Much has changed since President-elect Donald Trump first entered the White House in 2017. Swaziland, the landlocked south African country, was renamed Eswatini; the Buffalo Bills made the NFL playoffs for the first time since 1999; the number of people living in extreme poverty fell by71 million; and the musical “Wicked” got a theatrical release.…
Amelia Bloomer feared that she would be remembered for a momentary fashion faux pas rather than for her critical work as a journalist, publisher, and suffragist.Author Sara Catterall’s rigorously researched, new historical biography “Amelia Bloomer: Journalist, Suffragist, Anti-Fashion Icon” sets the record straight.A project that took six years to produce, Catterall brings Bloomer, her work, and her world into sharp relief.
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department can publicly release its investigative report on President-elect Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case, a federal judge said Monday — the latest ruling in a court dispute over the highly anticipated document days before Trump is set to take office again. But a temporary injunction barring the immediate release of…
By Peter Marko Tase
As history records contemporary leaders for posterity,
tragically, many are misunderstood and thus recorded with a lack of
accuracy, comprehension and candor. One of the most eminently
relevant yet misconstrued leaders of the Western world is Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Despite the frequently inaccurate
and seemingly prejudicial rhetoric associated with him, he is, in
reality, a reformer and has persistently sought to enshrine
democratic and humanitarian values.
Throughout his rather pragmatic near-three-decade tenure
(predominating the nation’s political spectrum), Ankara has become
a key player in promoting governance reforms in international
organizations, grown into a large donor of international aid,
heavily contributed financial resources toward global
infrastructure and invested in programs destined to strengthen
output growth and agricultural productivity. After January 20th,
2025, the Trump – Erdoğan alliance will revive the economic and
geopolitical partnership of both nations. Regardless of North
America’s mainstream media’s reporting, international audiences are
well aware of Turkiye’s enormous leap forward in its geopolitical
role and admirable economic growth, the waves of which are felt
from Eurasia to Vietnam to Ecuador.
Mr. Erdoğan’s robust and collaborative foreign policy even
beyond the realm of Europe and the Middle East paved the way for
Turkiye to secure two bilateral agreements with Vietnam (Prevention
of Double Taxation; Civil Aviation and Maritime Cooperation) in
2014-2015.
Further, Turkiye is increasingly present in Latin America;
investments in Ecuadorean port infrastructure reaching over US $750
million. President Erdoğan has revitalized Ankara’s strategic ties
with the Western Hemisphere; the only president to have conducted
two official visits to South America and the Caribbean two years in
a row (2015 & 2016). Impressively, Turkiye also opened its embassy
in Paraguay on November 20th, 2018 and the President of Turkiye
visited Asuncion on Sunday, December 2nd, 2018. On the first
anniversary of the opening of the Turkish Embassy, Ankara exported
over USD 40 million in various products to Asuncion.
With Washington’s general approach to leadership, Erdoğan
possesses more commonalities than differences in terms of his
statecraft, enabling him to lead a consolidated American-style
democracy, advocating for economic growth and the harnessing of a
free and open society.
The Turkish public demonstrated their unwavering support for
President Erdoğan, actively participating in the constitutional
referendum of 2017; a historic accomplishment that brings Ankara’s
governmental organization closer to that of the American governing
model, complete with expanded responsibilities of the executive
branch.
Evocative of a decidedly Hamiltonian model, Turkiye’s president
vested more authority, causing key leftist politicians and the
media to cry dictatorship and authoritarianism when, in reality,
the referendum brought the presidency of Turkiye more in line with
other democracies. Of note, it was a democratic move that made it
more difficult for him – not easier – to be reelected on June 24,
2018.
Noticeably, in 2017-2021, U.S. President Donald Trump invested a
good deal of clout and effort to repair the frayed bilateral
relations and strategic partnership that has existed with Turkiye
for decades. A genuine testimony to such a remarkable friendship is
the White House reception held for President Erdoğan in 2017; only
four months after Trump entered the Oval Office.
Mr. Erdoğan has also proven Turkiye’s salient ability to muster
the nation’s armed forces in equipment, cutting-edge technology,
indispensable human and signals intelligence support to other NATO
member countries. Further, he has exerted a unique political talent
to enhance global security and contain a spillover of Syria’s civil
war into South-east Europe and beyond. Safeguarding territorial
sovereignty of Turkiye has been a principal pillar in his apex of
national defense strategy, complimented with his support towards
Azerbaijan’s territorial sovereignty and economic zenith.
Falsely attacked for extorting the European Union (EU) by
requesting financial assistance related to the ongoing refugee
crisis in the Middle East, Turkiye, regardless, endeavored to
administer the continental crisis and played a critical role by
mobilizing its financial and human resources to alleviate the
suffering of millions from war torn Syria; a monumental undertaking
implemented thanks to the sole commitment of Turkiye conspicuously
with little assistance from the EU let alone moral encouragement
from international media.
Across many developed countries, there is a strong sentiment
against immigration, globalized economy, free trade and unhampered
cross border movement of goods and services; while current
practices of information flow are clashing with calls in favor of
protecting intellectual property. Unlike any other country in
Europe, Turkiye has the geopolitical leverage, financial backbone,
industrial might, consolidated democracy and its leadership’s
resilience to ensure a propitious outcome for the country’s
development.
Let’s not overlook that Turkiye, under Mr. Erdoğan, sealed more
bilateral trade agreements than the World Trade Organization’s
multilateral trade negotiations, since its creation in 1995.
Under Mr. Erdoğan leadership, Turkiye has encouraged a growing
system for trade in goods and services; allowed a rapid spread of
innovation in engineering; and embraced free trade partnerships
with numerous countries. Such measures have improved the living
standards in Turkiye, allowing millions to escape poverty. Thanks
to this bold leadership, Erdoğan has already entered the history of
modern Turkiye as the only prime minister to have won three
consecutive elections with ever-growing popularity in a nation of
tremendous international importance.
Mr. Erdoğan, his nation and people live in an increasingly
complex and dangerous neighborhood. Perhaps, Turkiye should be cut
some slack, lest a lesser leader delivers less of what the world
order demands?
Peter Marko Tase is an author, strategist and analyst on the
geopolitics and geostrategy of Eurasia, the Middle East, the former
Soviet Union and South America. He is the author of numerous white
papers and opinion articles centered on geopolitical and
geostrategic realities of these areas as they pertain to the U.S.
He is the Founder of the Paraguay Economic Forum (Milwaukee,
Wisconsin).
Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreSweden is set to test new “drone swarm technology” in an effort to bolster the country’s defences amid rising tensions with Russia.The Nordic country will test the drones during its upcoming Arctic Strike exercise, which is described as an “operational live fire experiment”.The technology allows groups of drones of different sizes to form and then solve tasks autonomously, Swedish defence minister Pal Jonson said.“With these drone swarms it is possible to conduct both reconnaissance, positioning and identification,” he said.“We will need to take some risks to build a stronger defence capability faster than we normally do,” Mr Jonson added.A Ukrainian serviceman operates the DJI Mavic 3 drone, the sort of unit used for drone swarm operations
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela attorney general Tarek Saab said on Monday his office has requested an arrest warrant and Interpol red notice against opposition figure Leopoldo Lopez, who spent years in detention in Venezuela and has lived in Spain since 2020. Lopez has criticized the government in recent days amid opposition protests to President Nicolas…
Physical human augmentation is not uncommon at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show. Many electronic devices go beyond communication and are not afraid to move us: robotics, haptic or force feedback systems, smart fitness equipment, and, over the last decade, exoskeletons (sometimes called exosuits or wearable robotics). The 2025 CES was an unprecedented year for exoskeleton technology in terms of companies in attendance and awards.
CES 2025 Exoskeleton Awards:
Medical:
On the medical side, the Canadian startup Human in Motion Robotics impressed with its self-balancing walking-assist powered exoskeleton. Unlike most gait-assist wearable robots, the XoMotion does not require crutches, leaving the user’s hands-free to perform useful tasks. The company was a CES 2025 Honoree in Robotics and USA TODAY’s 50 Top Picks for CES 2025.
Staying with the medical exoskeleton theme, South Korea’s HUROTICS Inc. won the innovation award in Accessibility & AgeTech, Robotics for the H-Medi, a more classical-looking AI-driven wearable robot designed to counteract gait disorders.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University also became a 2025 Honoree in Accessibility & AgeTech for its novel Mobile Ankle-foot Exoneuromusculoskeleton, combining soft pneumatic muscles, muscle electric stimulation, and sensory feedback into a single battery-powered wearable system.
While Wandercraft did not exhibit at CES 2025, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang featured the medical exoskeleton in the opening keynote, marking a tremendous win in popularizing exoskeleton technology.
Consumer:
Hypershell’s Carbon X-powered hip exoskeleton for hiking and exercise received a 2025 Best of Innovation in Robotics recognition. The company has come a long way since its 2023 Kickstarter campaign, which took the technical world by storm.
Simultaneously, the South Korean WIRobotics was also recognized in the Robotics category for its WIM exoskeleton, a small, portable unit that attaches to the front like a fanny pack. This makes the wearable ideal for hikers, as the system does not interfere with backpacks.
Industrial:
Having already won an award last year, German Bionic used the opportunity to release a new version of its back-support powered hip exoskeleton: the Apogee ULTRA, marketed as the “World’s Most Powerful” mass-produced exoskeleton. The Apogee Ultra can provide up to 80 lbs (36 kg) of lifting support.
Fleshing Out the List of Presenters:
In total, more than ten exoskeleton companies and universities presented exoskeleton products at the 2025 CES. The Industrial Technology Research Institute of Taiwan will exhibit two novel exoskeletons. The first was KneeBO, a portable knee joint exoskeleton meant for lower-limb muscle training and walking improvement. The second one was HipBO an independent lightweight hip joint function assistance device derived from lower-limb exoskeleton robots.
Cosmo Robotics, formerly ExoAtlet and maker of both occupational and medical exoskeletons, was also a presenter at CES 2025, as were ULS Robotics and OYMotion Technologies.
This year, CES had the largest selection of exoskeleton products on display. As a product family, exo devices swept 1% of all the awards at the show. This represents a visible growth and maturation of this new technology field of physical human augmentation, which can potentially improve the lives of workers, the mobility impaired, and the elderly.
Tim Sweeney, the CEO of Fortnite developer Epic Games and a frequent critic of Apple and Google, has accused the Silicon Valley Masters of the Universe of cozying up to President-elect Donald Trump in an attempt to influence the administration’s antitrust policies. Sweeney wrote, “After years of pretending to be Democrats, Big Tech leaders are now pretending to be Republicans, in hopes of currying favor with the new administration.”
TechSpot reports that in a recent social media post, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney called out the hypocrisy of tech leaders who previously aligned themselves with leftist ideology but are now pivoting toward the Trump administration. His comments follow pledges from several major tech companies, including Google and Apple, to donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration. Apple CEO Tim Cook, who has forged a personal relationship with Trump, is making the contribution personally.
“After years of pretending to be Democrats, Big Tech leaders are now pretending to be Republicans, in hopes of currying favor with the new administration,” Sweeney tweeted. “Beware of the scummy monopoly campaign to vilify competition law as they rip off consumers and crush competitors.”
Sweeney’s criticism is rooted in his ongoing battles with Apple and Google over smartphone software distribution. The Epic Games CEO has long advocated for the ability to sell games on iPhones and Android devices without being forced to use the official app stores and payment processing systems of these tech giants, arguing that the current system unfairly monopolizes the mobile software market.
While Sweeney has made some progress in Europe, the situation in the United States remains largely unchanged. Last year, he vowed to continue fighting until achieving “an ultimate victory” over what he describes as Apple and Google’s “totally broken vision for the world.”
The tech industry’s apparent pivot toward the Trump administration extends beyond Apple and Google. Amazon and Meta have also made million-dollar donations to the inauguration. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has taken the additional step of relaxing Facebook’s content moderation policies – including scrapping its biased third-party “fact checking” program that skewed heavily to the left. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang expressed enthusiasm for the incoming administration as well, pledging the GPU maker’s support.
President-elect Trump himself has remarked on the change in attitude from tech leaders, saying, “The first term, everybody was fighting me. In this term, everybody wants to be my friend.”
Read more at TechSpot here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship
WASHINGTON — The U.S. on Monday imposed sanctions on an extreme right-wing online network, designating the “Terrorgram” collective a terrorist group and accusing it of promoting violent white supremacy. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it had designated the group, which primarily operates on the Telegram social media site, and three of…
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