News

Germany recently added a fourth official division to its military ranks: the Homeland Security Division (German Foreign Policy, January 13, 2025). This new division will unite all reservists and agencies across the country and will be seen as an official division along with the three current combat divisions.

Fighting continues in the Congo over the control of resources. Recently, Rwanda-based M23 rebel forces captured Goma, Congo’s largest regional hub and home to about two million people. The city “is a key location in the conflict-battered North Kivu province whose minerals are critical to much of the world’s technology.

Gold was once a stable backing for many world currencies. A little more than 50 years ago, the U.S. dollar itself was backed by gold and was fixed at a value of about $35 per troy ounce. In 1971, currency inflation, economic competitiveness, and other factors moved then-President Richard Nixon to decouple the U.S. dollar from gold, making the dollar a pure fiat currency. Today, one ounce of gold costs roughly $2,700, and gold is currently at or near its highest value ever in relation to most world currencies.

The H5N1 Bird Flu continues to make news. As reported by The Guardian, it has infected birds, cattle, sea lions, and humans. Scientists warn that this strain of bird flu is unique, acting as a “panzootic” disease that has the ability to cross lines between multiple species (January 15, 2025).