Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/412903-drug-company-vitamin-price-hike/

Following the lead of pharma-bro Martin Shkreli, a US drug company has hiked the price of a prescription version of vitamin B3 pills by over 800 percent. A drug used to treat respiratory ailments also got a price hike of nearly 2,500 percent.

Avondale Pharmaceuticals raised the price of Niacor, a prescription-only version of niacin (vitamin B3), by 809 percent last month. This means a bottle of 100 tablets went from costing $32.46 to $295.

While the drug is available over the counter, some doctors prefer to prescribe a version that has US Food and Drug Administration approval. The drug is used to lower cholesterol to reduce the chance of having a heart attack. The company also acquired another generic, SSKI, and increased its price by 2,499 percent, taking a 30ml bottle from $11.48 to $295.

Link: https://www.alternet.org/right-wing/la-burns-republicans-vote-tax-hike-victims

According to the Los Angeles Times, contained within theRepublican tax bill is a literal tax hike on people whose property is destroyed or damaged by “natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and earthquakes." This will also affect "losses from fires, accidents, thefts or vandalism.” It turns out the Republicans decided to help pay for their tax cuts for the super-wealthy by eliminating the “casualty loss” tax deduction for victims of these natural disasters.

Link: http://govtslaves.info/2017/12/bank-of-america-secures-patent-for-cryptocurrency-exchange-system/

Bank of America‘s patent application for its proposed cryptocurrency exchange system has been accepted by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The system will enable automatic conversion of one cryptocurrency into another, and the exchange rates will be calculated based on external data feeds.

Link: https://www.rt.com/business/412684-bitcoin-soars-futures-trading-launch/

The price of bitcoin has soared by nearly a quarter to almost $17,000 in the past 24 hours after the Chicago-based exchange, Cboe, launched the first bitcoin futures contracts on Sunday. It increased 8 percent in less than 10 minutes after trading began.

Significant traffic around the futures launch triggered temporary delays and outages, with bitcoin maintaining a steady rise since the initial jump. The world’s number-one virtual currency was trading at over $16,900 at 8:26 GMT.

Link: https://www.rt.com/news/412690-putin-syria-comes-khmeimim/

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria. He announced the move during his first visit to the country, as he arrived with no advance notice at Khmeimim Airbase in Syria’s Latakia province on Monday morning.

A “significant part” of the Russian military contingent in Syria should return to Russia, Putin announced, addressing Russian military personnel at Khmeimim. The order to withdraw followed the defeat of “the most battle-hardened grouping of international terrorists” by the Russian and Syrian militaries in the space of two years.

Link: http://govtslaves.info/2017/12/46-earthquakes-shaken-california-past-24-hours/

Over the past 24 hours, California has been hit by 46 earthquakes. That is approximately twice the normal daily number.

Link: https://sputniknews.com/military/201712091059842022-pakistan-shoot-down-drones-airspace-us/

The head of the Pakistani Air Force launched a new policy Friday stating that any and all drones operating within Pakistani airspace must be shot down, the Times of India reports.

"We will not allow anyone to violate our airspace," PAF chief Sohail Aman said. He warned that that he "ordered PAF to shoot down drones, including those of the US, if they enter our airspace, violating the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Link: https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201712081059841070-israeli-jets-targets-gaza-strip/

Skirmishes between the Israelis and Palestinians escalated Friday on the Gaza Strip after Israeli Air Force warplanes targeted militants in response to rocket attacks. Just days earlier, US President Donald Trump made a highly controversial announcement to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the state of Israel.

Palestinian security officials confirmed that at least 10 people were wounded by the airstrike. The fighters targeted military facilities used by Hamas, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

Link: https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/bitcoin-price-manic-gdax-goes-down-after-price-clips-19000/

Bitcoin’s record-setting run took another unprecedented turn on Thursday, as the bitcoin price ripped past $19,000 on cryptocurrency exchange GDAX. The breathtaking climb saw bitcoin rise more than $5,000 in a span of 12 hours. The journey from $17,000 to $18,000 took just fifteen minutes, and the leap from $18,000 to $19,000 was accomplished in five. By 11:30 a.m. ET — the end of the surge — the bitcoin price had reached $19,697.

Link: http://tass.com/economy/979355

Bitcoin exchange rate rose by 10.5% to $13,081 for the first time. On November 29, the cryptocurrency set a historic record, rising by more than 10% and breaking the $11,000 mark. Earlier on November 28 bitcoin exchange rate exceeded $10,000 for the first time, according to the data of the electronic cryptocurrency platform Coinmarketcap.

Link: http://www.blacklistednews.com/%E2%80%98Yes%2C_I_will%E2%80%99%3A_Vladimir_Putin_announces_run_for_re-election_in_2018/61991/0/38/38/Y/M.html

Vladimir Putin has confirmed that he will seek another term in office in next year’s presidential election adding that with the “active involvement” of its people, Russia “can deal with any, even the most complex challenges it faces.”“Russia will go only forward and no one will ever stop it. He added that “the motive behind [this very responsible decision] can be only the desire to make people’s lives in our country better and make the country itself more powerful and protected.”

The upcoming election on March 18 will be the fourth in Putin’s political career. He held the office of president for two terms from 2000 to 2008, and served as prime minister from 2008 to 2012. Putin then won a third term as president in 2012.

Link: http://govtslaves.info/2017/12/bankrupt-toys-r-us-wins-ok-pay-16-million-executive-bonuses/

Toys “R” Us has won approval to pay $16 million in bonuses to 17 top executives if the company hits financial targets during the holiday shopping season.

The bankruptcy court trustee Judy Robbins, a Justice department attorney who represents the interest of creditors, had argued that the proposed bonuses were excessive and were little more than retention bonuses meant to keep the executives from jumping ship due to uncertainty about the company’s future.

While companies in bankruptcy are allowed to issue incentive bonuses, retention bonuses are not permitted.

“It defies logic and wisdom, not to mention the Bankruptcy Code, that a bankrupt company would now propose further multi-million dollar bonuses for the senior leadership of a company that began the year with employee layoffs and concludes it in the midst of the holiday season in bankruptcy,” she argued in her filing. “

Link: https://www.rt.com/usa/412183-california-skirball-fire-evacuations/

Authorities in Los Angeles, California have ordered evacuations of nearly 200,000 residents as the rampaging Skirball Fire began to consume homes and shut down part of Interstate 405, one of the busiest freeways in the US.

Link: https://www.rt.com/business/412120-canada-wont-buy-boeing/

Plans to buy 18 Boeing Super Hornet fighter jets have been scrapped by the Canadian government due to the deepening dispute with the US aerospace company, The move comes in response to a 220 percent tariff the US placed on Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier after Boeing accused the company of dumping airliners on the American market. The Premier of Canada's Quebec Province Philippe Couillard has blasted Boeing, accusing the company of unfairly trying to destroy Bombardier. Ottawa has slammed the company for not acting as a trusted partner.

The trade dispute comes at a time when the United States and Canada are deadlocked in negotiations over the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) which, according to US President Donald Trump has not done enough to protect US jobs.

The future of Boeing’s military sales in Canada is also on hold. According to the US firm, its commercial and defense operations in Canada support more than 17,000 Canadian jobs.

Link: http://www.thedailybell.com/news-analysis/new-york-city-processed-a-fake-property-deed-this-innovative-country-wont-have-that-problem/

New York City approved fraudulent papers which allowed a man to “officially” steal a woman’s house.The forged deed was homemade, but the city government still processed it. Jennifer Merin the homeowner: “I find it absolutely astonishing and sickening that the city gave away my property without due process by registering an obviously fraudulent deed, while it was still charging me for taxes and water usage on that property.

Link: https://www.thenation.com/article/how-many-wars-is-the-us-really-fighting

Ken McGraw, a spokesman for Special Operations Command (SOCOM) :This year, US Special Operations forces have deployed to 135 nations, That’s roughly 70 percent of the countries on the planet. Every day,, America’s most elite troops are carrying out missions in 80 to 90 nations, practicing night raids or sometimes conducting them for real, engaging in sniper training or sometimes actually gunning down enemies.. As part of a global engagement strategy of endless operations conducted on every continent but Antarctica, they have now eclipsed the number and range of special ops missions undertaken at the height of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Link: http://www.informationliberation.com/?id=57688

According to Philadelphia 8th District Councilwoman Cindy Bass, shopkeepers protecting themselves with bulletproof plexiglass represents an "indignity" to her constituents and should therefor be banned.Bass says the windows only foster a sense that the establishment – more specifically, its clientele – is dangerous. And that too many of those stores masquerade as eateries when their biggest sales draw is alcohol, feeding vices in the city’s struggling neighborhoods.Dem Councilwoman Wants Bulletproof Plexiglass Ban, Represents An 'Indignity' to Minorities - Video

Link: http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2017/12/05/544596/Colombia-FARC-Rebels-Clashes

Thirteen people were killed in Colombia in a clash between National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels and FARC dissidents, the country's ombudsman said Tuesday.

The firefight, which comes as the ELN is observing a three-month ceasefire with the government in Bogota, happened last week in a remote area of the country's southwest, the official, Carlos Negret, told reporters.

Negret said ELN guerrillas had gone to a municipality near the Ecuador border to disarm a local farmers' resistance group, made up of alleged FARC dissidents, when the fighting occurred "resulting in the killing of 13 citizens."

He said the confrontation "totally goes against" the ELN's ceasefire with the government.

Link: http://tass.com/economy/978259

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev advises the population to keep their savings in rubles. The prime minister made such a statement in his annual live interview with Russian TV channels on Thursday.

"Considering that the overwhelming majority of our citizens keeps their savings in rubles now, makes payment in rubles and receives salaries in rubles, the answer regarding [the currency] to keep money in is obvious,"

Link: http://www.blacklistednews.com/US_military_agency_invests_%24100m_in_genetic_extinction_technologies_/61960/0/38/38/Y/M.html

A US military agency is investing $100m in genetic extinction technologies that could wipe out malarial mosquitoes, invasive rodents or other species, emails released under freedom of information rules show. The documents suggest that the US’s secretive Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) has become the world’s largest funder of “gene drive” research and will raise tensions ahead of a UN expert committee meeting in Montreal beginning on Tuesday.

The UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is debating whether to impose a moratorium on the gene research next year and several southern countries fear a possible military application. UN diplomats confirmed that the new email release would worsen the “bad name” of gene drives in some circles. “Many countries [will] have concerns when this technology comes from Darpa, a US military science agency,” one said. The use of genetic extinction technologies in bioweapons is the stuff of nightmares, but known research is focused entirely on pest control and eradication.