The Full Belmonte, 8/21/2023
A person pushes a cart on a flooded street as Tropical Storm Hilary heads north near Palm Springs, California, on Sunday.
“Southern California is waking up this morning from the first tropical storm to hit the region in nine decades, which brought heavy rainfall but not the fatalities officials had feared. Hilary, now a post-tropical cyclone, left some roads underwater and forced Los Angeles public schools — the nation’s second-largest district — to close on Monday.
David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images
The storm broke daily rainfall records from downtown LA to Palm Springs, with mountain and desert communities seeing the most flash flooding.
Erin Stone with LAist tells Up First that emergency responders evacuated dozens of people, including from a mobile home park in the Coachella Valley and a homeless encampment along the San Diego River. But people largely heeded warnings to stay home, and there were no widespread threats to life.
Sunday also saw a 5.1-magnitude earthquake about 80 miles northwest of LA, sparking panic about a #hurriquake. Stone says it wasn’t related to the storm, ‘just a good old-fashioned coincidence.’” [NPR]
GOP debate
“Former President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday he will not participate in the first Republican primary debate, which will take place Wednesday in Milwaukee. For weeks, Trump has privately and publicly floated skipping it, given his lead in the polls. Stating that the public already ‘knows who I am,’ Trump said in a social media post, ‘I will therefore not be doing the debates!’ Sources familiar with Trump's plans tell CNN he is going to sit for an interview with former Fox News Host Tucker Carlson instead. There will be seven other GOP candidates on the debate stage: Former Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, South Carolina Gov. Tim Scott and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson.” [CNN]
Maui wildfires
“President Joe Biden will visit Maui today to witness up close the devastation left by the wildfires more than a week ago. Some residents and Republicans have criticized Biden's response to the disaster and his lengthy period of public silence as the death toll rose to at least 114 last week. Thousands of residents remain displaced and more than 1,000 more are estimated to still be missing as crews continue to comb the burned ruins. Many residents of a tight-knit island community now face a hard choice: move and start over elsewhere or stay and rebuild from scratch. Lahaina's community members recently gathered to urge state leaders to include residents in rebuilding efforts as fears begin to settle in that developers and outsiders are making predatory land grabs while native residents are mourning their losses.” [CNN]
Rare flesh-eating bacteria kills 5 in Florida, 3 in New York, Connecticut
Vibrio vulnificus is a bacterium in the same family as those that cause cholera. It normally lives in warm seawater and is part of a group of vibri.
Media for Medical, UIG via Getty Images
“Five people in the Tampa, Florida, area have died from a rare flesh-eating bacteria that is also the recent cause of death for three others in Connecticut and New York. The Vibrio vulnificus bacteria, which can be found in raw or undercooked seafood, saltwater, and brackish water, led to the deaths of two people since January in Hillsborough County, home of Tampa, according to the Florida Department of Health. One of the Connecticut patients reported eating raw oysters from an out-of-state establishment, while the other two reported exposure to salt or brackish water in the Long Island Sound. And because of climate change and warming ocean waters, Vibrio vulnificus is migrating north, studies have found.” Read more at USA Today
What Meadows told feds
Meadows speaks on the Hill in November. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
“Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told prosecutors he doesn't recall former President Trump ‘ordering, or even discussing, declassifying broad sets of classified materials before leaving the White House,’ ABC's Katherine Faulders, Jonathan Karl and Alexander Mallin scoop.
Sources also told ABC that Meadows — who was indicted this week in the Fulton County, Ga., case — also told investigators for special counsel Jack Smith he's ‘unaware of any 'standing order' from Trump authorizing the automatic declassification of materials taken out of the Oval Office.’
Why it matters: Meadows' account contradicts Trump's biggest defense in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case.
Trump has insisted he ‘declassified everything’ before leaving office.
A statement from Trump's office last year said he had ‘a standing order that documents removed from the Oval Office and taken to the residence were deemed to be declassified the moment he removed them.’
‘Meadows recalled to investigators only one instance in his time serving as Trump's chief of staff where he claimed to see Trump declassifying documents,’ ABC says. That was ‘a binder with materials from the FBI's 'Crossfire Hurricane' investigation into Trump's 2016 campaign's ties with Russia.’
Between the lines: The ABC report — unveiled by Jon Karl this morning on "This Week" — gives an opening answer to one of the biggest mysteries in the Trump cases. Meadows, who was Trump's top aide in the months after the election, has been mighty quiet. It was clear that wasn't good for Trump.
Just yesterday, two-thirds of the New York Times op-ed page was taken up by a piece declaring: ‘Mark Meadows Is Everywhere and Nowhere.’
"Problematic": ABC News also obtained an early draft of the prologue to Meadows' book, "The Chiefs' Chief," published last year.
The book ‘includes a description of Trump having a classified war plan 'on the couch' at his office in Bedminster, New Jersey, at a meeting attended by Meadows' ghostwriter and publicist, but not by Meadows himself,’ ABC reports.
That passage didn't appear in the book.
Meadows told investigators that he asked that the paragraph be changed and that it would be ‘problematic’ if Trump possessed such a document, ABC says.” [Axios]
‘Dog-pile on Ron’
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hops off the stage to greet supporters after speaking at a conference hosted by conservative radio host Erick Erickson in Atlanta on Friday. Photo: Megan Varner/Getty Images
“Former President Trump will skip the opening GOP presidential debate in Milwaukee on Wednesday because he hopes to sit on his huge lead.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will be onstage to try to cling to his distant second place — making him the top target for the rest of the field, Axios' Alex Thompson reports.
DeSantis' advisers expect the night's theme to be ‘dog-pile on Ron.’
Why it matters: The two-hour debate could make or break DeSantis. Several top Republican megadonors tell Axios they'll be watching to see whether DeSantis — or anyone else — has a hope of vanquishing Trump.
DeSantis' new campaign manager, James Uthmeier, sent a memo to donors and supporters this weekend saying that the debate is other candidates' ‘biggest chance yet to grab headlines by attacking the governor.’
The DeSantis campaign says the governor won't be looking to brawl with lesser-polling candidates or even focus on Trump — and instead will emphasize ‘his vision to beat Joe Biden, reverse American decline and revive the American Dream.’
Some lower-polling candidates — entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — previewed attacks on DeSantis after his super PAC urged him to attack them.
Ramaswamy tweeted: ‘We don't need another career politician beholden to the donor class sitting in the White House.’
Christie said that if DeSantis defends Trump at the debate, as the super PAC memo advised, he should just ‘endorse Donald Trump.’
The slate of debaters will be finalized by the RNC today.
The debate airs Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET on Fox News.
Trump brandishes FiveThirtyEight polling averages at his club in Bedminster, N.J., on Aug. 11. Photo: Vincent Carchietta/USA Today Sports via Reuters
The intrigue: Trump said yesterday on Truth Social that he will ‘NOT BE DOING THE DEBATES!’ — suggesting he'll skip all GOP debates.
Wednesday's moderators, Fox News' Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, say they'll ask the other candidates about Trump, including his indictments.
Behind the scenes: Fox will air shots from drones flown indoors and outdoors at Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum and the surrounding Deer District.
MacCallum says she'll prep with meditation and prayer, along with an early run. (Playlist: The Band, Jamestown Revival and The Killers.)
Post-debate, she's ‘looking forward to a cocktail.’
Baier also says he'll take a morning run — and will prep by limiting his daily coffee intake to ‘six cups or fewer.’” [Axios]
Trump's border plans
Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP, Drew Angerer, and Daniel Cardenas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
“Former President Trump plans unprecedented border restrictions if he takes office again — including screening prospective immigrants for Marxism and deploying a naval blockade against drug smugglers, Axios' Stef Kight has learned.
Why it matters: Trump's 2025 immigration plans would go much further than the already-aggressive tactics he used before.
Trump's plan would involve waves of harsh new policies — and dust off old ones that rarely have been enforced, if ever.
Trump adviser Stephen Miller told Axios: ‘For those passionate about securing our immigration system ... the first 100 days of the Trump administration will be pure bliss.’
Among his plans:
Ramp up ideological screening of people applying for legal entry. U.S. law has blocked communists for decades — that just hasn't been enforced. Trump wants to enforce it to reject applicants who are deemed ‘Marxists.’
Send the Coast Guard and Navy to form a blockade to stop drug smugglers.
Expand Trump's ‘Muslim ban’ idea to block more people in more countries.
Designate drug cartels as ‘unlawful enemy combatants’ to allow the U.S. military to target them in Mexico. The U.S. has used that designation to justify long-term detentions of 9/11 suspects at Guantanamo Bay.
Seek to end birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants. Trump considered this as president. But the conservative-leaning Supreme Court has given his team more confidence about taking on the legal fight.
Extend Texas' buoy barriers even farther along the Rio Grande.
Quickly deport migrant gang members, smugglers and other criminals, using an obscure section of the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts.
Complete his wall. Trump spent billions to put 452 miles of new fencing along the 1,954-mile Southwestern border. Biden halted the project.
First Selzer Iowa poll
Data: NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll (406 likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers were contacted Aug. 13-17, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 points). Chart: NBC News
“Famed pollster J. Ann Selzer of Des Moines is out this morning with her first Iowa poll of the cycle:
Former President Trump starts with a 20+ lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis among likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers — with the other hopefuls in single digits, according to Selzer's NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll.
Trump's advantage ‘is the largest Republican caucus lead recorded by the poll since the 2000 contest won by George W. Bush,’ NBC News reports.
Two-thirds of likely caucusgoers (65%) said they don't believe Trump committed serious crimes.
Between the lines: Sizable numbers ‘of likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers are strongly considering DeSantis and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.,’ NBC notes.
Image: CBS News
Best of luck to any Republican competing against this:
In a new CBS News/YouGov poll, Trump voters were far more likely to view him as a source of truth than they were religious leaders.
Among all likely GOP primary voters, 53% considered him a source of truth vs. only 44% for religious leaders.” [Axios]
”Anti-corruption crusader Bernardo Arévalo beat the odds to win Guatemala’s presidential election, a victory many hope will stop the country’s democratic backslide. Arévalo, a former academic, diplomat and the son of Guatemala's first democratically elected president, leads with more than 20 percentage votes.
NPR’s Eyder Peralta says Arévalo was ‘the unlikeliest candidate to win,’ because he had no money — ‘he didn’t even have billboards’ — and he was ‘running an anti-corruption campaign in a country where the ruling class had launched a hunt for people fighting corruption.’
Thousands of Guatemalans celebrated in the streets on Sunday night, with one telling Peralta that ‘democracy has been defended.’
Arévalo’s rival has vowed to challenge the results in court, and Guatemala’s Justice Department has threatened to bring charges against him (which Peralta says are widely viewed as politically motivated).” [NPR]
Netherlands and Denmark to donate up to 61 F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine
Danish PM says country will provide 19 in stages when pilot training is completed as Dutch counterpart pledges up to 42 planes
“The Netherlands and Denmark have announced they will donate up to 61 F-16 fighter jets between them to Ukraine once pilot training has been satisfactorily completed, as Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited both countries after months of entreaties to bolster the Ukrainian air force.
Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said her country would provide 19 jets – ‘hopefully’ six around new year, eight more next year and the remaining five in 2025. ‘Please take this donation as a token of Denmark’s unwavering support for your country’s fight for freedom,’ Frederiksen said.
Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister, did not put a number on the Dutch donation, but said the Netherlands had 42 in its air force. The country was already in the process of replacing them with more advanced US-made F-35s…. Read more at The Guardian
Beijing's school for authoritarianism
Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photos: Sebastian Kjeldtoft/Politiken and courtesy Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Leadership School
“DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania — The Chinese Communist Party is teaching African leaders its authoritarian alternative to democracy at its first overseas training school.
Why it matters: It's the strongest evidence yet that Beijing is exporting its model of governing in its push to challenge the Western-led world order, Axios China reporter Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian writes.
Zoom in: At the Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Leadership School in Tanzania, Beijing is countering efforts by the U.S. and other Western countries to shape African politics in a fight for influence on the continent.
Cultivating an authoritarian-friendly political bloc could help China reshape global institutions and guarantee markets as Western sanctions seek to isolate certain Chinese industries.
Chinese and African government officials and Chinese state media have presented the school as a way to promote Africa's economic and social development.
But behind closed doors, economics takes a back seat to political training.
Chinese teachers sent from Beijing train African leaders that the ruling party should sit above the government and the courts and that fierce discipline within the party can ensure adherence to party ideology, Axios learned as the first Western news outlet to visit the school.
The Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Leadership School is a partnership between the ruling parties from Tanzania, Mozambique, Namibia, Angola, South Africa, Zimbabwe and the CCP. Map: Will Chase/Axios
What to watch: Beijing's efforts to create a bloc of like-minded partners for long-term economic benefits and geopolitical influence have already seen dividends.
China is the largest trading partner for numerous African nations and receives strong support from across the continent at the United Nations.
‘What we see in Tanzania is about building something,’ Richard McGregor, senior fellow for East Asia at the Lowy Institute in Australia, told Axios. ‘It's a new era.’” [Axios]
‘Orphaned by decree’: Italy’s same-sex parents react to losing their rights
Rightwing PM Giorgia Meloni has demanded councils register only biological parents on birth certificates, leaving partners in legal limbo
“Whether it is school runs or doctors’ visits, Maria Silvia Fiengo and Francesca Pardi have always shared in the raising of their four children. But in recent months – after Italy’s rightwing government began cracking down on the listing of same-sex parents on birth certificates – the life they have forged together has been thrust into uncertainty.
‘We’re a bit worried. You never know what is going to happen,’ said Fiengo. ‘Our children have had two parents from the very first moment they were dreamed of and brought into the world. But we’re not protected by any law.’
Following the birth of their children, she and Pardi spent years battling for legal recognition, butting up constantly against the absence of a national law setting out parental rights for same-sex couples. In 2018, the city council of Milan offered up a lifeline, telling them it would begin listing parents of the same gender on their children’s birth certificates.
‘It was really beautiful,’ said Fiengo. ‘It gave us strength, our family felt more secure.’
Across the country, a handful of councils were quietly doing the same, transforming the lives of same-sex parents. Their elation, however, was shortlived. This year the Italian government, led by Giorgia Meloni – a hardline traditionalist who has long reiterated her view that a child should only be raised by heterosexual parents – began demanding that councils register only the biological parent.
The mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, said he had little choice but to comply. In the northern city of Padua, the state prosecutor went further, demanding that the 33 birth certificates issued to the children of lesbian couples be changed to remove the name of the non-biological mother. A court is expected to rule on the request later this year.
As rights campaigners warned that the move had plunged hundreds of families in Italy into legal limbo, protests sprung up across Italy and around the world and opposition politicians slammed the move. ‘These children are being orphaned by decree,’ said Alessandro Zan, a gay politician with the Democratic party. ‘This is a cruel, inhumane decision.’
The European parliament called on the Italian government to reconsider its stance. What was taking place in Milan was a ‘direct breach of children’s rights’ set out by the UN, MEPs noted in an amendment to a 2022 report, and ‘part of a broader attack against the LGBTQI+ community in Italy’.
At issue are the sweeping ramifications of allowing only one parent to be legal, said Angelo Schillaci, a law professor at Rome’s Sapienza University.
‘It’s a nightmare for the parents as well as for their children,’ he said. ‘The second of the two fathers or mothers cannot do practically anything, from taking the child to the doctor or picking them up from school, without the authorisation of the legal parent.’
At times even this is not enough. ‘Even with authorisation, for example, they can’t make healthcare decisions related to saving the child’s life.’
The risks for the family are enormous; if the legal parent dies or becomes seriously ill, the surviving partner has no rights over the children, meaning the children could become wards of the state or handed to other relatives.
While some have cited adoption as a potential workaround, Schillaci described it as a complicated fix that can take years to wind through Italian courts. ‘What we need is a law that recognises same-sex parenthood,’ said Schillaci. ‘Because right now, the lack of any such law allows for a series of discriminations and violations of children’s rights – it’s appalling.’” [The Guardian]
A presidential runoff is likely in Ecuador
“The vote count in Ecuador's special presidential election points to a leftist backed by the country’s fugitive ex-president likely facing a runoff with the son of a banana tycoon. Ecuadorians voted on Sunday amid unprecedented violence that even claimed the life of a presidential candidate at a campaign rally less than two weeks before the election. Leftist Luisa González appears set to advance to an Oct. 15 runoff, according to early results released by electoral authorities.
Presidential candidate for Revolucion Ciudadana coalition Luisa Gonzalez speaks during a press conference after the presidential elections on August 20, 2023 in Quito, Ecuador.
Franklin Jacome, Getty Images
Scientists re-created a Pink Floyd song using brain waves.
How? They looked at brain activity of people who listened to “Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1.” That data was then decoded by a machine learning model and reconstructed.
The result: A muddy version of the song, like someone is singing it underwater. It’s the first time researchers have been able to re-create a song from neural signals.
Why it matters: Similar technology could eventually help patients with speech impediments communicate with others.”
Read this story at Washington Post
Loch Ness monster enthusiasts gear up for biggest search in 50 years
Using drones and acoustic equipment, hundreds of volunteers from around the world take part in the surface watch
“It was 90 years ago that Aldie Mackay, manager of the Drumnadrochit hotel, burst into the bar one evening to tell dumbfounded patrons she had just witnessed a ‘water beast’ in Loch Ness.
It was this sighting – zealously reported in the Inverness Courier – that began the modern myth-making around an elusive monster surviving in the depths of the Highland loch – and next weekend hundreds of Nessie enthusiasts are expected to take part in the biggest organised hunt for the mysterious creature in 50 years.
Organised by the newly revamped Loch Ness Centre, volunteers from across the globe will participate in person and online in what is believed to be the largest surface watch, searching for breaks in the water and any inexplicable movements over a two-day period.
In partnership with the voluntary research team Loch Ness Exploration, the hunt will enlist surveying equipment that has never been used on Loch Ness before, including drones to produce thermal images of the water from the air using infrared cameras, as well as a hydrophone to detect acoustic signals beneath the surface.
The recently renovated Loch Ness Centre is located at the old Drumnadrochit hotel, whereAldie Mackay worked.
Over the years, scientists and amateur enthusiasts have endeavoured to find evidence of a large fish such as a sturgeon living in the 230-metre (755ft) deep loch, or even a prehistoric marine reptile like a plesiosaur, but to no avail.
Alan McKenna, of Loch Ness Exploration, who will brief volunteers live from the Loch Ness Centre each morning on what to look out for and how to record findings, said: ‘It’s always been our goal to record, study and analyse all manner of natural behaviour and phenomena that may be more challenging to explain.’…” Read more at The Guardian
Spain wins 2023 World Cup with 1-0 victory over England
“After a month of play Down Under, Spain has walked away victorious, beating England 1-0 on Sunday at Stadium Australia in Sydney to win its first World Cup title. La Roja scored their lone goal in the 29th minute with a sharp kick from Olga Carmona that landed in the right corner of the net. After 13 minutes of extra time, players raised their arms in victory and hugged each other with tears streaming down their faces. They celebrated the championship a little less than a year after 15 players wrote letters of resignation, decrying the leadership of head coach Jorge Vilda. Three of those players ended up playing in the World Cup as Vilda retained his position. Read more at USA Today
Esther Gonzalez of Spain lifts the FIFA Women's World Cup Trophy following victory in the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 Final match between Spain and England at Stadium Australia on August 20, 2023 in Sydney, Australia.
Catherine Ivill, Getty Images
Another NFL scare
Photo: John Fisher/Getty Images
“A Patriots-Packers preseason game was cut short in the fourth quarter last night when Patriots rookie Isaiah Bolden was immobilized after a collision with a teammate and carted off the field on a stretcher.
Bolden was released from the hospital in Green Bay after overnight observation and will travel back to Foxborough with his team, the Patriots said this morning.
Patriots and Packers players said they were reminded of Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills safety who was taken off the field after going into cardiac arrest after a play, seven months ago, AP reports.
‘It brought out that Damar feeling, and that's just scary,’ Patriots wide receiver Kendrick Bourne said.” [Axios]
America's top sushi seller ...
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
... “is Kroger.
By the numbers: The grocery store chain sold over 40 million pieces of sushi last year, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Why it matters: When chains like Kroger — which has some 2,700 stores all over the U.S. and sells sushi at two-thirds of them — turn foods from other countries, like sushi, into big business, they become dining table staples and change the national palate.
Kroger stores get 160 million visits a week, per The Cincinnati Business Courier.
Zoom in: Kroger sold its first sushi in 1991, The Journal notes. After noticing its early popularity, the chain leaned into sushi and added other Asian foods, like seaweed salads, poke bowls and dumplings, which also drive big sales.
Zoom out: A number of other supermarkets — including Whole Foods — also offer sushi. Last year, grocery store sushi made up around 15% of the sushi Americans ate, per The Journal.
Expect that share to grow. Sushi sales at U.S. retailers were up 72% over the last year, per Circana.
Grocery store sushi is cheaper than restaurants and comes pre-packaged — grabbable for lunch-on-the-go or an after-school snack for kids.” [Axios]
August 21, 2023
First, a breaking news update: Tropical Storm Hilary brought flooding and heavy rain to Southern California, deluging desert cities. Follow updates.
By German Lopez
Good morning. We’re covering near-misses on airport runways, severe weather and the Women’s World Cup.
La Guardia Airport.Desiree Rios/The New York Times
Close calls
“The U.S. has not had a fatal plane crash involving a commercial airline in more than 14 years — an incredible safety achievement.
But the elaborate system that keeps planes from crashing is struggling. In recent years, air traffic controllers, who guide planes out of harm’s way, have suffered a staff shortage. Out of 313 air traffic control facilities nationwide, just three as of May met staff targets set by the Federal Aviation Administration and the union representing controllers.
Aviation officials worry the shortage is leading to close calls, in which planes nearly crash. There were at least 46 near misses involving commercial airlines last month, according to an investigation by my colleagues Sydney Ember and Emily Steel that published this morning. Those close calls are still a small fraction of the nearly 1.4 million flights in the U.S. each month, and it is not clear whether the rate is increasing.
But any close call is dangerous, potentially leading to a fatal crash that breaks America’s safety streak. As a spokesman for the F.A.A. said, ‘One close call is one too many.’ The agency’s goal is to reduce the number of such near misses to zero. Staff shortages make that harder.
‘The controllers we’ve talked to take real pride in their job, and they work really hard to make sure these planes are safe,’ Emily told me. ‘But they’re worried that the circumstances around their jobs could make them slip up and that those mistakes could be very dangerous.’
What is behind the shortage? Part of the problem goes back decades: In the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan fired thousands of air traffic controllers who were on strike. The F.A.A. then hired new controllers. Many retired when they became eligible to do so 20 years later. And now, another 20 years later, another wave of controllers is retiring.
Chronic disinvestment in government services is another cause. Over the past decade, the number of fully trained controllers has fallen 10 percent, while airport traffic has increased 5 percent. The F.A.A. has asked for more money to increase hiring. Even if the agency receives those funds, it will take time to hire new controllers and train them.
In the meantime, the U.S. risks more close calls. Some in aviation worry it’s only a matter of time before the overworked system fails to stop a deadly crash.
‘Aviation officials will say that we have the safest system in the world,’ Sydney said. ‘But underlying that success are risks and issues that deserve attention.’” [New York Times]
World's fastest human is American
Noah Lyles crosses the line to win the men's 100m final in Budapest yesterday. Photo: Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters
“Noah Lyles, 26, of Florida earned the title of world's fastest human by taking gold in the 100 meters at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, with a personal best 9.83 seconds.
The victory puts him in position to be the first person to win the 100-200 sprint double since Jamaica's Usain Bolt, who retired in 2017.” [Axios]
Noah Lyles celebrates. Photo: Bernadett Szabo/Reuters
‘Barbie’ dethroned
Xolo Maridueña in a scene from "Blue Beetle." Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures via AP
“The DC superhero film "Blue Beetle" dethroned "Barbie" at the box office after a record-setting run that left movie theaters colored pink for a month.
"Blue Beetle," starring Xolo Maridueña, is DC's first movie with a Latino superhero, AP reports.” [Axios]
Cardboard regatta
Photo: Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images
“Competitors sail in the Great Salem Maritime Cardboard Boat Regatta in Salem, Mass., yesterday.
The custom boats, made from corrugated cardboard and duct tape, must fit at least two people and compete in a set of heats, racing through Salem Harbor.” [Axios]
”Lives Lived: Ron Cephas Jones was an admired actor in theater and on television, including on “This Is Us,” for which he won two Emmy Awards by drawing on his youth of drug addiction and temporary homelessness. He died at 66.” [New York Times]