Wednesday,  July 29th, 2020

Biden to announce VP pick next week Former Vice President Joe Biden will announce his running mate next week, he said Tuesday. “I’m going to have a choice in the first week in August,” Biden said, promising reporters “I’ll let you know when I do.” Biden has said he will pick a woman as his running mate, and protests over systemic racism in America have raised arguments that he should select a Black woman. Sens. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), both formerly presidential contenders themselves, have gotten a lot of attention as potential vice presidential candidates. Reports also indicate Obama administration National Security Adviser Susan Rice, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms are in serious consideration. Source: Axios

Astronomers at Pan-STARRS announce the discovery of a small near-Earth object (NEO) HLV2514, which is an Amor asteroid near Mars. The asteroid was first discovered in June 2020 by two 14-year-old Indian schoolgirls who were participating in a NASA project. (CNN)

Iran records a record high 235 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. The health ministry urges not to visit Mashhad as the virus infections rose by 300 percent over a one month period. (Al Arabiya)

Osaka and Aichi prefectures post a single day record high of 155 and 110 new COVID-19 cases respectively in the last 24 hours. (The Japan Times)

Major League Baseball postpones the Miami Marlins’s next six games after 17 members of the organization tested positive for COVID-19. (ESPN)

United States Attorney General William Barr defends the Department of Justice’s decision to send security forces to Portland in a congressional testimony. Portland has seen 61 consecutive days of protests, which escalated after federal officers arrived this month. (BBC)

Kodak to use $765 million U.S. government loan to launch new pharmaceuticals arm The Eastman Kodak Company, known for making film and other photography-related products, will receive a $765 million loan from the federal government in order to start producing pharmaceutical ingredients. A new division, Kodak Pharmaceuticals, will focus on manufacturing two types of chemicals used to make generic pills and tablets, creating 350 jobs in Rochester, New York, and St. Paul, Minnesota. In recent years, Kodak has made some materials for pharmaceutical companies, Executive Chairman Jim Continenza told The Washington Post, and the company is “truly doing this to help tighten and fix the supply chain of pharmaceuticals in America.” Kodak has struggled to survive in a world with digital cameras and smart phones, but the company’s stock more than tripled after the loan was announced. Source: The Washington Post

Report: Russia is pushing coronavirus disinformation U.S. intelligence officials have reportedly determined that Russian operatives are spreading disinformation about the coronavirus pandemic on English-language websites directed at American audiences. Russian military intelligence is using a series of websites to amplify false claims the COVID-19 virus was created by the U.S. military, among other propaganda, according to newly declassified intelligence materials. The disinformation campaign is reportedly similar to efforts made by Russia ahead of the 2016 election, but more difficult to stamp out because the websites appear more legitimate than previous bots and fake social media accounts. The operatives appear to be attempting to exploit the pandemic to cause confusion ahead of the presidential election. The trio of websites published about 150 articles between May and early July. Source: The Associated Press

Monday’s regularly scheduled baseball games between the Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins, and the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies, are postponed because 14 members of the Marlins traveling party, including 12 players, tested positive for COVID-19. Tuesday’s Orioles-Marlins game is also postponed; the status of the second Yankees-Phillies game will be announced later. Miami just finished a three-game series in Philadelphia this past weekend. Before Sunday’s series finale, Miami learned that four of its players had tested positive and adjusted its lineup accordingly. (WFLA-TV)

The End

 

This Day in History

1148 – The Siege of Damascus ends in a decisive crusader defeat and leads to the disintegration of the Second Crusade.

1588 – Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines: English naval forces under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake defeat the Spanish Armada off the coast of Gravelines, France.

1693 – War of the Grand Alliance: Battle of Landen: France wins a Pyrrhic victory over Allied forces in the Netherlands.

1818 – French physicist Augustin Fresnel submits his prizewinning “Memoir on the Diffraction of Light”, precisely accounting for the limited extent to which light spreads into shadows, and thereby demolishing the oldest objection to the wave theory of light.

1921 – Adolf Hitler becomes leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party.

1932 – Great Depression: In Washington, D.C., troops disperse the last of the “Bonus Army” of World War I veterans.

1945 – The BBC Light Programme radio station is launched for mainstream light entertainment and music.

1950 – Korean War: After four days, the No Gun Ri Massacre ends when the US Army 7th Cavalry Regiment is withdrawn.

1958 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs into law the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which creates the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

1965 – Vietnam War: The first 4,000 101st Airborne Division paratroopers arrive in Vietnam, landing at Cam Ranh Bay.

1967 – Vietnam War: Off the coast of North Vietnam terhe USS Forrestal catches on fire in the worst U.S. naval disaster since World War II, killing 134.

John McCain was crucially involved with this fire. Little known true fact. The other guy, White, was killed in the “accident.” So, jus sayin. I’m sure it was all a big misunderstanding.

1973 – Greeks vote to abolish the monarchy, beginning the first period of the Metapolitefsi.

1981 – A worldwide television audience of over 700 million people watch the wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul’s Cathedral in London. Wow, TV really sucked in 1981. So did viewers.

 

Tuesday,  July 28th, 2020

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell cancels the preseason due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (NFL)

Trump reportedly sending 100 more federal agents to Portland The Trump administration has begun deploying 100 more federal agents to Portland, Oregon, The Washington Post reports via internal U.S. Marshals Service emails. Militarized agents, some of them unmarked, have patrolled the city for several weeks. Another round of 100 agents began arriving in Portland on Thursday. A final decision on the next deployment hasn’t been made yet, senior administration officials say. Agents have detained protesters seeking to protect federal property, even though several of those arrested said they were nowhere near federal buildings. The mayors of Portland; Seattle; Chicago; Kansas City, Missouri; Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Washington D.C. sent a letter to Congress urging it to bar the federal government from deploying more agents. Source: The Washington Post

University of Notre Dame backs out as host of 1st presidential debate The University of Notre Dame on Monday announced it will no longer host the first presidential debate scheduled to take place on Sept. 29. Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins described this as a “difficult decision” that was made “because the necessary health precautions would have greatly diminished the educational value of hosting the debate on our campus.” The first presidential debate is now moving to Cleveland, Ohio, and will be hosted by Case Western Reserve University and Cleveland Clinic. Previously, the University of Michigan withdrew from hosting the second debate, with University President Mark Schlissel saying at the time “it is not feasible for us to safely host.” Source:  Axios

National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien tests positive for COVID-19 National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien tested positive for coronavirus, Bloomberg reported and an administration official later confirmed. O’Brien is the highest ranking White House official and the closest to President Trump known to test positive for the virus. He reportedly came down with the virus after a family event and has been working at home since late last week. He had recently been in Europe, meeting with officials in the U.K., France, Germany, and Italy, CNN notes. O’Brien, senior National Security Council staff, and other people close to Trump are tested daily for COVID-19. The U.S. has so far seen a third of the world’s 16 million coronavirus cases and about a quarter of its 650,000 deaths. Source: Politico

Belgium announces the unveiling of drastic social distancing measures aimed at avoiding a new lockdown. These measures include restricting social contact outside every household to five people over the next four weeks and limiting crowds at public events to 100 people indoors and 200 people outdoors. This measure will take effect next Wednesday. (France 24)

Antwerp imposes a curfew from 11.30 p.m. to 6 a.m and the mandatory wearing of face masks in public spaces should a distance of 1.5 meters between individuals not be observed. (The Washington Post)

The price of gold hits a record high of US$1,944 per ounce as uncertainty over the global economy grows due to a resurgence in COVID-19 cases. The previous record was set in 2011 when prices hit US$1,921 per ounce. (CNN)

Hong Kong announces a ban on all dine-in services at restaurants and restricting public gatherings not from the same family to only two people starting 29 July and orders the compulsory wearing of masks in outdoor public areas, with only medical exemptions. Sports venues and swimming pools are also closed. (Bisnis Indonesia)

Musician Drake breaks the record for the most top ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100, surpassing Madonna. (Billboard)

China reports 61 new cases, up from 46 cases a day earlier, with new infections not involving people returning from overseas hitting the highest number since early March of 57. (U.S. News & World Report)

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology of the Government of India bans 47 Chinese-origin apps that are clones of the original 59 Chinese apps that were banned in June, including TikTok and Helo. India has also prepared a list of over 250 Chinese apps that it will examine for any user privacy or national security violations including Tencent-backed gaming app PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. (India Today)

French Environment Minister Barbara Pompili announces that France will ban the use of terrace heaters in restaurants and cafes by the end of this winter to cut down on carbon emissions. (Reuters)

The End

 

 

 

 

Monday, July 27th, 2020

 

Da Nang becomes Vietnam’s first province or centrally governed city to reinstate social distancing measures after two new local infection COVID-19 cases with unknown source of transmission. (Reuters)

North Korea declares a state of emergency after its first case of COVID-19 is confirmed. The government claims the patient defected to South Korea then returned to North Korea. (The Daily Beast)

The Supreme Court of New South Wales grants the New South Wales Police permission to block a Black Lives Matter protest in Sydney that is due to be held on July 28. The Supreme Court ruled that the rally is a prohibited public assembly, but police agreed to a stay stopping the order taking effect until 10am on July 27 pending the lodging of any appeal. (The Sydney Morning Herald)

 

Trump officials: New stimulus bill to include another round of $1,200 checks Several top members of the Trump administration hit the morning shows on Sunday to discuss a new stimulus bill being finalized by White House officials and Senate Republicans, due to be unveiled on Monday. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on CNN’s State of the Union that the bill would provide for a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks, retention bonuses, and tax credits for small businesses and restaurants. He also said it will extend the federal eviction moratorium that expired on Friday. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government has been supplementing state unemployment benefits by giving workers $600 per week. This is set to expire, and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said on ABC’s This Week the new bill will not include this benefit. Instead, unemployment insurance will cover 70 percent of a laid-off worker’s pre-pandemic wages. Source: CNN

Forty-five people are arrested after protesters throw explosives and rocks at police in Seattle. Other rioters set fire to a portable trailer and a construction site, police allege in a series of tweets. Twenty-one officers were injured, including one who was hospitalized with a leg injury caused by an explosive. (CNN)

During an evening protest in Austin, Texas, a man is fatally shot as he approached a vehicle and the driver inside opened fire. A police spokesperson says the victim may have been carrying a rifle. She added that the suspect was detained and is cooperating with police. (AP via Dallas Morning News)

A record high temperature of 21.7°C (71.1°F) is recorded on the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard, according to the Norwegian Meteorological Institute. (Global News)

The End