“The Russian war in Ukraine took a telling turn June 9. A drone strike damaged St. Sophia Cathedral in the capital, Kyiv. The white-walled church is the country’s spiritual center, a symbol of the arrival of Christianity a millennium ago. Its gold dome, green cupolas, and Byzantine art are seen as the cultural core of Ukrainian identity – something Russian President Vladimir Putin claims does not exist. How did Ukraine react to the attack? Within days, work began to repair the eastern facade of the 11th-century landmark. The quick restoration is essential to sustaining the morale and resilience of Ukrainians during a war in which Russian forces have deliberately damaged or destroyed more than 2,000 religious and cultural structures.” (07/01/25)
“Three years ago, I remember exactly where I was when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. My stomach sank. As an OB/GYN PA with more than a decade in reproductive care, I knew this wasn’t just devastating—it was going to reshape the healthcare landscape completely. The conversations I’d been having with patients for years (about abortion, birth control, miscarriage, pregnancy loss, pain) were about to get harder, more complicated, and more dangerous. I had the honor of joining over 100 incredible storytellers in Washington, D.C. for the Our Voices, Our Stories, Our Future: Free & Just Storyteller Summit, to mark three years since the deadly Dobbs decision. In emergencies, minutes matter. I’ve been in those rooms. And I can tell you: When someone is crashing in front of you, the last thing you should be doing is calling legal.” (07/02/25)
“Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani has a lot of dumb ideas. Of course, these days that’s pretty much assumed when you hear the words ‘Democratic mayoral nominee.’ But — though the competition is stiff — the dumbest of his ideas may be his plan for government-run grocery stores. In fact, it’s so obviously a terrible idea that even Democrats seem to know it. So there must be another agenda, and I think I know what it is. … In the old Soviet Union, the government did in fact run the grocery stores. Shelves were often empty. Lines were absurdly long. Product quality and service were, to put it mildly, horrible.” [editor’s note: A good history lesson for those who think this guy is the answer for the Big Apple (cue Robin Williams, in one of his earlier movies) – SAT] (07/02/25)
“Hong Kong’s government on Wednesday proposed a registration system that would recognize same-sex partnerships formed overseas, granting such couples more rights in the city. In a document submitted to the legislature, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau said the proposed system would allow registration for same-sex adult couples who have married, formed civil partnerships or civil unions overseas, provided these relationships were legally recognized in those jurisdictions and one of them is a Hong Kong resident. After the registration, the couples would have rights including the ability to participate in medical decisions for their loved ones, provided consent is given. For mentally incapacitated adult patients, their partners can take part in the decisions as guardians. They would also enjoy the right to handle after-death matters for their partners, including claiming the bodies and deciding whether their remains can be used for medical treatment, education or research.” (07/02/25)
“President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has struck a trade deal with Vietnam. ‘It will be a Great Deal of Cooperation between our two Countries. The Terms are that Vietnam will pay the United States a 20% Tariff on any and all goods sent into our Territory, and a 40% Tariff on any Transshipping,’ Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. ‘In return, Vietnam will do something that they have never done before, give the United States of America TOTAL ACCESS to their Markets for Trade. In other words, they will ‘OPEN THEIR MARKET TO THE UNITED STATES,’ meaning that, we will be able to sell our product into Vietnam at ZERO Tariff,’ he added. Trump says he reached the deal after speaking with To Lam, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam.” (07/02/25)
“The Department of Government Efficiency once captained by Elon Musk has ripped through the federal workforce, carelessly and callously firing federal workers with a Silicon Valley-esque ‘move fast and break things’ mindset. As Congress prepares to codify these layoffs into law, many of those employees are asking a question they never thought they’d have to answer: ‘What do I do next?’ One solution, to leave Washington and search for new jobs elsewhere, is a potentially calamitous outcome for the nation’s capital. Yet a flight of fired feds could be a very real possibility. Christopher House, a professor of economics at the University of Michigan, co-authored a Brookings Institute report published in March titled ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go? The Response of Labor Migration to Economic Shocks.'” (07/02/25)
“The Wisconsin Legislature pushed to pass a compromise state budget Wednesday, with Democratic votes expected to be needed to approve the deal reached between Gov. Tony Evers and majority Republicans. The two-year spending plan would affect nearly every person in the battleground state. Income taxes would be cut for working people and retirees, sales taxes would be eliminated on residential electric bills and it would cost more to get a driver’s license, buy license plates and title a vehicle. Evers, who has broad partial veto powers, has promised not to kill any portions of the budget he agreed to with Republicans. In a concession to the Democratic governor, Republicans also agreed to spend more money on special education services in K-12 schools, subsidize child care costs and give the Universities of Wisconsin its biggest increase in nearly two decades.” (07/02/25)
“‘If this insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day. Our country needs an alternative to the Democratic-Republican uniparty so that the people will actually have a VOICE.’ (Elon Musk) … Elon’s third party, if it gained any traction, might ensure Democratic Party majorities as far into the future as foreseeable. I don’t really think Elon wants that, but he’s a businessman, he’s not a historian, so, as brilliant as he is in many ways, he is limited in his knowledge, as we all are. There is another way. It is the way of George Washington and our Constitution, and it is the way that I favor. … Mr. Washington, in his farewell address to the nation, warned the country against political parties; he did not believe we should even have them.” (07/02/25)
“The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has officially closed its doors after President Donald Trump gradually dismantled the agency over its allegedly wasteful spending. More than 80% of all the agency’s programmes were cancelled as of March, and on Tuesday the remainder were formally absorbed by the state department. The shuttering of USAID — which administered aid for the US government, the world’s largest such provider — has been newly criticised by former Presidents Barack Obama and George W Bush. These aid cuts could cause more than 14 million additional deaths by 2030, according to a warning published by researchers in the Lancet medical journal. … Founded in 1961, USAID previously employed some 10,000 people, two-thirds of whom worked overseas, according to the Congressional Research Service.” (07/02/25)
“An infamous, decades-old environmental law in California is finally in for a revamping. On Monday, following the passage of the state budget, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two bills that aim to change the California Environmental Quality Act in an effort to allow affordable housing and other development projects to be built faster and cheaper. The law, also known as CEQA, has both been praised by environmentalists and blamed for the state’s sluggish efforts on housing, as it requires certain development projects to undergo what can be a lengthy environmental review process. The review process also opens the door for construction opponents to file lawsuits alleging insufficient environmental review, which can mire projects in years of costly litigation. ‘In so many ways, we’ve struggled over the … last many decades to reform our housing rules and regulations,’ Newsom said during an evening press conference Monday after signing the bills.” (07/02/25)
