- The Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza has experienced a second day of bombing, killing at least 50 more people. Martin Griffiths, the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator, characterized the attack as an "atrocity". Meanwhile another UN official, Craig Mokhiber, has stepped down after accusing Israel of genocide. He has apparently been "under review" since March over his social media posts; make of that what you will. Meanwhile, Gwynne Dyer figures that Netanyahu is in trouble no matter what the outcome of the conflict is; if doesn't manage to destroy Hamas, he's done for politically, but if he does, he no longer can credibly say that there's nobody to negotiate with on the Palestinian side, and a two-state solution might be on the table again. I'd like to think that last part is true but I suspect it may be wishful thinking.
- Meanwhile that other war is still very much going on as well, with the Russians subjecting over a hundred communities to intense bombardment. And the worst part of all this is that these wars are a distraction from the fact that climate change has the potential to make the wars in Ukraine and Gaza look like a picnic - not least because it will cause a whole bunch more conflicts. In fact it's already starting to do that.
- The MPI strike has been settled as workers voted to accept a new contract. Workers are expected to be back on the job Friday.
- Poland has managed to cobble together a non-crazy coalition government. This is very good news for Europe and the world. It remains to be seen if Hungary can be turned around in the same way; they just banned minors from attending this year's World Press Photo Exhibition in Budapest because one set of photos in the exhibit present LGBT people in a non-hateful way.
- A sometimes nasty tropical disease called leishmaniasis, caused by a parasite spread by small biting flies called sand flies, has turned up in Texas. The form of leishmaniasis in question is not usually fatal but can be disfiguring.
- A trucker who left the road after failing to stop at a railway crossing went into the ditch and then over the tracks, damaging the tracks and causing a derailment. He escaped with minor injuries, plus a $672 fine and serious offense notice for careless driving.
- The town of Littleton, New Hampshire, is split pretty much straight down the middle, politically. To avoid culture war issues, they are considering banning all public art following complaints about an LGBT-themed mural.
- A teacher in Florida (where else) was beaten into unconsciousness by a teenage student who took exception to her stopping him from playing his portable video game console in class.
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