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The Nasdaq topped 10,000 for the first time ever, proving that during this period of economic uncertainty, America still has faith in tech stocks like Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Netflix.
1. Police reform
At least three people are dead and five injured after a shooting inside a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht. Police have arrested a 37-year-old, Turkish-born man, and they haven’t ruled out terrorism. The shooting unfolded with the world still on edge from last week’s Christchurch attack, and Dutch authorities elevated the terror threat rating in Utrecht to its highest level – Level 5 – for several hours as police searched for the suspect. The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement saying the country was “in full solidarity” with the Dutch government, regardless of the shooter’s motive.
MONDAY
A powerful cyclone ripped through parts of southeastern Africa over the weekend, and we are just now getting an idea of the devastation and the dangers yet to come. Aid agency officials say Cyclone Idai destroyed 90% of the Mozambique city of Beira, home to about 500,000 people. At least 84 people have died, but Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi said he has reason to believe the death toll will climb above 1,000. If that holds true, Idai will be the deadliest recorded cyclone ever to hit the region. The cyclone also tore through parts of neighboring Zimbabwe and Malawi. In addition to flooding and damage, the storm has left some roads impassable and some communities cut off from aid, making rescue and recovery a difficult and dangerous task.
3. Election 2020
The Trump administration wants to put a cap on student loan borrowing in an effort to update the Higher Education Act and discourage colleges from driving up the price of loans. Currently, undergrads can borrow $57,500 from the government over their lifetime, but parents of undergrads and graduate students don’t have a limit on how much they can borrow. The administration also proposed simplifying student loan repayment and expanding the Pell Grant program to low-income students who are enrolled in short-term career training programs. This is the first time the White House has outlined its priorities for an update of the higher education law, which was last reauthorized in 2008.
North Korea launched something today, but no one knows just exactly what it was. The North fired at least one unidentified projectile in the western part of the country, South Korea’s military said. The launch took place in a region that’s believed to be home to one of 20 undeclared missile facilities in the North. Just less than a week ago, Pyongyang test-fired several new weapons systems. State media in the North said the launches were part of a “strike drill,” but experts said they think the country was trying out some new short-range ballistic missile – the type that could carry a nuclear warhead.
THURSDAY
Some high-profile Democrats want a new FBI investigation into ties between President Trump and the former owner of the day spa where Patriots owner Robert Kraft allegedly solicited prostitution. Cindy Yang sold that particular spa in 2013, but her family reportedly still owns several other spas in the area. What does that have to do with Trump? According to reports and photos posted on social media, Yang is a frequent guest of the President. She watched the Super Bowl with him this February, has visited Mar-a-Lago several times and has been photographed alongside major Trump associates, including two of his sons and Kellyanne Conway. Democrats want to know if Yang illegally sought to leverage her connection with the President by selling access to Chinese clients. According to their request, Yang once used her website to offer “the opportunity to interact with the President.”
Obamacare helped bring the nation’s uninsured rate down. But that’s starting to change. A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the uninsured rate for people ages 45 to 64 jumped to 10.3% last year. It was 9.3% in 2017. It’s the first time a government study has shown an increase in the rate. The increase isn’t surprising since the Trump administration has made dismantling the Affordable Care Act (and adding restrictions to Medicaid) a top priority. When Obamacare was passed in 2010, the uninsured rate for nonelderly adults was 22.3%.
5. Nigeria
Bad news for MySpace enthusiasts: The former social media giant-turned-music sharing platform says it has lost 12 years’ worth of music, photos and video files. The company says a “server migration” problem led to the mass wipeout, which may have deleted any content uploaded between 2003 and 2015. While this may be an act of divine mercy for those who used MySpace to unwisely chronicle their awkward teen years, the platform enjoyed several years as a music sharing site before being all but swallowed up by Facebook. Some big musical acts, like Calvin Harris and Arctic Monkeys, were discovered during MySpace’s musical heyday. The mass deletion, one expert said, could amount to 50 million songs by more than 14 million artists.
THIS JUST IN …
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
Apple releases new iPad mini and iPad Air
So, start planning your semi-annual bout of tech envy.
Chinese buyer bids $1.4 million for racing pigeon named Armando
That’s it, that’s the richest sentence we’ve ever read.
Spaceflight is activating herpes in astronauts
Wow, this Star Trek reboot is really weird.
Hilton Hotels recycles old bars of soap and turns them into new ones
The chain says the soap will be “sanitized” first, but it’s still deeply troubling news for germaphobes.
TODAY’S NUMBER
1,000-plus
The number of guns found in a home in an upscale Los Angeles neighborhood.
The amount President Trump recently donated to the Department of Homeland Security, according to one of his tweets. Since taking office, Trump has donated his $400,000 annual salary to federal agencies and efforts.
TODAY’S QUOTE
“America’s elected representatives have a duty to regulate who comes in and when. In meeting this responsibility, it helps to remember that America’s immigrant history made us who we are. Amid all the complications of policy, may we never forget that immigration is a blessing and a strength.”
Former President George W. Bush, at a naturalization ceremony yesterday in Dallas
TODAY’S WEATHER
AND FINALLY
No hiding
Are those disguises in spy movies even close to being authentic? The CIA’s ex-chief of disguises breaks it all down. (Click to view.)
Who else feels like a hedgehog in a sock this morning? That’s OK, we’ll get through it together! (Click here to view.)