Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A nightmarish disaster in southern Asia: “An enormous flood that began high in the Himalayas tore a devastating path through a mountain valley on the border between Nepal and Tibet on Wednesday, smashing buildings and sweeping away fleeing people in a giant torrent of mud, water and ice. At least 160 people were killed and hundreds more were missing in the wake of the flood, which snapped bridges into pieces and engulfed people who tried to run but were overtaken by its speed and destructive force.”
* More discouraging news on inflation: “Prices consumers pay for a variety of goods and services rose slightly in July, according to the Federal Reserve’s main inflation gauge. The personal consumption expenditures price index, which the Fed uses as its preferred forecasting tool, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.2% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 3.7%, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.”
* To date, at least 5,605 people have been infected since mid-May, of whom 2,683 have died: “The Ebola epidemic raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo is on track to become the worst in history — amid a response hobbled by a severe lack of funding and rampant misinformation, according to doctors, relief organizations and global health authorities.”
* This historic settlement agreement is still subject to court approval: “Meta and a group of state attorneys general announced on Wednesday a settlement agreement in which the social media giant will pay up to $17 billion and make changes to its apps after allegations that its technology harms children’s mental health. The company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, will pay a potential maximum of roughly $17 billion to 47 states, three U.S. territories and the District of Columbia over 10 years as part of the settlement, according to court documents.”
* This is certainly discouraging for those who care about voting rights, but the fight is ongoing: “A federal judge in Massachusetts on Wednesday lifted the remaining block on President Donald Trump’s mail-in ballot executive order, a move that clears the way for the administration to restrict how states manage mail-in voting ahead of the midterm elections.”
* In related news: “Democratic states are taking the fight against Trump’s sweeping effort aimed at restricting mail-in voting back to court. A coalition of blue states says the new United States Postal Service rule, which limits who may receive mail ballots, is unconstitutional and will upend mail voting for tens of millions of voters ahead of the midterms.”
* The administration sure does like to divert finite law enforcement resources to pursue parochial presidential fixations: “Hundreds of federal immigration officers responsible for vetting the applications of people seeking a legal status in the United States are being reassigned to search for potential voter fraud, three former officials told The Washington Post.”
* Let’s hope this potential breakthrough meets its potential: “The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved a groundbreaking new drug for advanced pancreatic cancer, offering U.S. patients a more effective treatment against one of the deadliest types of cancer. FDA officials gave expedited approval to the first-of-a-kind pill, called daraxonrasib, which blocks a mutated protein that fuels tumor growth in more than 90% of pancreatic cancer cases. It’s an approach that previously eluded drugmakers for decades.”
See you tomorrow.
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