(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Overnight News Digest September 26, 2024 [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-09-26 Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame, jck, and JeremyBloom. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man (RIP), wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw. OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos since 2007, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time. Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments. BBC Japan sails warship in Taiwan Strait for first time A Japanese warship has sailed through the Taiwan Strait between Taiwan and China for the first time, prompting Beijing to lodge complaints with Tokyo. The JS Sazanami, a naval destroyer, travelled south through the strait on Wednesday, accompanied by ships from Australia and New Zealand. It was on its way to military exercises in the South China Sea, Japanese media reported government ministers saying. The passage is a significant move by Japan, which is thought to have avoided sailing its ships through the strait in order not to upset China, which claims self-governed Taiwan and the strait. Japan's government has declined to comment on the ship, citing military operation discretion. But China on Thursday confirmed its military had responded to "the activities of a Japanese Self-Defence Force ship entering the Taiwan Strait" NPR Over 90,000 people in Lebanon had to flee Israel's bombardments this week BEIRUT — Around the concrete courtyard of Ahliah School in the center of Lebanon’s capital, families perch on plastic chairs, sharing news of what houses they’ve heard have been destroyed in their villages near the southern border with Israel. Many arrived Tuesday, fleeing south Lebanon amid what Lebanese authorities have called the largest displacement of its citizens in decades. More than 90,000 people fled their homes in intense Israeli attacks that killed almost 600 people in just two days this week, according to the United Nations' humanitarian coordination office. Many Lebanese fleeing the south took refuge with relatives in Beirut and other places, or searched for apartments to rent. But according to the U.N., about 40,000 of them sought shelter in more than 200 schools. NPR A zoo in Finland is returning pandas to China because they're too expensive to keep HELSINKI — A zoo in Finland has agreed with Chinese authorities to return two loaned giant pandas to China more than eight years ahead of schedule because they have become too expensive for the facility to maintain amid declining visitors. The private Ähtäri Zoo in central Finland some 330 kilometers (205 miles) north of Helsinki said Wednesday on its Facebook page that the female panda Lumi, Finnish for "snow," and the male panda Pyry, meaning "snowfall," will return "prematurely" to China later this year. The panda pair was China's gift to mark the Nordic nation's 100 years of independence in 2017, and they were supposed to be on loan until 2033. But since then the zoo has experienced a number of challenges, including a decline in visitors due to the 2020 coronavirus pandemic and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as well as an increase in inflation and interest rates, the facility said in a statement. AP Diners are skipping restaurants and making more meals at home as inflation trend inverts That’s the message that inflation-squeezed consumer s have been sending to fast-food companies and other restaurants. Meanwhile food producers are benefitting from more palatable prices in grocery store aisles. Inflation has been easing broadly for more than a year now, and it’s been cooling faster for grocery items since the middle of the year. The current trend marks a reversal from previous years when grocery inflation outpaced restaurants as food producers raised prices, often fattening their profit margins. The shift has been weighing on McDonald’s, Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants, and similar chains. Consumers have been focusing more on groceries and eating at home, and that’s driving sales volumes for companies like General Mills, which makes Cheerios cereal, Progresso soups and Haagen-Dazs ice cream. “We did anticipate that might be the case as we see consumers taking value,” said General Mills CEO Jeffrey L. Harmening in a call with analysts. “Consumers are still economically stressed, so that played out the way we thought. The Guardian ‘We always felt safer here’: Tel Aviv unmoved by Hezbollah missile attack Air raid sirens blared in Tel Aviv on Wednesday morning as, for the first time, Hezbollah fired a surface-to-surface missile at the coastal city. A few minutes after the incident, beachgoers flooded the bustling promenade, playing beach volley, cycling and kite surfing. “Was there an attack this morning?” asked Eyal Kadosh, 31, confused, while resting on a bench with a friend after their daily workout. “Well, I’m here, what should happen will happen anyway.” Despite the looming prospect of an all-out conflict with Hezbollah, as an intense bombing campaign inside Lebanon stretched into a fourth day, the lives of Tel Avivians seem unaffected, consumed by a sense of near invulnerability. The unprecedented attack did not appear to burst what is sometimes seen as the city’s bubble while conflict rages elsewhere. “I believe in our army, and as long as they tell me I can go to the beach, I will go to the beach.” The Guardian Southern Water considers shipping supplies from Norwegian fjords to UK Southern Water, one of Britain’s biggest water companies, is drawing up contingency plans to tanker water from Norway to deal with future supply shortages and drought. Southern, which has 2.7 million customers for drinking water supply in the south-east of England, could import water from Norwegian fjords to provide up to 45m litres a day, and would pay for it from customers’ bills. Southern is in discussions with the UK private company Extreme Drought Resilience Service (EDRS) to ship the water from Norway when needed. ESRD supplies water in Tetra Pak-style cartons, shipping containers or megalitres delivered by sea tanker, according to Adrian Court, its executive director. The Environment Agency is understood to be in contact with Norwegian regulators about the plan, which the agency believes reflects the company’s delayed delivery of crucial supply schemes. We in California were planning this years ago:: Canadian water for California’s drought? The most grandiose proposals for moving water from Canada to the U.S. were dreamed up in the 1960s, during the heady days of big dams, when American water use was increasing exponentially. According to Ralph Pentland, the former director of water planning and management for the Canadian government, the discussion has cropped up about as frequently as the droughts that hit the Western U.S. every five to 10 years. Reuters Newsmax settles Smartmatic defamation suit over 2020 false election claims WILMINGTON, Delaware, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Newsmax Media reached a confidential settlement of a lawsuit by Smartmatic, the voting machine maker that had alleged it was defamed by the news outlet's false claims that its machines were rigged to help steal the 2020 U.S. presidential election from Donald Trump, the companies said on Thursday. "Newsmax is pleased to announce it has resolved the litigation brought by Smartmatic through a confidential settlement," the company said in a statement. Smartmatic also said in a statement it was pleased to have reached a deal. "Lying to the American people has consequences. Smartmatic will not stop until the perpetrators are held accountable." Smartmatic sued Newsmax in 2021, alleging it broadcast damaging misinformation falsely claiming the company switched votes in the 2020 election, that its machines were hacked and that it was funded by corrupt dictators. Washington Post A cheap, low-tech solution for storing carbon may be sitting in the dirt [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/9/26/2273167/-Overnight-News-Digest-September-26-2024?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=latest_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/