Squiz Today / 26 April 2021

Squiz Today – Monday, 26 April

SQUIZ SAYINGS

“I’m in.”

Said former Olympian and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner who announced on Saturday that she’s running for Governor of California. The state is no stranger to celebrity political candidates, and Jenner is no stranger to a tough race...


WA LOCKDOWN MEASURES COULD STICK

THE SQUIZ
Western Australia recorded no new local coronavirus cases yesterday on day 2 of a snap lockdown for Perth and the Peel region. In total, there are 2 cases of community transmission plus the original case, which sent the region into lockdown on Friday and cancelled Anzac Day services in those areas. Premier Mark McGowan yesterday said it was "too early to predict" if the lockdown will end on Tuesday but said it was likely there would be "an extension in some form of controls". "I think people should get used to the prospect that some further measures will continue beyond Monday," he said.

HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?
A Victorian man tested positive after quarantining at the Perth Mercure Hotel in a room adjacent to a coronavirus case. The twist is, he had tested negative towards the end of his 2-week quarantine period and spent 5 days in Perth before he flew back to Melbourne and tested positive. That triggered the 3-day lockdown from midnight on Friday until midnight tonight. Since then, there have been 2 more positive cases - a friend of the Victorian man and a 40yo man who visited one of the locations where he had been. McGowan yesterday reiterated that WA's hotel quarantine system was not sustainable after saying that he was “getting to the end of my tether” on Saturday. His calls to use Commonwealth facilities were shot down by Defence Minister Peter Dutton. Still, McGowan said the Federal Government had agreed to halve international arrivals to 512 from Thursday until 30 May. "However, if the Commonwealth is unable to assist with proper quarantine facilities, I am reluctant to return to the full 1,025 per week cap," he said.

AND WHAT’S HAPPENING A LITTLE FURTHER AFIELD?
The number of new daily cases clocked almost 350,000 in India yesterday - another record high bringing the total to nearly 17 million since the pandemic began. Those numbers represent a fraction of the virus' spread, according to experts, with more than 2,700 deaths in the 24 hours to Sunday. The situation is particularly bleak in the capital Delhi, where hospitals have warned they are at breaking point amid shortages in beds, medicines and oxygen supplies. India's government has approved plans for more than 500 oxygen generation plants to boost supplies. International help is on its way, with the UK sending ventilators and oxygen devices and the US saying it will immediately provide raw materials for vaccines that had previously been under export controls. Meanwhile, at least 82 people have been killed and 100 more injured in a fire at a hospital treating coronavirus patients in Iraq's Baghdad. Reports say the fire started in a storage area for oxygen canisters on Saturday before engulfing the ward.


SQUIZ THE REST


HOPE LOST FOR MISSING SUB SURVIVORS

An Indonesian Navy submarine that went missing off the coast of Bali mid-last week with 53 people on board has been found broken and deep in the Bali Sea. Overnight, officials said the crew were confirmed dead and said the ship's hull, stern and main body had separated. Rescuers found a life vest that they believed belonged to those aboard the 44yo KRI Nanggala-402, which lost contact on Wednesday as it prepared to conduct a torpedo drill. "Based on the evidence, it can be stated that the KRI Nanggala has sunk, and all of its crew have died," said Military Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto. Despite efforts supported by Australia, the US, Singapore and Malaysia, officials on Saturday said the sub had fallen to a depth of 850m, well beyond its survival limit. Parts of the submarine, along with debris including prayer mats, had been found near an oil slick where it disappeared - and it’s the appearance of oil that has experts concerned the fuel tank could have been damaged. There are lots of questions to be answered, and an investigation has been launched.


MYANMAR MILITARY IN CROSSHAIRS

We’ve been to some awkward gatherings in our time, including one where a love triangle involving a newlywed couple and the groom’s best man was exposed. But the weekend’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting must have been next level… Hosted by Indonesia and held in Jakarta, the meeting saw Myanmar’s military leader General Min Aung Hlaing bowl up. He was told by leaders and foreign ministers from the 9 other member states that his regime must stop killing protesters and release all political prisoners, including democratically-elected civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. A plan to address the situation was also agreed. Singapore’s PM Lee Hsien Loong said the General "said he heard us". Time will tell… Summit organisers have been widely criticised for hosting the man who headed efforts to overthrow Myanmar’s government on 1 February and violent crackdowns that have seen more than 700 demonstrators die across the country. Foreign Minister Marise Payne joined calls condemning the actions of Myanmar’s military and committed $5 million to ASEAN’s humanitarian efforts there. #SquizShortcuts


BIDEN CALLS OUT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Anzac Day marks the landing of Aussie and Kiwi troops in Gallipoli, Turkey, on 25 April 1915, and the tough battle that followed. At the same time in the same region, another WWI tragedy was unfolding - the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire. And on Saturday - the 106th anniversary - US President Joe Biden broke with diplomatic norms to acknowledge it as a genocide. Starting on 24 April 1915, Armenians (predominantly Christians) living in the former Muslim-dominated Empire were subjected to a campaign of forced marches and mass killings. Why? There were concerns they would align with Russia during the war - the archenemies of the Ottoman Turks. Turkey still denies the atrocities, but lobbying from Armenians worldwide to have it acknowledged has been constant in recent years. Biden has raised the issue despite America’s important/prickly relationship with Turkey, saying it is to help the process of “healing and reconciliation for all the people of the world.”


INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION PLAYS TETRIS

There’s not enough room to swing a Baby Yoda after the International Space Station (ISS) welcomed 4 astronauts on board SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endeavour on Saturday. They arrived for a 6-month stint just 24 hours after liftoff and were welcomed with open arms by the 7 ISS residents. That makes it the biggest crowd up there in more than a decade, but it’s short of the all-time tin-can record of 13. The newcomers include 2 NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, Thomas Pesquet of France, and Akihiko Hoshide of Japan. Their journey is part of an effort by NASA to privatise the business of putting people into low-Earth orbit. Saturday’s mission was SpaceX’s 3rd crew flight for NASA, but it was the first time a capsule has been reused for crewed spaceflight. The 4 members of Crew-1, who arrived in November on the Crew Dragon Resilience, will spend 5 days showing Crew-2 the ropes before heading home to Earth.


ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET...

It may be 2 months late (cheers, COVID...), but the 93rd Academy Awards are on this morning Aussie time. Unlike the Golden Globes, Baftas and the Emmys, which went virtual due to the pandemic, the Oscars will be a real, live event - meaning no awkward Zoom moments… Nominees have been asked to attend one of several locations, including 2 venues in Los Angeles, where the main elements of the ceremony will take place, and international locations in London and Paris. Black and white drama Mank leads with 10 nominations, but some say it is unlikely to win the night’s top prizes, with the likes of NomadlandMinari, and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom expected to be in the winners’ circle. Other things to look out for: 2 women are up for Best Director for the first time in the Oscars’ history. Riz Ahmed could be the first Muslim actor to win a statue for Best Actor for Sound of Metal. And, Anthony Hopkins could make history as the oldest person to win the Best Actor award for The Father. Not up for an award - our Sia, who had a Golden Razzie blown at her on the weekend... If you’re looking to glitz up your Monday morning, the where-to-watch deets are here.


APROPOS OF NOTHING

After the debacle that was the Ever Given, it’s no wonder that the vision of a gigantic superyacht squeezing down narrow Dutch canals is causing us some anxiety… And yes, it too has caused a little traffic.

If you’re coming out of the weekend and into the light of a new week feeling a bit dazed and confused, imagine what 40 days in a dark cave would do to your circadian rhythms.

According to dating app data, nothing whispers the smooth language of love quite like “I’ve been COVID vaccinated”. If that’s not 2021 in a nutshell, we don’t know what is...

SQUIZ THE DAY

10.00am (AEST) - Oscar's Ceremony - Los Angeles, California

Anzac Day public holiday in the ACT, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Top End

World Intellectual Property Day

Birthdays for Melania Trump (1970) and Channing Tatum (1980)

Anniversary of:
• the Chernobyl nuclear disaster (1986)
• the wedding of Prince Albert Duke of York (King George VI) and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (1923)

 

 

 

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