NATO and Ukraine:Â Members of NATO this morning gave Ukraine an assurance that they would continue to support the country in its war against Russia and that Ukraine some day would be invited to become a member of NATO. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was at the NATO summit in Lithuania, asking that Ukraine be invited to join NATO now, not at some time in the future.
Inflation eases:Â The rate of inflation appears to be easing closer to the 2% the Federal Reserve is targeting even though there was a slight uptick in prices in June according to data released this morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2% in June after increasing 0.1% in May. Over the last 12 months, the index increased 3.0% before seasonal adjustment. The costs of shelter, motor vehicle insurance and food were major contributors to the increase.
Chinese hacking:Â Microsoft and the White House confirm that Chinese hackers attacked Microsoft’s cloud data storage systems and gained access to U.S. government emails. A National Security Council spokesperson said the Chinese did not get to see classified material but a source told CNN that the government still is investigating the extent of the hack.
Abortion bill:Â Republicans in the Iowa State Legislature last night passed a bill banning abortions once heart activity can be detected, usually at around six weeks. Iowa’s governor is expected to sign it on Friday. Iowa currently allows abortions up to 20 weeks. Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is running for the Republican Presidential Nomination, said yesterday that he wants to see a national ban that would prohibit abortions even when doctors have determined that a pregnancy is not viable.
Flooding:Â Floodwaters in Vermont are receding, with some streets in the capital Montpelier still inundated as of yesterday. The municipal manager said that conditions at a dam outside of Montpelier have stabilized and the danger of a collapse has eased so it will not be necessary to open floodgates to reduce the water levels behind the dam. In the Hudson Valley, the flood cleanup continues, including service being restored today on Metro-North’s Hudson Line.
Bus accident:Â Three people were killed and 14 injured in a collision on a highway in Madison County, Illinois, early this morning, according to state police. A Greyhound bus hit three trucks. The victims of the accident were on the bus.
Milan Kundera dies: Novelist Milan Kundera, whose writing called attention to the political and emotional turmoil of life behind the Iron Curtain, died in Paris yesterday at the age of 94. Born in Czechoslovakia, he first gained notice for his 1967 novel “The Joke” but later went into exile in France in 1975 to escape the oppressive Communist environment where his books were banned. He is best known for his 1984 novel “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” and was frequently cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Cover photo of Milan Kundera by Elisa Cabot / Wikimedia Commons
