Meanwhile. . ..

Unitarian Universalists elect first woman of color, openly queer president

Over the past two decades, major companies have paid out over $25 billion in damages and settlements in class action and multi-district consumer protection lawsuits filed throughout the United States. Some corporations have been involved in multiple cases, and a few have had total payouts of more than $1 billion.

Today, people in New York City are more than four times more likely to be released through supervised release as compared to cash bail. The Gothamist covers how the city's supervised release program has grown exponentially since bail reform went into effect in 2020.

Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Monday adopted requirements that all existing nonresidential buildings over 25,000 square feet achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with a more aggressive deadline of 2035 for the largest buildings.

 In August 2021, New York City ended an extended prohibition on shared e-scooters and launched a pilot program allowing three companies — Bird, Lime and Veo — to operate in the Bronx. In June, the city announced that the program will be permanent and will expand into eastern Queens in 2024. 

Drinking water from nearly half of U.S. faucets likely contains “forever chemicals” that may cause cancer and other health problems, according to a government study released Wednesday. The synthetic compounds known collectively as PFAS are contaminating drinking water to varying extents in large cities and small towns – and in private wells and public systems, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush once quipped that his experimental submersible Titan was held together by glue that was “like peanut butter.” Five years before the doomed sub would implode near the wreckage of the Titanic with Rush and four passengers on board, the CEO was featured in a video posted to YouTube detailing the sub’s construction. He said the glue used to secure the titanium ring to the carbon-fiber hull was “very thick, so it’s not like Elmer’s glue,” according to Insider. He also admitted that the design was “pretty simple,” so “if we mess it up, there’s not a lot of room for recovery.” 

Multiple shark bites reported off New York coast in two days

Ninth Circuit guts Oregon recording law 

More than 400 anti-LGBTQ+ bills, a substantial number aimed at transgender youth, have been introduced across state legislatures this year alone, and last year was marked by the passage of the most anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-transgender legislation in recent memory. This surge of discriminatory practices and policies is not just regressive and wrong -- it's terrifying for people and communities directly affected.. . . At present, no federal laws explicitly safeguard the LGBTQ+ community from discrimination, despite the increases the LGBTQ+ community have faced in physical violence, harassment, and heartbreaking loss of lives due to hatred and bigotry.

 In one direction — outbound from China — an exodus of “high net worth” individuals is moving to places like Australia and the United States, an estimated 13,500 in 2023 alone. In the other direction, bound for Beijing, is a steady stream of billionaires with names like Elon Musk and Bill Gates. It’s easy to understand why the wealthy are fleeing China. President Xi Jinping is a true believer in communism, and the Chinese dictator has been killing off free enterprise there — one billionaire at a time. 

A dozen “health hubs” will open in Detroit high schools with the help of private philanthropy. The new clinics, which will offer more services than traditional school-based clinics, like dental services and vision screenings, are aimed at trying to shrink the district’s high rates of absenteeism. 

Iowa's new child labor law just went into effect. 14 year-olds can now work in meat coolers, 15 year-olds can join assembly lines, and 16 year-olds can serve alcohol. This rollback is part of a coordinated effort in conservative states to dilute national child labor laws.