Wednesday, June 1st, 2022 

An outburst of the Tau Herculids meteor shower, caused by debris from the 1995 breakup of comet 73P/Schwassmann–Wachmann, peaks over North America. (Space) 

Economic confidence falls to lowest point since 2009 Americans’ economic confidence fell in May to its lowest point since early 2009, when the Great Recession was ending, according to Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index. The index measures Americans’ perceptions of current economic conditions and the economy’s future. Possible scores range from +100 (if all say the economy is excellent or good and improving) to -100 (if all say it is poor and worsening). The ECI hit -45 in May, down from -39 in March and April. Twenty percent of respondents said the economy was improving; 77 percent said it was getting worse. In Feb. 2020, before COVID-19 lockdowns, the ECI stood at +41. The lowest score on record is -72 in 2008. GALLUP 

Ukraine says that Russian forces have taken control of most of Sievierodonetsk after launching a full-scale assault on the city. Luhansk governor Serhiy Haidai says that 60% of structures in the city have been destroyed in the fighting. (Reuters) 

An airstrike hits a tank filled with nitric acid in Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk Oblast, prompting the region’s governor to ask residents to remain inside bomb shelters due to the risk of exposure to toxic fumes. (Reuters) 

Shanghai eases COVID-19 restrictions after 2-month lockdown Shanghai Vice Mayor Zong Ming said full bus and subway service, and rail connections to other parts of China, would be restored Wednesday as the country’s largest city reopens after a two-month COVID-19 lockdown that has damaged China’s economy and worsened supply-chain problems around the world. Schools will partially reopen. Shopping malls, supermarkets, pharmacies, and convenience stores will reopen slowly, at up to 75 percent of capacity. Movie theaters and gyms will remain closed. “The epidemic has been effectively controlled,” Zong said. Officials said in early May they were aiming for a June 1 reopening. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Biden, Powell discuss plans to fight inflation President Biden met Tuesday with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to discuss Biden’s plan to fight high inflation, which he explained in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Monday. Biden said bringing down inflation had become his top domestic priority and that he would not “interfere” in the Fed’s role in containing rising prices. “My plan to address inflation starts with the simple proposition: Respect the Fed, respect the Fed’s independence, which I have done,” Biden told reporters during his meeting with Powell, who was recently confirmed to a second term. Republicans blame Biden for inflation and the threat of a recession. Biden says the root of the problem is Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has driven up oil prices. NBC NEWS 

Unilever gives activist investor Nelson Peltz a board seat Unilever is adding activist investor Nelson Peltz to its board as it faces intensifying pressure to restore sales growth as its stock price slipped this year, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Peltz’s Trian Fund Management is one of the Dove soap and Hellmann’s mayonnaise maker’s biggest investors, with a 1.5 percent stake. Peltz said Tuesday he wanted to work with the company to tap “significant potential.” Peltz has served on boards at Procter & Gamble, Kraft Heinz Co., and Oreos maker Mondelez International. Unilever Chairman Nils Andersen said Peltz’s experience with consumer goods companies would be helpful to Unilever’s board. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

Director Cary Fukunaga accused of inappropriate behavior on set  No Time to Die director Cary Fukunaga is facing new allegations of inappropriate behavior. A Rolling Stone exposé published Tuesday cited almost a dozen sources who accused Fukunaga of using “his sets as an opportunity to meet younger women and openly pursue multiple female cast and crew members at once during production,” which “bordered on workplace harassment.” According to the report, it was openly discussed among the cast and crew that Fukunaga used his sets “as a personal pickup bar,” and one crew member said colleagues had to keep an eye on her after she grew uncomfortable with his advances. “I believe completely that he was abusing his power,” she said, and another source said she feared possible career repercussions for rebuffing his advances. Fukunaga’s attorney told Rolling Stone there is “nothing salacious about pursuing friendships or consensual romantic relationships with women” and that he has “befriended men and women, young and old” on set.  ROLLING STONE 

Tuesday,  May 31st, 2022 

The United Kingdom and the European Union agree to implement a ban on insuring Russian oil tankers, which will be phased in beginning in 6 months. This will effectively render the vast majority of oil tankers uninsurable as most institutions conducting insurance are located in Western Europe. (Financial Times) 

Mexico bans the sale of electronic cigarettes. (The Washington Post) 

A major cyberattack hits the Costa Rican Social Security Fund of Costa Rica, forcing the ministry to shut down its digital database and endangering the country’s healthcare system. (Reuters) 

At least 8 die in mass shootings over holiday weekend There were at least 12 mass shootings across the United States over the three-day Memorial Day weekend, The Washington Post reported Monday. The shootings — defined as events with four or more victims shot or killed — left at least eight dead and 55 injured in Colorado Springs, Colorado; Fresno, California; Malabar, Florida; Chicago; Taft, Oklahoma; and elsewhere, according to the Post. President Biden, just back from a trip to console families of the 19 children and two teachers killed in last week’s deadly Uvalde, Texas, school shooting, repeated his call for tougher gun-control laws, saying banning assault-style weapons like the one the attacker used in Uvalde, Texas, would be a “rational” place to start. NBC NEWS 

Canadian government proposes ban on military-style rifles, handgun sales  Canada’s government on Monday proposed a ban on handgun sales and possession of “military-style assault weapons.” The legislation includes a buyback program to encourage people to comply and hand over banned guns. The moves would add to already strict firearm controls that the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been tightening since a gunman killed 22 people in rural Nova Scotia in 2020, the deadliest shooting rampage in the nation’s history. “As a government, as a society, we have a responsibility to act to prevent more tragedies,” Trudeau said Monday. “We need only look south of the border to know that if we do not take action, firmly and rapidly, it gets worse and worse and more difficult to counter.” THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Holiday weekend travel jumps but remains below pre-pandemic levels Travel jumped over the Memorial Day weekend, rebounding from a sharp drop in the last two years during a holiday weekend marking the unofficial start of summer. “We’re approaching pre-pandemic numbers,” said Andrew Gobeil, a spokesperson for Atlanta’s Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport, the world’s busiest airport. Los Angeles International Airport expected about 200,000 passengers per day, a 40 percent increase over the 2021 holiday weekend but still down 25 percent compared to 2019. “We’re not back to normal here,” said Heath Montgomery, an airport spokesperson. More than 39 million Americans are expected to travel at some point over the weekend, one of the busiest travel periods of the year. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Labor shortage to force many businesses to cut summer hours  A chronic labor shortage is forcing many businesses — including tourist restaurants, hotels, and summer camps — to reduce operations or shut down this summer, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Less than half of Phoenix’s public pools are opening because of a lifeguard shortage, and coastal Maine beach trolleys are shutting down because of a lack of drivers, according to the Journal. The hiring troubles, which started a year ago as COVID-19 vaccinations became available and businesses reopened, are pushing up “labor costs, adding to inflationary pressure on items including airfares and beach menus,” the Journal said. “It’s like, ‘what, no one is applying?’” said Mark Lawrence, owner of Polar Cave Ice Cream Parlour in Mashpee, Massachusetts, a Cape Cod town. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

EU agrees to Russian-oil embargo European Union leaders agreed Monday to ban most imports of Russian oil. The embargo covers oil delivered by sea, with an exemption for crude transported by pipelines that secured landlocked Hungary’s support to win the required unanimity. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the move, intended to punish Russia for invading Ukraine, would “effectively cut around 90 percent of oil imports from Russia to the EU by the end of the year.” Europe gets about a quarter of its oil from Russia. U.S. crude futures jumped by more than 3 percent early Tuesday after the agreement was announced. Prices had already surged to a two-month high as China tentatively lifted COVID-19 shutdowns in Shanghai, signaling increased demand. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

The Platinum Jubilee could shave half a point off the U.K.’s GDP  The bank holiday celebrating Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne could reduce the United Kingdom’s second-quarter gross domestic product by a half-percentage point, tipping the country’s economy into a contraction, Bloomberg Economics estimated, based on previous holidays, in a report released Monday. The cost of the Thursday holiday marking the queen’s Platinum Jubilee will be compounded by the drag of people who will take Friday off to have a four-day weekend. The U.K. economy will shrink by 0.4 percent in the quarter, according to the forecast by economist Dan Hanson, but offices and factories will make up lost output in later months, helping to stave off a recession, according to the report. BLOOMBERG 

Workers of the Polish Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) decide to go on a general strike from 27 June amid disciplinary dismissal of the leader of the trade union representing ZUS and general poor conditions of employment. (Rzeczpospolita) 

An AIDC AT-3 crashes in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, killing the pilot. The Taiwanese Air Force temporarily suspends training operations. (Reuters)  

Monday,  May 30th, 2022 

Memorial Day 

Pelosi’s husband charged with DUI House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol early Sunday in Napa County, California. He also was charged with driving with a blood-alcohol content level of 0.08 or higher, according to TMZ, which first reported the news. Both charges are misdemeanors. Paul Pelosi, 82, was arrested just before midnight Saturday and released a few hours later on $5,000 bail. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) “will not be commenting on this private matter which occurred while she was on the East Coast,” Pelosi spokesperson Drew Hammill said in a statement. Speaker Pelosi delivered the commencement address and received an honorary degree at Brown University on Sunday. TMZ 

https://theweek.com/briefing/1013959/whats-up-with-long-covid

Russia begins exporting grain from the occupied Kherson Oblast in Southern Ukraine to Russia. Russian-occupying administration official Kirill Stremousov says the administration was also “working on the supplies of sunflower seeds to local and Russian processing plants”. Ukraine accuses Russia of stealing its grain. (Reuters) 

Russia steps up eastern Ukraine offensive as Zelensky visits front lines Russian and Ukrainian forces fought in close combat Sunday as Russia intensified its shelling of cities in eastern Ukraine, where Moscow focused its invasion after being pushed back in other parts of the country. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made his first visit to front-line troops in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, to assess the strength of his country’s forces after they pushed back Russian troops several weeks ago. He said Ukrainian troops were facing an “indescribably difficult” situation in Sievierodonetsk, a strategically important city Russian forces stormed after bombarding it and trying unsuccessfully to surround it. Ukrainian officials said 90 percent of the city’s buildings had been damaged. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Ukrainian authorities say that Russian forces have entered Sieverodonetsk, in Luhansk Oblast, leaving the city without water. (Al Jazeera) 

A French journalist is killed by Russian shelling in Luhansk Oblast, according to the region’s governor Serhiy Haidai. (Reuters) 

A car bomb is detonated in Russian-occupied Melitopol, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, injuring at least three people. Russian authorities blame pro-Ukrainian residents of being responsible. (Reuters) 

The Mona Lisa’s protective glass enclosure in the Louvre, Paris, France, is vandalized by an environmentalist protesting against climate change. The vandal was arrested at the scene. (ABC News Australia) 

Two people are killed and 20 injured after a car crashes into a crowd in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. (AP) 

Former Minister for Defence Peter Dutton is elected unopposed as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia and, by extension, Leader of the Opposition following former Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s resignation. (The Guardian) 

Former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce is removed as Leader of the National Party of Australia in a leadership spill and replaced by his former Deputy and former Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia David Littleproud. (The Guardian) 

As vote counting continues, the Australian Labor Party achieves a majority in the House of Representatives. (The Guardian) 

Colombia presidential election headed to June runoff Colombia’s Sunday presidential election appeared headed to a June runoff between left-wing candidate Gustavo Petro and Rodolfo Hernandez, the populist former mayor of Bucaramanga. Petro, a former guerrilla fighter and mayor of Bogota, led in pre-election polls, and had just over 40 percent of the vote with 98 percent of the ballots counted, falling short of the 50 percent needed to win outright. Hernandez was in second with 28 percent, followed by right-wing candidate Federico “Fico” Gutierrez with 23 percent. The South American nation has been struggling with economic setbacks due to the coronavirus pandemic and a deteriorating security situation, but there were no reports of violence during the election. CNN 

Tensions rise during Israeli nationalist flag march in Jerusalem Thousands of Israelis marched through east Jerusalem on Sunday in an annual Jerusalem Day flag-waving procession commemorating Israel’s unification of east and west Jerusalem after the 1967 Six-Day War. The crowds started out from the Damascus Gate, the main entry to the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City, with some nationalist marchers dancing and chanting “the nation of Israel lives” and “death to Arabs.” Israeli police in riot gear blocked surrounding streets and forcibly removed some Palestinian protesters. Seventy-nine Palestinians were injured by rubber bullets and pepper spray, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said. One reportedly was hit by live fire. Despite threats, Palestinian militants fired no rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip, as they did last year. CNN 

Celtics beat the Heat to advance to NBA finals against Warriors The Boston Celtics beat the Miami Heat 100-96 in Game 7 to win the Eastern Conference finals 4-3, earning a spot in the NBA finals against the Golden State Warriors. Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 26 points. Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart added 24 apiece. The Celtics never trailed in the game, but had to hold off a frantic rally by the Heat, cheered by a home crowd. Tatum, who was named MVP of the conference finals, and Brown have each made it to NBA conference titles several times, but this was the first time either made it to the championship series. The finals start Thursday in San Francisco. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

‘Top Gun: Maverick’ gives Tom Cruise his biggest opening weekend ever Top Gun: Maverick vaulted into the top spot at the domestic box office over the weekend, bringing in $124 million in its first weekend in North America. By the end of the four-day Memorial Day weekend break, it is expected to have a total of a better-than-expected $151 million in ticket sales, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore. That would be the biggest debut ever for star Tom Cruise, who returns to his iconic role as Capt. Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a fighter pilot from the 1986 action film Top Gun. Marvel’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness slipped to No. 2, adding $16.4 million in its fourth weekend to bring its North American total to $370.8 million. LOS ANGELES TIMES 

The End