Wednesday, March 30th, 2022
Relief for Kyiv?, 2nd Booster OKed & Allergy-Free Cats
All the news you need in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Rothys.com/newsworthy and bollandbranch.com (Listen for the discount code)
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks Status
Peace talks between Ukraine and Russia seemed to show some signs of progress, but western leaders are skeptical. Russia said it would scale back military activity around the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and another city in northern Ukraine. Russian officials called it “de-escalation” to build trust. However, the White House says this kind of movement is “redeployment and not a withdrawal.” On the other side, Ukraine offered to declare itself neutral and non-nuclear. Negotiations are supposed to continue today.
Read more: AP, NY Times, WSJ, NPR
Ukraine Fighting Continues
Fighting continues in Ukraine. Just yesterday, a Russian missile hit a regional government building in south Ukraine during normal work hours. Another missile strike destroyed a fuel depot in western Ukraine. Since the invasion started five weeks ago, thousands of people have died, and about four million Ukrainians have fled the country. On top of that, the Red Cross estimates there are 18 million people still in Ukraine who need humanitarian aid, including essential things like food, water, blankets, and tents.
Read more: Reuters, CNN, WaPo, NY Times
More Severe Weather Possible
It has been just one week since a deadly tornado outbreak ripped through the deep south, but that same part of the country is threatened by more storms today. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Jackson, Mississippi, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama face the highest risk of severe weather. The National Weather Service says there’s a chance of winds that top 75 miles an hour, strong tornadoes, large hail, and flooding. The storms are expected to start this afternoon.
Read more: USA Today, CNN, WaPo, NOAA
Biden Signs Anti-Lynching Bill into Law
For the first time in history, lynching is considered a federal hate crime in the U.S. President Biden signed the historic bill into law this week. Over the past 12 decades, different lawmakers have tried to pass anti-lynching bills about 200 times. However, they’ve never made it through Congress until this year. The new law gives federal prosecutors the power to bring more charges against suspects in the most brutal hate crimes, no matter what happens at the local level. Now, if someone is found to be guilty of lynching in federal court, they’ll face up to 30 years in prison.
Read more: NPR, Reuters, AP, Axios, WaPo, White House
2nd Booster Approved for 50+
Millions more Americans are now eligible for a fourth Covid-19 shot. As expected, the FDA authorized a second booster of either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines for everyone 50 and older. The CDC also endorsed the extra shot for that age group, as long as it’s been four months since their last shots. The CDC director stressed that it’s most important for seniors and 50-somethings with chronic illnesses like heart disease or diabetes. Federal regulators are expected to authorize an extra dose for younger Americans in the fall.
Read more: CNN, WSJ, CNBC, AP, FDA, CDC
CDC Advice for J&J People
The CDC is now recommending people who got the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine to get a booster with one of the messenger RNA vaccines if they haven’t already. This new advice comes after a recent study found people who mixed and matched had much better protection against severe cases of Covid-19 than those who just got the J&J one.
Read more: WaPo, Forbes, The Hill, CBS News, CDC
States Sue Over Travel Mask Mandate
Even though many states have dropped all of their Covid-19 restrictions, most Americans still have to wear a mask on planes and on public transportation. Now, nearly two dozen states are suing the Biden administration over it. The federal mask mandate was put into place early last year and was set to expire earlier this month, but TSA extended it through April 18th. The states suing say the mandate is government overreach and unnecessary. Last week, CEOs from major airlines also called on President Biden to drop the mandate. So far, the CDC and TSA haven’t commented on the lawsuit.
Read more: Fox News, NBC News, NPR, WSJ, Florida AG
Axie Infinity Hack
A hacker just pulled off one of the largest crypto heists in history, swiping more than $600 million in cryptocurrency. Blockchain network Ronin runs the popular game Axie Infinity which uses NFT tokens. Well, the network says the attacker made off with the money by using stolen passwords to forge fake withdrawals. When the attack happened last week, the funds were worth about $540 million, but now, at current exchange rates, it’s gone up to about $625 million. Now, the network says it’s working with the gamemaker and law enforcement to try and make sure no players’ funds are gone for good.
Read more: NBC News, CNN, The Verge, Ronin Blockchain
NFL Changes Overtime Rules
The NFL says it heard the outcries, and changes are coming to playoff overtime rules. Team owners approved them yesterday. Essentially, they guarantee both teams get the ball in overtime. Under the old rule, a touchdown scored by the team that has the ball first wins the game, even if the other team never got their hands on the ball. Now, even if the first team with the ball scores, the other team still gets a chance, too. It only applies in the postseason, though. Regular-season overtime stays the same.
Read more: ESPN, NY Times, USA Today, NFL
New TikTok Tools
More tools are coming to TikTok to help create that perfect video. The mega-popular app says it’s teaming up with GIPHY to add GIFs, memes, and clips to its brand new “TikTok Library”. Over time, more tools will show up there like audio, sounds, and text templates that can go straight into videos. TikTok is also reportedly testing a Watch History tool, so you can track down a video you saw but lost. If your app has the tool already as part of its test, it will be under the ‘content and activity’ section in settings. It’s not clear if or when it could roll out to everyone.
Read more: TechCrunch, TechCrunch(2), The Verge, TikTok
Hypoallergenic Cats Possible
A hypoallergenic cat might be closer than you think, thanks to a new gene-editing breakthrough. In a new study, researchers used a cutting-edge gene-editing tool called CRISPR to block a certain protein found in cats that is thought to cause most allergies. While there are certain breeds that are supposedly better for our allergies already, there’s no true hypoallergenic cat. Well, scientists say they could change that in the next five years, by having cats genetically bred that way, and they will be just as healthy as other cats.
Read more: Gizmodo, Daily Mail, New Scientist, CRISPR Journal
Work Wednesday: Another 4.4M Americans Quit
New data shows the so-called Great Resignation continues, with millions more Americans ditching their jobs last month. The Labor Department says the number of people in the U.S. who quit their jobs in February is historically high at 4.4 million. That’s almost up to November’s peak of 4.5 million, which set a record going back two decades. Job openings were also sitting at near-record levels last month, with 11.3 million jobs up for grabs.
Read more: NY Times, CNBC, CNN, Fox Business, DOL
Work Wednesday: Flexibility vs. Pay
A new study by “Bankrate” found 55% of U.S. adults say since the pandemic, their top priority is to work from home or have a more flexible schedule. While participants could pick more than one answer, the 2nd-highest priority among them was pay.
Read more: CNBC, BankRate