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Amazon Ring Stops Letting Police Request Footage in Neighbors App After Outcry (Maria)
The author writes, “Amazon Ring has shut down a controversial feature in its community safety app Neighbors that has allowed police to contact homeowners and request doorbell and surveillance camera footage without a warrant for years. In a blog, head of the Neighbors app Eric Kuhn confirmed that ‘public safety agencies like fire and police departments can still use the Neighbors app to share helpful safety tips, updates, and community events,’ but the Request for Assistance (RFA) tool will be disabled. ‘They will no longer be able to use the RFA tool to request and receive video in the app,’ Kuhn wrote.”
New Hampshire Officials to Investigate A.I. Robocalls Mimicking Biden (DonkeyHotey)
From The New York Times: “Voters in New Hampshire received robocall messages over the weekend in a voice that was most likely artificially generated to impersonate President Biden’s, urging them not to vote in Tuesday’s primary election, according to the state attorney general’s office. The fake recordings, which told listeners that ‘your vote makes a difference in November, not this Tuesday,’ were manipulated to seem as if they had been sent by an officer of a Democratic committee, the office said.”
Canada Is Preparing for a Second Trump Presidency. Trudeau Says Trump ‘Represents Uncertainty’ (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “Canada’s government is preparing for the possibility that Donald Trump could reach the White House again and the ‘uncertainty’ that would bring, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday. Speaking at a Cabinet retreat, Trudeau said that Trump ‘represents uncertainty. We don’t know exactly what he is going to do.’ He said that his government was able to manage Trump previously by showing that Canada and the U.S. can create economic growth on both sides of the border. … ‘We made it through the challenges represented by the Trump administration seven years ago, for four years, where we put forward the fact that Canada and the U.S. do best when we do it together,’ Trudeau said.”
In Genocide Case Against Israel at The Hague, the US Is the Unnamed Co-Conspirator (Laura)
From The Intercept: “On matters related to Israel, the U.S. has functioned as its rogue defender as a matter of bipartisan orthodoxy, vetoing or blocking any and all efforts — often supported by the vast majority of the world’s nations — to hold Israel responsible for its crimes against the Palestinians.”
Food Not Bombs Trial Rescheduled After Too Many Jurors Objected to $500 Fine for Feeding Homeless (Dana)
The author writes, “Fifteen Houstonians called for jury duty filed into a courtroom Thursday afternoon. They were there for an unusually high-profile case for municipal courts, known for hearing traffic violations and facilitating weddings. Three of the 15 would be selected to decide the outcome of a case alleging that a woman had violated Houston law by feeding the homeless without the city’s permission. Roughly an hour later, the jury pool filed back out — all 15 of them. The lawyers had been unable to fill an unbiased jury.”
Scientific Breakthrough May Save Northern White Rhino Through Surrogacy (Russ)
The authors write, “Scientists have made history by successfully transferring a rhinoceros embryo for the first time, conservationists announced Wednesday, an achievement that could help save the embattled species from the growing threat of poachers. The development is a milestone that scientists say opens the way to saving the endangered northern white rhino. Only two females exist in the world, Najin and daughter Fatu, and both are unable to carry pregnancies. Najin and Fatu live at Kenya’s Ol Pejeta Conservancy, which was also home to Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, which died in 2018. Sudan’s death galvanized the world, motivating conservationists to try to save the species.”
The Suburbs Have Become a Ponzi Scheme (Reader Jim)
From The Atlantic: “The racial and economic fissures in our cities have gotten much attention, but less has been written about how these same fault lines have manifested themselves in the suburbs. This is surprising because the suburbs serve as such a deeply powerful symbol for American aspiration. A house. Good schools. Safe streets. Plentiful services. … The suburbs have become such a strong emblem for the American dream that in the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump used their decline as a bludgeon against the Democrats to suggest that that dream was withering.”
