DAILY NEWS Stream – March 13, 2025

Analysis: Europe finally gets the US message: Pay up and partner in your own defense (Rich Lowry, via New York Post)

Group of EU countries wants to use Europe’s new defense funds to secure critical medicines, as 80-90% of the world’s antibiotics are made in Asia - mostly China (Euronews)

President Trump’s trade policy will save US farmers from unfair practices by China and others, says Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen (Washington Examiner)

US Secret Service shoots a man near the White House after an “armed confrontation”; he’s now in the hospital in an “unknown condition” (Sky News Australia)

Analysis: US Army recruitment ads have vastly improved under President Trump, focusing on physical strength and vigor, unlike the Biden-era cartoon ads fixated on sexual identity and DEI [diversity, equity, and inclusion] (Washington Times)

US Secretary of State Rubio says purge of wasteful USAID [US Agency for International Development] programs complete, with 83% of the agency’s programs gone and the rest to move under the Department of State (AP)

US Department of Government Efficiency [DOGE] reports the Housing Department is paying for 11,020 Adobe Acrobat software licenses that nobody uses, along with other “idle” accounts (Fox News)

Georgia [US] Governor Brian Kemp praises President Trump’s fast pace and says the Department of Government Efficiency [DOGE] is needed to “right size” Washington (Fox News)

California [US] Democrat says a flight attendant told him the Democratic Party appeared “heartless” for not standing for a boy with cancer during President Trump’s speech to Congress (Fox News)

Women around the world march for equality and against violence on International Women’s Day [March 8 every year] (Euronews)

“Women of Valour” event in Paris [France] celebrates the strength and resilience of African women (Africa News)

US judge fines China US$24 billion for hiding the COVID-19 outbreak and intentionally restricting the export of vital protective equipment, causing economic and health damages worldwide (Báo Nhân Dân)

Monkeypox outbreak in Democratic Republic of the Congo hits town of Kabare, worsened by conflict that is stopping medicine deliveries (Africa News)

Too much screen time is linked to distractibility and impulsivity in pre-teens [aged 10-12], study finds (Fox News)

Urgent recall of US-based Wild Coast Raw’s chicken meat cat food “infected with bird flu,” endangering pets and humans (Daily Mail)

Only 11% of people in France have optimal heart health, with low-income individuals and women at higher risk, government agency says (Euronews)

Experts warn cold weather raises stroke risk in children due to higher blood pressure, and advise to eat healthy, stay physically active, and keep warm to lower risk (VTV24)

Australia: More than a million salmon die from disease at Tasmanian fish-raising operation, raising health and animal welfare concerns (The Guardian)

Australian man James Harrison, whose blood donations saved 2.4 million babies, dies at 88. Mr. Harrison started donating blood plasma when he was 18 and continued every two weeks until he was 81, always saying the procedure does not hurt yet can save so many lives (BBC)

New York State [US] declares an emergency over a wildfire burning on Long Island (AP)

Potassium mining project in Brazil’s Amazon Rainforest divides the Indigenous Mura people, with some fearing pollution while others see it as a chance for a better life (AP)

Australian Veterinary Association calls for tougher regulations to protect animal welfare by preventing non-veterinarians from performing risky procedures (Vet Practice)

PETA [People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals] study concludes current animal welfare laws in the US fail to protect animals in laboratories, as top research universities fail to meet even minimal animal welfare standards yet go unpunished (The Daily Cardinal)

People in Utrecht [the Netherlands] use a “fish doorbell” to help fish swim upstream in the canal by notifying authorities to open the gate (Euronews)

Beavers in the Czech Republic build a dam exactly where authorities had been planning one, saving taxpayers around €1.2 million (Euronews)

London [UK] has lowered emissions significantly in one year with its city-wide Ultra Low Emission Zone that charges polluting vehicles, report says (VnExpress)

Vietnamese forest rangers stay up at night to protect an ancient rosewood forest in Krông Pa District from illegal logging (Việt Nam News)

Hidden Sands project is mapping sand mining in the Mekong Delta [Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam] to watch for over-extraction, which harms rivers and communities (The Conversation)

Analysis: Young people today approach Buddhism as a practical way to live, focusing on mindfulness and direct experience over dogma and blind belief (Tạp chí Nghiên cứu)

Vietnam’s Buôn Đôn Elephant Festival will not allow elephant rides for the second year, offering humane alternatives like feeding and watching instead (Tuổi Trẻ)

Thai elephant named Daow Mongkol goes viral for making Thai papaya salad while being cheered on by her caregiver (Dân Trí)

Amira, the “world’s most advanced” humanoid robot, stuns audiences in Barcelona [Spain] with her witty responses and lifelike expressions, sparking debates on AI [artificial intelligence] (VnExpress)

Elevating quote of the day: “Irrigators channel waters; fletchers straighten arrows; carpenters bend wood; the wise master themselves.” – The Worshipped Shakyamuni Buddha (vegan)