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Shumita Basu, Narrating: Good morning! It’s Wednesday, October 25th. I’m Shumita Basu. This is “Apple News Today.” On today’s show… Why dozens of states are suing Meta, busting a shoplifting crime ring that stole millions of dollars in goods, and the failed promise of self-checkout machines.
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But first, the latest on the Israel-Hamas war. Israeli airstrikes on Gaza are steadily escalating, raising the death toll. Gaza’s health ministry says around 6,000 people have been killed so far. The ministry is controlled by Hamas and those numbers can’t be fully verified. But independent aid groups say there have been massive amounts of civilian deaths. Save the Children counts at least two thousand children who have been killed.
The UN agency that’s the largest aid provider in Gaza says it’ll have to cease operations today unless it receives fuel so it can transport goods. There’s been a trickle of food, medicine, and clean water into the area. But Israel is refusing to allow fuel in, saying it could be used by Hamas to wage war.
The lack of fuel is having a devastating effect on hospitals in Gaza. Generators are running dry, meaning key equipment doesn’t function. Physicians are literally working under fire. Dozens of doctors are reported dead from the waves of airstrikes.
Hospitals are filled past the breaking point, with the World Health Organization saying many are at around 150% of capacity. And healthcare workers are trying to do what they can with limited supplies. Surgeons are operating on patients with little or no anesthesia. Vinegar is often the best antiseptic they can find. With bandages gone, doctors are using clothes to wrap wounds… an infection risk. Home sewing needles have to suffice to close wounds. And along with injuries from airstrikes, doctors say they’re seeing more patients with signs of disease caused by poor sanitation and overcrowding. A result of more than one million people fleeing their homes for temporary shelters.
Dr. Mohammed Qandeel told “The Wall Street Journal” that the lack of power has them using only the light from their phones to operate in the darkness.
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Dr. Mohammed Qandeel: We are in very difficult situation. It’s catastrophic, it’s terrible, unbearable. No words can describe it.
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Many countries are calling for a ceasefire to allow more aid to get into Gaza. Israel has refused. And the U.S. says a ceasefire now “only benefits Hamas.” But the U.S. also says Israel should consider pauses in bombings so that more aid can get into the area.
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Now, let’s take a quick look at some other stories in the news.
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First, we have yet another Republican candidate for Speaker of the House. Louisiana Republican Mike Johnson is the latest party nominee. He’s described as a low-key politician who’s been able to avoid making many enemies. Yesterday, Majority Whip Tom Emmer beat the field of candidates in a private vote. But he dropped his bid for speaker hours later when it was clear he didn’t have enough Republican support to win a House floor vote. The latest candidate, Johnson, could face a full floor vote as early as today.
In Acapulco, Mexico, Hurricane Otis hit this morning as a top-strength Category 5 storm. The hurricane got very powerful, very fast. The biggest intensification ever seen in the northeast Pacific.
On to legal news, where dozens of states are suing Meta. They say the company has harmed children by building addictive features into Facebook and Instagram. Meta has been under investigation for how its platforms may be harmful to young people’s mental health. The company has consistently criticized the investigation, saying it’s made many policy and product changes to make services safer for kids. Meta says it’s disappointed the attorneys general have decided to sue.
And in sports, the World Series matchup is now set. The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Philadelphia Phillies last night. That means they will face the Texas Rangers for the championship, with Game 1 of the Series on Friday.
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Moving on, retail shoplifting has been in the news a lot lately. Some chains say it’s becoming a bigger problem, hurting their businesses.
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There’s conflicting data on how bad shoplifting is right now. But one thing is clear. Organized crime is part of the picture… hiring thieves to steal expensive items in bulk, and reselling them online. This is not teenagers stealing candy bars. “The Wall Street Journal” looked at how Home Depot uncovered a crime ring that stole and sold millions of dollars’ worth of goods before getting busted.
“Journal” reporter Inti Pacheco told us it can take years for companies and police to track down the individuals they believe are involved with these crime rings. He wrote about a pastor in Florida who ran a drug recovery program. But behind the scenes, he’s accused of recruiting people who came for treatment to steal expensive tools from Home Depot stores all over the state.
Inti Pacheco: He basically operated as a fence, which is the middleman between the boosters who steal stuff from retail stores, and he would buy that stolen merchandise and then would go to online resale platforms and sell them for a profit.
Authorities say this is one of the easiest ways for criminals to unload stolen goods. Platforms like e-Bay and Amazon have teams that watch out for questionable accounts and work with law enforcement. But it can be hard to tell which resale accounts are legitimate and which are criminal.
To track people down who are operating as fences, chain stores will tell online marketplaces about certain items thieves are targeting. Then they can flag resale accounts that have large inventories of those products. The e-Bay account in the story, the one run by the Florida pastor, was flagged for suspicious activity in 2017.
Pacheco: But it wasn't until like 2021 that Home Depot had enough resources to actually look at this closely.
Industry numbers show losses from theft jumped during the pandemic. They rose nearly 50% in 2020. To deter shoplifting gangs, companies are putting more resources into their own investigations, and working more closely with police and online platforms. And Congress passed new legislation in June to make it harder for criminals to hide online. Now, larger resale accounts have to provide more information and be tracked by e-commerce companies.
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Staying with retail, let’s talk about the beeping, buggy elephant in the room. The self-checkout machine. “The Atlantic” looks at what went wrong with the technology that was supposed to make things faster and easier, for shoppers and for stores.
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Self-checkout’s initial promise to retailers was that it would allow companies to hire fewer employees and reduce wait times for customers. There is this funny little psychological effect for customers. They often think it goes faster because they’re actively participating. But what they’re mostly doing is the work of a cashier, for free.
Now, as we all know, self-checkout machines are often finicky. An item won’t scan, or it’ll scan three times. And good luck finding a human employee to help. "The Atlantic" explains that the machines often don’t work because of buggy technology that frequently breaks down.
So, if they're not living up to the promise, why have they stuck around? The thing is, stores spent a fortune installing them. Even a simple four-kiosk setup is a six-figure installation cost. Plus the expense of IT workers and maintenance. And that’s the big takeaway in this "Atlantic" piece… self-checkout machines are not going away because of their expense. Stores have invested heavily in the tech, hired fewer workers, and now they’re stuck with this model they sunk all this money into.
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There are signs that some stores are realizing they may have gone too far in automation, and are now bringing back some human employees at checkout. But for the most part, self-checkout is here to stay.
You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you’re already listening in the News app right now, we've got a Narrated Article coming up next from “WIRED.” It looks at the global rise in myopia, or nearsightedness. In Taiwan, up to 90 percent of teens and young adults have it. But researchers there have made a breakthrough that could help vision around the world.
If you’re listening in the Podcasts app, follow Apple News+ Narrated to find that story. And I’ll be back with the news tomorrow.
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