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Friday, April 23, 2021

Wake-Up Call: Global Leaders Pledge To Fight Climate Change

Leaders of countries around the world pledged cooperation in fighting climate change yesterday, the first day of a two-day livestreamed virtual summit hosted by the U.S. Speaking during the virtual summit of 40 world leaders, President Biden said the "science is undeniable" and the world is facing, quote, "a moment of peril" but also "a moment of opportunity." Biden made an ambitious new commitment for the summit, saying the U.S. would cut its fossil fuel emissions by as much as 52 percent by 2030. Other nations also made new climate commitments.


➤FUNERAL HELD FOR DAUNTE WRIGHT, KILLED BY POLICE IN MINNESOTA: An emotional funeral was held yesterday for Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man who was shot and killed by a police officer during an April 11th traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Kim Potter, a 26-year police veteran who is white, was arrested on manslaughter charges after appearing to have mistakenly fired her gun at Wright instead of her Taser as he tried to struggle out of the grasp of police and get away when they tried to arrest him on an outstanding warrant. Hundreds of people attended the service at Shiloh Temple International Ministries that included a eulogy by civil rights leader Reverend Al Sharpton, who said, "The absence of justice is the absence of peace. You can’t tell us to shut up and suffer." The families of several other Black people whose killings made national headlines attended, as did Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. Klobucher delivered remarks, saying, "True justice is not done as long as a chokehold, the knee on the neck or a no-knock warrant is considered legitimate policing."

➤CNN..ARGUMENT THAT LED COLUMBUS TEENAGER TO BE KILLED BY POLICE WAS OVER HOUSEKEEPING: The fight that led to 16-year-old Ma'Khia Bryant being killed by a police officer in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday as she swung a knife at a young woman began over housekeeping, the woman who cared for Bryant in foster care said yesterday. Angela Moore told CNN that two of her former foster children had come to her home Tuesday to celebrate her birthday when the young women and Ma'Khia began arguing over housekeeping. Moore described what she was told happened by one of the the other girls or young women in the house at the time, saying, "It was over keeping the house clean. The older one told them to clean up the house because 'Mom doesn't like the house dirty.' So that's how it all started." When spoken to about the housekeeping, Bryant answered, "You're not the guardian of me." The fight escalated among them, leading to police being called and, ultimately, Bryant being fatally shot by the officer.


➤SUPREME COURT RULING MAKES IT EASIER FOR MINORS TO BE SENTENCED TO LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE: A 6-3 Supreme Court ruling yesterday (April 22nd) makes it easier for minors who've been convicted of murder to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, the now more conservative court reversing a trend for more than a decade of the high court moving towards more leniency for minors convicted of murder. The case, which involved a Mississippi inmate jailed for a murder committed when he was 15, was about whether a minor has to be found to be "permanently incorrigible, making incapable of being rehabilitated, before being sentenced to life without parole. The court's ruling says the minor doesn't have to be. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who dissented with the court's other two liberal justices, wrote in a dissent that the decision, quote, "guts" prior cases granting more leniency to minors.

➤SENATE PASSES BILL TO FIGHT HATE CRIMES AGAINST ASIAN-AMERICANS: The Senate passed legislation yesterday to help fight the increase in hate crimes against Asian-Americans. There was a near-unanimous 94-1 vote in favor of the measure, which would expedite the review of hate crimes at the Justice Department and provide support for local law enforcement in response to thousands of reported violent incidents in the past year. The House is expected to consider similar legislation in the coming weeks.

➤SENATOR TIM SCOTT TO GIVE GOP RESPONSE TO BIDEN'S ADDRESS: Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina will deliver the Republicans' response to President Biden’s joint address to Congress next Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced yesterday. Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, is considered a potential 2024 GOP presidential candidate. Biden's address will be much like a State of the Union address, which presidents don't give until their second year in office. He's delivering it about two months later than new presidents usually do.

Prince Louis
➤PRINCE WILLIAM AND KATE RELEASE PHOTO OF SON LOUIS AHEAD OF BIRTHDAY: Prince William and Kate Middleton released a photo of Prince Louis, the youngest of their three children, yesterday ahead of his third birthday today. In it, the smiling boy is sitting on a red bike. The caption reads, "Three tomorrow! Taken earlier this week by The Duchess before he left for his first day of nursery, The Duke and Duchess are pleased to share a new image of Prince Louis."
 
➤FLORIDA SCHOOLS MAY SOON REQUIRE MOMENT OF SILENCE: Public schools in Florida may soon have a required moment of silence at the start of each day if Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signs legislation that was passed yesterday by the state Senate after having been approved by state House in a vote last month. Teachers would be directed to encourage parents to talk with their children about the moment of silence and, quote, "make suggestions as to the best use of the time." But teachers would not be allowed to make suggestions to students, quote, "as to the nature of any reflection that a student may engage in during the moment of silence." Opponents charge that mandating a moment of silence blurs the line between church and state.
 

➤ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION INCREASED DURING THE PANDEMIC: A new study from Boston College confirms that the coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on Americans’ mental health. According to researchers, reports of anxiety increased to 50 percent and depression to 44 percent by November 2020. These rates are six times higher than they were in 2019. The impact was most severe with adults aged 18-29 with rates of anxiety and depression up 65 percent and 61 percent, respectively.


➤TACO BELL ANNOUNCES NEW PLANT-BASED PROTEIN:  Taco Bell  has announced its new Craveatarian Taco, which features a vegan, plant-based protein made from a blend of peas and chickpeas. The new offering is similar to the Crunch Taco Supreme and includes shredded cheddar cheese, crisp lettuce, diced tomatoes and reduced fat sour cream in a crunchy corn shell. However, this option is ten calories lighter than the one including beef. The Craveatarian Taco is currently only being tested at a single location in Tustin, California and will be gone after April 29.



🏀NBA DRAFT PROSPECT TERRENCE CLARKE, FORMER KENTUCKY GUARD, KILLED IN CAR ACCIDENT: NBA draft prospect Terrence Clarke, who was a freshman guard for Kentucky this past season, was killed in a Los Angeles car accident yesterday at age 19. 

ESPN cited an LAPD sergeant who works in the Valley Traffic Division as saying Clarke was alone in a vehicle that ran a red light "at a very high rate of speed" yesterday afternoon, and that surveillance video showed he collided with another vehicle readying to turn left, and then hit a street light pole and a wall. The other driver wasn't injured. Clarke entered the draft last month, and had signed with Klutch Sports Group agency last week. Kentucky head coach John Calipari said that he was, quote, "absolutely gutted and sick tonight" at the news.

🏀LAKERS GET DAVIS BACK, DALLAS LOSES PORZINGIS: L.A. Lakers star Anthony Davis was back last night (April 22nd) after having missed 30 games with right calf and heel problems. But he was rusty, scoring just four points while limited to 17 minutes in the first half only as the Lakers lost to the Dallas Mavericks 115-110. Meanwhile, Dallas' Kristaps Porzingis left in the third quarter and didn’t return after spraining his left ankle. The team hasn't said yet how long he'll be out.

🏀HAWKS' TRAE YOUNG HAS ANKLE SPRAIN: Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young, who was injured Wednesday in the Hawks' 137-127 overtime loss to the Net York Knicks, has a Grade 2 lateral ankle sprain, ESPN cited a source as saying. Young suffered the injury when he turned an ankle while landing after making a shot near the end of the third quarter and left the game. Expected to return once swelling and discomfort are gone.


🏈BRADY SLAMS NFL'S NEW UNIFORM NUMBERS RULE: Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is slamming a new NFL rule adopted this week that allows more flexibility in the numbers worn on players' uniforms. Brady vented on Instagram yesterday, saying it will make it more difficult to identify players' positions. He wrote, "Good luck trying to block the right people now! Going to make for a lot of bad football!" He then posted a screenshot of a story about the rule and directing to the NFL and the players' union wrote, "DUMB" and "Why not let the Lineman wear whatever they want too? Why have numbers? Just have colored jerseys...why not wear the same number?"

🥊REPORT: MAYWEATHER TO FIGHT LOGAN PAUL IN EXHIBITION: Hall of Fame boxer Floyd Mayweather will have an exhibition fight with YouTube personality Logan Paul that's tentatively scheduled for June 5th, The Athletic reported. They were first supposed to fight on February 20th in a bout streamed on the online streaming platform Fanmio, but the fight was postponed. The new fight is set to stream on Showtime pay per view, according to the report. No location for the fight has been released.
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