Wednesday, April 27, 2022

Wake-Up Call: U-S Urges Allies Get More Heavy Weapons To Ukraine


U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held a meeting of officials from some 40 countries at the U.S. air base in Ramstein, Germany, yesterday and urged the allies to send more and heavier weapons to Ukraine. Austin said, "We’ve got to move at the speed of war,” and stated "we’re going to keep moving heaven and earth" to meet Ukraine's near-term security needs in its fight against Russian forces.


 

That appeal came as Russia continued its assault in eastern and southern Ukraine, and there were growing fears the fighting could spill over into neighboring countries. There were explosions in the Russian-backed separatist region of Trans-Dniester in Moldova for a second day, knocking out two powerful radio antennas. Additionally, a Russian missile hit a strategic bridge between Ukraine's Odesa region and Romania, and an ammuntion depot was burning just over the border in Russia early Wednesday after there were several explosions.

Poland, Bulgaria Says Russia Cutting Off Gas Supplies: Poland and Bulgaria, who are both NATO members, said that Russia is cutting off their natural gas supplies starting today, the first such action since the war began. They are being cut off because they have refused Moscow's demands that they pay in rubles, as have almost all Russia's gas customers in Europe. Poland said it's well-prepared after working for years to reduce its reliance on Russian energy, and Bulgaria said it was working to find other sources, such as Azerbaijan.

➤VP HARRIS TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID-19: Vice President Kamala Harris tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday (April 26th), the White House announced, with Harris' press secretary saying that President Biden wasn't considered a close contact of her in recent days. Harris, who returned Monday from a week-long West Coast trip, tweeted, "I have no symptoms, and I will continue to isolate and follow CDC guidelines. I’m grateful to be both vaccinated and boosted." Her office said late yesterday that the 57-year-old was prescribed and is taking the Pfizer anti-Covid pill Paxlovid. When administered within five days of symptoms appearing, Paxlovid provides a 90 percent reduction in hospitalizations and deaths among patients most likely to get severe disease. Harris’ diagnosis comes at the same time as the administration is working to expand availability of Paxlovid.



➤BIDEN ISSUES FIRST PARDONS, COMMUTATIONS: President Biden has issued the first pardons and commutations of his presidency, with the White House on Tuesday announcing three pardons and 75 commutations. The pardons for were for a John F. Kennedy-era Secret Service agent convicted of federal bribery charges for trying to sell a copy of an agency file, and two people convicted of drug-related charges but went on to become upstanding members of their communities. The 75 sentence commutations were for non-violent, drug-related convictions. The now 86-year-old former agent, Abraham Bolden Sr., was the first Black Secret Service agent to serve on a presidential detail, for Kennedy. After his mid-1960s conviction, key witnesses said they lied at the prosecutor's request, but he was denied a retrial and served three years and nine months in prison. He has maintained his innocence and wrote a book in which he charged he was targeted for speaking out against racist and unprofessional behavior in the Secret Service.
 

➤JAN. 6TH COMMITTEE MAY REQUEST INTERVIEW WITH HOUSE GOP LEADER AFTER AUDIO RELEASED: The chairman of the House committee investigating the January 6th attack, Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson, said yesterday (April 26th) that they may again request an interview with House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy amid the release of new audio of his conversations after the attack. McCarthy had declined an earlier request to appear before the committee. In audio from January 10th, 2021, released yesterday by the New York Times, McCarthy tells fellow Republican leaders that Trump’s far-right congressional allies in the House are, quote, "putting people in jeopardy" with their tweets and comments that could put other lawmakers at risk of violence. The Times also reported recently on audio from after the attack in which McCarthy blamed then-President Donald Trump for it in conversations with other House Republicans.


➤50 PERCENT OF VIRTUAL MEETING PARTICIPANTS ARRIVE LATE: As people switched to working at home if they could in big numbers during the pandemic, virtual meetings became a big thing, leading to the sudden rise of Zoom in particular and similar platforms. Returning to offices since the height of the pandemic has been slower, and many people still haven't gone back to their workplaces, so virtual meetings are continuing. A new Seattle-based startup called Read whose software measures engagement and sentiment of participants in video meetings has just released its first study after measuring more than three million virtual meeting minutes since September. Their findings for meetings with seven or more people include that 50 percent of participants arrive late, 40 percent have below average or poor engagement, 22 percent of participants don’t say a word, and 11 percent don't have their video or audio on. Overall, one in five had a below average meeting score, and 31 percent of meetings start late.

➤STUDY...PEOPLE WHO LOVE BUYING NEW DEVICES ARE NOT MATERIALISTIC—THEY JUST LOVE LEARNING ABOUT NEW TECH:  Many people can’t resist buying the latest smartphone when it comes out—regardless of whether they need it not. A new study from Duke University finds these people aren’t materialistic (as many think), but they buy the new devices because they love learning about new technology. For these individuals, getting a new device and mastering it made them feel more competent, particularly when they prioritized engaging with the new gadget in their day-to-day life, rather than just for pleasure. Lead study author Dr. Justin McManus explains, “To maximize well-being from consumption, we encourage consumers to learn about new products; seek out gadgets that foster intrinsic enjoyment and particularly those that could lead to learning a new skill. Gadget loving behaviors that can provide an ideal challenge will also be beneficial.”

➤SOME YELP REVIERS TAKE MONEY TO PROVIDE GOOD REVIEWS: Yelp has "Elite" members who get a special badge on their Yelp profile to indicate that they are more trustworthy reviewers. In order to become an Elite member, people have to apply to Yelp and provide much more detailed information than an ordinary reviewer, including their real name and a photo, and an explanation of why they want to be one. A benefit of being an Elite member is they may be invited to special events and meet-ups. But Motherboard reports that Kay Dean, a former federal investigator who now runs a YouTube channel tracking social media scams called Fake Review Watch, has found that some Elite members have taken money to post good reviews. She believes she's found potentially hundreds of them, saying there are even Facebook Groups where people post looking for Elite members to provide these fake reviews. Dean said, "Cheating is rewarded. The playing field is pretty much just unfair” between companies that pay for Yelp Elite reviews and those that don’t.

🏀NBA PLAYOFFS: Results from first-round games yesterday:
  • Miami Heat 97, Atlanta Hawks 94 - Miami wins series 4-1
  • Memphis Grizzlies 111, Minnesota Timberwolves 109 - Memphis leads 3-2
  • Phoenix Suns 112, New Orleans Pelicans 97 - Phoenix leads 3-2
🏀HEAT TOP HAWKS 97-94 TO WIN FIRST-ROUND SERIES: The Miami Heat defeated the Atlanta Hawks 97-94 last night (April 26th) to win their first-round NBA playoffs series 4 games to 1. Victor Oladipo scored 23 points for Miami and Bam Adebayo added 20 points. The Heat will play the winner of the Philadelphia 76ers-Toronto Raptors series in the second round. Philadelphia leads 3 games to 2.
 

🏒TORONTO'S MATTHEWS GETS 60TH GOAL OF SEASON: The Toronto Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews scored his 60th goal of the season last night (April 26th), which was also his second goal of the game, in Toronto's 3-0 win over the Detroit Red Wings. The 24-year-old is just the third NHL player to reach 60 goals since the mid-1990s, joining Steven Stamkos, who did it in 2011-12 season, and Alex Ovechkin in the 2007-08 season.


⚾RIZZO HAS THREE HOMERS IN YANKEES' 12-8 WIN OVER ORIOLES: New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo hit three home runs in New York's 12-8 win over the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium last night. Rizzo had a three-run homer in the third inning, a two-run drive in the fifth inning, and a solo home run in the eighth. It was the first three-homer game of the 32-year-old 's career.



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