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US Air Force General Who Refused Covid Vaccination Reinstated
A U.S. Air Force general, who was forced to retire early in 2022 after she refused to take the military’s then-mandatory Covid-19 vaccine under the Biden administration, has been re-instated to service.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth welcomed Air Force Brig. Gen. Melissa S. Cunningham back into the Air Force during a swearing-in ceremony at the Pentagon last week.
“What a wonderful thing it is to be standing here right now with you, with the stance that you’ve taken,” Hegseth told Cunningham at the ceremony’s outset.
“Not only did you take a private stand in a very principled way as a warrior of conscience, but you led the way for others … and you stood courageously beside [your principles] on your faith, … which truly speaks to your character and [is] exactly, precisely, the kind of person we want to be bringing back,” he added.
Drug-Resistant Germs Are ‘Growing Threat’ to US, Causing More Than 50,000 Deaths Annually: CDC
Antibiotics have long been used to treat common bacterial infections from strep throat to pneumonia. But some germs develop the ability to survive the medications designed to kill them, and they’re an increasing risk to public health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned.
In a report published Tuesday, the federal health agency said drug-resistant germs are a “growing threat to Americans.” Drug-resistant germs, including bacteria and fungi, cause an estimated 9.7 million infections and 50,800 deaths each year in the U.S., the CDC’s report said.
“Antimicrobial resistance threatens modern medicine and puts millions of Americans at risk every year,” Dr. Erica Schwartz, director of the CDC, said in a press release on Tuesday.
Trump Loosens Rules for Oil Firms to Cut Methane, a Potent Warming Gas
The Trump administration is moving to weaken federal rules designed to force oil and gas companies to cut their emissions of methane, a gas considered a “super pollutant” because it traps so much heat in the atmosphere. President Trump announced the plan at a campaign rally on Tuesday evening in Lubbock, Tex., for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton. Mr. Trump said the Biden-era rules were “expensive and unnecessary.”
The move marks one of the most significant steps by the Trump administration to scale back federal policies designed to tackle climate change.
Methane, the main component of natural gas, traps about 80 times more heat in the atmosphere in the short term than carbon dioxide does. It is responsible for nearly one-third of the rise in globalai temperatures since the start of the Industrial Revolution, and experts have said that reducing methane leaks is one of the fastest ways to slow global warming.
EPA Response to 2023 Ohio Train Derailment Will Be Investigated by Agency Watchdog
The Environmental Protection Agency’s response to the disastrous 2023 East Palestine train derailment will be investigated after local residents of the small town on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border and Vice President JD Vance pressed for the review.
The Inspector General of the EPA announced the investigation Tuesday to assess the agency’s response to the worst rail disaster in more than a decade and the subsequent health and environmental concerns that have developed despite the EPA’s assurances to the public that no toxic levels of chemicals lingered in the community weeks and months later.
An assortment of chemicals spilled and caught fire after the failed bearing sent the Norfolk Southern train careening off the tracks late one Friday night in February 2023. Residents evacuated as officials decided three days later to blow open five rail cars and burn the vinyl chloride inside.
Gov. Hochul Signs Bill to Shield Children From Unsafe AI Chatbots, Baby Monitors
New York is tightening the screws on two fast-growing technologies, Gov. Hochul is signing new laws aimed at blocking hackers from internet-connected baby monitors and banning dangerous AI chatbot features for minors.
Gov. Hochul signed two bills designed to protect minors from unsafe AI chatbot features and to require stronger security and clearer warnings on baby monitors sold in the state. The measures build on Hochul’s push to make New York a national leader in online child safety and artificial intelligence guardrails.
One of the new laws, S.9508/A.5175A, requires internet-connected baby monitors sold in New York to include security features meant to block strangers from watching or listening in, along with a clear warning label.
