Elections, A Sinking Island, The WNBA, & Space Exploration
June 3, 2024
Hello, readers – happy Monday! Today, we’ll be talking about a ceasefire deal, the aftermath of Trump’s hush money trial, women becoming presidents, a sinking island, Atlanta’s water problem, the WNBA, and space exploration.
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“A day without laughter is a day wasted.” – Charlie Chaplin
A Trying Time In Tel Aviv
On Friday, U.S. President Joe Biden publicly announced that Israel had agreed to a three-part plan to trade Hamas’ remaining Israeli hostages for a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the deal a “nonstarter” and said that “Israel’s conditions for ending the war have not changed.” However, on Sunday, Ophir Falk, Netanyahu’s chief foreign policy adviser, told Britain’s Sunday Times that the statement was not an outright rejection of the deal – instead, he described it as “a deal we agreed to — it’s not a good deal, but we dearly want the hostages released, all of them.”
While Israel was giving the international community whiplash from its conflicting responses, its closest ally attempted to put a stop to all the flip-flopping. Biden described Hamas as “no longer capable” of conducting a large-scale attack on Israel like the October 7 assault, adding that “indefinite war in pursuit of an unidentified notion of total victory will only bog down Israel in Gaza.”
Want To Know More?
- The Israeli army says it investigates itself. Where do those investigations stand? (AP)
- Chile joins developing nations rallying behind genocide case against Israel at international court (AP)
- Netanyahu accepts Congress invitation despite blowback (Politico)
- Maldives will ban Israelis from entering the country over the war in Gaza (AP)
A Favorable View Of A Felon
According to a recent poll, 50% of Americans think that last week’s 34-count guilty verdict in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial was correct. The data also shows that about 49% of Americans think he should end his campaign due to the jury’s decision. Interestingly, though, the polls show that the percentage of U.S. voters with a favorable view of Trump has remained stable despite becoming a convicted felon, with about 31% viewing him favorably. President Biden’s favorability rates are similarly low, with just 32% viewing the incumbent leader favorably.
Meanwhile, Trump made some interesting-slash-threatening comments about the case over the weekend. In an interview with “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Sunday, he suggested that there might be a “breaking point” for Americans if he’s sentenced to house arrest or imprisonment for the 34 counts of falsifying business records. His supporters have already leveled death threats against presiding Judge Juan Merchan and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
“I don’t know that the public would stand it,” Trump said. “You know, I don’t — I’m not sure the public would stand for it. I think it would be tough for the public to take. You know, at a certain point, there’s a breaking point.” We’re sure he would say a bit more about the case if he could, but Merchan has slapped Trump with a gag order and has threatened imprisonment after Trump broke the order multiple times.
The Future Is Now, But Not In A Good Way
- You know those images projecting the effects of sea level rise on coastal cities like Miami or New York City? It looks like we won’t be needing them anymore. Global warming-induced sea level rise has begun impacting Central America, with the entire population of one island off the coast of Panama forced to relocate due to rising waters. Over 300 families belonging to the indigenous Guna people are leaving their home island of Gardi Sugdub as their island lifestyle becomes increasingly untenable.
- Gardi Sugdub is crowded with homes and surrounded by docks, and was a popular tourist destination – locals made much of their money by selling their traditional colorful textiles to visitors. Now, families from the island will have to adapt their lives to the Panamanian mainland, where the government has constructed a $12 million concrete compound to house the climate refugees.
Equality Is Finally On The Ballot
- On its surface, 2024 might look like the year of the election, with dozens of countries across the globe asking their citizens to cast ballots this year. But 2024 has also become the year of the woman president thanks to those elections – over the weekend, voters in both Mexico and Iceland cast their ballots for a field of candidates led by women, with both countries expected to select a woman as their next president once votes are counted.
- In Iceland, businesswoman Halla Tomasdottir was elected president with 34.3% of the vote, ahead of two other female candidates – former Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir and Halla Hrund Logadottir. In Mexico, the two top candidates were women as well. Claudia Sheinbaum represented the incumbent leftist Morena party, while Xochitl Gálvez was the main opposition candidate, representing the conservative PAN party. While the ballots haven’t been counted as of writing, the winner will likely become the first female president in Mexico’s history, unless the third-place centrist candidate, Jorge Álvarez Máynez, steals the win.
More Mixed Nuts
- North Korea sends 700 more trash balloons into South Korea (CNN)
- Rescue worker dies amid flooding in southern Germany (Guardian)
- Delhi’s record 52.9C temperature reading was wrong by three degrees, India says (Reuters)
- US dampens criticism of El Salvador’s president as migration overtakes democracy concerns (AP)
- Focus turns to coalition talks as South Africa awaits final election results (Guardian)
- Iran’s ex-President Ahmadinejad to run again for leader, state TV says (CNN)
A Big Water Problem In The Big A
- Atlanta’s had a bit of a water problem this weekend. It all started on Friday evening, when a water main break caused water to flood into the street where three large water mains intersect downtown, causing problems at two hospitals, a city jail, a county jail, and local shelters. A separate break occurred later in Midtown, adding to the problem.
- On Saturday evening, Mayor Andre Dickens declared a state of emergency. By Sunday morning service to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was fully restored, along with the Fulton County Jail and “many of Atlanta’s critical facilities, and residents, including several senior high-rise buildings.” As of last night, a boil water advisory was still in effect for much of the city.
A Harsh Welcome To The League
- Thanks to players like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, the WNBA is seeing unprecedented interest. Those two were the subject of multiple headlines over the weekend, but not necessarily for their athletic abilities. Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter knocked Clark to the floor during the third quarter of Saturday’s 71-70 win by the Indiana Fever. On Sunday, the WNBA upgraded Carter’s foul to a flagrant-1 violation after reviewing the play.
- Clark didn’t seem too bothered by the altercation, but Carter refused to answer questions about Clark or the play after the game. While Carter was reluctantly in front of the cameras, the league fined Sky forward Angel Reese $1,000 for failing to make herself available to media after Saturday’s game and also fined Chicago $5,000 for failing to ensure that all players comply with league media policies.
More Nuts In America
- Mass shooting in Akron, Ohio, leaves 1 dead, at least 26 injured (USA Today)
- California firefighters battle wind-driven wildfire east of San Francisco (NPR)
- No diploma: Colleges withhold degrees from students after pro-Palestinian protests (USA Today)
- Teacher who held mock slave auction and used racial slur placed on leave, superintendent says (NBC)
- Parade for Israel in NYC focuses on solidarity as Gaza war casts a grim shadow (ABC)
- Jersey Shore police say ‘aggressive’ crowds, not lack of police, caused Memorial weekend problems (AP)
A False Start And A Soft Landing
- On Saturday, Boeing attempted to send off its Starliner spacecraft on its maiden voyage. Unfortunately, it ended just about as well as the rest of Boeing’s year – not well. Everything looked good until there were 3 minutes and 50 seconds left on the countdown timer and a computer error canceled the launch process. In the Starliner’s launch process, there are three autonomous computers that must all confirm that the rocket is good to go. During Saturday’s launch, one of the computers was late to give the green light, canceling the entire event.
- To add insult to injury, just one day after Boeing’s aborted launch, the China National Space Administration successfully landed its Chang’e 6 spacecraft on the far side of the moon. The lander will collect about 2 kilograms of soil and rock samples from the moon before sending them up to a spacecraft in lunar orbit – that container will then fly back to Earth, and is expected to land in China’s Inner Mongolia region by late June.
More Loose Nuts
- World War II-era planes drop parachutists over Normandy, heralding a week of commemorations for 80th D-Day anniversary (ABC)
- 100 years ago, US citizenship for Native Americans came without voting rights in swing states (AP)
- Oregon officials close entire coast to mussel harvesting due to shellfish poisoning (ABC)
- Ancient Egyptian medicine may have included cancer surgery, skull analysis reveals (CNN)
- Ryan Reynolds has declared ‘War of the Popcorn Buckets.’ He’s honestly onto something (CNN)
