On Monday, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was rocked by a deadly shooting on campus, leaving students in a state of panic. In response, the student newspaper The Daily Tar Heel featured a string of real text messages exchanged by students during the hours of lockdown on its front page, accompanied by a headline that read “LOADING ERROR LOADING”. The paper’s coverage of the shooting was a fitting tribute to the life of Zijie Yan, and a reminder of the need for gun control measures to protect students and faculty on college campuses.
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Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver have come together to create a podcast, "Strike Force Five," to discuss the Hollywood strikes. The podcast features conversations about the strikes and aims to raise awareness about the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes. The podcast is available on Spotify and will feature weekly conversations about the strikes.
Fabian Nelson, a 38-year-old realtor from Byram, Mississippi, has won the Democratic primary election runoff, making him the first openly gay state legislator in Mississippi. He will face Republican candidate Robert Foster in the November general election, and if elected, he will be the first openly gay black man to serve in any state legislature in the United States. Nelson has been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights and has said he has wanted to be a state legislator since he visited the state capitol as a high school student.
Tropical Storm Idalia made landfall in Florida as a Category 3 hurricane and is now bringing flooding to the coast of South Carolina. The National Hurricane Center has issued a storm surge warning for the area, and North Myrtle Beach, Garden City, and Edisto Island have already reported ocean water spilling onto beachfront streets. Residents in the affected areas are advised to stay informed and take all necessary safety precautions.
Over 100 former clerks of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas have signed a letter defending his "integrity" and "independence" in response to reports of unethical gift-giving. The signatories argue that the reports are part of a "larger attack on the Court" and its "legitimacy", and include high profile circuit court judges and John C. Eastman, who is now criminally indicted in Georgia. The letter focuses on defending Justice Thomas' "integrity, character and ethics" without addressing Eastman's involvement.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has recommended that the Drug Enforcement Administration reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drug, allowing for more research and potential medical use. This recommendation comes 11 months after President Joe Biden ordered the top health agency to conduct a review of the drug. Currently, the DEA has not yet made a decision on the recommendation, but if accepted, it would be a major step forward in the effort to legalize marijuana at the federal level.
President Joe Biden addressed the nation on Wednesday, discussing the impact of Hurricane Idalia and the federal government's role in providing assistance to affected states. He also addressed the climate crisis, noting the importance of infrastructure improvements made during the Obama-Biden years. Biden concluded his remarks by emphasizing the need for the nation to work together to rebuild and recover from the storm, and to address the climate crisis.
Hurricane Idalia has caused major flight disruptions across Florida and beyond after making landfall on the state's Gulf Coast on Wednesday. The storm has caused over 1,000 flight cancellations and 900 delays, with Southwest Airlines being the most affected. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is encouraging travelers to check with their airlines for the latest flight information and to allow extra time to get to the airport. Airlines are also offering waivers for passengers who need to change their flights due to the storm.