Since Feb 2025, more than 50 birds have been killed in the vicinity of Bernhard Avenue in Richmond, north of Berkeley, CA. Several witnesses describe hearing a loud crack before the birds plunge to the ground, and one homeowner described how the creatures "explode" on impact in "traumatic" scenes. Many of the homeowners fear a power line running across the street could be malfunctioning and electrocuting the birds. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife Wildlife conducted necropsies and confirmed that the bird's injuries were consistent with trauma from a pellet gun, BB gun, or a slingshot, not electrocution from power lines. Source: Link 1 Read more
After the British mandate ended on 14 May 1948, Israel declared its independence. To commemorate the anniversary this year, the IDF killed 60 Palestinians and attacked a European hospital in the Gaza Strip. This murder and mayhem has been bought and paid for by the hardworking American taxpayer who provided Israel with a record $17.9bn since 7 Oct 2023 alone. The US has been heavily subsidizing Israel since 1950. With a massive heatwave about to set over Israel (temperatures reaching 115F in Eilat, 99F in Tel Aviv, and 101F in Jerusalem), the UN reports that 75% of Gazans report a decline in water access over the past month, amid deteriorating sanitation conditions. Sources: Link 1 Link 2 Link 3 Read more
"The National Baseball Hall of Fame has always maintained that anyone removed from Baseball's permanently ineligible list will become eligible for Hall of Fame consideration," Clark said in the statement. "Major League Baseball's decision to remove deceased individuals from the permanently ineligible list will allow for the Hall of Fame candidacy of such individuals to now be considered.
On April 28, the Truman was forced to make a hard turn at sea to avoid incoming Houthi fire, several U.S. officials said. The move contributed to the loss of one of the Super Hornets, which was being towed at the time and fell overboard. That same day, dozens of people were killed in a U.S. attack that hit a migrant facility controlled by the Houthis, according to the group and aid officials. Then on May 4, a Houthi ballistic missile evaded Israel's aerial defenses and struck near Ben-Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv. On Tuesday, two pilots aboard another Super Hornet, again on the Truman, were forced to eject after their fighter jet failed to catch the steel cable on the carrier deck, sending the plane into the Red Sea. By then, Mr. Trump had decided to declare the operation a success. Houthi officials and their supporters swiftly declared victory, too, spreading a social media hashtag that read "Yemen defeats America."
May 13, 2025 at 11:05 AM EDT
Donald Trump's approval rating on immigration has reached a new low, according to polling.
Why It Matters
Immigration was the cornerstone of Trump's 2024 campaign and an issue Trump previously polled highly on. But recent polls have shown Trump's approval rating on immigration underwater.
A decline in approval now"especially as immigration remains a central focus"signals potential vulnerability in his messaging and may reflect shifting public attitudes or dissatisfaction with how he and his allies are handling the issue.
The latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that consumer prices increased 2.3% over the prior year in April, a slowdown from March's 2.4% and below economists' forecast for 2.4%. This marked the lowest annual increase since February 2021, before a large increase in inflation sparked a Federal Reserve interest rate hiking cycle. Read more
A White House executive order Monday slashed the "de minimis" tariff on China shipments to 54% from 120%, with a $100 flat fee starting May 14. Read more
The discussions reflected the extent of the president's declining health " particularly the significant degeneration of his spine " and his aides' alarm over it as Biden sought a second term at age 81.
The new German government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz banned the largest "Reich citizen" group in the country. This is an extremist far-right organization that calls itself the "Kingdom of Germany" and seeks to undermine the country's democratic order. Hundreds of security forces in several states searched the association's properties and the homes of leading members, arresting four of them. "The members of this association have created a "counter-state" in our country and built up economic criminal structures," said the Interior Minister, adding that the group propagated antisemitic conspiracy narratives. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution is the German analog to the US FBI: www.verfassungsschutz.de Read more
Freestyle wrestler Kyle Snyder (29) was one of 16 people arrested following an undercover police operation in Columbus, OH, targeting "Johns" seeking prostitutes. Undercover police posted escort ads online. Snyder responded to the ad and met the 'escort' at a hotel nearby who he then paid cash in exchange for oral sex. The Olympian was released at the scene and is due in court on 19 May. In Ohio, solicitation is a third-degree misdemeanor and Kyle Snyder faces a driver's license suspension and/or community service (as well as a lifetime of embarrassment). An indictment or arrest is just an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Read more
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr posted photographs of his grandchildren swimming and wading with him in sewage-tainted Rock Creek, Wash DC this past weekend. The creek is known for having a sewage overflow problem and posing a health hazard to any who enter it. The National Park Service, which manages the Rock Creek Park, strictly bars all use of the water there and the park's other waterways due to the "high levels of fecal bacteria" and infectious pathogens.' Rock Creek Environmental Reports: Link One Link Two Read more
Since U.S. President Donald Trump imposed steep tariffs on China last month, Beijing has responded in kind. On state and social media, it posted images of Mao Zedong, lambasted "imperialists," and sent a message: capitulation to bullies is dangerous, and it wouldn't back down.
The UN aviation agency ICAO ruled that Russia was responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014. All 298 passengers were killed when it was shot down by a Russian-made missile. The Kremlin has always denied any responsibility for the air disaster. 196 Dutch, 38 Australians, as well as Belgian, Malaysian, and British nationals on board. This represents the first time in ICAO's history that its Council has made a determination on the merits of a dispute between Member States under the Organization's dispute settlement mechanism.
Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was travelling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down over the Donbas region of Ukraine, during a conflict between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian forces. An international arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin issued by the ICC for war crimes remains active.Read more
Tariff rates on small packages from China will be cut in half, though a flat-fee option will not change, the White House said Monday. Why it matters: Trump previously ended a loophole that allowed low-value goods into the country tariff-free -- the rate reversal will ease price pressures on customers of Chinese retailers like Shein and Temu.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said she is suspending imports of livestock through the Mexican border on a "month-by-month basis" to protect U.S. cattle from the threat of a dangerous, flesh-eating parasite infestation. The parasite is the New World Screwworm, or NWS, which is actually a fly and was eradicated in the United States almost 60 years ago.
For many experts, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s promise for "pulling back the curtain" to find autism's causes in a few months is jarring -- and unrealistic. That's because it appears to ignore decades of science linking about 200 genes that play a role -- and the quest to understand differences inside the brain that can be present at birth.
