WorldReutersItalian prosecutor seeks life sentences for U.S. students accused of killing
An Italian prosecutor on Saturday demanded life sentences for two young Americans being tried on murder charges after a policeman was killed following a botched drugs sale in Rome. Finnegan Lee Elder, who was 19 at the time, has admitted to stabbing Mario Cerciello Rega in the early hours of July 26, 2019, while his friend Gabriel Christian Natale-Hjorth, then 18, was tussling with another police officer. Under Italian law, anyone who participates even indirectly in a murder can face murder charges.
PoliticsThe WeekManchin signs off on Democrats' stimulus bill unemployment compromise
After nine hours of negotiations, Senate Democrats reached a compromise on the enhanced unemployment payments in President Biden's COVID-19 stimulus plan, setting it up for passage perhaps as early as Saturday. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), a crucial moderate vote on the Democratic side in the 50-50 Senate, had expressed concern about raising the existing $300 per week benefit (which is set to expire on March 14) to $400 per week, but he came around on a new deal that kept the payments at $300 while extending them until early October. Additionally, the bill now forgives $10,200 in taxes on unemployment benefits received in 2020.
U.S.NBC NewsAsians were thought to be the 'model minority.' Then came 'receipt culture.'
In another video recorded last July, a tech CEO taunted an Asian American family at an upscale Northern California restaurant, calling them an “Asian piece of s---.” Fueled by former President Donald Trump's anti-China rhetoric, the Covid-19 pandemic has unleashed an onslaught of hate incidents against Asian American and Pacific Islanders. In 2020, the group Stop AAPI Hate received more than 2,800 self-reports of coronavirus discrimination nationwide, from verbal harassment to physical assault.
PoliticsReutersA day after forcing marathon bill reading, Johnson says 'preference' to leave Senate
The day after he single-handedly delayed the U.S. Senate's debate on President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill for 11 hours, Republican Senator Ron Johnson said on Friday that he could retire from office when his term expires. The two-term Republican told Wisconsin media outlets that he has not decided whether to run for reelection in 2022 but added that not seeking another term is "probably my preference now." Political analysts say his seat could be vulnerable to Democrats next year.
ScienceAssociated PressNASA's new Mars rover hits dusty red road, 1st trip 21 feet
NASA's newest Mars rover hit the dusty red road this week, putting 21 feet on the odometer in its first test drive. The Perseverance rover ventured from its landing position Thursday, two weeks after setting down on the red planet to seek signs of past life. The roundabout, back and forth drive lasted just 33 minutes and went so well that more driving was on tap Friday and Saturday for the the six-wheeled rover.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderRudy Giuliani's legal woes mount as a federal criminal investigation into his Ukraine dealings resumes, report says
A probe into Rudy Giuliani's business and overseas dealings has resumed, according to AP. The criminal investigation will look into the legality of his conversations with Ukrainian officials. A federal criminal investigation into Rudy Giuliani has resumed, according to the Associated Press.
PoliticsThe IndependentMost Americans disapprove of Biden immigration executive order, as nearly half want to keep border wall
But a poll conducted in February by Harvard University and Harris Insights and Analytics found that 55 per cent of Americans were against the executive order. This executive order was tied as the most controversial one among Americans with an order he signed that would require schools to let biological boys who identify as girls to participate in girls' sports, and vice versa” also receiving 55 per cent disapproval. The poll also asked respondents their thoughts on whether the Biden administration should deconstruct the US-Mexico border wall first created under the Trump administration.
HealthReutersMerck says study shows COVID-19 drug causes quick reduction in virus
U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co Inc said on Saturday the experimental antiviral drug molnupiravir it is developing with Ridgeback Bio showed a quicker reduction in infectious virus in its phase 2a study among participants with early COVID-19. "The secondary objective findings in this study, of a quicker decrease in infectious virus among individuals with early COVID-19 treated with molnupiravir, are promising," said William Fischer, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, in a statement from the companies. The antiviral is being currently tested in a Phase 2/3 trial that is set to be completed in May.
PoliticsThe IndependentBiden secretly limits drone strikes, amid congressional scrutiny over war powers
The Biden administration secretly put temporary limits on the use of drone strikes and commando raids outside of traditional battlefield settings like Afghanistan or Syria, part of a larger national security review of whether to alter use of force rules from the Trump administration. The changes, which the administration put in place on Mr Biden's first day in office, were first reported on Wednesday by the New York Times, and come as the Biden administration recalibrates the sprawling US footprint across the Middle East, and Congress pushes to rein in the president's war-fighting powers and scrutinises a recent strike in Syria.
HealthThe StateDoes restaurant dining lead to rises in COVID case and death rates? CDC finds out
A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Friday found that community requirements that support mask use during the pandemic play a large role in county-level COVID-19 case and death growth rates, particularly when it comes to restaurant dining. An analysis of mask mandates and restaurant reopenings in all U.S. counties from March to December 2020 found that significant drops in daily coronavirus cases and death growth rates occurred within 20 days of implementing mask use. Meanwhile, jumps in daily COVID-19 case growth rates were observed starting 40 days after restaurant dining reopened — in which people do not wear masks — while daily death growth rates spiked 60 days after allowing on-site dining.
PoliticsLos Angeles Times OpinionLetters to the Editor: Gavin Newsom stabbed workers in the back by being silent on Prop. 22
To the editor: Gov. Gavin Newsom's Future of Work Commission called for a new "social compact" for workers — an aspiration that took a knife in the back from Newsom's silence on Proposition 22 last November. On the report's goals for improving workers' wages, benefits and rights, increasing racial equity and unionization, Proposition 22 did the opposite. It institutionalized rideshare drivers' status as poverty-level, informal workers.
BusinessFort Worth Star-TelegramTexas regulators will not correct $16 billion in electricity ‘overcharges.’ Why?
At its Friday meeting, the Public Utility Commission of Texas declined to adjust prices that resulted in $16 billion in overcharges to the electricity market during the February winter storm. The governor-appointed regulatory commission, which oversees the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, met with just two members after the resignation of chairperson DeAnn Walker. Commissioners Arthur D'Andrea and Shelly Botkin addressed the Potomac report, which found that ERCOT kept electricity prices too high for at least 33 hours after most outages ended on late Feb. 17.
U.S.The Daily BeastLake of the Ozarks Realtor Offered $1.5K to Have Her Former Mother-in-Law Killed: Prosecutors
She was reportedly concerned about the woman causing problems with her relationship with her kids. Bauman was recorded discussing the scheme, according to a press release from the Camden County prosecutor's office. She was given multiple opportunities to change her mind when asked by a witness-turned-informant if she was sure she wanted to carry out the killing, prosecutors said, but she moved ahead with it, at one point acknowledging that she was a Christian but noting she could always ask for forgiveness later.
LifestyleArchitectural DigestThe 7 Best Refrigerators on the Market, According to Kitchen Designers
Quality food preservation, storage space, and good-looking design are priorities among kitchen designers when it comes to refrigerators Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
WorldThe IndependentProtesters injured after police clashes over Paraguay’s Covid response
Around 20 people were injured when police fired rubber bullets and tear gas as protests over the Paraguayan government's handling of Covid turned violent. Hundreds of rioters, mainly young people, took to the streets of the capital, Asuncion, on Friday amid growing outrage that coronavirus infections had hit record levels and hospitals verged on collapse throughout the South American nation. Protesters lit flares, threw rocks at police, broke down security barriers and started fires in the streets as violent clashes turned the area around Asuncion's Congress building into a makeshift battlefield on Friday night.
- PoliticsYahoo News Video
Civil war within the GOP continues as Trump fires back at strategist Karl Rove
Former President Donald Trump intensified his war with the Republican establishment on Thursday by attacking Karl Rove, a longtime Republican strategist who criticized Trump's first speech since leaving office for being long on grievances but short on vision.
PoliticsUSA TODAYLive stimulus updates: Senate extends $300 weekly unemployment benefit in Biden's COVID stimulus bill
The Senate amended President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus bill to include a $300 weekly federal unemployment benefit through August. The Senate also passed a Republican proposal to the unemployment benefit Saturday morning. Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman's amendment would have extended the $300 benefit through mid-July – a tweak anathema to progressives, who had pushed for more generous unemployment benefits.
HealthFort Worth Star-TelegramGov. Abbott, where’s the evidence that it’s safe to remove Texas’ mask mandate?
In spite of recent warnings from public health officials, Gov. Greg Abbott lifted the state's mask mandate, effective March 10. In response, we ask: What evidence did the governor use to change policy? We know that public health policy has been far more effective in dealing with the pandemic than individual actions alone.
WorldBusiness InsiderAmerica built the world's most sophisticated cyberweapons. Now they're being used against the country, a new book argues.
The US has long emphasized cyber offense over defense, Nicole Perlroth argues in a new book. But now the weapons it developed are being used against it, the The New York Times reporter said. Perlroth told Insider the US needs to shore up its biggest vulnerability: critical infrastructure.
PoliticsUSA TODAYSen. Kyrsten Sinema's thumbs-down on minimum wage vote reminds some of John McCain
Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, sided with Republicans and seven other senators from her party to vote down a minimum wage increase amendment to President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill. It was the way she did it that drew condemnation on social media and some comparisons to the late John McCain. Sinema stood on the Senate floor and flashed a thumbs down when her name was called to vote.
U.S.INSIDERDisney World guests with COVID rage spit and yell at resort staff trying to enforce safety guidelines, report says
Disney World employees are experiencing harassment from guests, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Workers detailed incidents of being spat and yelled at for trying to enforce COVID-19 safety protocols. Employees of the Walt Disney World Resort have been harassed by furious guests while trying to enforce COVID-19 health and safety guidelines, according to a report by the Orlando Sentinel.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderThe Wall Street Journal ridicules Trump in public feud after the paper questioned his usefulness to the Republican Party
The Wall Street Journal and Trump are feuding after the paper ridiculed him for his election loss. The paper published an article that questioned Trump's usefulness to the Republican Party. Trump responded by saying the paper, backed by Rupert Murdoch, has "lost great credibility."
U.S.INSIDERInaugural poet Amanda Gorman said a security guard followed her and told her she 'looked suspicious' when entering her own building
Amanda Gorman became an international sensation in January after performing at the Inauguration. Amanda Gorman said Friday that a security guard followed her home because he thought she looked "suspicious." The 22-year-old poet, who lives in Los Angeles, said she showed him her keys and buzzed herself into her building, prompting the security guard to leave without apologizing to her.
WorldINSIDERA teenage girl wearing 'Everything will be OK' T-shirt was shot in the head on Myanmar's bloodiest day of protests yet
Wednesday was the bloodiest day of protests in Myanmar since the military's February coup. Photos of Kyal Sin before her death have gone viral, spurring continued defiance among protesters. Nineteen-year-old Kyal Sin, known as Angel, made careful preparations before hitting the streets of Mandalay Wednesday.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderCellphone records tie Proud Boys member to someone in Trump White House, NYT reports
A member of the Proud Boys was in contact with someone in former President Donald Trump's White House in the days before the Capitol Attack on January 6, The New York Times reported. An anonymous source who is familiar with a cellphone data report from the Federal Bureau of Investigations told the Times that it's not clear what they discussed and did not disclose the names of either individual. The information was found partly as a result of data the FBI got from technology and telecommunications companies immediately after the riot, when Trump supporters breached the US Capitol and clashed with law enforcement.
“Taking humans to Mars would require an investment astronomically out of kilter with the possible benefits.”
“Can a Mars settlement be a freer society than we enjoy on Earth? Maybe.”
“What we learn...may spark the next revolution that will make life in 2071 beyond anything we can imagine right now.”
“Our presence on Mars could jeopardize one of our main reasons for being there — the search for life.”
“The future of geologic investigation of other worlds lies with highly improved versions of our Mars rovers.”