Random News: February 24, 2023

DISCLAIMER: Zak's Random News is very random and doesn't cover many things, and not everything may be accurate, because I'm just some guy. Go find a real news source.

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Good morning. It’s February 24, 2023, and if you can believe it, it’s a Friday once again! Here’s whatever I stumbled across while stumbling…

• One year ago today, Russia invaded its neighboring country Ukraine.
• The military experts and geopolitical talking heads all claimed it would be pointless for Ukraine to fight back against their big bully to the north. They estimated the unprovoked war would last a few days and Russia would completely annex this sovereign nation through hostile force.
• 365 days later, against all odds, Ukraine stands, defiant and free.
• Today, the U.S. announced a new round of aid to Ukraine and sanctions against Russian entities. 
• The announcement comes on the heels of President Joe Biden's trip to Poland and surprise Ukraine visit, where he walked the streets of Kyiv with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
• In coordination with G7 partners and allies, the U.S. will implement sanctions against key revenue-generating sectors, including more than 200 people and entities. That includes both Russian and third-country actors across the globe who are helping Russia evade sanctions.
• The Pentagon also announced an additional security assistance package for Ukraine that includes several new unmanned aerial systems, counter-unmanned aerial systems to strengthen Ukraine's defenses and electronic warfare detection equipment. 
• Fuck you, Putin. You can suck my ethnically Ukrainian Jewish dick. How ya like that?
• In other news, that train derailment in East Palestine, OH killed more than 43,000 fish and animals. Honestly, I hate people so much from time to time.
• Also, if it’s killing animals, well… we’re animals too.
• And now, The Weather: “Canals of Our City” by koleżanka
• Not to swell on this weather stuff, but today we are supposed to get blizzard conditions in higher elevations here in Los Angeles County.
• It hailed here at the beach yesterday. That was… weird, and loud. It will not snow here.
• "I have to be totally honest with you guys," one baffled California meteorologist told viewers this week. "I've actually never seen a blizzard warning."
• Me neither, baffled meteorologist. The snow elevation may drop as low as 1,500ft — about as high as the Hollywood sign.
• We have a Democratic challenger to Biden in 2024. It’s Marianne Williamson. Yawn!
• From the Sports Desk… here are the NBA teams with the 10 best W-L records right now: Boston Celtics (43-17), Milwaukee Bucks (41-17), Denver Nuggets (42-18), Philadelphia 76ers (39-19), Cleveland Cavaliers (38-24), Memphis Grizzlies (35-23), Brooklyn Nets (34-24), Sacramento Kings (33-25), New York Knicks (33-27), and Miami Heat (32-27).
• Today in history… ‘Rinaldo’ by George Frideric Handel, the first Italian opera written for the London stage, is premiered (1711). In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court of the United States establishes the principle of judicial review (1803). Andrew Johnson becomes the first President of the United States to be impeached by the United States House of Representatives (1868). The stage premiere of ‘Peer Gynt’, a play by Henrik Ibsen with incidental music by Edvard Grieg, takes place in Oslo, Norway (1876). Nancy Astor becomes the first woman to speak in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom following her election as a Member of Parliament three months earlier (1920). A false alarm led to an anti-aircraft barrage that lasted into the early hours of February 25 in The Battle of Los Angeles (1942). South Vietnamese forces led by Ngo Quang Truong recapture the citadel of Hué (1968). Fidel Castro retires as the President of Cuba and the Council of Ministers after 32 years (2008). Days after recognising Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states, Russian president Vladimir Putin orders a full scale invasion of Ukraine (2022).
• February 24 is the birthday of Japan emperor Toba (1103), anthropologist/author Wilhelm Grimm (1786), activist Lydia Becker (1827), painter Winslow Homer (1836), suffragist Zara DuPont (1869), MLB player Honus Wagner (1874), admiral Chester W. Nimitz (1885), actor Abe Vigoda (1921), actor Dominic Chianese (1931), businessman Phil Knight (1938), keyboardist Nicky Hopkins (1944), singer/guitarist George Thorogood (1950), businessman Steve Jobs (1955), actor Billy Zane (1966), comedian Mitch Hedberg (1968), boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. (1977), and rapper Earl Sweatshirt (1994).

I’m continuing to recover from COVID. In very good news, my taste/smell abilities are back enough for me to have my Friday sushi today, which I had to skip last week for obvious reasons. Actually, compared to a week ago, things are going better in every conceivable way, so I’m going to be grateful. Enjoy your day.