3/31
The president of the United States has a dog as a biter, which is embarrassing on a national level. This is the second biting incident in a month while at the White House. Although Major is still getting used to his surroundings, he should not be nipping someone while on a walk.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/31/joe-biden-dog-bites-second-person-in-a-month
Nicholas Horky
As the Myanmar military fights rebel groups in their own country, anybody has become a target. The military is bombing the rebel ran area of Karen with airstrikes that are causing citizens to flee for the jungles. In these increased airstrikes by the military children are being killed. This is interesting because it seems to be terrorism within a country.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/31/asia/myanmar-airstrike-children-intl-hnk/index.html
Will Kettelkamp
It feels as though week after week I feel the inclination to discuss the global pandemic that is going on well over a year, but yet the same conversations re needing to be had. President Biden has asked for Governors and Mayors to reinforce recently lifted mask mandates in order to once again lower the rising number of COVID-19 cases that are beginning to spike in a negative direction. President Biden is quoted as saying "“Please, this is not politics — reinstate the mandate,” Mr. Biden said, adding, “The failure to take this virus seriously is precisely what got us into this mess in the first place.” President Biden could not be more right in this scenario and the director of the CDC is in agreement that Americans need to "hold on a little bit longer" as we still fight to halt the spread of this disease. This includes continuing health and safety precautions such as a mask, social distancing, and small gatherings. It is becoming a broken record to have to constantly go through the cycle of numbers dropping, people stop using precautions, and the numbers rise again. There is hope along the horizon as efforts to increase vaccine production and use have been continuously pushed by the President.
Kolby Miller
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/29/us/politics/biden-virus-vaccine.html
https://www.the-sun.com/news/2602504/brit-isis-massacre-survivors-dunkirk-style-evacuation/
Starting Wednesday, ISIS began attacking the city of Palma in Mozambique, a town with roughly 53,000 residents was taken over by roughly 100 militants. The militants cut phone lines before storming the city, targeting shops, banks, and military barracks. Local suppliers and company boats in the area coordinated to rescue people. So far dozens of people have been confirmed dead, and others are missing and suspected of being hostages. A nearby gas site that had British contractors has also suspended activities and President Biden described the extremists as a 'foreign terrorist organization'.
- Mason Meiring #9
The Biden administration condemned the Myanmar government's latest crackdown on protesters and said the U.S. was suspending relations established with the country under a 2013 trade pact after there was deadly violence on anticoup demonstrators over the weekend. Soldiers and police from Myanmar gunned down at least 90 protestors over the weekend including children between the ages of 10 and 16. The United State's released a statement: "The United States supports the people of Burma in their efforts to restore a democratically elected government, which has been the foundation of Burma's economic growth and reform. These actions are a direct assault on the country's transition to democracy and the efforts of the Burmese people to achieve a peaceful and prosperous future."
It is fascinating to see the actions by the new Biden administration. Biden is taking a firm stance with the actions occurring in Myanmar. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the international system reacts. Whether, they follow in the United State's footsteps and cut trade ties with Myanmar or not. Also, the United States will always favor when a country is trying to transition to a more democratic state. But the big question we have discussed a lot of class is: Should the United State's be the international police and try to exert control over other countries and "force" them to become democracies? Or is that bullying?
-Katie Huey, Blog Post #9
After 6 long days of blocking any travel through the Suez Canal, the large cargo ship has finally been dislodged. Despite the ship being freed there are still hoards of cargo ships waiting to enter the canal. Some of these ships have been waiting days for entry and have thusly created heavy amounts of traffic wanting to enter the Canal. Before this incident occured, the Suez Canal had around 80-90 cargo ships pass through a day. Soon around 400 ships will attempt to pass through the Canal within the coming week.
https://www.cnn.com/africa/live-news/suez-canal-shipping-crisis-03-29-21/index.html
Sydney Chmielewski
The Military coup that has taken over the government of Myanmar has seen protests throughout its borders. In an act of crushing opposition, the military and law enforcement open fire at 40 location on the protesters on Saturday March 27. At least 90 people were killed with hundreds of others injured. This was the bloodiest day since the coup began and has continued to constrain its hold on the public by shooting protesters. Due to the actions that have occured in Myanmar, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union have put economic sanctions on the area which has caused large economic strains. Since the beginning of the coup which was about 2 months ago, more than 420 individuals have perished which including six children from the Saturday incident. More and more foreign powers issue statements against the action of the military who urge them to, "[C]ease violence and work to restore respect and credibility with the people of Myanmar that it has lost through its actions." As protests occur every single day and the actions of military power continue, who knows if we will see the regime try to loosen its grip and restore relations. So far, it seems that no military action or support of the people have occured from foreign powers but it can be possible if there seems to be no change. Until then, the Myanmar people will continue to protest their regime and sadly the military will continue its power control of the region.
Jesse Solis
Wall Street Journal - Article by Niharika Mandhana
https://www.wsj.com/articles/myanmar-protesters-return-after-security-forces-kill-90-people-including-children-11616942696?mod=world_major_1_pos1
The US is at an interesting and critical phase in the COVID-19 pandemic, as COVID cases are on the rise again (reported cases 7-day average is up 16% from one week prior), while at the same time the vaccination effort is ramping up. Eased restrictions and the presence of newer, more contagious variants of the virus are largely responsible for the increase in cases. This is going to remain an important thing to keep an eye on, as the US is still months away from even getting close to achieving a vaccination rate high enough to achieve herd immunity; as of today, only 15.5% of the US population is fully vaccinated.
link: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/29/covid-19-cases-deaths-vaccinations-daily-update.html
Matt Jett #7
Tanzania has given a hero's burial to President John Magufuli, who died earlier this month after denying the dangers of COVID-19. Magufuli was one of Africa's most prominent COVID-19 skeptics and even though the Tanzanian government announced that Magufuli died of heart failure, opposition leaders believe the he died of complications from COVID-19. Last year, Magufuli said that three days of national prayer got rid of COVID-19 from Tanzania and even discouraged Tanzanians from wearing face masks and getting vaccinated. At his funeral, many talked about Magufuli's pugnacious style of leadership and action against corruption. However, there are critics to his legacy, saying that his rule reduced fundamental freedoms of expression and assembly.
Link: https://apnews.com/article/dar-es-salaam-tanzania-coronavirus-pandemic-africa-john-magufuli-6f5b05e16e218c77e1b4734a194be55a
Sam Selakovich
This article was especially interesting as it involves possible criminal activity with an individual related to the U.S.’s biggest threat at the moment, North Korea. Mun Chol Myong is facing several counts of money laundering and conspiracy. “According to the indictment, Mr. Mun’s company procured sensitive technology, agricultural commodities and luxury goods including liquor and tobacco for North Korean customers. The company used another hair-and-beauty-products front company to make payments in U.S. dollars and hide any connections to North Korea” (Viswanatha). After reading the article, it seems like they accusations are pretty legit. It will be interesting to see how the U.S. handles this legal situation as it obviously involves foreign affairs and more particularly one of our biggest threats. North Korea is aware of the situation and claims that he was participating in completely legal activities. Mr. Mun is currently detained and was just transferred from Malaysia to the United States. I believe that the U.S. is attempting to do the correct legal thing and I respect them for doing so. However I wonder how this whole situation will impact the already shaky relationship between the two countries.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/alleged-north-korean-operative-makes-first-u-s-court-appearance-11616448220
Jeremy Cardenas Blog #6
Mexico has revised the numbers and it indicates that the number of deaths caused by coronavirus is 60% higher than previously reported. So, it suggest that more than 321,000 people are now believed to have died from Covid-19. Therefore, once the numbers were revised it placed Mexico with the second highest number of Covid-related deaths in the world. Experts have warned that Mexico's true death toll is probably much due to a lack of testing. Also, its believed that a shortage of intensive care beds in many states has led to a large number of people dying at home. Mexico's vaccination programme has seen about 6.1 million doses given out so far. Just recently, the US announced that it would release of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Mexico and Canada.
Egypt has a large issue on their hands, which includes a gargantuan container ship that has blocked world trade by getting stuck aslant the Suez Canal. The ship has been there for five days now, the Suez Canal is a very important connection to the Port Said on the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean via the Egyptian city of Suez on the Red Sea. The passage enables more direct shipping between Europe and Asia, eliminating the need to circumnavigate Africa and cutting voyage times by days or weeks. In order to clear the ship, they would need to clear other vessels from the area that the ship is stuck in. But with this issue, it seems after they would be able to move the ship future ships will have a hard time moving along. The estimate for the ship to break through is Monday, shipping experts and government officials said the wind could well have been a factor, but they claim that the problem resulted into human play.
‘A Very Big Problem.’ Giant Ship in the Suez Remains Stuck. - The New York Times (nytimes.com)
By: Alexis Ferreira
The case of Khalil v. Minnesota consisted of a man who was found guilty of third degree criminal sexual misconduct after raping the victim who was passed out drunk. He then filed for an appeal and it was accepted they presented his case and the original sentence and charges were reversed. The basis for the reversal lied on the fact that for someone to be charged with third degree criminal sexual misconduct the victim must be "mentally incapacitated". In this case they deemed that because the victim herself chose to get intoxicated before she met her attacker she did not fall under the "mentally incapacitated" category, that was specifically reserved for those who were forced to drink or secretly drugged. The case is now being set for a new trial. This brings worry because of the possibility of an intoxication loophole that can become abused by others and in the future leaving victims vulnerable when pressing charges against their attackers.
Valeria Ramirez
The company that currently owns the container ship that has been stick across the Suez Canal mentioned that there will be an attempt to refloat the ship by tampering with the tidal movements. So far, ten tugboats have been deployed and workers were dredging the bank and sea floor near the bow to try and get it going again. The company is very apologetic and feels bad about the vessel being the main cause of blocking traffic and the delay of many precious goods, as well as worrying many people. In another statement, Shoei Kisen, the firm that owns the ship, said that they are considering moving the containers off of the ship in effort to decrease the overall weight. However, that is fairly difficult task and will take a lot of logistical planning to do so. The company said they will only consider that option if the refloating fails. The White House has offered its help to reopen the canal, and President Joe Biden also said that we have equipment and capacity that a lot of other countries do not have, that could help this situation. After the long delays, almost all ships have been diverted around the southern tip of Africa instead. Due to 10% of the world's trade flowing through this canal, this makes the stakes very high, and the overall issue a little bit bigger than one would normally think.
Michelle Boban Blog Post #6
The New York Times reported on the Coronavirus vaccine rollout and rush to vaccinate all individuals as quickly as possible. The vaccine has only been available to select groups but will be available to all adults in six states starting tomorrow. The states include Kansas, Louisiana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas. Indiana, Minnesota, and South Carolina will follow later this week. The populations in these states are excited since numbers are increasing dramatically in the United States. Cases have risen by 15,000 cases since last week, so it is essential that the number of vaccinated individuals increases.
-Hannah Kohl (Blog #8)
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/28/us/states-opening-vaccine-eligibility.html
North Korea over the weekend accused the United Nations of a "double standard" over its reaction to their recent missile launchers, warning it of a "serious consequence". Recently, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea regardless of the U.N. declaring a ban on this type of launch. Experts say that these launches were aimed at applying pressure on the recently imposed Biden administration. Senior North Korean Foreign Ministry Official Jo Chol Su said in a statement that the resolution by the U.N. banning these launches on them constitutes a, ". . . denial of sovereignty and an apparent double standard that the UNSC takes issue, on the basis of the ‘resolutions’ — direct products of the U.S. hostile policy toward North Korea". This comes as North Korea has become increasingly frustrated that the U.N. is only focused on their missile launches.
Kyle Remington
The Ever Given, a 224,000 ton container ship, is stuck in the narrow Suez canal connecting the Red and Mediterranean Seas. The ship managed to get wedged in the Suez canal following multiple sandstorms and high winds, and is now blocking up to 10% of all international trade. The only other route from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean involves going around the southern tip of Africa, but the Suez canal connects these two running through Egypt. The ship is nearly as long as the Empire State Building is tall, and dislodging it from the canal will be a tremendous effort. The ship became stuck on March 23rd, and has caused a huge traffic jam in the region, as well as a disruption to global trade.
Local authorities made an unsuccessful attempt to refloat the ship, as well as attempts to dislodge the ship using tug-boats. However, experts have stated that dislodging the ship at its current weight will be nearly impossible. This means that they will have to unload either fuel or cargo from the ship, which is a very costly and time-consuming endeavor. Unloading fuel from the ship could mean possibly capsizing it, and Egypt does not have a floating crane tall enough to unload cargo from the ship's top. Meanwhile, excavators have attempted to remove some of the soil and sand around where the ship is stuck, which has proven to be fairly fruitless. The soil around the ship is very rocky, which is breaking the equipment used to move it. Officials are now saying that even a best-case scenario would take multiple days to complete, and the way things are looking right now, it is more likely that the effort to dislodge this ship will take weeks.
Sarah Runchey
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/25/middleeast/suez-canal-ship-blockage-intl-hnk/index.html
At this very moment, conservative and fundamentalist politicians of Iran are debating on whether or not to start talks with the U.S. once again, particularly in the category of advancing research in nuclear weapon technology. The Trump administration withdrew from the Iranian nuclear deal and also imposed many sanctions severely damaging the countries economy and quality of life. If talks are ever to resume which they are predicted to, Iran suggests that the United States makes the first move and that all sanctions additionally be removed. As of now, Iran is in no rush to return to talks and the supreme leader Ali Khamenei has not taken a stance on this issue.
Alec Kretovic, Blog Post #6
https://www.wsj.com/articles/iranian-politicians-divided-on-return-to-nuclear-talks-with-u-s-11616771117?mod=world_major_1_pos7
Recently a deal was signed between China and Iran to create economic and strategic ties with each other in order to challenge the U.S. This deal has China investing in Iran in exchange for oil, China getting oil at a lower price and Iran finding a way to bypass U.S sanctions. Iran also gets Chinese investment in their nuclear infrastructure as well. Iranian leaders were criticized for selling out to China as opposed to heroically fighting the U.S sanctions off independently but the deal is one that works for both countries and serves as a counterforce to U.S presences in the region as well as giving China better middle eastern influence.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/china-signs-25-year-deal-with-iran-in-challenge-to-us-101616950965451.html
Chris Rauch
The Swedish clothing brand H&M is currently taking the heat in Beijing as the Chinese boycott the company for no longer sourcing their cotton from Xinjiang due to the unethical exploitation of their workers. A spokeswoman from a State Department has reported that the boycotts were egged on by China's communist government as they continue to profit off of the human exploitation. This is causing western companies to begin halting the imports of items produced by forced labor in China. With this being said this controversy imposes an interesting contrast between the United States' rhetoric about how fast fashion is unethical in the way that it infringes on human rights while China's rhetoric calls the allegations against them "malicious lies" handcrafted by "anti-China forces." While the Biden administration denounces the boycotting that China collectively is taking part in, the United States will continue to claim that they are simply abiding by U.S. laws and will support all the companies that do so.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-condemns-chinese-boycotts-of-companies-that-avoid-xinjiang-production-11616784162
By: Kaytlyn Tyler
This attack happened just outside of a church located in Indonesia. Police suspect the attack was a suicide bomb attack that occurred on Palm Sunday the Sunday before Easter. the impact was 14 people are at least wounded and there is a broken motorcycle. The 2 attackers are dead. In the past, there have been attacks on the Indonesian churches but none are linked to any militant Islamist groups from the community knowledge. Most people are pointing to this attack as a religious terrorist attack especially for when the date it occurs. Over the past couple of weeks, all different types of hate are piling up around the world. Now with religion being added into the fray, it's hard to say what really needs to happen in order for this trend to start to die down. Police in Indonesia is now on the case to see if they can find any evidence on why this attack occurred and if it is linked to anything. Personally, I feel a investigation especially on a case like this will be very hard as most of your evidence will be missing due to the remnants of the attack. It will be interesting to see over the coming days how this story will start to develop. Will religious hate grow or will it only get worse as we approach Easter?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-56553790
Matthew Rabick
Illinois is set to allow any person over the age of 16 to receive the Covid-19 vaccine on April 12, as of right now Pfizer is the only vaccine that can be used on children ages 16 and 17. Pfizer has begun testing their vaccine in children younger than 12, they have vaccinated two twin girls, age 9, at Duke University in North Carolina on Wednesday. Moderna as well is set to begin similar trials with the goal of proving their vaccine can be used in children as young as 6 months old. Many hope that Immunizing children will help schools to re-open softly while also helping the US reach herd immunity quicker. Official's explain that even with many adults opting to get the vaccine, children make up about 23% of our population so, even if every adult got vaccinated we could not reach herd immunity.
link: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/25/health/coronavirus-children-vaccinations-pfizer.html
By: Tommy McClernon
The United States and China are beginning to trend toward a long term conflictive relationship that could lead toward a cold war similar to the one the US experienced with the USSR. This conflict is also driven by the same factors that drove the last cold war. America, being a free and democratic society is struggling over influence with authoritarian China for the fight of influence over billions of people. Another parallel between our cold war with the USSR and China is that there is talk of a containment policy that is supposed to keep China's influence from spreading around the globe. My personal opinion on this article is that while there are some parallels to the cold war from the 1900s with the USSR, times have changed drastically and I believe we have been in this cold war with China for a long time. They are struggling to become to worlds number one power and we are trying to keep that title and that is a fight that will never go away. I do not think this is a huge deal if it drives competition between the countries and betters both of them. Where issues arise is if one tries to influence or sabotage the advancement of the other. There is no doubt that how China has handled the COVID-19 outbreak has led to a lot of distrust and anger from America and other countries around the world as it should have. China's handling of the COVID-19 outbreak was irresponsible and they should absolutely be on the hook for retributions for their mishandling of the virus and the spread that came as a result.
US must prepare for cold war with China (msn.com)
DALTON WILLETT BLOG #9
A new law was passed in Georgia to make it illegal to pass out waters or food to people waiting in line to vote. This is seen by many democrats and republicans alike as an attempt to curb voting trends, since the majority of people who have to wait in long lines to vote are people in less wealthy areas, or people of color. Many republicans see no issue with this act and think that it is a good way to keep voting fair and equal to all people, when in reality, it is a way to keep some minorities from voting.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/26/politics/georgia-voting-law-food-drink-ban-trnd/index.html
I wanted to talk about something positive. In this article, author Rob Pucheta writes about how New Zealand passed a law that mandates that businesses provide 6 weeks of paid leave for women who have a miscarriage. Two important things that Pucheta touched on was that there were "many employers (that) already provide leave for employees who have suffered a miscarriage", and "The bill passed without any dissent, and the lawmakers who spoke in its final debate unanimously praised the contents of the legislation."
On the first point, it's interesting to see who shapes the norms and practices in society. Some argue that industry shapes laws and others argue that laws shape industry. There is always and inevitably a push and pull of both. I think it's cool that there were already businesses that thought this issue was important enough to back on their own policy. I also think it's cool that the country itself was willing to back this bill up, which brings me to the second point. The fact that the legislature backed this bill up and that it was supported so much was really heartwarming for me. I think it's fair to say that even a whisper of a bill like this in the US would cause an uproar, and I think it's not only sad but embarrassing. There are laws that allow the bereavement of the once-living but not for miscarriages and it seems to me that it's only logical to acknowledge the fact that a miscarriage is an emotionally devastating experience as well. I don't imagine the experience is as easy to cope with as simply saying, "Welp, it is what it is" and moving on. I think New Zealand often sets a very good and progressive example for the rest of the world and I'm rooting for them. I hope one day the United States would be more willing to implement positive change like this.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/25/asia/new-zealand-bereavement-leave-miscarriage-scli-intl/index.html
- Jake T. Domingo - Blog post #8
3/25
The Suez Canal is still shaking the waters. So far, dredgers have tried to clear silt around the ship, and tugboats have tried to pull it free, an excavator from shore dug into the canal’s banks, but no luck on getting it lose so far. This proves problematic because there is a jam of 206 large container ships on either side of Evergiven, one of the worst shipping jams in years. COVID is already restricting world trade and making it slower, so this jam is making it worse.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/25/suez-canal-blocked-ship-ever-given-stuck
Nicholas Horky
US and Japan report that North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast on Thursday. The Prime Minister of Japan was the first leader to identify the missiles as “ballistic missiles” and a senior US official also confirmed this. This development of North Korea’s warheads is a significant safety threat and interruption of Japan’s peace. This missile testing also goes against the United Nations Security Council’s ban on North Korea’s development and testing of ballistic missile technologies. These two missiles flew at a height of 62 miles and reached 280 miles then dropped into waters between North Korea and Japan. Also, over the weekend, North Korea tested two short-range cruise missiles, but this test did not violate United Nations resolutions. North Korea’s weapons program has been a problem for the past 4 US presidents, where it was handled differently in each presidency and all resulted in failure to stop North Korea from building nuclear warheads. With this being the first provocation under the Biden administration, we will see how it is handled.
Reese McMullen
After being banned from a variety of highly known social media platforms, Donald Trump had one of his spokesmen, Jason Miller announce his return to a new social media platform in two to three months. This new platform Miller talks about is no ordinary platform though, it is Donald Trump's very own new form of social media. Of course, there are a lot of debates on why Trump has brought this new platform to existence. After Trump has been banned from his favorite social platform, Twitter he lost a lot of his voice and access to his people. Is Trump trying to make new political movements from this app? Is he just looking for a way to relieve some of his financial stress? I can’t wait to see what comes from this new platform, although I am scared of what it may do if it is released globally.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/idf-accidentally-reveals-location-of-secret-bases-online-662933
Yesterday, the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) in cooperation with the Health Ministry released a map of current covid testing facilities, the map included testing locations on military bases, not only did they accidentally reveal IDF bases, but some of those bases were previously secret military intelligence and air bases. The map was even detailed enough to include boundaries and names of bases. This is a concern because locations make it easier for organizations to target rocket fire to these locations, and foreign intelligence now has additional access to information that could make it easier for espionage.
Mason Meiring #8
In this post it is in relation to the mass shooting that went down in Colorado at a grocery store. Biden addressed this boulder shooting before leaving to go to Ohio. Biden called for a ban on assault rifles and high capacity amount of ammunition. This is very sad what happened as this shooting that happened in Boulder, Colorado was at a grocery store. A gunman open fired and killed 10 people in the process during this shooting. Biden was devastated by this news and told congress to not wait any longer to enact legislation to ban assault riffles and high capacity ammunition magazines. Biden released these statements just before going to Ohio where he will be promoting his pandemic relief package. This Colorado news comes just a week after a gunman killed 8 people in Atlanta so Biden is looking to make a move on this now before anything else major happens.
Jimmy Patock
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/03/23/us/biden-news-today
Today Israelis are headed to the general election polls for the fourth time in only two years. The author describes the Israeli citizens as growing weary, as they are unsure this vote will bring about any change similarly to the last three general elections. The current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has finished comfortably on top of the polls and is Israel's longest serving Prime Minister (15 years). Netanyahu has faced critisism on how he handled the corona virus pandemic and many say he struggled to find the balance between public safety and the economic demands of Israel. However, they are emerging strong from this pandemic due to the vaccination efforts being taken. Netanyahu is also under investigation for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust charges which he insists is a "media-led witch hunt" based on anti semitism and the inability for anyone to beat him in the polls.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/23/middleeast/israel-fourth-election-intl/index.html
Sydney Chmielewski
Saudia Arabia proposed a cease-fire with the goal of removing themselves from Yemen's civil war. The Biden administration seeks to get the U.S. out of this six-year-old conflict. The proposal would include a nationwide cease-fire, the reopening of the airport in the capital San'a and the country's largest port at Hodeidah, also the start of political consultations under United Nations supervision. However, the Houthis, who are aligned with the Saudi archenemy Iran, dismissed the proposal.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out. As we discussed in class, if the conflict is able to be resolved with an agreement to cease-fire that leans more towards Liberalism in the belief that cooperation can occur. Moreover, it will aid the Biden administration in their reputation with handling international affairs during his presidency. One of the most important lessons that I have learned about International Relations is that you may think that something across the world does not affect you, but it does. And the leaders that make decisions play a big role in affecting the relations between countries.
-Katie Huey Blog Post #9, 3/22/2021
Supreme Court will be discussing the death penalty with the Boston marathon bomber from 2013. The argument from the lawyers of the convict is that the judge in the original trial did not do a good job at getting out the jurors with potential bias. Which makes sense with how publicized this case was and the state of the country at the time. The new trial will focus on the question of whether or not he should be executed for the deaths of three people and the wounds of hundreds of people that happened that day. This will also be a problem for the Biden administration, Biden is opposed to capital punishment but his lawyers still kept the petition to the Supreme Court where justices were debating whether or not to take the case. The case was also presented to President Trump's administration where the Department of Justice wanted to have the death penalty. The original argument that his lawyers used is that his brother was the one with the plan and orchestrated the whole thing, he died during a gunfight with police. The other brother is serving a life term in Colorado and the only thing this trial will do is define whether or not to use the death penalty against him.
Barnes, R. (2021, March 22). Supreme court will consider restoring the Boston MARATHON bomber's death sentence. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-boston-marathon-bomber/2021/03/22/cc42f3be-8b11-11eb-a730-1b4ed9656258_story.html
Tabby Zuniga Diaz
The E.U. on Monday announced that they are imposing sanctions on China for human rights violations against Uyghurs and other individuals in Xinjiang. The sanctions will hit four officials tied to the arbitrary detention and mass internment of Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang with travel bans and asset freezes. The sanctions also are aiming at the region's public security bureau. However, the E.U. does not include Chen Quanguo, which the U.S. sanctions last year targeted. Critics of the deal questioned why Europe was increasingly connectng itself to authoritarian China rather than tackling issues such as mass detention and forced labor in Xinjiang.
Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/xinjiang-sanctions-european-union/2021/03/22/1b0d69aa-8b0a-11eb-a33e-da28941cb9ac_story.html
Sam Selakovich
Two full decades of conflict may see a near closing as the United States with its NATO allies will meet together to have discussions on ending such conflict in Afghanistan. Since the beginning years of the 2000's, both United States and NATO troops have fought and died in the Taliban ran government of Afghanistan. Under the Trump administration, set a deadline on May 1 for US troops to depart the Middle Eastern nation, but now as the new administration moves in there are growing fears on whether or not removing troops could lead to the levels of violence to grow. Biden's administration worries that without a US presence in Afghanistan, NATO troops will be left to fight the insurgency of Afghanistan without the reliance of the military superpower. Biden has mentioned that withdraw plans could happen but it would be tough as to ensure that another Islamic terrorist organization under the Taliban would rise and cause more issues to the US and its allies. As the days get closer to May 1, who knows if we will see the roughly 2,500 American Troops depart the area that has seen conflict for 20 years. These discussions with NATO may see a turning point but could also see no change and a continued US presence in this foreign conflict.
Jesse Solis
Wall Street Journal - Article by Nancy A. Youssef
https://www.wsj.com/articles/defense-secretary-lloyd-austin-makes-unannounced-visit-to-afghanistan-11616335453
The United States, along with major allies in Europe and Canada, are set to announce a new set of economic sanctions on China for their human rights abuses involving the placing of the Uyghur Muslim minority in concentration camps in the Xinjiang province. These sanctions are supposedly going to be targeted towards individuals within the Chinese government that are most directly responsible for the human rights abuses, and these sanctions are following a tense and confrontational meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Chinese counterpart in Alaska last week.
Link: https://www.politico.com/news/2021/03/22/us-allies-sanctions-china-uighers-genocide-477434
Matt Jett #6
There has been a lot of claims being made about the different strands of COVID-19 vaccines and a few different companies that have been developing said vaccine. The first company that released their vaccine boasting high effectiveness rates was Pfizer and most recently AstraZeneca has released a vaccine that claims to be 97% effective. In a large clinical trial AstraZeneca's vaccine has curbed all the worst outcomes of the disease while causing no serious side effects according to the results released today. The hope is that the success shown by this vaccine will help instill confidence in the vaccine after Europe suspended implementation of their vaccine a few days ago. This trial included 32,000 test subjects, the most of any other clinical trial of the vaccine. The problem as of now for the United States is no matter how effective the vaccine is, it can not yet reach the shores of the United States because it has not been approved to be administered here. My opinion on this is that these vaccines are much needed not because of COVID-19 symptoms alone but so that people will feel that they can open up and begin living their lives at some capacity again. I have not seen my grandparents for over a year and if a vaccine can allow them to be comfortable, and for business to feel comfortable to begin to operate at a fuller capacity then I am all for a vaccine. As far as myself and if I would get it, I am unsure. I do not know if I am a priority to get this vaccine and have had a lot of good fortune thus far with combating the virus. I have not contracted COVID-19 and I would feel better allowing more at risk adults or younger children getting the vaccine before myself and hopefully there is a collective immunity coming soon when enough of the nation gets vaccinated.
AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 Vaccine Is Found to Be 79% Effective in U.S. Study (msn.com) DALTON WILLETT BLOG #8
BBC world news reported on the severe weather wreaking havoc on Australian citizens. They have stated "about 18,000 Australians have been evacuated from flooding across New Wales.” This is a huge amount of the population displaced and has caused many residences to be swept away in flood waters. Individuals have been stranded in their homes and cars, resulting in more than 500 rescues. Two rivers (Hawkesbury and Nepean) have reached record levels since 1961 and flights have been canceled after a runway was flooded in Newcastle. After the extreme wildfires last year, it is not surprising we are seeing extreme weather events, including the current devastation from flooding.
-Hannah Kohl (Blog #7)
With there being the presence of U.S., NATO, and other allied forces in Afghanistan for over 20 years now, discussion among withdrawing from war has once again reemerged in the newly constructed Biden administration. Talks of such matter have previously occurred in the Trump administration but with such high occurrences of violence and fear of the Taliban becoming once again a haven for extremist groups such as ISIS, drug smuggling, and other acts of terror and instability within the region, concern on how quickly to withdraw troops once again hinders these world leaders from making a safe and optimal choice. As of now, the Biden administration has not made any official decisions on this topic matter.
Alec Kretovic, Blog Post #5
https://www.wsj.com/articles/defense-secretary-lloyd-austin-makes-unannounced-visit-to-afghanistan-11616335453?mod=politics_lead_pos1
Miami has been a controversial city since the start of Covid-19, due to them caring very little about the virus. Therefore, a state of emergency has been declared in Miami Beach due to concerns of large crowds gathering for spring break. This, then poses a risk of coronavirus spreading. A curfew of 8 pm- 6 am has been announced and will remain in effect till at least April 12th. Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber went on to say that that thousands of tourists had brought "chaos and disorder" to the city. Since the curfew took effect on Sunday, Miami Beach Police told CNN, they had arrested at least a dozen people.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday it has relaunched its climate change website as part of the Biden administration's efforts to tackle the climate crisis. This is a drastic shift from the previous Trump administration and their approach. It has been made clear that several changes were made in regards to the language that was altered by the Trump admin to "reflect the approach of new leadership". In the most recent announcement, the EPA said that the revamping of the website marks the start of the Biden administration's commitment to "action on climate change and restoring science". This will be the first time in four years in which the EPA has a webpage that will guide the public to a wide range of information regarding facts on climate change and even programs across the country. The EPA noted that this is just the first step to providing the public with fully accessible information and programs that will be added in the weeks and months to come.
This change is monumental to our position in the global fight against the climate crisis and will be essential to making the US a leader in this fight. With the previous administration wasting nearly 4 years by dismissing the climate crisis as a hoax or partisan issue, there has been tons of opportunities missed. There will need to be a strong push with the Biden administration to overcome this setback.
Kyle Remington
In Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, on Sunday morning, there was a fleet of immigration agents to enforce Mexico's new constraints on all but essential travel at the shared border of Mexico and Guatemala. Immigration officers were gathered at the riverside and would not let immigrants through without the proper documentation stating their essential travel. Many were turned away and forced to leave. Most of the migrants are simply merchants and residents from Tecun Uman, from across the river, who buy in bulk in Mexico to resell items in Guatemala or purchase household items when the exchange rate favors it. What the migrants are saying is that officers have not let them in because they think the migrants are only coming to shop. When in reality, they are coming so they can purchase items to make an income.
Michelle Boban Blog Post #5
In this article, Colchester dives into international news involving the U.K. and the backlash it’s parliament has received recently due to new legislation. There has been a couple incidents of protests recently in the U.K. and this has led them to the creation of a 300-page bill involving what is allowed during protests. This new legislation gives great power to the police as “Clauses in the law would allow police to impose conditions on protests that are noisy or cause “serious unease” to people who witness them”, which relies on the officer’s interpretation of the situation (Colchester). The government’s statement is, “In recent years we have seen a significant change in protest tactics which have led to disproportionate amounts of disruption” (Colchester). They say that these laws do not threaten the freedom of expression. However, there is a large amount of citizens greatly unhappy with the laws and one major reason is the possibilities of punishment. Under the new laws, an individual could potentially face more time in prison for defacing a statue than committing rape. Hopefully that would never occur, but it has led many to believe that the U.K. needs to spend serious time revising its laws. Personally, I normally compare the U.K. with the U.S. when it comes to politics and freedoms, but in this situation, I believe that U.S. citizens have much more freedoms which I agree with.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/police-breakup-of-sarah-everard-vigil-heightens-scrutiny-of-u-k-plan-to-toughen-laws-against-protesters-11615836149
Jeremy Cardenas Blog #5
This month, US special forces have been sent to the African Country of Mozambique to fight an Islamic militia force known as Al-Shabaab, which as of this month the U.S has listed as terrorist and an expansion of the Islamic State. The region that Al-Shabaab operates in is known as Cabo Delgado and is a site for offshore natural gas and the region itself is filled with poverty and grievances that had allowed for civil conflict. This operation is a way to expand U.S influence in Africa to counteract the growing African-Chinese ties. But both Al-Shabaab and the Mozambique government forces have both been accused of war crimes and the U.S is not the first foreign country to try to play their hand in the region as Portugal (former colonizers of Mozambique) and Russia under the Wagner mercenary group have sent advisors and participating in the fighting. The Al-Shabaab militia is responsible for thousands of deaths and beheading 50 people at a sporting event last year, so having the recent U.S force is a sign that the U.S is now more focus on trying to gain influence in the region and not in protecting the people.
Chris Rauch
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-56441499
As the pandemic arrived last spring in the US, a wave of hate against Asian Americans arrived with it. T The hate crimes include racial slurs and incidents targeting Asian Americans. Recently there was a mass shooting in Atlanta at a spa that resulted in 8 deaths, with a majority of them being Asian American women. The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism released findings that there has been an 149% increase in hate crimes reported to police within 2019 and 2020 against Asian Americans. The striking thing about these statistics is that overall hate crimes have decreased by 7%. This means that the majority of hate crimes currently happening are against the Asian population. There is also a separate group, Stop AAPI Hate, that recorded nearly 4,000 hateful incidents during the first year of the pandemic. These numbers reveal the increased trend of anti-Asian hate during the pandemic, but also these numbers likely do not represent a fraction of actual incidents. Although not mentioned frequently enough, there was a spike in racist terms like “China virus” and “Kung flu” through Donald Trump’s presidency. Overall, it has been shown that presidential statements have correlated to the increase and decrease of hate crime.
Reese McMullen
Rolled back Covid Restirctions, cheap filghts, and discounted hotel rooms led to a surge in tourism to Miami Beach this spring break. As a result Miami Beach has declared a state of emergency imposing a curfew. All restaurants offering outdoor dining must close by 7 and the beach is to close at 8pm. The Mayor has explained that too many people have come with "bad intentions", the Mayor announced he will be imposing the curfew so that things do not get worse after videos began to trend on social media of large groups of students partying on the beach, and some even trashing outdoor lounge areas. Police arrested at least a dozen people, but the week before they detained around 100 people while trying to break up the spring break crowd. Official's fear that the surge in travel for spring break may amplify the pandemic, this is especially disheartening to hear considering we've seen a decrease in cases as the vaccine becomes more available.
link: https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2021/03/21/979725701/miami-beach-issues-curfew-to-curb-spring-break-virus-knocks-vcu-from-march-madne
By: Tommy McClernon
According to a Pyongyang diplomat, North Korea sees no reason to return to nuclear talks with the United States despite efforts made by the Biden administration. Since the middle of February, the Kim Jong Un regime has received emails and phone calls from the United States at the North's United Nations mission in New York and other avenues. A statement from Choe Son Hui, Pyongyang's first vice minister of foreign affairs said: "It will only be a waste of time to sit with the U.S. as it is not ready to feel and accept new change and new times. We make it clear that we won't give it such opportunities as in Singapore and Hanoi again."
It will be fascinating to see how the Biden administration handles North Korea. As history has shown that most U.S. presidents have not made much progress with North Korea and their nuclear weapons. As we discussed in class, North Korea potentially striking Japan and South Korea could leave to an arms race and nuclear proliferation. One of the few ways I see the situation with North Korea changing is if the United States can get China to stop supporting North Korea with materials. I guess only time will tell what will happen.
Link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/north-korea-calls-u-s-outreach-for-talks-a-trick-11616027830
-Katie Huey Blog Post #8, 3/21/2021
It is clear that Americans have shown a large amount of distrust when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccines. There are currently three vaccines that are approved for distribution which include Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Moderna. There has been shown to be a growing preference for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine over the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. This may be due to the fact that important politicians have expressed their distrust in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine such as Detroit mayor, Mike Duggan. Mayor Duggan suggested that the other two vaccine options were superior to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, rejecting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for Detroit's residents. This caused uproar in the public health community, making Mr. Duggan retract his statement. Some citizens have said that they would rather delay their vaccination than take the J&J vaccine at all, which may affect the distribution plans of community health officials. Although all three vaccines have been formally approved by US regulators, there is a growing distrust in specifically the J&J vaccine. The J&J vaccine differs from the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine which use mRNA vaccine technology and require two shots while the J&J vaccine uses a common cold virus. Although the J&J vaccine uses different technology, Dr. Anthony Fauci has assured that all available vaccines in the US are good vaccines and that there is not a 'weaker vaccine'.
Gall
Back in 2020, the world was thrown into great turmoil with the Covid-19 pandemic. The Covid-19 pandemic shut down almost all places of work as the world stood at a great standstill waiting for its freedom to arrive. Now in 2021 hope finally seems to be on the horizon with a multitude of Covid-19 vaccines being available. The United Kingdom has done something incredible these past 3 days. Record-breaking numbers are happening with administrating the vaccine that seems untouched by any country right now. Currently, over 50 percent of adults at least have one dose of the vaccine as the president of the United kingdom lifted his wall stating, "We should not set limitations on people who can get the vaccine". It will be interesting to see how the United Kingdom develops with dealing with Covid-19 over these next couple of weeks. Seeing how this country plays to other nations will be important as well. If other countries see that a country that has no limitations on the vaccine is doing better with dealing with the pandemic who's to say that we will not see it from other nations who are trying to deal with it as well. Only time will tell how this plays into effect. Today even with the success the United Kingdom is having with rolling out the vaccine they still have ensued a travel ban on people wishing to leave the country for a trip of some sort. Personally, I feel like this is a very smart idea as if you limit extra exposure within the country and are getting vaccines rolling out in an efficient matter you are setting yourself up for a kick recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in an attempt to get back to normality.
Matthew Rabick
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-56477291
Abubakar, K. (2021, March 19). Samia SULUHU Hassan becomes Tanzania's first woman president. Retrieved March 21, 2021, from https://apnews.com/article/samia-suluhu-hassan-tanzania-first-woman-president-6bc88a001df90580e9d587eb5a988c28
As we look back to the past year and all of the losses that had overwhelmed 2020, a very prominent loss the United States had was a 72% loss in Visa records for international students to be newly enrolled in U.S. education programs. Although this may come to many as an obvious outcome since the pandemic that has swept across the globe has withheld international travel, but this is still a very troubling number considering the fact that a majority of these students will be seeking their education elsewhere, most likely for the next couple years assuming that they will remain in their respected country of study to finish out their education. The United States has been a huge outlet for international travel as many aspire to come to the United States for one of the most high-quality educations in the world but that was put to a roaring halt when the Trump Administration decided to crack down on all immigration, leaving international student enrollments to be tossed in the process. A strong part of the United States hegemonic identity is upheld by the idea that we have to be the destination for the best scholars that the world has to offer accompanied by the best outlet for connections to the global market, but this drastic dip in numbers could cause an educational and economic drought for the United States for the next couple years. The potential for international students to pursue an education in other countries has never been higher leaving the United States' image as the most desirable country to pursue education to become a distant memory if these sanctions last any longer.
By: Kaytlyn Tyler
https://www.wsj.com/articles/student-visa-records-show-enrollments-by-foreign-students-tumbled-18-in-2020-11616168396
President Joe Biden traveled to Georgia where he met Asian-American leaders in the wake of Tuesday's attack on three Atlanta-area massage businesses. The shootings left eight dead. They are: Daoyou Feng, 44, Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33, Hyun Jung Grant, 51, Paul Andre Michels, 54, Soon Chung Park, 74, Suncha Kim, 69, Xiaojie Tan, 49, Yong Ae Yue, 63 and Elcias Hernandez Ortiz, 30 is still in hospital with his injuries.
Although this was obviously a racially motivated attack, police have not called race the motive for the attack. Even though hate crimes against people of East Asian descent have risen during the Covid-19 pandemic. Biden stated that racism has been an "ugly poison that has long haunted and plagued our nation," one that Americans must work to extinguish.
Due to such rise in hate crimes especially, towards Asian Americans since the start of the pandemic, which activists have linked to rhetoric blaming Asian people for the outbreak, there was a proposal of the Covid-19 hate crimes act. The bill would "expedite the federal government's response to the rise of hate crimes exacerbated during the pandemic, support state and local governments to improve hate crimes reporting and ensure that hate crimes information is more accessible to Asian American communities," the White House said. However, Mr. Biden added that "for all the good that laws can do, we have to change our hearts". "Hate can have no safe harbor in America. It has to stop," he said. "It's on all of us, all of us together, to make it stop.
The Georgia Sheriff's Office investigating the shootings removed its spokesman from the case on Thursday after social media posts emerged showing Captain Jay Baker promoting a T-shirt that called Covid-19 an "imported virus from CHY-NA". Mr. Baker has faced intense criticism since his comments at the first press conference after the shooting, in which he claimed the murder suspect, Robert Aaron Long, had "a really bad day".
Valeria Ramirez
Given the United States and North Korea's history, King Yo-jong's message to the United States on Tuesday did not come as a surprise. North Korea's first commentary towards the US under the Biden Administration was typical of North Korea, with threatening undertones. The Biden Administration doesn't necessarily have a fully developed plan on how America will deal with North Korea in the next four years, but Kim Yo-jong has warned us to tread carefully. With the hatred North Korea has for the United States, they are ready for war at anytime. Biden has seemingly looked to avoid this, as would any logical president, a nuclear war between the US and North Korea would be detrimental. North Korea speaking out stemmed from the plans for US and South Korea meetings to occur this week, and discussions on handling North Korea will certainly be occurring.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/16/world/asia/north-korea-biden-drills.html
Kaitlyn Colvin
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/16/world/asia/north-korea-biden-drills.html
I decided to give China and Hong Kong a break lol. In this article, authors Rick Noack and Quentin Aries write about how countries in the EU are gearing up to allow travelers back within their territories, granted, they can prove they're vaccinated. In recent domestic policy, we can see that states like Texas are re-opening completely and lifting mask mandates. In Chicago, Mayor Lightfoot is allowing vendors to prepare for larger populated gatherings - specifics unknown to me. Nonetheless, it appears that the world is starting to transition to go back to normal. The authors also write about how tourism plays a huge role in Greece and Spain's GDP. Here, in the US, one of the main concerns that our previous presidential administration had was our economy. I think the way these concerns, however, were incredibly short-sighted. Yes, we can try to float with stimulus checks and disregard expert healthcare advice but has this really helped our economy? I would argue no but, of course, I'm no economist. My point is I'm glad the world is starting to transition to normalcy and that such transition requires vaccinations. I can't wait until we can see the day where we can live our lives like 'normal' again.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/vaccine-passports-europe-travel/2021/03/17/65d645d4-8672-11eb-be4a-24b89f616f2c_story.html
- Jake T. Domingo - Blog post #7
Tuesday night eight were shot dead in three massage parlors in Atlanta, Georgia. Six of the eight were asian women. Over the last year anti-Asian hate crimes have sky rocketed in America. After this tragedy many are speaking out to raise awareness of the hate Asians have experienced in America and the increase in a year where there is a global pandemic that started in China. This horrible event is another example of white supremacist lashing out against minorities.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/18/politics/white-supremacy-racism-asian-americans/index.html
Will Kettelkamp
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/biden-administration-limits-what-border-patrol-can-share-media-about-n1261133
With border security and immigration being contested topics in the United States and recent surges in activity, the Biden administration has limited what agents and sector chiefs can share directly to media sources. Instead, all information queries are now supposed to be sent to the press office in Washington for approval, this is making it much more challenging for media sources to get access to current information on border proceeding facilities. This differs heavily from the Trump administration who allowed tours of facilities following the child separation policy uproar in 2018. These limiting measures are not an official documented memo but verbally issued, because of this some agents have shared videos of arrests and migrant surges without Washington permission. While some limiting measures are for covid purposes (not allowing tours) during the Trump administration journalists were allowed to do ridealongs with agents, since Biden's inauguration though, there have been no ridealongs.
- Mason Meiring #7
A metropolitan police officer has been charged for the kidnapping and murder of Sarah Everard. Her body was found in the outskirts of her local town mangled to the point it took days for her body to be identified. Video footage showed Sarah was leaving work late one night and the family noticed she was missing when she didn’t make it home from work. The impact her death has on the world represents the lack of safety women feel when alone in public. The fact that the killer was a police officer shows how easily the things that are supposed to trust in the most can go corrupt. Women around the world are protesting and hollering about Sarah's death because they all are unifying on the fear of their own safety. This is a problem in all countries and those who have the most power in making a change are within the political and legal systems.
A landmark decision in Japanese LGBTQ rights has recently come out of the island country, that could lead to the legalization of same-sex marriages. Currently, Japan is the only G7 country to not fully recognize same-sex partnerships. The constitution of Japan even defines marriage as the "the mutual consent of both sexes", so LGBTQ rights in the country are not up to par with other countries of their caliber. Unlike in the US where a Supreme Court case legalized same-sex marriage, in Japan new legislation will still have to be introduced and passed in order for those rights to be allowed. Nethertheless, this is still a huge stepping stone in the country and will likely lead to the full legalization of same-sex marriage in the coming years. This is significant for other countries in the region, where same-sex marriage is not fully recognized.
Luke Kwiatkowski
There are new billboards along Georgia that are opposing new voting rights rules that oppress Georgia voters. These cooperations are calling attention to voters to get them to vote against these new rules that are trying to be put in place to make voting much harder. One of these rules were just passed last week to get rid of absentee ballots, which is the way that most voters in this state vote. There was also a new restriction passed to make you need a certain form of identification to be eligible to vote. Many cooperations, including Coca-Cola, are opposing these new laws being passed by putting up billboards encouraging voters to vote against these new laws. Many of these news laws that I have stated target minority voters, and many find it extremely racist that the sate is putting these new laws in action.
Carly Nasman
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/15/politics/georgia-voting-rights-billboard-campaign/index.html
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced this past Tuesday that Russia is Britain's top security challenge at the moment. The UK has decided to begin building more nuclear weapons, as well as explanding London's space and cyberspace presence. A plan has been put in place to increase Britain's defense budget by a staggering $33 billion in the next four years. Other investments are also being made financially towards climate change efforts, pandemic relief, and research in science and technology. China is another large actor on Britain's radar, describing Beijing as "the biggest state-based threat to the UK's economic security" (Lendon, 2021). The UK made it clear that they are staying true to their strong alliance with NATO, but are preparing for the large economic and political shift that both China and Russia may bring to international politics.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/16/europe/uk-security-defense-review-intl-hnk-gbr/index.html
Sydney Chmielewski
3/15
Although Pope Francis stated in a documentary film last year that he endorsed same sex civil unions, the Vatican has said that the Catholic church cannot bless same sex unions, as God “does not bless sin”. This is particularly upsetting, not only because of Pope Francis’ previous statement, but also because of all the gay catholics who still are religious and believe in God’s love. Pope Francis approved the decree from the Congregation for Doctrine of the Faith, saying that such blessings “cannot be considered licit”. This decree says that homosexual inclined people must be welcomed and respected, but cannot have their unions blessed.
