Monday, June 6, 2022

Wake-Up Call: Russian Strikes Hit Near Kyiv


PUTIN WARNS WEST AGAINST SENDING ROCKET SYSTEMS: Russian airstrikes hit the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv Sunday for the first time in more than a month, as Russia's President Vladimir Putin warned Western nations in a TV interview against sending longer-range rocket systems to Ukraine. Putin said that if Ukraine gets the weapons, Russia will, quote, "draw appropriate conclusions and use our means of destruction, which we have plenty of, in order to strike at those objects that we haven’t yet struck." His remarks came days after the U.S. announced plans to send medium-range rocket systems to Ukraine, part of a $700 million package of security assistance.

Russia said that the airstrikes that hit Kyiv yesterday destroyed tanks that had been sent to Ukraine and other armored vehicles. But Ukraine said they hit a train repair shop and that no military equipment had been stored there. However, according to AP, a government adviser said on Ukrainian TV that military infrastructure also was targeted.

 
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to the Zaporizhzhia region in the southeastern part of Ukraine, which is partly under Russian control, in only his second public visit outside the Kyiv area since the war began in February when Russia invaded. He was given a battle report, thanked troops and awarded medals to some of them, and met with refugees, according to reports.


➤BRITISH PRIME MINISTER TO FACE NO-CONFIDENCE VOTE TODAY: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face a no-confidence vote this evening that could remove him as the country's leader. Official Graham Brady of the governing Conservative Party said that he'd received enough letters from lawmakers in the party calling for a no-confidence vote to trigger one, which is 15 percent. If Johnson loses the vote among the Conservative Party lawmakers, he'll be replaced as the the party leader and as prime minister. If he wins, he can't face another no-confidence vote for a year. Johnson has been facing ethics scandals, most prominently over parties held by staffers in 2020 and 2021 when strict pandemic restrictions prevented U.K. residents from socializing.

➤U.S., SOUTH KOREA FIRE MISSILES INTO SEA AFTER NORTH KOREA'S LAUNCH: The U.S. and South Korean militaries launched eight ballistic missiles into the sea off South Korea Monday in a live-fire exercise that was a show of force after North Korea fired eight short-range missiles on Sunday. South Korea said that the launches were meant to demonstrate the ability to respond quickly and accurately to North Korean attacks. The North's missile tests Sunday were its 18th round of them in 2022, and South Korean and U.S. officials say North Korea is also preparing to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017.


➤ATTACK ON NIGERIAN CHURCH LEAVES OVER 50 FEARED DEAD: Over 50 people are feared dead after an attack on a Catholic church in Nigeria yesterday in which gunmen opened fire and set off explosives. The presiding priest was also reportedly kidnapped. Saint Francis Catholic Church in Ondo state was attacked as worshippers gathered for services on Pentecost Sunday. It wasn't immediately clear who carried out the attack. AP notes that Ondo is one of Nigeria's most peaceful states even as other parts of the country has struggled with security issues, but that there's been rising violent conflict between farmers and herders.


➤SHUT-DOWN BABY FORMULA PLANT OPERATING AGAIN: The Abbott Nutrition plant in Michigan that was shut down in February over contamination, playing a big role in the baby formula shortage, began operating again on Saturday after meeting requirements from the Food and Drug Administration. Abbott said it will concentrate first on making EleCare, a special formula for children with allergies that it expects to make available around June 20th.

➤STUDY: DIABETES DRUG EFFECTIVE FOR OBESITY WEIGHT LOSS: A new study has found that a drug approved to treat Type 2 diabetes, called tirzepatid, is extremely effective at reducing obesity. Researchers had noticed that people who took it for their diabetes lost weight. The study focused on people with obesity who don't have diabetes and found there was even more weight loss. People taking the highest of three doses that were studied lost as much as 21 percent of their body weight. Tirzepatid works on two naturally occurring hormones that help control blood sugar and are involved in sending fullness signals from the stomach to the brain. For most of the trial participants, side effects from tirzepatide weren't serious.

➤MICHAEL J. FOX SAYS HE WON’T TAKE ROLES WITH A LOT OF DIALOGUE DUE TO PARKINSON’S: Entertainment Tonight reports that on a recent episode of the Working it Out podcast, Michael J. Fox shared how his battle with Parkinson’s has affected his acting career. Fox commented on Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in Once Upon a Time in... Hollywood: "[DiCaprio] was doing a scene of [a] western show and he couldn't remember his lines. He went back in the dressing room, he was screaming at himself, he was like tearing into himself in the mirror, and drinking. Just a mess. And I thought about that, and I thought, 'I don't want to feel that. Am I wrong to feel that? Am I right to feel that?'" Fox added, "But here's what it tells me -- I don't take on something with a lot of lines because I can't do it. And for whatever reason, it just is what it is. I can't remember five pages of dialogue. I can't do it. It can't be done. So I go to the beach."


➤STUDY: BEING SEDENTARY IN YOUR 60S GREATLY RAISES STROKE RISK:  Looking forward to watching your TV in your retirement? A new study shows every hour doing sedentary activities in your 60s and 70s increases risk of stroke by 14%. People who barely moved for 13 hours during their waking day were 44% more likely to suffer a stroke. Meanwhile, just 25 minutes of moderate exercise a day reduced stroke risk by 40%.

The study conducted by San Diego State University tracked the movements of 7,607 men and women and analyzed their medical records seven years later for strokes.

Daily Mail Graphic 6/6/22
⚾MLB PLAYER BALK AT SPORTING RAINBOW COLORS: A number of Tampa Bay Rays players decided not to wear rainbow-colored logos on their uniforms as part of the team's annual 'Pride Night' on Saturday. 

In the buildup to Saturday's MLB game against the Chicago White Sox, which also marked the franchise's annual 16th Pride Night celebration, the Rays added rainbow-colored logos to their uniforms, caps and on the right sleeve of their shirts. 

Rays president Matt Silverman said: 'by doing this, we extend an invitation not just for this game but for all of our games that the LGBTQ+ community is invited, welcomed and celebrated.' 

But some players opted out of wearing the new uniforms, including pitchers Jason Adam, Jalen Beeks, Brooks Raley, Jeffrey Springs and Ryan Thompson, the Tampa Bay Times reported.


🏀WARRIORS ROUT CELTICS 107-88 TO TIE NBA FINALS AT 1-1: The Golden State Warriors routed the Boston Celtics 107-88 at home in San Francisco last night to tie the NBA Finals at one game each. It had been close until the third quarter, when the Warriors outscored the Celtics 35-14. Stephen Curry led Golden State with 29 points, 14 of them in the third quarter, and Jordan Poole had 17 points. Game 3 is on Wednesday in Boston.

🏒LIGHTNING BEAT RANGERS 3-2, CUT N.Y.'s CONF. FINALS LEAD TO 2-1: The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the New York Rangers 3-2 on Sunday, cutting New York's Eastern Conference Finals lead to 2 games to 1. The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Lightning came back for the win after the Rangers had been up 2-0 in the second period. Nikita Kucherov scored in the second period for Tampa Bay and Steven Stamkos got a goal early in the third period to tie the game. The Lightning kept the Rangers from scoring again, and then Ondrej Palat got the winning goal with only 42 seconds left in the game. Game 4 is Tuesday night.

🎾NADAL, SWIATEK WIN FRENCH OPEN: Rafael Nadal defeated Casper Ruud of Norway in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3, 6-0, yesterday, to win the French Open for the 14th time and capture his 22nd Grand Slam. Both accomplishments extended records the Spanish player already had. The 36-year-old Nadal, who was seeded fifth to Ruud's eighth, also became the oldest champion in French Open history. A day earlier, top-seeded Iga Swiatek of Poland won the women's title, beating American Coco Gauff, who was seeded 18th, also in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3. Swiatek has now won two Grand Slams, both of them French Open championships. Eighteen-year-old Gauff was appearing in her first Grand Slam final.

🏌LEE WINS U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN: Australia's Minjee Lee won the U.S. Women’s Open by four strokes over American Mina Harigae at Pine Needles in North Carolina on Sunday. Lee ended at 13-under 271, winning the $1.8 million prize, the largest in the history of women’s golf. It was Lee's second win of a major after her victory in the Evian Championship last July.

🏀UTAH JAZZ HEAD COACH SNYDER RESIGNS: Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder has resigned after eight seasons, the NBA team announced yesterday. Snyder had two years left on his contract, and ESPN cited sources as saying Jazz ownership and management spent several weeks trying to convince him to return. Snyder said in a statement that his decision was about what was best for the players, stating, "I strongly feel they need a new voice to continue to evolve. That's it. No philosophical differences, no other reason. After eight years, I just feel it is time to move onward." Snyder had a 372-264 record with the Jazz, the second-most by a head coach in Jazz history behind Hall of Famer Jerry Sloan.




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