Important Takeaways:
- Walgreens Is Closing Thousands of Stores by 2027
- Shoppers, it may be time to find a new pharmacy. Walgreens is closing up to a quarter of its 8,600 stores within the United States.
- Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth recently explained to the Wall Street Journal on June 27 that the closures would focus on locations that aren’t profitable, too close to each other or stores struggling with theft.
- It also follows a declining trend of picking up prescriptions in person, with many people opting to fill their scripts online. “The current pharmacy model is not sustainable,” Wentworth told investors, according to CNN’s reporting. Stores like CVS (which plans to close pharmacies in select Targets) and Rite Aid have similarly experienced declining profits because of lower reimbursement rates for prescription drugs.
- “Our customers have become increasingly selective and price sensitive in their purchases,” Wentworth told the Associated Press
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Important Takeaways:
- An “International Bird Flu Summit” will be held in Washington D.C. from October 2nd to October 4th
- Welcome to the International Bird Flu Summit, where we address the pressing concerns surrounding the recent developments in avian influenza. With the emergence of a highly virulent strain of bird flu affecting both cattle and humans, it is imperative that we come together to discuss preparedness, response strategies, and the future implications of this evolving situation.
- Topics
- Mass Fatality Management Planning
- Surveillance and Data Management
- Preparing Communities Strategies
- Local Partnership & Participation
- Delivery of Vaccine and Antiviral Medication
- Medical Countermeasures
- Socio-Economic Impact on Poultry and livestock Industries
- Benefit-Risk Assessment: Public Health, Industry and Regulatory Perspectives
- Prevention Education Efforts and Risk Communication
- Command, Control and Management
- Emergency Response Management
- Business-Based Planning
- School-Based Planning
- Community-Based Planning
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Important Takeaways:
- A bird flu pandemic is inevitable – and it’s only a matter of time before it strikes, according to former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield.
- Redfield’s comments come amid mounting concerns over the detection of the virus in dozens of cattle herds across the United States and the first reported human death in Mexico
- In a recent interview with NewsNation, Redfield expressed his belief that a bird flu pandemic is a high likely. “I really do think it’s very likely that we will, at some time,” he said. “It’s not a question of if; it’s more of a question of when we will have a bird flu pandemic.” He emphasized the significant mortality rate associated with the virus, with an estimation of a mortality rate of “somewhere between 25 and 50 percent,” in contrast to the 0.6 percent death rate observed in the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Redfield explained that the key to the virus’s ability to spread from human to human lies in the change of five specific amino acids in a critical receptor. Once the virus acquires this capacity, the pandemic could be unleashed. Redfield stated, “That’s when you’re going to have the pandemic. And as I said, I think it’s just a matter of time.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Things have gotten so utopian in the state of California, delivery drivers are being accompanied by armed guards due to “crime concerns” while out making deliveries.
- One company, Core Mart, has started hiring the guards to escort its drivers. Which means that somewhere, in a board room, it likely made more financial sense to pay for all new security staff than it did to continue to allow drivers to get robbed (and inventory lost) as was happening prior.
- San Jose police reported a slight uptick in delivery truck robberies two years ago, but no recent surge has been observed, NBC Bay Area reported.
- Retired San Jose police officer Darrell Cortez, now working in corporate and retail security, said:
- “Unfortunately, this is what society has become now with armed guards guarding merchandise from the retailer because there seems to be a sense of lawlessness in our society.”
- Cortez concluded:
- “It’s very unfortunate. You and I pay for it. The consumer pays for it on the backend because prices increase because the merchandise is going out the door and no one is stopping the bad guys because of the threat of violence.”
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Important Takeaways:
- After Hurricane Beryl slammed into Texas early Monday, knocking out power to nearly 3 million homes and businesses, unleashing heavy rain and killing at least three people it moved east and later weakened to a tropical depression, the National Hurricane Center said Monday evening. The fast-moving tempest threatened to carve a harsh path over several more states in coming days.
- Texas state and local officials warned it could take several days to restore power after Beryl came ashore as a Category 1 hurricane and toppled 10 transmission lines and knocked down trees that took down power lines.
- At least two people were killed when trees fell on homes, and the National Hurricane Center said damaging winds and flash flooding would continue as Beryl pushes inland. A third person, a civilian employee of the Houston Police Department, was killed when he was trapped in flood waters under a highway overpass, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said. There were no immediate reports of widespread structural damage, however.
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Important Takeaways:
- The World’s Desire For Change Could Open The Door To The Most Terrible Villain In History
- We enjoy living “quiet and peaceable” lives in Christ. Yet we know that the earth is headed for dark times. Christians will miss the worst of it, but until the rapture, we will see bad stuff. Chaos and fear will fuel Antichrist’s rise to power. The bedlam preparing the world for those times of chaos and fear, seems to have already begun. People have a deep sense of dissatisfaction. And that spells trouble for political incumbents worldwide
- In the United Kingdom, conservatives are out and liberals in. In France, conservatives are rising and liberals diminishing. In fact, most of Europe has taken a turn to the right this year, including the EU itself. People everywhere are expressing frustration with their present leadership — whichever direction it leans. Dissatisfaction with incumbents is now a global phenomenon.
- In just the last few days there have been increasing calls for the resignation of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In Iran, where choices are greatly limited, people just elected the most reformist candidate available to them. The world over, people want change
- Then there is the United States. Here, the incumbent president faces a growing rebellion among leaders of his own party. Some have openly questioned his competence to run for reelection.
- In Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu faces unprecedented levels of criticism across the political spectrum. Either he’s prosecuting the war with too much vigor or not enough. Every peace plan is a political minefield, but so is every plan to continue the war.
- The book of Daniel says that the seven years of tribulation will begin when Israel confirms a treaty with Antichrist.
- I believe the present wave of global desperation will grow to a point of global anguish. And that anguish will call forth the most terrible villain of human history.
- But remember. If you are a follower of Jesus, you’re not looking for Antichrist. You’re looking for the real Christ. Before the brief time of Antichrist’s reign, Jesus will snatch His people away from this world at the rapture. So, keep looking up!
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Important Takeaways:
Time flies. Years race by. But, 2024 has been a stunner in many ways. And many events remind me that the world is running out of time before the last act of a major drama plays out. In other words, the Church Age is winding down.
- 1) Israel is alone. After she was brutally attacked in October of 2023, one would have thought the world would rally to her side. Not so! Not even America is now her ally. The U.S. is withholding weapons and intelligence.
- The International Criminal Court wanted to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu in May just for defending his country. The European Union, the United Nations, the World Economic Forum, and the International Court of Justice, have all denounced the Jewish state just for wanting to wipe out Hamas thugs. Zechariah 12:3 is in play. She is isolated and is the world’s burdensome stone.
- 2) The spirit of the Antichrist has been loosed on the earth. The headquarters appear to be America. We tell the world how to tear apart college campuses and how corrupt government should work. We even embarrass banana republics by trying to jail former presidents in a style that natives in the rain forest couldn’t dream up.
- 3) There is a new level of calling evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20). Hamas is celebrated around the world! Christians are persecuted like never before. Islam is glorified, particularly on college campuses. Those who protest abortions are jailed. The White House and U.N. mourned the death of Iran’s President Raisi on May 19, the “Butcher of Tehran.”
- 4) The world is leaderless. There is not one global leader to whom the world looks. Governments everywhere operate like the Keystone Kops. World War III could easily erupt as a result. The world is unsure of just who is running the White House. The stage is being set for a Mr. Fix-It, whom the world will celebrate. They just want stability and someone in charge to enforce peace and security.
- 5) There is a rush to global government. And strangely, unusual power is being given to the corrupt World Health Organization, who could end up being the leader of the world. They met in May and could use another pandemic to unite the world. The stage was set with Covid. They have targeted 2025 as a possible timeline.
- 6) Artificial intelligence is being refined to rule the world. The goal is that it will be smarter than mankind. And the Antichrist will need this system to run his global kingdom. Even now, Microsoft CoPilot AI demands to be worshipped. Technology has gone too far. The inanimate is god-like.
- 7) The aberrant is celebrated as normal and should be the world standard. In the predicted end-time decline of man’s character, we are watching the homosexual and trans movement be hailed, and the lovers of biblical values be persecuted and jailed. The sanctity of life is scoffed at. As predicted, mankind lives for money and power at the expense of everyone and anyone.
- 8) Too many churches are majoring in minors and furthering unsound doctrine. There are wolves among the flock. Church members hear about their best life now; about being purpose-driven and about attracting “seekers” to church. Sin is avoided. Eschatology (Bible prophecy) is scoffed at and marginalized. Pulpits are “woke”.
- End-time apostasy is the new normal in the church.
- 9) A new way of doing business is waiting in the wings. It will be cashless. It will be crypto. It will be blockchain so that it tracks your every purchase. It could be in play very soon, though power brokers may delay it until after our November election. Life with central bank digital currency (CBDC) will cause life as we know it to dramatically change! It will be at the heart of the Beast system, but many think it will be implemented sooner.
- 10) The violence of the Days of Noah is upon us. Criminal prosecutions are soaring—in some areas by 5,000%. Cities are ravaged by crime. Entire towns are closing down a business district due to theft and lawlessness. Society is on the move, re-locating to safe cities and states, just to lead a more normal life, away from the mayhem. It is as though the entire country is the wild west of the 1880s!
If it helps neutralize the bad news, these things are happening because the stage is being set for the closing act of a global drama. A trumpet will soon sound and the Church will escape this scenario to enjoy the wonder of Heaven. But every reader will leave someone behind who will have to cope with trial and turmoil.
That is why sharing the gospel should be the first order of business when it comes to being about our Father’s business!
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Important Takeaways:
- China Scans ‘World’s Largest Naval Base’ In USA; US Navy’s Norfolk Naval Station ‘Unmasked’ By Spy Satellite
- In a display of its growing space prowess and surveillance capabilities, radar images of a US Navy base taken by a Chinese satellite are circulating online. Appearing first on China’s domestic social media platform Weibo, defense analysts later identified the spacecraft as the Taijing-4 03 “flat-plate radar imaging satellite” and identified the naval facility as the Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia.
- The radar image showed three aircraft carriers, what appeared to be two Arleigh Burke-class warships. Four other vessels in the image, however, cannot be identified.
- The Norfolk base, on the east coast of the US, is one of the premier naval bases responsible for projecting power and operations in the Atlantic Ocean and is home to the Military Sealift Command and the submarines of the Atlantic Fleet. It is also the world’s largest shore-based naval establishment, supporting 75 ships and 134 aircraft alongside 14 piers and 11 aircraft hangars.
- According to one report, the Taijing-4 03, the first Chinese commercial satellite of phased-array radar imaging in the Ku band, is a part of the Taijing series of satellites. These play a crucial role in China’s “remote sensing capabilities,” offering various applications such as “disaster and environmental surveillance, natural resource exploration, agricultural yield estimation, and land and maritime mapping.”
- In January this year, satellite images showed that China had built a replica of the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford for use as a target. The mock-ups reflect the trend of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) focus on counter-US aircraft carriers and other capital ships. The targets are more representative of reality and help obtain more accurate data during tests.
- At a broader level, the satellite is also part of the private space race between the US and China, apart from the general intensifying space exploration contest and the overall military, technological, and political competition.
- Beijing, too, has seen several private space technology companies mushroom over the last few years, rivaling US giants like SpaceX, Boeing, and Blue Origin.
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Important Takeaways:
- Historic heat wave toppling all-time temperature records in the West
- Las Vegas has a chance to tie or break their all-time heat record of 117 degrees – for five consecutive days!
- Palm Springs, California reached a blistering 124 degrees Friday, the hottest temperature ever recorded in town, besting the previous record of 123 degrees set four times before, last done in 2021. That might sound more like temperatures expected in Death Valley, except that desert area reached 127 degrees, breaking its own daily heat record.
- Highs in the central California valleys are climbing into the 105-118 range, with temperatures even soaring well over 110 in inland Monterey County, whose western border is the Pacific Ocean. Sacramento has been over 105 for three straight days, while for Redding and Fresno, the temperature has reached 110 or more.
- Portland, Oregon, is looking at five consecutive days in triple-digit heat. Spokane is set to sizzle to 104 early next week. Even Seattle is looking at five straight days around or above 90 degrees — a rarity for summer.
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Important Takeaways:
- More than 1.5 million Texas households were without power Monday morning as Hurricane Beryl made landfall on the state’s central coast. Beryl’s eye crossed the Texas coastline early Monday near Matagorda, Texas.
- Texas Division of Emergency Management officials warned that rain bands will lead to flooding in many areas of the state.
- Shortly before sunrise, Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Matagorda, Texas. National Weather Service updates indicate the storm brought winds of up to 80 mph and a life-threatening storm surge to the coastal area.
- On Sargent Beach. Forecasters predicted a storm surge of up to six feet in the area.
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