“Amidst growing concern about the stability of global supply chains and Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific, Australia announces its plan to accelerate the production of a domestic guided missile program.”
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“The United States has historically let in a plethora of refugees who have enriched the nation through culture, industry, and productivity. Yet, those at the southern border are dehumanized and humiliated because they immigrated here looking for the one thing the United States prides itself on: opportunity.”
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“As vaccines become more widely available in the US and a return to normalcy hopefully draws near, private companies have started to work with the Biden administration to create standardized vaccine credentials. Already, industries ranging from entertainment to cruise lines have said they will require proof of vaccination from travelers, sports fans and others in order to provide customers with confidence and to provide some assurance that disruptions will not continue to plague their businesses.”
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“On the night of March 30th, an Italian navy captain was caught exchanging classified documents for money from a Russian military official in a Roman car park. The Italian captain was apprehended immediately after completing the exchange.”
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“On March 30th, the Senate passed the Excellent Public Schools Act. Though Democrats offered some criticism during a rare questioning period held by Sen. Berger, most lawmakers expressed support for the bill and the vote was unanimous. Sen. Gladys Robinson, D-Guilford, pointed out that COVID-19 has only lowered literacy rates and has ‘left behind’ a number of students who may lack technology, parental support, or other resources crucial to staying afloat during remote learning. Robinson argued that ‘The ability to read is the background, the foundation of everything.’”
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“Big tech, which keeps getting Bigger and Bigger, had a wonderful 2020 and looks to continue in 2021 as COVID-19 continues to define how people live their lives. Just last week, the CEOs of Google, Facebook and Twitter faced questioning in front of Congress about various parts of their business, with all the questioning seemingly accelerating calls for regulation of Big tech. Taking it a step further than regulation, several Democratic primary candidates included antitrust enforcement against Big Tech in their campaign platforms, although President Biden was not one of them.”
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“In the wake of the deadly Atlanta spa shooting that sent shockwaves through the nation in March, many North Carolina lawmakers are reviving efforts to pass a hate crime legislation. Previously introduced in 2018, the reintroduction of this bill is not only in response to the recent shooting, but also to the surge in violent crimes being committed against the Asian American community since the start of the pandemic.”
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“However, Khater took a different path that led him to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He and his brothers owned Frutta Bowls health food cafe on Franklin Street until it closed and he moved to Pennsylvania to start another college smoothie shop, which is now also closing. Though he never officially had a North Carolina address, both his LinkedIn profile and past interviews indicate he was the owner of the Chapel Hill establishment for over a year.”
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“Ten years after the conflict began, the United Nations special envoy to Syria now claims there may be a ‘window of opportunity’ to end the fighting. In an interview with the BBC, Geir Pedersen has pointed to the fact that there is a fragile ceasefire in place between Assad’s forces and rebels in the northwestern province of Idlib. Idlib is the last province under rebel control. ‘For the first time in 10 years, the frontlines in Syria have not changed,’ Mr. Pedersen said. ‘This creates an opportunity.’”
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“President Joe Biden has come forward saying that he intends to move the United States to reenter the Iran Nuclear Deal as soon as Iran resumes compliance with the stipulations. Biden has also suggested that, upon reentering the deal, he plans to negotiate a successor agreement that will also address Iran’s missile program. In response, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stated in September of 2020 that Iran would “absolutely not” renegotiate the deal’s terms from scratch, and expects the United States to compensate Iran for the monetary damages from the oil and banking sanctions under the Trump Administration which amount to USD $1 trillion.”
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“Fifty-three years further along the arc Dr. King envisioned for America, has our nation yet come to the bend that leads to justice? Or Are the gains of racial justice since 1968 largely nominal? Most important -- regardless of how far we’ve come -- is will we, Americans, harness today’s ambition for racial equality and take action to effectuate the aspirations of civil rights conceived since Reconstruction but which millions of Black American have yet to experience?”
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“North Carolina Senate Bill 300 seeks to reform policing in North Carolina, addressing some of the issues highlighted by the horrific death of George Floyd this past summer. More controversially, however, the bill would reclassify rioting offenses from Class 1 misdemeanors to Class H or G felonies in response to violence that occurred during some protests over the summer. With a vague definition of what constitutes a riot, however, some believe that this could harm individuals wrongly arrested.”
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“On Monday March 15, the U.S. Senate voted 51 to 40 to confirm former New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior, making her the first Native American cabinet secretary in American history. Four Republicans - Senators Graham (SC), Collins (ME), Sullivan (AK), and Murkowski (AK) - joined the Democrats in yay votes. This is not the first time Haaland has made history. In 2018 she and Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS), became the first Native American women elected to Congress. Haaland’s nomination and confirmation represented a positive step toward President Biden’s promise to create the most diverse cabinet in U.S. history. Haaland also assumes the office at a particularly challenging time when battling climate change is at the forefront of the national political conversation. She will be tasked with carrying out the Biden administration plan to reduce carbon emissions on a nationwide scale.”
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“While much disinformation comes from inside the U.S., Americans must also note an ever-present strategy for impacting elections adopted by both interveners, and that is dividing the population and undermining faith in our election systems. Distrust in our democracy generally, is not only damaging in election time, but damaging to the cohesion of the nation broadly.”
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“The first article of the Constitution of the Fifth Republic states: “France shall be an indivisible, secular, democratic and social Republic. It shall ensure the equality of all citizens before the law, without distinction of origin, race or religion.” However, during his 2012 presidential campaign, François Hollande promised to remove the word ‘race’ from the constitution. From Hollande’s point of view, race does not exist, and therefore should not be mentioned in any official text. While this may sound surprising to American ears, 33% of French citizens do not believe that race exists.”
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“The bill, also named the “For the People Act,” was introduced and advocated for by Democrats in Congress, who consider it an essential step in preserving voting rights in the United States and it would be the largest package of voting rights laws since the 1960’s. In today’s politically charged environment, marked by former President Donald Trump and Republicans falsely claiming widespread fraud in the 2020 election, the outcome of HR-1 could affect elections and voting rights for years to come.”
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“Attempts by the Chinese Communist Party to suppress dissent in the wake of massive protests in Hong Kong in 2019 have led to sanctions first by the Trump Administration and now extended by the Biden Administration signalling U.S. policy around democracy and human rights will not be softening.”
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“In one of his first official acts as Lieutenant Governor, Mark Robinson has formed a new committee, “Fairness and Accountability in the Classroom for Teachers and Students” (F.A.C.T.S.). This committee is dedicated to giving students, parents, and school faculty “a voice to speak out about cases of bias, inappropriate materials, and indoctrination they see or experience in schools.”
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“Even before Biden took office, he had praised President Trump's administration for their work in rolling out the vaccine in Operation Warp Speed, "I think that the administration deserves some credit, getting this off the ground, Operation Warp Speed,” Biden said after he received Pfizer’s vaccine. “... I'm doing this to demonstrate that people should be prepared, when it's available, to take the vaccine. There's nothing to worry about.” Things have changed since December, when Biden praised Trump, however, and the former President doesn’t want to be left behind.”
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“While this year may represent a loss of traditional learning, it also represents a year of persistence and growth despite circumstance. Learning did not stop because of the pandemic and not every lesson taught has been negative.”
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