The Pour Over Today - Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Episode Date: April 20, 2022

Today we’re talking about maskless plane rides, an update on Ukraine, tragedies across the globe over Easter weekend, and other top news for Wednesday, April 20th.  Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over.Sponsored by For What It’s Worth:https://sparklp.co/prtn/667d7c?email=*|EMAIL|*

Today we'll be talking about maskless plane rides, we'll give you an update on Ukraine, we'll cover tragedies across the globe over Easter weekend, and other top news for Wednesday, April 20th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Here's the quote of the day, Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer. John Bunyan Let's get started with some espresso shots. from prayer. John Bunyan. Let's get started with some espresso shots.

You can take off the N95 and shake off the Biscoff crumbs. A federal judge struck down the federal mask mandate for airplanes and trains on Monday night. The judge was responding to a lawsuit filed in July 2021, and she ultimately ruled that the 14-month-long mandate was an overreach of the CDC's authority. In response, the TSA said it will no longer enforce mask wearing on airports across the country, and most airlines, including American, United, Delta, and Southwest, declared masks optional. Not to be outdone by the airships, Uber and Lyft announced they are also dropping mask requirements. While some flight attendants greeted the news by bursting into song at 30,000 feet, the CDC hasn't totally changed its tune. They're still recommending masks on public transit,

and it's not clear if they'll appeal the ruling. When discussing divisive topics such as masks, remember that how you take your stance reflects on Christ. We should not be willing to sacrifice relationships to win an argument. Romans 12.18 says, If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. It has re-begun. Ukraine's President Zelensky said that Russia's long-anticipated all-out attack on eastern Ukraine, also known as the Donbass, began on Monday. Russia has backed

separatists in that region since 2014, and they claim that Russian speakers in the area face genocide. Zelensky promised that Ukraine would fight, quote, no matter how many Russian troops are driven there. While new fighting is starting, old fighting never stopped. After nearly eight weeks of siege, satellite images show that approximately 90% of Mariupol has been destroyed. Local officials are claiming as many as 20,000 civilians have been killed, yet it still remains outside Russia's control. Many Ukrainian fighters and civilians have retreated to the enormous Azovstal steel plant, described as a fortress, and yesterday they refused another ultimatum by the Kremlin to surrender or be killed. 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 more difficult to live with the tension of desiring change while simultaneously loving everyone involved. Followers of Christ are called to live in that tension, loving the very people they work against. Matthew 5, 44 says, For many around the world, it wasn't a fun sing, worship and eat chocolate kind of Easter. Here were some of the tragedies that happened. Two teenagers were killed during a shooting at a 200-person party hosted at an Airbnb in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At least nine people were wounded in a shooting at a nightclub in Furman, South Carolina, but no fatalities were reported in this case.

At least 14 people were injured in a shootout at a mall in Columbia, South Carolina, but no fatalities were reported. Authorities believe the shooting may have been gang-related. The weekend also saw religious clashes abroad. Rallies organized by a politician who burned a Quran prompted rioters to violently take to the streets in Sweden, and Israeli riot police faced off with Palestinians hurling fireworks after Jews visited a disputed holy site in Jerusalem. The promise of heaven does not remove the pains of this world, but it does give us hope, strength, and peace, even in the darkest valleys. Join us in praying for hope, strength, and peace for everyone impacted by the war. Psalm 23, 4 says, even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. This podcast is brought to you by For

What It's Worth. While investing is about getting a financial return, it's not an excuse for supporting, well, bad companies. For the same non-financial reasons you may choose not to invest in a tobacco company, you may also not want to invest in companies using bad labor practices, polluting the planet, or with questionable corporate governance. At The Pour Over, we sometimes talk about what's happening in the investment world, but if you want to see how it actually applies to you, check out For What It's Worth. Their weekly newsletter is easy to read and applicable to anyone with money. You can grab the link in the show notes to automatically subscribe to the free newsletter. Seriously, just click.

In other brews, we've got a rapid round of updates. Infowars must fight a fresh battle, bankruptcy. The website filed for Chapter 11 after its owner, radio host Alex Jones, was found liable for claiming the Sandy Hook school shooting was faked. Its assets are estimated at less than $50,000 and their liabilities between $1 and $10 million. than $50,000 and their liabilities between $1 and $10 million. In March, immigration authorities stopped 221,303 migrants along the southern U.S. border. This is up 33% from February, and it's the highest total in two decades.

Meanwhile, Texas Governor Abbott repealed his extra inspection requirement on trucks crossing the border after cooperation from more Mexican states and backlash from U.S. businesses. Twitter's board unanimously adopted a so-called poison pill plan, which would flood the market with cheap shares if, quote, any one person or group buys 50% of Twitter's outstanding stock. This is meant to deter anyone who might want to buy Twitter and take it private. Your move, Elon. Johnny Depp took the stand yesterday in his $50 million defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard, who he claimed devastated his career by falsely referring to herself as the victim of domestic abuse. Heard is countersuing Depp for $100 million, saying she was abused and he is trying to, quote, destroy her. saying she was abused and he is trying to, quote, destroy her. Netflix stock cratered 25% in after-hours trading yesterday after announcing that it lost 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter.

It had projected a 2.5 million gain. The streaming giant blamed increased competition and password sharing for their first decline in subs in a decade, and they suggested a password sharing crackdown is coming. That's all we have for today. Thanks so much for listening. If you're listening on the Apple Podcast app, give us a five-star rating and drop a review. If you're listening on Spotify, give us a follow and hit the 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, April 22nd.