Here's what's happening Thursday with the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S.: THREE THINGS TO KNOW TODAY — House Republicans shot down a Democratic bid on Thursday to pass President Donald Trump’s longshot, end-of-session demand for $2,000 direct payments to most Americans before signing a long-overdue COVID-19 relief bill. The vote shifts attention to whether Trump will follow through on his implied threat to veto the bill, which would likely cause a partial government shutdown and delay the $600 direct payments that the bill does contain. — California became the first state to record 2 million confirmed coronavirus cases reaching the milestone on Christmas Eve as close to the entire state was under a strict stay-at-home order and hospitals were flooded with the largest crush of cases since the pandemic began. — Schools nationwide have scrambled to get students outdoors during the pandemic to keep them safe and stop the spread of COVID-19. Some schools in the … [Read more...] about VIRUS TODAY: Relief bill in limbo, California hits 2M cases
Government shutdown 2015
Don’t America My Australia
In late 2021, as Australian cities were seeing anti-lockdown and anti-vaxxer protests against the country’s long-running pandemic restrictions and newly implemented vaccine mandates, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted “Don’t Australia my America.” As someone who has recently moved back to Sydney after covering the Trump presidency for the BBC, I have instead found myself thinking the opposite: Don’t America my Australia . The American variant of democracy is contaminating the body politic of my home. My family left the United States partly to escape its politics, so it was jolting to watch Trump banners that I was more used to seeing in Mississippi and rural Michigan being brandished on the streets of Melbourne. But the Trump paraphernalia, and crowds of Australian protesters that resemble mosh pits of MAGA diehards, have been only a mild form of the sickness. There have been more malign manifestations. Some lawmakers in the state of Victoria who backed tough lockdown measures received … [Read more...] about Don’t America My Australia
The Weird World of Thieves in Sweden
Here’s a dead-end job : Swedish bank robber. In 2016, there were only two bank heists in all of Sweden, compared with 110 eight years earlier. Why the steep plunge? The country’s bent on going cashless . In 1661, Sweden became the first European country to print banknotes; several centuries later, it might become the first country to get rid of them. Card readers and mobile-payment apps are now used even in situations that were once reserved for dog-eared bills and pocket change, like donating in church. Buses in Sweden don’t accept cash. Neither do many street vendors. Though the government is still printing Sweden’s national currency, the krona, two-thirds of Swedes say they feel that they could live without bills and coins. According to the Riksbank, Sweden’s central bank, cold hard kronor accounted for barely 2 percent of the value of all payments made in Sweden in 2015. The bank projects that “cash will stick around until the 2030s,” but not necessarily longer. Already, … [Read more...] about The Weird World of Thieves in Sweden
Boris Johnson has good ideas – the danger is that Labour’s vision appeals more
For the average voter, one question and one question only will decide their response to the Queen’s speech : what does it do about the cost of living crisis? The economy is the battleground on which most general elections are fought, and 2024 will be no exception, giving the Government just two years to convince people they are better off under the Tories. The problem for Boris Johnson is that world events, most notably the war in Ukraine, have ruined even the best-laid economic plans , leaving little room for manoeuvre. While Mr Johnson promises in his introduction to the 140-page Queen’s Speech document that the Government will “continue doing whatever we can to ease the burdens people are grappling with”, it is laced with caveats. The economic shocks of Covid and Ukraine mean: “No country is immune and no government can realistically shield everyone from the impact.” Mr Johnson’s strategy is to be brutally honest with voters, in the hope that by setting out the … [Read more...] about Boris Johnson has good ideas – the danger is that Labour’s vision appeals more
Inside Line: Clinical Saracens show their class – but what about the rest of the Premiership?
Back in 2020, after Saracens’ 25-17 victory over Leinster in the Champions Cup quarter-final , scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth suggested that their quality would survive the salary-cap scandal. “We are not looking for any sympathy,” he said. “But perhaps it will prove that what we built is true and special.” Wigglesworth has moved on these days. He is a player-coach at Leicester Tigers and took on Leinster in another quarter-final on Saturday . On another tough weekend for Premiership clubs in European competition, his words from two years ago felt pertinent. Since he uttered them, Saracens have bounced back from the Championship into the top flight. Over recent weeks, they have looked ominously potent as opportunities for silverware approach. They and Wasps are the only English sides that remain in the Challenge Cup, with the exits of Sale Sharks and Tigers making it two consecutive seasons without Premiership representation in the last four of the Champions Cup. Mark … [Read more...] about Inside Line: Clinical Saracens show their class – but what about the rest of the Premiership?
Want unfettered free speech? Get far-right attacks like the Buffalo shooting
On Saturday 14 May, an 18-year-old man walked into a supermarket in Buffalo and shot 13 people, killing 10 . A few days before carrying out the killings, the shooter published a 180-page manifesto on Google Docs detailing his motives, which were largely racist and antisemitic in nature. Similarly to Brenton Tarrant , who massacred 51 people and injured 40 others at a mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand in 2019, the Buffalo shooter attributed the views which caused him to carry out the killings to 4chan ; an online message board-based forum where users are able to post completely anonymously and with very little in the way of oversight or restrictions. 4chan, along with similar websites like 8chan – another anonymous forum which has also been cited by mass shooters – have a reputation for attracting the absolute human detritus of the internet. Their refusal to provide oversight to their users predictably result in them becoming hotbeds of neo-Nazi rhetoric, … [Read more...] about Want unfettered free speech? Get far-right attacks like the Buffalo shooting
Can you think yourself to better mental health? New research offers a clue
One of the many qualities Deborah James displays in her battle with bowel cancer is a positive attitude. This inner belief demonstrates a real strength that few would doubt has impacted her journey from diagnosis to end of life care. Sadly, this positive mental attitude can only take her and those like her so far, it can’t stop the inevitable advance of terminal disease. Just like a physical health problem, a mental health one can make you feel impotent in the way it develops. So its encouraging to see new research from Denmark suggesting that if an individual believes they can improve their mental well-being, this will have a positive effect on their health. While this may seem obvious, there has been little evidence so far to support the idea. Most of what we have relied on has been individual anecdotes. Having interviewed thousands of people the researchers found that those who scored highest on a scale assessing self-belief were more likely to enjoy good … [Read more...] about Can you think yourself to better mental health? New research offers a clue
Lawyer: Ex-Honduran president held like a ‘prisoner of war’
Former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández is being held like a “prisoner of war” in a New York federal jail, his lawyer told a judge Tuesday. Attorney Raymond Colon made the assertion as Hernandez pleaded not guilty to charges that he received millions of dollars from 2004 to 2022 to support a drug trade that delivered hundreds of thousands of kilos of drugs to the U.S. Colon said Hernandez has been held in solitary confinement and has not been permitted to communicate with his family or receive access to the jail’s commissary since he was extradited three weeks ago to face charges. He said Hernandez is sometimes allowed to exercise on a basketball court for one hour but isn't given a basketball. The lawyer also complained that he's been mostly blocked from meeting with Hernandez, although his paralegals have been permitted to meet with him. U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel directed the government to look into the issues and report to him within a week. … [Read more...] about Lawyer: Ex-Honduran president held like a ‘prisoner of war’
Brexit LIVE: ‘Simply wrong’ Lord Frost slams Irish premier over ‘personal’ attack
Brexit: UK slammed by Coveney for 'unnecessary tension' with EU Sign up for FREE now and never miss the top politics stories again SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info Taoiseach Micheál Martin accused the British Government of being the "main stumbling block" to resolving the Northern Ireland protocol issue rather than the DUP. Lord Frost hit back on Twitter, saying: "I wouldn't normally want to use Twitter to reply to Micheal Martin, the Taoiseach, but, as he accuses me personally of wrecking the talks last year, I feel I must respond. The suggestion the UK has not set out a 'landing zone' is simply wrong. Our July 2021 Command Paper and the legal text that followed it were a very clear landing zone, explained in significant … [Read more...] about Brexit LIVE: ‘Simply wrong’ Lord Frost slams Irish premier over ‘personal’ attack
Essex protest chaos as Greenpeace BLOCKS 33,000-tonne shipment of Russian diesel in Grays
Essex protest: A shipment of 33,000 tonnes of Russian diesel was blocked from docking (Image: GREENPEACE UK) Sign up for our news briefing, including a daily special Russia-Ukraine edition SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info The Andromeda ship was forced to change course late last night in waters opposite Gravesend and Northfleet after 12 members from Greenpeace stormed a tanker terminal. Some protestors managed to make their way onto Navigator Terminals, where the tanker was set to stop just before midnight. They then climbed onto it and hung up signs around it which read "OIL FUELS WAR". Related articles Ukraine LIVE: Desperate Putin threatens nuclear weapons Putin humiliated as Ukraine downs £130m worth of Russian jets … [Read more...] about Essex protest chaos as Greenpeace BLOCKS 33,000-tonne shipment of Russian diesel in Grays