No Bull With Raging Robert.
Robert Massimi.
Violence in Jerusalem
A week of escalating tensions in Israel crescendo yesterday, as the country’s military launched an operation in the Gaza Strip after Hamas militants fired dozens of rockets into Jerusalem. The first rocket attack by Hamas on Jerusalem since 2014, the barrage followed clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians near the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount, an area sacred to both Judaism and Islam.
More than 700 people were reportedly injured throughout the day, with 24 Palestinians killed in Israeli counterstrikes in the Gaza Strip. Israel said the home of a Hamas commander was targeted; Gaza officials claimed nine children were among those killed.
The violence coincided with Jerusalem Day, an Israeli national holiday marking the reunification of the city following the 1967 Six-Day War. Officials rerouted a flag parade — often viewed as a provocation as it moves through Muslim neighborhoods — to avoid violence.
Fueling the clashes are the looming evictions of a number of Palestinian families from their longtime homes in the Old City neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. Israeli settler groups have waged a decadeslong legal battle claiming ancestral rights to the land — the country’s Supreme Court delayed a planned hearing on the case yesterday until at least June 8. See an overview of the evictions here.
Hamas has threatened to respond to military attacks by Israel, prompting fears the crisis may continue to escalate.
DarkSide Admits Hack
Officials from the FBI confirmed yesterday a cyberattack that shut down one of the nation’s biggest gas pipelines was carried out by a cybercriminal outfit known as DarkSide. The group, based in Eastern Europe, is believed to develop, use, and sell ransomware — malicious software capable of locking IT systems until payment is made. Colonial Pipeline, which supplies an estimated 45% of the East Coast’s gasoline, shut down its network as a proactive measure after being hit with the attack late last week.
In a twist, DarkSide representatives said they didn’t mean to create problems, but rather to simply “make some money.” The group, which claims to have an ethical code, represents an emerging phenomenon of hackers operating as enterprises — DarkSide even reportedly has a call-in number and help desk for its victims.
It’s unclear whether the company paid the ransom; service is expected to be restored by next week.
Instagram for Kids
Forty-four state and territory attorneys general sent a letter yesterday to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, urging him to abandon plans for an Instagram-like platform designed for children younger than 13 years old. The letter cited a range of concerns, including mental health effects, increased cyberbullying, child predators, and more.
Children under 13 are technically not allowed on the platform currently (though nothing prevents them from misrepresenting their age). The company has been tight-lipped about the project but has confirmed it is exploring an option that would allow parental control. Facebook has previously developed a children’s version of its messenger app — a bug discovered in 2019 allowed children to chat with unauthorized strangers.
Read the letter here.
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BLOOM OR BUST
This spring, April showers brought May flowers in full force, and we’ve enjoyed every day of the wonderful blooming (minus the allergies, of course).
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IN THE KNOW
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Washington Wizards star Russell Westbrook breaks NBA record for career triple-doubles (double digits in three of five statistical categories) with 182 (More) | Medina Spirit heads to this Saturday’s Preakness Stakes without trainer Bob Baffert after the Kentucky Derby-winning horse failed a postrace drug test (More)
> NBC won’t air 2022 Golden Globes as criticism mounts over the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s lack of diversity among its members (More) | Tom Cruise returns three Golden Globes in protest (More)
> Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry’s new series “The Me You Can’t See” on mental health issues to premiere May 21 on AppleTV+ (More) | More than 1.7 million Americans took flights over Mother’s Day, a US pandemic-era record (More)
Science & Technology
> Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in the US for adolescents aged 12 to 15 (More) | Vaccination rate falls to around 2 million doses per day; roughly 58% of US adults have received at least one shot (More)
> Brain implant allows scientists to trigger instant social bonds between mice; social engagement could also be deprogrammed in real time (More)
> NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft begins two-year return voyage, carrying rubble retrieved from the asteroid Bennu; mission is the first time the US has returned asteroid material (More)
Business & Markets
Brought to you by The Ascent
> US stock markets slide (S&P 500 -1.0%, Dow -0.1%, Nasdaq -2.6%) as investors rotate out of high-growth stocks (More)
> Online gaming platform Roblox sees 140% quarterly revenue growth in first report as public company; shares up 4% in after-hours trading (More)
> Chipotle to increase wages, offer referral bonuses as it seeks to hire 20,000 workers (More)
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Politics & World Affairs
> House GOP to vote tomorrow on whether to oust Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) from her leadership position over continued criticism of former President Donald Trump (More) | Biden administration reinstates Obama-era antidiscrimination healthcare rules for transgender patients (More)
> China’s population growth slows, rising by 72 million people since 2010 to 1.41 billion; number of working-age adults falls as overall population ages (More)
> California reports a record surplus near $76B, driven by tax receipts from Silicon Valley and capital gains taxes; state required by law to send refund checks to residents (More)
IN-DEPTH
What Caused the Roaring Twenties?
Smithsonian | Lila Thulin. With many predicting an economic boom as the US emerges from the pandemic, historians remain skeptical of drawing parallels to the 1918 flu and the uproarious decade that followed. (Read)
The Inexplicable World of Dowsing
Outside | Dan Schwartz. For centuries, dowsers have claimed the ability to discover buried treasure, oil deposits, groundwater, and more through a mystical sixth sense. Is it a mere hustle or uncanny intuition? (Read)
COMPARE TO SAVE
In partnership with Policygenius
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ETCETERA
Last year’s most popular baby names.
Breaking down the Dogecoin phenomenon.
Harvard application essay on a lost parent goes viral.
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Isreal, China, Joe Biden, Manhattan College, Ice Hockey, Kilo, Nimbus Magazine, Metropolitan Magazine, National Arts Club, Drama Critic, Dramatists Guild, Drama League, New York City, “Swingtime Canteen”.
