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IMPORTANT
| | Bills, Bills, Bills | Inflation at 40-Year High Forces the Fed’s Hand Belts must be tightened, but it will help rein in inflation, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday. Interest rates have increased 50 basis points for the first time since 2000. The boost fell short of the upper expectation of 75 points — and far below the high peak of 20% rates introduced by 1980s Chair Paul Volcker — and the market responded in kind, closing the highest after a Fed announcement in 10 years. “Inflation is much too high and we understand the hardship it is causing, and we’re moving expeditiously to bring it back down,” Powell told Americans. (Sources: Bloomberg, WSJ) |
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| | Up in Arms | Supreme Court Launches Investigation as Roe v. Wade Protests Surge Chief Justice John Roberts has authorized an investigation into the nearly unprecedented leak of a draft opinion indicating the Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade. Col. Gail A. Curley, the high court’s marshal, will lead the probe, which is expected to include dozens of young lawyers and clerks who had access to the document. Still, legal minds say, it’s not clear if the leak can be charged as a criminal act. Meanwhile, protests have exploded in cities across the country and thousands gathered in front of the Supreme Court. “This is a five alarm fire,” Washington Sen. Patty Murray said. (Sources: AP, The Guardian) |
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| | | Holy War | EU Prepares Sanctions as Pope, Orthodox Leader Butt Heads The European Commission’s sixth round of sanctions targeting Russian interests is taking on a new institution — the Russian Orthodox Church. Patriarch Kirill, the head of the church, is “one of the most prominent supporters of the Russian military aggression against Ukraine,” according to documents from the European External Action Service. Kirill has been a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, prompting a warning from Pope Francis that he should not “turn himself into Putin’s altar boy.” The warning was roundly rejected by Kirill, with the Russian Church admonishing the pope for his “incorrect tone.” (Sources: Politico, Reuters) |
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| | Return to Lockdown | Beijing Warily Shuts Down Transport, Schools Amid Rising Cases Officials in the Chinese capital are scrambling to enact fresh COVID-19 restrictions, hoping to stave off the same fate of locked-down Shanghai. Public transportation and public venues like schools, restaurants and gyms have been shut, with office workers strongly encouraged to work from home. Mass testing across the 22 million population is aimed at identifying emerging hot spots and stamping out the virus’s spread, with 51 cases found on Wednesday. Meanwhile, restrictions in Shanghai remain tightly in place. Residents are increasingly pushing back with critical content spreading quickly on social media and rattling the government. (Sources: AFP, Reuters) |
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| | Briefly | Here are some things you should know about today: “Nonsense.” That’s what Russian officials say of chatter that Moscow plans to declare a full-scale war in Ukraine on May 9, a day celebrating the end of World War II. The Kremlin currently refers to the invasion as a “special military operation.” (Source: BBC) On the road, again. Uber has seen its ride-hailing business bounce back in the first quarter, leaving Lyft in the dust, thanks to cities dropping restrictions on movement. (Source: FT) Slapstick. Comedian Dave Chappelle has escaped injury after being attacked onstage in Los Angeles. The same can’t be said for his attacker, who was reportedly beaten up on the stage by 10 people. “Was that Will Smith?” Chris Rock asked from the audience. (Source: Vulture) |
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INTRIGUING | | Showdown | US State Department Tells Russia It’s Game On for Griner’s Freedom American officials have announced that WNBA star Brittney Griner is being “wrongfully” detained in Russia, and her case has been handed to Roger Carstens, a special presidential envoy for hostage affairs. The Phoenix Mercury and UMMC Yekaterinburg center was arrested in February when Russian authorities allegedly discovered cannabis oil in her luggage. Tuesday’s statement is an escalation in language for the State Department, which has been working to balance condemning Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and freeing U.S. nationals in Russia. LGBT advocates worry Griner, who is openly gay, may face harsher imprisonment under Russia’s draconian anti-LGBT laws. (Sources: Yahoo Sports, NYT) |
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| | | Bugging Out | Insect Plague Welcomes Chicago to Spring Meet Chicago’s gnat swarm. Social media is buzzing as the Windy City enters spring and the insects take over with a seasonal gnat swarm much larger than in previous years. It might seem like a bad omen, but Allen Lawrance, associate curator of entomology at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, says there’s nothing to worry about: “This year, we're definitely seeing a lot of them so it is a little bit unusually large, but it's not the end of the world times or anything like that." The insects only live for 3-11 days, so an end is in sight. (Source: UPI) |
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| | Childhood Shots | Parents Hesitant of COVID-19 Vaccines in Children Under 5 Demand for vaccines for under-5s is dragging as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to deliberate on approval. The Kaiser Family Foundation's Vaccine Monitor survey found fewer than 1 in 5 American parents are planning to have their young children inoculated as soon as a vaccine becomes available. The “wait and see” approach is the most popular, with 40% of parents indicating they will be happy to wait. Still, 11% said they will only vaccinate if it’s mandated, while 27% will “definitely not” be vaccinating infants and toddlers no matter what. (Sources: CNN) |
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| | Still Watching? | Shareholders Turn on Netflix, File Suit When bingeing goes bad. Netflix shareholders are taking on management following last month’s reports of plunging subscription rates and revenue, which saw $50 billion in value wiped out. Investors who owned shares from October until April say Netflix made misleading statements and failed to disclose just how many viewers were ditching the service, particularly amid rising competition from other streaming platforms. Money-saving announcements, like the plan to clamp down on password sharing, have done little to assuage worries that Netflix’s golden days of growth are officially behind it. (Sources: Vulture) |
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| | GOOOOOOOOOAL! | Maradona’s Iconic ‘Hand of God’ Shirt Draws Record Auction Price One last miracle for Diego Maradona. The Argentine national team shirt worn by the late soccer player when he made his infamous “Hand of God” play — when he scored with a handball, unseen by the referees, to knock England out of the 1986 World Cup — has sold for $9.3 million. A Sotheby’s spokesperson said the auction was brimming with “unfiltered enthusiasm,” which the auction house expected following weeks of enquiries. Still, it wouldn’t be a Maradona headline without some controversy. His daughter says it’s the shirt her father wore in the first half — which means he wasn’t wearing it during the play. (Sources: Sky News, AP) |
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