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On Thursday, 9:00 pm EDT, the first presidential debate of 2024 took place in Atlanta, GA. The candidates facing off in the CNN-held event were Joe Biden and Donald Trump, and the moderators were Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. Over the course of the debate, the two candidates fought over issues such as abortion and foreign policy. Today, we will explore how it went down.
First, the economy. When the moderators raised the point of voters feeling worse off under Biden’s presidency, he maintained that the economy in 2020 was “in freefall,” and that it was brought back by his administration. He also added that he did not think the economy was bad in the present day, and he was trying to bring prices down. Trump countered back by saying Biden had only given jobs to illegal immigrants and “bounceback jobs.” He had also said Biden did a bad job dealing with the inflation crisis.
Next, they talked about the abortion issue. When the moderators asked if Trump would block abortion medication, he said he wouldn’t. He also said overturning Roe vs. Wade was a good decision. Biden countered back, saying it was a bad decision and that the majority of “constitutional scholars” were against it.
Other topics included immigration and border security, veterans, foreign policy, domestic policy, problems faced in the candidates’ respective first terms, Social Security, child care, addiction, and voter concerns. To find out what each candidate said in detail, plus some interesting crosstalk, check out the transcript of the debate.
On another note, Hurricane Beryl has moved past the Windward Islands, doing some serious damage, and it has become a destructive Category 5 storm en route to Jamaica.
In case you missed it, Beryl began on June 28 as a tropical depression, and went through rapid intensification as it approaches the Windward Islands. For more information on that, click here.
The storm then made landfall on Grenada's Carriacou Island with winds of over 130 mph, heavy rain, and storm surge of 6-9 feet. Authorities immediately responded to issues on Grenada's main island, but they were not able to fully assess the damage on the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique due to the fact that communications were down and ferries could not sail over because of the intense waves and strong winds.
One person was killed in St. Vincent and the Grenadines as well, but police and first responders faced the same communication issues. However, they did manage to find out some unfortunate news: most of the country's islands are in bad shape, especially one in particular, Union Island-- around 90% of all buildings on the island are either severely damaged or destroyed. Beryl left destruction across St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, and Grenada, and it will take some time to recover. Pieces of fallen trees were scattered everywhere along with parts of roofs, walls, and personal items. Water from the extensive flooding is also all over the area, as storm surge of 6-9 feet and 3-6 inches of rain led to intense floods.
This is the first strong storm to hit the area since Hurricane Ivan in 2004, which came as a Category 4 with winds of 135 mph. Also, many of the thousands of fans who flew into Barbados to watch the T20 Cricket World Cup Final on Saturday are just getting the chance to leave, but many flights have still been canceled because the airport is still clearing debris and getting everything up and running again.
Soon after moving past Grenada, Beryl's winds strengthened to 150 mph, and just yesterday, it became a Category 5 hurricane after sustained wind speeds reached 160 mph. It is the earliest-ever Category 5 storm, smashing the previous record set by Hurricane Emily on July 16, 2005 by a staggering two weeks. Beryl is now moving into the Caribbean Sea as it heads west towards Jamaica, but it is expected to weaken to a Category 3 before hitting the island country as it faces high wind shear ahead. The storm will most likely weaken further to a Category 1 before slamming Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, after which it could fizzle out or restrengthen before delivering heavy rain and strong winds to eastern Mexico.
All of this rapid intensification is a sign of climate change, which continues to warm the oceans, leading to more, stronger hurricanes. The warmer waters get, the earlier strong storms will appear, and it is tough to fathom what this year's peak in September will have in store for the Atlantic if massive Category 5 storms like Beryl are already forming in July. If humans keep burning more fossil fuels and releasing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, then we can only expect for problems like these to become worse. Check out this article to find out what Denmark is doing about their methane problem.
This is a developing story, so make sure to check back in future articles to view the latest updates on damage and deaths.
Fact of the Day (Readers' Digest): Albert Einstein's eyes are in New York City, while his brain is in Philadelphia. After Thomas Harvey completed an autopsy on Einstein's dead body, he kept the brain for himself after receiving permission from Einstein's son, and gifted the eyes to Einstein's eye doctor, Henry Abrams. To this day, his eyeballs are still kept in Abrams' safety deposit box, while Einstein's brain was given back to his heirs, who donated it to Philadelphia's Mütter Museum. Unfortunately, Einstein's wishes were actually for them to cremate his body and scatter the ashes.
Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): I got my start by giving myself a start. (Madam C.J. Walker)
Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Abhor (verb) - Abhor is synonymous with loathe. Something or someone who is abhorred is regarded with extreme disgust or hatred.
In a Sentence: Mariah is an animal rights activist who abhors any and all mistreatment of animals.
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