Monday, October 4th, 2021
CA Oil Spill, “Pandora Papers” & Lottery Record
All the news you need in about 10 min:
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Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want to review the latest happenings...
U.S. COVID Death Toll Passes 700K
More than 700,000 Americans have now died from COVID-19. The last 100,000 happened in just the last 3.5 months. During that time, Florida and Texas made up more than 40% of deaths, even though they only account for about 15% of the nation’s population. The death toll is still climbing, too. About 1,900 Americans are still dying from COVID-19 every day. The good news is the number of cases has started to fall, so hospitalizations and deaths are expected to go down soon for the first time in months.
Read More: AP, CNN, WaPo, Johns Hopkins
CDC’s Holiday COVID Guidelines
There is fear COVID-19 outbreaks could get worse in the U.S. this winter. That’s because colder weather drives more people inside, and family and friends hold more get-togethers for the holidays. The CDC recently released guidelines about how people can safely celebrate. It suggested having outdoor gatherings when you can. If you have an indoor celebration, the CDC says you can make it safer by keeping the air conditioning circulating or putting fans in open windows. Also, it says unvaccinated people should wear masks.
Read More: Axios, NBC News, Forbes, CDC
CA Students Vaccine Mandate
California is set to become the first state to make COVID-19 vaccines a requirement for kids to go to school in person. First, the FDA will have to fully approve the vaccines for children. So far, the full FDA approval only applies to people 16 and older. The next round of full, long-term approvals is expected soon. As long as that happens, the mandates will go into effect the following semesters in both public and private schools in California. Students would get certain religious and medical exemptions.
Read More: LA Times, CBS News, Fox News, Gov. Newsom
CA Oil Spill
Miles of the Southern California coastline is now covered with oil. At least 126,000 gallons of oil spilled into the Pacific Ocean. The issue was a broken pipeline off the coast of Huntington Beach, about 30 miles south of downtown Los Angeles. Already, it’s killed fish and birds. Local wetlands are threatened, and beaches are closed. It’s not clear yet what caused the spill or how long the oil might have been leaking before it was reported. The company that operates the platform, Amplify Energy, says it’s investigating along with the U.S. Coast Guard.
Read More: NPR, CNN, Fox News, LA Times, USA Today, USCG
Kabul Mosque Bombing
It was the deadliest attack in Afghanistan’s capital since American troops left. The Taliban says a bombing outside the main mosque in Kabul killed at least five people and hurt many more. So far, no one has taken responsibility for the attack, but three suspects were arrested. Most people suspect the bombers had links to ISIS extremists since they have stepped up attacks in recent weeks. The Taliban and ISIS are considered rivals.
Read More: Reuters, WaPo, AP, Al Jazeera
Leaked Financial Secrets
Millions of newly-leaked records show a lot of politicians, billionaires, celebrities, religious leaders, and drug dealers have been hiding their wealth in offshore accounts. A new report was released that’s being called the Pandora Papers. It found 29,000 offshore accounts linked to people like Russian President Vladimir Putin, members of Saudi Arabia’s royal family, pop star Shakira, and more. Moving money offshore just to manage wealth is legal. However, a lot of people do it to hide money from criminal investigators, creditors, tax collectors, and more. Some account holders are now facing allegations of corruption, money laundering, and tax avoidance.
Read More: WaPo, AP, BBC, CBS News, ICIJ
SCOTUS New Term Starts Today
The Supreme Court is back today. Justices are hearing their first in-person arguments since March of 2020. They’re taking up quite a few controversial issues. For example, they’ll hear a challenge to a Mississippi law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks. There’s also a case that challenges a gun law in New York state. That law puts certain restrictions on who can receive a concealed carry handgun license. Justices will also consider whether it’s ok for Maine to withhold a student aid program from schools that teach religious content. That’s just a few of the issues coming up this term.
Read More: ABC News, NY Times, WSJ, Reuters, CNBC
Facebook Whistleblower Accusations
A former product manager at Facebook came forward to say she’s the one who’s been leaking internal company research. Frances Haugen says she got frustrated by how harmful Facebook’s products could be and how the company didn’t address the flaws. So, she gave the Wall Street Journal documents. She says they prove Facebook has been neglecting stopping violence, misinformation, and other harmful content. In response, a Facebook spokesperson said the company has to balance making the platform a positive place and a place for people to exercise free speech.
Read More: CBS News, WSJ, WaPo, NY Times
Tesla Deliveries Surge
Tesla says it delivered more than 241,000 electric vehicles to customers worldwide between July and September. That’s a new quarterly record for Tesla and a 73% increase compared to last year. Analysts say Tesla is expected to report more than $1 billion in profits for the quarter. That’s unusual since other automakers like GM and Honda are seeing sales drop because of the ongoing chip shortage. However, Tesla is getting around it by rewriting software so the code is compatible with whatever chips are available.
Read More: WSJ, Reuters, The Verge, Tesla
Box Office Roundup
The new Marvel movie “Venom: Let There be Carnage” set a new pandemic record for North America. It brought in more than $90 in ticket sales, likely helped by the fact it was released only in theaters. Meanwhile, the new James Bond movie is proving to be a hit overseas. “No Time to Die” opened internationally this past weekend and earned $119 million. The movie will hit theaters in the U.S. this Friday.
Read More: Variety, THR, Deadline, CNBC
Powerball Jackpot Grows to $670M
The Powerball jackpot is the biggest it’s been in eight months. No one matched the winning numbers during the last drawing. That means there have now been 40 drawings in a row without a jackpot winner. That’s a new record for the game. The next drawing is tonight. The grand prize is up to $670 million. That’s the eighth-largest jackpot in U.S. lottery history. It’s not likely you’ll win the jackpot, though. The odds are about one in 292 million.
Read More: Fox Business, CNN, AP, Powerball
Money Monday: Expect More Expensive Heating Bills
Keeping your home warm this fall and winter could be a lot more expensive than usual. That’s because natural gas prices have gone up 180% over the past year to levels not seen since 2014. The issue is natural gas producers cut down on drilling in recent years. Then, extreme weather events in the last year forced a lot of natural gas output offline. Plus, a lot of the country saw record heat over the summer that meant more natural gas was needed to power air conditioners. For those reasons, natural gas storage levels are below normal. Officials say Americans can expect their heating bills to be about 30% higher this winter.
Read More: AP, CNN, NY Times, WSJ