Protests, Bathrooms, Bomb Cyclones, & An Air Leak In Space
November 20, 2024
Hello, readers – happy Wednesday! Today, we’ll be talking about Matt Gaetz (he just won’t stop providing news!), rallies in New Zealand, Russia (again), Hong Kong’s sentencings, Nancy Mace’s bathroom bill, weather patterns, and an air leak in space.
Here’s some good news: Danish lawmakers have agreed to plant 1 billion trees and convert 10% of farmland into forest and natural habitats over the next two decades. Also, less than a month after the largest dam removal project in U.S. history along more than 400 miles of the Klamath River, salmon are returning to spawn.
“Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science.” – Edwin Powell Hubble
Teaming Up For The Treaty
Tens of thousands of New Zealanders gathered to protest in front of their country’s Parliament yesterday, rallying against a bill that would shrink the rights of the indigenous Māori people. Local cops estimate that a total of 42,000 people gathered at the protests, which were preceded by a nine-day march to the Parliament building in Wellington.
The libertarian ACT New Zealand party (which is part of the country’s ruling center-right coalition government) has been pushing for the Treaty Principles Bill, which would shrink the powers of the Treaty of Waitangi. That treaty, signed by 500 Māori leaders and the British government in 1840, has guided New Zealand’s relationship with the Māori people for much of the country’s existence.
Under the treaty, New Zealand has expanded support programs for the Māori, who make up 20% of the country’s population but experience disproportionate levels of incarceration and poor health outcomes. The ACT party claims that those support programs are discriminatory against non-Māori people, but it appears their coalition partners disagree – the two other conservative parties who supported the legislation through its first stage have already said they wouldn’t support it any longer, meaning it’s likely to die before even being voted on by Parliament.
Gaetz-Gate Continues
According to the New York Times, a hacker has apparently gained access to a computer file containing some damning information about former House Republican Matt Gaetz, Trump’s pick for Attorney General, including sworn testimony from one woman who allegedly had sex with Gaetz in 2017, when she was 17. The testimony was used by both a Justice Department investigation into Gaetz’s conduct and a report by the House Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee is set to meet later today to decide whether or not to vote on publicly releasing the contents of its report – Gaetz resigning from his House seat last Wednesday threw off the whole plan.
The documents also include testimony from multiple people close to Gaetz who’ve attended parties hosted by the former Congressman where people (allegedly) engaged in open sex and drug use. The hacker hasn’t actually made any of the information public, but knowledge of the leak might inspire the House Ethics Committee to publish its report on Gaetz.
Meanwhile, Trump has named Dr. Oz – yes, the one from the TV – as his pick to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Linda McMahon (yes, that McMahon) to head up the Department of Education (which he plans to dismantle).
Russia’s Retaliatory Resolution
- Tensions over U.S.-made ballistic missiles being used in the Russia-Ukraine conflict continue to rise. Yesterday, the Kremlin claimed it shot down an American ATACMS missile launched at targets in Russia’s western Bryansk region. Soon after the incident, Moscow updated its nuclear doctrine, authorizing the use of nuclear weapons in response to any future ballistic missile attacks by foreign nations.
- U.S. State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said he was “unfortunately not surprised” by Russia’s move, but dismissed it by promising that the U.S. doesn’t pose a threat to Russia. Despite American missiles quite literally being aimed at Russian targets. “Since the beginning of its war of aggression against Ukraine, [Russia] has sought to coerce and intimidate both Ukraine and other countries around the world through irresponsible nuclear rhetoric and behavior,” he said.
Democracy Dies On This Island
- Yesterday, 45 activists and lawmakers in Hong Kong were handed 4- to 10-year prison sentences for participating in an unofficial primary election. The activists were prosecuted under a Beijing-imposed national security law that outlaws the crimes of secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign organizations.
- Prosecutors claim they were trying to stage a coup against Hong Kong’s government by hosting illicit primary elections – after participating in those elections, prosecutors said, their goal was to win a legislative majority with the intent of blocking city budgets and other critical measures. “The defendants were aggressively prosecuted and jailed for peacefully participating in normal political activity protected under Hong Kong’s Basic Law,” said the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong.
More Mixed Nuts
- Furious row at UN as Russia blocks Sudan ceasefire move (BBC)
- Germany suspects sabotage over severed undersea cables in Baltic (BBC)
- Brazilian police arrest 5 officers over alleged coup plot and plans to kill President Lula, others (AP)
Middle East Mixed Nuts
- US sanctions group that builds illegal West Bank settlements, with close ties to Israeli government (AP)
- U.S. envoy says there is “real opportunity” to end fighting between Israel, Hezbollah (CBS)
- Middle East latest: Israel strikes in the heart of Lebanon’s capital (AP)
- Theft of aid trucks sends prices soaring in central Gaza (NBC)
- Norway to ask ICJ for advisory opinion condemning Israel’s stance on Unrwa (Guardian)
How NOT To Welcome Your New Colleague
- During this year’s elections, Delaware elected the first openly transgender member of Congress with Rep. Sarah McBride. Just as she knocked down barriers, Republican Rep. Nancy Mace decided to erect some more, introducing a resolution to prohibit any lawmakers and House employees from “using single-sex facilities other than those corresponding to their biological sex.”
- When asked yesterday if her goal was to target McBride specifically, Mace said, “Yes and absolutely, and then some.” In a post on X on Monday night, McBride said, “Every day Americans go to work with people who have life journeys different than their own and engage with them respectfully, I hope members of Congress can muster that same kindness.”
Cyclones In The West And Droughts In The East?
- We’ve got both ends of the weather spectrum going on this week. A powerful atmospheric river, in this case referred to as a “bomb cyclone” for a little added drama, is set to hit the Pacific Northwest and Northern California this week. Up to 15 inches of rain, heavy snow, and wind gusts of 60 to 70 mph are all anticipated.
- On the other end of the spectrum (and the country), New York City Mayor Eric Adams issued a drought warning – the first in over two decades. City dwellers have been asked to limit water use in park fountains and golf courses, fix plumbing leaks, and hold back on lawn watering.
More Nuts In America
- Prosecutors ask to delay Donald Trump hush money sentencing, but oppose case dismissal (USA Today)
- Texas proposal would give schools the option to use Bible teachings in lessons (AP)
- The industries that could be hardest hit by Trump’s immigration crackdown (Axios)
- Federal bribery investigation is another blow for Mississippi’s embattled capital (NBC)
- Pennsylvania’s high court orders counties not to count disputed ballots in US Senate race (AP)
What Sound Does An Air Leak Make? H-ISS.
- The ISS has an air leak problem. But don’t worry, it’s been going on for five years and nothing bad has happened, so everything should be fine… right? The leaks are in an area of the station known as the PrK, a transfer tunnel connected to the space station’s Russian Zvezda service module.
- Unsurprisingly, there are some tensions about how to fix the problem. Between who? Between the American and Russian space agencies, of course! “The Russians believe that continued operations are safe, but they can’t prove to our satisfaction that they are,” said NASA’s International Space Station Advisory Committee last week. “And the US believes that it’s not safe, but we can’t prove that to the Russian satisfaction that that’s the case.”
- Closing the PrK would mean shutting down one of Russia’s four docking ports on the ISS, so Russian cosmonauts have tried to patch up the leaks as much as possible to keep the aging tunnel from shutting down. Hopefully they’ve got a lot of duct tape up there!
More Loose Nuts
- Riders suspended in mid-air for hours after California attraction halts mid-ride (Guardian)
- SpaceX to launch Super Heavy-Starship today in 6th test flight. Here’s what to know. (CBS)
- Jennifer Lawrence and Malala Yousafzai shed light on Afghan women’s fight for freedom in new film (CBS)
- Rare silver coin struck before the American Revolution sets auction record (CNN)
- Italian village offers $1 homes to Americans upset by the US election result (CNN)
