Introduction
Sound: Isaac Herzog, President of Israel: “We are long past being in a political argument. Rather, we are on the brink of constitutional and social collapse”
That’s the president of Israel describing the situation in his country right now after thousands of people took to the streets this past week for protests. i’ll tell you what’s got people so upset. Plus Greg is here with the weekly NOTICE News quiz.
All that and more today on… NOTICE News.
Protests in Israel
Hey guys and happy Friday, I’m Jonathan here at NOTICE HQ in Brooklyn. Our top story today is from the other side of the world where tens of thousands of people took to the streets in Israel this past week to protest a proposed change to their government.
Sound: “We will not hide in the houses as they try to turn the State of Israel into a dark dictatorship and shut us up, they will not shut us up.”
Tensions even boiled over at this parliament committee meeting, where some members chanted “shame” at their opponents.
They’re mad about a proposed overhaul to Israel’s government that will give the country’s legislature much greater control over the judicial branch.
Like the U.S., Israel’s government has three branches, based on the principle of separation of powers, with each branch having certain checks and balances over the others, so one never gets too powerful.
Unlike the U.S., Israel’s judiciary—it’s system of courts and judges—is *extremely* independent, being appointed by a bi-partisan committee.
Israel’s ruling far-right government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, wants to change that, giving the legislature much more say in judicial appointments and weakening their Supreme Court’s power to strike down laws.
Netanyahu himself is currently on trial for corruption and abuse of power.
The proposed change is exposing deep divisions in Israeli society, which could lead to further instability in an already unstable region. And – notably – Israel is one of America’s closest allies and unlike most other politically unstable countries – possesses nuclear weapons.
Headlines
Here’s what else is making news right now.
President Biden: “We don’t yet know exactly what these three objects were, but nothing right now suggests they were related to the Chinese spy balloon program, or they were surveillance vehicles from other any other country,”
That’s President Biden yesterday, talking about those unidentified objects that were shot down over the last two weeks.
It all follows the discovery of a suspected Chinese spy balloon that floated over the U.S. before being shot down off the coast of South Carolina.
A grand jury in Georgia investigating former President Donald Trump says people have lied – under oath – to it in the course of its work.
Lying under oath is a serious crime called perjury, and they recommended those who lied be prosecuted.
And… is Miicrosoft’s new chatbot Sydney getting a reputation for an attitude?
When one tester asked when “Avatar 2” was showing, Sydney said the movie hadn’t come out yet and then called the tester quote a “bad user”.
NOTICE News Quiz
And now live on tape from Brooklyn, it’s the NOTICE News quiz. I’m your host Greg, and this is the game where we ask… have you been paying attention this week? Let’s see.
Question one: Over the weekend, more floating unidentified objects were shot down over North America. Why is the military concerned about these items floating over U.S. skies?
a ) illegal surveillance
b ) interference with air traffic
c ) increased tensions between the U.S. and China
d ) all of above
The answer, d. all of the above.
The Chinese balloon shot down in early February strained relations between the United States and China, and experts believe other floating objects could interfere with civilian planes or contain spy equipment.
Question two. This week, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley announced she’s running for president. How many Republicans so far are officially seeking the 2024 nomination?
a ) 2
b ) 4
c ) 6
d ) 8
The answer, a. Only two Republicans — Haley and Trump — have officially announced they’re running.
And finally, someone said this on Wednesday: “My son came out and was like oh my god it stinks mom it smells like paint thinner”
What was this person talking about?
a ) the aftermath of earthquakes in Turkey and Syria
b ) toxic chemicals released by a derailed train
c ) raw sewage leaking onto San Diego beaches
The answer, b. Earlier this month, a train carrying hazardous materials derailed in Ohio, and residents are worried they’re still being exposed.
That’s it for this week. I’ll be back next Friday with another NOTICE News quiz.
Conclusion
That’s it for today but you can learn more about the unrest in Israel on our website, noticenews.com.
I’ll be back Monday with more from us, NOTICE News. Have a great weekend everybody.