The Pour Over Today - Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Episode Date: May 18, 2022

Today we’re talking about the latest from Mariupol, an update on Elon Musk’s Twitter purchase, new developments in the baby formula shortage, and other top news for Wednesday, May 18th. Stay informed, while remaining focused on Christ, with The Pour Over.Sponsored by the Beyond the Forum Podcast - search for "Beyond the Forum" wherever you listen to Podcasts.  Shawn Johnson's Baby Formula Exchange:https://links.thepourover.org/3wrGDFmUFO sighting:https://links.thepourover.org/3yLjPmK

Today we're talking about the latest from Mary Upol, an update on Elon Musk's Twitter purchase, new developments in the baby formula shortage, and other top news for Wednesday, May 18th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Here's the quote of the day. The Word of God and the grace of Christ in the promises are our daily support and the constant nourishment of our souls. Isaac Watts. Let's get started with some espresso shots. Mariupol's holdout is over and both sides are claiming a victory. Ukraine says the remaining forces in the Azovstal steel plant completed their, quote, combat mission and have been

evacuated. At least 260 fighters, including 53 who were seriously injured, were evacuated to Russian-held territory as prisoners of war. Ukraine praised the port city's unexpected resilience that occupied Russian forces for nearly three months, hailed the fighters as heroes, and promised they'll be brought home through, quote, an exchange procedure. The Kremlin described the end of Mariupol's resistance differently, as a Ukrainian surrender and complete victory for Russia. When asked whose side he was on, Ronald McDonald chose Ukraine. On Monday, McDonald's announced the closure of all 850 locations in Russia.

It's the first major market the restaurant has ever decided to McLeave. It's easy to become angry and indignant over world events, but much more difficult to live with the tension of desiring change while simultaneously loving everyone involved. Followers of Christ are called to that tension, loving the very people they work against. Matthew 5.44 says, Elon Musk is in the review your order stage of his Twitter purchase and he's not clicking submit just yet. Musk has made clear his initial offer was based on spam bots making up less than 5% of Twitter handles, and he says the deal, quote,

cannot move forward until the percentage is confirmed. If it's found to be more, Musk may try to negotiate a lower price as he continues his quest towards self-tweeting cars. Speaking of complicated, Spirit Airlines board declined an acquisition offer by JetBlue in favor of a merger with Frontier Airlines, but JetBlue is refusing to just take off. Yesterday, JetBlue launched a hostile takeover attempt. That means buying all outstanding stock against the board's wishes. Regardless of which co-pilot Spirit ends up with, the deal will get close attention from anti-competition regulators. Our goal is to keep the big things big and the small things small. It's not that major mergers and acquisitions aren't important.

They just aren't God of the universe important. Stay focused on eternity. It changes everything. Colossians 3, 2, and 3 says, Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Abbott reached a deal with the FDA on Monday to reopen its Michigan plant and begin pumping baby formula back onto empty store shelves. In another episode of Why Is Everything Out

of Stock, a trifecta of issues spawned the shortage, including a recall of Abbott-made formula, supply chain issues, and strict regulations. There are only four authorized manufacturers of baby formula. An investigation between Abbott, the FDA, and the CDC found, quote, no conclusive evidence to link Abbott's formula to the illnesses that prompted the recall, but the FDA will closely monitor the newly reopened plant. Manufacturing can resume in two weeks, but the product won't hit the shelves for another six to eight. Meanwhile, the U.S. is temporarily reducing administrative hurdles, but not safety standards, on formula imports, and the other three domestic formula manufacturers are increasing their production. Shortages of food and goods can make anyone

anxious, yet difficult times like these give Christians the incredible opportunity to share rather than hoard what God has given us, remembering Jesus' command for radical generosity. One place to start is a formula exchange started by Olympic gymnast Sean Johnson. You can check it out at the link in our show notes. Hebrews 13, 16 says, don't neglect to do what is good and to share for God is pleased with such sacrifices. This podcast is brought to you by the Beyond the Forum podcast. For 30 years, the Veritas Forum has hosted conversations that matter across different worldviews. And now they're working with PRX, that's the producer of This American Life and other shows, to create an amazing and much-needed podcast, Beyond the Forum. Past seasons have broached topics like being in community with folks with whom we disagree,

artificial intelligence, science and God, and more. Now in season three, they're tackling how we can be better people. Listen to episodes on growing in virtue, combating addiction, and designing a well-balanced life. If you're interested, you can search for Beyond the Forum wherever you listen to podcasts. In other brews, we've got a rapid round of updates. In a 6-3 ruling, the Supreme sided with Senator Ted Cruz and removed the limit on using post-election donations used to repay a candidate's personal campaign loans. Advocates say that these loans allow unknown challengers a chance at victory, while critics say donations going directly to a newly elected official sounds like a bribe.

Yesterday, congressional lawmakers heard public testimony from defense officials on UFOs. The officials said there are 400 unexplained encounters, but no evidence any were, quote, non-terrestrial in origin. A new law requires the Pentagon to investigate all UFO sightings and provide regular classified and public reports. You can check out a link to one of those sightings in our show notes. Parishioners at a California Taiwanese Presbyterian church are being heralded as heroes after they hogtied a gunman and held him in custody until authorities arrived. The shooting killed one person and injured five others. Officials report that the gunman, who was a U.S. citizen and a Chinese immigrant,

was motivated by hatred for Taiwan. Get those Buzz Lightyear Band-Aids ready. The FDA has authorized Pfizer's COVID booster for children ages 5 to 11. They're citing waning immunity from initial jabs. Only 28% of children in this age group have received their first two doses, so there may not be a line at CVS just yet. Primary season is in full swing. Last night, voters cast ballots in Idaho, Kentucky, North Carolina, Oregon, and in Pennsylvania, where celebrity physician Dr. Oz was locked in a close three-way battle with hedge fund manager David McCormick and conservative commentator Kathy Barnett for the GOP Senate nomination.

That's all we have for today. Thanks so much for listening. If you're listening on the Apple Podcast app, you can give us a five-star rating and drop us a review. If you're listening on Spotify, give us a follow and hit that notification bell to never miss a new episode. And finally, the simplest way to help us grow is to send this episode to a friend. We hope you have a great rest of your day and we'll see you back here on Friday, May 20th.