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Thursday's Daily Briefing: George Floyd. 100,000 deaths. Hong Kong.

Editors  |  Paste BN

It's Thursday, Daily Briefing readers. A lot of news happened yesterday, so let's take a minute to catch up:

It's N'dea and today may be another heavy news day as the jobless toll mounts and protests erupt in Hong Kong over new legislation in China. But there is some good squirrel-related news at the end of this newsletter.

Let's dive in.

Violent protests erupt across the country over George Floyd's death

The death of George Floyd continued to ripple across the U.S. as calls became louder for the arrest of the white police officer who knelt on his neck for several minutes in a "horrifying" video. On Wednesday, protests in Minneapolis devolved into chaos as reports of fires came from around the city and videos of looters inside of stores quickly spread on social media. Police spokesman John Elder told Paste BN that the department was investigating a homicide near the area where a reporter from the Star Tribune tweeted that a looter had been shot and killed by a pawn shop owner. One person was in custody early Thursday, according to the Star Tribune, but police wouldn't confirm if the victim was a looter. 

Coronavirus pandemic fallout: Grim jobless toll mounts

The Labor Department will report the latest weekly jobless numbers Thursday as the economic toll from the coronavirus pandemic ticks on. Economists estimate between 2.1 million and 2.4 million Americans filed initial applications for unemployment insurance last week. At the high end, that would match the number who filed claims the week before, but it's down from the record 6.9 million who sought assistance in late March. Still, if the latest tally matches that forecast, it will mean roughly 41 million Americans have applied for unemployment in just 10 weeks, a staggering number that reflects a jobless rate that is the highest since the Great Depression.

Here is the latest news on COVID-19:

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China approves legislation for Hong Kong, jeopardizing city's autonomy

China's parliament approved sweeping new national security legislation for Hong Kong on Thursday in a move that jeopardizes the city's autonomy, has sparked pro-democracy protests and drawn fierce criticism from the United States. The legislation adopted by the National People’s Congress comes less than 24 hours after the Trump administration said that it no longer considers the former British colony to be autonomous from mainland China. The move bans sedition, secession and also allows China's state security agencies to operate in the city. Critics have warned the law could spell the end of Hong Kong as an international financial hub. 

Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to reopen 

The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex will reopen to guests Thursday, a day after bad weather postponed the historic SpaceX rocket launch.  The visitor complex, which closed March 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic, will have reduced admission, attendance limits and a limited number of attractions available. During the visitor complex's reopening phase, it will encourage advance daily admission purchases while requiring face coverings and temperature screenings for employees and guests.  It is unclear whether the complex will provide launch-viewing opportunities — a regular attraction for visitors — upon its reopening.

Here's what else people are talking about

NASCAR at Charlotte: Delay gives drivers chance to refocus

Rain washed out Wednesday's scheduled running of the Alsco Uniforms 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, forcing it to be rescheduled for Thursday at 7 p.m. ET (on FS1). The delay gives drivers a bit of a break for NASCAR teams during a grueling return to racing. The rainout also forced the postponement of Saturday's Xfinity Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, which now runs on Monday night. NASCAR’s first wave of races in its comeback totaled seven national events over 11 days. 

In better news: Who needs sports when you've got the Squirrel Games

YouTuber and budding quarantine bird enthusiast Mark Rober created an ingenious eight-part "American Ninja Warrior"-style obstacle course to stop squirrels from breaking into his bird feeder. And lucky for us he filmed his efforts in a now-viral video.

The squirrel aerobatic proficiency on display proved to Rober, a former NASA and Apple engineer, that these common tree-scaling rodents can fly in uncommon ways.

Four local squirrels learned to master each challenge — including a "squirrel friendly" Bridge of Instability tightrope, a maze, "Wipeout"-style pitchfork tumblers, a Slinky bridge, a tourist trap photo opportunity for the squirrels and "Ninja Warrior" quad steps.

Each could nail it in less than 40 seconds and enjoy the walnuts (and the bird feeder).

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