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Google Says It Will No Longer Back Up the Internet (Maria)
The author writes, “Google will no longer be keeping a backup of the entire Internet. Google Search’s cached links have long been an alternative way to load a website that was down or had changed, but now the company is killing them off. Google search liaison Danny Sullivan confirmed the feature removal in an X post, saying the feature ‘was meant for helping people access pages when way back, you often couldn’t depend on a page loading. These days, things have greatly improved. So, it was decided to retire it.’”
Republican Who Lost Election Paid for Drive-By Shootings on Democrats’ Homes: Gunman (DonkeyHotey)
The author writes, “According to the Department of Justice, 42-year-old Demetrio Trujillo recently pleaded guilty to five different federal charges including conspiracy, election interference and illegal use of a firearm in the wake of the 2022 election for New Mexico’s 14th House District. Trujillo stated that failed Republican state legislative candidate Solomon Peña commissioned him to carry out multiple drive-by shootings at the homes of several Democrats in Albuquerque as a means of intimidating them in the aftermath of the election, which Peña claimed was ‘rigged’ against him despite losing by roughly 50 points.”
Ex-IRS Contractor Gets Five Years in Prison for Leak of Tax Return Information of Trump, Rich People (Gerry)
The author writes, “A former contractor for the Internal Revenue Service who pleaded guilty to leaking tax information to news outlets about former President Donald Trump and thousands of the country’s wealthiest people was sentenced to five years in prison [last week]. Charles Edward Littlejohn, 38, of Washington, D.C., gave data to The New York Times and ProPublica between 2018 and 2020 in leaks that appeared to be ‘unparalleled in the IRS’s history,’ prosecutors said.”
‘My Heart Sank’: In Maine, a Challenge to a Book, and to a Town’s Self-Image (Al)
From The New York Times: “Wealthy, liberal-leaning Blue Hill prided itself on staying above the fray — until the library stocked a book that drew anger from the left.”
Ex-Boeing Employees: Don’t Fly on the Max (Reader Jim)
The author writes, “As Max 9 planes are returning to the skies after being grounded [last] month when a door panel flew off midair, former Boeing employees are advising that if it’s a Max, you better not go. ‘I would absolutely not fly a Max airplane,’ Ed Pierson, a former Boeing senior manager and executive director of the Foundation for Aviation Safety, tells the Los Angeles Times.”
A Huge Battery Has Replaced Hawaii’s Last Coal Plant (Laura)
From Grist: “Plus Power’s Kapolei battery is officially online. The pioneering project is a leading example of how to shift crucial grid functions from fossil-fueled plants to clean energy.”
Ancient Cities Discovered in the Amazon Are the Largest Yet Found (Dana)
From New Scientist: “Aerial surveys have revealed the largest pre-colonial cities in the Amazon yet discovered, linked by an extensive network of roads. What’s more, at between 3000 and 1500 years old, these cities are also older than other pre-Columbian ones discovered in the Amazon. Why the people who built them disappeared isn’t clear.”
