# Top 5 [ Oct 12, 2020 ]
*INTRO*
What’s up everybody! Welcome to another episode of the Top 5 @ 5 with your host Jonni Kuest. Today is [ Monday Oct 12, 2020 ]. Here’s what you missed while you were celebrating your sports wins, or mourning their losses over the weekend :


1. Confirmation Hearings (Now Hear This)	
	1. the senate Judiciary committee started their confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barret to take over the now empty seat of ruth bader ginsburg. This will be the first time a confirmation hearing takes place while early voting has already begun for the presidential election. something republicans seem to not really care about. Even after saying they would never do this, just like most politicians, you can only believe what they say in the moment for that moments situation. Once things change, so does their ideology. So what’s the deal today? Well thats most of what their talking about in opening statements. That and Democrats being worried about the affordable care act being dismantled by someone that currently doesn’t agree with it and has been critical of the two latest decisions in the court that have upheld it. THere’s the same argument still being made bout Roe v Wade as well, especially since it came to light that Ms Barrett quote in 2006 signed a two-page ad in the /South Bend Tribune/declaring that “it’s time to put an end to the barbaric legacy of /Roe v. Wade/ and restore laws that protect the lives of unborn children.” According to /The Guardian/, the ad was sponsored by St. Joseph County Right to Life, a group that Barrett and her husband were members of. The group also opposes in vitro fertilization. end quote. Yea she’s super catholic. not that there’s anything wrong with that. as many republicans would argue and have been doing today. But there’s no religious test for public service as they keep on saying. You can or can not practice your religion on your time. What you can’t and shouldn’t do, is allow your religious beliefs to influence your decisions when ruling on established law. thats where being a supreme court justice could very well get slimy for Ms Barrett, who really doesn’t have any disqualifications for the role, other than, I personally find it weird that she never practiced law. she was a professor at Notre Dame for many years, then was nominated for the courts. I mean I guess she knows law. just seems weird to me. though she did clerk for justice scalia, who passed away in 2015. and she’s basically said she’s his junior. so if wanted more of him celebrate. if he bothered you to the core as he did me, let us weep together in tears of defeat, because I see nothing preventing this confirmation from continuing and a swearing in ceremony before the end of this year. What ya gonna do? I guess you can try trumps strategy from the 2016 debate stage: quote delay delay delay delay. 
2. Foxconned
	1. Remember when Trumpito won the election and stated he would be bringing back manufacturing jobs to the US, and he touted the big deal that was going to be made in Wisconsin, where the taiwanese manufacturing company known internationally as Foxconn was going to start making iPhone in the US. Then we learned, no they’re just going to make LCD panels here. But they were still supposed to hire 13 thousand people. hah. Even before they broke ground, in an elaborately staged ceremony with Trump included, they’d already dropped that down to a smaller factory and around 520 new hires. Btw, the former Wisconsin governor, Scott walker, hooked them up with 3Bn in tax subsidies and a $10Bn investment in the supposed 20M square foot factory. that was never built. yea. prolly why he lost the election in 2018. And now governor Tony Evers was like, nuh-uh, you aint getting naahhting.   Quote the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), which oversees the deal,  rejected  Foxconn’s application for tax subsidies on the grounds that Foxconn had not carried out the LCD factory project described in its original contract. The issue of factory type is more than a technicality. The state’s economic impact analysis was predicated on an enormous factory rapidly scaling up to employing 13,000 people and tapping into local supply chains. This hasn’t happened. end quote. The state is hoping this will bring foxconn back to the table to renegotiate their contract. Obviously 3Bn in subsidies doesn’t make any sense if you’re never gonna hire the 13K people initially intended. Foxconn hasn’t responded, but i’m guessing Tony Gou is feeling too happy right now. 
3. Armenian-Azerbajian Cease Fire 
	1. OK so I haven’t done an international story lately, obviously there are some things happening here in the states that I couldn’t ignore, but over the weekend we had a big update on what going on between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the territory known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh, or, as the Armenians call it, Artsak. And for the sake of his segment, i’m going to call it Artsak, because its faster and easier to say, not because i’m on the side of the Armenians. Just to note that. So. Here’s the part where I try to condense 1000 years of history into a 2 minute segment and i’m already 25 seconds in.  So main thing is, this region has typically had ethnic majority Armenians,  mixed with Azerries. OK, so it all started back during the USSR days, large numbers of Armenians lived in Artsak, which, is inside the borders of Azerbaijan. They’ve fought over this region for decades. When both countries left the Soviet Union, this section tried to also declare independence and call itself the republic of artsak, although no UN nation, not even armenia recognized it. Ok, now this year, in themniddle of all the other BS going on, fighting has started to increase along the border again. 14 died in July. And it escalated even further last week with drone strikes in the region by the Azeris to try and take control back.  over 100 military and over 25 civilian deaths have taken place. Armenia declared martial law in the region. This had become a full scale war with tanks, drone strikes, missiles and rockets. And the biggest intstigator here, is Turkey. no surprise. Erdogan is egging this on by blaming the armenians, typical, and even threatening to join the Azeris in action. Of all people, Iranians are the ones calling for peace. Russia too. Of course the US is also looking help broker peace. Well looks like we have a cease fire. But not because of our doing, it was Russia that once again brings stability to the regions fighting. For now. The truce allows both sides to exchange prisoners and recover the dead. The trukification of the region worries Russia. And it should worry others as well. Armenians in the US, of which there are an estimated 500k to well over 1M, took to the streets in support/protest and celebration. You could see in NYC where protestors blocked traffic on the brooklyn bridge, apparently thats the new thing to do if you want some attention. But that’s where we are with this story right now. It’s gonna be interesting to see what happens from here and if a lasting agreement can be made for the people of nagorno-karabakh, or artsakh, however you refer to it. 
4. CBS Sued by Robbers
	1. This is one of those stories where you’re left with more questions than answers, but I guess we’ll have to wait until it goes to trial to learn more. Check this. Imagine you’re working the day at your little bodega, and three dudes with masks and assault rifles jump out of a mini van, run to the jewelry store next door and scream out, this is a robbery. Probably call the cops right? Well thats what happened in New Orleans a couple years back. Why am I talking about it now? Well the 3 actors in the ski masks were just that, actors in the NCIS: New orleans show. But apparently, producers forgot to tell neighbors, or the police officers they were filming that day. So cops showed up, guns drawn and had to be talked down. The actors confessed to being just that…and I would imagine there was a camera crew there as well. So now the actors are suing CBS productions for the trauma they still experience. They really thought they were gonna die. And CBS’s defense so far is, why are you suing us in LA, that took place in New Orleans. Which is pretty weak ass argument. How did they not have permits in place? How did they not give anyone a heads up? But also, how did the bodega owner not notice a camera crew, lighting, catering, mics and cabling and all the usual stuff I see around here when they’re filming a small segment for yet another cop drama. All of this seems pretty suspect, but most likely will fall against CBS in their failure to manage this properly. I’m guessing, out of court settlement for 3 out of work actors looking for some bread. but damn, good thing nothin happened. that would’ve been one crazy cliffhanger for LL Cool J to solve. idk is he still even on that show? lol
5. Singapore Airplane food
	1. And finally, we spoke previously about the airline industry suffering a massive hit economic hit due the demic. and its not just in the US, it’s an international issue. Well in Singapore, they’re tryna do something unique. Singapore airlines decided to make their grounded planes into Pop-up restaurants. Two of their superjumbo planes are being turned into busyness class dining centers, and if you’re thinking, who tf wants to eat airplane food on purpose, well you wouldn’t be crazy cuz that’s what I thought. Even though Singapore air is classy, its still a frickin airplane right? Well color me foolish, cuz they sold out all tickets within 30 minutes. There must be NOTHING else to do. it aint cheap either. a suite meal, yea they have suites, would cost $475, business class seats were 235$, premium economy was 70$ and $40 to sit in the back and tell your friends you sat in the front. I mean they’re not gonna make back the 1.2 Billion they’ve lost so far in peanuts and blue chips, but it’s probably a better deal than the cruise ship from singapore that goes nowhere, just around the island. I mean I get your bored, but no. NO cruise ships. even at 50% capacity. I imagine you’d probably need to OpenTable a reservation at the emergency room for when you return right? 


*OUTRO*
Well my beautiful people, those are my Top 5 news stories of the day.  *Lakers shout-out…plus the Bubble. Rafael Nadal, king of the clay, wins 13th French Open/20th Grand Slam. Most all time. Tim Bradley forgot 4th down was what happens after the first 3 plays. Yankee lost to the Rays in 5 games. Trump is immune to the virus now? PrimeDay starts tomorrow, and the deals are already starting to roll through. And at the same time, Walmart and target are having their own sales to drag you away and entice you with curbside pickup.*. Alright, don’t forget to vote. Make sure you beat your registration deadline. Lots of states have that early in person voting so you dont have to be stuck in lines, or just mail in your absentee, but remember to be counted. Link in the show notes if you have any questions about your state. and for those of you that have already voted, thank you. And Thanks once again to my regular listeners that are always telling their friends where to get their daily news updates, top5at5.com. If you’re new here, welcome, and why not consider subscribing and adding me to your list of podcasts. If you don’t really listen to podcasts, welcome to the life. And as always, remember to stay focused, proud, and dedicated. I got you with the news.


*PROMO*

What’s up everybody! We just posted another episode of the Top 5 @ 5 with JonniKuest for [ DATE ]. In this one, we updated you on *Stuff* Check it out today. Listen and Subscribe. Top5at5.com Peace.