Friday, August 6th, 2021
Hospitals Filling Up, New Electric Goals & Massive Motorcycle Rally
All the news you need in around 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Ritual.com/newsworthy and BetterHelp.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 reading the latest happenings...
Southern Hospitals Overwhelmed
As COVID-19 cases rise around the country, some hospitals in the south are getting overwhelmed. This week, there were only six ICU beds available across all of Mississippi, and Arkansas had only 25. There are also severe intensive care shortages in Louisiana, Georgia medical centers are having to turn patients away, and Florida hospitals have had to suspend elective surgeries again. Overall, the CDC says the number of Americans in the hospital with COVID-19 has almost quadrupled over the past month. A large share of the patients are young adults and almost all of them are unvaccinated.
Read More: AP, NBC News, USA Today, The Oklahoman
Push to get Kids Vaccinated
The Biden administration is now focusing its vaccination campaign on kids 12 and up who are already eligible for the shots. The White House is urging doctors to talk about vaccinations when kids come in for regular sports physicals. It’s also giving schools and colleges resources to hold pop-up vaccine clinics on their campuses. Also, the National PTA is calling on 22,000 local organizations to host community conversations with parents about getting their children vaccinated. More than 50 million students are expected to return to K-12 schools in the next six weeks, and 20 million are going back to college.
Read More: NY Times, CNBC, WaPo, White House
Dixie Fire Damage
California’s biggest wildfire is getting even worse. The Dixie fire ripped through the mountain town of Greenville in the northern Sierra Nevada area. It leveled most of its historic downtown and destroyed blocks of homes, businesses, and schools. So far, there aren’t any reports of injuries or deaths. Hundreds of people are still evacuated and the fire is unfortunately still growing. It’s been burning for three weeks now and has charred more than 560 square miles. It’s still not clear exactly what sparked it, but PG&E thinks it might have started when a tree fell on one of its power lines.
Read More: LA Times, Axios, CNN, AP, InciWeb
DOJ Investigates Phoenix Police
The Justice Department is now investigating police officers in Phoenix, Arizona. It wants to find out if Phoenix police discriminate against minorities, use excessive force, or retaliate against peaceful protesters. The probe will also look into how the police department treats homeless and disabled people. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the investigation yesterday but he didn’t cite a specific event that prompted it. He said his department decided to open the investigation after reviewing court documents and public records. Phoenix police representatives have promised to cooperate with the Justice Department in the investigation.
Read More: Axios, NY Times, NPR, Fox News
Biden’s Electric Car Push
The White House has a new strategy to move Americans away from gas-powered cars and trucks and onto electric vehicles instead. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a proposal for new stricter vehicle emissions standards. It brings things back to the way they were under the Obama administration, plus a little more. President Biden also signed an executive order that calls for at least half of all new car sales to be zero-emission vehicles by the end of this decade. Major automakers and foreign brands say they support this goal too. Right now, electric vehicles account for only 2% of new car sales in the U.S.
Read More: Axios, NY Times, NPR, WaPo, White House
Fewest Personal Bankruptcies in 35 Years
In the last year, fewer Americans filed for bankruptcy than at any other time since 1985. Government data shows personal bankruptcy filings dropped nearly 33%. Officials say the relief bills Congress passed helped a lot since they included benefits like extended unemployment aid, the eviction ban, and bigger child tax credits. Commercial bankruptcy filings were also 17% lower compared to the previous year.
Read More: WSJ, Reuters, CNBC, U.S. Courts
Apple Scanning iPhones for Child Porn
iPhones will soon be updated with some complex technology that can spot any child porn in the iCloud. If it finds a match, a human will review the image. If that person confirms it is child porn, they’ll notify the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the person’s account will be disabled. Separately, parents will be able to turn on a feature that flags them when their kids get or send any naked photos in a text. On those, though, Apple says its employees will never be able to see or find out about the pictures. Child protection groups are praising Apple for its new plans, but cybersecurity experts have privacy concerns, saying they worry this type of technology could be abused in the future.
Read More: Financial Times, AP, NY Times, WSJ, Apple
Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Begins
More than 700,000 people are riding into South Dakota’s Black Hills. The week-long Sturgis Motorcycle Rally begins today. Every year, motorcyclists come from all over the country to explore different routes through the region, go camping, and see concerts. The annual rally typically brings in about $800 million to the local area. However, critics are concerned the rally could become a super spreader event for COVID-19. Organizers aren’t mandating any health safety measures, but supporters argue the event is relatively safe because bikers spend much of it outside.
Read More: AP, Sturgis, KEVN-TV
More American Women Win Gold
American athletes are still marking milestones at the Tokyo Olympics. For example, Nevin Harrison won the first Olympic gold medal in women’s canoeing. The sport was just added this year. She took first place in the 200-meter canoe sprint by completing it in just under 46 seconds. American beach volleyball partners April Ross and Alix Klineman also won the gold medal in their sport. Their win against Australia in the finals made them just the second American women’s beach volleyball team to go undefeated at a single Olympics.
Canoe Win: NPR, NY Times
Beach Volleyball Win: NBC Sports, USA Today
Coming up at the Olympics
Team USA’s women’s basketball team and the women’s indoor volleyball team are both in the semi-finals this morning. Both teams are up against opponents from Serbia. On the men’s side, Team USA basketball will compete for a fourth straight gold medal when they play against France today. The Olympic games wrap up this Sunday. You can watch the closing ceremonies during primetime on NBC.
Read More: CBS Sports, Draft Kings, ESPN, Time, NBC Sports
More 'South Park' Episodes, Movies
There’s going to be a lot more South Park over the next few years. The creators of the popular animated series just signed a $900 million deal with ViacomCBS. It includes at least six more seasons of the hit show that’ll keep airing on Comedy Central. It also includes 14 South Park movies that’ll air on the Paramount+ streaming network. Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone will put out two movies a year. The first two will debut later this year.
Read More: THR, IndieWire, ComicBook, Bloomberg, Variety
Feel Good Friday: California Teen Invents New Type of Fire Extinguisher
A high schooler from northern California says he came up with an invention that could save your house from a wildfire, and it works even when you’re not home. 17-year-old Arul Mathur invented what he calls the “fire activated canister extinguisher,” or F.A.C.E. for short. The device can be set up anywhere outside the house. It has a bulb inside it that can sense when a fire is nearby. Once the bulb reaches 155 degrees, it bursts and sprays fire retardant all around it. Mathur is selling the devices now and says he’ll use all the money he earns to donate F.A.C.E.s to communities that are most at-risk for wildfires.
Read More: KTTV, The Week, Good News Network
See how it works: YouTube