“The United States, European Union, NATO and other world powers on Monday accused the Chinese government of a broad array of malicious cyber activities, blaming its Ministry of State Security and affiliated criminals for a sophisticated attack on Microsoft’s widely usedemail server software earlier this year.
The condemnations represent the first time NATO, a 30-nation alliance, has called out Beijing’s cyber activities following the Biden administration’s pledge in June to rally U.S. allies against malign Chinese behavior. The number of nations involved amounts to the largest condemnation of China’s cyber aggressions to date, U.S. officials said.
The joint statements stopped short, however, of punishing China for its alleged actions, exposing the challenge of confronting the world’s second largest economy by an alliance with deep business ties there.” Read more at Washington Post
“Public opinion polls in the 2020 presidential election suffered from errors of ‘unusual magnitude,’ the highest in 40 years for surveys estimating the national popular vote and in at least 20 years for state-level polls, according to a study conducted by the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR).
The AAPOR task force examined 2,858 polls, including 529 national presidential race polls and 1,572 state-level presidential polls. They found that the surveys overstated the margin between President Biden and former president Donald Trump by 3.9 points in the national popular vote and 4.3 percentage points in state polls.
Polls understated the support for Trump in nearly every state and by an average of 3.3 percentage points overall. Polls in Senate and gubernatorial races suffered from the same problem.” Read more at Washington Post
“Total U.S. coronavirus deaths reported today: 609,021.
As of this morning, 56 percent of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 48.6 percent is fully vaccinated, according to the Bloomberg News global vaccine tracker.
Get ready for more coronavirus clashes this week — from the nation’s capital to Tokyo, where the delayed Summer Olympics begin on Friday amid protests, COVID-19 cases among athletes and empty bleachers.
President Biden is expected to field questions about the pandemic and other issues during a CNN town hall broadcast from Cincinnati on Wednesday, while first lady Jill Biden is scheduled to represent the United States on Friday in Japan, where only 20 percent of the population has been vaccinated against COVID-19, as the Olympics get underway.
In the United States, confirmed coronavirus cases rose 140 percent in the past two weeks, particularly in regions where vaccination rates are low. There is a renewed debate in Washington about whether vaccinated people, who may be asymptomatic with rare ‘breakthrough’ cases of the coronavirus, and unvaccinated people, who have the greatest risk of hospitalization and death, should all be required to wear masks indoors as the delta variant spreads in every state.
The Hill: Public health experts believe cases of the rampaging delta variant are undercounted in the United States because testing in the absence of serious illness is rare.
Two Americas — vaccinated and unvaccinated — face uncertainties about rising infections, health risks and mitigation strategies. Los Angeles County and Las Vegas say their respective requirements to wear masks indoors in public spaces are not punishment but prevention. Public health experts are of two minds. They worry that requiring vaccinated people to wear masks could backfire and leave the vaccine holdouts even less inclined to get doses (The Hill). Orange County, Fla., Mayor Jerry Demings, the Democratic spouse of Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), who is running for the Senate, also urged unvaccinated and vaccinated residents to wear masks indoors while in public locations (The Hill).
Former U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, who served during the previous administration, and current Surgeon General Vivek Murthy disagree about current mask guidance. Murthy backs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which advises that communities can respond to specific infection rates and vaccinated individuals can decide on mask preferences indoors or outside. Adams says he regrets the government’s earliest instructions about masks in 2020, arguing the CDC’s decision to relax mask recommendations for fully vaccinated Americans is ‘premature’ and ‘wrong (‘The Hill).
Murthy focused his attention Sunday on unvaccinated people he hopes might be persuaded to get the jab after hearing about the delta variant’s rising risk of disease. ‘I am worried about what is to come because we are seeing increasing cases among the unvaccinated in particular. And while if you are vaccinated you are very well protected against hospitalization and death, unfortunately that is not true if you are not vaccinated,’ Murthy said during interviews on CNN’s ‘State of the Union’ (The Hill) and “Fox News Sunday” (The Hill).
The Sunday Shows: Surgeon general in the spotlight as the delta variant spreads.
Arkansas leads states suffering through a surge of infections (The New York Times) and Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a Republican and chairman of the National Governors Association, is delivering straight-up advice to get vaccinated to occasionally hostile constituents (The Associated Press).
In Tokyo, the Olympic Village confirmed its first cases of COVID-19 among athletes over the weekend. International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said last week there was ‘zero’ risk of athletes passing on the virus to Japanese or other residents of the village. But that bold statement is already being tested (The Associated Press). Tokyo is experiencing Olympic protests, animosity and examples of xenophobia as 11,000 athletes prepare to compete (The Washington Post).
“CHICAGO (AP) — A Florida man who breached the U.S. Senate chamber carrying a Trump campaign flag is scheduled to become the first Jan. 6 rioter sentenced for a felony, in a hearing that will help set a benchmark for punishment in similar cases.
Prosecutors want Paul Allard Hodgkins to serve 18 months behind bars, saying in a recent filing that he, ‘like each rioter, contributed to the collective threat to democracy ‘by forcing lawmakers to temporarily abandon their certification of Joe Biden’s election victory and to scramble for shelter from incoming mobs.
Video footage shows Hodgkins, 38, wearing a Trump 2020 T-shirt, the flag flung over his shoulder and eye goggles around his neck inside the Senate. He took a selfie with a self-described shaman in a horned helmet and other rioters on the dais behind him.
His sentencing Monday in Washington could set the bar for punishments of hundreds of other defendants as they decide whether to accept plea deals or go to trial. Hodgkins and others are accused of serious crimes but were not indicted, as other were, for roles in larger conspiracies.” Read more at AP News
“A man in China has died after contracting a rare infectious disease from primates, known as the Monkey B virus, Chinese health officials revealed in a report Saturday. The victim, a 53-year-old veterinarian based in Beijing, was the first documented human case of the virus in China.
According to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the man worked in a research institute that specialized in nonhuman primate breeding and dissected two dead monkeys in March. He experienced nausea, vomiting and fever a month later, and died May 27. His blood and saliva samples were sent to the center in April, where researchers found evidence of the Monkey B virus. Two of his close contacts, a male doctor and a female nurse, tested negative for the virus, officials said.
The Monkey B virus, or herpes B virus, is prevalent among macaque monkeys, but extremely rare — and often deadly — when it spreads to humans. In humans, it tends to attack the central nervous system and cause inflammation to the brain, leading to a loss of consciousness, said Kentaro Iwata, an infectious-disease expert at Kobe University in Tokyo. If untreated, there’s about an 80 percent fatality rate.” Read more at Washington Post
“President Biden’s economic agenda is set to face a major test on Capitol Hill this week, as the Senate barrels toward an early vote on a roughly $1 trillion proposal to improve the nation’s infrastructure even though negotiators still have not agreed on key details.
Despite months of frenetic negotiations, lawmakers are slated to return to the Capitol on Monday in the same political position in which they departed last week: They broadly support new spending to upgrade the nation’s roads, bridges, pipes, ports, and Internet connections, yet remain plagued by a series of schisms over how to finance the still-forming package.
Seeking to keep their coalition of about two dozen Democrats and Republicans intact, congressional negotiators in recent days said they opted to eliminate one of the key elements that financed their initial infrastructure blueprint. Senators had hoped to raise about $100 billion by empowering the Internal Revenue Service to pursue unpaid federal taxes, but Republicans balked at the idea out of a concern it would give the tax-collection agency too much power to scrutinize families and corporations’ finances.
Without that provision, Democrats and Republicans were left scrambling into the weekend to try to identify alternative ways to pay for their infrastructure blueprint. The meetings continued Sunday, according to Senator Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican, one of the lawmakers leading negotiations over the infrastructure deal, who acknowledged the ‘pushback’ they faced on IRS provisions — and stressed the importance in the eyes of many lawmakers that the final product is ultimately ‘paid for.’” Read more at Boston Globe
“Extreme weather in Western Europe continued on Sunday as the district of Berchtesgadener Land in Southern Germany suffered flash flooding that killed at least one person.
It brings the death toll from the floods to 188, although authorities expect that figure to increase in the coming days as receding flood waters allow a more thorough assessment of the damage; 27 of those deaths were recorded in Belgium, while the remainder were in Germany.
Merkel responds. Visiting the village of Schuld on Sunday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the devastation ‘terrifying’ and stressed the need for the world to ‘be faster in the battle against climate change.’ She also vowed federal assistance in repairing the damage, with $354 million in emergency aid already agreed ahead of further aid discussions this week.
Roger Lewentz, the interior minister of Rhineland-Palatinate—the worst-hit German state, sought to defend authorities from accusations that the area was unprepared, citing the freak nature of the floods. Authorities ‘tried very quickly to react, ‘Lewentz said. ‘But this was an explosion of the water in moments. … You can have the very best preparations and warning situations (but) if warning equipment is destroyed and carried away with buildings, then that is a very difficult situation.’
Catastrophe and campaigning. With just 10 weeks to go until Germany’s election, the flood sites have doubled as campaign stops. Annalena Baerbock, the Green party’s co-chair cut short her summer vacation to visit flooded areas last Friday, while Olaf Scholz, the Social Democrats’ likely candidate for chancellor was quick to act as crisis manager, announcing federal relief funds in his role as finance minister.
Armin Laschet, the presumed favorite for chancellor as the new leader of Merkel’s Christian Democratic bloc, had a less successful audition for the top job. Video cameras captured Laschet giggling and chatting with others while German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivered a solemn address. Laschet’s rivals have tried to paint the gaffe as disqualifying, and he was forced to apologize later on Twitter.
Antediluvian polling. It’s not yet clear whether Laschet’s behavior will cost his party with voters; recent opinion polling before the floods gave the CDU/CSU coalition a double digit lead over its Green and Social Democratic challengers.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Firefighters on Monday are continuing to battle more than 80 major fires raging across the hot, drought-stricken West, fire officials said. Wildfires burning Sunday in 13 states torched more than 1,800 square miles from Alaska to California and Minnesota to New Mexico. Almost 20,000 firefighters were working to keep the blazes at bay. One of the fires, the Bootleg Fire in southern Oregon, consumed more than 476 square miles – and destroyed at least 67 homes, as of Sunday. The blaze, which was 22% contained, forced 2,000 people to evacuate and threatened 5,000 buildings.” Read more at USA Today
“WASHINGTON—Three Democratic state lawmakers who left Texas to prevent the GOP-controlled legislature from enacting stricter voting laws have tested positive for the coronavirus, the Texas House Democratic Caucus said on Saturday.
One tested positive on Friday night and informed the rest of the caucus. Two others tested positive on Saturday using a rapid test. All three were fully vaccinated, the group said. Other members and staff have taken rapid tests as well.
More than 50 Democratic lawmakers and 15 to 20 staff members came to Washington to push Congress to pass new voting-rights laws after leaving Texas, which denied the state legislature the quorum needed to approve laws. Members of the group met over the past week with members of Congress and Vice President Kamala Harris.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“Austrian authorities say they are investigating reports that US diplomats in Vienna have experienced symptoms of a mystery illness known as Havana Syndrome. A US State Department spokesperson said: ‘We are vigorously investigating reports of possible unexplained health incidents among the US Embassy Vienna community or wherever they are reported.’ Victims of Havana Syndrome have reported a varying set of symptoms and physical sensations, including sudden vertigo, nausea, headaches and head pressure, sometimes accompanied by a ‘piercing directional noise.’ Some have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries. Incidents like this began in late 2016 in Cuba and have been reported in Russia, China and elsewhere.” Read more at CNN
“Science competition | Congress is aiming to hobble China’s ability to recruit scientists and academics in the U.S. as part of moves to confront its growing clout. A bill passed in the House to bolster research and development would bar scientists and academics from participating in U.S.-funded research projects if they’re also getting support from Beijing, another sign of the strained relationship between the world’s biggest economies.” Read more at Bloomberg
“The Britney Spears’ conservatorship battle continues Monday with Judge Brenda Penny conducting a conference call with attorneys from both sides. The discussion will cover potential security for the temporary conservator who oversees Spears’ medical care. Last week was a major week for the pop star’s ongoing effort to be freed from the 13-year conservatorship, under which she has little control over her finances or life decisions. Penny granted Spears' request to hire Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor, to represent her. In an Instagram post Saturday, Spears vowed not to perform ‘on any stages anytime soon’ as long as her father Jamie Spears remains in control of her conservatorship. ‘This conservatorship killed my dreams,’ Spears wrote.” Read more at USA Today
“Green bet | When Royal Dutch Shell announced it would slash capacity by half at its biggest oil refinery, a mainstay of the Singapore economy for six decades, it marked a turning point in one of the most successful bets on fossil fuels in history. The city-state’s government has now set out a path for it to become a leading regional hub for carbon trading, green finance and consulting.” Read more at Bloomberg
“One-time student protest leader Gabriel Boric and former government minister Sebastian Sichel won upset victories in Chile’s presidential primary elections. In the latest blow to Chile’s traditional parties amid lingering social discontent, Boric beat a Communist Party candidate who spooked financial markets with calls for radical economic reform and Sichel defeated one of Chile’s best-known politicians to advance to the first round of presidential elections on Nov. 21.” Read more at Bloomberg
“King Abdullah at the White House. Jordanian King Abdullah II becomes the first Arab leader to visit Joe Biden’s White House today for discussions in part to ‘showcase Jordan’s leadership role in promoting peace and stability’ in the Middle East, according to a White House statement. King Abdullah’s visit comes as his kingdom is still dealing with the fallout of an alleged coup plot involving former Crown Prince Hamzah bin Hussein. It also comes as Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque compound—which Jordan administers as a custodian—has again become a site of conflict, as Israeli security forces cleared Muslim worshippers from the area to allow for Jewish visitors to tour the site on Sunday.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Pegasus hack. Several journalists, business executives, and human rights activists have had their phones secretly put under surveillance by a number of national governments using spyware software licensed by Israeli company NSO, according to an investigation by an international journalism consortium. The software, called Pegasus, is marketed as a counterterrorism tool, but appears to have abused by some governments—those in Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Hungary, India, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates in particular.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Americans sentenced in Ghosn case. Two Americans charged with helping former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn flee to Lebanon from Japan were handed prison sentences by a Japanese court on Monday. Michael and Peter Taylor, a father-son duo who reportedly helped Ghosn escape Tokyo by hiding him in a box used for audio equipment, had pleaded guilty in June. Peter Taylor was given an 18-month prison sentence, while his father Michael was given a two year sentence.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Zoom to buy Five9 in a deal valued at $14.7 billion. The all-stock deal for the cloud-based customer-service software provider will help Zoom expand its potential offerings for business and enterprise clients. The growth opportunity will allow the videoconferencing service to tap into a $24 billion contact-center market.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“Retailers' use of face-recognition tech, which can scan or store facial images of shoppers and workers, has accelerated during the pandemic, Axios' Kim Hart writes in her "Tech Agenda" column.
Why it matters: Retailers were looking for ways to track foot traffic with fewer employees, and offer contactless payments. Now, of course, they're keeping this new power.
Where it stands: Stores including Walmart, Kroger, Home Depot and Target have said they won't use facial recognition technologies, according to a list by an advocacy group, Fight for the Future.
But Albertsons, Macy's and Apple Stores do use the tech, per the list. Their privacy policies say they use it for security and to prevent fraud.
Portland, Ore., last year became the first U.S. city to ban facial recognition by retail stores, hotels and restaurants.
How it works: Facial recognition tools are primarily used by retailers for security reasons — chiefly, to prevent shoplifting — and they usually don't link images to personally identifiable information, says Brenda Leong of the Future of Privacy Foundation. She said there are plenty of other ways stores would like to use the technology, including:
Identifying loyalty club members the minute they enter a store to send them push alerts and text messages about deals.
Knowing exactly how long a customer is in the store to help tailor their experience in future visits.
Using biometric systems for employees to clock in and out, and track workers' whereabouts and monitor productivity.” Read more at Axios
“CANNES, France — The 2021 edition of the Cannes Film Festivalgave its top prize, the prestigious Palme d’Or, to the French film ‘Titane.’
A wild serial-killer story with some of the most controversial scenes of the festival, ‘Titane ‘was directed by Julia Ducournau, who became just the second woman to win the Palme, after Jane Campion took the prize in 1993 for ‘The Piano.’
And though ‘Titane ‘had been hotly tipped as a prime contender for the Palme, that reveal came much earlier than intended: At the beginning of the closing ceremony, when the jury president, Spike Lee, was asked to announce the first prize of the night, he misunderstood and read off the first-prize winner instead.” Read more at New York Times
“Erin Gilmer, a lawyer and disability rights activist who fought for medical privacy, lower drug prices and a more compassionate health care system as she confronted a cascade of illnesses that left her unable to work or even get out of bed for long stretches, died on July 7 in Centennial, Colo. She was 38.
Anne Marie Mercurio, a friend whom Ms. Gilmer had given power of attorney, said the cause was suicide.
First in Texas and later in Colorado, where she had her own law practice, Ms. Gilmer pushed for legislation that would make health care more responsive to patients’ needs, including a state law, passed in 2019, that allows pharmacists in Colorado to provide certain medications without a current prescription if a patient’s doctor cannot be reached.
She was a frequent consultant to hospitals, universities and pharmaceutical companies, bringing an extensive knowledge of health care policy and even more extensive firsthand experience as a patient.” Read more at New York Times
“Mat George, the 26-year-old co-host of the podcast ‘She Rates Dogs’ known for his humorous takes on dating, pop culture and his identity as a gay man, was struck and killed by a car in Los Angeles on Saturday in what the authorities called a hit-and-run.” Read more at New York Times
Final round: Collin Morikawa poses for pictures with the Claret Jug.Paul Ellis, AFP via Getty Images
“Twenty-four-year-old Californian Collin Morikawa closed with a bogey-free, 4-under 66 at the Royal St. George's Golf Club in Sandwich, southern England, and won the British Open in his debut Sunday, becoming the first player to capture two different majors on the first attempt. He won the PGA Championship 11 months ago.” Read more at USA Today
“Tadej Pogacar, a 22-year-old cycling phenom from Slovenia, won his second straight Tour de France.” Read more at New York Times
“LeBron James’ agent, Rich Paul, is dating singer Adele, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said following Saturday's Game 5 of the NBA Finals between Milwaukee and Phoenix. Adele, who has won 15 Grammy awards, finalized her divorce with now-ex-husband Simon Konecki earlier this year.” Read more at USA Today
“The Yankees' first win over Red Sox was marred by a fan throwing a baseball at Boston's Alex Verdugo.” Read more at USA Today
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