1 North Korea Reportedly Fires Multiple Short-Range Missiles
Sure, they haven’t been happening for some time, but it turns out that North Korea fired off multiple short-range missiles last weekend...after denouncing the U.S. for going through with joint military exercises in South Korea. While many see the move as the Hermit Kingdom’s first challenge to the Biden administration, President Biden sees things differently. “According to the Defense Department, it's business as usual,” he told reporters last night. “There's no new wrinkle in what they did.” Maybe so, but the timing is interesting as Kim Jong Un's sister had criticized the U.S. last week, saying it should refrain from causing a stink if it wants to “sleep in peace for the next four years.” U.S. intelligence officials had warned North Korea appeared to be preparing for more missile tests based on an increase in activity at its nuclear research center.
2 Bullying Over Religion May Have Led Alleged Shooter To Become Anti-Social
The 21-year-old Muslim man who allegedly shot and killed ten people at a Boulder, Colorado grocery store is being characterized as “paranoid.” The man’s older brother tells CNN that shooter may have been suffering from mental illness, referring to bullying that allegedly happened in high school. Ali Alissa says his brother was hassled over being Muslim and that may have led to his becoming "anti-social." He said his brother had become increasingly "paranoid" around 2014, believing he was being followed and chased. Meanwhile, President Biden is calling incident “devastating. “ Speaking at the White House, Biden noted he has received extensive briefings on the tragedy. Biden praised the heroism of Officer Eric Talley, who was killed. He also called for legislative action to address gun violence, saying it should not be a partisan issue. Biden argued it will save lives.
3 States Opening Up Vaccine Eligibility
More states are expanding eligibility for the coronavirus vaccine. Over the next few weeks, more than a dozen states are making the vaccine available to people 16-years-old and up. This week, Utah, Georgia and Arizona are opening up eligibility and next week, Oklahoma, Texas, Ohio and North Dakota will follow suit. Three states already allow everyone 16 and up to get the shot. This, as we’re finding out that AstraZeneca may have given incomplete data about its COVID-19 vaccine from a large U.S. trial, the latest setback for the company. What happened? The vaccine was reportedly 79% effective against COVID-19 and 100% effective against severe illness. But the Data Safety Monitoring Board, an independent agency that oversaw the trial, now says AstraZeneca may have included outdated info which provided an incomplete view of how effective the vaccine is.