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Wednesday, March 16, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Russia Increases Attacks On Kyiv

NY Post 3/16/22

ZELENSKYY TO ADDRESS CONGRESS TODAY: Russia increased its bombardment of Ukraine's capital city of Kyiv on Tuesday, with shelling getting closer to the city center. Kyiv's mayor imposed a curfew through Thursday morning, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said four multi-story buildings were hit, killing dozens of people. AP cited a senior U.S. defense official as saying Russian forces were using long-range fire to hit civilian targets in Kyiv with growing frequency, but that ground forces were making little to no progress around the country. Despite the danger, the leaders of Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia visited Kyiv and met with Zelenskyy in a show of support.


A senior aide to Zelenskyy said some 20,000 people were able to leave Mariupol yesterday via a humanitarian corridor, the largest evacuation yet from the besieged southern city where people are struggling to find food, water and medicine. However, Russian troops seized Mariupol's largest hospital, with a regional leader saying they forced some 400 people from nearby homes into the hospital and weren't allowing them to leave, holding them there along with some 100 patients and staff as human shields. The number of refugees fleeing Ukraine passed three million yesterday.
 

President Zelenskyy
Zelenskyy readied to give a virtual speech before the U.S. Congress today. Previewing his speech, he gave thanks for the support that Ukraine has received, but appealed for more weapons and more sanctions against Russia, and repeated his call to, quote, "close the skies," meaning instituting a no-fly zone. Meanwhile, after another round of talks was held with Russia, Zelenskyy said that Moscow's demands were becoming, quote, "more realistic." In what AP said seemed to signal potential grounds for agreement, Zelenskyy told European leaders gathered in London that he realizes NATO doesn't intend to accept Ukraine, stating, "We have heard for many years about the open doors, but we also heard that we can’t enter those doors. This is the truth, and we have simply to accept it as it is." Zelenskyy has repeatedly said he realizes NATO isn’t going to offer membership to Ukraine. More talks about expected today.

In other developments:

Biden Going to Europe to Meet with Leaders: President Biden will be going to Europe next week for face-to-face meetings with European leaders about the invasion, the White House said yesterday. The leaders will meet at a NATO summit in Brussels on March 24th, and Biden will also attend a scheduled European Council summit. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, "While he’s there, his goal is to meet in person face-to-face with his European counterparts and talk about, assess where we are at this point in the conflict[.]"

Fox News Says Two Journalists Killed: Two journalists working for Fox News were killed in Ukraine when the vehicle they were traveling in was hit by fire Monday on the outskirts of Kyiv, the network said yesterday. The two were veteran videographer Pierre Zakrzewski, and Ukrainian journalist Oleksandra Kuvshynova, who was assisting the Fox News crew. Fox reporter Benjamin Hall was injured in the same attack and remains hospitalized. News of his injury was revealed a day earlier.

➤NORTH KOREA REPORTEDLY HAD FAILED MISSILE TEST LAUNCH: South Korea's military says that North Korea had a failed missile test launch this morning, with the missile exploding soon after liftoff. The reported launch is the 10th of its kind this year by the North, and comes amid speculation that it's been readying launch its longest-range missile. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said North Korea fired a ballistic missile, but didn’t say whether it failed, while Japan said a ballistic missile test flight hadn't been confirmed, and it was working with the U.S. and South Korea to further analyze what happened. The U.S. has urged the North to return to nuclear talks, but it has refused, insisting the U.S. must withdraw what it considers hostile policies first.

➤PFIZER ASKS FDA, CDC TO APPROVE FOURTH COVID-19 VACCINE SHOT FOR SENIORS: Pfizer on Tuesday asked the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to authorize a fourth dose of its Covid-19 vaccine -- a second booster -- for seniors over age 65. Pfizer said data from Israel, where seniors were give a fourth shot, showed infections were two times lower and rates of severe illness were four times lower than for those who just got one booster. Currently, a fourth dose in the U.S. is only recommended for immunocompromised people. Authorities say current Covid vaccination continue to offer strong protection against severe illness, but haven't done as well as preventing milder infections, particularly those from the omicron variant.

➤SUSPECT CAUGHT IN SHOOTING OF HOMELESS IN NYC, D.C.: The suspect in the recent shooting of five homeless people in New York City and Washington, D.C., was arrested Tuesday in Washington on charges including murder and assault. Two of the homeless people that were shot died. The 30-year-old suspect, Gerald Brevard, lives in the Washington area, and has a criminal history that includes assaulting a police officer and assault with a deadly weapon. Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee said that Brevard so far hasn't given any indication of a motive, but his family said he has a history of mental illness.

➤PROUD BOYS LEADER ORDERED JAILED UNTIL TRIAL: Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group, was ordered yesterday to remain jailed until his trial on charges that he led a plot to stop Congress’ certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential victory on January 6th, 2021. In making the ruling, the judge cited the danger that prosecutors say Tarrio poss to the community. Tarrio wasn't at the Capitol on January 6th during the attack, but prosecutors say he created the leadership structure, organized the group of men and directed them to the Capitol. Tarrio’s attorney, Nayib Hassan, said other defendants charged in the same alleged conspiracy and who were present at the Capitol during the attack have been allowed pretrial release.

🛢OIL PRICES PLUNGE: After gas prices, which were already high, soared in the past few weeks due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the oil prices driving that spike have suddenly plunged. The price of the U.S. benchmark crude oil fell below $97 a barrel Tuesday (March 15th), down more than $33 from just one week ago, and it's now just a few dollars higher than it was at the start of the invasion. So will prices at the pump now sharply decline too after hitting a record high last week, dropping just as quickly as they rose? Axios notes the national average price of gasoline usually only lags oil prices by a few days.

⏰SENATE OKAYS BILL TO MAKE DST PERMANENT: In an unexpected move, the Senate unanimously approved legislation yesterday to make Daylight Saving Time permanent across the U.S. Senators from both parties spoke in support of the bipartisan Sunshine Protection Act, saying it would be good for public health and the economy and even reduce energy use. Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts, a co-sponsor of the bill, said in a statement, "No more switching clocks, more daylight hours to spend outside after school and after work, and more smiles -- that is what we get with permanent Daylight Saving Time." Close to a dozen states have already standardized Daylight Saving Time. The measure now goes to the House, and if it passes there, would need President Biden's signature to become law.

💕DATING HAS GENDER ‘ROMANCE GAP’ PROBLEM:  It’s 2022, and you might think old-fashioned gender roles have fallen out of favor with people’s dating expectations—but you’d be wrong. A recent UK-based survey commissioned by dating app Bumble, found evidence of what Bumble is calling a “romance gap,” which is gendered views and societal expectations to which daters of different genders still subscribe to. Among 2,000 participants, 52 percent said expectations based on their gender identity influence their dating life, leading them to behave in a way that feels inauthentic, and 51 percent said it makes dating more stressful. Per the survey, females feel pressure to “settle down” before they get “too old,” often compromising their own romantic desires in the interest of marrying a partner before they age out of society’s good graces. Women also reported feeling like they have to downplay their emotions in order to avoid coming off as “clingy” or “desperate,” and also are concerned about being judged for their number of past sexual partners. Women also tended to help men meet their own set of gendered dating behaviors, with 33 percent admitting they alter their behavior on dates to make their male partners feel “more powerful or comfortable.” Meanwhile, 27 percent of men say they feel pressured to conform to the expectation of “taking the lead” in relationships, and men were also more likely than women to worry about feeling judged for having a lack of sexual experience. Bumble points out that none of this is good, writing, “It’s not just women expected to hide their true feelings and adhere to outdated ideas of gender. It’s confusing and debilitating for everyone and stops both partners from making meaningful connections.”

🐶LABRADOR RETRIEVERS STILL MOST POPULAR DOG: The Labrador retriever is still the most popular dog in the U.S., according to the American Kennel Club's annual popularity rankings out yesterday (March 15th). Labs have been Number 1 for an unprecedented 31 straight years. The top 10 are Labs, French bulldogs, golden retrievers, German shepherds, poodles, bulldogs, beagles, Rottweilers, German shorthaired pointers and dachshunds. Poodles were back in the top five, making it into fifth place, for the first time since 1997.
 
🤑HOW YOU THINK ABOUT MONEY AFFECTS WHAT YOU DO WITH IT: Money makes the world go round. University of Georgia researchers found that answering three questions can give you insight into your spending and potentially help you modify your behavior in the future. In the study, researchers found a connection between how participants reported thinking about their finances and their financial behaviors. It also showed that improving financial knowledge, finding motivation to alter spending patterns and reducing anxiety about finances all resulted in increased positive financial behaviors. The scientists say identifying situations when you’re likely to spend more could help predict triggers, and therefore help you avoid them. In addition, figuring out what drives you to spend or save the way you do can provide the motivation to make lasting changes to budgets. The three questions you need to answer are: Can you predict the situations when you will spend more than you mean to?; Do you know what you should do differently to manage your money better?; and do you know what motivates you to spend or save the way you do?

🏀NETS' IRVING SCORES CAREER-HIGH 60 POINTS IN WIN OVER MAGIC: The Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving scored a career-high and franchise record 60 points last night in a 150-108 pounding of the Magic in Orlando, getting 41 of those points in the first half. Irving's 60 points tied the NBA season high, reached just one night earlier by the Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns. Additionally, after Kevin Durant scored 53 points in Sunday's win over the New York Knicks, he and Irving became the first teammates in NBA history to score at least 50 points in back-to-back games.


🏒CAPITALS' OVECHKIN PASSES JAGR INTO THIRD ON CAREER GOALS LIST: The Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin scored his 767th goal last night to move pass hockey great Jaromir Jagr into third place on the NHL's career goals list. He got the goal against the New York Islanders at home, scoring with just under five minutes left in the thid period. The 36-year-old Ovechkin is now behind only career leader Wayne Gretzky's 894 goals and Gordie Howe's 801 goals.

 
🏀INDIANA, TEXAS SOUTHERN WIN FIRST TWO 'FIRST FOUR' MEN'S MARCH MADNESS GAMES: Indiana and Texas Southern won two of the "First Four" play-in games yesterday in the men's NCAA basketball touranment. Indiana defeated Wisconsin 66-58, and Texas Southern downed Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 76-67. The second two "First Four" games are tonight, as are the opening two "First Four" games in the women's NCAA tournament.

🛷SASS WINS IDITAROD FOR FIRST TIME: Brent Sass won the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race for the first time Tuesday morning, crossing the finish line first in Nome, Alaska, after eight days, 14 hours, 38 minutes and 43 seconds. It was the seventh running of the sport's most prestigious race for the 42-year-old Sass, whose previous best finish was third place last year. The nearly 1,000-mile race across Alaska began March 6th.


🏈RAMS' WHITWORTH RETIRES ONE MONTH AFTER SUPER BOWL WIN: L.A. Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth announced his retirement yesterday (March 15th), bringing his 16-season NFL career to a close just one month after the 40-year-old won the Super Bowl for the first time when the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals. The two-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowler played his first 11 seasons with Cincinnati, and then the last five with the Rams.



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