War In Ukraine, Netanyahu’s Approval Drops, & Seawall Solutions
November 7, 2023
What’s Up With Ukraine?
While all eyes have been on Gaza, the war in Ukraine has heated up. Over the weekend, the conflict saw a spike in activity as the two sides traded strikes, trying to eke out victories as winter threatens to slow down larger military operations.
Mykola Oleshchuk, commander of the Ukrainian Air Forces, claimed that his country had destroyed a Russian Kalibr missile carrier docked at a port in Russian-held Crimea on Saturday. He hinted that Ukraine had used French SCALP cruise missiles in the attack, saying, “Well done, the attack went through like a SCALPel.” Russia confirmed in a statement that the carrier had been damaged, but it’s unclear if it was fully destroyed. In response, Russia attacked the Odesa region on Sunday, causing damage to an art museum and port infrastructure with a combination of suicide drones and missiles.
On the diplomatic front, a Ukrainian deputy prime minister promised that the country would complete the reforms necessary for it to join the European Union within two years. She added that Kyiv did not want a sympathy vote to expedite its membership as European leaders prepare for a summit regarding an enlargement of the bloc. “We do not want any discounts because of the war,” said Olga Stefanishyna, adding that “the two-year timeline we are talking about is just to make sure that we are prepared for membership in terms of legal approximation, of standards and rules and obligations of the directives.”
Russia is preparing for its own political drama – kind of. In a surprise twist that nobody could have expected, Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to run for president again in the March 2024 elections. If (when) he wins, Putin will remain in power until 2030 – the incumbent president enjoys a roughly 80% approval rating and has no mainstream political opponents, making his victory highly probable.
Some Good News
- Former fracking site could lead UK’s renewable revolution (Guardian)
- The Kingdom Of Bhutan Becomes The First Country In The World To Achieve 100% Dog Sterilization & Vaccination (World Animal News)
No More Backing For Bibi
- While Israel’s government continues to wage its war against Hamas, public support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in freefall. According to a recent poll by an Israeli news station, 76% of respondents say that Netanyahu should resign. The main cause of this backlash is his government’s failure to preemptively stop the October 7 attacks by Hamas.
- Officials from both the U.S. and Egypt claim that Egypt had warned Israel of the attacks before they happened, but the country ignored the warning. Israel has said that those claims are “absolutely false.” The opposition to Netanyahu is nothing new, though. Prior to the October 7 attacks, he was already facing massive political backlash for his attempts to erode the power of Israel’s Supreme Court. Given Netanyahu’s previous campaigning as a security-focused candidate, it’s likely that the October 7 security failure will damage one of his core political promises.
The Best Defense Is A Guided Missile Submarine
- As tensions continue to rise in the Middle East, the U.S. has decided to send a guided missile submarine into the region. Washington, apparently, hopes that deploying the submarine near the Israel-Hamas conflict will prevent the war from spreading across the region. U.S. forces situated in the Middle East have also come under attack from Iranian-backed groups thanks to Washington’s strong commitments to Israel.
- The submarine, according to a statement by U.S. Central Command, is one of the U.S. Navy’s four Ohio-class subs, or SSGNs. SSGNs can carry over 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles, 50% more than a Navy destroyer. Each of those missiles can carry 1,000-pound, high-explosive warheads.
- “We will do everything and take all necessary measures to protect US forces and our interests overseas,” said Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder in a prior statement. “Again, no one wants to see a widening conflict, and that is our primary goal, but we will also never hesitate to protect our forces.”
Additional World News
- Ahed Tamimi: Israeli forces arrest Palestinian activist in West Bank (BBC)
- World Bank to host climate damages fund despite opposition from developing nations (CNN)
- Breathless Pope Francis opts out of speech with ‘bit of a cold’ (Guardian)
- Moldovan president’s pro-West party wins elections, but dealt setbacks in big cities (Reuters)
- Queen Rania of Jordan says being pro-Palestinian does not equal being ‘antisemitic’ (CNN)
- Treasury Secretary Yellen to Hold Economic Talks With Chinese Counterpart (NYT, $)
- South Africa recalls ambassador, diplomatic mission to Israel; accuses it of genocide (ABC)
“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” – Albert Einstein
We Proved Our Point, Can We Get A Refund Now?
- Duke University published a study on Monday about how easy and affordable it is to obtain personal information about active-duty U.S. service members – and the answer is “very.” Researchers bought nearly 50,000 service members’ records for a little over $10,000 throughout the course of the study.
- In fact, researchers say they purchased everything from names, phone numbers, and addresses to names of service members’ children, marital status, net worth, and credit ratings for as little as 12 cents per person. The study has shed light on a concern that not properly regulating data brokers has, essentially, led to a national security risk.
The Bully Takes A Different Type Of Pulpit
- Former President Donald Trump took the witness stand on Monday in his civil fraud trial in Manhattan, and things were…well, probably exactly how you’d expect them to be. Trump lashed out at almost everyone involved in the case, calling New York Attorney General Letitia James a “political hack” and the trial overall “a very unfair trial.”
- Trump acknowledged helping to assemble annual financial statements submitted to the banks, saying, “I would look at them, I would see them, and I would maybe on occasion have some suggestions,” but he maintained that he did not commit fraud. Justice Engoron, who will determine the outcome of the case, was not amused throughout the day, regularly asking Trump’s lawyers to get him under control.
Additional USA Reads
- The father of a mass shooting suspect stands trial for helping him get a gun license (NPR)
- Senate GOP campaign arm whacks Meijer for entering Michigan Senate race (Politico)
- What Virginia’s legislative elections could spell for 2024 on abortion rights (NPR)
- House GOP calls for changing rules to boot a speaker — and some who ousted McCarthy may help (Politico)
- U.S. Park Police officer unintentionally fatally shoots fellow officer at Virginia gathering (NBC)
- Harvard could face funding consequences if it fails to tackle antisemitism, says Bill Ackman in letter (CNN)
- Poll shows Biden support slumping among Michigan Muslims (NBC)
You Can’t Just Build A Wall There, Either
- As sea levels continue to rise thanks to our warming climate, coastal communities are facing the growing challenge of erosion and flooding. Erosion slowly chips away at structures built on the coasts, and increasingly intense storms combined with rising sea levels can cause massive property damage in the blink of an eye.
- Generally, there are two solutions that governments in coastal areas have used to address these problems: forcing people to move out of homes at risk of falling into the sea, and building seawalls to block floods and waves. While that first solution has its obvious issues, the strategy of building seawalls to protect coastal communities also has its problems.
- First, seawalls cost a lot of money, and are only built in communities that can afford them. Second, solid concrete seawalls don’t actually dissipate the energy of waves, as a beach or marsh would – instead, the energy is bounced back into the ocean, eventually creating bigger waves at the ends of the seawall. In this way, seawalls can protect richer communities while spreading erosion and flooding to areas that can’t afford to build a multi-million dollar wall. The walls also encourage people to build and live in areas vulnerable to flooding and erosion, even as humanity has shown almost no signs of slowing down global warming.
Additional Reads
- Scientists name eight measures that can slow ageing by up to six years (Guardian)
- Europe to issue launcher “challenge” in Seville space talks (Reuters)
- Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd steps down as CEO. She’ll be replaced by Slack’s leader (CNN)
- Feud over power at Colorado cannabis farm heats up (NBC)
- Solar flares bathe swathes of Siberia in scarlet ‘northern lights’ (Reuters)
- This Ancient Sea Creature Prowled the Waters Over North Dakota (NYT, $)
- Oldest black hole discovered dating back to 470 million years after the Big Bang (ABC)