What We’re Reading: Tom Brady returning to the NFL, Putin’s internet controls exposed

By Yasmine Moussa

Published Mar 15, 2022

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady throws the football during a playoff game in the NFL. (AP Photo/Mark LoMoglio)

Tom Brady returns for his 23rd season in the NFL

Just 40 days after Brady announced his retirement from the NFL, he announced on Sunday that he is returning for his 23rd season to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to ESPN.

While announcing his unretirement, Brady’s message states, “These past two months I’ve realized my place is still on the field and not in the stands.”

In 2021, Brady led the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl championship and the NFC South title last season. During his 20 years with the New England Patriots, he won six Super Bowls with coach Bill Belichick.

Brady posted on social media saying that he has “unfinished business.”

Putin’s faulty internet controls exposed by war censorship

This photo shows pages from the US State Department’s Global Engagement Center report released in 2020. This tells us that before declaring war on Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin was attempting to make Russia’s internet a strong tool of surveillance. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick)

Long before announcing war in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin was planning to make the internet a robust tool of social control, according to ABC News.

Putin has blocked access to both independent news sites and Western media in the country. A new law emerged that criminalizes spreading information that contradicts the government’s line.

However, the Kremlin’s most recent filtering measures have exposed fundamental flaws in the government’s larger intentions to control the internet.

Facebook and Twitter are currently unreachable in Russia, as well as with software known as virtual private networks, or VPNs, that allows users to avoid censorship rules.

Breonna Taylor’s supporters push for justice

Members of Breonna Taylor’s family and supporters gather to release balloons in Jefferson Square Park for a memorial on the two-year anniversary of Breonna Taylor’s death. (AP Photo/Piper Hudspeth Blackburn)

Following the two-year anniversary of Breonna Taylor’s death in a botched police raid, her supporters gathered in downtown Louisville, KY with balloons, according to KCRA3 News.

Standing in the middle of the tribute surrounded by flowers, paintings and posters was Tamika Palmer, Taylor’s mother.

The memorial was held a few weeks after Brett Hankison, one of the Kentucky cops participating in the raid, was found not guilty of endangering neighbors the night he opened fire on Taylor’s apartment.

His acquittal ultimately put an end to any state criminal charges and none of the officers involved were charged with Taylor’s death.

Russia seeks military aid from China

China’s UN Ambassador Zhang Jun addresses the UN Security Council, Monday, March 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

A U.S. official said that Russia requested military supplies from China for use in its invasion of Ukraine, increasing concerns about the ongoing conflict ahead of a Monday meeting in Rome between top advisers from the U.S. and Chinese governments, according to ABC News.

The prospect of China offering Russia financial help is one of several concerns for U.S. President Joe Biden.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has put China in a difficult spot with two of its most major trade partners: the United States and the European Union.

China requires access to those markets, but it has also shown support for Moscow, professing a relationship with “no limits” with Russia.

The discussions will emphasize the direct impact of Russia’s war on Ukraine on regional and global security, according to the White House.