Obama portrait unveilings:Â President Biden welcomes former President Barack Obama and Mrs. Obama to the White House this afternoon for the unveiling of their official portraits. The portraits had been completed while Donald Trump still was in office but Trump refused to invite the Obama”™s to the White House for an unveiling ceremony.
Russia selling more energy to Asia:Â A report by The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, which is headquartered in Helsinki, says Russia has increased sales of oil, natural gas and coal to Asia in response to European countries cutting back on use of Russian energy supplies. The report says China has been the biggest purchaser.
Turkey threatens to invade Greece:Â Turkey”™s dictator Erdogan threatens to invade Greece. The two countries have been at odds for years over a number of issues. Turkey now accuses Greece of threatening to shoot down Turkish military jets and threatening Turkey by violating international agreements.
Body of Eliza Fletcher found:Â Police in Memphis said yesterday they had found the body of Eliza Fletcher, the mother of two who had been abducted while she was on a pre-dawn run. A 38-year-old man, Cleotha Abston was charged with her murder after being tracked down through the use of DNA found on Fletcher”™s sandals that were discovered near where she was abducted.
JUUL to pay $435.5M settlement:Â An agreement in principle has been reached under which JUUL Labs will pay 34 states and territories $435.5 million to resolve a two-year investigation into the e-cigarette manufacturer’s marketing and sales practices. In addition to the financial terms, the settlement would force JUUL to comply with a series of strict limits on what they do in marketing and sales. JUUL was, until recently, the dominant player in the vaping market. The investigation found that JUUL willfully engaged in an advertising campaign that appealed to youth, even though its e-cigarettes are both illegal for them to purchase and are unhealthy for them to use.
Cyberattack on LA schools:Â The FBI and Department of Homeland Security have joined in the investigation into a cyberattack over the Labor Day weekend on the Los Angeles school system, second largest in the U.S. behind New York City. School employees are believed to have minimized damage to the central computers by shutting them down while the attack still was underway. Ransomware was used in the computer attack but no demand to pay ransom was immediately received.
