Norm MacDonald, and so it goes.
"The attempt in California to recall Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has failed, according to a call by The Associated Press, allowing the governor to stay in office until at least 2023… Tuesday's vote ends a campaign against Newsom that began before the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the U.S." Expect to hear talk about separating California into two states in 3… 2… 1…
"Over the next few days, we'll be finding out which books made the longlists for this year's National Book Awards — beginning Wednesday morning with Young People's Literature and finishing up Friday with Fiction… Check back with us throughout the week as we post each list to see who's in the running and find links to our coverage."
"Tropical Depression Nicholas has drenched the Houston metro area as the large storm creeps over southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana. The system, which made landfall early Tuesday morning as a hurricane, is expected to drop another 5 to 10 inches of rain on a broad area from the northern Texas coast to the western Florida Panhandle through Thursday."
"How are young people coping with climate change? The answer, according to one study, is not well, and for good reason… For a forthcoming study, researchers with the U.K.'s University of Bath and other schools spoke to 10,000 people in 10 countries, all of whom were between the ages of 16 and 25, to gauge how they feel about climate change. The prevailing response could be summed up in two words: incredibly worried. And the respondents say governments aren't doing enough to combat climate change." So, Gen-X, Millennials, Gen-Z and the next one all agree.
"None of the world's major economies -- including the entire G20 -- have a climate plan that meets their obligations under the 2015 Paris Agreement, according to an analysis published Wednesday, despite scientists' warning that deep cuts to greenhouse gas emissions are needed now."
Trigger warning… "The practice of dolphin hunting in the Faroe Islands has come under scrutiny after more than 1,400 of the mammals were killed in what was believed to be a record catch… The pod of white-sided dolphins was driven into the largest fjord in the North Atlantic territory on Sunday… Boats herded them into shallow waters at Skalabotnur beach in Eysturoy, where they were killed with knives… The carcases were pulled ashore and distributed to locals for consumption."
"NASA has selected five U.S. companies to help the agency enable a steady pace of crewed trips to the lunar surface under the agency’s Artemis program. These companies will make advancements toward sustainable human landing system concepts, conduct risk-reduction activities, and provide feedback on NASA’s requirements to cultivate industry capabilities for crewed lunar landing missions."
"West Virginia was once one of the leading US states in rolling out Covid-19 vaccinations. Now it is one of the least vaccinated, with the fastest-growing rate of infections in the country. Health systems are overwhelmed, with record numbers of patients in hospital, in intensive care units and on ventilators."
"Enforcement of Iowa’s ban on mask mandates in schools is on hold after a federal judge in Des Moines ruled that it creates an unfair risk for students with serious health conditions to attend class in-person."
"Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced in a statement Tuesday that the state is suing President Joe Biden 'and other officials in his administration' over the new coronavirus vaccine mandates Biden announced last week."
"American army officers who refuse to be vaccinated against the coronavirus could be suspended from their duties and possibly discharged, the U.S. Army said on Tuesday." So, the same as other mandated vaccines in the military then.
"Most labor attorneys agree there is a lot of legal gray area when it comes to claiming and approving religious-based requests for vaccine exemptions."
"At least 18 of the 20 gorillas at Atlanta's zoo have now tested positive for COVID-19, an outbreak that began just days before the zoo had hoped to obtain a veterinary vaccine for the primates, officials said Tuesday."
"After years of puny increases in their Social Security checks, older Americans will likely get the equivalent of a big raise next year… The 68 million people -- including retirees, disabled people and others – who rely on the benefits are likely to receive a 6% to 6.1% cost-of-living adjustment next year because of a COVID-19-related spike in inflation, according to the Senior Citizen League."
"The Justice Department has accused an upstate New York health insurance plan for seniors, along with a medical analytics company the insurer is affiliated with, of cheating the government out of tens of millions of dollars… The civil complaint of fraud, filed this week, is the first by the federal government to target a data mining company for allegedly helping a Medicare Advantage program to game federal billing regulations in a way that enables the plan to overcharge for patient treatment." Time to roll Medicare "Advantage" back into the government program and expand its coverage.
"North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into waters off its eastern coast Wednesday afternoon, two days after claiming to have tested a newly developed missile in a resumption of its weapons displays after a six-month lull."
"A major row broke out between leaders of the Taliban just days after they set up a new government in Afghanistan, senior Taliban officials told the BBC… Supporters of two rival factions reportedly brawled at the presidential palace in the capital Kabul… The argument appeared to centre on who did the most to secure victory over the US, and how power was divided up in the new cabinet… The Taliban have officially denied the reports."
"The U.S. Soccer Federation took a major step regarding equal pay concerns for its men's and women's national teams… The federation announced Tuesday that it's offering the respective players' unions for the men's and women's national teams the same contract proposals. The decision reflects an effort to align the two senior national teams under a single collective bargaining agreement structure — and pay structure."
"The Department of Justice filed an emergency order late Tuesday, asking for a temporary halt to the new Texas law that bans abortions past six weeks. The department said in its filing that the new law, also known as S.B. 8, prevents 'women from exercising their constitutional rights.'"
"A prominent South Carolina lawyer who found the bodies of his wife and son three months ago, tried to arrange his own death earlier this month so his son would get a $10 million life insurance payment, but the planned fatal shot only grazed his head, state police said Tuesday." I'm not sure if I had linked to this story prior to this, but yeah, it all sounded fishy.
"While the courtroom drama then centered on which 12 Californians would form the jury that decides Holmes' fate, journalists in the courtroom had other burning questions: Who was this man? Why was he talking so much to all the reporters? Did he have a connection to Holmes he wasn't disclosing?" Turns out, he's the father-in-law (to be).
"More than 60% of American parents want their kids to learn about the ongoing effects of slavery and racism as part of their K-12 education, according to a new USA TODAY/Ipsos poll… But just half of parents support teaching critical race theory in schools – even though the theory's main premise is that racism continues to permeate society. About 4 in 10 parents support restrictions on schools' ability to teach critical race theory." You mean people don't understand what it is they're arguing about?
"The FBI director, Chris Wray, is facing new scrutiny of the bureau’s handling of its 2018 background investigation of Brett Kavanaugh, including its claim that the FBI lacked the authority to conduct a further investigation into the then supreme court nominee… At the heart of the new questions that Wray will face later this week, when he testifies before the Senate judiciary committee, is a 2010 Memorandum of Understanding that the FBI has recently said constrained the agency’s ability to conduct any further investigations of allegations of misconduct."
"President Biden's ambitious climate change plan could soon become a reality, if Democrats in Congress succeed in passing a $3.5 trillion budget package. But first Democrats, who are crafting the legislation without Republican support, must overcome powerful opposition, some of it within their own party… This legislation would bring extraordinary changes to the country's energy sector. It would lead to huge reductions in the climate-warming greenhouse gases the U.S. emits, and change the kind of car many Americans drive."
It's gerrymandering season again… "GOP mapmakers are readying to shore up more than a dozen of the most hotly contested House battlegrounds from the past four years, narrowing Democrats’ path to maintain control of the House, as they prepare for midterm elections that are historically tough for the party in power."
"U.S. dollars also created the '9/11 millionaires,' a tiny class of young, ultra-wealthy Afghans who made their fortunes working as contractors for the foreign armies… A few of these millionaires became role models for a new generation of Afghan entrepreneurs and philanthropists… But many more exploited their family ties to government officials or provincial warlords in order to secure lucrative contracts… Over time, U.S. government contracts became the fuel for a system of mass corruption that engulfed the country and, eventually, doomed its fragile democracy."
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