🇭🇹 Americans Abducted in Haiti

Image: BBC

U.S. and Haitian officials have been in contact and are reportedly trying to establish contact with the kidnappers, but as of yesterday evening no official statements were released. 

• The Haitian police said the group behind the abductions was one of the country’s most dangerous criminal gangs, The New York Times reports. Known as 400 Mawozo, the gang was blamed for kidnapping five priests and two nuns earlier this year.

🚨 Zoom out: Haiti has been in a state of political upheaval for years (most recently with the assassination of its president in July), and kidnappings of the rich and poor alike are alarmingly common. Some estimates show gangs run half of Port-au-Prince, the country’s capital city.

• Kidnappings are up more than 300% since July.
• Haiti’s prime minister, Ariel Henry, was fired upon by gangs in downtown Port-au-Prince yesterday while commemorating the anniversary of the assassination of one of the country’s founding fathers.
• On Monday, gangs shot at a school bus in Port-au-Prince, injuring at least five people, including students, while another public bus was hijacked by a gang as well.

👁 Looking ahead… The UN Security Council extended its mission in Haiti by nine months in a unanimous vote on Friday. Many Haitians have been calling for the United States to send troops to stabilize the overall situation.

🎁 Said the International Association of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) this weekend, agreeing to a new three-year deal and averting a strike of more than 40,000 behind-the-scenes workers that was slated to start at lunch today.

“Stop doing that. Come here. Hey ! I mean it. Come here. GET OVER HERE.”

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Image: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

• While the Justices prefer to think of themselves as apolitical, it’s generally accepted that today’s Court is made up of six conservatives and three liberals.

📜 Background… In a July report, the commission’s 16-member “Practitioners’ Committee” – those with 400+ cases argued before the Supreme Court – unanimously agreed the Court’s current size was appropriate and warned against increasing the number of judges.

• A majority of the committee’s members also believed that 18-year term limits, “with each President getting two seats to fill during a four-year term, warrants serious consideration.”

📝 What’s in Thursday’s report ?... Basically, an in-depth pros and cons list that would make Ted Mosby proud. The draft materials lay out arguments in support and opposition to four different topics:

1. Membership and Size of the Court – This section focuses on whether or not it’s a good idea to add more Justices to the Supreme Court.
2. Term Limits – This one’s pretty self-explanatory.
3. The Court's Role in the Constitutional System – This part examines three proposals that would curb the Court’s jurisdiction or judicial power in some cases.
4. Case Selection and Review: Docket, Rules, and Practices – This section examines four common issues with the Court’s internal procedures and practices, including its use of emergency orders and how it chooses cases.

💬 What they’re saying: During a public discussion of the draft report on Friday, several commission members said they were in favor of term limits before studying the issue but have since changed their minds, per the AP.

• Additionally, more than one individual said they thought the draft came close to endorsing term limits, which they personally were opposed to.

👁️ Looking ahead… The commission is expected to issue its final report in mid-November.

🎁 An independent FDA advisory panel on Friday concluded a series of votes to recommend boosters for all three COVID-19 vaccines used in the U.S.

🫁🚁 A Breath Of Fresh Air

Image: Unither Bioélectronique

⌛ Why it matters: Other organs have been shipped by drone before, but not lungs – which are particularly sensitive to environmental shifts during transport and typically only last 4-6 hours in transit.

• To ensure successful delivery, the firm designed a lightweight carbon-fiber shipping container that can withstand significant vibrations and changes in elevation and barometric pressure.

💬 What they’re saying… “This innovation in the transportation of organs has the potential to significantly increase the transfer efficiency between donors and recipients, especially in congested urban areas,” the company remarked after the trip.

Image: CNN

Reid Alexander and Rafael Diaz are Tinder matches-turned-husbands who – like many others – fell head-over-heels for each other last year.

• Unfortunately, Reid suffers from a harsh kidney disease called Alport Syndrome. On their second date, he told Rafael about the illness that controlled countless aspects of his life.

🔬 Put to the test… As the men fell more and more in love, Rafael began tests to see if he was a donor match for his beau.

• Last month, almost a year to the day after their first date, Rafael successfully donated one of his kidneys to his now-husband.

Which everyday vegetable was considered poisonous in medieval England ?

A) Asparagus
B) Cucumber
C) Broccoli
D) Tomato

(keep scrolling for the answer)

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D) Tomato

The tomato's origins can be traced back to the early Aztecs in 700 A.D. It wasn't until the 16th century that this veggie (or fruit, depending on who you ask) was introduced to Europe.

• The tomato was immediately accepted into the kitchen in southern European countries, but the British initially believed tomatoes were poisonous since they bear a strong resemblance to members of the deadly nightshade family.