Tuesday, May 25th, 2021
Plane ‘Hijacking,’ Big Cities Back in Class & Chicken Coop Caution
All the news in about 10 min:
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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 read the latest happenings...
Secretary of State Visiting Israel
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken traveled to the Middle East and he has three big priorities for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: strengthen last week’s ceasefire, start getting humanitarian aid to the Gaza strip, and lay the groundwork for long-term peace talks that have been stalled for years. While Blinken is overseas, he plans to visit Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, and Egypt, hoping to talk with several big leaders. Even though he’s meeting with the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian authority, Blinken is not willing to see anyone from the militant Palestinian group Hamas, who the U.S. considers to be a “foreign terrorist organization.”
Read More: AP, NY Times, Al Jazeera, Jerusalem Post, WSJ
Belarus Intercepted Plane
There’s new outrage over what some world leaders are calling a plane “hijacking” by the Belarus government. While a Ryanair jet was flying over the capital of Belarus, flight controllers there told the crew there was a bomb threat against the plane, and a Belarus fighter jet escorted the plane to the ground. It was all so authorities could arrest a journalist who was on board, who has previously criticized the Belarus president. The forced landing has sparked outrage around the world, with leaders in the European Union issuing new economic penalties against Belarus. Planes have been told to avoid the airspace over that country for now. The Belarus government is defending itself, saying that it followed international aviation rules.
Read More: NY Times, WSJ, AP, WaPo
Biden Meeting Floyd Family
Today marks exactly one year since George Floyd was killed during a violent arrest in Minneapolis, setting off a wave of protests over racial injustice last summer. Today, President Biden is set to meet with Floyd’s family at the White House. It’s unlikely that Biden will be able to give them the news about a police reform bill named after Floyd. The bill would, in part, ban chokeholds and no-knock warrants at the federal level. It would also create a national registry for police misconduct and allow people to sue individual police officers. The bill passed the House a couple of months ago, but it hasn’t made it beyond the Senate yet.
Read More: Axios, CBS News, WaPo, Fox News, Congress.Gov
Texas Allowing Unlicensed Handguns
In Texas, lawmakers approved a bill that lets people carry handguns without a license. This means people won’t need background checks or training. The bill is now headed to the governor’s desk, and he says he’ll sign it. Supporters of the bill say they wanted to get rid of obstacles that might keep people from their constitutional right to bear arms. Opponents say it’s going to make police and the public less safe. While Texas isn’t the first state to pass a measure like this, it is the most populous state by far. This new law is expected to take effect on September 1st.
Read More: Texas Tribune, Austin American-Statesman, AP, TX GOP
FL Bans Big Tech from Blocking Politicians
Florida’s governor signed a bill that says social media companies cannot ban political candidates in the state for more than two weeks. If they do, the companies will face fines of $250,000 a day. This is the first state law that targets how tech companies moderate speech. Florida’s governor says it’s needed to hold big-tech companies accountable, but critics say it gives the government too much power over online speech. Legal experts say the law is bound to face challenges in court. The new law is set to take effect July 1st.
Read More: WaPo, Axios, Fox News, Gov. Desantis
NYC, LA Schools to go In-Person
The nation’s two largest public school districts are going to be open for in-person classes five days a week, starting this fall. We’re talking about schools in New York City and Los Angeles. In LA, there will be a virtual option offered to families who aren’t ready to send their kids back quite yet, whereas in New York classes will only be in-person. Masks will likely still be required in both places. These are among the first big cities to announce in-person plans for the fall, though not the first in the country. Most places say they’re expecting students to come back to the classroom at least some of the time.
Read More: Reuters, NY Times, WSJ, LA Times
Japan’s Mass Vaccination Centers
With less than two months until the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan is cranking up efforts to get people vaccinated. Mass vaccination centers opened in Tokyo and Osaka this week. Those areas have been under a state of emergency since last month due to higher numbers of COVID-19 cases. The new state-run vaccine centers will be open 12 hours a day, seven days a week, all summer. Japan says its goal is to vaccinate all seniors by the time the Olympics begin on July 23rd. As of this week, only about 4% of Japan’s population has received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Read More: AP, Kyodo News, Time, NY Times
United’s Free Flights Sweepstakes
United Airlines is trying to encourage more people to get vaccinated by offering free flights. It launched a new sweepstakes called “Your Shot to Fly.” To win, members of the airline’s loyalty program have to upload their vaccination cards to the airline’s app or website by June 22nd. Five winners, plus one guest apiece, will score free flights for a year, while 30 other people will win a roundtrip flight for two.
Read More: Fox News, USA Today, The Hill, United Airlines
Lyft & Uber Free Rides for Vaccines Goes Live
Uber and Lyft are offering round-trip rides to vaccination sites. The program went live yesterday and continues through July 4th. Uber is offering $25 off each ride. Lyft’s voucher is $15 off for each trip. These deals are the result of an agreement with the White House. An Uber spokesperson says the White House advised on the development and launch of the product and shared data on more than 80,000 vaccination sites around the country.
Read More: TechCrunch, Uber, Reuters
Don’t Kiss the Chickens
The CDC put out a new warning in response to a nationwide salmonella outbreak. The federal health agency says hundreds of cases have been reported in 43 states with dozens of people hospitalized. Officials say the number of illnesses is likely even higher since not everyone is tested for salmonella. They say backyard chicken coops are probably to blame, and it’s important to remember that chickens are not pets. They can get you sick even if they look clean. Symptoms of salmonella include fever and stomach issues.
Read More: NY Times, NBC News, AARP, CDC
‘Charlie Bit My Finger’ Sells as NFT
One of the first videos to ever go viral on the internet has been sold as a non-fungible token (NFT). The winner bid more than $760,000 for the rights to the famous “Charlie Bit my Finger” video. The 55-second clip, featuring two brothers named Harry and Charlie, was posted on YouTube in 2007 and has been seen more than 883 million times. The sale of NFTs has been rising this year, with buyers spending more than $2 billion on NFTs in the first three months of this year.
Read More: BBC, WaPo, Charlie Bit Me Auction, Original Video
Trivia Tuesday
Q: Which is the only edible food that never goes bad?
Play along on today’s Instagram Stories Quiz. We’ll also have the answer right here next week.
Last Week’s Trivia Tuesday Answer
Q: How many bones do sharks have in their bodies?
A: Zero
Read More: NOAA, Animal Food Planet, Shark Trust