Ex-Trump adviser says US seen as ‘object of pity’ by other countries

President Trumps former Russia adviser Fiona Hill said Tuesday that the U.S. is “increasingly” seen as an “object of pity” by other countries.

“We are increasingly seen as an object of pity including by our allies because they are so shocked about what’s happening internally, how we’re eating ourselves alive with our divisions,” she said. 

“We’re the ones who are creating all this,” she added. “It’s not the Russians or the Chinese or anyone else. We are doing this to ourselves.”
She cited that foreign countries are forming this opinion based on the “bungled handling of COVID, on top of race relations and on top of our political polarization and the spectacles that we’re presenting to the outside world is what’s really pushing all of this.”

Pew Research shows that across the 13 countries surveyed, a median of 84 percent of adults say the US has done a poor job, including 53 percent who say it has done a very bad job. The countries are Canada, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, the UK, Sweden, Spain, Italy, South Korea, Australia and Japan.

Tesla and other US firms sue to block Trump tariffs on trade with China

Tesla filed suit Monday in the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York, seeking an order declaring the duties unlawful and a refund, with interest, of amounts it has already paid.

The company is challenging actions by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who is named as a defendant in the case. Lighthizer’s office last year denied Tesla’s bid to avoid tariffs of 25% on the Chinese-made computer and display screens it uses in its Model 3 electric car.
The case is Tesla Inc. vs. U.S., 20-03142, U.S. Court of International Trade (New York).

  • About 3,500 US firms have sued the Trump administration in the last two weeks over the imposition of tariffs on Chinese-made goods, which showed Trump, has badly hurt US firms and customers with tariffs. Tesla, Ford Motor, Target, Home Depot, Walgreen, Volvo Group North America, Pep Boys, Ralph Lauren, Sysco Corp , Gibson Brands, Lenovo’s U.S. unit, Dole Packaged Foods, Callaway Golf Co. were among the swath of companies.

China says it aims to go carbon neutral by 2060

Chinese President Xi Jinping says China will aim to stop pumping additional carbon dioxide into the atmosphere by 2060.

Xi’s announcement during a speech Tuesday to the UN General Assembly is a significant step for the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases and was immediately cheered by climate campaigners.

Calling for a green revolution, Xi said the coronavirus pandemic had shown the need to preserve the environment.

Humankind can no longer afford to ignore the repeated warnings of nature, he said.

Xi said his country would raise its emissions reduction targets with vigorous policies and measures. We aim to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.
中国将提高国家自主贡献力度,采取更加有力的政策和措施,二氧化碳排放力争于2030年前达到峰值,努力争取2060年前实现碳中和。

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-29/q-and-a-chinas-carbon-neutral-goal-australian-industry-exports/12711836

“China will not only get out of importing coal and importing gas and other things over the next … they’ve said 40 years, but for coal, it’s in the next 20 years … they will get out of Australian products of those even faster.

New Chinese-built trains arrive in Sydney

One of the new Waratah Series 2 trains was unveiled at Central Station and is set to enter service on Thursday, several months ahead of schedule.

Five others remain in testing in Australia, while a further 11 are expected to arrive from China before the end of the year. They will operate across the T2, T3, T8 Airport and South lines. The 17 trains were expected to cost the government close to $900 million when they were ordered last year amid record growth on the city’s transport network.

The new Waratah Series 2 trains will be airconditioned, feature internal and external CCTV as well as wheelchair spaces. 41 new Waratah trains will be operating across the network.

Chinese railway construction giant inks contract linking Moscow and Kazan

China Railway Construction Corporation International (CRCCI) announced on Tuesday that it has inked a construction deal to build a section of the Moscow-Kazan Highway project in Russia. The project is worth 5.2 billion yuan ($767 million). This is the first time that a Chinese company has signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract for a national highway project in Russia. The Moscow-Kazan Highway is part of the Russian section of the Europe-Western China Transport Corridor, a megaproject that connects Russia, Kazakhstan and China. CRCCI will be in charge of building a 107-kilometer-long section of the Moscow-Kazan Highway, with a total length of 729 kilometers. It is expected that by its completion in 2024, the travel time from Moscow to Kazan, the sixth-largest city in Russia, will be shortened from 12 hours to 6.5 hours.

Rooftop critters 9-22-20 Yuen Long

https://www.facebook.com/jeff.mah.5/videos/10158549384859793/
Common tailorbird (Orthotomus sutorius) 长尾缝叶莺
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Red-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer) 白喉红臀鹎 
Genus Cletus 棘緣蝽屬