Belarus Diverts Flight to Arrest Dissident on Board

 A Ryanair flight from Athens, Greece to Vilnius, Lithuania was diverted on May 23 after a Belarussian fighter jet intercepted the plane. Using the pretense of a bomb threat, the plane landed in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, and journalist Roman Protasevich and his girlfriend were arrested. Protasevich is a known critic of Alexander Lukashenko, the authoritarian leader of Belarus who has led the country since independence from the Soviet Union.

The other passengers of the flight were eventually allowed to depart on the plane, which reached Vilnius  over eight hours behind schedule.

The European Union has banned flights from flying through Belarussian airspace in response to the incident, which has been widely called a violation of international law.

Belarus, sometimes called the last dictatorship in Europe, is known for its restrictive laws and its strongman rule by Lukashenko. Lukashenko faced massive protests calling for his resignation after the presidential election in 2020, which was clouded by allegations of widespread fraud.

 

Rising Prices Raise Inflation Concerns

The Federal Reserve reported that the personal consumption expenditure index (PCE), which measures the prices of consumer goods minus food and energy, rose at a 3.1% annualized rate in April, an increase from 1.9% in March. This was higher than the expected 2.9% increase.

If one were to include food and energy prices, inflation rose to 3.6% in April, up from 2.4% in Match.

The Federal Reserve has tried to allay fears of rising inflation, blaming it on supply-chain bottlenecks and the large fiscal stimulus, which they believe are temporary factors. In addition, the inflation is starting from a relatively low base line, as price increases were low during the coronavirus lockdown and related economic downturn.

The Biden administration, which has proposed trillions in additional spending, has signaled they believe that they can continue the large amounts of fiscal stimulus without drastically raising inflation. Republicans have countered that the additional money pumped into the economy could lead to even higher prices.

The US is not alone in facing inflation risk. Germany reported a 2.4% inflation rate for May. Spain also experienced the same inflation rate for May.

Markets overall have responded negatively to the news of increased inflation. While US markets have stabilized in the past few days, increased volatility in equity markets worldwide have continued. Cryptocurrency markets have also seen sharp declines from their previous highs, though other factors besides inflation worries are likely at play.

 

Celebrating 60 Years of Human Spaceflight

 

April 12, 1961 - April 12, 2021

60 Years of Humans in Space

Yuri Gagarin, first person in space, (1934-1968)

Read more: Celebrating Sixty Years of Humans in Space - Scientific American

Biden’s Proposed Corporate Tax Rate Increase Meets Resistance

President Biden has already been lucky with the Senate parliamentarian’s ruling stating that the president’s tax and infrastructure plans can pass the Senate with a simple majority, rather than the 60 usually required to end debate, but he may need more luck to keep his own party united. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has already signaled his hesitance to increase the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, instead favoring an increase to 25%. The high price tag of his plan, currently over $2 trillion, could also dissuade Manchin and fellow moderate Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) from backing his plan.

 

Vaccine Rollout Continues as COVID Spread Slows in US

One third of all American adults have now received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and nearly 20% have already received two doses of the vaccine. and new infections have dropped dramatically from their high in January of this year. The vaccines have proven successful not only in reducing severe infection, but also in reducing transmissions. The success of the vaccines has led to an increased push to reopen more of the economy and remove limitations on gatherings and event attendance.

Others have criticized such reopening efforts, arguing that the success of the vaccination efforts could be undermined by removing restrictions too soon. While cases have dropped drastically from the high case numbers early this year, the number of new cases has plateaued and even increased in certain parts of the country. Michigan is one state that has been hit especially hard, and one of its cities, Jackson, has had a higher raw daily new case number than New York City. For comparison, Jackson has around 33,000 people, while New York has over 8 million people.