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Monday, February 6, 2023

Wake-Up Call: Major Earthquake Strikes Turkey, Syria

Daily Mail US Composite (2/6/23)

A powerful earthquake in southern Turkey early Monday leveled residential buildings and killed more than 2,000+ people across the country and in neighboring Syria, officials said. Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said a news conference that 284 people had been killed and 2,323 injured, numbers that were likely to rise as rescuers searched flattened buildings in frigid weather. Syria’s deputy health minister reported 237 killed and 639 injured in government-controlled regions, mostly in Latakia, Hama, Aleppo and Tartus, according to state media. 


The Syrian American Medical Society reported 104 dead and 600-plus seriously injured in rebel-held areas. The 7.8-magnitude earthquake — felt as far away as Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Egypt — occurred in Nurdagi, about 40 miles west of the Turkish city of Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The initial quake was followed by dozens of powerful aftershocks.

➤RUBIO...CHINA THINKS AMERICA IS IN DECLINE: Sen. Marco Rubio, the ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Sunday that China intentionally flew a spy balloon over the United States to send the message that America is in “decline.”  “They did this on purpose. They understood that it was going to be spotted, they knew the US government would have to reveal it, that people were going to see it over the sky. And the message they were trying to send is what they believe internally, and that is that the United States is a once-great superpower that’s hollowed out, it’s in decline,” the Florida pol said on ABC News’ “This Week.” Rubio rejected China’s excuse that the balloon was a “civilian aircraft” which had flown off course, adding that the Biden administration’s decision to initially keep quiet about the object after it entered US airspace and not shoot it down until it was off the East Coast played right into China’s intentions. “The message [China] is trying to send the world is, ‘Look, these guys can’t even do anything about a balloon flying over US airspace,’ ” Rubio told host Jonathan Karl.

➤U-S OVER-REACTED: Beijing's government said on Sunday afternoon local time that the U.S.'s response to the balloon was an 'overreaction' and threatened a 'similar' situation if American surveillance devices were caught in Chinese airspace. The 'spy balloon' was shot down off the coast of South Carolina by American fighter jets after crossing over multiple U.S. states at a low enough altitude to be seen by the naked eye - alarming millions across the country. The Air Force said on Saturday that it's now beginning a 'recovery' operation for the fallen debris, which is expected to be 'fairly easy' given the shallow water it landed in. Florida firebrand Rep. Matt Gaetz led GOP reaction calling for a continued crackdown on China last night. 'Now blow up TikTok,' he wrote on Twitter.

➤HOT AIR OVER CHINA BALLOON: Washington reacted to the President Biden’s handling of the Chinese spy balloon with mixed reviews, with praise and criticism falling mainly along party lines.  “Joe Biden was tested on the world stage and abysmally failed,” New York’s Elise Stefanik, the No. 3 House Republican tweeted hours after the balloon was shot down. “The Chinese spy balloon should never have been allowed to cross into our sovereign nation gathering intelligence.” Two US Air Force fighter jets took out the balloon over a week after it first breached the US border. By the time it was shot down off the coast of North Carolina Saturday, the spy device had covered more than 4,000 miles of American territory.

The administration also decided to allow the balloon to travel the length of the country because shooting it down over water would be safer than over land, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said. “If it was worth shooting down, why was it permitted to drift across the continental US first? And can its mechanisms be recovered and examined?” Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) questioned. Democrats were mostly quiet about Biden’s decision to shoot down the balloon, but those who spoke up took the opportunity to criticize China.

💻COMPUTER SALES TANK: Dell Technologies Inc., facing plummeting demand for personal computers, will eliminate about 6,650 jobs, becoming the latest technology company to announce it will let thousands of employees go. The company is experiencing market conditions that “continue to erode with an uncertain future,” Co-Chief Operating Officer Jeff Clarke wrote in a memo viewed by Bloomberg. The reductions amount to about 5% of Dell’s global workforce, according to a company spokesperson. After a pandemic-era PC boom, Dell and other hardware makers have seen cratering demand. Industry analyst IDC said preliminary data show personal computer shipments dropped sharply in the fourth quarter of 2022. Among major companies, Dell saw the largest decline — 37% compared with the same period in 2021, according to IDC. Dell generates about 55% of its revenue from PCs.


➤TWO ABDUCTED MISSOURI CHILDREN FOUND IN A FLORIDA SUPERMARKET: Two abducted children who had been missing from Missouri for almost a year were found in a central Florida grocery store with their non-custodial mother, who was taken into police custody. Kristi Gilley was arrested last Wednesday on an out-of-state fugitive warrant. Court records show Gilley, remained in jail on Sunday.

➤MAN WHO SHOT AT A GROUP OF CHILDREN THROWING SNOWBALLS WILL SPEND 16 YEARS IN PRISON: A Wisconsin man who was convicted of shooting at a group of children after they threw snowballs at his car was sentenced to 16 years behind bars. William Carson pleaded to the court for leniency and mercy at his sentencing hearing on Friday. He was found guilty in November of two counts of first-degree reckless injury and five counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety.

 

➤SATAN ATTENDS THE GRAMMYS: Grammy viewers slammed Smith and Kim Petras over their 'satanic' performance of their award-winning single, Unholy, on Sunday night. The pair took to the stage shortly after making history with their win in the Best Pop Duo/Group performance, however the performance drew mixed reactions from onlookers. After Smith - who is non-binary and uses gender neutral pronouns - was seen wearing satanic headgear in the horror movie-inspired performance, viewers flocked to social media to share their frustrations about the 'demonic' themes. After the performance, host Trevor Noah immediately joked about the fact the satanic themes would outrage some viewers. Earlier in the night, Petras made history as the first transgender woman to win the Grammy for Best Pop/Group performance.

Daily Mail Composite (2/6/23)

➤AMERICA IS DRUGGED: Just two milligrams of fentanyl - the amount that fits on the top of a pencil tip - is a deadly dose. And despite nationwide stings and busts to halt dealers, many authorities admit there's no end in sight to the current narcotic epidemic. Harrowing new pictures reveal the visceral issues plighting states across the US as 'zombied' fentanyl users collapse on needle-littered streets in areas stretching from Washington to Massachusetts, and Louisiana to Philadelphia. The animal sedative Xylazine - known as 'tranq' - has now also been infiltrating and lacing the fentanyl drug supply, causing 'flesh-eating' abscesses and users to zonk-out as they lose feeling in their muscles. There were 107,622 drug overdose deaths in the US in 2021, an increase of nearly 15 percent from the year prior. And shocking national trends show few signs of the crisis abating this year.

🏀NETS TRADE KYRIE IRVING TO THE MAVERICKS: The Dallas Mavericks struck a deal with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday to land Kyrie Irving, just days after he requested a trade out of Brooklyn. In exchange, the Mavericks will send Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and multiple draft picks to the Nets.

🏀STEPHEN CURRY EXPECTED OUT THROUGH ALL-STAR BREAK: Stephen Curry is expected to be out through the All-Star break in mid-February with a left leg injury. The Warriors are expected to have a better understanding on the timeline for a return in the coming days. Curry was injured with 2:01 left in the third quarter of Saturday night's win over the Mavericks after his left knee collided with Dallas guard McKinley Wright IV's knee while Curry was defending him.

⚾LOS ANGELES DODGERS TO RETIRE FERNANDO VALENZUELA'S NO. 34 IN AUGUST: The Los Angeles Dodgers will retire the No. 34 jersey of pitcher Fernando Valenzuela during a three-day celebration this summer. Valenzuela was part of two World Series champion teams, winning the 1981 Rookie of the Year and Cy Young awards. He was a six-time All-Star during his 11 seasons in Los Angeles from 1980-90. He will be honored from Aug. 11-13 when the Dodgers host Colorado.

⚾SHOHEI OHTANI SET FOR WBC IN JAPAN, BUT ANGELS FUTURE MURKY: Shohei Ohtani will make one start on the Cactus League mound this month for the Angels before he heads to Japan on March 1 for the World Baseball Classic, Halos general manager Perry Minasian said Saturday. Whatever Ohtani wants to do in the tournament is entirely up to him and the Japanese team, as the Angels will stick to their long-standing policy of allowing him to do whatever he feels is best for his growth on his unique career path.


🏈DALLAS COWBOYS NAME BRIAN SCHOTTENHEIMER AS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR: The Dallas Cowboys have named Brian Schottenheimer as the team's new offensive coordinator; it was announced Saturday. The Cowboys agreed to part ways with previous offensive coordinator Kellen Moore last week and owner and general manager Jerry Jones has said coach Mike McCarthy will be calling the plays next season.

🏈MENACING CHARGE FOR BENGALS RB JOE MIXON DISMISSED: A misdemeanor menacing charge against Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon was dismissed Friday. The Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office requested that the aggravated menacing charge against Mixon be dismissed, according to a filing issued Friday afternoon. "We need additional investigation before we would move forward with this case," a prosecutor told county judge Curt Kissinger.

🏀NBA SCORES:
  • Orlando Magic 119  Charlotte Hornets 113
  • Cleveland Cavaliers 122  Indiana Pacers 103
  • New York Knicks 108 Philadelphia 76ers 97
  • Toronto Raptors 106 Memphis Grizzlies 103
  • Minnesota Timberwolves 128 Denver Nuggets 98
  • New Orleans Pelicans 136 Sacramento Kings 104







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