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Thursday, April 28, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Russia Turns Off Gas to Poland, Bulgaria


Russia yesterday cut off natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria, and warned it could do the same to other Western nations, as European leaders called the tactic "blackmail" and an attempt divide the West over their support for Ukraine. Russia has said it cut off the shipments because the two NATO and European Union nations refused to pay in rubles, which Moscow demanded, and has threatened the same if other countries also don't pay in Russia's currency. However, Poland has also been a major gateway for weapons being sent to Ukraine, and its prime minister said he believes their support for Ukraine was the real reason for Russia's actions. Bulgaria has also supported punitive measures against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. Both countries have taken steps to reduce their dependence on energy supplies from Russia, and other EU nations that could be affected if Moscow ends their energy supplies, including Germany and Italy, have been doing the same.


Meanwhile, fighting continued in eastern Ukraine, with Western officials saying Russia has made slow progress with "minor gains." Russia claimed that it had hit a batch of weapons that the U.S. and European nations had delivered to Ukraine with missiles. The United Nations said it was mobilizing a team to coordinate with the International Committee of the Red Cross on the evacuation of civilians from the sprawling steel plant in the city of Mariupol. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in principle to the U.N. and Red Cross participating in the evacuation during a meeting Tuesday. An estimated 1,000 civilians and 2,000 Ukrainiani troops are holed up in bunkers under the steel plant, the last pocket of resistance in the devasted city of Mariupol. The plant itself has also been almost completely destroyed by Russian attacks.
 

➤RUSSIA RELEASES U.S. VETERAN IN SURPRISE PRISONER EXCHANGE: Russia released U.S. Marine veteran Trevor Reed yesterday in an unexpected prisoner exchange for a convicted drug trafficker who was serving a long prison sentence in the U.S. The surprise prisoner swap came during a time of high tension between the U.S. and Russia over the war in Ukraine. The 30-year-old Reed had been imprisoned in Russia for nearly three years, after being arrested in 2019 when authorities said he assaulted an officer after a night of heavy drinking. He was sentenced to nine years in prison. Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, who was arrested in Liberia in 2010 and extradited to the U.S., was serving a 20-year federal sentence for conspiring to smuggle cocaine into the U.S. The two prisoners were exchanged in Turkey, according to Reed's father.


➤BIDEN GOING TO SOUTH KOREA, JAPAN NEXT MONTH: President Biden will be going to South Korea and Japan next month to consult with allies on growing threats from China and North Korea, in his first trip to Asia since taking office, the White House announced yesterday. While in Japan during the May 20th to 24th trip, Biden will also meet with the other members of the so-called "Quad," Australia, Japan and India, as they work on stronger partnerships to contain China in the region.

➤FOUR KILLED IN MISSISSIPPI SHOOTING SPREE, SUSPECT FOUND DEAD AFTER STANDOFF: Four people were killed in a shooting spree in Mississippi yesterday in which the 32-year-old suspect was also found dead by a SWAT team after a standoff. Police say suspect Jeremy Reynolds shot and killed three people at a hotel in Biloxi around 9 a.m. yesterday morning, the owner and two employees, before driving to nearby Gulfport, where he carjacked and fatally shot a man. When officers found him, Reynolds barricaded himself inside a convenience store and there was a standoff with police, who later found him dead of unknown causes when they finally went inside. No shots had been fired by either police or Reynolds. No motive has been identified for the hotel shootings, with Biloxi police saying it's not clear if Reynolds had been staying there or knew the victims.


➤58 PERCENT OPEN TO INDEPENDENRT PREZ CANDIDATE IF BIDEN-TRUMP AGAIN: It's long been believed that it would be extremely difficult under our political system for an independent to win a presidential election. But a new survey finds that might not be the case if 2024 turns into a repeat of the 2020 election with President Biden fighting for reelection against former President Donald Trump. The Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll survey released to The Hill earlier this week found that 58 percent of voters said they'd be open to supporting a moderate, independent candidate if Biden were the Democratic presidential nominee and Trump was the Republican nominee. The survey also found a majority don't want either candidate to run again, with 63 percent saying they don't want Biden to run for a second term and 55 percent not wanting Trump to run again. But despite that, Biden and Trump are the top 2024 picks within their own party bases.

➤SPACEX LAUNCHES FOUR ASTRONAUTS HEADED TO SPACE STATION: SpaceX launched four astronauts early yesterday (April 27th) from the Kennedy Space Center to the International Space Station, less than two days after a flight paid for by three millionaires. The crew that arrived at the station last night after a 16-hour flight was the first NASA crew made up equally of men and woman, and included Jessica Watkins, the first Black woman making a long-term stay. In a week, the three Americans and a German they're replacing will return to Earth in their own SpaceX capsule. There are also three Russian cosmonauts at the space station. Elon Musk's SpaceX has now launched five crews for NASA and two private trips in just under two years.

➤CNN+ SHUTTING DOWN TWO DAYS EARLY: In the wake of last week's news that CNN's streaming service CNN+ would be shut down less than a month after it's launch, news came yesterday  that added just a little bit more insult to injury, when it was disclosed it would end two days earlier than planned. It was originally supposed to shut down on April 30th, but The Verge reported it's actually going away today, on the 28th. That was found out from an email to subscribers that said they'd be refunded the full amount of their subscription, and that after Thursday -- which is today -- CNN+ would no longer available. The streaming service that CNN spent some $300 million to develop launched on March 29th.
➤OVER HALF OF AMERICANS PLAN ON TAKING ‘BLEISURE’ WORK TRIPS POST-PANDEMIC: Many Americans do more than work when they travel for work. A poll of 2,000 US adults, commissioned by Visit Anaheim, asked about how respondents combine business with leisure. Sixty-five percent of respondents said they've taken a “bleisure” tripe before, where they either arrived at their destination early for leisure or extended their stay after finishing work, and 57 percent admitted to specifically looking to take work trips in places they know their loved ones would enjoy traveling to. Leisure on a work trip is so important that 44 percent of “bleisure” travelers say they’ve actually turned down the opportunity to take a work trip because they wouldn’t have had time for leisure activities while at their destination. 

Seventy percent said the best part of traveling for work is seeing different places, while 57 percent said the best part is getting away from the workplace. In addition, of those who expect to take trips post-pandemic (86%), 35 percent say they will be taking more business trips than they did before the pandemic, and 18 percent said they expect to take fewer. Jay Burress, President and CEO of Visit Anaheim says, “Finding a hybrid solution to different challenges has become more common, which is giving rise to trends like ‘bleisure’ travel. Now, more than ever before, the boundaries between work and play are blurred, making it an opportunistic time for travelers to reinvent the traditional business trip.”

➤THE KEY TO A BETTER RELATIONSHIP IS DOING CHORES TOGETHER:  To keep your significant other happy you’ll want to share and swap chores, finds a new study. University of Utah researchers analyzed the results of a bunch of surveys and found that couples who shared the same tasks reported higher levels of relationship satisfaction. Study leader, professor Daniel Carlson says, “The number of equally shared tasks matters a great deal for both men’s and women’s relationship quality. Indeed, among recent cohorts, there is evidence to suggest that it matters as much if not more than each partner’s overall proportion of housework.” This all suggests you should switch off household responsibilities, rather than each partner sticking to their assigned chores, and Carlson adds, “For both men and women, the number of equally shared tasks is associated with a greater likelihood of A) feeling their relationship is fair to both partners, B) feeling satisfied with their own housework arrangement, and C) feeling satisfied with the relationship overall.” Carlson speculates that this is because not all chores are created equally.

🏀NBA PLAYOFF:  Results from first-round games yesterday:
  • Milwaukee Bucks 116, Chicago Bulls 100 - Milwaukee wins series 4-1
  • Golden State Warriors 102, Denver Nuggets 98 - Golden State wins 4-1

🏀MILWAUKEE, GOLDEN STATE WIN FIRST-ROUND PLAYOFFS: The defending NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks and the Golden State Warriors won their first-round playoff series yesterday. Milwaukee defeated the Chicago Bulls 116-100 to win the series 4 games to 1, and Golden State topped the Denver Nuggets 102-98 to also win 4 games to 1. The Bucks will play the Boston Celtics in the second round, with Game 1 on Sunday, and the Warriors will play the winner of the Memphis Grizzlies-Minnesota Timberwolves series, which Memphis leads 3-2.

🏈NFL DRAFT TONIGHT IN LAS VEGAS: The NFL Draft begins tonight in Las Vegas, with the first round kicking off at 8 p.m. ET and airing on ABC and ESPN, with the following rounds on Friday and Saturday. The Jacksonville Jaguars have the first pick for the second year in a row, followed by the Detroit Lions, Houston Texans, New York Jets and New York Giants in the top five.

 

⚾YANKEES' STANTON GETS 350TH HOME RUN, SEVENTH-FASTEST TO MILESONE: The New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton hit his 350th career home run in the Yankees' 5-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles last night, becoming the seventh-fastest player to reach the milestone. He hit his 350th homer in his 1,341st game, and the only players who got there faster were Mark McGwire, Juan Gonzalez, Alex Rodriguez, Harmon Killebrew, Albert Pujols, and Babe Ruth.



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