PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.
Google Adds Ways to Keep Personal Info Private in Searches (Maria)
The author writes, “Google has expanded options for keeping personal information private from online searches. The company said [last] week that it will let people request that more types of content — such as personal contact information like phone numbers, email and physical addresses — be removed from search results. The new policy also allows the removal of other information that may pose a risk for identity theft, such as confidential log-in credentials. The company said in a statement that open access to information is vital, ‘but so is empowering people with the tools they need to protect themselves.’”
Bay Area Supervisors Are Asking for up to $3 Million in Funding for Out-Of-State Abortion Seekers (Reader Steve)
From the San Francisco Chronicle: “Two Santa Clara County supervisors are seeking up to $3 million in county funding for Planned Parenthood to boost services for women from states where abortion access is curtailed. ‘We know that abortion rights are more fragile than they have been in decades in this country,’ Supervisor Cindy Chavez, who co-authored a proposal to the Board of Supervisors, said at a briefing on Monday. ‘In states other than California, lawmakers are increasingly passing strict bans on abortion as the Supreme Court reconsiders the scope and existence of this constitutional right.’”
More Money for Ukraine? How About Having the Pentagon Cover It? (DonkeyHotey)
From The American Prospect: “The White House has asked for another round of funding for Ukraine as it defends itself against the Russian invasion. This time, President Biden wants $33 billion, on top of a $13.6 billion initial request that was approved last month. This also does not include a bill that passed Congress yesterday to reconstitute the WWII-era Lend-Lease program to lend Ukraine equipment for the war effort. There’s no price tag on the potential cost of that to the U.S.”
The War in Ukraine Will Determine How China Sees the World (Sean)
The author writes, “It is too soon to know if a winner will emerge from the fighting. But, on the other side of the planet, the world’s emerging superpower is weighing its options. Some argue that China will build on a pre-war friendship with Russia that knows ‘no limits’, to create an axis of autocracy. Others counter that America can shame China into breaking with Russia, isolating Vladimir Putin, its president. Our reporting suggests that neither scenario is likely. The deepening of ties with Russia will be guided by cautious self-interest, as China exploits the war in Ukraine to hasten what it sees as America’s inevitable decline. The focus at all times is its own dream of establishing an alternative to the Western, liberal world order.”
Trump’s Criminal Justice Reform Bill Becomes Persona Non Grata Among GOPers (Reader Jim)
The author writes, “Three-and-a-half years later, few Republicans — Trump included — seem not at all interested in talking about it. With spikes in crime registering as a top concern for voters, Republicans have increasingly reverted back to that 1980s mindset. Talk of additional legislation has taken a back seat to calls for enhanced policing and accusations that Democratic-led cities are veering toward lawlessness. Trump himself rarely, if ever, mentions criminal justice reform when he issues statements or gives political speeches, having grown convinced the First Step Act never produced the spike in support from Black voters that he expected.”
New Zealand Rocket Launched to Send 34 Satellites Into Orbit (Carina)
The author writes, “A California-based company got closer to pulling off the feat of catching a falling rocket on Tuesday as it seeks to make them reusable for satellite launches. But after briefly catching a spent rocket, a helicopter crew was quickly forced to let it go again for safety reasons, and it fell into the Pacific Ocean where it was collected by a waiting boat. Rocket Lab regularly launches 18-meter (59-foot) rockets from the remote Mahia Peninsula in New Zealand to deliver satellites into space.”
