5 things to know for March 28: Shooting, Chemical spill, Israel, Student loans, Disney
By Alexandra Meeks, CNN
After traumatic events like school shootings, parents often struggle with how to talk to their children about the upsetting headlines. This is how you can open a healthy conversation about gun violence with kids while calming their anxiety, a grief specialist explains.
Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.
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1. Nashville shooting
Police in Nashville are working to uncover a motive in the mass shooting that killed six people at a Christian elementary school on Monday. The shooter, identified as a 28-year-old former student, was shot and killed by police during the attack, leaving behind “drawn out” maps of the campus detailing “how this was all going to take place,” police said. Three 9-year-old children and three adults were killed in the tragedy. Two of the victims were school employees. One was the head of the school and the other a custodian, according to the school. Monday’s horror was among at least 130 mass shootings so far this year — more than this point in any previous year since at least 2013, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive.
2. Chemical spill
Philadelphia officials are set to provide an update on the city’s water safety this morning following a recent chemical spill in the Delaware River that left many residents concerned about possible contamination. City officials have said the water supply is safe to drink and use until at least 3:30 p.m. local time today, prompting many people to snag bottled water from quickly-emptying grocery store shelves. About 40 water quality tests conducted as of Monday afternoon showed no indication of contamination, a city official said. Many residents, however, have expressed frustration and confusion over officials’ repeated statements that the city’s water is safe, even after they initially asked residents to drink bottled water as a precaution.
3. Israel
Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Monday that he will delay plans to overhaul the country’s judiciary amid widespread strikes and protests throughout the country. Netanyahu said he would delay votes on the remaining legislation until after the Knesset’s Passover recess in April “to give time for a real chance for a real debate.” But it remains unclear if that will be enough to calm the protests. Meanwhile, the Biden administration has steadily scaled up its rhetoric on the situation, saying recently it was watching with “concern.” The statement, which also repeatedly urged “compromise” in the judicial reform, also marked a rare moment of the US weighing in on the domestic affairs of another country — let alone those of a close ally like Israel.
4. Student loans
President Joe Biden’s student loan debt relief program faces a new threat from Senate Republicans after nearly 40 senators introduced a resolution Monday to overturn the plan. Additionally, the measure aims to end the pandemic-related pause on federal student loan payments, which has been in place since March 2020. If the resolution succeeds in both the Senate and House, Biden would likely step in and utilize his presidential veto power. But votes would force members of his own party, who have not all been in support of the student loan forgiveness program, to take a public stance. In the meantime, the program remains blocked as student loan borrowers wait in limbo until the Supreme Court issues its ruling in late June or early July.
5. Disney
Disney is making major cuts to its workforce with layoffs set to impact about 7,000 jobs beginning this week, CEO Bob Iger said Monday. In a memo to staff obtained by CNN, Iger said the layoffs will come in waves stretching into the summer. The cuts to Disney’s global workforce are part of a multibillion-dollar cost-cutting initiative aimed at streamlining the company’s operations. A cut of 7,000 jobs represents about 3% of its global workforce of about 220,000 employees. “The difficult reality of many colleagues and friends leaving Disney is not something we take lightly,” Iger said in the memo. The sweeping job cuts were announced by Iger last month after the company released better-than-expected financial results for the fourth quarter of 2022.
BREAKFAST BROWSE
Dog catches home run ball during spring training game
Move aside, humans. A dog managed to get its teeth on a home run ball at a spring training game! Watch the video here.
NFL star Lamar Jackson requests trade from Baltimore Ravens
It appears that Jackson, an MVP winner in 2019, is open to leaving his longtime home with the Ravens.
Prince Harry and Elton John are going to court against the Daily Mail
A high-profile case against a media outlet is getting underway in the UK. Here’s what we know.
Delaware man wins $5 million lottery while on vacation in Florida
A Delaware man might have visited Florida just for the sun, but he came home $5 million richer.
Dusty old painting turns out to be Brueghel ‘masterpiece’
This 17th-century painting was hiding in a family home for years. It’s expected to fetch up to 800,000 euros ($865,000!) at a Paris auction today.
TODAY’S NUMBER
$240,000
That’s the total amount Chipotle has agreed to pay some of its former employees after closing one of its restaurants that tried to unionize. The settlement payouts will range up to $21,000 to each of the affected employees who worked at a former Chipotle location in Augusta, Maine. The company previously said the closure was due to difficulty finding staff, but the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint last year alleging that the move was an effort to defeat the union organizing.
TODAY’S QUOTE
“No other terrorist has reached such depths in his cynicism, in which Russia constantly seeks and finds a new bottom.”
— Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, accusing Russia of radiation blackmail over its control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Zelensky’s accusations came Monday after he visited the region of Zaporizhzhia, which remains partially occupied by Russia. Officials have repeatedly warned that fighting so close to the facility could cause a nuclear accident.
TODAY’S WEATHER
Check your local forecast here>>>
AND FINALLY
Living on the most crowded island on Earth
This island located a few hours off the coast of Colombia is four times as dense as the borough of Manhattan. (Click here to view)
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