“Six people have been arrested after police clashed with protesters in Milan, one of the hosts of the Winter Olympic Games, during the first day of the competition. Thousands took to the streets of the city in northern Italy on Saturday to protest against a range of issues including the cost of living. Some released fireworks and threw stones at police, who responded with water cannon. It comes after the government tightened protest laws in the wake of a demonstration last weekend in Turin that left more than 100 officers injured, according to government figures. Meanwhile, officials are investigating suspected sabotage on northern Italy’s railway network on Saturday.” 902/08/26)
“Will Lewis, the Murdoch media veteran who took over as publisher and chief executive of the Washington Post in early 2024, announced abruptly on Saturday evening that he is leaving the company. His departure comes just three days after the Post laid off nearly one-third of its entire staff, citing the need to cut costs and reposition the money-losing publication. Lewis, who did not appear on the all-staff meeting during which the cuts were announced, has faced criticism for his absence and leadership. … [Jeff] Bezos, who has owned the Post since 2013, and who has received heavy criticism in recent days for his stewardship of the publication, released a statement touting the Post and its new leadership team – without addressing Lewis’s tenure overseeing the company.” (02/07/26)
“A local TV station reports that the potential kidnappers of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of ‘Today’ host Savannah Guthrie, sent in a ransom note with a threatening demand for millions for dollars in exchange for the 84-year-old’s safe return. KGUN 9 in Tucson reported that it received a note that demanded $6 million before 5 p.m. local time Monday and threatened Nancy Guthrie’s life if the family does not meet the deadline. The station previously reported that it and other media outlets had each received a ransom note demanding several million dollars in Bitcoin. The report comes as Savannah Guthrie posted a new video to Instagram on Saturday, saying her family had received a message and was pleading for the return of their missing mother. The family did not detail what this message said.” (02/08/26)
“A federal appeals court Friday night backed the Trump administration’s policy to lock up the vast majority of people it is seeking to deport without offering a chance for bond, even if they have no criminal records and have resided in the country for decades. A divided three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that the administration’s view — a reversal of every administration’s position for the last 30 years — is the correct interpretation of the federal government’s power to detain people targeted for deportation.” [editor’s note: The Constitution forbids excessive bail — no opportunity for bail at all is by definition excessive – TLK] (02/06//26)
“France’s former Culture Minister Jack Lang has resigned as head of a Paris cultural center over alleged past financial links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that prompted a tax investigation. He is the highest-profile figure in France impacted by the release of Epstein files on Jan. 30 by the U.S. Department of Justice. He is known for his role as a culture minister under Socialist President François Mitterrand in the 1980s and 1990s. Lang, 86, was summoned to appear at the French Foreign Ministry, which oversees the Arab World Institute, on Sunday, but he submitted his resignation.” (02/08/26)
“Texas will not get screwed by the flesh-eating parasite known as the screwworm — with Gov. Greg Abbott declaring a preemptive disaster declaration before the devastating organism even gets to the Lone Star State. The New World Screwworm, a fly which can burrow into and feed on living tissue, has been steadily making its way north from Central and Southern America, officials said. … Abbott is also ordering state agencies to gear up before the parasite arrives, directing the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Animal Health Commission to form a joint New World Screwworm Response Team.” (02/07/26)
“Russia says it has identified three suspects involved in the shooting of high-profile military general Lt Gen Vladimir Alexeyev. They include the man said to have carried out the attack, who has been named as Ukrainian-born Russian citizen Lyubomir Korba. Russia’s Investigations Committee (SK) said Korba arrived in the capital, Moscow, in late December ‘on assignment from Ukrainian intelligence services to commit a terrorist attack.’ Kyiv has reportedly denied involvement. … Spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko said on Sunday that his attacker had fired three shots before fleeing and that Korba travelled to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hours after the shooting. He has since been arrested and extradited.” (02/08/26)
“A drone attack by a notorious paramilitary group hit a vehicle carrying displaced families in central Sudan Saturday, killing at least 24 people, including eight children, a doctors’ group said. The attack by the Rapid Support Forces occurred close to the city of Rahad in North Kordofan province, said the Sudan Doctors Network, which tracks the country’s ongoing war. The vehicle transported displaced people who fled fighting in the Dubeiker area of North Kordofan, the doctors’ group said in a statement. Among the dead children were two infants, the group said.” (02/07/28)
“A future with flying cars no longer lives just in concept videos. It now lives in Palo Alto, and if you have about $200,000 plus patience, you can reserve one today. The company behind that future vehicle is Pivotal, a California company that has quietly spent more than a decade turning a radical idea into a real aircraft. Its latest creation, called Helix, is now open for reservations, and delivery could be less than a year away. Yes, this is an actual flying car you can buy.” (02/08/26)
“A New Mexico grand jury on Friday indicted actor Timothy Busfield on four counts that accuse him of criminal sexual contact of a child. Each charge carries a minimum sentence of three years in prison if Busfield, 68, is found guilty, according to New Mexico law. … He has pleaded not guilty to all charges filed against him after allegations by two boys who had been cast members of the Fox television series The Cleaning Lady, in which Busfield acted and directed from 2022 to 2024. Busfield accused the mother of the two boys of falsely accusing him because he did not cast the two boys in the series’ final season.” (02/06/26)
