“Flights from British airports resumed on Wednesday after a major air traffic failure, but questions mounted about the reliability of Britain’s aviation systems and ministers called in the flight control boss to explain the shutdown. The hours-long outage on Tuesday, which resulted in the cancellation of more than 1,000 flights and left hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded, has ramped up pressure on air traffic control provider NATS and its boss Martin Rolfe. Transport minister Heidi Alexander will later on Wednesday hear from Rolfe after she summoned him to explain what happened, amid concerns that the infrastructure and technology are not up to scratch. The shutdown comes three years after the last system meltdown in August 2023, when cancelled flights on one of the busiest travel days of the year cost airlines £100 million ($135 million).” (09/09/26)
“Television comedy series ‘South Park’ has announced it is changing its name to ‘South America’ as the show is set to begin its 29th season on Sept. 16. The show’s creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone said, ‘Inspired by the bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google, we are changing the name of South Park to SOUTH AMERICA. We especially want to thank our parent company Paramount — a Skydance Capitulation.’ Parker and Stone’s statement comes after U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America amid a trade spat with Canada. Canadian officials said they will not recognize the new name.” (09/08/26)
“Republicans are gathering in Dallas on Wednesday for a highly unusual midterm convention, a ‘Trump-a-Palooza’ that will put President Donald Trump at the center of this fall’s midterm elections — whether the candidates running like it or not. New financial disclosures show Trump gave sizeable cash gifts to Natalie Harp and several other top aides. A White House official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the gifts were ‘entirely permissible under relevant legal and ethical standards’. And Americans are more skeptical of government information than they were a few years ago, with majorities now saying they have little or no trust in federal government information about elections and politics, foreign affairs or the environment, a new poll finds.” (09/09/26)
“U.S. Internet behemoth Google announced plans Wednesday to invest at least $15.1 billion into artificial intelligence infrastructure in Finland, its largest single investment in Europe to date. The funds are to be invested over the next two years, including new data centers and other supporting infrastructure, as well as partnerships in the Finnish cities and municipalities of Hamina, Kajaani, Muhos and Vaala, it said. Data centers will be constructed in Kajaani, Muhos and Vaala, while Google’s existing data center in Hamina will be expanded.” (09/09/26)
“The United States has attacked five Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman and near Kharg Island after accusing Tehran of launching ballistic missiles at a US warship twice in two days. Iran responded to Tuesday’s attacks by firing missiles at US forces stationed at the Al Azraq base in Jordan. It also claimed additional strikes on at least two US vessels and eight tankers in the region, saying the assaults caused ‘great damage’.” (09/09/26)
“President Trump said the U.S. would ban Canadian alcohol, some dairy products and large motorcycles, sharply escalating a trade war largely fought with tariffs. The measures deepen the economic rift between countries that have spent decades interlinking commerce, threatening disruption for businesses and consumers on both sides of the border. The import bans take effect Sept. 29, effectively cutting off U.S. market access for the targeted Canadian goods rather than simply making them more expensive. … Trade tensions have ratcheted up swiftly since U.S.-Canada talks collapsed last month. The U.S. imposed 50% tariffs on [American buyers of] roughly $20 billion of Canadian goods. Canada hit back with tariffs of up to 50% on ][Canadian buyers of] a similar amount of U.S. goods, a measure that took effect earlier Tuesday.” (09/08/26)
“Russian drones hit a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova in the southern region of Odesa, killing two people, and attacked the country’s capital Kyiv overnight, Ukrainian authorities said on Wednesday. Two civilians near the Starokozache crossing were killed and three others injured in the attack, Governor Oleh Kiper said on Telegram. Passengers and vehicle traffic was temporarily halted across the border after the attack, which caused a major fire, officials said. Russia also attacked Kyiv overnight, causing fires but no casualties, emergency services said in a Telegram post.” (09/09/26)
“Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on Tuesday refused to restore Missouri’s new congressional map, which was poised to give Republicans a pickup opportunity this November, but the map’s fate remains unclear after a ruling in a separate lawsuit. Missouri Republicans hope to return to the new 7-1 House map favoring them after the Show Me State’s top court ruled officials must revert to their its existing GOP-leaning 6-2 House map for the midterm elections. Kavanaugh, an appointee of President Trump, handles emergency matters arising from Missouri by default. His one-sentence order declining to intervene contained no explanation. It appeared to be a setback for Republicans, who had hoped to dismantle and flip a Kansas City-area seat held by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D).” (09/08/26)
“Former senator John E Sununu triumphed on Tuesday in the New Hampshire Republican Senate primary [versus] Scott Brown, earning the GOP nod in what will likely be a must-win race if Democrats hope to seize the upper chamber. … Sununu will face congressman Chris Pappas, who beat back a progressive challenger in the Democratic primary, advancing as most observers expected to what will be a closely watched general election that is critical to Democratic hopes of flipping the upper chamber.” (09/08/26)
“Police arrested a suspect Tuesday in connection with a series of attacks on power distribution systems across Germany which had led to a massive, dayslong search. A 48-year-old man was arrested near a power plant in Weisweiler, in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The man … was in possession of explosives and offered no resistance at the time of his arrest, Cologne police said in a statement. … The incidents took place as the country was on high alert after the government blamed Russia for an attempted attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport on Aug. 4 using a drone laden with explosives.” (09/8/260
