Monday, November 25th, 2019

Navy Secretary Fired, Lettuce Warning & Frozen 2 

All the news you need in less than 10 min:

Today's episode is brought to you by GenoPalate.

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 perusing the latest happenings...

Bloomberg's Official Announcement:
It's official: former mayor Michael Bloomberg announced he's running for president and joining the long list of Democratic hopefuls. He's the 11th richest person in the world and says he'll be paying for his campaign himself. Turning down all campaign donations means he won't be eligible to participate in any Democratic debates, and he's too late to participate in some of the early voting states. Instead, he's focused on Super Tuesday in early March.
Read more: CBS News, The Hill, CNN

Navy Secretary Fired:
There's been some tension lately between the president, the Pentagon and the Navy, and it's now led to the forced resignation of the Navy Secretary Richard Spencer. It has to do with the controversy and different perspectives surrounding the case of a Navy SEAL convicted of posing with the corpse of an ISIS prisoner.
Read more: NYT, Fox News, The Hill

Hong Kong Election:
Voters in Hong Kong turned out in record numbers for their local elections and showed clear support from and for protesters, who have been demonstrating for months. Meanwhile, back in the U.S., Congress easily passed legislation to support protesters in Hong Kong, but President Trump signaled he may not support it. He's concerned about upsetting mainland China before finalizing a trade deal.
Read more: NPR, Reuters, BBC, Washington Post

Thanksgiving Week Weather:
A record number of people will be traveling this week for the Thanksgiving holiday, and millions of them may be dealing with nasty winter weather. Three storms are expected across the country this week. Stay tuned to the local forecast wherever you're heading...
Read more: CNN, NBC News, Business Insider

Lettuce Warning:
Before you make your Thanksgiving meal, check if you're serving any lettuce from Salinas, CA. The CDC is warning people to avoid eating any romaine that was grown in that region due to a food poisoning outbreak. If you're not sure where it was grown, it's best to not eat it for now.
Read more: Time, Fox News, CDC

AI Health Care:
Artificial intelligence is apparently taking a larger and more patient-facing role in health care. Some doctors' offices are now using it for things like asking about patients' initial symptoms before the appointment. Researchers say it's not meant to replace doctors or therapists, but to assist in identifying who may need additional help.
Read more: AP

Frozen 2 Box Office:
As expected, it was a huge weekend for the sequel, Frozen 2. Reports say the movie brought in $127 million -- making it the highest grossing weekend ever for any animated film around the world.
Read more: Variety, USA Today

American Music Awards:
Taylor Swift ultimately got permission from her old record label to perform her old songs for a mashup performance while being honored as the "Artist of the Decade." She also broke the record for the most all-time AMA wins. Check out the other performances and winners in the links below...
Read more: THR, People, E! News

Money Monday - 'Black Friday' Origin:
Have you heard the common reason the day after Thanksgiving is referred to as 'Black Friday'? Turns out: it's wrong. It actually started among police in Philadelphia to describe the chaos when so many suburban shoppers flooded the city. Once the name spread, retailers wanted to put a positive spin on it, and it stuck. Now, most people think it just refers to retailers finally turning a profit.
Read more: History.com