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The World May Get A New Country

The World May Get A New Country

Your unbiased daily news brief

James Kratch
September 24, 2024

Good Tuesday morning. Students in the Phillippines have started making and wearing zany hats to relieve stress and prevent cheating while taking tests. Have a great day!

In Today’s Brief

Florida: Storm coming
Japan: Russia brouhaha
Nebraska: GOP foiled
Cars: Chinese import ban
Tony Awards: Radio City return

... and more

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Top Tips

1) Expansion team

Earth may soon have a new country.

The news: Albania announced plans to create a sovereign microstate for the Bektashi Muslims, an Islamic Sufi order based in the capital city of Tirana. The Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order would be the 196th country in the world and its smallest state. It would be about a quarter of the size of the Vatican City.
The reasons: Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said the new state would promote peaceful coexistence and tolerance. There would be no dress or lifestyle laws and alcohol would be permitted, reflecting the Bektashi's tolerant approach. The new state would have its own administration, borders and passports.
Big picture: Albania is a NATO member and is considered one of the more diverse and tolerant members of Eastern Europe and the Balkan region. Mother Teresa was born there and the country sheltered Jewish refugees during the Holocaust and more recently Afghans after the Taliban returned to power. Receiving recognition from the United Nations and other allies would be critical to the viability of the microstate.

2) Tick dock

It is getting late early out there.

The news: There is less than week to go until roughly 45K dockworkers at several dozen seaports on the East and Gulf Coasts are expected to go on strike. The International Longshoremen's Association's existing contract expires on Sept. 30 at midnight; a work stoppage would begin Oct. 1.
The impact: A strike would immediately shut down almost half of U.S. imports delivered by sea. While industries have been rushing shipments in to prepare for a work stoppage, experts have projected even a brief strike will significantly impact supply chains.
Big picture: The Department of Labor has reportedly engaged the United States Maritime Alliance. President Joe Biden previously indicated he would not block a strike, despite pleas from importers. But the fact his administration is intervening suggests the White House will work to secure a last-minute deal.

3) Chilling words

Federal prosecutors said an alleged would-be assassin laid out his plan to kill former President Donald Trump.

The news: Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, wrote a letter declaring his intent to assassinate Trump months before he was spotted with a high-powered rifle near the former president as he played golf at one of his Florida properties. The note was key to the Department of Justice's successful argument to detain Routh ahead of trial, as was evidence suggesting he was stalking Trump.
Next steps: DOJ plans to try to charge Routh, who was stopped by the Secret Service, with the attempted assassination of a political figure. He already faces firearms charges. The letter could be key as Routh allegedly spent hours in the woods near West Palm Beach's Trump International Golf Club while Trump's presence was never publicly reported prior to the incident.
Coming up: Trump will reportedly hold an Oct. 5 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, at the site of the first assassination attempt against him. He was shot in the ear during that July 13 event when alleged shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks killed one attendee and wounded two others before being neutralized. The setup for the October rally is expected to be similar to the one in July.

Quick Tips

U.S. News

Florida may be hit by a major hurricane later this week. A potential tropical cyclone approaching the Gulf of Mexico is expected to intensify into a Category 3 storm before making landfall on Thursday (More)
A $100K reward has been offered for the suspects at-large in an Alabama mass shooting. Four people were killed and 17 injured after shooters opened fire in downtown Birmingham last Saturday night; police believe it may have been a murder-for-hire incident (More)
Overall violent crime dropped 3% YoY in 2023, according to the FBI. Murders and non-negligent manslaughter dropped over 12%; officials said the trends reflect a continued downturn after a pandemic-era spike (More)

World News

A Japanese military jet fired flares after a Russian military jet violated the country's air space three times. The incursion comes weeks after a Chinese military jet violated Japanese airspace; an "extremely stern protest" was filed to the Kremlin (More)
Several Tanzanian opposition leaders were arrested by police. The apprehensions were part of a crackdown to stifle anti-government protests against disappearances and killings carried out by security forces (More)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he wants all nations to adhere to the now-dashed 2015 nuclear accord before discussing a new agreement. He also claimed his country does not seek war with Israel, even though its proxy forces continue to attack the Israelis (More)

Campaign News

The Republican Party-led effort to change Nebraska's Electoral College rules has failed again. State Sen. Mike McDonnell, a member of the GOP, will block the special legislative session necessary to award all five of the state's electoral votes to the candidate that wins its popular vote, a change that would benefit former President Trump (More)
Trump reportedly has no plans to make a campaign visit to Springfield, Ohio, despite public claims. The city has been thrown into turmoil after the former president amplified viral and widely-rebuked claims about Haitian migrants in the area; Gov. Mike DeWine has warned against a visit and criticized Trump's rhetoric (More)
Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer will play Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz during Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance's vice presidential debate preparation. The GOP House veteran previously served in Congress with Walz and they are of similar age and share coaching backgrounds (More)

Business & Markets

Major indexes closed higher yesterday. The Dow Jones and S&P 500 closed at record highs (Dow +0.15%, Nasdaq+0.14%, S&P 500 +0.28%).
Ford and General Motors would no longer be able to import vehicles from China under a proposed rule prohibiting hardware and software. President Joe Biden has proposed banning Chinese cars in the U.S. entirely (More | More)
An Indian hospitality techology firm bought Motel 6 for $525M. Oravel Stays, the budget lodging chain's new owner, already operates over 157K hotels in 35 countries, but only has about 320 in the U.S. prior to this transacation (More)

Entertainment & Sports

The Tony Awards will return to Radio City Music Hall in 2025. The award show, which honors Broadway , was controversially held at New York's Lincoln Center this past year; a June 8 date has been set for the event (More)
A group helmed by billionaire Dan Friedkin has agreed to buy Everton in a deal valued at around $670M. The takeover of the Premier League soccer club should be finalized next year; the businessman also owns AS Roma in Italy's Serie A soccer league (More)
The NBA reportedly placed "poison pills" in its media rights contract with Amazon Prime to keep Warner Bros. Discovery from matching. The media company is suing the league to maintain broadcast rights; one of the deal's stipulations calls for the media partner to also show NFL games (More)

Quick Hitters

Fun Stuff: It's hard to miss a loud Hawaiian shirt. Especially when it becomes part of a hilarious school yearbook prank.
New Idea: The future of electric vehicles hinges, in large part, on the batteries that power them. A team of researchers believe they have cracked the code to go farther on single charges and maintain power.
Go Deep: Cryptocurrency has become a key issue in this year's presidential race. Here is a close look on how the industry may be impacted based on who resides in the White House.
True Crime: Two students stole over 100 pieces from a Mexican museum in 1985. Questions about the so-called "robbery of the century" still remain all these years later.
Life Hack: Ninety-seven percent of U.S. adults report owning a cell phone. Here are some tips on maintaining healthy habits with the devices.

Watch This

You never know what may happen when you attend a rodeo in ... checks notes ... Massachusetts.