Wednesday, March 9, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Ukraine Safe Corridor Evac Fails

NY Post 3/9/22

Repeated efforts in Ukraine to establish safe corridors to allow civilians to escape cities being shelled and allow humanitarian aid in have failed, with Ukrainian officials accusing Russian forces of firing on them, while they charge it's the Ukrainians that are blocking evaucation efforts. Another safe corridor effort failed Tuesday, in the beleagured port city of Mariuipol, where an attempt to evacuate civilians and bring in food, water and medicine fell apart as Ukrainian officials said Russian forces fired on the convoy before it reached the city. 


The situation in Mariupol, which has been surrounded by Russian soldiers for days, is dire, with no electricity, water, heat, working sewage systems, or phone service. Authorities there are planning to dig mass graves for all the dead.

 
There was one apparent successful safe corridor evacuation yesterday, with Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk saying 5,000 civilians, including 1,700 foreign students, had been able to leave the city of Sumy. But Russia continued its attacks elsewhere, including bombing residential areas around Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, increasing shelling in the suburbs around the capital city of Kyiv, and bombing the city of Zhytomyr, west of the capital.

People continued to stream out of Ukraine to escape the war, with U.N. officials saying yesterday that two million people have now fled the country in the two weeks since Russia invaded, half of them children.

Daily Mail graphic 3/9/22

 
In other developments:

Poland Says Will Give Fighter Jets to U.S., Which Says No: Poland unexpectedly announced yesterday that it would give the U.S. its 28 MiG-29 fighter jets for use by Ukraine, delivering them to America's Ramstein Air Base in Germany. But the U.S., which reportedly wasn't consulted by Poland beforehand and was blindsided by the announcement, rejected the move, with Pentagon spokesman John Kirby saying, "we do not believe Poland's proposal is a tenable one." He said it would raise the risk of the war expanding beyond Ukraine by having warplanes leaving from a U.S. and NATO base to fly into airspace contested with Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

Zelenskyy Speaks to U.K.'s Parliament Via Video: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to the U.K.'s Parliament via video from Ukraine yesterday, the first time a foreign leader was allowed to address the House of Commons. Zelenskyy thanked Britain for its support, which has included humanitarian aid and defensive weapons, and urged more sanctions on Russia and to help keeping the skies above Ukraine safe. Although he's repeatedly asked NATO leaders to enforce a no-fly zone over Ukraine, they have resisted because it could lead to a direct military confrontation with Russia. Zelenskky also used language that evoked Winston Churchill and his rallying of Britain during World War Two with his "never surrender" speech, saying, "We will fight till the end at sea, in the air. We will continue fighting for our land, whatever the cost. We will fight in the forests, in the fields, on the shores, in the streets" and even on the banks of rivers.

 ➤BIDEN BANS IMPORTS OF RUSSIAN OIL: President Biden announced a ban on Russian oil imports into the U.S. yesterday, a major trade action that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had repeatedly asked for and that a growing number of lawmakers from both sides of the aisle favored. Russia's oil imports had been a major omission from the huge sanctions that the U.S. and its allies have imposed on Russia since it invaded Ukraine two weeks ago. Although oil from Russia makes up only a small part of U.S. imports, Biden had been reluctant to ban it because it would push already high gas prices even higher. He acknowledged that result in his remarks yesterday, saying, "Defending freedom is going to cost," but stating, "I’m going to do everything I can to minimize Putin’s price hike here at home." 


Gas prices have already been rising for weeks because of the war in Ukraine, and when saying that was understandable, Biden also warned U.S. energy companies against, quote, "excessive price increases" and exploiting consumers.



➤MCDONALDS, STARBUCKS, COCA-COLA, PEPSI, GE SUSPEND OPERATIONS IN RUSSIA: Five large U.S. global brands, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and General Electric, announced yesterday (March 8th) that they were temporarily suspending their business in Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. McDonald's said it would temporarily close 850 stores in Russia, but would continue to pay its 62,000 employees there. Starbucks will also continue to pay its Russian employees, some 2,000 people, while temporarily closing its 130 stores. Coca-Cola Co. announced it was suspending its business in Russia, but gave few details, while PepsiCo and General Electric announced partial shutdowns of their Russian business. PepsiCo will suspend sales of beverages in Russia, but continue to produce milk, baby formula and baby food. GE said two exceptions to its suspension of operations in Russia will be essential medical equipment and support for existing power services.

➤VENEZUELA FREES TWO U.S. PRISONERS: President Biden announced last night that two Americans who'd been held in Venezuela had been released, with Gustavo Cardenas and Jorge Fernandez freed days after a U.S. delegation visited the country. Biden said in a statement, "Two Americans who were wrongfully detained in Venezuela will be able to hug their families once more." Cardenas has been held since November 2017, one of six Citgo Petroleum executives arrested on claims of embezzlement. The other five are still being held. Fernandez was arrested last year, with Politico saying he's been described as a Cuban-American tourist who was carrying "a small domestic drone" when he arrived in Venezuela. The U.S. has been at odds with Venezeula's leftist government for years, but there have been recent indications that the administration might be looking to the country as an alternative to replace oil from Russia, imports of which Biden banned last night following the invasion of Ukraine two weeks ago.

➤CONVICTION ON ALL COUNTS IN FIRST U.S. CAPITOL ATTACK TRIAL: A 49-year-old Texas man who's a member of a far-right militia was convicted on all counts yesterday in the first trial related to the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Guy Wesley Reffitt was convicted of storming the Capitol with a holstered handgun, as well as obstructing Congress' certifying of Joe Biden's election victory, interfering with police officers who were guarding the Capitol, and threatening his two teenage children if they reported him to law enforcement after the attack. Reffitt will be sentenced in June. AP said the verdict could give Justice Department prosecutors more leverage in plea negotiations for other January 6th cases, and discourage other defendants from gambling on going to trial.

➤PROUD BOYS LEADER ARRESTED FOR CONSPIRACY RELATED TO U.S. CAPITOL ATTACK: Henry "Enrique" Tarrio, a leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group, was arrested yesterday on a conspiracy charge for his alleged role in the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Tarrio wasn't actually there on January 6th, having been arrested two days earlier on charges of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic Black church in Washington, D.C., during a protest a month earlier, and he was ordered to stay out of Washington. The indictment claims, however, that Tarrio didn't leave town, and instead met with the leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia, Elmer "Stewart" Rhodes, and others in an underground parking garage leading up to the riot and and at least one participant "referenced the Capitol." The indictment also says, among other claims, that an unnamed person sent Tarrio a document titled "1776 Returns" on December 30, 2020, that laid out plans for occupying a few, quote, "crucial buildings" in Washington on January 6th, including House and Senate office buildings around the Capitol.

👼STUDY: HOW GENES FROM MOM AND DAD SHAPE CHILD BEHAVIOR:  The genes you get from your parents influence you in ways you might not realize. University of Utah researchers found each parent has their own impact on hormones and other chemical messengers that control mood and behavior in their offspring. Looking at mice, researchers found that mother and father genes interact to impact behavior in offspring, and that each parent’s genes affected sons and daughters differently. In terms of evolution, this form of genetic regulation could reflect different parental priorities, as sons and daughters need to partake in different sorts of behaviors as adults in terms of reproduction. Principal investigator Dr. Christopher Gregg adds, “I dream of this new field of genetics, where we systematically uncover the parental gene copies that control specific decisions and actions in particular contexts.” 

⚾POLL..BASEBALL FANS LOSING INTEREST IN SEASON: MLB and the players' union were negotiating into the early morning hours today as they try to reach an agreement that would end the lockout and avoid more regular season games being canceled. But a new poll suggests damage is already being done with baseball fans. In the Los Angeles Times/SurveyMonkey poll, 60 percent already said they weren't baseball fans, and of those that said they were fans, 60 percent said the lockout has caused them to lose interest in the baseball season this year. No matter when an agreement is reached, one-third of fans said in the poll that they'd buy fewer tickets, watch fewer games on TV, and buy less merchandise than they otherwise would have. About half of fans blame owners and players equally for the lockout, 31 percent blame owners the most and 12 percent blame players the most. The L.A. Times noted that after the 1994-95 players strike that led to the cancellation of the 1994 World Series and delayed the start of the 1995 season, average per-game attendance didn't recover for a decade, until 2006, a recovery was driven by the "steroids era."

⚾BASEBALL NEGOTIATIONS BREAK AFTER 16 1/2 HOURS, TO RESUME WEDNESDAY: Negotiations between MLB and the locked-out players broke shortly after 3 a.m. this morning after a marathon 16 1/2 hours, and will resume Wednesday morning. Although there had reportedly been a deadline of last night to reach a deal before more regular-season games would be canceled, MLB said no additional games had been erased.
 

🏈RODGERS STAYING WITH PACKERS NEXT SEASON: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers will remain with the Green Bay Packers next year for an 18th season. The reigning MVP tweeted confirmation of media reports yesterday afternoon, writing, "YES, I will be playing with the Packers next year. However, reports about me signing a contract are inaccurate, as are the supposed terms[.]" NFL Network reported that the 38-year-old had agreed to a four-year, $200 million contract, however Rodgers tweet suggests that's not correct. The four-time MVP has spent his entire career with the Packers.

🏈SEAHAWKS TRADE RUSSELL WILSON TO BRONCOS: The Seattle Seahawks have agreed to trade quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos, according to media reports Tuesday. In return, Denver is sending quarterback Drew Lock, tight end Noah Fant, defensive lineman Shelby Harris, two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and fourth- and fifth-round picks as well, according to ESPN. Wilson agreed to waive his no-trade provision. The quarterback was with the Seahawks for 10 seasons, leading them to their only Super Bowl title in February 2014.
 

➤RUSSIAN STATE TV RELEASES PHOTO OF GRINER: Russian state TV released a photo yesterday of detained WNBA star Brittney Griner in custody after her February arrest. The photo shows the 31-year-old holding a piece of paper with her name on it. Griner, was who playing pro basketball in the off-season in Russia, was detained at the airport after Russian officials said they found cannabis oil in her luggage. The WNBA said in a statement, "Brittney Griner has the WNBA’s full support and our main priority is her swift and safe return to the United States."

🏒OVECHKIN TIES FOR THIRD ON NHL CAREER GOALS LIST: Washington's Alex Ovechkin scored twice in the Capitals' 5-4 over the Calgary Flames last night, moving the 36-year-old into a tie for third on the NHL career goals list with Jaromir Jagr with 766. Wayne Gretzky is the career leader with 894 goals, and Gordie Howe is second with 801.



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