Make Tech Easier ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Zulip is The Best Open-Source Slack Alternative You Can Install on Your Server

Career/Education

• BIA Net ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Turkey sees rise in school dropouts, union warns

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Germany news: School students lag behind in science and math

Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Uruguay passes law legalizing euthanasia

• Vox ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Scientists are testing a surprising approach to fighting hunger in one of the poorest places on Earth

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Help! I am a woman and need more sleep than a man

Proprietary

• Microsoft’s Profit Demands Reportedly Spark Layoffs and Studio Closures

  I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that this console generation has been rough for Xbox fans. We’ve had two price increases for the Series X|S consoles, multiple layoffs and studio closures, and a 50% price increase for Xbox Game Pass. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier did a bit of digging into the state of Xbox, and it turns out Microsoft’s profit demands are partly to blame for a lot of the issues.

• Metro UK ☛ Xbox insider reveals truth behind layoffs and axed games as Microsoft set impossible goals

  Between mass layoffs and a graveyard of cancelled games, it’s clear Xbox has been on the backfoot this generation, even as their new multiformat policy begins to pay dividends.

• IGN ☛ Microsoft Has Reportedly Pushed Xbox Studios to Deliver a 30% Profit Margin, Allegedly Leading to All Those Layoffs, Canceled Projects, Price Rises, and the End of Exclusives

  Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier reported that Microsoft’s 30% profit margin goal had led to the gaming division’s huge layoffs, canceled projects, controversial price rises, and multiplatform push.

  The cuts to Xbox have been deep. Thousands of staff have lost their jobs over several rounds of layoffs. Games such as Rare’s Everwild and The Initiative’s Perfect Dark reboot were canceled after years of development. ZeniMax Online Studios game Project Blackbird was canned, leading to mass layoffs. The Initiative was also shut down. Last year, Microsoft closed Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi rush developer Tango Gameworks.

• Aggressive Profit Targets Prompt Xbox Layoffs, Price Increases, and Budget Cuts

  Inside Microsoft's Xbox gaming division there is a battle for aggressive company profits, which by the looks of it must be accomplished at any cost. According to Bloomberg, Xbox CFO Amy Hood set a company-wide target to reach a 30% profit margin for the entire Xbox unit back in the fall of 2023. Since then, the company has been undergoing significant restructuring, including price increases, layoffs, project cancellations, and budget cuts to meet this profit target. As some readers may recall, Xbox recently revamped its subscription lineup, introducing Essential, Premium, and Ultimate tiers, along with a PC-only plan. These plans saw a 50% price increase, leaving many gamers unhappy with the steep rise in their subscription costs.

• KitGuru ☛ Microsoft has reportedly set unrealistic profit targets for Xbox

• Social Control Media

  • Jacobin Magazine ☛ 2025-10-19 [Older] How Elon Musk Ruined Twitter

  • International Business Times ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] 'Another Reason to Quit Facebook': Brits Furious as Meta Axes Messenger Desktop App From 15 December

Security

• Privacy/Surveillance

  • EFF ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Opt Out October: Daily Tips to Protect Your Privacy and Security

Defence/Aggression

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Will Canada buy German-made submarines?

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini authorizes CIA operations in Venezuela

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Titan sub imploded due to engineering flaws — NTSB report

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Guatemalan Officials Resign After Maximum Security Jailbreak

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Paris Prosecutor Says Stolen Louvre Jewels Worth an Estimated $102 Million

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] France: Louvre, government deny security shortfalls in heist

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Germany plan to deport Syrians seen as purely 'symbolic'

• Truthdig ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Despite Fall of Assad and Recent Elections in Syria, Minorities Still Aren’t Safe

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] UK Removes Terrorism Designation for Syria's HTS

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Iraq Keeping a Small Contingent of US Military Advisers Due to IS Threat in Syria

• NL Times ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Syrian-Dutch citizens launch "We Rise" to make their voice heard in migration debate

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Four Oil Facility Guards Killed in an Attack Near Syria's Deir Al-Zor, State Media Says

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Syria's new leader visits Moscow for talks with Putin

• HRW ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Saudi Arabia: Spate of Executions of Child Offenders

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] John Bolton: Former Cheeto Mussolini national security adviser surrenders to court

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] What to Know About Federal Charges Against Former National Security Adviser John Bolton

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] The Latest: Former National Security Adviser John Bolton Makes First Court Appearance

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] More Than a Dozen Injured in Stampede at State Funeral for Kenyan Opposition Leader Odinga

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Pakistan, Afghanistan Extend Ceasefire as Doha Talks Set to Begin, Sources Say

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] UN, US Slap Sanctions on Haiti Gang Leader and Ex-Security Chief

• NL Times ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Security increased for left-wing leader Timmermans after Amsterdam incident

• NL Times ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Election security in steady hands, ministers say amid recent threats

• BIA Net ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Turkey’s annexation of Northern Cyprus ‘inevitable,’ says Bahçeli

• BIA Net ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] 'Turkey’s election interference in Northern Cyprus eased after Erdoğan-Cheeto Mussolini meeting'

• ANF News ☛ 2025-10-19 [Older] Cyprus Archbishop: Turkey is imposing itself on the region

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Can African Union prevent military coups like Madagascar's?

Environment

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Paris Agreement has curbed deadly heating, but not by enough

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] As Brazil Readies for COP30 Climate Talks, Finance Ministers Offer Plan for $1.3 Trillion in Yearly Finance

• Truthdig ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] NATO War-Games Climate Collapse

• Counter Punch ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Countering Cheeto Mussolini, Pacific Islanders are Leading on Climate Change

• CBC ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] International deal to cut shipping emissions falters under U.S. pressure

• TruthOut ☛ 2025-10-18 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini Cuts and Climate Change Compound Worry in Alaska After Typhoon Disaster

• Energy/Transportation

  • Truthdig ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] ‘Newspeak’ Comes to the Department of Energy

  • Mexico News Daily ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Energy Ministry sees 96% of private-sector energy investment going toward renewables

  • Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Energy of the future: Solar takes off to the final frontier

  • NL Times ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Half of Dutch fearing higher bills due to energy transition plans

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] US Judge Dismisses Youth Activists' Lawsuit Challenging Cheeto Mussolini's Energy Policies

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Judge Dismisses Young Climate Activists’ Lawsuit Challenging Cheeto Mussolini on Fossil Fuels

  • Truthdig ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] OpenAI’s New Energy Chief Is a Cheeto Mussolini Administration Natural Gas Evangelist

  • US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Ontario Premier Criticizes Cheeto Mussolini After Stellantis Says It Will Move Production From Canada to the US

  • CBC ☛ 2025-10-14 [Older] Stellantis says it will invest $13B to expand its U.S. operations, adding more than 5,000 jobs

  • CBC ☛ 2025-10-14 [Older] Stellantis backtracks on plans to build Jeep model in Ontario, shifts to U.S.

  • CBC ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Cheeto Mussolini signs order hitting truck imports with 25% tariffs

• Wildlife/Nature

  • Vox ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Most animals on this island nation are found nowhere else on Earth. And now they’re vanishing.

  • BIA Net ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Man fined for chaining wolf outside his home in eastern Turkey; animal taken into protection

Finance

• CBC ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Canada's annual inflation rate rose to 2.4% in September as grocery prices keep creeping up

• Counter Punch ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Of Tariffs and Social Security:  the Nation’s Elders and Disabled are About to be Stiffed

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-15 [Older] Austria: ex-tycoon Benko guilty of fraud gets 2 years prison

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] Canada and China Discuss Disputes Over Canola and EVs, Says Ottawa

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-17 [Older] China Willing to Restart Dialogue With Canada at All Levels, Foreign Minister Says

• CBC ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Business sentiment improves but firms still cautious amid U.S. tariffs, says Bank of Canada

• CBC ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Why U.S. investors are eyeing the Canadian oilpatch, even as oil prices dip

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Canada Offers Tariff Relief to Some Steel, Aluminum Products From US, China

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Malaysia naturalization scandal a wake-up call for Southeast Asia

• Deutsche Welle ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Merz says Germany and EU must 'bring its power to bear'

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Cameroon Security Forces Disperse Election Protests as Biya Poised for Eighth Term

• US News And World Report ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] The Toronto Blue Jays Take Aim at America's Pastime as Canada-US Relations Remain Broken

Censorship/Free Speech

• Scheerpost ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] Brazen Censorship Against Student Journalists At Indiana University

• Scheerpost ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Chris Hedges on Journalism, Censorship and Empire

• Counter Punch ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] Censorship is Chaos Disguised as Order

Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press

• Project Censored ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] Crisis without Coverage: Rwanda, the Congo, and the Unhoused

• The Age AU ☛ 2025-10-20 [Older] In Cheeto Mussolini’s America, the Pentagon now resembles Saudi Arabia for journalists

• University of Michigan ☛ 2025-10-16 [Older] AADL announces plans to acquire the Ann Arbor Observer

  In September, the Ann Arbor District Library announced plans to acquire the Ann Arbor Observer, a monthly news magazine serving the Ann Arbor community since 1976. The acquisition is subject to the finalization of terms of the purchase agreement between the AADL and Patricia Garcia and John Hilton, co-owners of the Observer. After 40 years of co-ownership of the publication, Garcia and Hilton plan to retire at the end of 2025.

Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

• RIPE ☛ 2025-10-21 [Older] How IGP Leaks Put IXP Route Servers in the DDoS Shooting Range