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<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Peril of Not Vaccinating the World</strong> - Absent a concerted global commitment to vaccine equity, the virus will continue to evolve, and humanity may be consigned to a never-ending pandemic. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-peril-of-not-vaccinating-the-world">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Unique Dangers of the Supreme Courts Decision to Hear a Mississippi Abortion Case</strong> - The most pressing question now may be not whether Roe and Casey can survive but how reproductive rights can be sustained without them. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/06/07/the-unique-dangers-of-the-supreme-courts-decision-to-hear-a-mississippi-abortion-case">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Purpose of Political Correctness</strong> - A conversation with the columnist Nesrine Malik about who makes the changing rules of public speech. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/the-purpose-of-political-correctness">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Is There Any Time Left for Maya Wiley?</strong> - The former City Hall lawyer considers herself the last progressive standing in the New York City mayoral race. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-local-correspondents/is-there-any-time-left-for-maya-wiley">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Protests in Colombia, Elections in Peru, and Other Chaos in the Andes</strong> - Hopes for a sustained democratic rebirth in the seven Andean nations have waned, again. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/protests-in-colombia-elections-in-peru-and-other-chaos-in-the-andes">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Progressive groups are “fed up” with Bidens infrastructure playbook</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/o--qgQx2nil5Wsv49l8wkBmEAfQ=/167x0:2834x2000/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69410488/GettyImages_1321734902_copy.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
A group of 60 Sunrise youth activists gathered outside the White House calling for President Biden to pass infrastructure plan that addresses the climate crisis on June 4. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Progressives want Biden to stop negotiating with Republicans and embrace budget reconciliation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VIAkIM">
The honeymoon period between President Joe Biden and progressives is ending.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FcJVck">
Progressive groups, who cheered Biden passing his $1.9 trillion Covid-19 stimulus bill through Congress with only Democratic support early on, are growing increasingly frustrated over Bidens prolonged infrastructure negotiations with Senate Republicans.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9RPoUZ">
A tentative deadline to strike a bipartisan deal by Memorial Day has come and gone. And on Friday, Biden once again spoke to lead Republican negotiator Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, with their conversation yielding no deal, according to Capitos spokesperson. Progressives are frustrated by the pace, and by the White Houses choice to lower the price tag of their $2.25 trillion infrastructure package to try to get GOP support.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9KTKLA">
“Were fed up and we want our voices to be heard,” said Evan Weber, the political director for the progressive climate group Sunrise Movement, which staged a protest blocking an entrance outside the White House on Friday afternoon — with dozens of 20-something protesters risking arrest. “Since the election, were starting to feel hes ignoring the very people who put him in office and spending more time talking to the party of insurrectionists who dont feel hes president.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="BPDqVR">
Biden <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/03/business/economy/biden-infrastructure-senate-republicans.html">has now proposed</a> shaving over $1 trillion off of his initial price tag on a physical infrastructure package, and proposing a 15 percent minimum tax on corporations in an attempt to placate GOP concerns about raising the corporate tax rate to 28 percent. Both are signs that the White House is serious about negotiating with Republicans to find common ground — a vow Biden made repeatedly throughout this campaign.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/cqPZYCmtwRHGgk2eVqFW0uEiHj8=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22638132/GettyImages_1233137645_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
President Biden speaks to reporters on May 27. Many progressives are frustrated by Bidens willingness to lower the overall cost of his infrastructure plan as he seeks a bipartisan deal with Republicans.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hY4XVi">
“The President is engaged in good faith with both parties in Congress to deliver historic infrastructure investments that will drive economic growth, produce the clean technologies of the future and create good-paying jobs,” a White House official told Vox.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vtDbP4">
But to progressives, the events of the past few weeks are a sign that Republicans are trying to stall while Democrats have a unified majority in Congress, to hurt Democrats electorally in the 2022 midterms. And many are worried that Biden is prioritizing working with Republicans over another campaign promise to get bold things done for the country, including tackling the climate crisis and improving racial equity.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0ZrRO7">
With Republicans signaling theyre unhappy with any new taxation proposals, progressives are still holding out a shred of hope that Democrats will ultimately pass an infrastructure bill via budget reconciliation — a process where they can use only Democratic votes in the Senate.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2WBJN7">
Progressives have an ear in Bidens inner circle, especially with White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, and they have had some early successes on policy and personnel. But getting Biden to promise something and getting him to actually deliver it are two different things — and it presents their greatest challenge in Bidens tenure so far.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Mr4mzp">
“Republicans are never going to agree to a deal,” Jamal Raad, co-founder of the progressive climate group Evergreen Action and a former top staffer to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, told Vox. “This is bad-faith negotiating only done to run out the clock on the Biden agenda.”
</p>
<h3 id="f3bzS7">
Climate groups forged an unlikely alliance with Biden. That could be fracturing.
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yJ3RQv">
On a sweltering June day, a group of about 60 Sunrise youth activists spread out in front of a White House entrance, blocking cars from going in and out.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nLxZgc">
Sitting on the hot blacktop pavement, the protesters sang, chanted, and shared stories about how they have been personally impacted by the climate crisis. They yelled into a megaphone, asking Biden to listen to them. There was one problem, though: The president actually happened to be out of town when the Sunrise blockade began.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NvsNAC">
And Biden, specifically, is whose ear progressives need the most. Unlike his swift legislating with the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, the president seems more comfortable taking his time on an infrastructure package — even if that makes lawmakers and left-wing groups uncomfortable.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vPJcnm">
“Were using this action today to make our demands really clear,” Sunrise advocacy director Lauren Maunus told Vox. “If [Biden] does not respond to those demands, then well be back at the end of June with a lot more people.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mTJxjJ">
Specifically, Sunrise was demanding a sit-down between Biden and their co-founder Varshini Prakash, who was a member of a climate task force created by the Biden and Bernie Sanders campaigns after Biden won the Democratic primary. The task forces were meant to unite the left and more center wings of the party and create Bidens agenda in the process.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="If2Gcs">
Prakash and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) were Sanderss picks for Bidens climate task force, which also included the presidents top climate officials: US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy. Together, the group came up with an extremely ambitious climate plan, proposing to spend $2 trillion over four years to intertwine climate action with clean energy jobs, and drastically cut Americas greenhouse gas emissions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RtLBCh">
“On climate, I think we actually made far more progress than I think I even anticipated,” Prakash told me in an interview last summer, after the task forces had wrapped up. “In large part, that was because many of the advisers on climate on Bidens side were also equally amenable to ambitious action as people on the Bernie side.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XeMRN4">
Biden married his infrastructure and jobs agenda to his climate agenda before he was inaugurated, noting the potential for job growth in the clean energy sector during the presidential campaign. “When I think about climate change, the word I think of is jobs,’” Biden said in a July campaign speech announcing his $2 trillion plan.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NnrRVMzlqSpoBBbWCHL3j1kh5Ro=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22638087/GettyImages_1233269641_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A group of Sunrise climate activists block a vehicle entrance at the White House on June 4.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2pBmy5zviNrAmv23O5rapGl8Jco=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22638012/GettyImages_1321734943_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Climate groups once allied with then-presidential candidate Biden are growing frustrated with his prolonged infrastructure negotiations with Republicans.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oX9Tv4">
Indeed, the reason progressive groups are getting anxious about infrastructure negotiations is that Bidens infrastructure plan is also his climate plan; it would invest billions in new tax credits for clean energy, contains a clean electricity standard, and has $174 billion in funding to collectively speed up production of electric vehicles (EV), user rebates to help purchase them, and money to install 500,000 EV charging stations around the nations roadways. Democrats and climate groups are keenly aware that time is running out to take action; the climate prognosis for the planet is looking increasingly dire if countries keep emitting carbon at their current pace.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l4q8jn">
“When Miami is going underwater or California catches fire again, no one is going to be thinking, Well, at least we got some Republican votes on that infrastructure package,’” said Jamie Henn, director of Fossil Free Media and a co-founder of the climate group <a href="http://350.org">350.org</a>. “Bidens legacy depends on his ability to go big on climate, not dither around the edges.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="84m42V">
The flip-side dynamic that progressive groups are frustrated by now is that infrastructure was always going to be the area the Biden administration saw as having the most potential for bipartisan compromise with Republicans. Infrastructure has for years been the subject on which Republicans and Democrats believed they could come to an agreement, because it traditionally encompasses boring but essential needs like roads and bridges.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uSXcS2">
The White House is obviously aware, as well, of <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/29/politics/cnn-poll-bipartisanship/index.html">numerous</a> <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/5/12/22421064/mcconnell-poll-bipartisanship">polls</a> showing that voters favor bipartisanship in Congress, and want both parties to have input into a bill. A <a href="https://assets.morningconsult.com/wp-uploads/2021/06/01103557/210582_crosstabs_MC_WASHINGTON_RVs_v1_SH.pdf">recent Morning Consult poll</a> found 85 percent of voters saying it was very or somewhat important for legislation to have bipartisan support, and 62 percent saying they disagreed with the idea that politicians seeking bipartisan support was a waste of time.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lZDoh8">
The very fact that Biden added so much of his climate agenda into his infrastructure plan, plus a proposed $400 billion to bring down long-term care costs and raise wages for home health aides, who are largely women, including women of color, greatly expanded the definition of infrastructure. Progressive groups are now warning Biden that he cant abandon the coalitions of youth voters and people of color who helped get him elected — and also deliver visible, noticeable results through a big bill.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="f1oUQR">
“Going small on climate is a political trap because it means you sacrifice some of the most visible, popular parts of the clean energy transition: more charging stations, solar panels on rooftops, a Civilian Climate Corps that puts tens of thousands of people to work,” Henn said. “We know the GOP and fossil fuel companies are going to blame Democrats for the inevitable collapse of the fossil fuel economy. The best way to combat that narrative is to have a big, visible clean energy program.”
</p>
<h3 id="HU5z5Y">
Negotiations between Biden and Republicans are reaching a critical point
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0g8RL9">
Biden and a group of Senate Republicans led by Capito have been trading infrastructure counteroffers for weeks. Yet another talk between Biden and Capito on Friday afternoon saw no final deal; instead, they agreed to essentially check back in on Monday. But if talks flounder or yield a smaller bill, some Democrats on Capitol Hill are itching to go it alone.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0JfIv6">
“We move as quickly as we can on going big, we move as quickly as we can on negotiations,” Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) told Vox recently. “At some point, if they wont go where we believe the country needs to go and where the country seems to want to go, then we take off.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="I83IBp">
The White House has already cut its initial $2.25 trillion infrastructure proposal by more than $1 trillion, and proposed significant changes to the taxation plan to pay for the infrastructure plan.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EBBfzU">
The GOP group, meanwhile, has added less than $100 billion in new spending to its initial proposal. The latest Republican plan <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/05/27/1000717244/senate-republicans-release-928-billion-infrastructure-counteroffer">totals $928 billion</a> but<strong> </strong>is proposing just $257 billion in new spending, and repurposing the rest of the infrastructure money from unused American Rescue Plan funds. On Friday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden wants to see Republicans propose more money specifically for electric vehicles and rebuilding veterans hospitals.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iWteCim5w4mvA5TETfD6VAHpVbM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22638131/GettyImages_1233136323_copy.jpg"/> <cite>Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) is the lead GOP negotiator on Bidens infrastructure bill.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="D6Og3L">
“There are areas where the president has priorities where hed like to see more,” Psaki said. She said that even though Biden is continuing to talk to both Democrats and Republicans in Congress, “there are some realities of timelines” being driven by certain congressional committees. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is expected to mark up a five-year surface transportation infrastructure bill this coming week, which contains elements of Bidens American Jobs Plan.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1PuYBB">
Still, progressive groups are telegraphing their disappointment, especially after the Senate GOP filibustered a bill for a commission to investigate the January 6 insurrection on Capitol Hill — a violent event led by supporters of President Donald Trump targeting lawmakers of both parties.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0XOPfa">
“Its hard to argue Republicans are good faith negotiations when they couldnt pass that.” Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, told Vox of the commission bill. “Democrats are attempting to govern, and Republicans have their eyes on 2022 and 2024 and are seeking to get back into power.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>Wheres the “Impossible Burger” of cheese?</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Ow30VPPp9oZhULux9IZauqR5yFs=/0x0:4937x3703/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69410314/Motif_FoodWorks_Cheese_Pull_No_Logo.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Motif FoodWorks, a food technology startup in Boston, says its developing plant-based cheese that stretches and melts like the real thing. | Courtesy of Motif FoodWorks
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Plant-based food has come a long way, but we still dont have a stretchy, melty cow-free cheese.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xsC2b2">
Two years ago, Beyond Meat became the first plant-based food startup to go public.<strong> </strong>Its shares surged <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/02/beyond-meat-ipo.html">163 percent on its first day</a> and today its valued at $9 billion, with shares now worth about five times their original value.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4hLmYQ">
Since then, analysts have wondered which major plant-based food company would go public next.<strong> </strong>Late last month, they found out: Oatly, the Swedish maker of oat-based milk, yogurt, and ice cream.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9wy85K">
Oatlys stock<strong> </strong>didnt quite skyrocket like Beyonds, but by the end of the companys first day of trading, it was valued at about <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-19/oatly-is-said-to-price-ipo-at-top-of-range-with-markets-slumping">$12 billion</a>. Now, Oatly is valued at $14 billion, over 50 percent more than Beyonds valuation of $9 billion. Though Beyond and other high-tech vegan meat producers get much more attention than companies that make plant-based milks, Oatlys valuation says a lot about the state of the plant-based food industry — namely, that plant-based milk has reached a point of maturation in the market thats even more advanced than plant-based meat.
</p>
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sG3yqO">
According to a <a href="https://www.plantbasedfoods.org/retail-sales-data/">report</a> recently published by the Plant-Based Foods Association and the Good Food Institute, two organizations that advocate for plant-based foods, plant-based milk alone accounts for <a href="https://www.plantbasedfoods.org/retail-sales-data/">35 percent of the total plant-based foods market, worth $2.5 billion to plant-based meats $1.4 billion</a>. Plant-based milks dont just dominate the plant-based food sector, they also take up a sizable portion of retail milk sales — 15 percent overall, and 45 percent<em> </em>in natural food stores.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/V_aU-J5NI3DHC0e62jJEyGwZlHQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22446103/Total_U.S._plant_based_food_dollar_sales_and_growth_GFI.jpg"/> <cite>SPINS, The Plant Based Foods Association, The Good Food Institute</cite>
<figcaption>
Plant-based milk is the largest segment of the overall plant-based food industry.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="FmrYEY">
Oatlys sudden rise since it came on the US market in 2016 has helped drive this growth. Almond milk sits at the top of the plant-based milk category, but <a href="https://www.fooddive.com/news/oat-milk-surges-to-second-most-popular-in-plant-based-dairy/586010/">oat milk recently pushed soy milk out of second place</a>, thanks to Oatly and big brands like Silk (owned by Danone) and Chobani <a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-lifestyle-health-business-f5bf285bf70e1bf73d050656d110aa7e">following Oatlys lead</a> with a range of oat-based dairy products.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="IxCSWj">
In fact, Starbucks, which started using Oatly products last year in select US stores and rolled it out nationwide earlier this year, says its share of orders that use plant-based milk jumped from <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-18/oatly-s-about-to-go-public-in-an-increasingly-crowded-milk-aisle">17 to 25 percent after it introduced Oatly</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6cnCKi">
These shifts from traditional to plant-based dairy are important in the fight against climate change, as traditional dairy is an especially resource-intensive sector. According to a 2018 University of Oxford study, any way you slice it, <a href="https://theconversation.com/which-milk-is-best-for-the-environment-we-compared-dairy-nut-soy-hemp-and-grain-milks-147660">cows milk uses much more land and water and emits far more greenhouse gases than any plant-based milk</a>. For example, almond milk gets a bad rap for being water-intensive, but cows milk requires about 70 percent more water to produce, emits more than twice as much Co2, and requires more than 15 times as much land. Compared to almond milk, oat milk uses much less water but a little more land.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="uw8ovK">
On top of the environmental impact of traditional dairy, most dairy cows, at least in the US, are <a href="https://www.sentienceinstitute.org/us-factory-farming-estimates">raised in factory farms</a>.
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="J2Az3R">
Yet despite the popularity of plant-based milks, they havent quite made a dent in taking the cow out of dairy, their raison dêtre. Some farmers do say <a href="https://civileats.com/2018/11/05/whats-behind-the-crippling-dairy-crisis-family-farmers-speak-out/">plant-based milk is affecting their bottom line</a>, and a <a href="https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2020/december/plant-based-products-replacing-cow-s-milk-but-the-impact-is-small/">late 2020 report</a> that was funded by the United States Department of Agriculture found that “increased sales of plant-based alternatives are negatively affecting households purchases of cows milk” but that its “not a primary driver.”
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<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3PtcNK">
There are a lot of factors that affect dairy production and consumption, and adoption of alternatives is just one of them. But in order for plant-based startups to become a primary driver in displacing conventional dairy, stealing market share from<strong> </strong>the milk shelves of the supermarket isnt enough. Oatly and its competitors need to figure out how to make a great alternative for another dairy product: cheese.
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<h3 id="XeYsps">
Milk sales are plummeting, but there are more cows than ever
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="x2aAos">
Some vegan advocates say that “<a href="https://vegannews.press/2020/06/11/dairy-is-dying-sales-fell-1-1-billion-dollars-according-to-dairy-farmers-of-america/">dairy is dying</a>” (or <a href="https://www.livekindly.co/the-dairy-industry-is-dead/">already dead</a>), in part because of the United States <a href="https://www.statista.com/chart/2387/american-milk-consumption-has-plummeted/">decades-long decline in milk consumption</a> coinciding with the rise of plant-based milk.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sVVGmp">
Many dairy farmers are indeed hurting, but plant-based milks arent the biggest culprit — its Big Dairy, which has been <a href="https://thecounterorg.wpengine.com/how-rural-america-got-milked/">consolidating and squeezing out small farmers</a>, one of several factors that caused <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/6/18/21295834/why-american-farmers-are-throwing-out-milk-coronavirus">11,000 dairy farms</a> to shutter between 2014 and 2019. The pandemic only hastened this trend, as major dairy customers — schools and restaurants — closed down, resulting in farmers across the country dumping millions of gallons of milk. <a href="https://www.lancasterfarming.com/farming/dairy/7-of-u-s-dairies-shuttered-in-2020/article_b5f755dc-5639-5b61-aef9-1c0763849f95.html"><strong>Seven percent of US dairies closed in 2020.</strong></a>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="El377w">
But dairy is far from dead: The number of dairy cows in production has <a href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Maps/Milk_Production_and_Milk_Cows/milkcows.php">increased slightly in the past decade</a>, and theyre producing <a href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Maps/Milk_Production_and_Milk_Cows/milkprod.php">more milk</a><a href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Charts_and_Maps/Milk_Production_and_Milk_Cows/cowrates.php">more efficiently</a> — than ever.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/a3GycQ9K5eTLZNL87Fpiiv0gUtg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22636832/0DAIp_american_consumption_of_milk_br_and_other_dairy_products.png"/> <cite>Tim Ryan Williams/Vox</cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UHNfKa">
This can be explained, in part, by Americans love for cheese; per capita cheese consumption has risen <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/183785/per-capita-consumption-of-cheese-in-the-us-since-2000/">25 percent</a> since the early 2000s, which is one factor that has kept milk production high, since it takes nearly <a href="https://www.progressivedairy.com/topics/management/how-much-cheese-is-there-in-a-hundred-pounds-of-milk">10 pounds of milk to make one pound of cheese</a>. (Butter consumption is rising even faster, and it takes more than <a href="https://dairy-cattle.extension.org/how-many-pounds-of-whole-milk-does-it-take-to-make-a-pound-of-butter/"><em>21 pounds </em>of milk</a> to make one pound of butter.)
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/yeA1ibZlHs89sDvDGIgURawdD9U=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22544283/wbKbK_how_many_pounds_of_milk_are_in_a_pound_of_.png"/> <cite>Tim Ryan Williams/Vox</cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="StVHBP">
There are plant-based cheese alternatives on the market, and they generally fall into two categories. The first are the pricey, fermented wheels or tubs of spreadable cheese, often made of nuts, seasonings, and cultures (and sometimes oils, gums, and starches),<strong> </strong>which have managed to impress the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/16/dining/vegan-cheese.html">taste buds of omnivorous food critics</a>. Bigger brands like Miyokos Creamery, Kite Hill, and Treeline Cheese dominate this first category, but there are <a href="https://www.eater.com/22315684/vegan-cheese-history-ingredients-process-grocery-brands">dozens of smaller, artisanal outfits</a> like the Herbivorous Butcher in Minneapolis and Rebel Cheese in Austin.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="g3oZ5E">
The second category consists of the bags of shredded or sliced mozzarella or cheddar, often made with oil and potato starch or cornstarch, which dont melt and stretch (or taste) the way cheese from cows milk does. The problem is best summed up by the joke about how a vegans house burned down and the only thing that didnt melt was their cheese.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="yghjEr">
But Americans eat a lot of shredded and sliced cheese, and the vegan versions havent improved much since I last heard that joke some years ago (though if youre curious, I suggest giving Violife, Field Roast, and Follow Your Heart products a try). And even though the plant-based food industry has grown rapidly in the past few years, its startups loaded with billions in investment, no company has come close to making a “breakthrough” shredded or sliced cheese product akin to the Beyond or Impossible burger — or a carton of Oatly — that can bring in curious omnivores.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="dOUmy4">
Not yet, anyway.
</p>
<h3 id="Sbbblp">
The future of animal-free cheese
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5SUoUW">
The absence of great shredded and sliced plant-based cheese could be a problem of demand or innovation, or both.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="eDr0Cp">
Meat gets much more attention for its ecological and animal welfare harms than cheese, to the point where nearly a <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/282779/nearly-one-four-cut-back-eating-meat.aspx">quarter of Americans</a> say they are trying to cut back. But you dont hear much about people trying to reduce their cheese intake, even though globally, the dairy sector <a href="http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/197623">emits more greenhouse gases than all meat sectors</a> (except beef), and most dairy cows, at least in the US, are factory-farmed.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lP33LE">
On the innovation side, its simply much harder to replicate stretchy, melty cheese made from cows milk than the soft, spreadable varieties.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="x5NMYc">
“Achieving the stretchy quality and texture consumers expect from harder cheeses upon melting has proven challenging to date, which is why soft plant-based cheese may be more prominent,” Dr. Priera Panescu, a senior scientist at the Good Food Institute, told me over email.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XtqfYz">
Ryan Pandya, the CEO and co-founder of Perfect Day — a food technology startup based in Berkeley, California — shared a similar sentiment with <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/dairy-free-cheese">Wired</a>, explaining, “The melty, stretchy thing is absolutely the most challenging holy grail thing to do. Because theres only one protein known to man that does this, and its casein.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fMk0KK">
Through precision fermentation, which is used to make specific proteins, enzymes, or vitamins, Perfect Day has developed a microflora (fungi) that converts sugar into whey, another protein in milk, for its ice cream products. The company says its also<a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90607741/this-animal-free-dairy-isnt-plant-based-its-grown-from-real-cow-protein-with-no-cows-involved"> working on cheese</a> but doesnt have plans for the shredded or sliced varieties in the near future.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="E2uEwx">
<a href="https://www.realvegancheese.org/">Real Vegan Cheese</a>, a nonprofit, open-science research project — quite rare in a field of venture capital-backed startups — <em>is</em> going for the “holy grail” of cheese by adding the genes for casein to yeast and other microflora, and then adding plant-based fats and sugars. New Culture, based in San Francisco, is also working to replicate casein, using microbial fermentation, similar to Perfect Days approach, to make shredded cheese. The company plans to launch its first product in late 2023.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9l8Ha4">
When asked about the lack of stretchy plant-based cheese, Panescu said that “academic researchers are working to address these challenges by using biological interventions, optimizing more flexible, well-assembled plant-based proteins, and applying mechanical texturization processes.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="p4Ibxm">
One of those researchers is Alejandro Marangoni at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. According to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2665927120300113?via%3Dihub">Marangonis research</a>, zein — a protein found in corn — is an overlooked tool in the search to make plant-based alternatives to animal products. Most companies making shredded and sliced plant-based cheese use starches and gums for the melt and stretch effects, but zein could be a better route. When hydrated and heated above a certain temperature, it forms a “flexible, bendable mass which may be pulled, stretched, and sculpted,” sharing “melting characteristics with cheddar cheese.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="20E78k">
Motif FoodWorks, a food tech startup based in Boston that has received investment from the major dairy company Fonterra, recently <a href="https://www.dairyreporter.com/Article/2021/05/17/Motif-FoodWorks-accesses-transformative-plant-based-technologies">signed an exclusive licensing deal</a> to use a unique food processing technology Marangoni developed using zein.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="l76dQq">
Motifs CEO, Jonathan McIntyre, told me their newly acquired tech will enable them to make a stretchy, gooey vegan cheese thats better than whats currently on the market. “This technology doesnt solve all problems in plant-based cheese,” he said, and that “there are other aspects, like mouthfeel and creaminess” that theyre using other tools to address.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="p4lc0J">
McIntyre isnt yet sure whether Motif will develop its own products, work with a dairy company to make a plant-based product, or partner with an existing plant-based cheese company to upgrade its own, but he does envision it being used on nachos and, of course, pizza. You can see it in action below or <a href="https://madewithmotif.com/2021/05/13/bringing-meltiness-and-marbleization-to-plant-based-cheese-and-meat/">here</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TZaGZl">
</p>
<div id="7pn5h8">
<div style="width: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.25%;">
<video controls="" style="width: 100%; height: 100%;">
Your browser does not support HTML5 video.<source src="https://madewithmotif.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Motif-CheesePull-FINAL.mp4" type="video/mp4"/>
</video>
</div>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VkJf5T">
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="9VsUKG">
Given all the hype around plant-based food, it may come as no surprise that there are <a href="https://newprotein.org/evolution">dozens more startups</a> racing to make convincing cheese alternatives — but Impossible Foods isnt one of them. While it is developing Impossible Milk, a spokesperson told me the company wont be selling Impossible Cheese anytime soon.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="E0EzlZ">
Then theres Oatly, which recently <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-20/newly-public-oatly-eyes-plant-based-cheese-as-the-next-frontier?sref=taxRtTxi">told Bloomberg</a> its making “good progress” on developing oat-based cheese products, though its CEO didnt specify what kinds. Given the <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/19/oatly-1point4-billion-ipo-priced-84point4-million-shares-at-17-each.html">$1.4 billion</a> the company raised from last months IPO, it seems like it should have the resources to raise the bar on plant-based cheese, and a devoted customer base who will likely be curious enough to give it a try.
</p></li>
<li><strong>What Facebooks two-year Trump ban does and doesnt do</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="Donald Trump, sitting inside a limousine, makes a thumbs-up gesture through the closed window." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ex-AKbmVYFIk6i2IzWVlKll60LE=/144x0:1835x1268/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69407284/GettyImages_1310685417.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
This is how Donald Trump makes a “Like.” | James Devaney/GC Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The social network says the former president will receive a two-year ban following his actions surrounding January 6.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lx9eOW">
Donald Trumps Facebook ban will last at least two years, the company <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2021/06/facebook-response-to-oversight-board-recommendations-trump/">announced on Friday</a>. Facebook said that <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22221285/trump-online-capitol-riot-far-right-parler-twitter-facebook">the former presidents actions on January 6</a>, which contributed to a violent mob storming Capitol Hill and staging an insurrection that led to five deaths, “constituted a severe violation of our rules,” and that it was enacting this policy change as part of a new approach to public figures during civil unrest.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EZZT3T">
Facebook added that the two-year sanction constitutes a time period “long enough” to be a significant deterrent to Trump and other world leaders who might make similar posts, as well as enough to allow for a “safe period of time after the acts of incitement.” However, Facebook still has not made a final decision about the future of Trumps account. The company said that after two years, it will again evaluate whether theres still a risk to public safety and potential civil unrest.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TEQ9Ki">
“We know that any penalty we apply — or choose not to apply — will be controversial. There are many people who believe it was not appropriate for a private company like Facebook to suspend an outgoing President from its platform, and many others who believe Mr. Trump should have immediately been banned for life,” Nick Clegg, the companys vice president of global affairs, said in <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2021/06/facebook-response-to-oversight-board-recommendations-trump/">a blog post</a>, later adding: “The Oversight Board is not a replacement for regulation, and we continue to call for thoughtful regulation in this space.”
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/37nUJgjqT6HqUTZOxAXQ-JoLmr4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22637661/Heightened_Policy_Final.png"/> <cite>Facebook</cite>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mSeHSL">
The announcement comes after Facebooks oversight board, a group of policy experts and journalists the company has appointed to handle difficult content moderation questions, <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/5/5/22419029/trump-facebook-ban-suspension-oversight-board-decision">decided to uphold the platforms freeze</a> on the former presidents account. In May, the board ruled that Facebook should not have banned Trump indefinitely and would have to make a final decision within six months. The board also said that Facebook would have to clarify its rules about world leaders and the risk of violence, among other recommendations.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="f4HiAG">
“The Oversight Board is reviewing Facebooks response to the Boards decision in the case involving former US President Donald Trump and will offer further comment once this review is complete,” the boards press team said in response to Facebooks Friday announcement. Later in the day, the board said <a href="https://oversightboard.com/news/181834917194656-statement-on-facebook-s-response-to-the-oversight-board-s-decision-involving-former-us-president-donald-trump/">in a statement</a> it was “encouraged” by Facebooks decision, and will monitor the companys implementation.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6hhqew">
Facebook now says it will fully implement 15 of the oversight boards 19 recommendations. It also responded to the boards demand that it provide more detail on its newsworthiness exception, a policy that Facebook has used — though rarely — to give politicians a free pass to post content that violates its rules. Now, Facebook says it will label posts that receive those exceptions, and will treat politicians posts more like those from regular users.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="87IKrz">
This set of decisions from Facebook has major implications not just for Trumps account but also for national politics in the United States in the foreseeable future. At the same time, they signal that the company has remained steadfast in maintaining its power to decide what politicians can ultimately post to the platform. Facebook is providing more details about the rules it could use to punish politicians who violate its community guidelines, potentially increasing transparency. Still, its Facebook that has the final say over enforcement, including whats considered newsworthy and remains on the platform versus what violates its community guidelines and gets removed.
</p>
<h3 id="OiSYN1">
Facebook still decides who gets a free pass from its rules
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="2dRLQU">
In Fridays announcement, Facebook said it would change one of its most controversial policies: an allowance for content that breaks its rules but is important enough to the public discourse to remain online, often because it has been posted by a politician. Some call this the “newsworthiness exception” or the “<a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22233450/trump-twitter-facebook-ban-world-leader-rules-exception">world leader exception</a>.” Now, Facebook is changing the rules so that the exemption seems more transparent and less unfair. But the company is still preserving its power to decide what happens the next time a politician posts something offensive or dangerous.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="cj0HdO">
Trump was the inspiration for this exemption, which Facebook first created in 2015 after the former president (then a candidate) <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/28/facebook-zuckerberg-trump-hate/">posted</a> a video of himself saying Muslims should be banned from the United States. The newsworthiness exception was <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2016/10/input-from-community-and-partners-on-our-community-standards/">formally announced in 2016</a> and has long been controversial because it creates two types of users and posts: those who have to follow Facebooks rules and those that dont, and can post offensive and even dangerous content.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="I4A16e">
In 2019, the company <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/9/26/20885783/facebook-twitter-youtube-policies-political-content">added more detail</a>. Nick Clegg, Facebooks vice president for global affairs and communication, said that Facebook would presume anything a politician posted to its platform would be of interest to the public, and should stay up — “even when it would otherwise breach our normal content rules” — and as long as the public interest outweighed the risk of harm.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hiuzOa">
The policy also presumably serves as a convenient shield for Facebook to avoid getting into fights with powerful people (like the president of the United States).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YCdXNZ">
For all the controversy and confusion it has produced, Facebook says the newsworthiness exception is rarely deployed. In 2020, Facebooks <a href="https://about.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Civil-Rights-Audit-Final-Report.pdf">independent civil rights audit</a> reported that Facebook had only used the exception 15 times in the previous year, and only once in the US. Facebook amended its previous statement to the oversight board on Friday, saying it has only technically used the standard once in regard to Trump, over a video Trump posted of one of his 2019 rallies. Despite rarely being the beneficiary of the policy, the oversight board said back in May Trumps account suspension meant Facebook should respond to the ongoing confusion.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="RARxeu">
Now, Facebook says politicians content will be analyzed for violations of its community guidelines — and weighed against the public interest — just like any other user. While that means the formalized global leader exception is gone, much of what actually remains up and off Facebook remains where it started: in Facebooks hands.
</p>
<h3 id="0GXcbq">
Facebook wont study how the platform contributed to January 6
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="41QkkQ">
In the aftermath of the deadly January 6 insurrection, many have pointed to the <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22221285/trump-online-capitol-riot-far-right-parler-twitter-facebook">role social media platforms,</a> including Facebook, played in exacerbating the violence. Critics of Facebook have said the insurrection showed how Facebook shouldnt just reflect on its approach to Trumps account, but also to the <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/22335801/algorithms-artificial-intelligence-facebook-instagram-recommendations">algorithms, ranking systems, and design feature choices</a> that could have helped the rioters organize.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PqbN0r">
Even the Facebook oversight board, an independent body set up by Facebook to serve as a sort of court for litigation of the companys most difficult content moderation decisions, recommended Facebook should take such a step. Earlier this week, allies of the Biden administration <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/06/02/building-back-together-facebook-election-fraud-491545">urged the company</a> to follow that guidance and conduct a public-facing review of how the platform might have contributed to the insurrection.
</p>
<div id="x8CgMX">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" dir="ltr" lang="en">
Facebook has ample reason to believe their platform contributed to the events of Jan. 6. At a minimum they have an obligation to conduct a full, independent, thorough investigation, and to publish the results. Its the least they should do.
</p>
— Katy Glenn Bass (<span class="citation" data-cites="KGlennBass">@KGlennBass</span>) <a href="https://twitter.com/KGlennBass/status/1400888796800028684?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 4, 2021</a>
</blockquote></div></li>
</ul>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mL3dZY">
But Facebook isnt doing that, and it seems to be deflecting that responsibility. The company is instead pointing to a separate research effort focused on Facebook, Instagram, and the 2020 US election, which Facebook says could include studying what happened at the Capitol.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="rAB4tE">
“The responsibility for January 6, 2021, lies with the insurrectionists and those who encouraged them,” the company said in <a href="https://about.fb.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Facebook-Responses-to-Oversight-Board-Recommendations-in-Trump-Case.pdf">its Friday decision</a>, adding that independent researchers and politicians were best suited to researching the role of social media in the insurrection.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="zMekbK">
“We also believe that an objective review of these events, including contributing societal and political factors, should be led by elected officials,” wrote the company, adding that it would still work with law enforcement. Republicans, notably, have <a href="https://www.vox.com/2021/5/25/22445422/january-6-commission-senate-filibuster">all but shut down</a> the possibility of a bipartisan January 6 commission.
</p>
<h3 id="eg0XfC">
Facebook might never make a final ruling on Trump
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="P7syOJ">
Facebook is delaying, perhaps forever, a final decision on Trump himself. Right now, Facebook plans to suspend Trump for a minimum of two years, meaning hed regain his account at the beginning of 2023. The ban does exclude Trump from using the platform to comment on the 2022 midterm elections, during which his posts could have boosted (or hurt) the hundreds of Republican candidates for the House.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="oItTPR">
Still, the two-year ban is not a final ruling as to whether Trump can return to Facebook. That means its still unclear if the former president will have access to the platform should he run for president again. It also leaves open the question of what it would really take for a politician to be permanently booted from the platform.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="mErKld">
Many are frustrated that Facebook didnt permanently ban Trump. Its possible he could return to the platform in time to run for president in 2024, and Facebook obviously knows that. “If this gets 2 years, what can one possibly do to get a lifetime ban,” wrote one employee on an internal post, according to <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/janelytvynenko/facebook-will-ban-trump-for-two-years">BuzzFeed</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/MuslimAdvocates/status/1400871039731744773">Civil</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ColorOfChange/status/1400889805664395264">rights</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/jimsteyer/status/1400873822576812037">groups</a> reacting to the decision called Facebooks ruling inadequate, and called Trumps potential return to the social network a danger to democracy. Some think the decision yet again proves lawmakers need to step in and regulate social media.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Bc9gAl">
Trump, for his part, seems extremely displeased with Facebooks decision. “Facebooks ruling is an insult to the record-setting 75M people, plus many others, who voted for us in the 2020 Rigged Presidential Election,” Trump said in a <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-facebook-ban-response-b1859970.html">statement released Friday</a>. “They shouldnt be allowed to get away with this censoring and silencing and ultimately we will win. Our Country cant take this abuse any more!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TwOMhn">
Its not clear what Trump returning to Facebook would even look like. Facebook has said the policy is in part meant to deter politicians from violating their rules again, but Facebooks current suspension hasnt stopped the former president from spreading election conspiracy theories on other platforms. Facebook implied Trump could possibly return when things are more stable, but it often appears that Trump himself is a primary source of instability.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="DtMiYP">
It matters that Trump wont be posting on Facebook until 2023, at the earliest, and that the company has some shiny new rules. But overall, Facebook is once again holding onto its power to decide what happens next.
</p>
<hr class="p-entry-hr" id="tL7sOK"/>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="flOU4H">
<strong>Update, June 4, 6:10 pm ET:</strong> This piece has been updated with further analysis.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="tUAUPn">
</p>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Sri Lanka players refuse to sign central contract</strong> - The decision wasnt surprising as almost all the senior players in unison, had made it clear that the contracts offered by the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) wasnt to their liking and also excluded some deserving performers</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>IFA teams up with local clubs to lead vaccination drive in Kolkata</strong> - The vaccination camp aims to inoculate players, coaches, referees and officials involved with the game.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Coronavirus | Milkha Singh is stable and better: Chandigarh hospital</strong> - Milkhas 82-year-old wife Nirmal, who had also contracted COVID-19 days after her husband got the infection, continues to be in the ICU of the Fortis hospital</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>T20 World Cup set to be moved out of India, ICC intimated internally</strong> - While the UAE was always the first back-up option, Muscat has been added as the fourth venue, apart from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>“Qatar is past”, India shift focus to Bangladesh match</strong> - Indias match against Bangladesh is scheduled for June 7.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>One crore fruit saplings to be distributed in State</strong> - Agriculture Department to distribute more than 20 types of fruit saplings including jackfruit, mango, rambutan</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Corporation in Kerala capital observes World Environment Day</strong> - The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation launches Karuthal mass clean-up drive and plants saplings in various parts of the city</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Total Revolution Day observed in Dharwad</strong> - In response to the call for Total Revolution Day by Samyukta Kissan Morcham members of different organisations staged symbolic protests at various p</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Delhi HC bars two entities from illegally using brand name Khadi for beauty pageant or business</strong> - Noida-based Khadi Design Council of India and Miss India Khadi Foundation were accused of fraudulently using the brand name and deceiving people</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Plantation sector hails proposal on extra crops</strong> - Estates will get more income by growing fruit trees as subsidiary crop</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Roman Protasevich arrest: EU bans Belarus jets from its airspace</strong> - The move follows Belaruss grounding of a Ryanair flight to arrest a dissident journalist.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Putin sees double standard in US Capitol riot prosecutions</strong> - Ahead of a summit with President Joe Biden, Mr Putin also says he expects “no breakthroughs”.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Denmark parliament approves giant artificial island off Copenhagen</strong> - Lynetteholm aims to house 35,000 people and protect the port, but environmentalists have concerns.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Top German cleric asks to quit over Church sex abuse failures</strong> - Top Catholic cleric Reinhard Marx calls sexual abuse by Church officials “a catastrophe”.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Kayakers save pair of eagles drowning in Danube river</strong> - Klaudia Kis and Richard Varga made the chance encounter while kayaking up the Danube river.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Reducing poverty can actually lower energy demand, finds research</strong> - Turns out human development is a matter of economic justice <em>and</em> climate justice. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1770116">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>“Kind of crazy”—how the booming US used car market is driving inflation</strong> - Supply constraints and soaring demand have made vehicle prices a key number for the Fed. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1770108">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Theres hope for American movie theaters after all</strong> - COVID-19 crushed movie chains—<em>A Quiet Place Part II</em>s box office shows a potential way out. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1770060">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Early adopters of Chinese vaccines see case surges; China plows ahead anyway</strong> - China is now giving 20 million doses a day despite low efficacy. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1770201">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Puppies ability to communicate with people is present almost from birth</strong> - We might one day be able to predict which puppies will make the best service dogs. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1769901">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Theres this old priest who got sick of all the people in his parish who kept confessing to adultery.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
One Sunday, in the pulpit, he said, “If I hear that word one more time, Ill quit!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Everyone liked him, so they came up with a code word. Someone who had committed adultery would say they had “fallen.” This seemed to satisfy the old priest and things went well, until the priest died at a ripe old age.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
About a week after the new priest arrived, he visited the mayor of the town and seemed very concerned. The priest said, “You have to do something about the roads and sidewalks in town. When people come into the confessional, they keep talking about having fallen.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The mayor started to laugh, realising that no one had told the new priest about the code word. Before the mayor could explain, the priest shook an accusing finger at the mayor and said, “I dont know what youre laughing about, your own wife fell three times this week already, and your daughter fell twice!”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/ZedLyfe51"> /u/ZedLyfe51 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsmpg0/theres_this_old_priest_who_got_sick_of_all_the/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsmpg0/theres_this_old_priest_who_got_sick_of_all_the/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>The Smiths had no children and decided to use a proxy father to start their family. On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr.Smith kissed his wife and said, “Im off. The man should be here soon.”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer rang the doorbell, hoping to make a sale. “Good morning madam. You dont know me but Ive come to….” “Oh, no need to explain. Ive been expecting you,” Mrs. Smith cut in.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Really..?” the photographer asked. “Well, good..! Ive made a specialty of babies.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Thats what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have a seat. Just where do we start..?” asked Mrs. Smith, blushing.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the couch and perhaps a couple on the bed. Sometimes the living room floor is fun too; you can really spread out.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Bathtub, living room floor..? No wonder it didnt work for Harry and me.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Well, madam, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, Im sure youll be pleased with the results.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“I hope we can get this over with quickly,” gasped Mrs. Smith.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Madam, in my line of work, a man must take his time. Id love to be in and out in five minutes, but youd be disappointed with that, Im sure.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Dont I know!!” Mrs. Smith exclaimed.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby pictures. “This was done on the top of a bus in downtown London.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Oh my God..!!” Mrs. Smith exclaimed, tugging at her handkerchief.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“And these twins turned out exceptionally well when you consider their mother was so difficult to work with.” The photographer handed Mrs. Smith the picture.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“She was difficult ..?” asked Mrs. Smith.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Yes, Im afraid so. I finally had to take her to Hyde Park to get the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep, pushing to get a good look.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Four and five deep..?” asked Mrs. Smith, eyes widened in amazement.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Yes”, the photographer said. “And for more than three hours too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling. I could hardly concentrate. Then darkness approached and I began to rush my shots. Finally, when the squirrels began nibbling on my equipment, I just packed it all in.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Mrs. Smith leaned forward. “You mean they actually chewed on your, eh……equipment?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Thats right. Well madam, if youre ready, Ill set up my tripod so that we can get to work.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Tripod..??”, Mrs. Smith looked extremely worried now.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
"Oh Good God Yes..! I have to use a tripod to rest my Canon on.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Its much too big for me to hold while Im getting ready for action.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Madam..? Madam..?….. Good Lord, shes fucking fainted..!
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/YZXFILE"> /u/YZXFILE </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsih9f/the_smiths_had_no_children_and_decided_to_use_a/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsih9f/the_smiths_had_no_children_and_decided_to_use_a/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>I walked in on my girlfriend having sex with her personal trainer.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
So I said: “Ok, this isnt working out.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/JesusSaves002"> /u/JesusSaves002 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/ns544c/i_walked_in_on_my_girlfriend_having_sex_with_her/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/ns544c/i_walked_in_on_my_girlfriend_having_sex_with_her/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A pregnant woman was shot 3 times in the stomach.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
She survived, luckily enough, and so were her unborn children. Triplets, she found out soon enough. Two girls and a boy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
They were born with absolutely no problems, healthy babies and unaffected by the trauma.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Fast forward 13 years, shes sitting in her kitchen, enjoying a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper when she hears a scream from upstairs. It was one of her daughters.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“MUM!”, the girl screamed, running down the stairs. “I was peeing and a bullet came out!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Shocked and surprised, the mother sat her down and told her what had happened to her when she was pregnant. “It wont happen again, sweetie,” she said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The next day, shes sitting in her kitchen, drinking her coffee and reading her newspaper, she hears a scream from upstairs. It was her other daughter.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“MUM!”, the girl screamed, running down the stairs. “I was peeing and a bullet came out!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Realising what was going on, the mother sat her down and told her the story that she told her sister. “It wont happen again, sweetie,” she said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
That evening, she was having a glass of wine before bed, thinking about how absurd it was that both her daughters had peed out bullets over the past couple of days. She hears a scream. It was the last triplet, the son.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“MUM!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“Let me guess, you were peeing and a bullet came out?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
"What? No - I was having a wank and I shot the dog!
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/Imbuedartox"> /u/Imbuedartox </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nseij0/a_pregnant_woman_was_shot_3_times_in_the_stomach/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nseij0/a_pregnant_woman_was_shot_3_times_in_the_stomach/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>Girlfriend: “One day I will marry and a lot of men will be sad that day.”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Boyfriend: “Wow, how many men do you plan to marry?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/crazyfortaco"> /u/crazyfortaco </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsjlk7/girlfriend_one_day_i_will_marry_and_a_lot_of_men/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/nsjlk7/girlfriend_one_day_i_will_marry_and_a_lot_of_men/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
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