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Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Thursday, March 10, 2022:
INVASION GRINDS ON
The latest round of talks appear to have failed, with the Ukraine foreign minister saying Russian officials "live in their own reality." Two weeks in, the invasion grinds on and multiple sources are pointing to an escalation in attacks on civilians. A Russian airstrike reportedly destroyed a maternity hospital in the port city of Mariupol, injuring 17. Power cuts to the closed Chernobyl nuclear power plant stoked fears over the prospect of spent fuel rods overheating. The exodus of refugees continues, raising the need for humanitarian assistance in western Ukraine. Vice President Kamala Harris, meanwhile, landed in Poland for a series of talks with President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada on providing additional aid to Ukraine. CNBC
DEMS SCRAP COVID FUNDS
House Democrats scrapped plans to spend an additional $15.6 billion fighting the Covid-19 pandemic in a bid to clear the way for a long-delayed $1.5 trillion budget bill, which has now finally passed in the chamber. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the decision was "heartbreaking" but the bill "must proceed." Republicans effectively forced the compromise by insisting that additional Covid funds would have to be paid for by cuts to state-level pandemic assistance, which pushed rank-and-file Democrats to abandon the measure. The legislation was also pushed along by a bipartisan desire to provide $13.6 billion in military, humanitarian, and economic aid to Ukraine. AP
United Spending of America
GREAT RESIGNATION CONTINUES
The Great Resignation isn't letting up. According to new U.S. Labor Department data, 4.3 million people quit their jobs in January, which is a big number, but not as big as the 11.3 million job openings on the market. Both measures suggest the tight labor market of the pandemic is continuing into 2022, even after 2021 posted the highest-ever number of quits. While both openings and quits declined slightly month-over-month, resignations are still up 23% from pre-pandemic levels. CNBC
Where are all the good “I Quit!” YouTube videos?
BIDEN ISSUES CRYPTO ORDER
President Joe Biden has signed a long-awaited executive order directing federal agencies to work together on a plan to regulate, and even support, cryptocurrencies. The order was light on specific proposals, but it did give the crypto community a sense of what the administration is thinking. Their biggest takeaway: while the U.S. is determined to address the risks of crypto, it also sees a future in "responsible financial innovation." Put another way, regulations are almost certainly coming down the pike, but crypto is here to stay. CHEDDAR
CONGRESS TO DOJ: INVESTIGATE AMAZON
A congressional antitrust committee is urging the Department of Justice to look into Amazon for possible criminal obstruction. In a letter to the agency, committee members accused the e-commerce company of refusing to provide information into how it treats outside sellers on the platform. The letter is an escalation of a 16-month investigation into the competitive practices of tech giants. Amazon quickly responded that there was no factual basis for the accusation. WSJ
LIMEWIRE RESURRECTED
In a collision of millennial and Gen Z tech-fads, file-sharing company Limewire has announced that it's being resurrected as an NFT marketplace with a focus on music, entertainment, and art. The original version of the platform, which many used to effectively steal music, shut down in 2011 due to multiple legal challenges and mounting pressure from the music industry. A decade later, the company is returning with buy-in from industry players. According to a press release, members of the management teams for H.E.R. and Wu-Tang Clan are on the board. CNET
We weren’t stealing, we were borrowing permanently.
KIDNAPPING TRIAL BEGINS
The trial for the men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has begun with two radically different versions of events for jurors to process. The defendants argued that they never intended to kidnap the governor and were actually entrapped by undercover FBI agents who ran the show, while the prosecution maintained the men planned to hogtie the governor, blow up a bridge, and kill any police officers who got in their way. CBS
More like adultnapping.
NINTENDO DELAYS WAR GAME
Nintendo is once again delaying the release of military tactics game Advance Wars. Last year, the company said the long-anticipated reboot needed more fine-tuning. This time, Nintendo is citing "recent world events" (i.e. the invasion of Ukraine) as the reason for pushing back the launch date. Notably, the game features tanks, helicopters and armed soldiers laying waste to buildings and public infrastructure. The announcement came just days after Nintendo suspended its eShop in Russia due to payment issues with the ruble. THE VERGE
Way to read the room, Nintendo!
'BLACK PANTHER' DIRECTOR DETAINED
Ryan Coogler, director of Black Panther and Creed, told Variety that he was mistaken for a bank robber at a Bank of America in Atlanta back in January. The confusion occurred when Coogler handed a teller a withdrawal slip with a note written on it requesting that his money be counted somewhere else. "I'd like to be discreet," it said. The award-winning director said he's since "moved on" but said the "situation should have never happened." VARIETY
LEFTOVERS: CENTURY-OLD SHIP FOUND
The sunken wreck of a British ship called the Endurance, which set out in 1914 to cross the Atlantic by way of the South Pole, was found this week after more than a century under the ice. Much to the surprise of the expedition that found it, the ship was in remarkably good condition. The recovery came 100 years after the death of explorer Ernest Shackleton, who was able to rescue all his men by reaching help at a remote South Atlantic whaling station. CNN
Aside from the sinking, it endured pretty well.
Need2Know Podcast Note: The Need2Know podcast is taking a break for now. We're looking forward to bringing you more context and analysis on the big stories of the day in a few weeks. In the meantime, check out our archive on Apple or Spotify, or watch on YouTube, and send us your feedback!
