US investment bank to refurbish 42-storey building in London Docklands over next three yearsThe US investment bank Citigroup has embarked on an overhaul of its main tower in Canary Wharf that is expected to cost more than £100m.Citi will completely refurbish the 42-storey office block at 25 Canada Square in London Docklands over the next three years and create flexible work and collaboration spaces, alongside wellbeing zones for employees, to reflect the changing nature of work. Continue reading...
Demand for breast milk has surged during the pandemic, but supply from milk banks has fallen as people head back to workKayla Levering’s twin daughters just celebrated their first birthday, a momentous milestone for a family who just survived a challenging year involving long stays in the neonatal intensive care unit: two months for one daughter, five months for the other.It was a trying time, filled with surgeries and procedures and complications – and it was made more stressful by the pressure Levering felt to produce more breast milk for both babies. When a nutritionist finally mentioned donor milk, she felt as though a light had pierced the dark. Continue reading...
Progressives today can look to the American past for examples of political movements transitioning from short-term defeat to long-term successThings are not looking good for Joe Biden. At his 20 January news conference, Joe Biden admitted that Build Back Better, the $2tn social infrastructure bill, was dead. That failure, in combination with Biden’s botched effort the week before to energize the campaign for voting rights, have inclined many progressives to join the chorus of centrist and rightwing voices pronouncing Biden a failed president.There are good reasons for disappointment in progressive ranks, especially as Donald Trump continues to thunder on about the “big lie” and as the country barrels toward a 2022 midterm that Republicans, in multiple states, are trying to rig in their favor. But progressives should refrain both from heaping excessive blame on Biden himself and from losing hope. Let’s take a step back. Continue reading...
US makes preparations to avoid European gas crisis if flow from Russia is cut, while talks aimed at defusing tensions continue. Plus, 224 new species foundGood morning.Joe Biden has said he will consider personal sanctions against Vladimir Putin if Russia invades Ukraine, as western leaders step up military preparations and make plans to shield Europe from Russian gas being cut off.Why are Germany and France at odds with the Anglosphere over how to handle Russia? The differences reflect not just different short-term assessments on intelligence, but a deep fissure going back decades about what Germany and France, as opposed to the Anglosphere, regard as the best way to handle Russia.What’s happening today? Johnson faces MPs in the weekly prime minister’s question time today. You can follow along here. Last week during the fixed session, some of his own MPs called for him to resign.Did Johnson have a birthday party in lockdown? Apparently so, although one Tory MP claimed it wasn’t a proper party and that Johnson was “ambushed with a cake”. Social media erupted with mockery at the MP’s remarks. Continue reading...
Environmental Protection Agency seeks to protect local community from sites suspected of air pollution violationsThe Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has unveiled plans to conduct unannounced inspections of plants suspected of air pollution violations in the heavily industrialized region in Louisiana known as Cancer Alley and other locations around the US south.The move, announced on Wednesday morning alongside other significant new enforcement and monitoring actions, is aimed at reining in pollution in an area with much of America’s most toxic air. Continue reading...
After the governor commuted his sentence, the Pulitzer finalist tells the Guardian his hopes for his craft and community workRahsaan “New York” Thomas the acclaimed journalist who co-hosts the Ear Hustle podcast from inside San Quentin prison, was granted clemency this month, prompting celebrations from listeners and supporters across the country.But it could be months – or years – before he walks free. Continue reading...
The women’s team won gold in Tokyo last year and now their male counterparts are on course to make their first World Cup since 1986In keeping with the times, Bill Manning did his own research.Toronto FC’s president was inspired in his online trawling not by pandemic conspiracies but Canada’s sporting past. Continue reading...
Concrete mixer drivers and plant workers allege employers refuse to negotiate and are purging unionized workers“Every day is different,” said Tim Davis, a concrete mixer truck driver in the Seattle, Washington, area.The work Davis and his coworkers do on a daily basis provides the foundation for every big construction and infrastructure project in the region, with long hours and varying start times every workday, leaving little time to spend with family. “We live in those trucks day in and day out,” Davis said. Continue reading...
NFL rules when a game ends in a tie after four quarters are imperfect. But football is brutal and players can’t be expected to keep going foreverFootball played by human beings is not like a Madden game, where the “progressive fatigue” factor can be switched off. The players we like to think of as giant Energizer Bunnies get tired. Case in point: the Buffalo Bills defense on Sunday.The Kansas City Chiefs, the Bills’ opponents in an exhilarating AFC divisional round playoff game, ran 16 plays in their final three possessions. The Chiefs covered 194 yards and scored two touchdowns, plus a field goal that they needed to send the game into overtime. They faced third down on only two of those 16 plays, converting both. Continue reading...
Speaking to reporters in Washington, Joe Biden said he would consider personal sanctions against Vladimir Putin if Russia invaded Ukraine, citing 'severe consequences'. The threat of sanctions came as the US helped prepare for the diversion of natural gas supplies from around the world to Europe in the event that the flow from Russia is cut
by Andrew Witherspoon and Sam Levine in New York on (#5VDZW)
Scroll through our visual guide to see why proposed Tennessee maps amount to a masterclass in gerrymanderingRepublican lawmakers in Tennessee gave final approval on Monday to an aggressive plan to split Nashville, a Democratic bastion, in a deeply Republican state, into several congressional districts as part of an effort to tilt the state’s congressional map in their favor. The plan is now waiting for approval from Governor Bill Lee, who is likely to sign it.Nashville currently sits in the state’s fifth congressional district, represented by Jim Cooper, a Democrat who has held the seat for nearly 20 years. It’s a solid Democratic district - Joe Biden carried it by nearly 24 points in 2020 - but on Tuesday, Cooper announced he was retiring from Congress. Continue reading...
The chocolate characters are getting new footwear to promote inclusivity. And conservative pundits are furiousNo doubt I speak for every woman on Earth when I say this: thank you, Mars! When I was a little girl I felt as if I could never be my authentic self because of the way the green M&M mascot used to dress. Every time I saw her tottering around in advertisements wearing white go-go boots and fluttering her long eyelashes, a little part of me would die inside. Although young, I recognised something profound: women would only be free when multinationals allowed anthropomorphised chocolate to wear sensible shoes.At long last, that time has come. Last week, Mars Wrigley, the international purveyor of sugary goods, announced that it was revamping (or, rather, de-vamping) its six M&M characters to promote inclusivity. Most notably: the green one is switching out boots for trainers and the brown one is swapping stilettos for kitten heels. It is kind of questionable that they are still forcing the brown one into heels of any kind if you ask me. Nevertheless, it is still a massive step forward for feminism.Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
The LA artist-photographer’s cinematic portraits of people in free fall arose from a desire to examine the human turmoil experienced during the pandemic Continue reading...
Officials working with global suppliers to avoid European gas crisis if flow from Russia is cut as Biden says he would consider personal sanctions against PutinThe US has helped prepare for the diversion of natural gas supplies from around the world to Europe in the event that the flow from Russia is cut, in an effort to blunt Vladimir Putin’s most powerful economic weapon.As fears of an invasion of Ukraine have grown, US officials said on Tuesday that they had been negotiating with global suppliers, and they were now confident that Europe would not suffer from a sudden loss of energy for heating in the middle of winter. Continue reading...
After Jeremy Grantham’s warning, analysts fear more volatility ahead – and will be watching tech’s latest results with interestThe tech sector led US stock markets on a pandemic boom last year. Now markets are whipsawing on fears that the Federal Reserve will end the era of easy money, all while a potential war in Ukraine looms. Some warn of a bigger correction to come on a scale not seen since the dotcom collapse of the late 1990s.On Monday, US stock markets crashed then rallied. The Dow Jones at one point lost more than 1,000 points before ending up just over 100. Tuesday was more of the same with the Dow losing 800 points only to gain most of it back. Analysts expect more volatile days ahead. The Fed on Wednesday issued its latest update on its plans to raise rates in order to curb inflation, and the world’s largest tech firms are preparing to issue their latest results to investors, who appear to have grown more skeptical about their prospects. Continue reading...
Wilbert Mora’s death follows the death on Friday of fellow officer Jason Rivera after they responded to a domestic violence callA second police officer who was shot on Friday in New York City while responding to a domestic violence call has died, the city’s police commissioner said on Tuesday.Keechant Sewell called officer Wilbert Mora, 27, “three times a hero” as she announced his death. Continue reading...
Governor Kathy Hochul has insisted students and teachers should continue to wear face covering despite a judge’s rulingRepublicans in New York reacted furiously on Tuesday after state officials told school administrators to continue enforcing a mask mandate for students and teachers despite a judge overturning it, causing confusion as some districts rushed to make masks optional.Lee Zeldin, a US congressman from Long Island, addressed the governor he hopes to replace in November. Continue reading...
Bitcoin and its ilk have slipped deeper alongside the market appetite for risk. Just look at the NasdaqThe US-focused shakeout in financial markets has at least given us clarity on one point: bitcoin is not “digital gold” or a “store of value”, to mention two grand claims made about the cryptocurrency when its price was going up.At $37,000, the late-afternoon level on Tuesday, bitcoin has fallen by 22% since the start of January and by 45% since recording an all-time high in early November. The crypto crew may have convoluted explanations for this setback, but the simplest one is best: bitcoin has always primarily been an instrument for pure speculation; when high-risk assets are out of favour, it will be clobbered. Continue reading...
Shane Lee Brown, 25, was mistaken for Shane Neal Brown, 49, a white man, when he was stopped by police in Henderson, NevadaA 25-year-old Black man sued two Nevada police departments for wrongfully detaining him in jail, after mistaking him for a white suspect twice his age.On 8 January 2020, Shane Lee Brown was driving in Henderson, Nevada, when he was stopped by police. According to his lawsuit, Brown did not have photographic identification but provided his name and his social security number and card. Continue reading...
DJ Ferguson, 31, had previously been prioritized for a transplant by Brigham and Women’s hospital in BostonA Boston-area hospital said it will not perform a heart transplant on a patient who refuses to get a Covid-19 vaccination.DJ Ferguson, 31, was previously prioritized for a heart transplant at Brigham and Women’s hospital, but is no longer eligible as he refuses to get vaccinated, said Ferguson’s family, according to a report by CBS Boston. Continue reading...
Quite how long Conservative MPs and the British public will continue to indulge the prime minister is unclearYesterday’s announcement of an inquiry into alleged anti-Muslim racism in the government meant I was going to begin with one of the more eye-watering quotes from Boris Johnson’s terrible novel Seventy-Two Virgins. (Seventy-Two Virgins is the title, not who bought it.) But further partygate revelations – and finally a police investigation – instead force me to tong open another work in the Johnson canon: The Churchill Factor. This minimum opus is riddled with sensational factual errors but is meant to advance Johnson’s big theory that we shouldn’t write off great men as “meretricious bubbles on the vast tides of social history”. On the contrary, great men turn history, and he’s one of them. (Johnson, obviously – not Churchill. Britain’s greatest wartime leader is chiefly deployed as a useful proxy for the narcissist author.)It is, then, entirely fitting of Boris Johnson’s historical stature that as Russia stands on the brink of an invasion of Ukraine, the talk is all of the PM’s singalong birthday party during the first lockdown. Has ever a meretricious bubble been more in need of a pin? A vast tide of something is flowing out of Downing Street, but it doesn’t smell like history.Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
New Jersey congressman says viewers are calling to express distress that Biden is ‘not siding with Russia’ in Ukraine crisisA congressman from New Jersey has disclosed that he is receiving calls from viewers of Tucker Carlson’s primetime Fox News show, expressing distress at the Biden administration’s backing of Ukraine in the tense military stand-off with Russia.Democratic representative Tom Malinowski said in a tweet his office was fielding calls from Carlson viewers “upset that we’re not siding with Russia in its threats to invade Ukraine”. Continue reading...
City’s fire chief says a fourth firefighter was also injured, when part of a vacant home collapsed amid fireThree Baltimore firefighters were killed and a fourth injured when part of a vacant home collapsed while they were battling a blaze early on Monday, the city’s fire chief said.The Baltimore city fire department said in a tweet firefighters were responding to a blaze at the three-story rowhome when the four were trapped inside. Crews removed piles of debris to locate the firefighters, the department said. Continue reading...
Elio’s restaurant manager says unvaccinated former governor dined there despite New York law due to ‘unfortunate oversight’The manager of an exclusive New York City restaurant insisted it was focused on the safety of its guests, after the former Alaska governor and Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin dined there despite not being vaccinated against Covid-19.New York City laws require proof of vaccination for indoor dining. Continue reading...
by Nina Lakhani in Chester and Delaware counties, Pen on (#5VCRD)
Corporations are trying to privatize dozens of public water utilities around the US, capitalizing on the financial troubles of citiesThe Octoraro reservoir is a lake in south-east Pennsylvania where locals fish, kayak and marvel at bald eagles and owls. It’s a picturesque scene but in the neighbourhoods nearby there are placards which carry warnings.“No to Big Water”, the signs say, and “Save CWA”. Continue reading...
Some sociologists believe that the rising number of non-religious Americans is a reaction against rightwing evangelicals. But that’s just part of the storyWhat if I were to tell you that the following trends in American religion were all connected: rising numbers of people who are religiously unaffiliated (“nones”) or identify as “spiritual but not religious”; a spike in positive attention to the “religious left”; the depoliticization of liberal religion; and the purification and radicalization of the religious right? As a sociologist who has studied American religion and politics for many years, I have often struggled to make sense of these dramatic but seemingly disconnected changes. I now believe they all can all be explained, at least in part, as products of a backlash to the religious right.Since the religious right rose to national prominence in the 1980s, the movement’s insertion of religion in public debate and uncompromising style of public discourse has alienated many non-adherents and members of the larger public. As its critics often note, the movement promotes policies – such as bans on same-sex marriage and abortion – that are viewed by growing numbers of Americans as intolerant and radical. Continue reading...
USA and Canada dominate the women’s game but a long-lasting league has been difficult to establish. The upcoming Olympics are an opportunity for changeIn 1996, the US women’s basketball team won Olympic gold in Atlanta, providing a solid foundation for two professional leagues. The WNBA, which had the backing of the NBA and better marketing, outlasted the ABL and continues to this day.After their victory on home soil at the 1999 World Cup, the US women’s soccer team seized the spotlight and parlayed that attention into a professional league. That league collapsed, but waves of publicity over the next decade have yielded a solid fanbase determined to keep professional women’s soccer running. Continue reading...
The first of their kind in the US help stabilize people in crisis and get them connected with needed servicesUntil recently, Ron M would take illicit drugs in what space he could find: public restrooms, subway alleyways or just in the street. He often used alone; the possibility of a fatal overdose was high.That’s why the East Harlem overdose prevention center has been such a blessing to him. Continue reading...
For a fortnight we all ate black beans and squash lasagne but soon the bickering began. It’s rule by the intolerant majority, writes Zoe WilliamsThere’s a book by Nassim Nicholas Taleb called Skin in the Game. It’s wrong about many things, featuring an account of Prince Andrew’s place in UK culture that was hilariously misjudged even before we realised what his place truly was, but has a theory about families and their eating habits that used to sound right. When one person restricts their diet – goes vegan or keto or whatever – the whole unit defaults to that restriction. It’s just easier, when three people will eat anything, to build your menu around the one person who will only eat some things. The parable was supposed to illustrate a broader point, that the intolerant minority will always come to triumph over the more tolerant majority.Let’s not dwell on his mental leap, because one of my kids just went vegetarian and I now know that even the starting block is untrue. For about a fortnight, we all went veggie and nobody noticed. It’s not as if we were living a traditional, Harvester-buffet, meat-centrepiece, side-salad life before all this. I passed off black beans as a luxury food item, squash lasagne as classic Italian cuisine. Besides, meat substitutes have moved on a lot, and now they can make pretty much anything taste like pork so long as it has first been rolled into a ball.Zoe Williams is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
Democrat spent two decades as speaker of state assembly before conviction over real-estate dealingsSheldon Silver, one of the most powerful figures in New York state government for two decades before his conviction on corruption charges, has died in federal custody. He was 77.Silver, who served as the speaker of the New York state assembly, died on Monday, the federal Bureau of Prisons said, adding that the official cause of death would be determined by the medical examiner. Silver’s supporters had said he was in failing health from multiple medical conditions. Continue reading...
Joe Biden has been caught on a hot mic apparently referring to a Fox News reporter as a 'stupid son of a bitch'. As journalists left a meeting, the Fox News White House reporter Peter Doocy asked whether Biden thought inflation was a political liability ahead of the midterms. 'No, it’s a great asset – more inflation,' Biden appeared to respond sarcastically over a din of reporters shouting questions, apparently not realizing his microphone was still on. 'What a stupid son of a bitch,' he added
President caught on mic seemingly swearing at Peter Doocy as journalists left a news conferenceJoe Biden was caught on a hot mic appearing to insult the Fox News journalist Peter Doocy, seemingly calling him a “stupid son of a bitch” after Doocy posed a question about US inflation.“Do you think inflation is a political liability in the midterms?” the reporter asked the president as journalists were leaving the room at the end of an event at the White House on Monday. Continue reading...
The US military has put up to 8,500 troops on alert to be ready to deploy to Europe, potentially at very short notice, should the Nato alliance activate a rapid response force. It's the latest sign of US resolve in the face of a Russian military buildup near Ukraine. The Pentagon spokesman John Kirby stressed that no decision had been made on whether to deploy the troops, and that any such deployment would separate from intra-European movements of US troops to Nato's eastern flank, to reassure nervous allies. The White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, told US citizens in Ukraine that ‘now is the time to leave’
Dow and Nasdaq recoup losses after early plunges while European and UK markets suffer big lossesUS stock markets were hit by another wave of wild trading on Monday as investors worried that the Federal Reserve would wind down its support for the economy faster than expected and fears of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine intensified.Last week’s sharp selloffs were repeated in early trading on Monday but by the end of the day, the S&P 500 stock index regained its losses, ending up 0.29%, the Dow Jones rose 99 points, or 0.29%, after dropping 1,115 points at its low, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.5%. Continue reading...
Worries over Ukraine tensions and prospect of US interest rate rises hits stocks, wiping out FTSE 100’s early 2022 gains, before a late recovery on Wall Street
by Gloria Oladipo in New York and agencies on (#5VB68)
Assistant attorney Andrew Rohrbach says Avenatti forged Daniels’s signature in a letter to an agent as part of the crimeThe US lawyer Michael Avenatti stole nearly $300,000 in book proceeds from former client Stormy Daniels, the adult film actor and producer, a prosecutor told jurors in New York on Monday as the once high-flying attorney’s third criminal trial in two years got under way.Prosecutors say Avenatti, 50, who has pleaded not guilty, embezzled book contract proceeds intended for Daniels, who came to worldwide attention when she claimed to have had an affair with Donald Trump before he became president and was then paid to keep quiet about it. Continue reading...
Police say shooting in Inglewood appeared to be targeted ‘ambush’ at birthday party in property reportedly rented on AirbnbFour people were killed and one was wounded when multiple shooters opened fire at a house party near Los Angeles over the weekend, authorities said.Police in Inglewood, a historically Black city of about 100,000 near LA, responded to reports of shots fired at a home at about 1.30am on Sunday, the Inglewood mayor, James Butts, told reporters. Continue reading...
by Amudalat Ajasa in St Paul and agencies on (#5VBG2)
Opening arguments commence in the federal trial of Tou Thao, J Alexander Kueng and Thomas LaneThe bitter arctic blast, which had Minnesota temperatures below 0F , didn’t stop protesters from hosting a rally as the three lesser-known police officers accused of involvement in the killing of George Floyd faced their turn in the courtroom.A caravan of two dozen cars had occupied the length of the block outside the courthouse in the state capital, St Paul, last week, as jury selection began in the federal civil rights trial of Tou Thao, J Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane. Continue reading...
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