Extreme Memorial Day weather: Dangerous storms and high heat is expected across much of the United States according to CNN, and on a weekend when millions will be traveling and seeking outdoors entertainment. AAA indicated that this will be a record setting travel weekend, while coinciding with massive thunderstorms with hail, high winds, and even tornadoes throughout the eastern and southern US. Texas and Florida will face record setting heat, with raw temperatures in the 90s and humidity levels which make the risk of heat exhaustion significantly higher, leading to a heat index potentially between 110 and 120 degrees in Southern Texas.
University of California Strike: According to the LA Times the United Auto Workers Local 4811, which represents 48,000 graduate student teaching assistants, researchers and other academic workers authorized a strike in response to the treatment of students and workers by the University of California during pro-Palestine protests. The strike was approved by 79% of the almost 20,000 members. UCLA, UC San Diego and UC Irvine were in particular singled out by union leaders for supporting police crackdowns while failing to provide protection against violent counter protestors.
Russian funds for Ukraine: According to CNN significant sums of money belonging to Russian oligarchs or the state itself which were frozen after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine are being eyed as a funding source for the Ukrainian military. G7 nations are today discussing how they might make use of €260 billion ($282 billion) in frozen Russian currency reserves to aid Ukraine while it fends off a fierce assault from Russian forces in the Kharkiv region. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said it is “vital and urgent that we collectively find a way forward to unlock the value of Russian sovereign assets immobilized in our jurisdictions for the benefit of Ukraine.”
Spotify silenced: The music streaming service Spotify announced that it will end support and production of their “Car Thing,” a portable device that provided a full streaming experience to users in older cars without the infotainment systems many newer cars possess. The company cited low demand for the product coupled with supply chain issues that made production difficult. Presumably, many Spotify accounts streamed through phones and less sophisticated sound systems ate into the market share. The devices will stop functioning on December 9, 2024 at which point the company advises users perform a factory reset and dispose of the Thing.
Morgan Spurlock dead: The Oscar-nominated documentarian Morgan Spurlock passed away on Friday at the age of 53. He was best known for his movie Super Size Me where he attempted to illustrate the health effects of eating only McDonalds food for 30 days. Spurlock was originally set to release a followup documentary at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival but during the height of the #MeToo movement he publicly described how he was “part of the problem” by cheating on his partners, that he had been accused of rape in college, and that he settled a lawsuit filed against him for sexual harassment by a female assistant.
