The Full Belmonte, 5/20/2023
“Just a couple of months ago, the world was eagerly awaiting a signal from the US Federal Reserve that its policy tightening was near an end as it wrestled down inflation. And while Fed Chair Jerome Powell finally gave that sign on Friday, his comments were supplanted by a new economic obstacle out of the central bank’s control. With June 1 being the expected last day the US can fully pay its bills, Republican negotiators abruptly walked out of talks with White House negotiators on Friday, renewing fears of a catastrophic debt default. Just hours earlier, President Joe Biden, in Japan for the Group of Seven summit, urged his deputies to keep pursuing a deal with Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy amid indications from both sides that progress was being made.
From left, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and Kazumi Matsui, mayor of Hiroshima, at the G-7 leaders’ summit in Hiroshima. Photographer: Franck Robichon/EPA
McCarthy triggered the crisis when he decided to use the debt ceiling deadline to demand unrelated cuts to enacted measures, including education loans and climate initiatives. Biden responded to the ultimatum by calling for a ‘clean’ rise of the debt ceiling and separate talks on the budget. A default could plunge the country into recession and send borrowing costs soaring. And even as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen continues to sound the alarm and some Democrats raise options such as the 14th Amendment, Biden is unlikely to have the power to unilaterally save America from a default. But maybe he won’t have to, because on Friday evening, McCarthy said the talks would resume. ‘The obligation to pay the government’s debts lies with Congress—where the framers put it,’ Noah Feldman writes in Bloomberg Opinion. ‘If McCarthy decides not to pay the nation’s bills, there’s nothing Biden can do about it.’” [Bloomberg]
FBI broke rules in scouring foreign intelligence on Jan. 6 riot, racial justice protests, court says
By ERIC TUCKER
FILE - The FBI seal is pictured in Omaha, Neb., Aug. 10, 2022. FBI officials repeatedly violated their own standards when they searched a vast repository of foreign intelligence for information related to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and racial justice protests in 2020. That's according to a heavily blacked-out court order released Friday, May 19, 2023. FBI officials said the violations predated a series of corrective measures that started in the summer of 2021 and continued last year. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
“WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI officials repeatedly violated their own standards when they searched a vast repository of foreign intelligence for information related to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and racial justice protests in 2020, according to a heavily blacked-out court order released Friday.
FBI officials said the thousands of violations, which also include improper searches of donors to a congressional campaign, predated a series of corrective measures that started in the summer of 2021 and continued last year. But the problems could nonetheless complicate FBI and Justice Department efforts to receive congressional reauthorization of a warrantless surveillance program that law enforcement officials say is needed to counter terrorism, espionage and international cybercrime.
The violations were detailed in a secret court order issued last year by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which has legal oversight of the U.S. government’s spy powers. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a redacted version on Friday in what officials said was the interest of transparency. Members of Congress received the order when it was issued last year….” Read more at AP News
Republicans deploy new playbook for abortion bans, citing political backlash
GOP lawmakers in North Carolina and Nebraska are casting new 12-week bans as “mainstream,” while Democrats say they are “cruel and extreme”
“Nebraska antiabortion groups and GOP lawmakers were stunned. In late April, their effort to ban most abortions was tanked by an unlikely person: 80-year-old Sen. Merv Riepe, a longtime Republican.
Instead, on Friday, Nebraska’s conservative legislature voted to ban abortions at 12 weeks of pregnancy — a threshold that significantly narrows the window for legal abortions but still allows the vast majority to occur.
A few days earlier, North Carolina Republicans used their legislative supermajority to enact a similar 12-week ban, calling it a “mainstream” approach that would be more broadly accepted than the stricter bans many conservatives had sought to pass. And in neighboring South Carolina, state Sen. Katrina Shealy (R) told The Washington Post that she and the other female GOP senators who blocked a near-total ban are planning to push for a 12-week ban on most abortions when the state Senate takes up a bill next week restricting abortion after roughly six weeks of pregnancy.
‘We can’t live at the extremes,’ North Carolina Sen. Amy Galey (R) said in an interview. ‘As a country, we can find a way to take a difficult issue and resolve it without a huge amount of acrimony and viciousness.’
Immediately after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Republican lawmakers were quick to embrace so-called “trigger” bans designed to take effect as soon as the decision was released, while others rushed to pass additional restrictions that would halt the procedure in their states, sometimes backing proposals that did not include exceptions for rape or incest.
Now, almost a year later, lawmakers in some Republican-led states have started coalescing behind bans that allow most abortions to continue — a reaction, some Republicans say, to the sustained political backlash to abortion restrictions that has been mounting since the landmark decision in June.
While the 12-week bans have so far only passed in two states — North Carolina and Nebraska — the proposal has also gained traction with some national antiabortion groups who say they’re supportive of restricting abortions as far as a state can, including Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which has also been pushing for, at minimum, national limits on abortion at 15 weeks.
But the approach has drawn sharp criticism from others in the antiabortion movement, who argue the 12 or 15 week bans don’t do enough to stop what they see as widespread murder, allowing more than 90 percent of abortions to continue. Some Republican lawmakers and antiabortion advocates remain adamant that the only path forward is to aim to eradicate abortion completely nationwide.
How voters respond to these new bans could impact how abortion plays out as an issue in the 2024 presidential election. With little polling on the 12 week proposals, it’s unclear whether voters will buy Republican arguments that these kinds of bans are a ‘mainstream’ compromise….” Read more at Washington Post
Sen. Tim Scott makes it official: He’s a Republican candidate for president
By MEG KINNARD
“COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina made it official Friday: He’s running for president.
Scott, the Senate’s only Black Republican, filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission declaring his intention to seek his party’s nomination in 2024. His candidacy will test whether a more optimistic vision of America’s future can resonate with GOP voters who have elevated partisan brawlers in recent years.
The deeply religious 57-year-old former insurance broker has made his grandfather’s work in the cotton fields of the Deep South a bedrock of his political identity. Yet he rejects the notion that racism remains a powerful force in society, and he has cast his candidacy and rise from generational poverty as the realization of a dream only possible in America.
Scott, who last month formed an exploratory committee allowing him to raise and spend money while weighing a White House campaign, has scheduled a formal announcement on Monday at Charleston Southern University, a private Baptist college and Scott’s alma mater, in his hometown of North Charleston….” Read more at AP News
Police officer charged with lying about leaks to Proud Boys leader
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN, LINDSAY WHITEHURST and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
Washington Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Shane Lamond departs federal court after pleading not guilty to obstruction of justice and other charges, Friday, May 19, 2023, in Washington. Lamond is accused of lying about leaking confidential information to a leader of the far-right Proud Boys extremist group and obstructing an investigation after group members destroyed a Black Lives Matter banner in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
“A Washington, D.C. police officer was arrested Friday on charges that he lied about leaking confidential information to Proud Boys extremist group leader Enrique Tarrio and obstructed an investigation after group members destroyed a Black Lives Matter banner in the nation’s capital.
An indictment alleges that Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Shane Lamond, 47, of Stafford, Virginia, warned Tarrio, then national chairman of the far-right group, that law enforcement had an arrest warrant for him related to the banner’s destruction.
Tarrio was arrested in Washington two days before Proud Boys members joined the mob in storming the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Earlier this month, Tarrio and three other leaders were convicted of seditious conspiracy charges for what prosecutors said was a plot to keep then-President Donald Trump in the White House after he lost the 2020 election.
A federal grand jury in Washington indicted Lamond on one count of obstruction of justice and three counts of making false statements. A magistrate judge ordered Lamond’s release from custody after he pleaded not guilty to the charges during his initial court appearance Friday….” Read more at AP News
Trump Ally Could Face Perjury Charge if He Doesn’t Cooperate With D.A.
After bringing charges against former President Donald J. Trump, the Manhattan district attorney’s office is once again investigating Allen H. Weisselberg, 75.
May 19, 2023
“One of Donald J. Trump’s longtime lieutenants, Allen H. Weisselberg, was recently released from the notorious Rikers Island jail complex after pleading guilty to a tax fraud scheme. Yet Mr. Weisselberg’s legal troubles are far from over.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office is now considering a new round of criminal charges against Mr. Weisselberg, 75, and this time he could be charged with perjury, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The threat of new charges represents the latest effort in a two-year campaign to persuade Mr. Weisselberg to testify against Mr. Trump. And it comes at a crucial time, just weeks after the district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, unveiled an indictment of the former president.
Mr. Weisselberg has so far refused to turn against his former boss, but the prosecutors recently ramped up the pressure, warning his lawyers that they might bring the perjury charges if their client declined to testify against Mr. Trump, two of the people said….” Read more at New York Times
Nebraska Votes to Restrict Abortion and Transgender Care for Minors
After weeks of acrimonious debate, Republicans put the two fraught issues into a single bill, which the governor has said he will sign.
May 19, 2023
“Nebraska lawmakers voted on Friday to restrict access to abortion and medical care for transgender youth, after weeks of vociferous debate on two issues that have divided state legislators across the country this year.
Conservative lawmakers bundled provisions restricting access to both forms of medical treatment into a single bill in the final days of the legislative session.
The merger was done for practical reasons in Nebraska’s capital: As a result of persistent filibustering by Democrats, proponents of limits on abortion and transgender care were running out of time to push the issues through as stand-alone laws before the session ended.
The blended bill, known as L.B. 574, passed by a 33-to-15 vote. It includes looser restrictions than the original provisions that Republicans sought to pass. Republicans saw it as a compromise, while Democrats were furious about what they saw as a last-minute scramble to revive restrictions on abortion. Minutes after vote, opponents of the bill gathered outside the chamber and chanted, “Shame!” according to video posted by Nebraska Public Media News….” Read more at New York Times
‘No Labels’ Eyes a Third-Party Run in 2024. Democrats Are Alarmed
The centrist group is gaining steam — and raising money — in its effort to get a candidate on the 2024 ballot, with Joe Manchin at the top of their list.
May 19, 2023
“The bipartisan political group No Labels is stepping up a well-funded effort to field a “unity ticket” for the 2024 presidential race, prompting fierce resistance from even some of its closest allies who fear handing the White House back to Donald J. Trump.
At the top of the list of potential candidates is Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat who has been a headache to his party and could bleed support from President Biden in areas crucial to his re-election.
The centrist group’s leadership was in New York this week raising part of the money — around $70 million — that it says it needs to help with nationwide ballot access efforts.
‘The determination to nominate a ticket’ will be made shortly after the primaries next year on what is known as Super Tuesday, March 5, said Nancy Jacobson, the co-founder and leader of No Labels. A national convention has been set for April 14-15 in Dallas, where a Democrat-Republican ticket would be set to take on the two major-party nominees. (Mr. Biden is facing two long-shot challengers, and Mr. Trump is the Republican front-runner.)
Other potential No Labels candidates being floated include Senator Kyrsten Sinema, an Arizona independent, and former Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, a Republican, who has said he would not run for the G.O.P. nomination and is the national co-chairman of the group. But Mr. Manchin has received most notice recently after speaking on a conference call last month with donors.
‘We’re not looking to pick the ticket right now,’ former Representative Fred Upton, a Michigan Republican and longtime associate of the group, cautioned in an interview on Wednesday as he prepared to meet with donors and leaders in New York. ‘Our focus is getting on the ballot.’
The drive has already secured ballot spots in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado and Oregon and is now targeting Florida, Nevada and North Carolina. But gaining ballot access nationwide is a challenging and expensive effort, and the group still has a long way to go.
Ms. Jacobson called the project ‘an insurance policy in the event both major parties put forth presidential candidates the vast majority of Americans don’t support.’
‘We’re well aware any independent ticket faces a steep climb and if our rigorously gathered data and polling suggests an independent unity ticket can’t win, we will not nominate a ticket,’ she said….” Read more at New York Times
Gun violence generation
Data: Center for Homeland Defense and Security; Note: Includes any incident when a gun is "brandished, is fired, or a bullet hits school property for any reason." Chart: Tory Lysik/Axios Visuals
“More than 1,000 incidents involving firearms have shaken America's schools since 2018 — a dramatic increase over any similar period since at least 1970, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database.
Why it matters: The stunning rise in gun violence on school property is reshaping the daily lives of America's youngest generation, putting children at the center of a previously unthinkable number of life-or-death moments, Axios' Erin Doherty writes.
What's happening: 273 people were killed or wounded on school grounds from 303 gun-related incidents last year alone — both record highs, according to the database.
Guns are the leading cause of death for U.S. children and teens and firearms accounted for nearly 19% of childhood deaths in 2021, according to the CDC.
The daily impacts of gun violence on children extend to the measures schools take to prevent future incidents.
Nearly all (98%) K-12 public schools reported drilling students on lockdown procedures as of the 2019-2020 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.” [Axios]
Fox News’s ‘vitriolic lies’ threaten democracy, says disinformation expert suing channel
Exclusive: Nina Jankowicz, who is suing over campaign of falsehoods, says ‘if Fox isn’t brought to account, it will not stop’
“The woman suing Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News for defamation in the wake of the $787m settlement with the voting machine company Dominion has accused the media giant of waging a campaign of ‘vitriolic lies’ against her that amounts to a threat to democracy.
Nina Jankowicz sued Fox News and its parent company Fox Corporation for allegedly damaging her reputation as a specialist in conspiracy theories and disinformation campaigns. The lawsuit was lodged in a Delaware state court exactly a year after she resigned as executive director of a new Department of Homeland Security unit combatting online disinformation.
The Disinformation Governance Board was abruptly shut down in the wake of a storm of virulent rightwing criticism, allegedly fueled by Fox News. Jankowicz and the new DHS division she led were attacked as being part of a conspiracy to censor rightwing comment spearheaded by Joe Biden.
Jankowicz resigned from the federal post on 18 May 2022, barely three weeks into the job….” Read more at The Guardian
Rudy's "murky mess"
Rudy Giuliani leaves the federal courthouse in Washington yesterday. Photo: Patrick Semansky/AP
“Rudy Giuliani, 78 — once ‘America's mayor,’ now tarnished by his discredited arguments that the 2020 election was stolen — faced legal jeopardy on three fronts this week:
1. During a three-hour hearing in Washington yesterday, Giuliani tried to convince U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell that he made a good-faith effort to produce documents for two Georgia election workers who sued him for defamation, Bloomberg reports.
Giuliani claims he can’t afford $320,000 to hire professionals to perform searches. The judge called the case ‘a murky mess.’
2. Last Monday, Giuliani was sued by Noelle Dunphy, who claims ‘abuses of power, wide-ranging sexual assault and harassment’ and wage theft after she became his business development director in 2019.
She says she has audio recordings of ‘alcohol-drenched rants that included sexist, racist and antisemitic remarks.’ Giuliani denies it. Go deeper.
3. On Wednesday, Daniel Gill — who spent a night in jail after smacking Giuliani on the back and calling him a ‘scumbag’ in a Staten Island ShopRite last year — sued the former mayor and several NYPD officers for false arrest. Go deeper.” [Axios]
New York City is sinking due to weight of its skyscrapers, new research finds
City is sinking approximately 1-2mm each year on average, worsening effects of sea level rise and flooding threat
“New York City is sinking in part due to the extraordinary weight of its vertiginous buildings, worsening the flooding threat posed to the metropolis from the rising seas, new research has found.
The Big Apple may be the city that never sleeps but it is a city that certainly sinks, subsiding by approximately 1-2mm each year on average, with some areas of New York City plunging at double this rate, according to researchers.
This sinking is exacerbating the impact of sea level rise which is accelerating at around twice the global average as the world’s glaciers melt away and seawater expands due to global heating. The water that flanks New York City has risen by about 9in, or 22cm, since 1950 and major flooding events from storms could be up to four times more frequent than now by the end of the century due to the combination of sea level rise and hurricanes strengthened by climate change….” Read more at The Guardian
“Trump Changed the Rules to Make Winning the Nomination Easier
Republicans seeking to keep Donald Trump from becoming their nominee will have to overcome rules even more favorable to the former president than the ones that helped him in 2016. As Gregory Korte writes, more states in 2024 will award delegates through winner-take-all primaries — a system that aided Trump when opponents divided the vote, allowing him to be awarded all or most of the delegates with less than majority support.” [Bloomberg]
“Group of Seven leaders began their summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima in a somber mood over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rising tensions with China.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrived in Japan to join the meeting of rich democracies and speak in person with leaders of countries such as Brazil and India who’ve taken a more neutral stance over Vladimir Putin’s war.
He flew on a military plane from Saudi Arabia, which earlier hosted him and Syrian leader Bashar Al Assad at an Arab League summit, signaling Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s desire to showcase his country as a major diplomatic power.
In the US, White House and Republican negotiators are expected to hold talks through the weekend to avert a catastrophic default. President Joe Biden said he remains confident of a path forward.” [Bloomberg]
Zelenskiy arrives at Hiroshima Airport on Saturday. Photographer: Yuichi Yamazaki/AFP/Getty Images
“G-7 Seeks Stable China Ties While ‘De-risking,’ Communique Says
A copy of the final communique seen by Bloomberg News says the G-7 leaders expressed the desire for ‘constructive and stable’ relations with China even as they pushed ahead with steps to reduce dependence on Beijing for critical supply chains, Alberto Nardelli reports.
China, Russia Are Top Problems for G-7 Leaders Meeting in Japan
Crucial to the success in tackling issues ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine to how to address perceived ‘economic coercion’ from China will be convincing countries in the Global South that G-7 needs their support, Rosalind Mathieson writes.” [Bloomberg]
A fire caused by fragments of a downed Russian rocket in Kyiv on Tuesday. Source: Ukrainian Emergency Situations Ministry/AP Photo
“Japan’s New Military Might Is Rising in a Factory in Hiroshima
Hiroshima, the first city to endure an atomic blast, is the center of both Japan’s pacifist movement and one of its key arms factories. Yoshiaki Nohara reports on how Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is expanding his country’s military at an unprecedented pace in response to an increasingly aggressive China.” [Bloomberg]
WATCH: Kurumi Mori reports that for people of Hiroshima, there’s only one true path: a world without nuclear weapons. Bloomberg QuickTake
“Russia Is Adapting Arms and Tactics Ahead of Ukraine Offensive
Widespread perceptions of Russian army weakness are in some cases either out of date or misconceived, the UK’s Royal United Services Institute says in a report. As Moscow prepares to face a Ukrainian counteroffensive, Marc Champion writes, the study says its military is far from the spent force as it’s often described.
Biden dropped his reluctance to send F-16s to Ukraine after months of pressure from Kyiv and allied governments, announcing the US would support efforts to train Ukrainian pilots to use the fighter jets.” [Bloomberg]
“G-7 to Chase Russia’s Diamonds While Stopping Short of Total Ban
G-7 nations agreed to work together to track Russian diamonds, while stopping short of slapping Moscow with an outright ban on the lucrative gem trade. Alex Wickham and Alberto Nardelli explain that the move could pave the way for an import ban in the future.” [Bloomberg]
“Putin’s War Revives Russia’s Dark Tradition of Informers
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Anna Korobkova says she has been informing on her fellow citizens by presenting the authorities with 1,013 ‘donosy’ — the Russian word for denunciations. She’s perhaps the most prolific example of a growing number of Russians who are joining in the Kremlin’s crackdown on critics of the war.” [Bloomberg]
A mural of Putin on a residential building south of Moscow on Feb. 23. Photographer: Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty Images
“Saudis Welcome Assad in Diplomatic Win for Syria’s Leader
Assad touched down in Saudi Arabia to attend an Arab League summit for the first time in 13 years, Sam Dagher reports. It’s a personal triumph for the 57-year-old Syrian leader, who a decade ago spurned the League’s mediation efforts as it sought to prevent his army crushing largely peaceful protests during the Arab Spring uprisings.” [Bloomberg]
“Record UK Migration Surge Set to Expose Government Divisions
The Office for National Statistics is poised to publish 2022 immigration figures next week that are widely expected to exceed the record 504,000 reported six months ago. As Lucy White writes, that’s a political problem for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who’s under pressure to deliver on a Tory promise to bring down the number of foreigners arriving in the UK each year — a central argument for Britain’s exit from the European Union.” [Bloomberg]
“The Economy Is Roaring Back, But Voters in Greece Count the Cost
Greece’s return from the depths of its economic crisis is impossible to miss in Athens. But as Sotiris Nikas and Paul Tugwell explain, the challenge for Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis as he heads into a tight election this weekend is to convince Greeks that they aren’t being left behind in the transition from what he calls “old Greece” to the new.
Read this QuickTake on why Greece’s fractured politics weigh on its recovery.” [Bloomberg]
“What Gandhi’s Rare Win Over Modi Means for India’s 2024 Vote
Rahul Gandhi’s Congress party faces a long road ahead in its quest to unseat Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a national vote next year despite its win in the Karnataka state ballot. Bibhudatta Pradhan writes that the question is whether Gandhi can build on that momentum in the five remaining state assembly elections before the 2024 contest.” [Bloomberg]
“Paris Is Trying to Steal the UK’s Fintech Crown After Brexit
London’s crown as the biggest center for fintech startups in Europe is slipping and the French capital is trying to take advantage, Aisha S Gani reports. Just as Paris has benefited from the shift of finance jobs from the UK after Brexit, it’s now pushing to become a rival to London and Berlin as a center for fintech founders.” [Bloomberg]
“New passport policies. In honor of Wednesday’s International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia, Mexico issued its first nonbinary passport, which allows the holder to select an “X” gender marker on their document instead of having to choose either male or female. The recipient was Jesús Ociel Baena Saucedo, who received the document in Naucalpan, north of Mexico City. This is a ‘great leap for the freedom and dignity of people,’ said Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard.
Mexico has made significant strides in recent years to protect the rights of LGBTQ individuals. In October 2022, the Mexican state of Tamaulipas became the last region in the country to legalize same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage is still illegal or not recognized in parts of Latin America, including in most Central American states.” [Foreign Policy]
“Prisoner amnesty. Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed a large executive amnesty order on Thursday, releasing around one-fifth of all prisoners in the country. A total of 4,270 individuals were granted freedom in what Mnangagwa called a “noble gesture” to decrease overcrowding in state prisons. Only nonviolent offenders were granted amnesty. The former prisoners will be allowed to vote in the country’s upcoming August elections.” [Foreign Policy]
“What does it mean to be part of the 1%? It depends on where you live: In Monaco it takes $12.4 million, while in the US $5.1 million will do. But in the Philippines, just $57,000 makes the cut. The new data underscore how the pandemic and surging living costs are widening the gap between rich and poor nations. Inside one of the richest nations, inequality reigns as well. About 38.5% of American adults struggle to just make ends meet each month. That’s up from 26.7% from the same period in 2021. Then there’s the rent, which reached another record in New York City in April.” [Bloomberg]
THE WEEK IN CULTURE
Vin Diesel and Daniela Melchior in “Fast X.” Peter Mountain/Universal Pictures, via Associated Press
““Fast X,” the 10th “Fast and Furious” movie, premieres this weekend. Here’s a guide to the franchise’s feuds.
People are looking for love in the Hollywood writers’ picket line.
Montana banned TikTok from operating inside the state, starting next year. Influencers there are worried about their livelihoods.
Do dress sneakers belong in the Oval Office? Experts shudder.
The original “White Men Can’t Jump” was about what it takes to win with panache. Here’s The Times’s review of the new remake.
Paul Simon ruminates on mortality and faith on “Seven Psalms,” an album that could be a farewell.
Killer Mike — part of the rap duo Run the Jewels — opens up on “Michael,” his first solo album in more than a decade.
Priscilla Presley and her granddaughter, Riley Keough, agreed to settle a dispute over their family trust.
A Christian university in New York fired two employees for including their pronouns in their emails.
“The Offbeat Sari,” a London exhibition, explores the influence and evolution of the traditional South Asian garment.
The new concert tees: A world of merchandise is growing around courtroom spectacles like Gwyneth Paltrow’s ski crash trial.
Forests, an emo band from Singapore, was robbed only days into its first U.S. tour. But the shows went on.” [New York Times]
Adidas sells off Yeezys
Yeezys displayed at Laced Up, a sneaker resale store, in Paramus, N.J., last year. Photo: Seth Wenig/AP
“Adidas will start selling its inventory of Yeezy shoes — worth $1.3 billion — and donating the profits to anti-racism groups.
The recipients of the donations will include the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, run by George Floyd's brother, Reuters notes.
Flashback: The sportswear company was left with a stockpile of the popular shoes after it ended its partnership with Yeezy designer and rapper Kanye West, who goes by Ye, last October after he made a string of antisemitic comments in interviews and on social media.
Adidas stopped making new Yeezys, and this will be the first time it is selling the shoes since the partnership ended.
For each shoe sale, Ye will be entitled to previously agreed commissions — 15% of turnover, according to media reports. Adidas has declined to comment on this, Reuters reports.” [Axios]
Salad-bot
Photo: Sweetgreen
“The fast casual spot Sweetgreen is debuting its first automated salad bar in Naperville, Illinois — 30 miles outside of Chicago.
The big picture: Sweetgreen has plans to open 1,000 locations around the world by 2030, and this is the first one where customers' salads are prepared by a robot.
It's faster, more accurate and more precise, Sweetgreen notes.
Photo: Sweetgreen
‘Guests can watch the technology at work, from dispensing greens and dressing bowls and plates, to evenly dispersing ingredients and mixing salads.’
Humans are still involved. ‘Team members add the final touches at the finishing station, with a sprinkle of herbs or a scoop of avocado,’ the company says.” [Axios}
Videos show purported ivory-billed woodpeckers as US moves toward extinction decision
By MATTHEW BROWN
FILE - An ivory-billed woodpecker specimen is on a display at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, Friday, Sept. 24, 2021. New video and photographs purporting to show ivory-billed woodpeckers flying in a Louisiana forest were published by researchers Thursday, May 18, 2023, as government officials said they will make a final decision on whether the birds are extinct by the end of the year. (AP Photo/Haven Daley, File)
“New video and photographs purporting to show ivory-billed woodpeckers flying in a Louisiana forest were published by researchers on Thursday, as government officials said they will make a final decision this year on whether the birds are extinct.
The images — grainy and taken from a distance by drones and trail cameras — offer tantalizing hints the large woodpecker may yet exist almost 80 years after the last agreed-upon sightings, in Louisiana.
Several experts said it adds to prior indications of their survival. They called on the government to drop the pending proposal to write off the so-called Lord God Bird — a nickname derived from the exclamation some viewers made upon seeing one.
But others dismissed the new research as inconclusive, including a scientist who said some of the footage clearly depicts another type of woodpecker many amateurs mistake for the ivory-billed.
The peer-reviewed research in the journal Ecology and Evolution comes from a group that’s spent more than a decade searching for the woodpeckers at an undisclosed site….” Read more at AP News
Dog gone
Photo: Courtesy of Kraft Heinz
“Say goodbye to Oscar Mayer’s Wienermobile and hello to the Frankmobile — the new name for the brand's beloved hotdog-shaped vehicle, writes Axios' Kelly Tyko.
Kraft Heinz announced this week that it renamed the iconic vehicle for the first time since 1936 to pay homage to a new recipe.” [Axios]
Jim Brown, all-time NFL great and social activist, dead at 87
By TOM WITHERS
“CLEVELAND (AP) — Jim Brown was virtually unstoppable in every arena.
Whether on the field, as a Hollywood film hero or civil rights advocate, Brown was a force.
One of the greatest players in NFL history, Brown, who retired at the peak of his playing career to pursue acting and remained in the public spotlight as an activist — and due to off-field transgressions that included allegations of violence against women — has died. He was 87.
A spokeswoman for Brown’s family said he died peacefully in his Los Angeles home on Thursday night with his wife, Monique, by his side.
One of pro football’s first superstars, Brown was a wrecking ball while leading the league in rushing for eight of his nine seasons with the Cleveland Browns. He never missed a game, playing in 118 straight before his sudden retirement in 1965 — after being named Most Valuable Player.
Brown led the Browns to their last championship in 1964 before quitting football in his prime at age 30 to make movies. He appeared in more than 30 films, including “Any Given Sunday” and “The Dirty Dozen.”
A powerful runner with speed and endurance, Brown’s arrival sparked the game’s burgeoning popularity on television and he remained an indomitable figure well after his playing days ended.
Brown was also a champion for Black Americans and used his platform and voice to fight for equality.
“I hope every Black athlete takes the time to educate themselves about this incredible man and what he did to change all of our lives,” NBA star LeBron James said. “We all stand on your shoulders Jim Brown. If you grew up in Northeast Ohio and were Black, Jim Brown was a God.”
In June 1967, Brown organized “The Cleveland Summit,” a meeting of the nation’s top Black athletes, including Bill Russell and Lew Alcindor, who later became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to support boxer Muhammad Ali’s fight against serving in Vietnam.
In later years, he worked to curb gang violence in LA and in 1988 founded Amer-I-Can, a program to help disadvantaged inner-city youth and ex-convicts.
On the field, there was no one like Brown, who would blast through would-be tacklers, refusing to let one man take him down before sprinting away from linebackers and defensive backs. He was also famous for using a stiff arm to shed defenders in the open field or push them away like they were rag dolls.….
Off the field, Brown was a contentious, complicated figure.
While he had a soft spot for those in need, he also was arrested a half-dozen times, mostly on charges of hitting women.
In June 1999, Brown’s wife called 911, saying Brown had smashed her car with a shovel and threatened to kill her. During the trial, Monique Brown recanted. Jim Brown was acquitted of a charge of domestic threats but convicted of misdemeanor vandalism. A Los Angeles judge sentenced Brown to six months in jail when he refused to attend domestic violence counseling….
Brown was an eight-time All-Pro and went to the Pro Bowl in each of his nine years in the league. When he retired, he held the league’s records for yards (12,312) and touchdowns (126).” Read more at AP News
The Smiths Bassist Andy Rourke Dies at 59
“Andy Rourke, the bassist who played in beloved Manchester band The Smiths, has died, reports said on Friday. He was 59. Rourke’s passing was confirmed by Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr on Twitter. ‘It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Andy Rourke after a lengthy illness with pancreatic cancer,’ Marr wrote alongside a picture of Rourke. ‘Andy will be remembered as a kind and beautiful soul by those who knew him and as a supremely gifted musician by music fans. We request privacy at this sad time.’ As well as his work in The Smiths, Rourke played on some of Morrissey’s solo songs, including “The Last of the Famous International Playboys,” and performed with other artists including Sinéad O’Connor, The Pretenders, and Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown.”
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Read it at The Independent