Thursday, February 16, 2023

Wake-Up Call: At Least 1 Dead In El Paso Shooting


One person is dead and three more were wounded Wednesday in a shooting at a shopping mall in El Paso, Texas, adding to the dozens of people already killed this year in mass shootings across the United States. El Paso police said hours after the gunfire that two people had been taken into custody, though details of what led the shooting remained unclear. Interim police chief Peter Pacillas said that Cielo Vista Mall was still considered a crime scene, and that it would remain locked down until authorities had completed their investigation. Pacillas stressed that the danger had passed.

➤BUFFALO GUNMAN SENTENCED TO LIFE: The man who killed 10 people in a racist massacre at a supermarket in Buffalo, N.Y., last year was sentenced to life in prison without parole Wednesday. The 19-year-old white gunman, Payton Gendron, pleaded guilty to 15 counts brought by Buffalo prosecutors stemming from the May 14 attack at Tops Friendly Markets in a predominantly Black neighborhood. Gendron’s charges included first-degree murder and domestic terrorism, with the latter carrying a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.  Erie County Court Judge Susan Eagan sentenced him Wednesday to life in prison without parole for the domestic terrorism charge and for each of the 10 counts of first-degree murder, which will run concurrently. 


➤BALLOON BELIEVED TO HAVE DRIFTED FROM PLANNED TRAJECTORY: U.S. officials believe a Chinese balloon that was shot down after crossing the continental United States originally had a trajectory that would have taken it over Guam and Hawaii but was blown off course by prevailing winds, a U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Wednesday. The balloon, which Washington accuses Beijing of using for surveillance and China says was a civilian research vessel, drifted across Alaska's Aleutian Islands, then Canada and the central United States before it was shot down by the U.S. military off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4.

➤CHINA ACCUSES U-S: China’s ceremonial parliament has accused American lawmakers of trampling on the sovereignty of other nations after the U.S. passed a measure condemning a suspected Chinese spy balloon’s intrusion into U.S. airspace. The statement issued Thursday by the National People’s Congress’s Foreign Affairs Committee repeated Beijing’s insistence that the balloon was an unmanned civilian weather research airship, a claim the U.S. has dismissed citing its flight route and payload of surveillance equipment. While China at first expressed regret over the Feb. 4 incident, it has toughened its rhetoric in a further sign of how badly relations between the sides have deteriorated in recent years.

➤HOUSE SUBPOENAS BIG TECH CEOS: The House Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed the top executives of five of America’s biggest technology companies seeking records and information about their content moderation practices. Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio sent the subpoenas to Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft as well as Google parent Alphabet and Facebook parent Meta. It seeks information about the companies’ practices related to “moderation, deletion, suppression, restriction or reduced circulation of content.” In a letter sent with the subpoenas, Jordan said the committee is investigating allegations of collusion with the executive branch to suppress conservative voices online. The companies were given a March 23 deadline for submitting the documents.

➤RUSSIAN MISSILES STRIKE: Russia launched missile strikes across Ukraine on Thursday, Ukrainian officials said, after Western allies pledged to ramp up military aid to the Ukrainian armed forces to support a planned counter-offensive. Ukrainian officials said air defences in the south downed eight Kalibr missiles fired from a ship in the Black Sea, but other missiles struck northern and western Ukraine as well as the central regions of Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovograd. One missile struck an industrial site in the western city of Lviv, causing a fire which was brought under control, authorities said. Bolstered by tens of thousands of reservists drafted in December, Russia has intensified ground attacks across southern and eastern Ukraine in recent weeks, and a major new offensive is widely expected as the first anniversary of its Feb. 24 invasion nears.

➤RUSSIAN TROOPS: Russia has deployed about 97% of its army in Ukraine, according to the U.K. defense secretary. Despite intensifying attacks along the front lines in eastern Ukraine, Moscow is struggling to advance. Kyiv has warned of a renewed Russian onslaught to coincide with the first anniversary of the invasion next week, but some Western officials doubt it’ll be a single event. Also out of London: The think tank International Institute for Strategic Studies said Russia has likely lost 2,000-plus tanks in the Ukraine war—more than half of its operational fleet.

Brinton
➤FORMER BIDEN ENERGY OFFICIAL RELEASED W/O BAIL: The former Biden Department of Energy official accused in two separate stolen-luggage cases in different states was released without bail Wednesday after a court appearance in Minnesota. Sam Brinton (left), who is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, is accused of stealing a woman’s Vera Bradley suitcase from the baggage claim at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in September. The bag and its contents were valued at $2,325. Brinton was charged with felony theft after they were spotted using the luggage several times after allegedly snatching it. Brinton was released without bail and ordered to not contact any of the victims during a hearing Wednesday, according to Fox News. Brinton, 35, is also facing felony grand larceny charges in Nevada for a similar luggage heist incident in which prosecutors allege they stole another woman’s suitcase worth $320 at Harry Reid International Airport in July.

Herzig
➤TRANS 'OFFENDED' DURING QUESTIONING: A transgender pharmacist who was offended by an Arkansas lawmaker questioning whether she had a penis on Monday, discussed her desire to have genital reconstructive surgery (GRS) during an interview less than two weeks ago. While speaking on The Transgender Show, Dr. Gwendolyn Herzig (right) described the hormone treatments (HRT) she's received during her transition, and expressed a wish to one day have her genitals altered to reflect her identification as a woman. She also voiced frustration that Arkansas wouldn't let her change her birth certificate to reflect her chosen gender until she could provide proof she'd undergone GRS. Herzig recounted her experience coming out as transgender to her wife - who has since stuck by her - after suffering from depression and anxiety for years over her realization she wanted to be a woman when she was 12 years-old.

➤RETAIL REBOUNDS:  Retail sales rebounded sharply in January. They rose a seasonally adjusted 3% last month as consumers increased spending on vehicles, furniture, clothing and dining out, the Commerce Department said. It’s the largest monthly increase in nearly two years after declines in the final two months of 2022. The jump is another sign that economic growth picked up. The Fed has raised interest rates aggressively to cool the economy and slow price increases; increased growth could mean raising them higher. 

➤NO CHARGES AGAINST REPRESENTATIVE MATT GAETZ: The Department of Justice has declined to press charges against Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz after a lengthy investigation into sex-trafficking and obstruction of justice. The investigation began in late 2020 with prosecutors focusing on the relationships Gaetz had with women recruited online for sex, including one who might have been under the age of consent. His associate, Joel Greenberg, cooperated with prosecutors but was sentenced to 11 years in prison. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing.

➤DOJ RAMPS-UP APPLE PROBE: The Justice Department escalated its antitrust investigation of Apple in recent months. It focuses in part on company policies about mobile third-party software on its devices and whether Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS, favored its own products over outside developers’, people familiar with the matter said. Apple declined to comment, but previously has said it embraces competition on the App Store and doesn’t operate in a way that hurts developers. The Justice Department declined to comment.

➤INNOCENT MAN FREED AFTER 28 YEARS IN PRISON: Lamar Johnson, age 50, walked away a free man yesterday after 28 years in prison for a murder he always insisted he didn’t commit. Johnson got help in proving his innocence from the Innocence Project and the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s office. Missouri Circuit Judge David Mason overturned Johnson’s conviction this week.
 

➤PRODUCTION OF FORD F-150 LIGHTNING HALTED: Ford Motors has stopped production of its electric F-15 Lightning at least until the end of next week in order to deal with a possible battery issue. One of the vehicles caught fire during a pre-delivery quality check. The F-150 Lightning is the electric version of the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. and is being closely watched as a harbinger of the future success of electric vehicles.

➤EUROPEAN UNION BANS NEW GAS-POWERED CARS BY 2035: The European Union has voted to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. The ban will take effect in the 27 nations that belong to the Union. The state of California earlier chose the same year, 2035, as its own phaseout deadline for gas-powered cars.

🎵STUDY: THIS BEACH BOYS SONG MAKES PEOPLE HAPPIEST:  "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys makes listeners happier than any other song, Dr. Michael Bonshor found. Dr. Bonshor's "happy song" formula includes a major key, 7th chords, 137 BPM, a strong beat, four beats in every day, and a verse-chorus-verse-chorus structure. Other songs that will get you feeling good include "I Got You" by James Brown and "Get the Party Started" by P!nk. Research also found that 46% of adults say singing along to their favorite songs is a great way to cheer up. The average person has 8 songs that are go-tos for boosting their mood.

🏈KANSAS CITY CELEBRATES: The Kansas City Chiefs celebrated their Super Bowl win over the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday with about 500,000 friends. At the end of the parade route, Quarterback Patrick Mahomes took to the stage with the Super Bowl trophy in one hand and a Coors Light in the other. “I just want to let you all know that this is just the beginning,” he told the crowd. “We ain’t done yet.”

🏀ALL STAR WEEKEND: The NBA’s All-Star weekend begins tomorrow in Salt Lake City with a celebrity game and the Rising Stars game. On Saturday there are three events, including the Skills Challenge, the 3-Point Contest and the Slam Dunk. Sunday’s NBA All-Star game captained by LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo starts with a draft on the court at 7:30 p.m. The events will air on TNT.  Click here for the full list of players.

⚾WE’RE NOT WORRIED AT ALL ABOUT JACOB DeGROM: Newly-signed ace pitcher Jacob deGrom will skip his first few training sessions with the Texas Rangers due to what is called “left side tightness.” General manager Chris Young seemed confident that this is a minor difficulty. DeGrom spent much of his last three seasons with the New York Mets on the injured list before signing to a five-year, $185 million contract with the Rangers.

🏀CHARGES AGAINST FIRED COACH DISMISSED: A prosecutor has moved to dismiss a felony domestic violence case against former University of Texas Longhorns basketball coach Chris Beard after a review of the evidence. Beard was arrested on December 12th after his fiancé called 911 and said Beard strangled, bit and hit her during a confrontation. She later said Beard acted in self-defense and she did not want him prosecuted.

🏀MICHAEL JORDAN IS 60! Believe it or not, Michael Jordan turns 60 tomorrow. The six-time NBA champion is celebrating his birthday with a $10 million donation to the Make-a-Wish Foundation. It will be the organization’s largest-ever individual donation. Jordan, of course, is now the owner of the Charlotte Hornets.

🏈HAMLIN APOLOGIZES: Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin posted an apology after he received backlash for the jacket he was seen wearing at the Super Bowl. Hamlin wore a blue and white letterman jacket with yellow wording and designs around the jacket. The part of the design that some people found offensive - like former NFL multi-time all-pro running back Adrian Peterson who labeled it 'blasphemy,' - was the altered Jesus face featured on the front left breast of the jacket as well as on the back of the jacket along with the word 'Eternal.' 



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