Only option left
First migrant caravans of 2021 depart for US
During his first days in office, President-elect Joe Biden plans to send a groundbreaking legislative package to Congress to address the long-elusive goal of immigration reform, including what’s certain to be a controversial centerpiece: a pathway to citizenship for an estimated 11 million immigrants who are in the country without legal status.
Under Biden’s plan, immigrants would become eligible for legal permanent residence after five years and for U.S. citizenship after an additional three years — a faster path to citizenship than in previous immigration bills.
The largest two-dimensional map of the universe ever released, including 2 billion objects
1-14-21, National Astronomical Observatory Beijing-Arizona BASS survey team and the Dark Energy Spectral Survey DESI International Collaboration Project team jointly released the latest giant two-dimensional sky map of the universe. This is the largest cosmic sky map obtained by human measurement so far. 200 researchers from all over the world have spent 6 years on joint observation and data analysis, covering 20,000 square degrees of the sky, which is about half the area of the whole celestial sphere, accommodating 10 trillion digital pixels and containing 2 billion celestial objects.
Newly declassified report lays out U.S. strategy in Asia against China
Trump sanctioned
No Facebook, no Twitter, no sponsors, nuclear button taken away. The Sanctioner sanctioned. Poetic!
These 8 points
一、“美式民主”彻底走下神坛。发生在美国国会山的骚乱，旨在以暴力手段阻止权力的有序过渡，动摇的是美式民主的根基，堪称对美式民主的致命一击。西班牙《世界报》说，这就是美国民主“死亡的方式”。法国《费加罗报》在美国国会大厦遭围困的图片上发的大字标题是“民主分崩离析”。美国《纽约时报》也承认说，“这是对美国民主灯塔形象的一记重击”。
“灯塔”️→灯“塌”“灯塔”️→灯“塌”
二、言论自由应该存在边界。由于担心特朗普会继续煽动暴力，美国社交网站推特不仅永久停用特朗普个人账号，还冻结了特朗普竞选团队的官方账号。脸书和优兔等平台纷纷“封号”“删帖”。谷歌将“勤王军”经常使用的社交网络平台下架，苹果也在考虑类似举措。姑且不论这些平台禁言特朗普的理由是否成立，但这一切均说明：在任何一个社会，言论自由都应存在不可逾越的界限。
三、暴力示威绝对不可容忍。在国会山骚乱出现后，美国政客和媒体几乎众口一词地谴责暴力。就连一些过去曾处心积虑煽动他国动乱的美国政客，也声称“不管是在美国，还是在世界各地，无法无天和骚乱永远都是不可接受的”。希望美方有关人士能够永远记住这段话。实际上，对于任何一个文明社会而言，暴乱都不是、也不应被视为“亮丽风景线”。
四、美国驰名“双标”彻底破产。同样是暴力冲击立法机构，此次发生在美国国会山的一幕，很容易让人联想到2019年7月激进示威者暴力冲撞香港立法会大楼。美国政客当初将香港暴徒美化为“民主英雄”，如今却将美国抗议者定性为“暴徒”。诸如此类的例子不胜枚举。美国政客的双重标准暴露无遗，难逃世人眼睛。无怪乎会有人讽刺美国说：“如果美国看到美国正在对美国做的事，美国肯定会入侵美国，并从美国暴政的手中解放美国。”
五、美国无颜再扮演“教师爷”。美国长期自诩为“山巅之城”和“世界灯塔”，总是站在所谓的“道德高地”上，就其他国家的“民主与自由”指手画脚。美国《外交政策》说，“美国已经变成了美国领导人经常谴责的样子”。德国《世界报》感叹说，“一夜之间，美国的民主道德高地变得更加脆弱”。《纽约时报》也不得不承认：“在一段时间里，在美国寻求推动民主价值观时，世界其他国家会以怀疑的眼光看美国。”
六、“美国例外论”的神话破灭。美国人常常认为，美国与其他国家不同，美国人是“上帝的选民”，美国各项制度优越，是其他国家的典范。但发生在国会山的骚乱表明，那些被认为只会发生在“第三世界”或“失败国家”的事情，也会在美国出现。美国《华盛顿邮报》感叹说，“‘美国例外论’正在走向终结之路。”彭博社也认为，经历国会山被暴徒冲击后，“美国例外论”岌岌可危。
七、美国领导世界难上加难。由于不满特朗普将领导世界的部分角色“拱手相让”，即将上台的美国新政府寻求重新领导世界。但在美国外交学会会长理查德·哈斯看来，从现在开始，没有人会像以前那样看待、尊重、敬畏或依赖美国，“拜登不仅必须努力治愈美国，还需努力挽回美国的国际声誉。从1月6日开始，全球领导者的位置开始空缺”。西班牙《对外政策》也说，“国会大厦发生的暴乱向美国和世界证明，虽然体制得以维持，但皇帝的新衣已被拆穿，美国已经不能领导世界”。
八、历史远远没有走向终结。冷战结束后，“历史终结论”在西方骤然兴起，许多人认为以美国为代表的西方自由主义和民主制度将是“历史的终结”。但在美国国会山“沦陷”后，整个西方世界都受到了极大震动。实际上，从英国脱欧乱象纷呈，到有关国家抗击疫情不力，西方式民主的弊端已经显露；美国国会山的骚乱，更是西方式民主失灵的结果。《纽约时报》说：“这是对世界所有（西方式）民主国家的一则警告：如果这会在美国发生，那么它也会在任何地方发生。”
A beautiful sight to behold
Social Darwinism
The theory that human groups and races are subject to the same laws of natural selection as Charles Darwin perceived in plants and animals in nature. According to the theory, which was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the weak were diminished and their cultures delimited while the strong grew in power and cultural influence over the weak. Social Darwinists held that the life of humans in society was a struggle for existence ruled by “survival of the fittest,”
Ignorance and Arrogance
Dry ice machines orders from US up
As Trump hails launch of COVID19 vaccines, makers of dry ice and related machines in China working in full swing to respond to soaring demand for cold chain, with some firms’ orders from US up 10-20 times y-o-y.
The ultra-cold temperatures required for storing the Covid-19 vaccine developed by U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and Germany-based BioNTech has driven a buying frenzy for freezers and dry ice. However, large-scale freezers units are expensive — and with hospital budgets already strained during the pandemic, dry ice has emerged as the go-to option. Thank you, Trump!