--:-- Gideon Resnick: Good morning. It's Thursday, June 20th. I'm Gideon Resnick in for Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Coming up on today's show, the heat wave that is still enveloping much of the U.S., why some lawmakers are talking about making divorce more difficult, and the kid's snack that's become a nearly $1 billion brand. But first, let's take a look at some other major stories that are in the news.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: At least three people are dead in Mexico from tropical storm Alberto. It's the first named storm of the season and brought strong winds, heavy rain, and flooding to coastal communities in Texas as well.
--:-- [Audio clip of Dustin Leeds and Christine Martin speaking to NBC]
--:-- Dustin Leeds: Thigh high. Yeah, at least mid-thigh. Yeah, and it was hard. It was hard to walk in, especially down this stretch, the current. You could feel it.
--:-- Christine Martin: Bigger storms could follow Alberto in the months ahead. Forecasters predict an above-average hurricane season with warmer ocean temperatures a big factor.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: In Louisiana, a first-of-its-kind state law will require every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments. The governor signed it into law yesterday, kicking off a legal battle.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Several civil liberties groups say they're going to sue, arguing the law is unconstitutional. In Gaza, a floating pier built by the U.S. is working to resume delivering aid to civilians.
--:-- [Audio clip of American officials speaking]
--:-- American Official: The pier was reattached to the shore yesterday. It had to be temporarily removed for repairs last Friday after damage in the rough sea.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: The pier has a price tag that's estimated over $200 million, but it has delivered relatively little aid to Gaza. And it's not clear how long it'll be able to function.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: And in sports news, the Copa America soccer tournament is getting underway. It's only the second time it's being played outside of South America.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: The U.S., Canada, and Mexico will all host matches. And Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, is a favorite. It's possible this will be the last major international tournament where the superstar plays.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Today may be the first official day of summer but temperatures have already been soaring for a huge swath of the country At last check about 75 million people from the Great Lakes to the Northeast were under an excessive heat warning or heat advisory.
--:-- [Audio clip of kids at a local pool in Janesville, Wisconsin speaking to their local NBC affiliate]
--:-- Kid 1: Hot, sweaty, sticky, horrible.
--:-- Kid 2: That's how kids at a local pool in Janesville, Wisconsin described the heat to their local NBC affiliate.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: And if you're not nearby a pool and wearing business attire to work, things could be worse. NBC 4 in Washington spoke with this man who works on Capitol Hill.
--:-- [Audio clip of a man who works on Capitol Hill speaking to NBC 4 in Washington]
--:-- Man: You're going around in a woolen suit. It's not fun, but you just got to keep drinking water. You got to try and stay in air conditioning and you just can't stay out there too long.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: The mayor of Washington, D.C. declared a heat emergency through at least Friday. And cities, including Indianapolis, Detroit, Buffalo, Pittsburgh and others, could reach what's known as a level four heat risk.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: That means they're experiencing high temperatures for an extended period and with little or no reprieve overnight. Summers have been getting hotter for decades now due to human-caused climate change.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: But in this record-breaking heat wave, a weather system known as a heat dome is driving temperatures even higher. An area of high pressure traps hot air below it, kind of like a lid on a pot of boiling water.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: And it can linger for days until conditions change and the system moves on. And heat this high, this early, has experts concerned because people's bodies have had less time to adjust.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Often death tolls from early season heat waves are higher. NPR spoke with Jane Gilbert, Miami-Dade County's chief heat officer, about the health dangers and how to guard against them.
--:-- Jane Gilbert: It's not just heat exhaustion and heat stroke we're worrying about. It is heart attacks triggered by heat. It is a stroke. It is a pediatric asthma. Heat exhaustion, heat stroke is just the tip of the iceberg of impacts.
--:-- Jane Gilbert: Hydrate more than you usually would, especially if you have to be outside. Every hour, drink as much water as you can. And if you're exerting a lot of energy, replenish every third or fourth drink with electrolytes.
--:-- Jane Gilbert: Gilbert says if you notice someone may be dehydrated or affected by the heat, ask if they're feeling nauseous. If the answer is no, get them fluids and to a cool spot.
--:-- Jane Gilbert: But if the answer is yes, or if you see someone who's unconscious, call 911. The record heat is expected to last through the weekend, especially in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: And according to current models you can expect temperatures to remain hotter than usual across much of the country into July
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Some Christian conservatives, including high-profile lawmakers, are talking about making it harder for Americans to get a divorce.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Vox reports on how this would be a reversal of a long-running trend in the U.S. Over the last 50 years or so, states have adopted policies that allow couples to legally separate without having to prove in court that their spouse did anything wrong, like abuse, adultery, or abandonment.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: And for years, any efforts to eliminate these no-fault divorce laws have seemed like a long shot. But reporter Anna North told us the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade changed everything.
--:-- Anna North: And experts in family law are worried that divorce could be one of the areas that conservative policymakers try to rewrite next.
--:-- Anna North: And what a lot of experts told me is that we are living in a really different landscape now when it comes to the law around reproduction and family formation. With Dobbs, now things are on the table that weren't on the table before.
--:-- Anna North: A number of federal and state Republican lawmakers oppose no-fault divorce. Notably Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, has spoken out for decades against it, but hasn't introduced a bill on it in Congress.
--:-- Anna North: Ben Carson, considered a potential vice presidential pick for Donald Trump, recently called for ending no-fault divorce laws as well. In both Texas and Nebraska, dissolving or restricting no-fault divorce is listed on the Republican state party platform.
--:-- Anna North: And earlier this year, a Republican senator in Oklahoma introduced a bill to end the practice statewide. It didn't pass. Conservative lawmakers and commentators argue that no-fault divorce can harm men and the fabric of American society.
--:-- Anna North: But North says the research tells a very different story. Scholars will point out that actually after we saw the no-fault divorce laws come in, we saw rates of domestic violence and spousal murder start to drop.
--:-- Anna North: So there is evidence that introducing no-fault divorce just made it easier for people to leave really bad marriages, including abusive marriages. North points out polls show most Americans are okay with allowing people to get divorced.
--:-- Anna North: And experts say ending no-fault divorce would add enormous financial, logistical, and emotional strain for people trying to end marriages and for their children.
--:-- Anna North: But as they've watched conservative lawmakers go after IVF and birth control in the wake of the Dobbs decision, there a real fear that divorce could be another target
--:-- Anna North: And so I think a lot of people are really concerned that all of these ways that we think about people getting together people having families people controlling their reproductive lives, that all of this is up for debate and up for change now in a way that it maybe wasn't just a few years ago.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Finally, to a classic sandwich that kids love and adults just can't seem to quit. To the point where one iteration is now worth nearly $1 billion. I'm talking about Uncrustables, those little white discs of bread that are filled with peanut butter and jelly.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: But as the name suggests, with no crust to be found. These little stuffed sandwiches have been around since the 90s. But they're going through a sort of boom right now, fueled in part by professional athletes.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Like the NFL's Kelsey brothers who've gushed about their obsession on their podcast. It's so complete as a sandwich. I said, have we talked about this already? I mean, I eat Uncrustable probably more than I eat anything else in the world.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: PB&Js. Listen, Uncrustable has been a fantastic invention. Clint Rainey is a writer for Fast Company, and he recently reported on the history of Uncrustables.
--:-- Clint Rainey: They appeal to parents who perhaps chowed down on a few Uncrustables back in their day and now have kids of their own with strong, no-crust feelings.
--:-- Clint Rainey: But they especially appeal to athletes who love a good grab-and-go snack. There was some reporting that the Baltimore Ravens ate 7,500 of these things last NFL season.
--:-- Clint Rainey: They just sort of become this cultural artifact, especially in professional sports. They are so popular today that an executive at Smuckers, which makes them says Uncrustables are now the number one, two, and three priority.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: You can take it from me, they are indeed pretty addictive, but I personally think it's kind of gross to microwave them like some people have done recently.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: You can find all of these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're listening in the News app right now, you can stick around for an episode of Apple News In Conversation with more insights on extreme heat.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Last summer, the hottest on record, we spoke with climate journalist Jeff Goodell about the risks of hot weather and the dire implications for our health and our planet.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: If you're listening in the podcast app, you can find that episode by searching for Apple News in Conversation. And we'll be back with the news tomorrow.
