Brazilian national space research agency Inpe released preliminary data showing deforestation in the Amazon rainforest reached a record high for the first half of 2022. Friday’s data shows that from January to June, roughly 1,540 square miles of rainforest were cleared. That area is: Five times the size of New York City An increase of…

Inc. Magazine hailed 2022 as “The Year of Salary Transparency,” and LinkedIn listed salary transparency as an idea that will change the world. At least seven states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Nevada, Rhode Island, and Washington, and two cities (Cincinnati and Toledo) already have some form of pay transparency law on the books. On Nov.…

There’s a nationwide shortage of law enforcement officers, and it doesn’t look like it will be over anytime soon. Over the past two years, a record number of people left policing. In Seattle, more than 250 officers have left since 2020. In Minneapolis, there are so few officers on the street that the police chief there…

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led to an all-out war, which is now fueling a global food crisis. However, Moscow is blaming the West and international sanctions for the world’s growing food woes. Ukraine and Russia export approximately 30% of the world’s wheat supply, but Western nations are unable to buy the commodity thanks to Russia’s…

The housing market has been red hot over the last two years and prices are at all-time highs. With mortgage rates climbing, sales are starting to plunge and the housing bubble alarm is going off. Here are the most overvalued housing markets in this week’s Five For Friday. #5: Atlanta Homes in Atlanta are fetching a…

New numbers from the Census Bureau revealed the southern and western United States were big winners while big cities were big losers in terms of population change during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The numbers, released Thursday, compared populations between July 2020 and July 2021. “Populations of cities and towns in the South…

Authorities in Buffalo, New York began their week working on the investigation into this weekend’s mass shooting at a Tops supermarket in a predominantly black neighborhood in the city. 10 people were killed and three others were wounded in the shooting. Authorities said they were investigating the shooting as as a potential federal hate crime…

Protests over last week’s leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion on abortion carried into the weekend. The opinion, which addresses the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, appears to indicate that the court is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade. Hundreds gathered in Chicago, Atlanta, Houston and other cities. One of the more…

A New York judge found former President Donald Trump in contempt of court for not producing documents subpoenaed by the state’s attorney general as part of a civil investigation into his business dealings. Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Trump to pay a fine of $10,000 per day until he complies. Trump lost a bid to put…

A federal judge’s decision to strike down a national mask mandate has led to immediate changes, as some transportation providers, including Uber, Amtrak, and three major airlines, said they wouldn’t require employees or customers to wear masks anymore. The policy changes follow an announcement from the Transportation Security Administration that it wouldn’t enforce a January…