Monday, April 19th, 2021
Bar Shooting, Vaccine Milestone & Peloton Safety
All the news you need in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Rothys.com/newsworthy and Ritual.com/newsworthy
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 to review the latest happenings...
Wisconsin Bar Shooting
The U.S. is mourning another tragedy in a series of recent mass shootings. The latest happened in Kenosha County, Wisconsin. Three men were killed and at least three others were seriously hurt in a shooting at a busy bar near the shore of Lake Michigan. Authorities say the suspect was a customer there, but employees kicked the man out for some reason. They say he left, but only to return a little while later with a gun. Law enforcement officials haven’t named the victims, the shooter, or a possible motive.
Read More: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, CNN, Fox News, CBS News
Indianapolis Mass Shooting Follow
Investigators are working to piece together a mass shooting from last week at a FedEx warehouse in Indianapolis. Vigils were held over the weekend for the eight victims. All of them worked at the warehouse. They ranged in age from 19 to 74. Police say the 19-year-old gunman also used to work at the warehouse. Last year, his mother called law enforcement, warning them she thought her son was going to try to lure police into killing him. At that point, police took his shotgun away from him and it was never returned. Months later, authorities say he was able to buy two new assault rifles that he used in last week’s attack. He also killed himself.
Read More: Indy Star, NY Times, AP, WaPo, NPR
Refugee Cap Backlash
President Biden faced backlash over signing an executive order to keep the same strict limit on how many refugees are allowed to resettle in the U.S. In February, Biden said he wanted to let in 125,000 people who are fleeing violence, conflict, and oppression in their home countries. However, this past Friday, Biden’s executive order said he was keeping it at 15,000. Biden faced immediate blowback from Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups. Hours later, the White House clarified saying it would increase the refugee cap again next month. However, it’s not clear what the new cap might be.
Read More: Reuters, ABC News, USA Today
China and U.S. Working Together on Climate Change
Putting tensions aside, the U.S. and China now say they’re working together on one key issue: climate change. That’s big since the U.S. and China produce the most greenhouse gases in the world. The governments put out a joint statement that says they’ll work together to lower carbon emissions and they’ll help developing countries make the shift too. The agreement came after the Biden administration’s climate envoy John Kerry spent three days in China for talks. Kerry called the talks productive, saying it was the first time China agreed climate change is a “crisis.”
Read More: BBC, NY Times, Reuters, WSJ
Half of American Adults Have a COVID Shot
The CDC announced a new milestone over the weekend: half of all American adults have now gotten at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and about a third are fully vaccinated. The states with the highest vaccination rates are New Hampshire, New Mexico, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. On the opposite end, demand has been lagging most in states like Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Overall, polling from the AP shows a lot more people are willing to get a vaccine now than they were just a few months ago.
Read More: AP, Bloomberg, Axios, CDC
WA Moves to Ban New Gas Cars
Washington could become the first state in the nation to phase out sales of gas-powered cars in favor of electric vehicles. Lawmakers passed a bill to ban sales of new light-duty, gas-powered vehicles by 2030. California and Massachusetts have pledged to do the same thing five years later. Emergency vehicles would be exempt. Gov. Jay Inslee hasn’t said whether he’ll sign the bill into law, but his office has said transitioning to clean transportation sources is a top priority. Still, critics have argued one state doesn’t have the authority to pass a law that could influence the whole U.S. so it could face a battle in court.
Read More: Autoweek, Reuters, KING5, TTAC, HB 1287, Gov. Inslee
Peloton Treadmill Safety Warning
The popular exercise equipment company Peloton is defending its products as it faces pressure to issue a recall. The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a warning over the weekend, urging Americans with young children or pets at home to stop using the Tread+. The federal agency said dozens of children and at least one pet have been injured after getting sucked under the treadmill. At least one child died. However, Peloton says if all the safety instructions are followed, there is no reason to stop using the Tread+.
Read More: Consumer Reports, NY Times, CPSC, Peloton Statement
SpaceX Wins Moon-Landing Contract With NASA
It looks like NASA and SpaceX will be teaming up on the next mission to send humans to the moon. NASA already has the spacecraft to launch its astronauts into space, but it needs a separate human landing system to transfer the astronauts to the moon’s surface. For that, NASA chose SpaceX and gave the company a nearly $2.9 billion contract to develop the necessary spacecraft. SpaceX has already been testing prototypes and it says it’s making several upgrades before the next test flight.
Read More: WaPo, CNN, NASA, SpaceX
ACM Awards Recap
Some of the most celebrated artists in country music came together in Nashville for the Academy of Country Music Awards. Like last year, performances were spread out between several locations around Nashville. This time, vaccinated medical workers from Vanderbilt University Medical Center were seated in the balconies. Masked nominees were brought onto the floor of the Opry House during their category. Country singer Mickey Guyton made history as the first Black woman to co-host the show. She co-hosted with another longtime country star, Keith Urban. The coveted entertainer of the year award went to Luke Bryan.
Read More: ET, People, Variety, NBC News
Money Monday: Americans Are Buying Things Again
Federal data shows retail spending rose by nearly 10% in March, the largest increase since May of 2020. Spending at clothing stores was up by double digits. The most popular items include skirts, dresses, jeans, shoes, and swimsuits. Shaving kits and sporting goods are also flying off store shelves and champagne sales doubled compared to a year ago. Americans are also reportedly spending more money on cars, home renovations, and dining. Analysts predicted this spending boom would come, in part thanks to increased saving.
Read More: CNBC, AP, Morning Consult