March 26, 2021

SpaceX will try to stick the landing for new Starship test flight

March 26 (UPI) -- SpaceX plans another attempt to fly and land the company's Starship moon and Mars rocket over sometime over the next four days from Boca Chica, Texas.

The rocket company has filed for "no-fly" notices during daylight hours from Friday through Monday around the SpaceX launch facility in the community about 180 miles south of Corpus Christi.

Previous test flights of the giant, stainless steel rocket ended in fireballs in December, February and March. The tests are part of SpaceX's rapid prototype development methods, which the company used to develop its highly successful Falcon rockets.

Starship is one of three spacecraft NASA has chosen as possible means to send astronauts back to the moon this decade. The space agency intends to choose two proposals for those crewed lunar missions by mid-2021.

Read more: https://www.upi.com/Science_News/2021/03/26/SpaceX-Starship-landing-flight-test-Boca-Chica/9131616695847/

March 26, 2021

GOP Senator Sends Menacing Gun Tweet To Biden

The Hill reports:



https://twitter.com/SenatorRounds/status/1375129110683455493

https://twitter.com/SoDakDems/status/1375144738672799745

-snip- {oddly appropriate in this case}

https://twitter.com/smgaddis/status/1375135141228470275

Read more: https://www.joemygod.com/2021/03/gop-senator-sends-menacing-gun-tweet-to-biden/

March 26, 2021

India plans to widen vaccination campaign as infections surge

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India plans to widen a coronavirus vaccination campaign soon to include more younger people, the health minister said on Friday, as its new infections rose by the most in more than five months.

The world’s biggest vaccine-making nation has held back large exports of the AstraZeneca shot to meet growing domestic demand. But there is no outright ban, a government source said, and vaccine supply will be staggered.

All above the age of 45 are eligible for vaccination from April 1, the government has said, and it is now working to meet a demand by many states for the inclusion of all adults, after new infections nearly quadrupled this month.

“The government is already planning to widen the umbrella of COVID-19 vaccine beneficiaries in the near future to cover other sections of our population,” Health Minister Harsh Vardhan told a virtual summit organised by the Economic Times newspaper.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-india/india-plans-to-widen-vaccination-campaign-as-infections-surge-idUSKBN2BI0EO

March 26, 2021

Missile test propels North Korea to top of Biden's foreign agenda

SEOUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea’s claim on Friday that it had launched a new type of tactical short-range ballistic missile highlighted military advances by the nuclear-armed state and propelled it to the top of new U.S. President Joe Biden’s foreign policy agenda.

The United States condemned Thursday’s launches, which came hours before Biden held his first White House press conference since taking office in January.

When asked if he agreed that North Korea was the top foreign policy issue he faced, Biden replied: “Yes.”

Biden had previously left North Korea entirely out of his maiden foreign policy speech in February, and in outlining eight diplomatic priorities earlier in March, his secretary of state didn’t focus on North Korea except to list it as one of several countries that pose a challenge.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles/missile-test-propels-north-korea-to-top-of-bidens-foreign-agenda-idUSKBN2BI02R

March 26, 2021

Jacob Blake files excessive force lawsuit against Kenosha officer

MILWAUKEE — A Black man who was paralyzed after he was shot in the back by a white police officer in southeastern Wisconsin filed a civil lawsuit Thursday accusing the officer of excessive force.

Jacob Blake Jr. was shot by Kenosha Officer Rusten Sheskey in August while Blake was about to get into an SUV during a domestic dispute. Blake’s federal complaint against Sheskey, the only defendant, is seeking unspecified damages.

The shooting of Blake, captured on bystander video, turned the nation’s spotlight on Wisconsin during a summer marked by protests over police brutality and racism. It happened three months after George Floyd died while being restrained by police officers in Minneapolis. The white officer charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd’s killing is currently on trial.

Sheskey and two other Kenosha officers were trying to arrest Blake on an outstanding warrant when a pocketknife fell from his pants during a scuffle. Blake said he picked it up before heading to a vehicle to drive away with two of his children in the back seat. He said he was prepared to surrender once he put the knife in the vehicle.

Read more: https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-aud-nw-jacob-blake-lawsuit-20210326-cfcguhomszdp5osrbfj6dekmdu-story.html

March 26, 2021

Lightfoot loosens coronavirus restrictions, expanding capacity for Cubs, Sox games, outdoor dining,

Lightfoot loosens coronavirus restrictions, expanding capacity for Cubs, Sox games, outdoor dining, exercise classes, performance venues, weddings and more


Mayor Lori Lightfoot loosened restrictions for outdoor activities such as baseball games, patio dining, exercise classes, weddings and concerts on Thursday, but didn’t budge on indoor capacity limits as Chicago grapples with a recent COVID-19 uptick that has officials alarmed.

As Major League Baseball’s opening day approaches, the move also further increases capacity at outdoor sports venues such as Wrigley Field and Guaranteed Rate Field. Earlier this month, Lightfoot announced more than 8,000 fans, 20% of capacity, will be allowed into the stands at both Chicago baseball stadiums after fans were forced to watch from home last season.

Citing a worrying increase in coronavirus cases, Lightfoot said she will keep current capacity limits at indoor establishments. But bars and restaurants can now increase their maximum outdoor table size to 10 people, with tables set up so that patrons are 6 feet from patrons at other tables, the city said.

When asked on a call with reporters whether expanding outdoor capacities while warning about an increase in cases sends mixed messages, Lightfoot said the recent spike in cases is due more to indoor activities with people not wearing masks.

Read more: https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-coronavirus-chicago-lightfoot-further-loosens-restrictons-20210325-dlrtzsweozfnnirc77zdfwp7mq-story.html

March 26, 2021

Proud Boy who was present for Capitol riot planning run for Illinois Senate

Edgar “Remy Del Toro” Gonzalez told the Sun-Times that he’s collecting signatures to challenge state Sen. Antonio Munoz, D-1st, in his reelection bid next year.


The former leader of the Chicago chapter of the Proud Boys says he plans to run for the Illinois Senate after being present for the violent riot at the U.S. Capitol that’s prompted federal criminal charges against roughly 20 other members of the far-right group.

Edgar “Remy Del Toro” Gonzalez told the Sun-Times that he’s collecting signatures to challenge state Sen. Antonio Munoz, D-Chicago, in next year’s election. Munoz’s 1st District covers portions of the city’s South and West sides.

“I will be the voice and the muscle for many in our state,” said Gonzalez, who plans to run as an independent, in a series of Twitter messages.

One hitch, however, state election rules prevent independent candidates running in next year’s election from circulating petitions until March 29, 2022, meaning any signatures Gonzalez has already collected are worthless.

Read more: https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2021/3/25/22349435/proud-boys-remy-del-toro-edgar-gonzalez-capitol-riot-joseph-biggs-enrique-torro-antonio-munuz

March 26, 2021

Health care reform bill passes in Illinois Senate, will head to Pritzker's desk

A massive health care reform bill, the fourth and final pillar of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus agenda, passed the state Senate Thursday, the final step before heading to Gov. JB Pritzker for his signature.

House Bill 158, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Camille Lilly and state Sen. Mattie Hunter, both of Chicago, is centered around eliminating race-based and other inequities in the state’s health care system, and includes provisions to expand medical services available to low-income residents and residents of color.

Specifically, HB158 addresses access to health care, hospital closures, managed care organization reform, community health worker certification and reimbursement, maternal and infant mortality, mental and substance abuse treatment, and medical implicit bias.

“For Black lives to truly matter, their right to quality health care must (not) be inhibited,” Hunter said in Senate floor debate. “It is our responsibility as elected officials to create laws that create an enriched, lasting impact on the communities we represent. This legislation does just that, and there is no better time to enact than now.”

Read more: https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/politics/government/2021/03/25/illinois-senate-health-care-reform-bill-passes/7006241002/
(Springfield State Journal Register)

March 26, 2021

Proposal would pay exonerees $50,000 per year served

A new proposal would set a standard award amount of $50,000 for each year an exoneree was wrongfully imprisoned. On March 16, Illinois legislators passed the measure out of a committee.

John Horton, an exoneree from Rockford, testified during the hearing. He received a Certificate of Innocence (COI) in 2018, after another man confessed to the murder Horton was accused of back in 1993.

Horton told legislators he was imprisoned at the age of 17, and at 41, he came home to a "world I did not understand." The transition out of prison happened by "trial and error." Horton dealt with anxiety and struggled to adapt to technology that was commonplace to most people, but new to him, such as computers and debit cards.

Time spent wrongfully incarcerated left a gap in Horton's work history. This has made finding and keeping a job hard. "Every time I have pushed and tried to do my best to show that I am worthy, I do deserve an opportunity – I don't have a work history." Being wrongfully incarcerated "robbed me of just the simple thing of self-worth," said Horton.

Read more: https://www.illinoistimes.com/springfield/proposal-would-pay-exonerees-50000-per-year-served/Content?oid=13358160

March 26, 2021

Moody's revises its Illinois outlook from "negative" to "stable"

* From Moody’s…

Moody’s Investors Service has revised the outlook of the state of Illinois to stable from negative, while affirming the Baa3 rating on the state’s general obligation bonds. […]

Affirmation of the state’s rating and the revision of its outlook to stable reflect the state’s financial performance through the pandemic, in combination with increased levels of federal support that will moderate near-term fiscal and economic pressure. State and local government funds expected under the latest federal aid package may help the state repay deficit financing loans, support its financially pressured local governments and spur employment, income and tax revenue growth. While credit risks raised by the pandemic during the past year are receding, the longer-term challenges associated with the state’s very large unfunded post-employment liabilities remain. The state’s Baa3 rating is supported by a large, diverse economy with above-average wealth, and it benefits from powers over revenue and spending. […]

RATING OUTLOOK

The stable outlook indicates the state’s capacity to manage near-term fiscal pressures while carrying a heavy long-term liability burden.

Read more: https://capitolfax.com/2021/03/26/moodys-revises-its-illinois-outlook-from-negative-to-stable/