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☆ ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Review: Worlds Wide Web
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Maya Phillips | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Both “Spider-Verse” films, in what will be a trilogy, create dimension in these kinds of details, and I don’t just mean the animation. Because what else is adolescence but a confrontation with the various possibilities in life, the infinite selves you can be? The fact that Miles and Gwen also shoot webs and swing around skyscrapers is incidental to their emotional arcs in the film. “Spider-Verse” also asks intriguing questions about the limitations of the canon, and whether tragedy is a prerequisite for a Spider-Man origin story — the death of an Uncle Ben or Aunt May or Uncle Aaron. But “Across the Spider-Verse” is never dull, nor precious with its characters and comedy.

Persons: Gwen, Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K, Thompson, Miles, Uncle Ben, Uncle Aaron, —, three’s Locations: New York, Jamaican, two’s

☆ The Calm Man in the Capital: Biden Lets Others Spike the Ball but Notches a Win
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Peter Baker | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The president’s approach to the negotiations — and especially their aftermath — reflects a half-century of bargaining in Washington. When someone has been around the track as long as Mr. Biden has, resisting the temptation to spike the ball and claim victory can be critical to actually securing the victory in the first place. From the start of the clash with Mr. McCarthy’s Republicans, Mr. Biden has followed the instincts he has developed through long, hard and sometimes painful experience. In their view, Mr. Biden was too eager to get an accord even at the expense of policy concessions they found anathema and too passive in making the case for the pact once he signed off on it. The who-won debate now raging in Washington could shape the narrative for both parties as they navigate this new era of divided government.

Persons: Biden, McCarthy’s, Mr, ”, Jamaal Bowman Organizations: Senate, McCarthy’s Republicans, Republicans, Republican Party, ” Locations: Washington, New York

☆ Raging wildfire empties homes in eastern Canada, pollutes air in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Eric Martyn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The fire, which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) west of downtown Halifax, has already forced 18,000 people to evacuate their homes. No fatalities have been reported but about 200 homes, structures have been damaged, the CBC reported, citing the Halifax Regional Municipality. Forest fires also led to evacuations of about 400 homes in the province of New Brunswick over the weekend, officials said. "The stories and the images we're seeing coming out of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are heartbreaking," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Ottawa, pledging federal support for the Atlantic provinces. The Halifax wildfire was expected to cause poor air quality hundreds of miles to the south in parts of the U.S. East Coast and Midwest as smoke drifts across the regions.

Persons: David Steeves, Justin Trudeau, what's, Brendan O'Brien, Ismail Shakil, Sriraj Kalluvila, Marguerita Choy, Deepa Babington Organizations: HALIFAX, U.S, Nova, Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, CBC, CBC News, U.S ., National Weather Service, Thomson Locations: Nova Scotia, Halifax, Canadian, Halifax Regional Municipality, New Brunswick, Ottawa, Atlantic, Bedford , Nova Scotia, West Bedford, Alberta, U.S . East Coast, Midwest, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania , New Jersey, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago

☆ From Ukraine to Sudan Aid Workers Don’t Pick Sides - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Mirjana Spoljaric | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

With great-power tensions rising and wars raging, the idea of neutrality these days may seem to many people anachronistic at best and amoral at worst. Today, there are a great many places where neutral humanitarian action is under grave threat. If we did, it wouldn’t be possible to provide humanitarian assistance to people across the world’s most contentious theaters of armed conflict. Here’s the problem: Civilians affected by armed conflict — whether in Ukraine, Sudan or Syria — are not always receiving the assistance they deserve. Worse, they’re being injured and killed in the crossfire or when combatants violate the laws of war.

☆ Eastern Canada's Halifax declares emergency over wildfire
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Large plumes of smoke rise from a wildfire raging in the Upper Tantallon area, as seen from Hubley, Nova Scotia, Canada May 28, 2023 in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. Ben Britton/via REUTERSMay 28 (Reuters) - The eastern Canadian city of Halifax declared a state of local emergency late on Sunday after a wildfire caused evacuations and power outages. "Emergency responders are working around the clock to keep people safe and reduce the threats posed by the fires," the municipal authority in the capital of Nova Scotia province said in a press release. The state of emergency would be in effect for seven days, unless lifted or extended, the municipality said. Nova Scotia Power had temporarily disconnected power in the affected area, it said on Twitter.

☆ French Open crowd boos as Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk refuses to shake hands with Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk refused to shake hands with Belarusian opponent Aryna Sabalenka following their opening round match at the French Open, leading to boos from some of the crowd. There were then boos from the crowd at Roland Garros and again as Kostyuk made her way off the court. “Why do we have to go loud [public] and say things, that’s like saying ‘one plus one is two,’ you know, of course we don’t support war. Russian and Belarusian players are currently still competing on the tours as neutral athletes without their flag or country displayed. After winning the ATX Open in Texas in March, Kostyuk also refused to shake hands with beaten Russian opponent Varvara Gracheva.

☆ A secretive SEAL-like unit is leading Ukraine's shadowy battle against Russia in a vital corner of the country
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Stavros Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations appears to be leading the effort for Ukraine. For Ukraine, the 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations, a secretive SEAL-like unit, is leading the shadowy battle against Russia. Therese PratsThe 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations was based on the Soviet-era 17th Naval Special Purpose Brigade. The 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations could play a significant role in future large-scale fighting. Roxana DavidovitsLike the 73rd Naval Center of Special Operations, most of the Ukrainian military emerged from the Soviet military.

CNN —Residents of the central United States experienced poor air quality and smoke over the weekend. The effects of the fires extend far beyond Canada, with poor air quality emerging in states as far away as Missouri and New York. Several states, including Nebraska, Washington, Montana and Wisconsin, announced air quality alerts early Friday. The service in Tacoma reported the smoke would be “pushed eastward in time for the weekend.”As of Sunday afternoon, the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index reported “unhealthy” levels of air quality in parts of Montana and North and South Dakota. Poor air quality caused by the smoke would mostly affect those “that are particularly sensitive to particle pollution,” they said.

☆ Qantas eyes return to 100% of pre-COVID capacity by March 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 19 (Reuters) - Qantas Airways Ltd (QAN.AX), Australia's flagship carrier, said on Friday it expects its international capacity to reach about 100% of pre-COVID-19 levels by March 2024, as it plans to add more seats and aircraft to its global network. The carrier plans to add about 1 million seats to its international network over a 12-month period starting late-October, Qantas said. "The rebound in demand for international travel since borders reopened has been incredibly strong...," CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement, while flagging a mismatch between supply and demand for international flying. Qantas swung to a record profit in the first half of this financial year as raging travel demand jacked up fares and earnings. The airline will need about 300 more pilots and cabin crew by the end of the year to support extra flying, it said.

☆ Nebraska lawmakers pass restrictions on abortion, transgender medical care
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Brad Brooks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 19 (Reuters) - Nebraska lawmakers on Friday passed a bill that limits abortion and puts restrictions on gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth in a single piece of legislation that strikes at two highly divisive issues. It includes exceptions for medical emergencies when the mother's life is at risk, and in cases of rape or incest. The same bill also bans "gender-altering surgery" and places restrictions on hormone therapy and puberty-blocking drugs for transgender people under 19. Abortion and gender-affirming medical treatment for transgender youth are at the heart of the so-called culture war raging in American politics, with Republican-dominated legislatures across the country banning or putting sharp restrictions on both. Supporters of the bill said it was a means of protecting unborn babies from abortion and teenagers from undergoing irreversible medical procedures they may later regret.

☆ NATO reaches back to Cold War past with first major defense plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/6] The Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer listens during an interview in Tallinn, Estonia September 16, 2022. By outlining what it calls its regional plans, NATO will also give nations guidance on how to upgrade their forces and logistics. Finland's accession last month has alone doubled NATO's border with Russia to some 2,500 km, forcing a more flexible approach to deployments than in the past, when Germany was seen as the main battlezone. "We don't envision the type of war that the Cold War was, where allied forces ... would be hit simultaneous with large-scale Warsaw Pact attacks," he said, pointing rather to regionalised conflicts that needed to be contained by quick force deployments. NATO agreed in 2022 to put 300,000 troops on high alert, up from 40,000 in the past.

☆ NATO reaches back to Cold War past with first major defence plans in decades
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

☆ Perseverance rover captures new images of ancient river evidence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The Perseverance rover has captured new images that appear to reveal geologic evidence of a fast-flowing river that fed into Jezero Crater, the site of an ancient Martian lake. The bands of rocks in this image of "Skrinkle Haven" taken by the Perseverance rover may have been formed by a fast-flowing river. The rover also captured a mosaic of "Pinestand," where layers of sedimentary rock could have been formed by a deep, fast-flowing river. The Perseverance team is also analyzing other images taken by the rover. We struggle even with early Earth rocks to answer this question.

☆ Ethics official cites Alberta premier for violation, ahead of election
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OTTAWA, May 18 (Reuters) - Alberta Premier Danielle Smith interfered with the judicial process, the Canadian province's ethics commissioner said in a ruling released on Thursday, two weeks before a provincial election that is expected to be hard fought. Ethics Commissioner Marguerite Trussler said Smith had breached conflict of interest laws by contacting the province's justice minister about the case of a Calgary pastor facing criminal charges related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In statement on Thursday, Smith said she would seek legal advice on how a premier could talk to a justice minister about sensitive matters in the future. Last week Smith apologized for having compared Albertans vaccinated against COVID-19 with followers of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany. In March, another UCP candidate resigned after claiming children are exposed to pornography in schools and teachers help them change their gender identities.

[1/3] Smoke rises above the southeast perimeter of the Paskwa fire (HWF030) as it burns near Fox Lake, Alberta, Canada May 16, 2023. Alberta Wildfire/Handout via REUTERSMay 17 (Reuters) - Smoke blanketed the skies over much of Alberta on Wednesday as firefighters from Canada and the United States battled raging wildfires that have prompted evacuations, disrupted rail service and shuttered energy production in Canada's main oil-producing province. Of estimated May production volumes, about 60% are currently subject to extreme wildfire danger levels, with the remaining 40% subject to very high danger, Oslo-based Rystad said. Wildfire smoke has covered a large part of Western Canada. Air quality in places including Edmonton and Alberta has deteriorated to category 10+, the worst level on Environment Canada's Air Quality Health Index, indicating "very high risk."

TOKYO, May 16 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose for a second day on Tuesday, supported by U.S. plans to purchase oil for its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and by raging wildfires in Canada that fuelled supply worries. The U.S. Department of Energy said on Monday it would buy 3 million barrels of crude oil for the SPR for delivery in August, and asked that offers be submitted by May 31. China's oil refinery throughput in April rose 18.9% from a year earlier to the second-highest level on record, data showed on Tuesday. Oil prices on Tuesday also drew support from supply worries stemming from wildfires in Canada. "With so much uncertainty surrounding the macro environment, the lack of any strong signals from the physical market is likely to see oil prices remain under pressure," said ANZ analysts.

TOKYO, May 16 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose for a second day early on Tuesday, as U.S. plans to purchase oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) lent support while raging wildfires in Canada fuelled supply worries. Brent crude futures rose 31 cents, or 0.4%, to $75.54 a barrel by 0043 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $71.38 a barrel, up 27 cents, or 0.4%. Both benchmarks rose more than 1% on Monday, reversing a 3-session losing streak. The U.S. Department of Energy said on Monday it would buy 3 million barrels of crude oil for the SPR for delivery in August, and asked that offers be submitted by May 31. Oil prices on Tuesday, however, drew support from supply worries stemming from wildfires in Canada.

☆ Mohamed El-Erian says regional banks are in a 'hospital' phase of turmoil, but a Fed policy mistake will drive them 'back into the ICU'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The regional banking crisis has shifted out a severe stage, economist Mohamed El-Erian told Bloomberg on Tuesday. But another Fed policy mistake could drive small to mid-sized lenders "back into the ICU." If there's another [Fed] policy mistake, the patient goes back into the ICU," said the chief economic adviser at Allianz. Depositors have yanked hundreds of billions of dollars out of regional lenders collectively this year, including PacWest and First Republic Bank. What would another policy mistake look like to El-Erian?

☆ Oil prices extend gains on U.S. plans to refill reserve, Canada's wildfires
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Oil prices rose for a second day early on Tuesday, as U.S. plans to purchase oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, or SPR, lent support while raging wildfires in Canada fueled supply worries. Brent crude futures rose 31 cents, or 0.4%, to $75.54 a barrel by 0043 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $71.38 a barrel, up 27 cents, or 0.4%. Both benchmarks rose more than 1% on Monday, reversing a 3-session losing streak. The U.S. Department of Energy said on Monday it would buy 3 million barrels of crude oil for the SPR for delivery in August, and asked that offers be submitted by May 31. Oil prices on Tuesday, however, drew support from supply worries stemming from wildfires in Canada.

☆ Canada PM Trudeau visits Alberta as wildfires rage
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Smoke rises from the Paskwa Wildfire (HLW030) as it burns near the Wood Buffalo National Park boundary outside Fox Lake, Alberta, Canada May 14, 2023. The first 11 days of May have set seasonal heat records in several parts of Alberta, including Edmonton, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada. By Sunday afternoon, 89 fires were burning across Alberta, with 25 considered out of control and more than 19,000 evacuees. "Our peak burning period, which is when the temperatures are at their highest and the fuels are at their driest, is still in front of us," Alberta Wildfires official Josee St-Onge said at a briefing Sunday afternoon. "It's too soon to say when we're going to see the peak of this wildfire season.

☆ As Ukraine Makes Inroads in Bakhmut, Devastation Still Reigns
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Marc Santora | Tyler Hicks | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

With the furious battle for the city of Bakhmut raging at their backs, a squad of Ukrainian soldiers tore through an open field, racing to get out of range of falling Russian artillery. The three soldiers — known by the call signs Omar, Chip and Bandit — had spent the day on Friday taking part in Ukrainian offensive operations on the edge of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, blasting Russian tanks and armored vehicles. But after surviving another brutal day of battle, they worried that the punctured tire might doom them. The men, who recounted their story on Saturday just outside the nearby town of Chasiv Yar, were among the hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers ordered on the offensive around Bakhmut in recent days. The fighting has often been hard, they said, with many Russians willing to die rather than surrender even when surrounded.

☆ Ferrari doesn't care about autonomous vehicles, CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ferrari's CEO says the company doesn't care about self-driving technology. Benedetto Vigna told a car summit hosted by the FT the group had the tech in place to build EVs. Ferrari doesn't care about technology for an autonomous vehicle, its boss says, reinforcing the company's intention to never build self-driving cars. There is performance software, there is comfort software, there is infotainment software, and there is autonomous," Vigna said. He suggested the company's shunning of self-driving software helped the group mostly stick to that tradition.

CALGARY, Alberta — Judy Greenwood did not want to leave. In much of the western province of Alberta, this time of year has long been wildfire season. As of Tuesday after, about 24,000 people were out of their homes in the sparsely populated, largely northern areas of the province as 88 active wildfires were burning across nearly one million acres. There have already been 412 fires this season — which typically runs from March 1 to Oct. 31 — an unusually high number. And for residents of vulnerable areas, that has evoked uneasy memories of 2016, when raging flames moved from the forest into the oil sands capital of Fort McMurray, Alberta.

☆ Players forced to run for cover as raging bull creates havoc at a rugby league match in France
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Chaos ensued before a rugby league match between the Catalans Dragons and St Helens on Friday when a bull escaped from a pre-match parade and rampaged around the field. Television cameras showed the bull breaking free of its handler, dragging him along the ground, and charging around the field. Scattering players dropped rugby balls as they ran for cover, while some players even jumped over the barriers into the crowd. It marked a significant win over the reigning Super League champion St Helens, sealed by tries from Arthur Mourgue, Matt Ikuvalu and two from Tom Davies. “It was a bizarre start to the match,” Dragons head coach Steve McNamara said afterwards.

☆ Did China Help Vancouver’s Mayor Win Election?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Dan Bilefsky | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Every day when he arrives at his office in City Hall, Mayor Ken Sim stares at a prominent black-and-white photograph of Chinese railway workers toiling on the tracks in British Columbia in 1884. Mr. Sim, the son of Hong Kong immigrants, said the workers’ weathered faces are a daily reminder of the symbolic importance of his election as Vancouver’s first Chinese Canadian mayor, and of just how far Chinese Canadians have come. Six months ago, his historic landslide victory was widely lauded, viewed as the triumph of a politically adroit change-maker whose centrist policies had swept him to power. But since February, the Globe and Mail newspaper in Toronto has cited classified intelligence reports in describing an effort by Beijing to manipulate Canadian elections, including those in Vancouver, raising questions about whether China played a role in his win. Across Canada, a political storm is raging over the intelligence reports, which have not been made public by Canada’s national intelligence agency but are said to conclude that the government of China and its diplomats wanted to ensure victory for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party in the two most recent federal elections, while encouraging wins for some candidates of Chinese descent.

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