The Daily Valet. - 10/25/23, Wednesday
✔️ A Surprising Turn of Events
Wednesday, October 25th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
If you're looking for some new music to play to pump yourself up today, we've got just the ticket down below.
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Today’s Big Story
Abortions Are on the Rise
Roe v. Wade may be gone, but it's done little to reduce frequency of the procedure, new data shows
Well, this is a bit surprising, isn't it? More than a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the total number of legal abortions in the United States did not fall. In fact, they appear to have increased slightly (by about 0.2%), according to the first full-year count of abortions provided nationwide. Which means that these new state bans have done little so far to deter women from ending unwanted pregnancies.Data released Tuesday, from #WeCount, a research project led by the Society of Family Planning, said that there were about 115,000 fewer abortions in the 17 states with total or six-week bans in effect, plummeting 98% in banned states and dropping 40% in those with six-week gestational limits, according to the new report. About a third of the overall decline can be attributed to Texas.Even as those restrictions reduced the legal abortion rate to near zero in some states, abortion providers, funders and others have adapted quickly to this new landscape. Access has been cut off throughout much of the South, and demand has surged in states in which abortion is still legal. Many providers there have had to significantly increase capacity. The Guardian reports that the states that still permit the procedure performed 116,790 more abortions than expected.According to the Wall Street Journal, the findings also underscore the challenges facing anti-abortion groups—as the ease of traveling to another state or obtaining abortion pills online seem to be largely undercutting laws intended to reduce abortions. States such as Illinois, Florida, North Carolina, California and New Mexico all saw the greatest increase in post-Roe abortions, WeCount found. Most of them border states with abortion bans, indicating that when abortion is outlawed, would-be patients try to head to the closest state that still permits the procedure.Still, new bans and restrictions have had far-reaching effects, reports the New York Times. Many women, especially in the South, have turned to methods outside the U.S. medical system or carried their pregnancies to term, researchers said. These women are likely to be poor, teenagers or immigrants, and to have young children or jobs that don't give them time off. And the fight today ... as Texas votes to ban women from using their highways to seek abortions, a handful of independent pharmacies across the country have quietly begun dispensing the abortion pill mifepristone under new rules created by the Biden administration earlier this year.
Meanwhile:
Britney Spears reveals in her new memoir how she and Justin Timberlake kept her medical abortion a secret, even from her family.
Fears of a Growing Conflict in the Middle East
Blinken tells U.N. That the U.S. does not want war with Iran but will defend itself
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Tuesday that Washington would react “swiftly and decisively” if Iran or its proxy forces attack U.S. personnel after Tehran raised the risk of a larger Middle East conflict in recent days by unleashing the regional militias it has spent years arming.NBC News confirmed that two dozen American military personnel were wounded last week in a series of drone attacks at American bases in Iraq and Syria. One of the drones was shot down. All of the wounded personnel were returned to duty, U.S. Central Command said, and there was no damage to any military installations. The Pentagon is now sending a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense to Saudi Arabia, and Patriot surface-to-air missile systems to Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The systems are expected to be in place later this week, the officials said.Reuters reports that the U.S. has also sent warships and fighter aircraft to the region to try to deter Iran and Iran-backed groups, including two aircraft carriers. Blinken called on all states to send a united message to any state or non-state actor that might be considering opening another front in the conflict against Israel or who may target Israel's partners, including the United States.
FYI:
CNN reports that Hamas operatives used phone lines installed in tunnels under Gaza to plan Israel attack over two years.
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House Republicans Relaunch Speaker Search. Again.
Mike Johnson becomes fourth GOP House speaker nominee in past two weeks
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (of Minnesota) won the GOP nomination for speaker of the House on Tuesday, but he dropped out just hours later when it became clear he could not secure the 217 votes needed to win the gavel in a House floor vote. Republicans then went back to find a fourth nominee, prolonging a remarkable three-week-long deadlock that has left Congress leaderless and paralyzed.Representative Mike Johnson (of Louisiana), emerged late Tuesday night as the latest contender for the post. He told reporters last night that there “were no votes against” him in the roll call vote that's meant to measure support for a possible House floor vote. So it's now his intention to go to the House floor today at noon to “make this official.”But it's not exactly clear whether Johnson can really do any better that those who have come before, as dozens of House Republicans indicated they were not inclined to back him—or any candidate running. Experts say that Emmer's abrupt exit yesterday signaled that Republicans were as far as ever from resolving their impasse. The chamber has been frozen for the better part of a month as Republicans feud over who should be in charge, despite wars raging overseas and a government shutdown approaching.
Main Character Music
Sony Just dropped some iconic game scores on Spotify
If you've grown a little tired of your standard tunes or podcasts during your daily commute or workouts, maybe you're craving some cinematic “cutscene” vibes. Well, here's a suggestion: Hit play on a video game score. As App Developer's Richard Harris says, “music has always been an essential part of the gaming experience; therefore, video game developers always place great importance on the soundtrack selection for each game.”And now you don't have to be playing a game to enjoy it. Sony just added a bunch of iconic game soundtracks to Spotify. According to Eurogamer, there's something for gamers of all eras—there are scores for '90s, '00s, and '10s PlayStation favorites like Kow Otani's Shadow of the Colossus score, Kohei Tanaka's whimsical Gravity Rush score, Michiko Naruke's tumbling score for Wild Arms, Yoshiyuki Sahashi and Tetsuo Ishikawa's score for PoPoLoCrois Monogatari, and a whole host more.Music truly shapes the way we play video games, as Kellen Beck wrote for Mashable, “Visuals and interactivity form the essential core of games, but the third component, sound, and specifically music, transforms games into something beyond an activity.” So let it do the same even here in the 3D world.
Heads Up:
Billboard will help you take advantage of various promotions that'll earn you a free Spotify Premium subscription.
In Other News
Scientists warn of unlivable heat and food shortages after analyzing 35 planetary vital signs.
The Off-Duty Alaska Airlines Pilot Who Allegedly Tried to Shut Down Engines May Have Been Taking Mushrooms
Have you heard about ...
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Morning Motto
Stay in your lane.
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