The Full Belmonte, 3/4/2023
Murdaugh’s fall from grace ends in life sentence for murder
“WALTERBORO, S.C. (AP) — One of the last pieces of a legal dynasty that doled out justice in rural South Carolina for decades crumbled Friday as lawyer Alex Murdaugh was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for the murder of his wife and son at their sprawling estate.
In the quiet Lowcountry that Murdaugh’s family had dominated since the days of Jim Crow, a judge talked to Murdaugh in a way that few probably have — not in his days playing college football, making millions as a high-powered attorney or gaining favor because of his name — and reminded Murdaugh that he had to remove the portrait of the defendant’s grandfather from its place of honor in that same courtroom to ensure a fair trial.
At sentencing, Murdaugh maintained his innocence, just as he did when he testified in his own defense during the six-week trial. But Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman wanted to know if he saw the mangled bodies of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh as he tried to sleep or thought about how he disgraced his family’s three-generation reputation for justice through lying, stealing and — eventually — murder…..” Read more at AP News
Walgreens Says It Won’t Offer the Abortion Pill Mifepristone in Conservative States
The decision applies to 21 states whose attorneys general threatened Walgreens and other pharmacies with legal action if they dispensed the pill there.
“A few weeks after Republican attorneys general in 21 states sent letters threatening legal action against retail pharmacy chains if they dispensed the abortion pill mifepristone, Walgreens said it would not distribute the pill in those states.
In January, after the Food and Drug Administration said it would allow retail pharmacies to become certified to dispense mifepristone — the tightly regulated medication that is the first pill in the two-drug medication abortion regimen — Walgreens, CVS and other pharmacies said they planned to do so in states where abortion was legal. The American Pharmacists Association said that pharmacies would be very cautious about dispensing in any state where they might risk losing their license or face other penalties.
The decision this week by Walgreens reflects that caution. In four of the states — Alaska, Iowa, Kansas and Montana — abortion is technically still legal, but there are efforts to restrict it that would apply to abortion pills….” Read more at New York Times
“A skin lesion removed from President Biden's chest last month was a basal cell carcinoma — a common form of skin cancer — his doctor said today. No further treatment is required.” [Axios]
TPAC
Clockwise: Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Kimberly Guilfoyle, and Steve Bannon with a supporter. Photos: Jack Gruber/USA Today via Reuters, Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images, Al Drago/Bloomberg, Jack Gruber/Getty Images
“CPAC — the Conservative Political Action Conference — for years was a chance for the right to test-drive rising GOP leaders.
This year, CPAC is a lot smaller and a lot simpler: It's the Trump show.
Former President Trump tomorrow will address the final session of the four-day conference in National Harbor, Maryland.
It'll be his highest-profile public appearance since launching his campaign in November. And it comes as Trump is planning to ramp up his attacks on Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who looks for now like his strongest rival for the 2024 nomination.
DeSantis won’t be at CPAC. Neither will Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin or former Vice President Mike Pence or House Speaker Kevin McCarthy or RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel.
Nikki Haley did give it a go, with a speech echoing her campaign’s theme of generational change.
But she was ‘heckled by supporters of former president Donald Trump following a speech to a half-full ballroom,’ The Washington Post reports.
The bottom line: CPAC — sometimes called the conservative Woodstock — has historically represented a small but important slice of the GOP base.
But it's no longer a center of gravity pulling important Republicans into its orbit. Now Trump is the center of gravity — and CPAC orbits him.” [Axios]
“Vladimir Putin is talking martial law. As Russia struggles to finally take the destroyed Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, having sacrificed untold number of poorly trained recruits and mercenaries in the process, at home he’s making noises about militarizing the economy. Putin signed a decree Friday laying out new rules for state control of companies should they fail to fulfill defense contracts in the event martial law is imposed. In Washington, President Joe Biden lauded Germany for pledging military support to Ukraine as he met with Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the White House. The US is preparing to announce a new military aid package for Ukraine worth around $400 million, including rockets for mobile launchers, ammunition for armored fighting vehicles and demolition munitions. Here’s the latest on the war, including a visit to Kyiv by US Attorney General Merrick Garland and indications Hungary may lift any objections to Sweden and Finland joining NATO.” [Bloomberg]
Ukraine says its forces in Bakhmut, above on Feb. 27, have been under intense pressure as Russian forces struggle to capture the eastern Donetsk town. Photographer: AFP
“Israel’s new far-right government is besieged by multiple crises, mostly of its own creation, and with no clear way out: Israeli troops have killed more than 60 Palestinians in 2023, the most in two decades, as the US, and neighbors Egypt and Jordan, grasp for a solution. Odds of an Israeli strikeagainst a quickening Iranian nuclear program may be rising as well. And domestic strife may be reaching a breaking point as hundreds of thousands of Israelis take to the streets to decry plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (who faces charges of bribery) and his government to gut the judiciary. How serious is the schism? Yuval Diskin, former head of Israel’s domestic security agency, says ‘we are liable to be on the brink of civil war.’” [Bloomberg]
Demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv on March 1 to protest Benjamin Netanyahu’s bid to restrict the authority of Israel’s judiciary. Photographer: Jack Guez/Getty Images
In Chernobyl’s Stray Dogs, Scientists Look for Genetic Effects of Radiation
A new study is the first step in an effort to understand how exposure to chronic, low-level radiation has affected the area’s dogs.
“After the disaster at the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine, in 1986, local residents were forced to permanently evacuate, leaving behind their homes and, in some cases, their pets. Concerned that these abandoned animals might spread disease or contaminate humans, officials tried to exterminate them.
And yet, a population of dogs somehow endured. They found fellowship with Chernobyl cleanup crews, and the power plant workers who remained in the area sometimes gave them food. (In recent years, adventurous tourists have dispensed handouts, too.)
Today, hundreds of free-ranging dogs live in the area around the site of the disaster, known as the exclusion zone. They roam through the abandoned city of Pripyat and bed down in the highly contaminated Semikhody train station.
Now, scientists have conducted the first deep dive into the animals’ DNA. The dogs of Chernobyl are genetically distinct, different from purebred canines as well as other groups of free-breeding dogs, the scientists reported Friday in Science Advances….” Read more at New York Times
The Number of ATMs Has Declined as People Rely Less on Cash
The pandemic drove digital-payment surge for many, but those who depend on cash are feeling crunch
The number of automated teller machines has fallen every year since 2019.
“The slow move toward a cashless society is helping to send the ubiquitous ATM into decline around the U.S., presenting challenges for those who still largely rely on cash.
After peaking at 470,000 ATMs in the U.S. in 2019, the number of machines has declined annually over the past few years to 451,500 at the end of 2022, according to data tracked by research firm Euromonitor International. The reason: Many people quit using cash during the pandemic and haven’t gone back, said Kendrick Sands, consumer finance research manager for the London-based firm….” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“The median age for first-time homebuyers in the US is now the highest on record, and housing prices are at their least affordable in four decades. This dynamic may push would-be buyers into new construction, since existing homeowners have few incentives to give up their low-rate mortgages. On the commercial front, the work-from-home revolution has helped land major office landlords in default, raising fears of more to come as the pandemic reshapes offices, city centers and your commute.” [Bloomberg]
“Amazon, like other Silicon Valley giants, started the new year by firing huge numbers of employees, 18,000 in the case of Jeff Bezos’s behemoth. Now the company, which a few years back pulled out of a planned outpost in New York, says it’s delaying construction on a second headquarters near Washington. And some of those cashier-less Amazon stores in Seattle, New York and San Francisco are getting the ax, too.” [Bloomberg]
Robots take over as security guards
Photo: Cobalt Robotics
“Security robots are starting to replace human guards in workplaces and beyond, Axios' Jennifer A. Kingson reports.
Robot security guards don't necessarily put human ones out of business — they just allow them to swoop in strategically or work on different tasks, like programming and maintaining the robots.
How it works: Robots can check in visitors and issue badges, respond to alarms, report incidents, and see things security cameras can't.” [Axios]
Photo: Cobalt Robotics
Early bloom
A cherry blossom tree blooms in D.C. on Feb. 20. Photo: Stefani Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images
“A historically warm winter across a wide swath of America has led to a surprising sight: plenty of flowers blooming in the early days of March, Axios Local reporters found all over the country:
Native wildflowers in Columbus, Ohio, are blooming one to two weeks ahead of schedule.
Texas' famed bluebonnets are already popping up around Houston.
Some of Washington's famous cherry blossoms bloomed early. The National Park Service ‘Peak Bloom Projection’ is March 22–25.
Vince Marrocco, director of horticulture at Philadelphia's Morris Arboretum, told Axios: ‘The beautiful cherry blossoms that we’ve been used to in the past, where everything’s all in bloom at once, is going to be more and more of the exception than the rule.’” [Axios]
THE WEEK IN CULTURE
Michael B. Jordan in “Creed III.”Ser Baffo/Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures
“‘Creed III,’ directed by the series’ star, Michael B. Jordan, is ‘enjoyably old-school Hollywood,’ our critic writes. Jordan and his co-star Jonathan Majors had to learn to fight harmoniously.” [New York Times]
“Tom Sizemore’s acting career, which included roles in ‘Saving Private Ryan’ and ‘Black Hawk Down,’ was overshadowed by problems with substance abuse and the law. He died at 61.” [New York Times]
Actor Tom Sizemore, best known for his role in the war drama "Saving Private Ryan," died March 3 following a brain aneurysm earlier this month.
“A Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” will close over Labor Day weekend. Lea Michele ‘single-handedly reversed’ the show’s flagging box-office performance, The Times’s critic writes.” [New York Times]
“Nominees at the Screen Actors Guild Awards were split over the question: Should awards do away with gender categories?” [New York Times]
“Hundreds of items that belonged to Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward will go up for auction.” [New York Times]
“For the first time in Oscars history, four Asian actors received nominations in a single year.” [New York Times]
“The European Fine Art Fair opens today and is hoping to move past last year’s heist.” [New York Times]
“Penguin Random House announced new leadership after a turbulent period.” [New York Times]
“New Yorkers are enamored with Flaco, the Eurasian eagle-owl who escaped his enclosure and began a new life in Central Park.” [New York Times]