search results). It’s Google’s way of expressing its ability to profit on a changing marketplace while retaining its business, even as its consumers steadily transition to ask-and-answer AI and away from search.

google

Google has long used a single catchphrase to defend itself against opponents who claim it is a monopoly abusing its power: competition is only a click away. Until recently, that seemed comically obtuse. Really? We are going to switch to Bing? Or Duck Duck Go? Give me a break.

But today, it feels more like reality.

Google is in no danger of disappearing. However, every highly dominating company faces some type of reckoning over time. GE, a Dow mainstay for more than a century, was broken up last year and is now a shell of its previous dominance. Sears declared bankruptcy in 2022 and is virtually out of business. US Steel, long the foundation of American manufacturing, is attempting to sell itself to a Japanese corporation.

Could we remember Google in the same way that we remember Yahoo or Ask Jeeves in decades? These next few years could be significant.

SOURCE | CNN

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The Supreme Court Turns Down Biden’s Government Appeal in a Texas Emergency Abortion Matter.

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(VOR News) – A ruling that prohibits emergency abortions that contravene the Supreme Court law in the state of Texas, which has one of the most stringent abortion restrictions in the country, has been upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. The United States Supreme Court upheld this decision.

The justices did not provide any specifics regarding the underlying reasons for their decision to uphold an order from a lower court that declared hospitals cannot be legally obligated to administer abortions if doing so would violate the law in the state of Texas.

Institutions are not required to perform abortions, as stipulated in the decree. The common populace did not investigate any opposing viewpoints. The decision was made just weeks before a presidential election that brought abortion to the forefront of the political agenda.

This decision follows the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that ended abortion nationwide.

In response to a request from the administration of Vice President Joe Biden to overturn the lower court’s decision, the justices expressed their disapproval.

The government contends that hospitals are obligated to perform abortions in compliance with federal legislation when the health or life of an expectant patient is in an exceedingly precarious condition.

This is the case in regions where the procedure is prohibited. The difficulty hospitals in Texas and other states are experiencing in determining whether or not routine care could be in violation of stringent state laws that prohibit abortion has resulted in an increase in the number of complaints concerning pregnant women who are experiencing medical distress being turned away from emergency rooms.

The administration cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in a case that bore a striking resemblance to the one that was presented to it in Idaho at the beginning of the year. The justices took a limited decision in that case to allow the continuation of emergency abortions without interruption while a lawsuit was still being heard.

In contrast, Texas has been a vocal proponent of the injunction’s continued enforcement. Texas has argued that its circumstances are distinct from those of Idaho, as the state does have an exemption for situations that pose a significant hazard to the health of an expectant patient.

According to the state, the discrepancy is the result of this exemption. The state of Idaho had a provision that safeguarded a woman’s life when the issue was first broached; however, it did not include protection for her health.

Certified medical practitioners are not obligated to wait until a woman’s life is in imminent peril before they are legally permitted to perform an abortion, as determined by the state supreme court.

The state of Texas highlighted this to the Supreme Court.

Nevertheless, medical professionals have criticized the Texas statute as being perilously ambiguous, and a medical board has declined to provide a list of all the disorders that are eligible for an exception. Furthermore, the statute has been criticized for its hazardous ambiguity.

For an extended period, termination of pregnancies has been a standard procedure in medical treatment for individuals who have been experiencing significant issues. It is implemented in this manner to prevent catastrophic outcomes, such as sepsis, organ failure, and other severe scenarios.

Nevertheless, medical professionals and hospitals in Texas and other states with strict abortion laws have noted that it is uncertain whether or not these terminations could be in violation of abortion prohibitions that include the possibility of a prison sentence. This is the case in regions where abortion prohibitions are exceedingly restrictive.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which resulted in restrictions on the rights of women to have abortions in several Republican-ruled states, the Texas case was revisited in 2022.

As per the orders that were disclosed by the administration of Vice President Joe Biden, hospitals are still required to provide abortions in cases that are classified as dire emergency.

As stipulated in a piece of health care legislation, the majority of hospitals are obligated to provide medical assistance to patients who are experiencing medical distress. This is in accordance with the law.

The state of Texas maintained that hospitals should not be obligated to provide abortions throughout the litigation, as doing so would violate the state’s constitutional prohibition on abortions. In its January judgment, the 5th United States Circuit Court of Appeals concurred with the state and acknowledged that the administration had exceeded its authority.

SOURCE: AP

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