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☆ Oklahoma to vote on first religious charter school in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Brad Brooks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

April 11 (Reuters) - An Oklahoma school board is set to vote on Tuesday on whether the state will allow the first taxpayer-funded religious charter school in the U.S. - a decision that promises to ignite a legal battle testing the concept of separation of church and state. The Statewide Virtual Charter School Board will vote on an application backed by the Catholic church for the creation of St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, planned by its organizers to offer an online education for kindergarten through high school initially for 500 students and eventually 1,500. The board is a state entity that considers applications for charter schools - publicly funded but independently run - that operate virtually in Oklahoma. Laser disagreed and said her organization would fight the Catholic church in any court over St. Isidore and any other publicly funded religious school. "There is an attack being waged on public schools in Oklahoma, and that attack is to convert public schools into religious schools," Laser said.

☆ With Dueling Rulings, Abortion Pill Cases Appear Headed to the Supreme Court
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Abbie Vansickle | Pam Belluck | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON — The dramatic dueling rulings by two federal district judges on Friday about access to a widely used abortion pill set up a lower court conflict that legal experts say will almost certainly send the dispute to the Supreme Court. “It really turbocharges the imperative for the Supreme Court to step in and to do so sooner rather than later,” said Stephen I. Vladeck, a law professor at the University of Texas at Austin. A federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary ruling on Friday invalidating the Food and Drug Administration’s 23-year-old approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, which could make it more difficult for patients across the country to access the medication. Less than an hour later, a federal judge in Washington State issued a ruling in another case that contradicted the Texas judge by ordering the F.D.A. The Texas judge, Matthew J. Kacsmaryk, an appointee of President Donald J. Trump, stayed his order for seven days to allow the F.D.A.

[1/3] FDIC representatives Luis Mayorga and Igor Fayermark speak with customers outside of the Silicon Valley Bank headquarters in Santa Clara, California, U.S. March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Brittany Hosea-SmallNEW YORK/WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has retained advisers to sell the securities portfolios that the new owners of failed Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank rejected, according to people familiar with the matter. Silicon Valley Bank's and Signature Bank's securities portfolios carry a face value of around $90 billion and $26 billion, respectively, according to regulatory filings and statements by government officials. The FDIC estimates the sale of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank will cost the deposit fund $20 billion and $2.5 billion, respectively. It will release final figures once sales of the loan books of the banks and their securities portfolios are complete.

The White House's push for more regulation comes after days of turmoil in the banking sector after the collapse of U.S. lenders Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. "This ... is really about making sure that we are protecting the resilience and stability of the banking system going forward," the official added. Silicon Valley bank had $209 billion in assets at the end of last year. According to Federal Reserve data, about 30 banks had assets of more than $100 billion at the end of last year, a list that included Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. The Fed and other bank regulators have indicated they are already looking to strengthen bank rules, particularly for firms between $100 billion and $250 billion in assets.

WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) - The secretive world of Federal Reserve bank supervision has been laid bare by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and critics say it needs an overhaul to make it more nimble, transparent and decisive. Typically, bank supervisors do most of their work behind closed doors. Bank supervision is typically conducted behind closed-doors because of concerns that publicizing bank missteps could spur bank runs and undermine confidence in the overall system. SVB's rapid growth also was a factor for Fed supervisors. Barr said part of his review would look at whether Fed supervision was appropriate for the bank's "rapid growth and vulnerabilities."

☆ This is the personality test you should take, says psychologist—it's a 'better predictor of behavior'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Personality tests are often treated as objective assessments of one's innermost intentions. There is something that personality tests such as the Enneagram and Myers-Brigg aren't telling you, though: It is possible to have a bad personality. There is one test that might be better at reflecting what personality traits you have and how that could affect your behavior, he said: the International Personality Item Pool Test, or IPIP. This is often a "better predictor of behavior," he said, than the more popular personality tests. [Personality tests] don't get into the dirty underbelly of personality.

☆ Fact Check-Bill Gates was not issued an arrest warrant in the Philippines
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

One tweet said: “An arrest warrant was just issued for BILL GATES? Some users are sharing the claim alongside a March 2 story on NewsPunch that says: “Bill Gates Arrest Warrant Issued in Philippines For ‘Premeditated Murder’ Linked To Vaccine Roll Out” (archive.is/azhdX). A Gates spokesperson told Reuters that a Philippines court had not issued an arrest warrant for Gates due to the COVID-19 vaccine. The NewsPunch story says the Heinous Crimes Court in Manila, Philippines, issued the supposed arrest warrant for Gates. Bill Gates was not issued an international arrest warrant by a Philippine court, a Gates spokesperson told Reuters.

☆ Lindsey Graham says you won't find any classified documents at his home, just 'Chick-fil-A bags all over the floor'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Lindsey Graham says there aren't any classified documents at his home, just "Chick-fil-A bags all over the floor." The only thing I think you'll find at my house is a bunch of Chick-fil-A bags on the floor," Graham said during a news conference. Classified documents have been found at the homes of President Joe Biden, former Vice President Mike Pence, and former President Donald Trump. The spokesman added that Graham was "joking about the bags" — but just "a bit" — and sent several links documenting occasions where Graham was seen eating Chick-fil-A. In a tweet on July 14, 2021, Graham called the anti-Chick-fil-A protests at Notre Dame a "dangerous precedent."

☆ Moving species emerges as last resort as climate warms
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Moving species to save them — once considered taboo — is quickly gaining traction as climate change upends habitats. Concerns persist that the novel practice could cause unintended harm the same way invasive plants and animals have wreaked havoc on native species. “Climate change is causing a greater need for this — for taking a species outside its known historical range.”A pending change to the U.S. “In the future, some species’ ranges may shift due to climate change, or their current habitats might become unsuitable due to invasive species encroachment,” Armstrong said in an email. Humanity has been moving species around for centuries, often inadvertently and sometimes causing great harm.

☆ Biden's student loan forgiveness plan is 'unlawful,' two professors say, but legal challenges carry 'dangerous implications'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Although they call President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan "unlawful," two university law professors are urging the Supreme Court to reject the legal challenges that have been brought against it. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear two of those legal challenges. The law professors say it's supposed to be the party most affected by a policy that challenges it in the courts. But the law professors say that, in that case, MOHELA should have brought the legal challenge, not the states. "Missouri is not the proper party to pursue relief for MOHELA's lost loan servicing fees," Baude and Bray wrote.

"The legal precedent is not on the side of the FTC," said Andre Barlow, an antitrust lawyer at Doyle, Barlow & Mazard PLLC. Barlow pointed to three recent mergers challenged by the FTC or Justice Department that were ultimately allowed to proceed. Those cases share something else in common with the proposed Microsoft deal: in each instance, a company would merge with a supplier in a so-called "vertical" merger. "Vertical merger challenges are really difficult to win so it will be an uphill battle for the FTC," said Roger Alford, who teaches law at the University of Notre Dame. Reuters reported last month that Microsoft was expected to offer remedies to EU antitrust regulators in the coming weeks to stave off formal objections to the deal.

☆ Fact Check-Experts dispute claims that GPS data leads to election fraud by helping cast illegal ballots
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

More examples of the image, which says GPS data can help “tip the election/s to their preferred candidates” (without identifying who “they” are), are viewable (here), (here). But GPS accuracy is degraded by satellite signal blockage (due to buildings, bridges and trees), indoor and underground use, as well as signals reflected off buildings, among other factors (here). There is no mention of using online surveillance via GPS and geolocation to verify who voted, contrary to the social media claims. For example, by monitoring the sites an individual visits or the posts they create on social media, Google “can have some idea on” voter preferences. Read more about our work to fact-check social media posts here .

☆ A Core Question at COP27: Who Will Pay for Climate Change?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Elena Shao | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +10 min

When world leaders gather in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, this week for the annual United Nations climate summit, the debate over who bears financial responsibility for climate change will be center stage. Most Vulnerable, but Least Responsible for Climate Change A vulnerability index developed by the University of Notre Dame measures countries’ exposure, sensitivity and capacity to adapt to the negative effects of climate change. 10 gigatons CO2 Climate change vulnerability index COUNTRY’s Total historical emissions 1 Somalia is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, but has contributed only a tiny fraction of global emissions. Pakistan experienced widespread and deadly flooding this summer that scientists linked to climate change. India 57.1 Gt CO2 0.5 Middle income countries China 249.4 Gt CO2 0.4 Russia 117.5 Gt CO2 Japan 66.7 Gt CO2 Higher income countries United States 421.7 Gt CO2 0.3 United Kingdom 74.9 Gt CO2 Germany 93.1 Gt CO2 Wealthy countries are responsible for half of the world’s emissions since 1850.

☆ NFL Films is building its 'version of the Marvel universe' with a push into movies, dozens of TV projects, and partnerships with athletes from Tom Brady to Ronda Rousey
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

NFL Films is in talks with Hollywood partners about expanding its TV and film efforts. "We have a sport that is most akin to Hollywood," NFL Films senior director Ross Ketover told Insider. Among the buyers are Disney's ESPN, ESPN+, Hulu, and Disney+; AppleTV+ and Amazon Prime Video. NFL Films and Omaha also made a version starring MMA's Ronda Rousey called "Rowdy's Places," for ESPN+. NFL Films helped make a season of its Amazon series, "All or Nothing," for the English Premiere League's Manchester City back in 2018.

☆ Meet 11 people leading the aviation industry's push to slash emissions and ditch fossil fuels
▼ + stars: | 2022-05-31 | by ( Maia Anderson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Experts have estimated that aviation is responsible for nearly 2% of global greenhouse-gas emissions and 2.5% of carbon-dioxide emissions. Some aviation giants, like United, are signing purchase agreements to buy electric aircraft. Today he serves as CEO and chairman of the company, which aims to be a pioneer in electric aircraft. In 2000 he founded Aviation Technology Group, which developed the ATG Javelin very light jet before ceasing operations in 2007. He is also a founding member of the Nordic Network for Electric Aviation.

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