
Affirmative action: Supreme Court justices clash over 'colourblind' America
Liberals deliver scathing dissents after the conservative majority ends race-based college admissions.
2023-06-30 03:59

Google to scrap local news links in Canada over Online News Act
The move is a protest against a Canadian bill that will make tech giants pay for news content.
2023-06-30 03:42

Why didn't the Titanic implode when it sank?
After it was discovered that the OceanGate submersible imploded during its expedition to the Titanic, some have wondered why the Titanic did not reach the same fate when it sank. Last Thursday (June 22), the U.S. Coast Guard had announced that the OceanGate submersible which contained five people, had suffered a "catastrophic implosion" that killed all onboard. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Since learning about the news, some have asked why the sub imploded but the Titanic didn't as it sank. One user took to Twitter to ask the question that was on many minds: Many quickly replied to help explain why the Titanic didn't implode, the answer being that because the Titanic wasn't pressurised, the lack of pressure differential means that the sinking would not result in an implosion. Writing for Northeastern Global News, Arun Bansil, professor of physics, explained that "when a submersible is deep in the ocean it experiences the force on its surface due to water pressure. When this force becomes large than the hull can withstand, the vessel implodes violently." Many also took the opportunity to inform that some parts of the Titanic actually did implode. The stern (the rear) of the ship imploded roughly 60 metres (200 feet) below the surface of the water. Lots of air was trapped in the back of the ship, so when the external pressure got high enough, it imploded. Whereas the air had been released from the front of the ship, which caused the pressure to be equal on the outside and inside, therefore no implosion occurred. As one user explained: Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-06-30 03:00

Biden Blocks Activist Bid to Slash Oil Output From Federal Lands
The Biden administration has formally rebuffed a bid by environmental activists to phase down oil and gas production
2023-06-30 02:50

Biden condemns Supreme Court striking down affirmative action: ‘This is not a normal court’
President Joe Biden on Thursday said he “strongly, strongly disagree[d” with the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the use of affirmative action programmes in college admissions decisions and condemned the six-justice majority that did so as “not a normal court”. Mr Biden’s harsh words for the highest court in the land came in response to a reporter’s query on whether the court was acting as a “rogue court,” just after he addressed the landmark decision in brief remarks before departing the White House for New York. Speaking from the Roosevelt Room in the West Wing, the president echoed the dissenting Justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, in his reaction to the ruling, which ends the long-standing precedent that allowed colleges and universities to use affirmative action to help establish a diverse group of accepted students. “Discrimination still exists in America. Today’s decision does not change that,” Mr Biden said in a brief press conference. He added: “I believe our colleges are stronger when they’re racially diverse. Our nation is stronger because we are tapping into the full range of talent in this nation. We cannot let this decision be the last word.” The rulings come from two consolidated cases, Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College. Both cases were brought forth by the anti-affirmative action organisation Students for Fair Admissions. That group, which is headed by conservative legal strategist Edward Blum, has for years made attempts to give the court’s GOP-appointed majority a chance to gut previous court precedents which have been used to justify limited use of race-based preferences in college admissions. While the court upheld such programmes in a decision nearly two decades, ago, the newly-emboldened conservative majority swept away any legal justification for them in Thursday’s opinions. In a 6-3 and 6-2 decision, the Court’s conservative majority sided with Students for Fair Admissions claiming the use of race-conscious admissions was a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Now, higher education institutions will no longer be allowed to consider race as a factor in admissions. Instead, students who wish to have their race or culture considered in their application will have to volunteer the information like in their personal essay. At the end of the press conference, Mr Biden responded to a question about the court’s decision to strike down a long-standing precedent: “This is not a normal Court.” Leaders from Harvard said in a letter that they would “comply” with the court’s decision but emphasised that “deep and transformative teaching, learning, and research depend upon a community comprising people of many backgrounds, perspectives, and lived experiences.” Mr Biden said he is directing the Department of Education to analyse best practices for high education institutions to create more inclusive and diverse student bodies without using race as a conscious factor in admissions and recruiting. The Harvard Black Students Association called the court’s decision, “detrimental”, adding that it “poses a significant threat to the future of the Black community on and beyond our campus.” “It is evident that the college application system cannot maintain holistic evaluation without taking into consideration how race profoundly influences our experiences, perspectives, and identities in multifaceted ways,” the Harvard Black Students Association wrote. Derrick Johnson, the president and CEO of the NAACP, said in a statement: “In a society still scarred by the wounds of racial disparities, the Supreme Court has displayed a willful ignorance of our reality.” Discussions around affirmative action have generated debate among Republicans and Democrats for years. Those in support of it believe it is necessary to create fair and equal opportunity for students of color because higher education institutions have failed at creating diverse student bodies. Those against affirmative action believe it puts other students, like white or Asian American students, at a disadvantage. Former president Donald Trump celebrated the ruling calling it “everyone was waiting for” in a post on Truth Social. “We’re going back to all merit-based – and that’s the way it should be!” Mr Trump wrote. Mr Trump appointed three of the six conservative Justices on the Court while serving as President of the United States – Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. Mr Trump’s former vice president, Mike Pence, also expressed support for the Court’s decision, writing on Twitter, “I am honored to have played a role in appointing three of the Justices that ensured today’s welcomed decision.” He added: “There is no place for discrimination based on race in the United States, and I am pleased that the Supreme Court has put an end to this egregious violation of civil and constitutional rights in admissions processes, which only served to perpetuate racism.” The ruling will likely have repercussions beyond higher education institutions, extending to elementary, middle and high schools as well as workplaces and more as it opens a door for challenges to racial diversity programs. Read More Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson delivers searing civil rights lesson in dissent to affirmative action ruling How the government that promised to ‘stop the boats’ has lost control of its immigration policy Clarence Thomas says he doesn’t have a ‘clue’ what diversity means as Supreme Court takes aim at affirmative action One year after the anti-abortion ruling, the White House keeps a spotlight on the issue
2023-06-30 02:03

Fidelity Joins Spot-Bitcoin ETF Race With Fresh SEC Filing
Fidelity Investments is the latest financial services heavyweight to throw its name into the race to offer the
2023-06-30 01:20

Biden calls on US colleges to consider adversity during admission process
By Nandita Bose WASHINGTON President Joe Biden on Thursday urged colleges to take into account challenges that applicants
2023-06-30 01:15

Google to block news links in Canada over law on paying publishers - statement
OTTAWA Google will remove links to Canadian news from search results and other products in Canada when a
2023-06-30 01:07

Harvard says it will comply with US Supreme Court ruling, preserve its values
WASHINGTON Harvard University said on Thursday it will comply with the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down
2023-06-30 00:33

The gutting of affirmative action is a 'clear and present danger' to equal education, critics say
The Supreme Court's landmark decision to bar colleges and universities from considering race as a specific basis for admission will make it more difficult for schools to achieve a diverse student population, civil rights leaders and education advocates say.
2023-06-30 00:32

PowerFlex Enables Large-Scale Fleet Electrification with Intelligent EV Charging Management Software, PowerFlex X
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 29, 2023--
2023-06-30 00:00

Explainer-What the Supreme Court's ruling on affirmative action means for colleges
By Joseph Ax The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday struck down race-conscious policies in college admissions, ending decades
2023-06-29 23:42
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