“The union that represents about 10,000 striking Air Canada flight attendants said in a message to its members early Tuesday morning that it had reached a tentative contract deal with the airline, raising hopes for a swift end to the walkout that has disrupted air travel across Canada and stranded thousands of travelers. The agreement, while a significant step, must still be approved by the flight attendants, who overwhelmingly supported the strike that began on Saturday and defied a back-to-work order from the government, risking fines and even jail time. Air Canada, the nation’s biggest carrier, said the walkout had upended about half a million travelers’ plans, leaving some marooned overseas or in remote parts of Canada.” (08/19/25)
“The Webb Space Telescope has spotted a new tiny moon orbiting Uranus. The new member of the lunar gang, announced Tuesday by NASA, appears to be just six miles (10 kilometers) wide. It was spotted by the telescope’s near-infrared camera during observations in February. Scientists think it hid for so long — even eluding the Voyager 2 spacecraft during its flyby about 40 years ago — because of its faintness and small size. Uranus has 28 known moons that are named after characters from Shakespeare and Alexander Pope. About half are smaller and orbit the planet at closer range. This newest addition, still nameless, ups the planet’s total moon count to 29.” (08/19/25)
“A quick-thinking mother hid her baby in a closet on realizing someone was breaking into her home … then shot and killed the intruder. The unnamed mom sprung into action after hearing the stranger enter her property in a peaceful suburb of Joliet, Illinois, around 10:30pm Friday night. She rushed her baby into a closet on the second floor of the property and hid the youngster there. Seconds later, the burglar – who was wearing gloves and wielding a screwdriver – burst into the same bedroom, ABC7 reported. The mother opened fire with a handgun she owned and shot the burglar in the head. He was pronounced dead at the scene and has since been named as serial criminal Shelby Hurd, 36. Police rushed to the scene and found the mother and her baby sheltering in an adjacent bedroom.” (08/18/25)
“United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to convene a face-to-face summit between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his latest bid to end Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Trump’s proposal on Monday came as he hosted Zelenskyy and top European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, at the White House for high-stakes talks on ending the conflict, which has raged since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. … German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte separately confirmed that Putin had agreed to the bilateral meeting, but did not specify a date or location. Zelenskyy, who described his meeting with Trump as a ‘very good conversation,’ told reporters that he was ‘ready’ to meet the Russian leader one-on-one.” (08/19/25)
“The Justice Department has agreed to provide to Congress documents from the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation, a key House lawmaker said Monday in announcing a move that appears to avert, at least temporarily, a potential separation of powers clash. The records are to be turned over starting Friday to the House Oversight Committee, which earlier this month issued a broad subpoena …. ‘There are many records in DOJ’s custody, and it will take the Department time to produce all the records and ensure the identification of victims and any child sexual abuse material are redacted,’ Kentucky Rep. James Comer, the Republican committee chair, said in a statement. … The panel separately issued subpoenas to eight former law enforcement leaders as well as former Democratic President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.” (08/18/25)
“Hamas has accepted a new cease-fire proposal for Gaza put forward by Qatar and Egypt that would see the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, two diplomats familiar with the negotiations and an Egyptian official said on Monday. It was unclear whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel would accept the proposal, which came as Qatar and Egypt were intensifying their mediation efforts ahead of a possible Israeli ground invasion into Gaza City. The plan would also require Israel to redeploy its forces in Gaza, and it would allow enough humanitarian aid to enter the territory to meet the needs of Palestinians, two of the officials said.” (08/18/25)
“Newsmax has settled with Dominion Voting Systems in its lawsuit over the network’s amplification of false claims that it was involved in rigging the 2020 presidential election. The lawsuit was settled for $67 million, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. … In April, Judge Eric M. Davis, in a summary judgment ruling, determined that Newsmax ran defamatory and false statements about Dominion in the aftermath of the 2020 election, as personalities and guests amplified claims that the company was involved in rigging the results. He left it up to a jury to decide whether Newsmax was liable for actual malice, and whether Dominion could collect punitive damages. … Newsmax settled with another election systems company, Smartmatic, last year, and agreed to pay $40 million, according to an SEC filing.” (08/18/25)
“Norwegian prosecutors on Monday announced that they have indicted Marius Borg Høiby, the eldest son of Norway’s crown princess, on multiple charges including rape after a lengthy investigation. Oslo state attorney Sturla Henriksbø said Høiby could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted, broadcaster NRK reported. The 32 counts include rape, abuse in a close relationship against one former partner and acts of violence against another. Other charges include making death threats and traffic violations. Høiby, the 28-year-old son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit and stepson of the heir to the throne, Crown Prince Haakon, has been under scrutiny since he was repeatedly arrested last year on various allegations of wrongdoing. He is currently free pending trial, and Henriksbø said there is currently no reason to arrest and jail him.” (08/18/25)
“The controversial AI-focused crypto project Qubic has suggested it may mine Dogecoin (DOGE), the largest memecoin, after completing its current operations on Monero (XMR), the privacy-focused blockchain network. On Aug. 17, Qubic Network founder Sergey Ivancheglo shared a Discord screenshot showing that the community voted to target Dogecoin for the upcoming mining season. … Ivancheglo explained that his AI project targets these PoW blockchains to redirect energy-intensive proof-of-work computations toward artificial intelligence applications.” (08/18/25)
“US Customs and Border Protection officers opened fire during a targeted immigration enforcement operation in San Bernadino, California, on Saturday, calling it an act of self-defense after a man ‘struck two CBP officers with his vehicle,’ the Department of Homeland Security said. But the family inside the vehicle said they drove away out of fear for their safety after masked men emerged from unmarked cars and surrounded their truck with weapons drawn before smashing the truck’s windows. … DHS said local police ‘located the subject at a residence and briefly had him in custody,’ but ‘he was set free’ and officers left the scene. … San Bernardino police cited the California Values Act, which prevents local law enforcement from helping federal officials with immigration enforcement actions.” (08/18/25)
