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☆ California flood watch issued as next atmospheric river looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LOS ANGELES, March 9 (Reuters) - Flood watch notices were posted across northern and central California for Thursday ahead of an atmospheric river storm expected to douse much of the state with heavy rain, including mountain areas still buried from a near-record snowfall. But smaller, waterfront communities along several major rivers and their tributaries also braced for the possibility of overflowing streams swollen by heavy showers and runoff of melting snow. Elsewhere, the NWS issued "prepare now" alerts for residents along the Big Sur, Carmel, Salinas and Pajaro rivers. "It's really a combination of all this heavy rainfall coming and also rapidly melting snow." The looming deluge follows a three-week barrage of nine atmospheric river storms that struck California in late December through mid-January, triggering widespread flooding as well as hundreds of mudslides, rockfalls and sinkholes across the state.

South Koreans who were forced to work for Japanese companies during World War II and their supporters protested a plan to resolve a longstanding dispute over their compensation, casting uncertainty over the ultimate success of a proposal to improve ties between Seoul and Tokyo. On Monday, South Korea’s foreign ministry said a local foundation would offer payments to three people who were sent to work for the companies, as well as 12 families of deceased former workers who had all won court rulings against the firms for compensation. In 2018, South Korea’s Supreme Court upheld the decisions.

In announcing the compensation plan Monday, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin called cooperation between South Korea and Japan ‘incredibly important.’A South Korean fund will compensate Koreans forced to work in Japan during World War II, the South Korean government said Monday, part of an arrangement with the Japanese government to resolve differences between the two U.S. allies. The rapprochement boosts U.S. efforts to foster cooperation between its allies to counter China and North Korea.

Japan and South Korea are near an agreement to compensate Koreans forced to work in Japan during World War II, officials said, boosting U.S. efforts to foster cooperation between its allies to counter China and North Korea. Seoul is set to release a plan as early as Monday for a South Korean fund to pay plaintiffs who have won court cases against Japanese companies over forced labor, the officials said. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol may later visit Tokyo, they said, although they cautioned that the talks aren’t finished and may still break down.

☆ Republicans want to replace federal taxes with a flat sales tax. It'll either add trillions to the national deficit or you'll have to pay a lot more for everything.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Some Republicans want to abolish the IRS and replace most federal taxes with a flat sales tax. However, a report from Brookings finds that the sales tax at the currently proposed rate would add to the deficit. Buddy Carter, who introduced the legislation, said the US "doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem." "Our country doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. This is on top of the $3 trillion that Republicans want to add to the debt with tax giveaways to wealthy tax cheats, Big Pharma, big corporations, and other special interests.

☆ Chinese Weapons Could Sustain Russia’s War Effort in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Alastair Gale | Brian Spegele | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Military supplies from China would provide Russia with a lifeline in its Ukraine war effort, thanks to the compatibility of Chinese and Russian weapon systems and Beijing’s large military manufacturing base. U.S. officials say China is considering supplying artillery and drones to the Russian military as Moscow’s forces burn through ammunition and suffer from shortages of critical equipment. China denies it is contemplating such action and has, in turn, pointed a finger at the U.S. and its allies for fueling the conflict by providing Ukraine with weapons.

☆ Why it’s impossible to find an open squat rack at the gym
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

You’ll have much better luck finding an open elliptical machine than a bench press, squat rack or 30-pound dumbbells. The pandemic led more people to take up weight training, gym owners and industry experts say. Post-pandemic, the surge in the popularity of weight training has helped the gym industry recover. Paul/Fairfax Media/Getty ImagesThe arrival of Nautilus and Universal strength training equipment in the 1970s and 1980s made weightlifting more attractive to a broader range of people. Genesis clubs have added more squat and dumbbell racks to keep up with demand for strength training and downsized cardio areas.

☆ Surf’s Up…in Duluth…in February—‘It’s Liquid Ice, Dude’
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Robert Mcmillan | Photographs Tim Gruber For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

DULUTH, Minn.—With local residents stocking up on emergency supplies and the National Weather Service warning of blizzardy gale-force winds last Thursday, Randy Carlson found himself looking for the perfect wave. Duluth is perhaps the most unexpected big-wave surf spot in the U.S.—especially during Minnesota’s punishing winters. Mr. Carlson is a member of a growing tribe of thrill-seekers who scan the local weather and wax up their boards when they hear that most enticing of forecasts: a big arctic storm blowing down from Canada.

☆ Chinese Jet Fighter Shadows U.S. Aircraft Over South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Alastair Gale | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

ABOARD A U.S. PATROL AIRCRAFT—A Chinese J-11 jet fighter, armed with four air-to-air missiles, appeared at the rear of an American P-8 patrol aircraft, passed above and settled a few hundred feet from the wing of the U.S. Navy plane. “American aircraft, this is the PLA air force. You are approaching Chinese airspace. Keep a safe distance or you will be intercepted,” a Chinese military ground station broadcast to the P-8, using the abbreviation for the People’s Liberation Army.

☆ Chinese Jet Fighters Step Up Pressure on U.S. Aircraft Over South China Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Alastair Gale | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A Chinese air force fighter flies close to a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft over the South China Sea on Friday. ABOARD A U.S. PATROL AIRCRAFT—A Chinese J-11 jet fighter, armed with four air-to-air missiles, appeared at the rear of an American P-8 patrol aircraft, passed above and settled a few hundred feet from the wing of the U.S. Navy plane. “American aircraft, this is the PLA air force. You are approaching Chinese airspace. Keep a safe distance or you will be intercepted,” a Chinese military ground station broadcast to the P-8, using the abbreviation for the People’s Liberation Army.

☆ Minority directors reach milestone 20% of Russell 3000 board seats
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Ross Kerber | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Still, most minority groups hold a smaller share of board seats than their share of the total U.S. population. Often the investors have found receptive audiences, but slow turnover on corporate boards has limited the pace of change, recruiters say. The biggest gain over the four-year period was for Black or African-American directors, who nearly doubled their share of board seats to 8.3% from 4.4% in 2019. They were most represented in the utility sector, with 12% of board seats, and least represented among information technology, energy and healthcare companies, each at 6%. Compared to Hispanics' total share of the U.S. population, their 3.6% share of board seats "isn't anywhere near where it's supposed to be," she said.

☆ Black couples pay a higher tax penalty for marriage than White couples. Here’s why
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Jeanne Sahadi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

A recent study by the Tax Policy Center, for example, found that Black couples on average face higher tax costs associated with marriage than White couples. “We find that Black couples are more likely than White couples to experience an income tax penalty from marriage and to face higher penalties. Differences in dollars and centsResearchers found that among couples hit with a marriage penalty, Black couples paid less in dollars ($1,804 versus $2,091) but more as a share of their income than White couples (1.8% versus 1.4%). Only 33% of Black couples got a marriage bonus compared to 44% of Whites, and those bonuses were roughly $170 smaller on average. “Taken together, Black couples in this income group paid, on average, a net penalty of $358.

☆ The most dangerous cruise routes, ports, and destinations are in parts of the world where conditions are unpredictable — and help is nowhere nearby, travel analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

But some cruise destinations and routes are prone to dangerous conditions and risky activity. These are some of the most dangerous cruise locations around the world. AntarcticaThe world's southernmost continent is among the most beautiful — and dangerous — cruise destinations, according to Chiron and Klein. Cruise passengers during a lifeboat drill in the Northwest Passage near Nunavut, Canada. National Park Service via APCruise lines avoid dangerous portsWhile rough seas and high winds can make ocean travel dangerous, uncertainties on land pose their own risks for visitors.

☆ U.S.’s Asia Allies See New Threat From Balloons Amid China Spying Row
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Alastair Gale | Joyu Wang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

America’s allies in Asia are raising their vigilance against high-altitude balloons after Washington accused Beijing of using them in a global spying program, ending years in which unannounced incursions by balloons have largely been tolerated in the region. Balloons of undeclared origin are seen each year around the Asia-Pacific region. One military officer in Taiwan with access to daily intelligence reports said suspected Chinese balloons are spotted by Taipei roughly once every quarter, mostly over Taiwan’s outlying islands near the Chinese coast.

☆ Cyclone Gabrielle causes havoc in New Zealand, firefighter missing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WELLINGTON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - A New Zealand firefighter is missing after a house slid down a hill in a beachside town near Auckland, as Cyclone Gabrielle pounds the country causing flooding, landslides and huge waves. Gabrielle, had been sitting 100 km (62 miles) northeast of Auckland over some small islands and is now moving southwest. The cyclone has brought heavy rain, flooding and gale force winds across the North Island and forced the evacuation of many beach settlements. States of emergency are in place in Auckland and seven other regions. Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Alex RichardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Australia's Norfolk Island braces for Cyclone Gabrielle impact
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Cyclone Gabrielle, headed for New Zealand, brought destructive winds to Australia's Norfolk Island on Saturday as it continued to track towards the tiny external territory in the Pacific Ocean. Gabrielle, a Category 2 tropical cyclone with winds of up 155 kilometres per hour (96 mph), was 325 km (miles) northwest of Norfolk Island, where conditions were deteriorating, Australia's weather bureau said early on Saturday. "The community are doing the right thing and we're in as good a place as we can be," Norfolk Island Administrator Eric Hutchinson told ABC television. The country's weather forecaster, MetService, said it expected Gabrielle to move towards New Zealand in coming days. Last month, Auckland and parts of the North Island were hit by record rainfall that sparked widespread floods and killed four people.

☆ China’s Fleet of Balloons Prove Hard to Detect as They Survey the World
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Alastair Gale | Michael R. Gordon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China has operated a fleet of high-altitude balloons, like the one shot down by the Air Force, to carry out surveillance on five continents, the Biden administration said, as it tries to bring international attention to the scope of the Chinese program. Administration officials embarked on a series of briefings about the balloon with allies and partners, officials said. Those briefings draw on “what we’ve learned based on our careful observation of the system when it was in our airspace,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

☆ Yorkshire admit four charges after investigation into racism claims
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Yorkshire County Cricket Club has admitted liability to four amended charges including a failure to address and take adequate action against racist and discriminatory language, the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on Tuesday. Yorkshire and a number of individuals were charged by the ECB in June after an investigation into racism claims made by former player Azeem Rafiq, who alleged in 2021 that he had been a victim of institutional racism at the club. Ballance has previously apologised to Rafiq in person for using racist language. Both Yorkshire and Ballance will not be required to attend a hearing in London following the acceptance of the charges. "Today's announcement is an important step forward for Yorkshire County Cricket Club as part of its journey to learn from the past," Yorkshire chairman Kamlesh Patel said in a statement.

☆ Snow and winter storms cut power, disrupt traffic across the Balkans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SARAJEVO, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Gale-force winds and snow storms closed roads and left more than 25,000 households in Serbia without power on Sunday, while fallen trees disrupted traffic in neighbouring Croatia and Montenegro. In Croatia, a red alert was issued for the regions along the Adriatic coast due to north winds estimated to reach 130 km per hour. More than 250 km of local roads in mountainous southeastern Serbia were closed due to snowdrifts reaching two metres, local media reported. Bosnian authorities banned the use of heavy lorries in mountainous regions due to snowdrifts and icy roads. Meteorologists have announced freezing temperatures and snow storms across the Balkans will continue in the days to come.

☆ Czechs and Slovaks see storms disrupt traffic and cut power
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 4 (Reuters) - Gale-force winds and snow storms cut power supplies to thousands of Czech households on Saturday and closed the main east-west highway in Slovakia, officials and local media said. In Slovakia's Zilina region, authorities called on people to stay indoors and avoid non-essential travel, especially to the north of the country, as winds reached more than 120 km per hour in the Tatra mountains. A section of the D1 highway near the Tatra mountains was closed for several hours after around 30 cars were caught in an accident due to heavy snowfall, local media reported. In the Czech Republic, 15,000 households were still without electricity in the afternoon - down from around 90,000 in the morning - after strong winds brought down trees and disrupted the grid, while dozens of train services were canceled, CTK news agency reported. Reporting by Robert Muller; Editing by David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/3] People walk along a rocky beach caused by high surf following winter storms in San Diego, California, U.S., January 17, 2023. The White House said Biden, who on Saturday authorized federal disaster assistance for three hard-hit counties in northern and central California, would be joined by Governor Gavin Newsom and other elected officials. Twisted wreckage of wooden piers torn up along the waterfronts at both locations vividly illustrated the storms' destructive force. The high winds wreaked havoc on the state's power grid, knocking out electricity to tens of thousands of Californians. Reporting by Jeff Mason in Washington; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Katherine Jackson in Washington; Writing by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles.

☆ Asia, Europe Look to Collective Action to Restrain China
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Alastair Gale | Chieko Tsuneoka | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO—Democracies in Asia that rely on the backstop of U.S. military power for their prosperity are confronting a new reality: American protection is no longer enough now that China rivals the U.S. in areas such as advanced missiles and naval hardware. To tackle the problem, Beijing’s neighbors, with prodding from the U.S. and help from Europe, are building a network of regional security ties with a goal similar to that of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization: deterring a large nation whose growing ambitions have raised the prospect of conflict.

☆ California is deluged by record rain with more storms coming
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Kate Fishman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The parade of storms is forecast to continue, bringing even more heavy rain next week, the weather service said. Large stretches of central California received over half their normal annual rainfall since Dec. 26. [1/12] View of flooding from the rainstorm-swollen Sacramento and American Rivers, near downtown Sacramento, California, U.S. January 11, 2023. The storms have killed at least 17 people since the start of the year, California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Tuesday. Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago and Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, California; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Over 220,000 still without power due to California storm
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 10 (Reuters) - More than 220,000 homes and businesses were still without power on Tuesday, as severe flooding hits California after a massive storm last week, according to data from PowerOutage.us. According to PowerOutage.us, the utility with the most outages was Pacific Gas and Electric Co (PG&E) with over 190,000 customers without power, followed by Sacramento Municipal Utility District at 22,900. A tree blocks a roadway after it fell in high winds during a winter storm in West Sacramento, California, U.S. January 8, 2023. REUTERS/Fred GreavesPG&E is a unit of California energy company PG&E Corp (PCG.N). At least a dozen fatalities have been attributed to several back-to-back storms that have lashed California since Dec. 26.

☆ Patel to step down as Yorkshire chairman in March
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 6 (Reuters) - Kamlesh Patel will step down from his role as Yorkshire County Cricket Club chairman in March, the club said on Friday. Patel, 62, took over from Roger Hutton in November 2021 with the club in crisis and was tasked with navigating them through a racism scandal involving Azeem Rafiq. Following an independent report into the allegations, a number of sponsors ended their partnerships with Yorkshire and the club were suspended from hosting international or major matches by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). "It has been an honour and a privilege to work for such a prestigious organisation," said Patel, who will step down at the club's next annual general meeting (AGM) in March. Yorkshire chief executive Stephen Vaughan said Patel should be proud of what he had achieved during his tenure at the club.

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