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The Boston Celtics are poised to make history for the second time in just a few weeks. The team's ownership group, Boston Basketball Partners LLC, is looking to sell the newly crowned NBA champs "for estate and family planning considerations," it says. It's a "sell high" moment for many pro sports teams; in the NBA alone, three teams have sold over the past year for more than $3 billion each. The Celtics are worth an estimated $5.1 billion — the fourth-highest valuation in the league, per Sportico. The current ownership group purchased the team for $360 million in 2002. Meanwhile, Celtics star Jayson Tatum has agreed to a five-year, $314 million extension — the biggest ever contract in the NBA, ESPN reports, citing anonymous sources. The league is also negotiating a massive media deal with ESPN, Comcast and Amazon, multiple outlets report.

The Guardian Isn't capitalism just... wonderful?

x This country is such a shithole sometimes

The U.S. Supreme Court threw out a judicial decision rejecting Donald Trump's bid to shield himself from federal criminal charges involving his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in a major ruling on Monday involving the scope of presidential immunity from prosecution. The court's 6-3 conservative majority includes three justices Trump appointed. Smith's election subversion charges embody one of the four criminal cases Trump has faced. If Trump regains the presidency, he could try to force an end to the prosecution or potentially pardon himself for any federal crimes. https://www.ctvnews.ca/mobile/world/u-s-supreme-court-tosses-judicial-decision-rejecting-donald-trump-s-immunity-bid-1.6947349 The three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor writing that under this decision "the President is now a king above the law" Trump sees this as a major victory. So do most court-watchers https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cw0y5228v1yt Full decision: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf

A massive political, PR and personal campaign is underway to reject calls for President Biden to drop his re-election race — and rally Democrats to move on from public debate about age and his future, top officials tell us. Why it matters: Biden has zero interest in stepping aside — and First Lady Jill Biden and key family members and friends agree, according to people who talk regularly with them. The intrigue: Biden, who has ducked tough interviews and avoided no-holds-barred press conferences, is now considering both. Look for a town hall or big one-on-one interview this month. The latest: During a family gathering at Camp David on Sunday, Biden family members, including Hunter, went through with a long-scheduled session with celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz. The Bidens insisted the president stay in the race, we're told by people close to them. "They're all-in, and want him to stay in," a Biden source told us, adding that the campaign is "charging ahead." Behind the scenes: Some Biden friends and family blamed longtime aides who had prepped Biden. They complained about everything from data-heavy answers to his makeup to his briefing on camera angles. Full article: https://www.axios.com/2024/07/01/biden-2024-election-pr-campaign-step-aside

Despite same-sex marriage not being (yet) allowed in Latvia, the parliament voted a law that allows same-sex couples some rights under the law. Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/latvian-couple-become-first-register-same-sex-partnership-under-new-law-2024-07-01/ Congratulations to this couple

Over 200 Palestinians displaced from Gaza have been given apartments in a newly built neighborhood of Grozny, the capital of Russia's Muslim-majority Chechen Republic. According to the Chechen head, construction of the complex took about six months. During this time, 55 of the Palestinians found jobs, while their children and teenagers were placed in schools and universities. All of them have been studying Russian. "Our immediate plans include the creation of a Palestinian community in the Chechen Republic so that refugees can preserve their national identity," Kadyrov added. https://www.rt.com/russia/600180-palestinians-grozny-chechnya-kadyrov/

UPDATE ON JULY 1ST:

BY THE NUMBERS - Reports of antisemitic and anti-Muslim acts increased by 284% and 29% respectively, while other types of racist acts increased by 21%. - 51% of survey respondents from the general population don't feel at home in France anymore, compared to 43% of French citizens in 2022, which the report authors link to a rejection of immigration. This sentiment rises to 91% among RN supporters. - 43% of French residents surveyed think that insecurity is mainly due to immigration, compared to 83% of RN supporters. - 69% do not support the RN's "national preference" idea that French people should be favoured for jobs, benefits and housing over foreigners. https://www.france24.com/en/france/20240627-france-saw-a-rise-in-all-types-of-racism-in-2023-report-says

https://sfstandard.com/2024/06/28/grants-pass-san-francisco-homeless-london-breed/

The Supreme Court on Friday reduced the authority of executive agencies, sweeping aside a longstanding legal precedent that required courts to defer to the expertise of federal administrators in carrying out laws passed by Congress. The precedent, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, is one of the most cited in American law. There have been 70 Supreme Court decisions relying on Chevron, along with 17,000 in the lower courts. The decision threatens regulations in countless areas, including the environment, health care and consumer safety. The vote was 6 to 3, dividing along ideological lines. The conservative legal movement and business groups have long objected to the Chevron ruling, partly based on a general hostility to government regulation and partly based on the belief, grounded in the separation of powers, that agencies should have only the power that Congress has explicitly given them. NYTimes

Honestly it doesn't look too bad. If you're able to tell when things are AI you might be able to catch it but I think the average person seeing this on TV would be fooled. And this is just the FIRST, imagine how hard they're working to make it seamless. The implications this has for editors, graphic designers, actors, everyone involved in production etc is pretty scary.