Summary

The U.S. beekeeping industry is experiencing unprecedented losses, with millions of bees dying over the past eight months.

Blake Shook, a leading beekeeper, called it "the worst bee loss in recorded history."

Researchers remain uncertain about the cause, pointing to potential factors like habitat changes and weather patterns.

Beekeeping operations are struggling to survive, raising concerns about food security and the sustainability of crop production.

Anyone might wonder how often they are caught on police cameras that operate 24/7. I spent a day driving, and over a month trying to get the answer.

Summary

A federal judge ruled that a class-action lawsuit against Elon Musk over alleged securities fraud can proceed.

Former Twitter shareholders claim Musk failed to disclose his stock purchases in a timely manner, causing them to sell at artificially low prices.

The judge noted Musk’s March 2022 tweet suggesting interest in buying another social network as misleading. Musk’s lawyers argue the late disclosure was an error.

The SEC has filed a similar suit. Musk acquired Twitter for $44 billion in 2022 and recently merged xAI with the platform.

Summary

A Delta Air Lines flight and a U.S. Air Force T-38 Talon jet narrowly avoided collision at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Friday.

Delta Flight 2983, carrying 131 passengers, was cleared for takeoff as four T-38 jets approached for a flyover at Arlington National Cemetery.

An onboard alert prompted corrective instructions from air traffic controllers, diverting both aircraft. No injuries occurred.

The FAA plans to investigate. The incident follows a January midair collision at the same airport that killed 67 people.

Ecuador is laying the groundwork for US forces to arrive, according to plans obtained by CNN – as its president calls on US President Donald Trump to help battle powerful gangs in a country once known as the “island of peace.”

CIA Director John Ratcliffe invited Elon Musk to meet with him next week, suggesting the nation’s top intelligence agencies won’t be exempt from the tech billionaire’s efforts to slash government spending.

“Director Ratcliffe has invited Elon Musk to meet with him at the Agency to discuss government efficiency,” a CIA spokesperson told POLITICO.

https://archive.ph/JWzxs

The US defence secretary’s decision to review military standards on combat and physical fitness and appearance opens a Pandora’s box of widely differing rules among the services.

Summary

Israeli officials are furious that the leaked Signal group chat involving senior Trump administration officials compromised sensitive Israeli intelligence from a human source in Yemen.

The chat, accidentally including journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, contained details about U.S. airstrikes targeting Houthi militants.

While Trump officials claim no classified information was shared, sources tell CBS News that Israeli intelligence is angry their human intelligence was exposed.

The leak has strained U.S.-Israel relations, and Trump has privately expressed frustration over the fallout from the exposure.

Summary

Travelers to the U.S. face increased scrutiny under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, with reports of deportations, detentions, and invasive phone searches.

Incidents involve not only those from high-risk countries but also citizens from allies like France, Germany, and Canada.

Legal experts advise using burner phones and uploading data to the cloud to protect privacy.

Some foreign governments have issued travel warnings, prompting potential visitors to reconsider their plans.

Summary

Dr. Peter Marks, the FDA’s top vaccine regulator, resigned after reportedly being forced out amid clashes with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

In his resignation letter, Marks wrote that Kennedy wanted "subservient confirmation of his misinformation and lies."

He criticized Kennedy’s stance on vaccines, accusing him of undermining public confidence.

Marks, who led the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research since 2016, played a key role in authorizing Covid vaccines and spearheading Operation Warp Speed. Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist, has questioned the safety of Covid and MMR vaccines despite scientific consensus.

Summary

Jennifer Piggott, a self-proclaimed "MAGA junkie" from Parkersburg, West Virginia, regrets voting for Donald Trump after being fired from the Bureau of Fiscal Service during widespread cuts under DOGE.

Despite earning top performance reviews, she was among 125 civil service workers dismissed, sparking local outrage.

Piggott expressed disappointment, saying she expected Trump to protect working-class jobs.

A federal judge ordered reinstatement, but the Trump administration appealed to the Supreme Court, leaving affected workers on paid leave.

Piggott has faced vandalism and threats after speaking out.

A US judge has just issued a ruling blocking the Trump administration from dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a vital watchdog agency, the AP reports.

The US district judge Amy Berman Jackson’s ruling puts in place a preliminary injunction that maintains the agency’s existence while she considers the arguments of a lawsuit seeking to prevent the president’s decimation of the bureau. The judge said the court “can and must act” to save the CFPB from being shuttered, according to the AP.

The CFPB had been targeted for mass terminations, and employees were ordered to stop working last month after Donald Trump fired the bureau’s director. The current chief operating officer has said the agency was in “wind-down mode”. The president’s attacks on the bureau, which included canceling $100m in contracts and ordering immediate suspension of CFPB operations, have caused chaos, workers have testified.

Summary

The Trump administration petitioned the Supreme Court to challenge federal judges' rulings that it claims hinder presidential power, including cases on deportations, rehiring dismissed workers, and halted education grants.

Lower courts have repeatedly blocked Trump’s measures, including using the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans and banning transgender military service.

Appeals courts upheld injunctions against firing federal workers and freezing federal funding.

Meanwhile, a judge ordered federal agencies to preserve Signal messages related to a Yemen strike, following a lawsuit over potential records violations.

Summary

Donald Trump issued an executive order stripping collective bargaining rights from about 700,000 federal workers, citing a "national security" exemption in the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act.

The order targets unions at major departments, including Defense, Energy, and Veterans Affairs.

The American Federation of Government Employees and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees condemned the move as illegal and vowed legal action.

Union leaders accused the administration of undermining workers' rights to benefit billionaire interests and called the decree the largest union-busting effort in U.S. history.

The move — along with the CDC’s explanation — is a sign that the nation’s top public health agency may be falling in line under HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines.

As Donald Trump and Elon Musk take a chainsaw to the federal bureaucracy, the cuts at the IRS may be especially good news for America’s wealthiest taxpayers.

The United States has ordered consular offices to significantly expand their screening processes for student visa applicants, including through comprehensive social media investigations, to exclude people they deem to support terrorism.

It specifically targets new and renewing F, M and J student visa applications, providing explicit instructions for consular officers to conduct mandatory social media reviews digging into applicants’ lives online. Officers are directed to examine the social media of all students applying to a visa for evidence of activities the administration defines as a threat to national security or terrorism.

So I guess this is a thing for people who want to study/do research in the US now